By A small but enthusiastic crowd of about 40 dug in for the four-hour African Expressions Night celebration at the Beach Auditorium Friday night.
An eclectic mix of songs, videos and dancing kept the audience singing and clapping throughout the evening.
Several Cal State Long Beach alumni performed along with current students and artists from the Los Angeles area.
Guitarist Foluke, a Nigerian native who graduated from CSULB last year with a degree in psychology, entertained the audience with soulful singing about relationships and the state of humanity.
“I love playing on the campuses of all the Cal States; we are all here to help elevate our minds,” Foluke said.
Performer “Watts 1965,” also a CSULB alumnus who graduated with a degree in black studies and education, has been performing in and around the city of Los Angeles for 13 years.
“I try not to ever miss a chance to perform at African-American events, especially here at Long Beach State,” Watts said.
Slideshows that demonstrated to the audience the conditions in New Orleans and the hangings that occurred throughout the South earlier in the nation’s history were also shown to the music of Kanye West and Billie Holiday.
The CSULB Breakdancing Club also performed, which included Salvador Padilla, a mechanical engineering major, Brian Wright, a computer science major, and Nico Arce, a communications major.
“These events let you get a chance to express what you’re about in a positive way. Students have the chance to do their thing and put a smile on somebody’s face. Students need a smile now and again to help release our stress,” Wright said.
Grupo Folklorico, a Mexican-American folk dancing troupe, participated to help bridge the gap between Latino and African-American relationships.
A short film by MM Heru highlighted the fact that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice once had a Chevron oil tanker named after her. Rice served on the board of directors of Chevron before becoming a part of President Bush’s administration.
Candice D’Meza, president of Black Student Service Association (the organization that hosted the event), said she was encouraged by the enthusiasm of the audience.
“It was a good event and everything went well. We just got re-chaired, so we are in the rebuilding stage. We want to leave a legacy for incoming minority students at Cal State Long Beach,” D’Meza said.
