Victor Blackwell, a weekend CNN anchor since 2012 who returned to Atlanta in March after two years in New York, has picked Atlanta-based Soul Food Cypher as one of 12 annual Champions for Change named by different anchors. His story will be featured on CNN the week of Sept. 17.
Soul Food Cypher, led by Alex Acosta, is a program that teaches people how to freestyle raps in informal gatherings called “cyphers.” He often works in schools and holds a monthly gathering at workspace CreateATL.
Blackwell, in an interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, said he saw a story on 11Alive about the group that impressed him. (It’s also a group the AJC has featured in 2020 and 2022.)
“He uses it for students not just to teach language but also as a cathartic safe space for people to feel comfortable with themselves in that format,” Blackwell said.
And Blackwell said it’s not only the students who are impacted but the MCs who teach them. “One of the MCs broke into tears describing to me how it affected him talking to these kids,” he said. “This goes beyond lyrics and couplets and cyphers. This is about the human connection between the students and the instructors.”
Blackwell said he has no freestyle rap skills himself. “I’m an observer and was in awe,” he said. “Hip-hop and R&B have been the soundtrack of my life. I feel the connection. This is something that deserves attention on a national and global scale.”
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Credit: CBS
Credit: CBS
Five weeks into “Big Brother” and the two Georgians remain alive, though one of them seems to have alienated almost everybody and has a slim chance of making it to the end.
Cameron Hardin, the stay-at-home dad from Eastman, was used as a pawn twice, but during week five he was clearly in trouble once he was placed on the block by Jared Fields, this week’s head of household. He seemed to have lost the trust of most everyone in the house after his own efforts to take out Jag Bains when he was the head of household a week earlier. (Thanks to America’s vote, Matt Klotz last week won a competition that enabled him to bring Jag back after he was voted off.)
Credit: CBS
Credit: CBS
He had one close buddy the first month: fellow Southerner Red Utley and they were planning a final two called the Chillers. But Red heard that Cameron was not as loyal as he seemed and believing that, basically ended the alliance. “He built his little trash island,” Red said this week to a couple of other players about Cameron.
On Thursday, Red ended up being the fifth “Big Brother” player voted out since Cameron was able to win the Power of Veto and take himself off the block.
Cameron’s future, though, is murky since so many people seem to be gunning for him. But good news for him: he won Head of Household for week six, his second run at the top, which will keep him safe for another few days.
Felicia Cannon, the Kennesaw real estate agent, seems to be on firmer ground with 12 out of 17 players remaining. She is in a strong alliance with Cirie Fields, the former “Survivor” player, and Izzie Gleicher, another savvy player. But there is a chance the other players might try to take out Cirie, weakening Felicia’s chances.
Overall, Felicia has been playing a smart game and most of the players seem to like her.
The competition is just past one-third through and will last 100 days until Nov. 9, the longest competition in the show’s two-decade history. The winner takes home $750,000.
IF YOU WATCH
“Big Brothers,” Sundays, Wednesdays and Thursdays on CBS and available on Paramount+
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