When my good friend, the ACLU attorney, activist, author, musician, and educator Amir Whitaker, AKA Dr. Knucklehead, hit me up to do a summer tour through the northwest and parts of Canada, I couldn’t say no. He’s not just my brother from another mother, co-collaborator in music and travel, but a civil rights all-star attorney and the founder of the non-profit Project Knucklehead which aims to teach and mentor at-risk youth through the arts and currently has programs in Miami and Los Angeles.
Since Amir is no man to have an idea without a plan, he hit me with the map of our route quickly after I agreed to come along.
3500 miles in 10 days
We are currently in the middle of booking dates in the following cities:
Las Vegas
Salt Lake City
Helena, Mt
Banff, CA
Kelowna, CA
Vancouver
Seattle
Portland
Oakland
We set out from Los Angeles on July 19th. We have some venues locked down but we’re still trying to fill these cities. We’ll be doing book readings (cafes, libraries), music sets (bars, music venues, houseshows?), workshops (schools, libraries, cafes, juvenile detention centers), and we even plan to busk along the way (I really want to busk Stanley Park in Vancouver!)
We’re lucky to have the company of long-time friend, photographer and future Steemit blogger Andrew Johnson, who will be documenting the whole journey. And I anticipate podcasting and blogging the tour on Steemit as it unravels.
If any Steemians can recommend venues to contact in the cities above that would be amazing. It would also be great to connect at some point during this tour with some other writers, musicians, podcasters and activist who are active on Steem.
Here’s more info and links about our work so you can get idea of what we do. I’ll post a follow up to this blog that’s more detailed in the coming days and weeks, but I wanted to get the cities up and the map out as quickly as possible with the hopes you guys on Steemit can chime in with recommendations, advice, etc.
ABOUT THE BOOK, READING, AND PERFORMANCE
Follow Amir’s life-changing journey through the trilogy of challenges that molded him into an agent of change. In the first chronicle, he rebounds from incarceration and expulsion from school, while evading the systems devastating his community. Next, the underdog attends leading universities across the country for 12 years, while obtaining five college degrees. Finally, Amir travels to 30 countries by his 30th birthday, while broadening his perspective on the world and humanity. The book has been featured in the New Yorker, ABC News and other media outlets.
In his book readings, Amir combines live music, hip hop, poetry, and soul music to add texture to his storytelling. A visual presentation of images, videos, and animations accompany the performance. Amir has collaborated with artists around the world, and has studied and taught several styles of music and dance. The summer tour features poet/writer/Hip Hop artist Nate Lost.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Amir is an educator and civil rights lawyer on a mission to inspire people with his story. As an author, he aims to foster hope, awareness, and resilience through his writing. His work is a continuation of Project KnuckleHead, a nonprofit organization he started in 2012 that empowers youth through music, art, and educational programs.
Often referred to as “Dr. KnuckleHead,” Amir was introduced to the criminal justice system as a child when he visited both his mother and father in prison. At age 15, Amir himself was arrested and entered the juvenile justice system. Problems at school eventually led to him being expelled. Despite these hardships, Amir went on to complete five college degrees, visit 30 countries before turning 30-years-old, and become one of America’s leading social change agents.
As a lawyer referred to as a “civil rights and education stalwart” by the Daytona Times, Amir has negotiated settlements and educational policy changes that have improved the lives of hundreds of thousands of youth across the country. He has delivered keynote speeches to thousands, and written for leading publications across the country like TIME Magazine.
Youth Empowerment. Knucklehead Nation.
MEDIA AND NEWS APPEARANCES
Escape The Trap Tour Summary
From The Ground Up Podcast
TrapJazz LA Performance
Live in Canada
Mic Check Performance
News 12 New Jersey
EPIX Documentary
ABC News
News 13 Orlando
ABC News
Channel 13
ABC News
Buy the book Escape the Trap by Dr. Amir Whitaker Esq.
ABOUT NATE LOST
Nate Lost is a poet, writer, performer and podcast host originally from New Jersey. He has an MFA from poetry from the University of New Orleans, where he was the front man for a blues/hip-hop band called ThA Neighbors.
His writing has appeared in The Legendary, Haggard & Halloo, Burlesque Press, The Litro and Buried Letter Press. A travel junky, he has traveled, lived and worked in Argentina, Peru, South Korea, Thailand, Edinburgh, France, Italy, Costa Rica, Canada, and Mexico, where he currently lives and hosts eccentric hip-hop shows in Spanish and English.
He collaborated with a variety of musicians around the country, including Dr. Knucklehead, to produce his first album “Love ‘n’ Travel” in May of 2017. He also hosts The Lost Podcast, a series of long-form conversations with artists, activists, teachers, musicians, rappers entrepreneurs, actors and people living alternative lifestyles around the world.
Links
Love 'n' Travel, was recorded in New Orleans, LA by Db Productions and is available on Spotify and Bandcamp
Twitter @NateLostWords
Facebook @NateLostArt/
or visit NateLost.com.
The Renaissance Man Project
Read Intro, Part 1
Read Intro, Part 2
Read Intro, Part 3
Read Intro, Part 4
Read Ch 1, Part 1
Read Ch 1, Part 2
Read Ch 1, Part 3
Read Ch1, Part4
Read Ch 1, Part 5
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