{"@context":"http://iiif.io/api/presentation/3/context.json","id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/iiif/kk94747h5n/manifest","type":"Manifest","label":{"en":["Damont Combs Oral History"]},"logo":"https://d9jk7wjtjpu5g.cloudfront.net/organizations/logo_images/000/000/010/original/Aviary_QPLlogo_192x192.png?1578574261","metadata":[{"label":{"en":["Description"]},"value":{"en":["\u003cp\u003eDamont Combs, aka Mr. Orange Live, discusses growing up in Jamaica, Queens, finding community through poetry, and how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected his ability to perform poetry live. Combs also speaks about his life in Rhode Island and his return visits to New York City and his old neighborhood in Jamaica.\u003c/p\u003e"]}},{"label":{"en":["Rights Statement"]},"value":{"en":["\u003cp\u003eCC BY-NC-SA Contact digitalarchives@queenslibrary.org for research and reproduction requests.\u003c/p\u003e"]}},{"label":{"en":["Source Metadata URI"]},"value":{"en":["http://digitalarchives.queenslibrary.org/search/browse/40600"]}},{"label":{"en":["Date"]},"value":{"en":["2021-06-22 (created)"]}},{"label":{"en":["Type"]},"value":{"en":["Audio"]}},{"label":{"en":["Agent"]},"value":{"en":["Damont Combs (Interviewee)","Vijay Ramanathan (Interviewer)"]}},{"label":{"en":["Source"]},"value":{"en":["Interview recorded as part of the Change and Creativity Through COVID-19 project at the Far Rockaway Library."]}},{"label":{"en":["Coverage"]},"value":{"en":["1990-2021 (temporal)","Jamaica and Forest Hills, Queens, NY; Rhode Island (spatial)"]}},{"label":{"en":["Language"]},"value":{"en":["English"]}}],"summary":{"en":["\u003cp\u003eDamont Combs, aka Mr. Orange Live, discusses growing up in Jamaica, Queens, finding community through poetry, and how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected his ability to perform poetry live. Combs also speaks about his life in Rhode Island and his return visits to New York City and his old neighborhood in Jamaica.\u003c/p\u003e"]},"requiredStatement":{"label":{"en":["Attribution"]},"value":{"en":["\u003cp\u003eCC BY-NC-SA\u0026nbsp;Contact digitalarchives@queenslibrary.org for research and reproduction requests.\u003c/p\u003e"]}},"provider":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/aboutus","type":"Agent","label":{"en":["Queens Public Library"]},"homepage":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/","type":"Text","label":{"en":["Queens Public Library"]},"format":"text/html"}],"logo":[{"id":"https://d9jk7wjtjpu5g.cloudfront.net/organizations/logo_images/000/000/010/original/Aviary_QPLlogo_192x192.png?1578574261","type":"Image"}]}],"thumbnail":[{"id":"https://d9jk7wjtjpu5g.cloudfront.net/collection_resource_files/thumbnails/000/123/482/small/Combs-Damont-aviary.png?1631720011","type":"Image","format":"image/png"}],"items":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482","type":"Canvas","label":{"en":["Media File 1 of 1 - orange_live_damont_combs.mp3"]},"duration":1885.14,"width":640,"height":360,"thumbnail":[{"id":"https://d9jk7wjtjpu5g.cloudfront.net/collection_resource_files/thumbnails/000/123/482/small/Combs-Damont-aviary.png?1631720011","type":"Image","format":"image/png"}],"items":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/content/1","type":"AnnotationPage","items":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/content/1/annotation/1","type":"Annotation","motivation":"painting","body":{"id":"https://aviary-p-queenslibrary.s3.wasabisys.com/collection_resource_files/resource_files/000/123/482/original/orange_live_damont_combs.mp3?1631719541","type":"Audio","format":"audio/mpeg","duration":1885.14,"width":640,"height":360},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482","metadata":[]}]}],"annotations":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209","type":"AnnotationPage","label":{"en":["Full Transcript [Transcript]"]},"items":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/1","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Vijay Ramanathan: Hello, and welcome to Queens Memory Project interview, I'm Vijay R. Nathan and I'm with Damont Combs, who is a poet from South Side, Jamaica, Queens, New York, and a graduate in computer technology service from Johnson and Wales University. Mr. Combs, otherwise known as Mr. Orange Live has released two books of poetry, My Poem...My Riddle by Prysmatic Dreams Publishing 2015 and Damont Combs presents A Touch of Orange by Kingdom Enterprise LLC. 2016, Mr. Orange has noted the brightly colored color orange at numerous venues. And he was 2018 poet of the year 2019 RI mentor of the year and produced multiple award-winning films in 2020. Welcome Mr. Combs. Welcome Damont.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=4.0,53.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/2","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: Thank you. Thank you. It's great to be here.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=53.0,56.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/3","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Vijay Ramanathan: Great. Thank you. Thank you. So why don't we start the conversation off a little bit about the color orange and how that plays into your aesthetic, and then we go into your poetry practice from there.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=56.0,68.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/4","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: Aight so orange for me it represents creativity and it represents the, to get through that dark time to your life because there were dark times in my life, especially when I left Queens. And I moved to Rhode Island to go to college and get my degree. And I have, you know, everybody has their own stories. So I started wearing orange when I was in college and I started performing and everyone noted that I was wearing a lot of orange and they was like, oh, I'm gonna just call you Mr. Orange. And I was like, cool. Originally I was called actually Mr. Orange Black, but then I did an event called Orange. I did an event called, oh, what was it called? Orange Live was actually called Orange Live. And what I would do is I would take artists from Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and then we would go down to New York City and perform at Bowery Poetry Club.