What do you get when you combine the prowess of a Civil Rights leader and the musical styling of a New Orleans bounce music queen?

You get Ella Baker Shaker, a new single from a compilation all about celebrating Black Joy called The Black Joy Experience Vol 2: Comrade led by Johnathan Lykes and featuring THE Big Freedia.

Coined “The Mother of the Civil Rights Movement,” Ella Josephine Baker’s career spanned more than five decades. Her impact was felt and known especially in New York City and the South, where she worked alongside some of the most noted Civil Rights leaders of the 20th century, including W. E. B. Du Bois, Thurgood Marshall, A. Philip Randolph, and Martin Luther King Jr. She also mentored many emerging activists, such as Diane Nash, Stokely Carmichael, and Bob Moses, as leaders in the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC).

Ella Baker

Baker’s hometown was Norfolk, VA; however, her childhood home is located in Littleton, NC. Each year in April, organizations such as the NAACP commemorate Ella Baker Day throughout the country.

Trust, Ella Baker Shaker doesn’t replace an actual history lesson about the dynamic figure, but it does serve to build awareness about an influential (and local) member of the Human Rights movement.

Celebrate Ella Baker Day on Friday, April 8th at 9am for the dedication of the new Historic Highway Marker at 158 NC Highway 903 in Littleton, NC.

Learn more about Ella Baker and her contributions by visiting the Ella Baker Center website or the Ella Baker Educational Project of NC.

Jonathan Lykes – Ella Baker Shaker (Feat.) Big Freedia

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