On May 1st, 2019 I was honored with a proclamation of ” Cornell Carelock Day “ in my county of Westchester N.Y. The one word that sprung into my mind was ” Value “.
When we feel like our lives don’t matter we do things that matter less.
There is a resilience and an emotional baseline that gets built up and is only sustained when it is maintained.
For me, Hip Hop has been a positive guide throughout childhood, giving me the motivation to activate my creativity. Once I began to explore my creativity my life’s direction started to unfold. My discovered talent played a significant part in my self-confidence, and it also allowed me to transition into a professional career as a Teaching Artist assisting people of all ages in how to explore their creative journeys.
“Hip Hop is there for me when I need to feel like the world is my playground, and it is also there to provide me with the boost that I need in life to maintain resilience.”
So, I owe Hip Hop a great appreciation and I truly value what it has done for me.
I will now bring light to the people that I value and appreciate:
- My Carelock family
- My Stephney family
- My Mother Laurette Carelock, Father William Carelock and older brother Joseph Carelock
- All the community members that have shown up and supported me however they could
- All of my cohort and fellows whom I share community with
- The many organizations that have partnered with and supported me over the years
- My family unit which consists of my wife Carline and four daughters Egypt, Sabriy, Shakhar’ra , Messiah
Art allows us the ability to translate our stories in ways that best fit our best expression. And when we are inspired we create new lenses to view the world from, and that is why I look forward.
I look forward to celebrating Healing our World through Teaching Artistry every May 1st of each year.
I look forward to those fruitful partnerships with those who have a clear picture of and can align with the vision of my work.
I look forward to seeing the many people in person at True He(ART) Academy workshops.
I look forward to continuing to create accessible content for the world through Tru He(ART) Academy’s website and other spaces on the worldwide web.
I look forward to exploring my future in creating and assisting in creating modern, spacious facilities designed with healing in mind.
Special thanks to all of the fraternities and sororities that have been there to give me a little wind beneath my wings. Your thoughtfulness is not in vain.
Special thanks to Wespac and Majority Leader of the State Senate Andrea Stewart Cousins for the Proclamation.
Special thanks to The Elias Foundation for supporting True He(ART) Academy’s work.
Special thanks to Ron and Julie Carran , Cora Miles and the Abraham family for being guardian angels.
I hope that this honor can bring a pleasant focus to the idea of what great rewards come from showing a person that you value them.
Thank You