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=68.0,124.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/5","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: And, I did this for a couple of years where I performed at Bowery. I performed at the Nuyorican. I performed at many different places in New York. And when I, when I did all that, it was really, really, really, really dope. So going back in, you know, being a part of New York City really, really shaped who I was, so that live part, I called it Orange Live. And I haven't been able to do that event in a couple of years, but I took that name on for myself and that's where you get my stage name Mr. Orange Live.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=124.0,166.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/6","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Vijay Ramanathan: Thank you. Thank you. So going into your poetry practice, tell us a little bit about what themes you deal with in your poetry and what are some recurring ideas that you play with.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=166.0,176.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/7","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: Some of the ideas that I've play with or some of the things that I do with my poetry, is like, I'll talk about relationships. I'll talk about the color orange. I'll talk about riddles. I love, absolutely love adding riddles in my poem and throughout my poetry. There's about 52 different types of poetry. I do write free verse, but I also teach it as well. You know, storytelling, there's also numbers. There's also the alphabet or aesthetics where, you know, you like you take 'bed'. B is for boy, E is for everyone. D is for dog, that kind, combine I've lot of different types throughout my poetry. So what else, the types of poetry that I do, and I've talked about, some very hard topics like racial profiling, I've talked about injustices, I've talked about abortion. I've talked about the struggles in the military, such as, in one of the poems I wrote, it was about a boy who was writing to his father and the father's writing to his boy and I call it Letters to My Son and, they're going back and forth of their struggles in the military and how he grew up and facing PTSD and things of those nature. So those are the topics that I've talked about that are very common, you hear my poetry, really bringing back to the basics of humanity.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=176.0,271.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/8","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Vijay Ramanathan: Thank you. So I understand you integrated in film with, your poetic practice. Tell us a little bit about the films you made in 2020 and how COVID might've affected the creative process.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=271.0,287.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/9","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: So, COVID-19, I think it changed a lot of people's lives. It really, really did. At that time I was planning on traveling still. I frequently go back to New York. I was getting grants to go back, to go back home and give back to my community in the form of performing in a form of, being a part of the Black and Brown Film Festival and the film that I had put out there. Special shout out to Adrienne Whaley. The film that I put out there was called Poetry 101, and it's basically me reintroducing poetry to the world. Like, you know, if you go on, Netflix it's a perfect example. You'll see on Netflix comedians have their own platform. Fiction has their own platform, but as far as poetry, there is a lot of poetry out there, but it's not mainstream.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=287.0,341.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/10","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: Even though it has been a part of every part in integrated into society. So that's what my film is about. It's about taking poets and reintroducing it, and how it's used in society like poetry, you'll see poetry in advertising. You'll see poetry, a lot of times, poets are behind the political speeches that you'll see. A lot of times you'll see poetry in writing in the school system. You see it in health care, you see it in many different maximum impact. Anything doing activism, trying to end the 13th amendment, which, with the exception clause, which legalizes slavery still in America, I know Juneteenth just came up, which says that, we're celebrating the end of slavery, but in reality, slavery didn't end. It just switched to a different platform, if that makes sense and hid behind certain things. And then, actually on Netflix there's a movie called The 13th that came out that that does that. I wasn't able to interview them, but I had to do it on Zoom. So like a lot of plans that I had with COVID, COVID just like, had to switch my whole life around as an artist because, you know, we perform live. We love being live in front of an audience and it's not quite the same performing your work on a screen like this.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=341.0,435.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/11","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Vijay Ramanathan: Going into your life in Queens, where were you born and where were you raised? Tell us a bit about your childhood","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=435.0,444.