The Black Music Action Coalition, an advocacy organization that to addresses systemic racism within the music business, hosted a private screening and cocktail reception of Simplified: Bridging the Gap, a documentary directed by YelloPain, at the The London West Hollywood this past weekend. The rapper and activist’s documentary provides educators with unbiased tips to explain complex civic issues to a younger minority population to help encourage participation in elections.
Coming off the Grammys, the biggest week in music, Yello Pain noted, “I think it was extremely important for us to do this event because we we’re able to get the voices of the culture in one room and show them what we’re doing to revolutionize the future.”
The film struck an emotional chord in the wake of the unjustly death of Tyre Nichols, who died after a brutal beating in the hands of Black police officers. “In the wake of another Black man unjustly murdered, it is crucial that we educate today’s youth on the complex political and civic issues that directly affect them,” declared Willie “Prophet” Stiggers, co-founder/co-chair of the BMAC. “In order to turn protest into policy, we must be clear on how that can be done. Black Music Action Coalition is proud to support Simplified: Bridging the Gap, a documentary that offers a clear path to that slogan becoming our reality.” Industry execs and VIPs attending the screening included Catherine Brewton, Mont Brown, Shawn Holiday, Corey Jacobs, Jason Lee, Phil Thornton and more.
The event came on the heels of BMAC and UTA co-hosting a private reception and VIP preview of the upcoming Ernie Barnes exhibit, Where Music & Soul Live at UTA Artist Space in Beverly Hills, California. The show, which includes 30 works of Barnes’ rendition of street and nightclub scenes and musician portraits, many from private collections that have been rarely seen in the public, runs from February 15, 2023 to April 1, 2023.
