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Video: Watch Highlights from Broadway Celebrates Juneteenth in Times Square
May 17, 2024
In this video, watch highlights from The Broadway League's Black to Broadway Initiative's Broadway Celebrates Juneteenth concert, hosted by Michael James Scott and including performances by 2023 Tony Award nominees Lorna Courtney, Crystal Lucas-Perry, and NaTasha Yvette Williams and more!
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Hello, I'm Richard Ridge for Broadway World
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The Broadway League's Black to Broadway initiative presents Broadway Celebrates Juneteenth. And we're here in Duffy Square to join the celebration
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♪ The harmonies of liberty ♪ Let our rejoicing rise
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♪ High as the listening skies You're hosting today? Yes, I am hosting. It's an honor
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Are you kidding me? It's my hosting. The Broadway League invited me
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and it's just such a beautiful thing to be able to get to host an event that means so much to the country
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but that we are, as the community, really setting the precedent to say we believe
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and we really recognize in what Juneteenth represents for us as a whole
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♪ All we need is music, sweet music ♪ There'll be music everywhere
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This holiday means so much to me, and it's so important to me that we're here celebrating it
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I grew up in the South, and I wasn't taught about Juneteenth growing up
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I wasn't taught a perspective from another black adult as a child
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And so it's really nice to be here and do what I love to do and be able to celebrate it
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with the other black performers in my community and with the white performers in my community
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and just raise knowledge about what Juneteenth is and why we celebrate it
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and why we get to do what we get to do. ♪ Don't tell me not to fly
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♪ I simply got to ♪ If someone takes a spill, it's me and not you
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♪ Who told you you're a loud rain on my parade ♪ Your sword can be your sermon
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♪ Or the power of the pen ♪ Teach every child to raise his voice
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♪ And then my people then I'm excited for you to be here today
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I'm so excited. Juneteenth is a great celebration, and we're honoring Kenny Leon today
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who's one of my friends. And I'm just so ecstatic about the messages that we're sending out
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just to celebrate one another and celebrate our heritage. ♪ So I'm gonna stand up
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♪ Take my people with me ♪ Together we are going ♪ To a brand new home
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Oh my gosh, this holiday is everything. It's about celebrating the freedom
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of the enslaved African-Americans. And for me personally, it's about remembering my great grandparents
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who were sharecroppers and the history that my grandmother has instilled in me
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and an appreciation that I have for where I am today, here in Times Square on Broadway
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Let's talk about Broadway celebrating Juneteenth and what that means to the Broadway League and everybody coming together
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Yes, this is so wonderful because this is a part of our Black to Broadway initiative
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And it's a way that we are able to get more black people
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to be aware of there is a space for them here on Broadway
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And we're here ready to celebrate and embrace everyone. ♪ There's a dream
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♪ In the future ♪ There's a struggle ♪ That we have yet to win
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♪ I am not my age ♪ I am not my race
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♪ My soul and time ♪ For life I have to say it is just
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this joyful feeling of acknowledgement of my culture and my history. It is the celebration of blackness in Times Square
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Can you believe it? Okay. Wow. ♪ Baby, ain't no mountain high enough
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Y'all better sing with us. ♪ Ain't no valley low enough ♪ Ain't no
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Broadway celebrating this incredible day, what it means to the two of you. This is my Broadway debut
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So I'm really, really excited to be meeting more of the community and just celebrating together
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It's another step. It's another step. We got way more work to do. And we want to see some more black shows
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staying on Broadway for years and years. Like, like every other show gets to do
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And so this is a way that we could do that. We celebrate our blackness. What an honor and a privilege to be a part of this
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It's seeing old friends. It's celebrating my own independence. It's Pride month
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You know, I'm singing Day-O by Harry Belafonte. You know, so we, we're celebrating the day. Yeah
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♪ We've rocked for endless days On a sea of endless grays
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Now we sing a song of praise Amen ♪ Ain't it good
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Oh, ain't it good now, yeah ♪ Ain't it good to see the sun again
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And for Broadway to celebrate this day, what it means to you? Joy
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It is joy. I mean, we are the heartbeat. We are the heartbeat of America. Broadway is the heartbeat of America
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I mean, right here in the epicenter of New York City in Times Square. And for Times Square to be shining a light
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on this particular holiday and for what it means for all of us, it could not come at a better time
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You know, it's, it's great to be here to honor artists and to, to be reminded
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that freedoms are not free. And so it's a great day. Now you're getting the Legacy Award today
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What that means to you? The Legacy Award, this reminds me of all the soldiers I stand on, you know
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And I think about all the people that I've had, I've been blessed to be around, you know
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Ruby Dee and Asa Davis and August Wilson and Sydney Portier and Harribelle Infante
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and Tony Morrison. It's like, it just reminds me that every generation
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we have to keep fighting for our democracy and maintaining our freedom
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So this is a day to honor all of those who have made it possible for me
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to do two Broadway shows last year and two Broadway shows this year
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and Shakespeare in the Park and all of that. And I just love this new generation of artists
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artists and activists. I just, I just love them. And so I want them to know that I love them
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and I want them to know that together we can create a more beautiful union for all
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