From Afros to Shelltoes: Art, Action, and Conversation

Founded by Edward M. Garnes, Jr.-- with generous support from living legend Alice Lovelace and business partner Sugar Johnson-- From Afros to Shelltoes is a series of cultural productions that champion emotional healing, solution focused dialogue, and arts programming to empower youth and elders. Inter-generational in scope, the initiatives confront the widening perceptual gap and social divide of the civil rights generation and hip hop heads. Mixing southern wit, cultural criticism, and good old common sense, From Afros to Shelltoes moves the cliché of community from rhetoric to reality.

As liberating as Grandma’s sermons over Sunday dinner, and as rousing as heated debates at the local barbershop, the project endeavors to: 1) build fruitful cross-generational relationships 2) cultivate future leaders 3) use the Black aesthetic as a political force.

SERVICES

Arts Programming

From musical jam sessions to engaging town hall meetings, From Afros to Shellotes has produced cultural events including the National Black Arts Festival Next Generation Programs, State of Black Men National Tour Kickoff, 12th Annual Hands on Atlanta MLK Service Summit , MTV Jams, 2nd Annual Southern Poetry Conference, and Michigan State University’s Bum Rush the Stage. With an emphasis on curtailing generational gaps, our events promote education and cultural understanding and have featured such luminaries as Amiri Barka , The Last Poets, Nikki Giovanni, Jessica Care Moore, Kevin Powell , and Killer Mike.

Speaking Engagements

Whether professional conference, community engagement, family reunion, high school presentation, or college lecture, From Afros to Shelltoes delivers addresses on a cross section of topics including:

Hip Hop and Social Reform
Poetry, Integrity, and Market Forces
Identity, Self Esteem, and Cultural Production
Multicultural Counseling
Self Publishing, Trademarks, and Handlin’ Yo Business
Revitalizing Student Affairs and Academic Services
Got Leadership?

*Topics can be specialized to meet your needs. Send all booking requests to booking@afrostoshelltoes.com

From Afros to Shelltoes is a registered service mark of Edward M. Garnes, Jr. for Babuke Brothers, LLC, an Atlanta based entertainment, media consulting, and arts programming firm.