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/12","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: OK, I was born in South Side, Jamaica, Queens, on Sutphin and Linden. And, I grew up in a house that my Nana owned and then my mother owned and my whole family grew, we all grew up in this house, so it was like a generational thing. And having that stability, if that's the best way to put it and family, it really taught me the value of family. It taught me the value of having a community. So I learned that early. And then, my childhood was, you know, my mother, she was basically a single mom. She did have like, you know, other male figures in my life. I do have brothers and their, and their fathers did raise me. I have about, we have four brothers. I have a twin actually, who is the same, and an amazing, amazing, person.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=444.0,511.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/13","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: And I do love him. So we grew up in this wonderful small house. I went to, I didn't go to school in Jamaica, Queens. I actually went to school in Forest Hills, which is a couple of train rides away. And I actually went to a Jewish school, PS 144. So it was very interesting to grow up in a black neighborhood and then go to a school where they talked about, I actually remember meeting a Holocaust survivor when I was in school in elementary school. And, you know, when you're that young, you don't understand what's happening or what happened. But as I grew older, I began to understand through schooling education who I actually met and the importance of the Holocaust, and then not being taught that in my own neighborhood, because that is the cultural difference there. So it was very interesting, very, very interesting.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=511.0,577.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/14","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: I ended up going, after elementary school, I went to Russell Sage, and then Russell Sage there, it was different from PS 144 although it was in the same generalized neighborhood, because that one was predominantly a Russian area. And, just to tell you a quick story about the little school that I like to tell, so Russell Sage for me was a wonderful, wonderful school, but it had its share of issues in the community of itself, where there had a lot of gang issues. And some of the kids going into the schools I guess, was affiliated with gangs. And, the class that I was in at the time, or one of the classrooms when I was in eighth grade, the school goes up to ninth grade was, 9-12. And I remember when I was in eighth grade one, one day, it was like, oh, you got to leave early, you got to leave early.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=577.0,642.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/15","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: I was like, why do we have to leave early? Because there's going to be a big fight after school. And I was like, why is it going to be a big fight? I didn't understand what was going on. And they were coming for this class 9-12, and a big group, a gang of Russians came to the school and they fought the kids that was in that classroom. So next year I'm in 9-12. So I'm like, okay, what's going to happen this year. So eventually it happened again. But really, really what it was, was just youth and community and then sticking together. But of course I didn't fight. I left, we all left early. And, so that's just one of the things that, you know, you encounter is this cross-culture, where you can either fight or you can join together. Then I went and in high school, everything, all that kind of stuff, simmered down for, for the most part, I went to Queens Vocational Technical High School where I learned my craft and I have computer technology and I learned how to use a computer and I really do credit them because they did an amazing, amazing job, at teaching us about the computer system. And it really honed in on my love for computers and I still fix them to this day.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=642.0,728.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/16","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Vijay Ramanathan: So when you're talking about Queens community and building community, the community in which you've lived in, we were talking a little bit about that. So we can go into that and how you build community around poets and, and how you found community in poetry.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=728.0,740.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/17","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: Yes, yes. So I have this great community, you know, back home in New York City. I have family there, cousins, brothers, sisters, a lot, a lot of strong community, like, for instance, on my block where I grew up at, everyday we had a basketball court, we had like a basketball set up and we would go outside and shoot hoops. And the kids from around the block would come in, we would have block parties. They would section off the block and they would come and we would party all the time. So I was used to this sense of community. But when I came to Rhode Island, I didn't have, I didn't know anyone when I first came here and I didn't have any community out here. When I was in New York, I did go to open mics, but I didn't do it as often, especially when I was in before I went to college.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=740.0,795.