Asian and black artists perform at SPEAK USC concert

On Friday night, Ground Zero Performance Café was bustling with students, gathered underneath the bright lights and conversing with milkshakes in hand. They were present to watch SPEAK USC: Asian and Black Voices, an event hosted by the Asian Pacific American Student Assembly, Black Student Assembly and Undergraduate Student Government Program Board to share art and represent the voices of two diverse communities on campus.

The night kicked off with moderator Jason Chu, an L.A.-based rapper and poet who eminded the audience of the importance of events that strive to bring different communities together.

“Our fates are tied together tonight because tonight is a night of solidarity,” Chu said at the event. “Tonight is a night for showing up for each other, to celebrate the fact that there is more work to do, but there is work that is being done tonight.”

The first performer was Amaria Stern, a freshman majoring in dance and anthropology, who danced to a remixed version of Billie Holiday’s “Strange Fruit.” Swaying from side to side with stiff motions, Stern’s dance moves represented a prayer for the lives lost and affected by America’s dark history of lynching black people. The end of the dance, with Stern looking upwards at the trees, was a powerful reminder of the struggle that the African American community has suffered for generations. However, Stern reminded the audience that our past does not always define them, and her dance espoused a message of strength — that the black community can rise up and defy the prejudices it has endured.

“I think in a society where we are told that our limitlessness and our excellence is so rare, my prayer through this dance is that black people will begin to understand that their excellence is not rare,” Stern said. “We are meant to be excellent, and we are and we will continue to be.”

As the night continued, other students showcased their creativity. Isha Sakhalkar, a sophomore majoring in neuroscience, sung about her journey to connect with her culture as the child of immigrants. Her experiences profoundly resonated with many who share the same background and struggles of not fluently speaking their family’s native language.

Constance Chan, a senior majoring in creative writing, delivered a speech about her adolescence, acknowledging the sacrifices her family made in
immigrating to the United States. Her speech was heartfelt yet solemn, as she described microaggressions she overcame in high school.

Empress Christian, a sophomore majoring in theatre, then performed a short play from Facing Our Truth: 10 Minute Plays on Trayvon, Race and Privilege, playing a black mother who must deal with the loss of her son. Christian, emphasized the necessity to change perceptions of African Americans — specifically, young black men.

“It can be so disheartening to look at this world and know that the people I care about in bodies that are non-white will never be safe,” Christian said in her talk. “Some days that is a harder thing to carry than others.”

Christian said that she tries to be a little bit kinder and more loving to people of color. Similarly, Leo Xia, a senior majoring in industrial and systems engineering, challenged others to be kinder and less assuming when meeting him and other Asian students at USC.

His song, “Split Down the Middle,” highlighted the bicultural struggle to fulfill the expectations of two groups: He is not Asian enough, nor is he American enough. Xia delivered a hopeful message of unity;, saying he hoped both the Asian and black communities could overcome the preconceived biases and judgements they have about one another.

The final performance of the evening was by Lami Friebe, a freshman majoring in popular music, who closed out the night with some good tunes with his band The Syndicate. Inspired by The Beatles’ “Blackbird,” the band performed their harrowing song of the same name to express the struggles of the African American community. The song’s lyrics describe how a bird with clipped wings struggles to fly under the judgement of those who hurt it.

After the powerful song, Friebe and The Syndicate moved on to a lighter, comical song about Friebe’s beat-up ’89 Honda Civic. The night ended with an atmosphere of unity, as the crowd sang along to The Syndicate’s lyrics on cruising down highways during sunset.