We’ve all heard how change starts at home, so I was happy this week to learn that there is some musical change happening in the White House that just might plant another seed to greater acceptance and understanding of cultural diversity.
Since moving in in January, the Obama family has hosted music ranging from pop starts to mariachi bands, including our friends and voices of change Sheryl Crow, Stevie Wonder, Earth Wind and Fire, Alicia Keys and Fergie (Black Eyed Peas). This week however, they hosted their first Poetry Jam with a culturally diverse range of poets, actors and spoken word artists accompanied by pianist Eric Lewis and bassist and singer Esperanza Spalding.
The shift is happening and music is going to continue to be an essential component in bring us all together.
Esperanza Spalding at the White House / Photo by Ozier Muhammad, NY Times
