Coffee with Chuck

With 2022 coming to an end it’s time to reflect. 2022 was a year for sure. If I had to describe it, it was like a pair of late Jordan models like the 32s. Like they are Jordans you may rock ‘em once or twice but then you are putting them in the closet for good. That’s how I feel about the year 2022. Like it was a cool year but I ain’t choosin’ to come back to it. It was an okay year, some good things happened, but there was a lot of ugliness. But, I am a positive and cheerful guy, you can call me “Cheerful Chuck”.  So, in this reflection, I am choosing to celebrate the good. Personally, I became a Ph.D. candidate as well as an uncle. I also decided to focus on myself and my goals, which has given me immense joy and happiness. For America, it has elected its first Black Woman Supreme Court Justice. Additionally, the Violence Against Women Act was reauthorized, the Respect for Marriage Act was signed, and the Inflation Reduction Act was passed. These may be small feats but they provide me with hope for 2023.

With this hopeful spirit, I now want to highlight some of my favorite books and music projects that I had the privilege of appreciating. Now for these lists, I am not ranking these art pieces objectively and saying these are the best projects ‘universally’. Rather these lists are subjective based on my preferences. Thus, these lists will appear in alphabetical order.

My top 5 books, which I should really call my top 10 books. Over, this past year I read a lot because I was preparing for my candidacy exams and writing my dissertation prospectus. Therefore,  I have created two lists. The first list is my 5  favorite books that I read for my research, and the second is 5 books that I genuinely enjoyed and have never read before. So let’s get to ‘em.

1st List (Research Favorites) 

1. Black and Blur– Fred Moten
2. Check It While I Wreck It: Black Womanhood, Hip-Hop Culture, and the Public Sphere– Gwendolyn D. Pough   
3. Chronicling Stankonia: The Rise of the Hip-Hop South– Regina Bradley 
4. In the Wake: On Blackness and Being– Christina Sharpe
5. The Long Emancipation: Moving toward Black Freedom Paperback – Rinaldo Walcott  

2nd List (Other Favorites) 

1. A Little Devil in America: A Praise In Black Performance– Hanif Abdurraqib
2. How to Go Mad without Losing Your Mind: Madness and Black Radical Creativity–  La Marr Jurelle Bruce 
3. How to Slowly Kill Yourself and Others in America: Essays- Kiese Laymon
4. Looking for Lorraine: The Radiant and Radical Life of Lorraine Hansberry– Imani Perry 
5. We Want to Do More Than Survive: Abolitionist Teaching and the Pursuit of Educational Freedom– Bettina Love 

Now to the music, here are my personal 5 favorite albums from 2022.

1. B.I.B.L.E.- Fivio Foreign 
2. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever- Music From and Inspired By- Rihanna and Tems
3. From a Birds Eye View- Cordae
4. It’s Almost Dry- Pusha T 
5. Renaissance- Beyonce 

What books or albums made your lists? Please, let me know in the comments. Love and Peace!