It’s About That Time!

Prairie View, Morehouse, House of Funk, Marching Storm, Lalah Hathaway, Anthony Hamiliton, Angie Stone, Jennifer Freeman, Nick Cannon…I truly hope you have your tickets already because this is simply one HOT AFFAIR! If you don’t have tickets yet then what are you waiting for?? Seriously…. $10 for students…$25 for general admission…$45 for reserved. One ticket gets you into everything. So what are you waiting for? Go ahead. Buy your tickets and then come back and read the rest. I swear I’m not going anywhere! So go ahead, I promise I’ll wait……

My Interview with Debbie Allen

Okay so, if you haven’t seen it already then you should check out my interviews  with Debbie Allen and Pete Carroll. Let’s start with Debbie. Here is the interview with Debbie Allen.

John III interviews Debbie Allen on the Set.

Debbie was simply a pleasure. Can you say: Down to Earth, Down to Earth, Down To Earth!! Around her I felt something similar to Hampton University’s campus, a sense of trust and genuine care just flowed from her personality. It was no wonder that she is a product of Howard University (again won’t go into the Real HU debate, but those out there KNOW how we do it at Hampton!). You’ll notice that at the beginning of the interview I had to give her a hug. Part of it was her warm demeanor and the other part was a sincere act of gratitude. Not simply for supporting the ACC, but for her part-time role in influencing me on which school to choose. She worked on many projects such as Fame, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Jamie Foxx Show, Everybody Hates Chris, but it was her being director in a Different World that literally touched me. This show was part of the reason I began looking at HBCU’s. It was fun, fresh, exciting and looked like something I wanted to be a part of. I don’t have any regrets and just had to give this woman a hug to express my appreciation.

Real quick: We met with Debbie on a Hollywood set where she was working on a project and if you haven’t been on a set please make it a point to do so. It was an entire city made of cardboard and wood. An absolute trip. You would’ve thought that you were in a completely Different World (sorry had to do it) with cameras and people yelling “Action” instead of a downtown metropolis with people hustling on the way to work.

Coach Pete Carroll

USC 35 and Ohio St. 3: You have got to be kidding me! I was at the game on Saturday and had a chance to see this complete act of domination from USC (trust me this game could’ve been much worse than what the final score was). If you don’t know by now, this is Coach Pete Carroll’s house and I’m guessing that nobody bothered to tell Ohio State and Jim Tressel that! Pete Carroll and I had a chance to chat the week leading up to this game.

USC Football Coach Pete Carroll and John III

Check it out here!

A winner on the field and a winner off the field, Pete Carroll plays for the gold ALL the time and EVERY time which is part of the reason why I’m a fan. He has championships under his belt and still takes the time to go into the community in an effort to make it better. He does this through his foundation called A Better LA.

Trust me, this man actually does more OFF the field than the public will ever know because the media doesn’t cover it (go figure). Case in point: Pete Carroll is in the street playing basketball on a spur of the moment pick-up game with kids and gang affiliated “Joes” that are usually up to no good. He plays with them for HOURS. A truly missed individual who passed away recently and goes by the name of Bo Taylor told me this story. Bo spent a lot of time in the streets with Pete and told me of many many more stories like this that involved him. He always said, “J3, that’s just how Pete is!” A real man doing real things to change the plights that hit so many of our family members in our communities. I always thought back to the basketball story and thought if I was out there and had a chance to play ball with Pete I would probably put down that weapon or set aside that anger for a chance to dunk on him too (he’s good though so don’t try to challenge, you might just get embarrassed).

Last thing about Pete is that he will be coming to our event again this year, YET the man hasn’t been to a college football game as a FAN in YEARS!! He told me he couldn’t wait and was excited to see the Halftime “Battle of the Bands” again. I know that’s right!

So IT’S ABOUT THAT TIME to get your popcorn ready. Get your tickets now and arrive in time to witness showtime in the Coliseum like it has never been done before!

PS: Oh yeah, more interviews coming before the event so stay logged on to AngelCityClassic.com to get the latest. I’ve got surprises for you that you just don’t want to miss! And make sure you go find event details to get the latest news on what, where, when and how for Game Day. It’s the true guide for how to maximize your day at the coliseum courtesy of Isidra Person-Lynn. Go do it! Click here!

PSS: Will let someone else close this blog. “Since 1992, I have witnessed many changes. One of the worst changes that could ever take place is the destruction of our communities. Violence should not be an alternative for low self-esteem or poverty and ignorance. No one is too big or too small to play a major role in changing the way our future generation is headed. I believe that if we don’t put our collective minds together and join resources to back up our thoughts and game plans, then we will surely fail our present and future generations.” Bo Taylor, 1966 – 2008.