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/18","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: So when I came here, I was really looking for that sense of community because, I didn't have, and, in college. So I left and I went to an open mic and I found that community there where we bonded through poetry. And I found friends that I can talk to about the things that I was going through in life. I found people would actually listen when I was on stage and they urged me to grow and grow and grow. Yeah, so that, that really was important for me. And what I ended up doing was the moment that I could, I would go back to New York often. I would constantly be going back like three to four times a year because I missed it. But what I, what I was doing was I was visiting family. I didn't connect poetry at this point.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=795.0,849.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/19","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: And then that's when the Orange Live came in, Orange Live meets New York City. And then I started doing Bowery poetry out there. And then I would go back and try to go feature. I would go back to New York and try to go to this poetry festival the actually, it was on Governors island. And think it's one of the biggest poetry festivals in New York City for poets. Like they will have every year, a thousand different poets come from all over the world, all to this one little island for about three-day festival. And I will go to this festival and I would connect with all these amazing artists that had filmed there. They had posted that film. They have schools there, teachers that did that. They had groups, they had organizations, they had nonprofits, it really is an amazing experience. And I vended there, I perform there on this island. And then after that, you know, you go home. So I met a lot of great people there. So that's how poetry really became that community for me, was it connected my home back in Jamaica, Queens, even the people there, and then abroad there's people that I've met in the poetry community that are all over the world really. And, you know, I definitely want to travel to see them someday.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=849.0,928.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/20","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Vijay Ramanathan: So also about, how Queens has changed over the years. How have you observed the changing of Queens, since you, since you grew up there?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=928.0,940.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/21","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: So when I grew up there, my scope was from a younger point of view. It was like, oh, okay. These are the kids I grew up with. I've lost, one of the things that I say is, you know, I grew up with, I go up the block, right. And I see these guys on the corner every day. And then, one day they're not there. And then I see this guy for about five years. I go back one day, I'm a lot older, a lot smarter. And I remember him like, Hey, what's up? What's up? He's like, you know, What's good? What's good? And then I seen for a couple of weeks and he disappears again, you know? And then you begin to wonder, okay, well, what's happening. As I've gotten older and I went back, the police force wasn't as relevant or as prevalent there.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=940.0,994.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/22","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: At least I don't remember them when I was younger. Now, when I go back, it's like, I went back and I remember walking down a block and there was a funeral service happening, but they had three police cars. They had one right there in front of the funeral. They had one, around the corner and they had another one right there. And I'm asking myself, why is it that they're here? There's no reason for them to be here in the way that they are. This is just a normal, you know, gathering of black people here. And apparently one of the reasons that they were, there was gang violence. The person that died, was shot through some form of gang violence, and they were worried about retaliation on the family. I've also seen like on my block now where there's, you know, drug deals and things of that on one side and the police are literally on the other side standing on the corner.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=994.0,1055.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/23","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: So it's like this duality of justice versus this is what we have to do. And in seeing that, and then seeing, the other side flip side of, well, was there a sense of community? Is there that community? And there is a sense of community. When I was growing up, there was a park, at a school, I think it was PS 48 and we played chess out there and we played basketball and there was a park, Baisley Pond had a park and has a whole community there. So there were things for the youth to do. Whether the police makes that a lot easier, is hard to tell. I think that they're definitely a hundred percent, needs to be a community meeting, where there can be a common ground that affects our neighborhood. And I can see, I can see the way poverty affects our neighborhood.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1055.0,1125.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/24","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: And in the same instance, a couple of blocks away, there's Jamaica Avenue. And Jamaica Avenue was pure black. You did have a couple of Middle Eastern people, but what you wouldn't see, ironically is black owned. You would not see black owned. You can see the Chinese restaurant, you see the McDonald's, you see the Wendy's, you see the Dunkin Donuts, you see the, a lot of businesses, but you wouldn't see black owned businesses in the black neighborhood. And I found that very weird. And one of the things that opened my eyes to this was there was this guy that grew up, that opened up a 99 cent store. He was actually a black guy. I said, well, do you own this and he said yes. And he, you know, talked. And he told me, he said, you know, I'm one of the few black owners here, that own, that own, and giving back here.