Gambit Digital Edition: November 27, 2023

November 27-December 3 2023 Volume 44 Number 48

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King of Decatur Street

Reggie Houston Quartet

Documentary about chess master Jude Acers premieres at Zeitgeist | by Will Coviello WEARING HIS SIGNATURE RED BERET AND RED HOODIE, Jude Acers is a

familiar face in the French Quarter. For more than 40 years, he’s set up several boards near the French Market on lower Decatur Street and played anyone willing to pay a few dollars for the chance to beat a chess master.

Acers has built friendships and a following, from the workers at surrounding Decatur Street businesses to local chess fans and several quiet benefactors.

When he walks around town, some merely hail him, “Hey, chess man,” says filmmaker Derek Bridges.

In Bridges’ “The Man in the Red Beret,” Acers shares his love of chess, his life in the French Quarter and more about his professional feats and travels. Following a couple of recent film festival screenings, the documentary gets its local premiere at Zeitgeist Theatre & Lounge at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 29. After the film, there’s a Q&A with Bridges and a blitz chess tournament hosted by the Downriver Chess Club. Acers will attend the screening and tournament.

Early in his career, Acers was a chess prodigy who won tournaments, toured to compete and promote the game, and organized exhibitions in which he played more than 100 games simultaneously. In the film, he recounts a seven-hour battle with then future world champion Bobby Fischer, which resulted in a draw. He developed a reputation for using tricky and obscure opening game strategies and is cited for a definitive game using the Petroff defense.

“He’s single-minded about chess,” Bridges says. “He loves the game. He is relentlessly a promoter.”

In archival footage of an interview with now WWL-TV anchor Eric Paulsen, Acers is asked why he chooses to live in New Orleans if he can match grandmasters like Fischer and Russian champion Boris Spassky. Acers says that he could go to a chess capital, but he’s chosen to build something in the desert instead.

Acers has done more than challenge chess aficionados and teach young people the game. He’s attracted fans and friends and become an iconic French Quarter figure, akin to Ruthie the Duck Girl and others. The film opens with a host of regular opponents talking with and about Acers at his World Chess Table setup. Acers has lived in the Quarter for decades, though not always (or currently) at the hurricane-damaged, book-cluttered, third-floor apartment he shows to Bridges in the film.

Saxophonist Reggie Houston spent more than 20 years as part of Fats Domino’s band, and over his extensive career has performed with Dr. John, Irma Thomas, Dave Bartholomew, Professor Longhair, Chuck Berry, the Neville Brothers, Charmaine Neville, The Survivors and a host of others.

After more than 15 years in Portland, Oregon, Houston recently moved back to his hometown. He leads his quartet with pianist Amasa Miller, guitarist Jimmy Ballero and drummer Hurley Blanchard at 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.

Wednesday, Nov. 29, at Snug Harbor.

Tickets are $25 via snugjazz.com.

‘Wicked’

Acers was born in Long Beach, California, in 1944, and had a rough young life. His mother died when he was 4, and he and a sibling were put in an orphanage while his father served in the Marines. His father was abusive, and at a young age, Acers discovered chess and focused on it.

His father also moved the family to New Orleans. Acers graduated from Kenner High School and LSU, and then spent several years in the Bay Area, where he hung around the HaightAshbury scene and befriended Janis Joplin, Bridges says. By the late ’70s, Acers returned to New Orleans and soon found his spot on Decatur Street.

Bridges moved to New Orleans after earning a creative writing degree, and he met Acers while working at the circulation desk of the library of Loyola University. Acers frequently came to the library to use its public computers.

He befriended Acers and interviewed him, resulting in a 25,000-word profile posted in 2011 on a website Bridges started, b2l2.com. Then a friend had an idea.

“I am a photographer as well,” Bridges says. “I was shooting with a Canon digital Rebel. My friend was like, ‘People are making movies with cameras like that.’”

Bridges began shooting video of Acers, and he started a crowdfunding campaign to follow Acers to Croatia to film him competing in the International Chess Federation’s (FIDE) World Senior Chess Championship in 2013.

