Jalen Rose went to sitcom school with Malcolm-Jamal Warner
“Everyone loved ‘Diff’rent Strokes,’ ‘The Jeffersons,’ and ‘Sanford and Son,’ and I watched them because, like everyone else, I longed to see people who looked like me on television. image. But like the show that really hit me as a kid was ‘Benson,’” he told me. “Benson is always the smartest guy in the room.”
Of course, he then starred in “The Cosby Show,” which not only changed America but also “legitimized” the black middle class, which had always existed there.
“To be able to be part of an event that changes the way the world looks at us gives us a sense of pride, certainly pride and gratitude,” he said, adding that while he enjoyed the fame he gained from participating in the show. , it also shapes his behavior.
“I not only reflect my parents, but I also reflect Mr. Cosby. I am a reflection of everything the show represents,” he continued. “So, without a doubt, I have set self-imposed boundaries, just because I know I know what I’m representing as I go through life.”
“Cosby” also opened up some incredible doors for him. As a teenager, he hosted “Saturday Night Live” and was able to choose musical guests. He went with Run-DMC. He directed “N.E. Heart Break” in 1989. And since the sitcom was filmed in New York, he was exposed to the golden era of rap music. At a hip-hop show, he was approached by a guy wearing a blue Adidas tracksuit with matching Kangols
“And he said, ‘Hey, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, what’s up? My name is LL Cool J… One day I will be famous like you,’” he recalled.
Malcolm-Jamal Warner reprises his role as Theo Huxtable in the iconic film Now, he has a love-hate relationship with modern hip-hop, which he says is “a celebration of the black death… ghost pure… self-hatred… and contempt.”
“Mr. Cosby has been in a lot of trouble with his views on the state of our youth culture. But I know what he’s trying to do. I know what he’s trying to say. So to can address those messages, but in a loving way, because this is about us. Like I’m still part of hip-hop culture, no doubt, but the messages Its really having a negative effect on the psychology of our young people.
It is difficult to define Malcolm-Jamal’s own musical style. He is a bass player, although he can also play piano and trumpet. He rails against the neo soul, jazz and R&B labels.
“I was in a very unique position where music had never been a means of generating income for me,” he said. “I was never signed to a record label.” And of course, he notes, he was a poet before he was anything.
In September, he released his fourth album, “Hidden in Plain View.” It was nominated for a Grammy and explores some of his views on self-healing and black culture.
In it, he also delves into a bit of wisdom he wishes he had when he was younger. He told me simply: “It’s okay if people don’t like you.”
But I think it’s fair to say that we all love Malcolm-Jamal Warner.
Detroit native Jalen Rose was a member of the University of Michigan’s iconic Fab Five who shook up the college sports world in the early ’90s. He played 13 seasons in the NBA before turned into a media personality. Rose is an analyst for “NBA Countdown” and “Get Up” and co-host of “Jalen & Jacoby.” He executive produces “The Fab Five” for ESPN’s “30 for 30” series, is also the best-selling author of “Got To Give the People What They Want,” a fashion stylist and fellow founder of Jalen Rose Leadership Academy. , a charter school in his hometown.