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1125.0,1187.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/25","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: And that's very, very important to understand that in, an impoverished neighborhood that you see somebody that's your skin color, own something there and teach the youth that they can own in their own neighborhood and change in their own neighborhood. Like for instance, I didn't know that I didn't understand the power that the community really had when I grew up there. And it wasn't until I came to Rhode Island and I traveled around a little bit for that I understand the actual power that community has, for instance, in a community, somewhere in Rhode Island. I don't remember where exactly, but they didn't allow a McDonald's. They didn't allow any liquor stores in this particular community. And it was very odd. And I, and I asked somebody, I said, Hey, how come there's no McDonald's? How come there's no liquor here? How come you don't have them here?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1187.0,1253.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/26","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: They say, because the community doesn't want it. The community won't support it. And I said, oh, wait a minute. If you go to an impoverished neighborhood, you see a liquor store on every single block. But in this neighborhood, a McDonald's you see these franchises and things, but in this, in this neighborhood over here, they won't allow it. They won't support it. So it's not necessarily there when you learn that the community has that kind of power. If they can band together to make their neighborhood theirs, it really does change your perspective on, on a lot of different things. It really does. And then you begin to realize, oh, well, who's the one making these decisions. Who's the ones that's putting these people in these places to benefit from black people. They on Jamaica Avenue, they've been trying for a couple of years to gentrify.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1253.0,1317.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/27","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: And what they'll do is they'll raise the rent prices up a little bit. So any black businesses that'd be, I can't afford to be there anymore. They'll come and they'll change the stores. Like for instance, you'll see a Starbucks there, you'll see things that you would not normally see in that kind of neighborhood. But one thing I do love about my community is that it's resilient. It's very, very strong. There's a hustle mentality. I would get up and I, and I still go back there. And one thing you'll realize is that once you start traveling, you go different places, you realize, you know, New York is so different because, but there's this mentality that we won't give up. We won't give in to demands of the pressure of poverty or a society. We're going to go on and we're going to make a living.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1317.0,1376.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/28","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: And it's very unique to see people that are lined up on Jamaica Avenue that are selling clothing, that are selling toys, that are selling, you know, even if they don't have a physical store, they're out there, they're selling books to the youth, and, whatever they have to sell to make that living. They'll get up at six o'clock in the morning when the stores open and they'll stay till 6:00 PM. When those stores are closed, 7:00 PM, they'll still be selling. They'll sell jewelry and stuff like that. So that mentality very, very unique that even if you're not giving me that opportunity to own something, I'm going to still be an owner, I'm still going to get and do what needs to be done. If I have to go get a license to, a license to sell, then I'm going to go get that license to sell. Then all I gotta do is go get a book. And if I could just sell a couple of books to a couple of people, I can be up. That's that mentality that really does make a big difference.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1376.0,1434.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/29","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Vijay Ramanathan: Yeah. And also I'd like to touch in, on, you know, BLM or Black Lives Matter movement and how that affected you, or how did you participate and what is your opinion, or what is your views on the protests? And where were you when they started?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1434.0,1450.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/30","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: I was in Rhode Island when that started, the Black Lives Matter with George Floyd. There was a lot of protests. I'm a part of a multi-site magazine. So I was there and I shot videos and pictures for them. And I was able to give them the videos of the actual protest is about what 10,000 people that came out to this one protest in this small little town. And it was an amazing experience to see the community come together under this one cause, and they are here at least, at least here on Rhode Island what they're doing is they're having community meetings here. And they're saying, well, we want this from our police. For instance, one of the biggest thing they're trying to decide now is should police wear body cams? As far as what I know, it's like, you know, racism is going to exist.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1450.0,1505.