Bryonn Bain
Bryonn Bain is the creator of critically acclaimed[1][2][3][4][5][6] theatrical production Lyrics From Lockdown, founder of the non-profit Blackout Arts Collective[7] dedicated to empowering artists of colour[8][9], and a social activist who has spoken about American prisons[10] and created prison education programs across the country[7] that allow inmates to earn degrees. He is also a professor in the African American Studies and World Arts & Cultures/Dance departments at UCLA.[11] Cornel West called him "[o]ne of the leading minds of his generation".[12]
Known for his theatrical production, Lyrics From Lockdown, a one-man multimedia experience, executive produced by Harry Belafonte, his work tells stories of wrongful imprisonment through hip hop theater, spoken word poetry, comedy, classical music and calypso, as well as letters Bain exchanged with friend and fellow poet, Nanon Williams. Williams was sentenced to Death Row at 17 for a crime he did not commit, and continues to be incarcerated in Texas after more than 29 years.[13]
Early life
Born in New York City to parents who immigrated to Brooklyn from Trinidad, Bain is the eldest of five children. His father was a calypso singer and then a soldier and his mother served as a registered ICU nurse for over 40 years.[14] Bain attended Columbia University at the age of 16 and studied Political Science with a concentration in Black Studies. He went on to earn a Master's Degree in Urban Politics, Cultural Studies and Performance from the Gallatin School at New York University. He also earned a Juris Doctorate from Harvard Law School.[15]
Poetry
Bain began performing at age 7 and started writing poetry in junior high school. In 1999, he was the Boston Grand Slam Champion and in 2000, he was the Nuyorican Grand Slam Poetry Champion[16]. Bain ranked #1 in the nation and placed second in the world during the 2000 International Poetry Slam.[17]
Books
Bain published The Prophet Returns, which honors the legacy of Kahlil Gibran and the countless voices Bain has worked with behind bars nationwide for nearly three decades. His second book, The Ugly Side of Beautiful: Rethinking Race and Prison in America, is published by Third World Press with a foreword by Mumia Abu-Jamal and introduction by Lani Guinier. Fish & Bread/Pescado y Pan is a bilingual, hip hop education children’s book published by Brown Girl’s Books.
Blackout Arts Collective
Bain founded the Blackout Arts Collective in 1997. He organized artists, activists and educators of color to create a space for producing impact-focused art and political education workshops in public schools and prisons around the country. At its peak, BAC had chapters organizing in 10 cities around the country.[18]
Prison education programs
Bain has developed and taught courses linking prisons with Columbia University, New York University, The New School, Long Island University, University of California at Los Angeles and internationally at Oxford and Cambridge, in the UK and Muteesa I Royal University in Uganda.[19][20]
His work has reached prisons in 25 states in the United States including Rikers Island,[21] Sing Sing, Wallkill, DC Jail, Metropolitan Detention Center, Boys Town Detention Center, California Institute for Women,[22] Custody to Community Transitional Reentry Program, Barry J Nidorf Juvenile Hall,[22] Central Juvenile Hall and Folsom. Bain founded the Prison Education Program at UCLA in 2015. In 2019, the program and his performances at the Kennedy Center were featured on the debut episode of LA Stories which won an Emmy Award.[23]
Performance
Bain’s work has been featured at the Apollo Theater, Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, The Public Theater (NYC), The National Black Theatre (Harlem), New Jersey Performing Arts Center (Newark), The Actor’s Gang Theater (Culver City), Los Angeles Theater Center (LATC), Festival de Liege (Belgium), M-1 Theater Festival (Singapore), Universidad de las Americas (Mexico) and Muteesa Royal University (Uganda), Rikers Island (New York), Marion Prison (Ohio), TEDX at Ironwood State Prison and Sing Sing Prison.
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2019 | “LA Stories” Featuring Bryonn Bain and the UCLA Prison Education Program
with Giselle Fernandez |
Guest | Emmy Award/ Spectrum News |
| 2018 | Who's Profiting from California's Green Rush? Capitalizing on Cannabis and Incarceration | Host | Documentary News Feature |
| 2016 | The Tavis Smiley Show with Academy Award winner Tim Robbins and Harry Belafonte/The Actors Gang present Bain’s “tour de force" | Guest | |
| 2013 | The Melissa Harris Perry Show: "Obama’s Call to Action?" | Guest | MSNBC |
| 2013 | "Microphone Fiends: Hip Hop and Spoken Word at NYU" | Fuse News TV | |
| 2012 | "Here and Now" Interview with Khalil Gibran Muhammad | Guest | ABC News |
| 2006-10 | “My Two Cents" | Host | BET/Centric, Viacom Networks |
| 2001 | "Walking While Black" Interview with Mike Wallace[10] | Guest | CBS News |
Discography
| ALBUMS | |||
| Year | Title | Notes | Produced by |
| 2015 | Life After Lockdown (digital mixtape) | A Prison Reentry Prototype | DJ Kool Herc |
| 2008 | Don't Be Scared | Music Inspired by the Motion Picture Pig Hunt New York: Blackout Arts | Skyfly/Auditory Sculpture |
| 2005 | Problem Child: The Philosophy and Opinions of Bryonn Bain | New York: Blackout Arts | Laurent "Ras Tippy" Alfred/The Boogie Men |
