Ericka Blount Danois
The Root
Baltimore, MD, United States
Contact Ericka
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Past articles by Ericka:
Here's Why Winston Duke is Wearing a 'Howard' Sweatshirt In Us
At 6 feet 5 inches, Winston Duke already stands out as the gentle giant who has to get brolic in Jordan Peele’s new nightmare Us. But the real star is what he’s wearing throughout the film—a sweatshirt with the word “Howard” emblazoned across it. This fact was not lost on the campus of Howard University, a star HBCU having a Hollywood moment of sorts, with references to the storied institution… → Read More
New Documentary to Shed Light on Why Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nuthing ta F' Wit
Cinematographer Hans Charles wanted to visually frame the Wu-Tang Clan and all of their personas in a way that celebrated each of them as thriving black men in America. Likewise, director Sacha Jenkins understood that the real story in their four-hour documentary on Wu-Tang’s music and legacy is really about “black men who knew each other as boys coming together and using their creativity to… → Read More
Lalah Hathaway, Questlove, Robert Glasper & More On the Impact of PBS’s ‘Soul!’
As we look at #BlackMusicMonth, Ericka Blount speaks with some of music’s finest to talk about PBS’s legendary 'Soul!' and its impact on black music. → Read More
Digable Planets’ Ishmael Butler Talks About Being ‘Unsung,’ His Impact & More [Interview]
Ishmael Butler, better known as Butterfly from Digable Planets, is getting the 'Unsung' treatment, so we talk to him about his love of hip-hop and more. → Read More
Joss Stone’s ‘Project Mama Earth’ Inspired Her To Travel The World [Interview]
Inspired by the sounds of music around the world, Joss Stone create an organic soundtrack to showcase her new life on 'Project Mama Earth'. → Read More
The Iconic Bootsy Collins Speaks On Snoop Dogg, Embracing The New & Guitar Battles [Interview]
Celebrating a birthday and a new album, 'World Wide Funk,' Bootsy Collins still has more of that funky stuff to share with the world. → Read More
The Iconic Bootsy Collins Speaks On Snoop Dogg, Embracing The New & Guitar Battles [Interview]
Celebrating a birthday and a new album, 'World Wide Funk,' Bootsy Collins still has more of that funky stuff to share with the world. → Read More
‘4:44’ Dancer Storyboard P on Dance Culture, Mutation + Wanting Freedom [Interview]
Ericka Blount Danois profiles street dancer-turned-budding star, Storyboard P, about people copying his style, freedom and wanting recognition. → Read More
Shanice Isn’t Done Singing Just Yet
In the fall of 1991, the feel-good single “I Love Your Smile” set five-octave singer Shanice afloat with a music video in which her wholesome, girl-next-door charm and wide smile fit perfectly with what she was singing about. Although the single peaked at No. 2 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the U.K. Singles Chart, it was this wholesome image, along with a number of missteps by her label,… → Read More
Unsung: Before There Was DeBarge, There Was Switch
The story of Switch, the group that paved the way for the group DeBarge with sibling harmonizers Bobby and Tommy DeBarge, is a story as much about the journey for self-love as it is about their ability to seduce audiences with falsettos, rich love songs and lush harmonies. → Read More
Marvin Sapp’s Life Is More Than the Gospel on TV One’s Unsung
Marvin Sapp is more than a preacher who sings or a singer who preaches. Both singing and preaching represent spiritual experiences for him. On Sunday’s episode of TV One’s Unsung, he and family members outline his personal story—a fully lived story with high highs and particularly low lows—which provides insight into his inspiration for his religious and musical paths. → Read More
Meet The Creative Women Behind Jay-Z's '4:44' Music Video [Interview]
Elissa Blount-Moorhead, Melinda Nugent and Gina Harrell sit down with Okayplayer to discuss all of the things that went into Jay-Z's video for "4:44". → Read More
Is Wyclef Jean Really Unsung? There’s More to His Story Than You Know
For ’90s hip-hop heads, Wyclef Jean will always be known as one-third of the legendary group the Fugees. And anyone paying attention over the last few decades probably thinks he or she knows everything about Jean: how he became a sought-after producer, his near-presidential run in his home country and his starring role in a love triangle. But as the premiere of the new season of TV One’s Unsung… → Read More
Jagged Edge May Be Unsung, But They Haven’t Stopped Singing Yet
Twins Brian and Brandon Casey along with their friends Richard Wingo and Kyle Norman made up the 1990s R&B group, Jagged Edge. Unlike boy groups like New Edition or Jodeci, the individual members didn’t become household names or branch out into solo careers, but their sound was so unique that even traditional R&B balladeers like Luther Vandross referred to them as one of his favorite groups. → Read More
For Jodeci, Diary of a Mad Band Wasn’t Just an Album, It Was a Way of Life
If you wondered when R&B singers became rappers and rappers became R&B singers, you just need to take a trip back to the ’90s, when Jodeci first took the hip-hop aesthetic and seamlessly blended it with baby-making jams. Before them, rhythm and blues balladeers were known for their impeccable suits and precise dance moves—from the Temptations of old to New Edition to Boyz II Men of then. → Read More
State of Black America Town Hall Lays Out a Plan for Surviving the Trump Era
Every year around this time, the National Urban League releases a State of the Black America report, with its successes and challenges for the future. This year, under the Trump administration, the need for a cohesive plan is more urgent than ever. → Read More
Whites Need to Understand That White Supremacy Hurts Them, Too
Two weeks ago, I logged into my email to read a note written by the headmaster of my daughters’ school about the white supremacist terrorist who traveled to New York from Baltimore—one of the blackest cities on the East Coast—to find a black man to kill. The note said this terrorist had graduated from my daughters’ Quaker school in 2007. Maybe I should have been shocked, but I wasn’t. Enraged,… → Read More
The Vilification of Marilyn Mosby
Just last week, the right-wing Media Research Center’s annual black-tie gala honored the three arresting officers involved in the death of Freddie Gray. → Read More
Baltimore’s Reaction to the DOJ Report: ‘Well, Duh’
Nobody wanted to listen to Black Baltimoreans when they pointed out how they were under siege by their police. The Department of Justice report may back up their claims, but doesn’t put them at any kind of ease. → Read More
Freddie Gray Didn’t Kill Himself, but Cop Obstruction Made It Hard to Prove: Prosecutor
But while Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby bemoans a lack of police cooperation, other experts say the prosecution was jammed up by an official finding that Gray was injured during transport in the police van, as opposed to potentially by officers during his actual arrest. → Read More