There, Acers faced masters from

Chess master Jude Acers holds up his promotional sign.

The popular musical based on “The Wizard of Oz” tells the story of the friendship of young witches Elphaba and Glinda. Elphaba is ostracized for her green skin, and Glinda is naturally beautiful. Their relationship is tested when Elphaba discovers the truth about Oz. The touring Broadway show returns to Saenger Theatre Nov. 29-Dec. 17. Showtimes vary. Find tickets via saengernola.com.

PHOTO BY SCOTT THRELKELD / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE

across Europe, Russia and the chess capitals of the world. Also on the trip with Acers was one of his apprentices, Marilyn Pelias, who competed in the women’s division.

Acers has a benefactor who funded annual tournament trips. The clips from the 2013 tournament show both Acer’s intensity and some of his most lighthearted moments.

But Bridges took his time making the film. As he worked on it, he upgraded his camera equipment and improved his production skills, and the film was a decade in the making. The latest footage in the film shows Acers coping with the pandemic. He worked to maintain his presence on the street, in part in devotion to his community and fans.

Bridges and others help Acers manage his online presence. A few years ago, a video of Acers went viral on TikTok. As cyclists in the World Naked Bike Ride streamed down Decatur Street, the camera panned to Acers looking up from his game, smiling and waving but not leaving his chess boards.

“The Man in the Red Beret” screens Nov. 29 at Zeitgeist Theatre & Lounge, followed by a blitz chess tournament. Find information on zeitgeistnola.org.

PROVIDED PHOTO BY JOAN MARCUS

Pete Davidson

Pete Davidson started his stand-up career at age 16, before going on to become one of the youngest cast members of “Saturday Night Live.” He’s since starred in numerous films and in the TV series based on his life, “Bupkis.”

He performs at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 29, at the Fillmore. Find tickets via fillmorenola.com.

Algiers Bonfire

There’s music by Kermit Ruffins and the Barbecue Swingers and others, and the burning of a 30-foot wooden assemblage on the levee near the ferry landing in Algiers Point. From 4:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 2. Visit algierseconomic.com for details.

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Hogs for the Cause has recently passed the $10 million mark in its donation-making. The New Orleans nonprofit and barbecue festival, which started in 2009, focuses on financial assistance for families with children undergoing treatment for brain cancer. Over the last 14 years, Hogs has given more than 1,800 direct family grants for a total of $2.3 million and nearly $9 million to children’s hospitals and organizations focused on pediatric brain cancer research across the Southeast.

The Emeril Lagasse Foundation this fall is giving close to $200,000 in grants to youth-focused nonprofit organizations. The local beneficiaries are the Louisiana Restaurant Association Education Foundation ProStart, the New Orleans Culinary & Hospitality Institute, Reconcile New Orleans and the Youth Empowerment Project, all of which use culinary programs to help teens and young adults build life and employment skills. The Emeril Lagasse Foundation’s Aaron Sanchez Impact Fund also received funding to support its mission to provide culinary education scholarships to Latino youth.

U.S. Rep. Troy Carter, who represents Louisiana’s second district, recently received the Humane Society of Louisiana’s Humane Legislator of the Year Award as well as its Lifetime Achievement Award for his legislative work to protect animal welfare. Carter’s recent legislation has focused on protecting horses and clamping down on gambling on animals, illegal trafficking and dog fighting.

THE DOLLAR PRICE OF A SINGLE TICKET TO THE RECENTLY ANNOUNCED “ROLLING STONES THURSDAY” ON MAY 2 AT JAZZ FEST 2024, NOT INCLUDING ADDITIONAL FEES. Tickets go on sale to Louisiana residents at 1 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 29, and the presale ends 10 p.m. Nov. 30. Early bird specials for both weekends then begin Dec. 1, starting at $290. Jazz Fest usually announces its full lineup in January.

