Giving in to your ego is one of the oldest stories in the showbiz book. But so is figuring out how to stay vivid. Margo Jefferson bookegofigure Change image and share on social
There are still Negro elites. Many of them are obviously much richer, and perhaps a little more integrated into what remains a white power structure. But those old rituals from the social clubs, to the broadly segregated white and black schools, to an obsessive interest in ancestry, all of that does still exist. Look: we are a class-bound society. Margo Jefferson ancestrybindblack share on social
I resist lists. It must be all those 'Most Important' and 'Best of the Year' ones I compiled in my years as a beat critic. I often felt guilty about what I left out. Margo Jefferson beatcompilecritic Change image and share on social
I would certainly say that my life, and perhaps human life in general, follows an intricate pattern of defining, declaring, struggling for, fighting for what we think of and treasure as the self. The inviolate self. This begins with our families: your parents are part of your cultural landscape, and they are also shaped by larger forces than them. Margo Jefferson beginculturaldeclare share on social
Depression is so treacherous - it can be so alluring as well as punishing. After all, it's yours and yours alone - no one else can interfere with it. Margo Jefferson alluredepressioninterfere Change image and share on social
Michael Jackson was one of popular culture's greatest artists. Nobody danced better. Few sang more compellingly. No one understood more about stage spectacles or music videos. He was an innovator. His reach was global. Margo Jefferson artistcompellinglyculture share on social
Popular music is one endless love song that, I suspect, the basically solitary Ella Fitzgerald approached much as the basically solitary Marianne Moore approached poetry: reading it with a certain contempt for it, Moore said, you could find a place in it for the genuine. Margo Jefferson approachbasicallycontempt share on social
Black Power was really a major challenge to the social privileges and structures of the kind of privilege that I had grown up with. That whole belief... that you will only be able to advance if you are perfectly behaved, if you present yourself as what white people would consider an ideal of whiteness... all of that just began to burst open. Margo Jefferson advancebeginbehave share on social
Sometimes it feels as if the artist hasn't done the real work of engaging with the material. Film noir can't just play off looks and attitudes. A thriller needs a dose of genuine suspense. It does not have to be literal, but it does have to feel genuine. Otherwise the artist is just leeching off the form. Margo Jefferson artistattitudedose share on social
When innovations become habits, prescriptions, they must be imagined all over again, made new. Margo Jefferson habitimagineinnovation Change image and share on social