Musical performances
| Year | Title | Type | Notes |
| 2017 | Imagine Justice[24] | Concert Performance | Opened for Common, J. Cole at Folsom State Prison |
| 2016 | Many Rivers to Cross[25] | Concert Performance | Music, Art and Activism Festival with Carlos Santana, John Legend, TI and Harry Belafonte |
| Got Things? | Music Video | Directed by Indigo Bain, Co-produced by Joseph “Cello Joe” Chang | |
| 2012 | Tears From a Star | Produced by Arthametric, “Fragile” (Remix) by Sting | |
| 2007 | Next on the Mic | Live Jazz and Spoken Word, Produced by Jeff Robinson Featuring Quincy Troupe and Patricia Smith | |
| 2006 | Ancestors Watching | Music Video | Directed by Tania Cuevas-Martinez Featuring Anjali, Chad Moser and Climbing Poetree, Spanish Harlem |
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| Forthcoming | The Ugly Side of Beautiful | Actor/Writer | Feature Film/Screenplay in development[26] |
| 2019 | Windows on the World | Actor | Feature directed by Michael Olmos |
| 2018 | On My Way | Actor/Writer | VR/360 short directed by Gina Belafonte |
| 2017 | Why Prosecutors Matter | Narrator | Animated Short Film - Oakland Public Defender |
| 2016 | Chapter and Verse | Actor | Feature Executive Produced by Antoine Fuqua |
| 2015 | BaaaddD Sonia | Performer | Documentary |
| 2014 | The Darkest Hour: The Impact of Isolation and Death Row | Narrator/Producer | Documentary |
| 2008 | Pig Hunt | Actor | Feature film |
| 2007 | Lyrical Minded 415 | Performer/Producer | Documentary |
| 2005 | Filmic Achievement | Actor | Feature film by Kevin Kerwin |
| 2003 | Urban Scribe | Self | Documentary |
| 2002 | Hunting in America | Actor | Short film directed by Kona Khasu |
References
- ↑ Klugman, Deborah (2017-02-16). "'Lyrics From Lockdown' Is a Powerful, Poetic Reflection on Incarceration". capitalandmain.com. Retrieved 2021-07-24.
- ↑ "LYRICS FROM LOCKDOWN, reviewed by Gray Palmer". STAGE RAW - ARTS IN L.A. - SERVED FRESH. 2017-02-23. Retrieved 2021-07-24.
- ↑ "'Lyrics From Lockdown' Adds Starpower to Post-Performance Discussions – Culver City Crossroads". Retrieved 2021-07-24.
- ↑ ""Lyrics from Lockdown" a Tour de Force – Culver City Crossroads". Retrieved 2021-07-24.
- ↑ Barrett, Shari. "'Lyrics from Lockdown' – One Man, One Mic., 40 Characters, Injustice Revealed | Culver City News". www.culvercitynews.org. Retrieved 2021-07-24.
- ↑ Barrett, Shari. "BWW Review: LYRICS FROM LOCKDOWN - One Man. One Mic. 40 Characters. Injustice Revealed". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2021-07-24.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Desk, BWW News. "NJPAC Welcomes Bryonn Bain in LYRICS FROM LOCKDOWN Tonight". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2021-07-24.
- ↑ "Guide to the Blackout Arts Collective Archive". dlib.nyu.edu. Retrieved 2021-07-24. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "About Us". Blackout Arts Collective. Retrieved 2021-07-24.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 60 Minutes : Prison and Harvard Mike Wallace Interviews Bryonn Bain, retrieved 2021-07-21
- ↑ "Bryonn Bain". Department of African American Studies. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
- ↑ "Lyrics from Lockdown". The Actors' Gang. 2016-01-16. Retrieved 2021-07-25.
- ↑ "Document". www.amnesty.org. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
- ↑ "From Wrongful Arrest to Anti-Prison Activist: Bryonn Bain's Road to 'Lyrics From Lockdown'". Columbia Daily Spectator. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
- ↑ "From Wrongful Arrest to Anti-Prison Activist: Bryonn Bain's Road to 'Lyrics From Lockdown'". Columbia Daily Spectator. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
- ↑ "National Poetry Slam", Wikipedia, 2020-04-17, retrieved 2021-07-21
- ↑ "Bryonn Bain". Lannan Center for Poetics and Social Practice. 2016-01-19. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
- ↑ "Guide to the Blackout Arts Collective Archive 1999-2011 (Bulk 2001-2007) MSS.379". dlib.nyu.edu. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
- ↑ Ibbetson, Ross (2019-12-02). "London Bridge victim was first to confront Usman Khan, witness reveals". Mail Online. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
- ↑ "From Wrongful Arrest to Anti-Prison Activist: Bryonn Bain's Road to 'Lyrics From Lockdown'". Columbia Daily Spectator. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
- ↑ "BRYONN BAIN". sankofa.org. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 "UCLA students and faculty learn while teaching classes behind bars". UCLA. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
- ↑ "Bain is Helping Incarcerated People Find Redemption Through Creativity". spectrumnews1.com. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
- ↑ "Common To Host Historic Imagine Justice Community Concert In Sacramento". Look to the Stars. 2017-08-17. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
- ↑ "ABOUT". www.blackloudness.com. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
- ↑ Low, Elaine; Low, Elaine (2020-10-02). "Rob and Michele Reiner's New Production Company Ink Overall Deal With Warner Bros. Television". Variety. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
External links
This article "Bryonn Bain" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Bryonn Bain. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
|
This page exists already on Wikipedia. |