City Council Member Joe Giarrusso PHOTO BY MAX BECHERER / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE

New Orleans City Council, experts urge expansion of budding mental health programs STARTING THIS SCHOOL YEAR, CITY PARTNERS HAVE BEEN USING MONEY

from the federal government to provide “mental health first aid training” to New Orleanians, young and old alike — a result of a broader city push to address the area’s vast mental health needs.

The U.S. Department of Health gave the New Orleans Mental Health Collaborative, formed by the city council in September 2022, and its partners more than $1.9 million to create more trauma-informed mental and behavioral health resources in the community.

So far, they’ve provided several trainings to employees in schools and other youth community settings, as well as to college students and people ages 65 and older.

Brittany Howard, advocacy director at the Metropolitan Human Services District and a training instructor, said the trainings are

interactive and teach people how to approach different situations. The results, she told the New Orleans City Council at its Nov. 16 meeting, have been instantaneous.

“The result of that is individuals feel a sense of empowerment once they’ve finished the training,” she said. “What we’ve been seeing is immediately afterwards ... they’re reaching out to us saying, ‘Hey, I have this family member. I know this person that needs help. How can I get them connected?’ There’s power in that.”

Part of the effort is also teaching kids to notice signs of mental health issues in themselves and others and empowering them to form youth-led support groups with their peers.

“The material that’s being discussed is not complex,” Howard said.

“So it doesn’t matter what walk of life you’re in, you can receive and utilize this information.”

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As part of the initiative, the Mental Health Collaborative has also pushed to increase the number of clinical hours of trauma counseling required when people are becoming mental health professionals.

Melisse Meza, United Way of Southeast Louisiana vice president community impact, said at the meeting that all fellows and residents coming out of Tulane’s medical school will be trained in mental health first aid.

Council Member Joe Giarrusso, who has been leading the council’s mental health work, said simply having public resources available for mental health isn’t enough — people also need to know about them and access them.

“We are leaving money on the table for our kids that our federal partners … have provided for us because people don’t know about it,” he said at the meeting.

Dr. Jennifer Avegno, New Orleans Department of Health director, said that when it comes to access to mental health care, Louisiana is “lightyears ahead” of states that haven’t

expanded Medicaid, government health insurance for low-income and disabled people.

But even with the expansion, low state reimbursements rates have caused many providers to stop accepting Medicaid patients, making finding mental health care more difficult for poor people and creating “health deserts.”

“Simply having Medicaid does not mean full access,” she said at the meeting, adding, “It’s very confusing for our Medicaid clients to know which facilities do and which don’t and what is the capacity to serve.”

She said that Gov.-elect Jeff Landry and his incoming health department head should make raising Medicaid reimbursement rates a priority because it’s “a real statewide issue.”

And with the state taking more than 160,000 people off of Medicaid since pandemic protections expired in April, Avegno also stressed the importance of continuing to educate people on how not to lose their benefits and “make sure that no one is falling through the cracks.”

At the meeting, Dana Peterson, CEO of New Schools for New Orleans, said that under Medicaid rule changes, many more school-based mental health services are now eligible for reimbursement. He estimated his group can help schools across the city access an extra $6.5 million this way.

But for schools to get that money back, Peterson said they’ll need more resources, including multiple team members dedicated to handling Medicaid billing and a special filing system. He estimates this could cost upward of $500,000 a year for two to three years to build the systems so that “schools can fully access the money on a regular basis.”

Superintendent Avis Williams said NOLA Public Schools has been using $10 million in federal funds to support a three-year partnership with ThriveKids, a Children’s Hospital program that offers mental and other health services in schools, including specialist care and talk therapy.

In the first two months, Williams said ThriveKids been able to reach 131

students with nearly 400 visits, and they’ve made 182 referrals to primary care providers and specialists for follow-ups. The partnership also works with family members who may have health needs.

“That doesn’t sound like a lot,” she said, “But it’s a whole lot more than we were able to do prior to this partnership, and it’s been impactful.”

The services are being offered at 10 of the 20 schools the school system has designated as “highest risk,” based on poverty levels, but the resources can be shifted to respond to tragedies in the community. Williams said she’s hoping to expand services in the coming years.