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/31","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: Does the body cam actually work? Like there's videos of black people being killed by police? They've had them now for a long time, but is that going to bring justice? Like, is that going to tell the full story? And, and that's where we, that's where we, differ at. Yeah, so I was basically in a capacity as a journalist for Motif Magazine when it came to the Black Lives Matter. My own personal opinion on it is yes, black lives does matter. And I believe that police need to be held accountable for their actions. And yes, yeah, I think that police need to be held accountable for their actions. Their job is not to kill us. Their job is to bring us in and let the people determine if they're, if we're, if we've committed a crime or not.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1505.0,1566.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/32","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Vijay Ramanathan: Thank you. It's very important topics to talk about. And how accountability is the point of this whole exercise.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1566.0,1577.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/33","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: Exactly. Exactly. Let's talk about, us giving back, you know, in Jamaica, Queens, there's a couple of people doing a lot of big things. Like I talked about the Black and Brown Film Festival and the person running that is Adrienne and, Adrienne Whaley. She's an amazing, amazing, person who first started, an open mic there and then went into film and she realized that she's giving black people the opportunity to express themselves through music, through business, through poetry, through photography, through animation. The opportunity that she's given them, the opportunity to share their work on a national and international level right there in Jamaica, Queens. So shout out to the local artists that are there. Another one that's doing it big is called, it's a group, called Get Touch Voice. And, they're a rap group that started out, as just, you know, boys getting together and rapping, instead of doing all this violent stuff, they're getting in the studio and they let out their frustrations on the track. And then a group of, young black men who get together and perform, artistic pieces, venting their frustrations or their positive or what they want. So special shout out to them. They're from Jamaica, Queens. Yeah, there's, there's, there's so many of the artists out there, that are along those lines, from Queens. So shout out to them.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1577.0,1680.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/34","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Vijay Ramanathan: Well, why don't we end with you reading, reading a poem, if you can, reciting a poem, if you have a moment.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1680.0,1686.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/35","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: Okay. Okay. [Damont Combs recites a poem].","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1686.0,1762.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/36","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Vijay Ramanathan: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much for being here. And I think the final thought or final question I have is about, how, your faith or how, seemed like that was a very faith based poem, how your faith informs your poetry practice. And you can, you can kind of tell us a little, give us a little insight into that aspect of your life.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1762.0,1780.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/37","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: Yeah. So, I'm a Christian. I grew up a Christian in church and keeping the faith when you're in that kind of things is so hard. Like as you're going through life, you, you, you need an anchor. You need to know that there's more to life than just, you know, the depressing parts. There's more to life than just, you know, yourself. There's things that are greater than yourself. And, Christianity teaches you that, you know, you're redeemable, even if you made a mistake, you're redeemable. If, you know, you're not the best. And that through Christ, you're redeemed. So that's, that's really what it's about. For me, people fall on hard times and that poem is truly about remembering that no matter the situation a person's in, that they're still human. That even though that person may not get a job, that they're still human. That person may be mentally sick, they're still human. And that, you know, you have to treat them as such. You do, you have to treat them as such. And Christianity definitely reminds me of that.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1780.0,1853.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/38","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Vijay Ramanathan: Thank you. So finally where can people follow you or find out more about your work?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1853.0,1858.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/39","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: You can go to mrorangelive.com or you can go to facebook.com/tellyourtruthri or you can find me on Instagram again at Mr. Orange Live.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1858.0,1872.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/40","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Vijay Ramanathan: This has been a presentation of Queens Memory Project. I'm Vijay R. Nathan. And, thank you so much for coming with us Mr. Damont Combs, Mister Orange Live. Thank you.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1872.0,1881.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482/transcript/47209/annotation/41","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Damont Combs: Thank You so much for this interview. Thank you.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/21/collection_resources/50664/file/123482#t=1881.0,1885.14"}]}]}]}