The best Christmas songs are ones that can be played while sipping brown liquor.

From the Temptations’ “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and Donny Hathaway’s “This Christmas” to John Coltrane’s “My…

The man from New York City’s Brooklyn borough is having a good year.

I first learned of my cousin’s lynching when I was 10 years old. During the summer, I often spent time at my uncle…

This week at VSB, we’re running a series called Albums That Changed My Life in which different writers let you in on…

Dear L.J.,

I can’t believe it’s been 25 years. Candyman was released on Oct. 16, 1992, but I remember it like it was yesterday…

Tina Campbell pissed me off.

I’m not good at being a Christian … at least not the kind of Christian I was raised to be.

Officiating funerals is one of the hardest things I have to do in ministry. I struggle with the right words to say,…

I didn’t learn how to drink alcohol until I was 33.

I regret not attending an HBCU.

In undergrad, there was a frat brother who would watch fictional movies and randomly announce which characters he…

On July 1, 1917, a car full of white men drove into East St. Louis, Ill., and opened fire, shooting into homes while…

It appears as if Bill Cosby has lost his damn mind.

The last time I saw someone wear a Jheri curl with a straight face was in the summer of 2015. In June of that year,…

Before my son was born, I did not cry much. For instance, I was able to successfully navigate the untimely demise of…

I live in Oklahoma. I teach at a university less than an hour from Tulsa. Much of the trial happened during my…

Back in September, Terence Crutcher, an unarmed black man, was walking to his car with his hands up when he was shot…

Two weeks into Donald Trump’s presidency, I had to turn off the news alerts on my phone.