Avegno said that while investing in mental health may be expensive, it’s an investment that pays off.

“For every dollar that you invest in providing better access and capacity, you are going to save that money on the back end, whether it’s in criminal justice interactions, whether it is in any other thing that we pay for with public funds,” she said.

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LAST WEEK’S ANNOUNCEMENT THAT THE NEW ORLEANS POLICE DEPARTMENT plans to begin deploy-

ing drones as “both a force multiplier and a crime-fighting tool” came as no surprise. The sheriff’s office in neighboring Jefferson Parish as well as the Louisiana State Police already use drones. It was only a matter of time before NOPD opted to use them.

But time itself is not the same thing as timing. In this case, NOPD announced its draft policy on drone deployment at the same time it announced a week-long public comment period on the policy — and that timing stinks. It reeks, in fact, of a bad faith attempt to short-circuit the public input NOPD ostensibly seeks.

The draft plan and request for public input were announced shortly before noon on Tuesday, Nov. 21 — but the comment period (Nov. 21-28) had already begun earlier that day. Worse, the “week-long” public input period straddles the long Thanksgiving holiday weekend, when many (if not most) citizens will be focused on family gatherings, travel, football games, Bayou Classic events, holiday shopping and other traditional distractions.

As a result, the so-called week of public input will comprise, at best, three or four days that do not conflict with Thanksgiving-related events. The comment period will end Tuesday, Nov. 28, at 6 p.m. with a single in-person hearing and drone demonstration at the NOPD Training Academy (4650 Paris Ave.) Until then, citizens can email comments to policyandplanning@nola.gov.

Timing like that, particularly with regard to a hot-button topic such as police use of drone surveillance, cannot be accidental.

What’s most disappointing — infuriating, actually — is the fact that NOPD

Baton Rouge Police, along with the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office and Louisiana State Police, utilize a drone. The NOPD now plans to deploy drones.

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is not the only entity with unclean hands in this mess. The proposed drone policy is also the work of the U.S. Department of Justice and federal consent decree monitors.

It’s no small irony that the folks charged with making the city’s long-troubled police department more accountable, trustworthy and transparent would have a hand in creating a timetable for public comment that flagrantly disregards those goals.

It’s also unacceptable that NOPD refuses to answer questions about the number of drones it proposes to use — and how they’ll be paid for — until the Nov. 28 hearing. Likewise, seeking public comment before those and other questions are answered, and before the public gets to see the drone demonstration, further obscures what should be a transparent process from the get-go.

Civil libertarians will hasten to voice their concerns about using drones in New Orleans. But even if, as promised in the NOPD news release, such use will be confined to “grid searches, weather events, disaster response, accident reconstruction” and other uses outlined in the drone policy, average citizens will have insufficient time to familiarize themselves with and comment on the proposed policy.

Given the shady manner in which the draft policy is being rolled out, we encourage the New Orleans City Council and other interested parties to press for a longer comment period — and we urge NOPD and its partners in this effort to heed such requests.

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U.S. DISTRICT JUDGE SHELLY DICK OF BATON ROUGE may

one day be remembered alongside the late U.S. District Judge J. Skelly Wright of New Orleans, whose decisions in landmark civil rights cases in the 1960s forever changed Louisiana’s political landscape.

Nowadays, Dick is the presiding judge in a pair of important voting rights cases — the new front lines in America’s long fight for equal rights under the law.

The most high-profile of those two cases is the one dealing with Louisiana’s racially gerrymandered congressional districts. Dick last year issued a 152-page opinion declaring the districting plan illegal under the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965.

The U.S. Supreme Court and the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals eventually agreed with her. She has ordered state lawmakers to draw a second majority-Black congressional district

by Jan. 15. If they don’t, she will draw one herself via a special master.

Meanwhile, Dick on Monday, Nov. 27, will begin presiding over a multi-day trial in a similar challenge to Louisiana’s state House and Senate districts.

