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Recognizing the Existence of D-Knowledge

Buy this book at Amazon.com!Do unto others…”—this phrase is not present in the King-James-Version, 12-inch-disco-dance remix of ancient Black thought. This phrase is part of the larger worldwide subject of the “Ethic of reciprocity.” All this ethical stuff comes up when I remembered D-Knowledge. Trying not to remember D-Knowledge might accidentally make me forget something about myself. Who is D-Knowledge? Well, before Saul Williams, there was D-Knowledge. Before certain Los Angeles poets got on white radio trying to call themselves “professional,” there was D-Knowledge. Collect 33 Black women in a survey who are very familiar with the Leimert Park poetry scene of the 1990s and only three of them will remember me—but 30 of them will remember D-Knowledge:

Derrick I. M. Gilbert (a.k.a. D-Knowledge) is a Ph.D. graduate in Sociology from UCLA. His essays have appeared in the National Black Law Journal, Educational Policy, Encyclopedia of African American Education, Tough Love, and a variety of other publications.

He has appeared in such films as Higher Learning and Panther, as well as on shows like the NAACP Image Awards, the Arsenio Hall Show, and the Apollo Comedy Hour. Derrick has performed his poetry with such artists as Me’Shell Ndege’Ocello, Howard Hewitt, Peter Gabriel, Arrested Development, Midnight Oil, Earth Wind and Fire; and Bill Cosby.

He has recorded a spoken word CD entitled All that and a Bag of Words, on Quincy Jones Qwest Records. He is the editor of Catch the Fire: A Cross Generational Anthology of Contemporary African American Poetry, and he is completing his first volume of poetry. He teaches at UC Berkeley.

Buy this Book at Amazon.com! I have seen D-Knowledge perform live numerous times… and here is what I almost forgot about myself for lack of D-Knowledge: I got this phone call from Meloneé Reneé Houston Blue (one of the most powerful poetic voices I have ever encountered in person) telling me about some film (Higher Learning) being shot at USC. This cat named John Singleton needed poets for some scene. I was ready to go until she told me that D-Knowledge would be there—then I got pessimistic about the vision of John Singleton—because I am almost certain that Singleton invited D-Knowledge to be there and the rest of the poets that showed up would have to fight over the scraps.

Are you reading another Bryan Wilhite writ of hateration? All I do is remember (or not remember) the spoken word folks that actually showed up in the final cut of Higher Learning. I let the work of the artist speak for me. I am respectful enough to be present and really absorb what is placed before me. Like I mentioned before: I have seen D-Knowledge perform live numerous times… and remember: 30 out of 33 sisters will disagree and not remember me…

…but three, by the way, is more than enough for me…

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