Several Black voters and civil rights groups allege that Louisiana’s legislative districts dilute Black voting strength and do not afford Black voters the opportunity to elect state lawmakers of their own choosing. They argue that lawmakers deliberately packed Black voters into as few districts as possible in order to avoid giving them House and Senate seats in proportion to their population.

The legislative redistricting plan that GOP lawmakers rammed through last year kept the number of majority-Black legislative seats the same as it has been for more than a decade — 29 in the 105-member House and 11 in the 39-member Senate — even though Black citizens comprise 33% of Louisiana’s population.

“Proportionality” is not guaranteed by the Voting Rights Act, but when the numbers get far enough out of whack,

A trial challenging Louisiana’s state House and Senate districts starts Nov. 27.

PHOTO BY TRAVIS SPRADLING / THE ADVOCATE

as they clearly do in Louisiana — and in the face of evidence that lawmakers methodically refused to create more majority-Black districts — the courts can grant relief.

“This case has always been about fairness and representation,” Dorothy Nairne of Assumption Parish, the lead named plaintiff in the legislative districting case, said in a statement released by the Louisiana ACLU last June.

“These maps have real consequences for my community,” Nairne added. “It is time that Black voters all the way from my neighborhood in Napoleonville up to Baton Rouge and Shreveport are able to finally feel real hope that their voices will be heard in our political process.

We are eager to see this vision through in the courts.”

The legislative maps case has generated far less attention than the challenge to Louisiana’s congressional districts, but it, too, could alter the state’s political landscape if the plaintiffs prevail.

Republicans have a supermajority in both the state House and Senate, but if Dick finds that the Legislature must have more majority-Black districts, Democrats could gain enough seats to threaten the GOP’s supermajority.

No matter how Dick rules, the case will be appealed, possibly all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

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@GambitBlake | askblake@gambitweekly.com

Hey Blake,

A plaque on the exterior of the Queen and Crescent Hotel building at 400 Camp St. has the names “Dameron-Pierson” and “Vincent & Hayne Owners” on it, as well as the name of an architect and the year 1911. Can you tell me more?

Dear reader,

THE BUILDING AT 400 CAMP ST. WAS DEVELOPED AND BUILT by Frank Hayne

and Hugh de Lacey Vincent, who later formed the Vincent and Hayne Realty Co., Ltd. Opened in 1911, the building was leased to Dameron-Pierson, the office furniture and supply company, which occupied it for more than 85 years.

Founded locally in 1904 by Frank Dameron and Ogden Pierson, the company was originally located a block away at 317 Camp St. A 1912 advertisement for the company in The Daily Picayune featured an illustration of the six-story building at 400 Camp. Arrows pointing to each floor explained the services available on each floor, such as lithographing and engraving, printing, embossing, bindery, office furniture, stationery and office supplies.

In 1995, Dameron-Pierson was purchased by the Maryland-based U.S. Office Products Co. At the time, Dameron-Pierson had close to 250

The words ‘Dameron-Pierson’ can just be made out in the top left behind the Zatarain’s mural on the side of the Queen and Crescent Hotel.

PHOTO BY CHRIS GRANGER / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE

employees in Louisiana and other states, serving Louisiana and parts of Mississippi, Alabama and Florida, according to The Times-Picayune. It consolidated its local operations into a new location in Elmwood.

In 1998, the Camp Street building was sold to the owners of the Queen and Crescent Hotel, which had opened in 1996 in the 300 block of Camp. The owners’ purchase of the former Dameron-Pierson building allowed them to expand the hotel across the street.

The Dameron-Pierson name was once visible on the Camp Street facade of the building, but there is now only a hint of it on the side of the building facing Poydras Street — above the Queen & Crescent name and a mural advertising Zatarain’s.

BLAKEVIEW DECEMBER MARKS 65 YEARS SINCE THE OPENING OF THE MAIN BRANCH OF THE NEW ORLEANS PUBLIC LIBRARY on Loyola Avenue. The $3.3 million building, designed by

the noted architectural firm Curtis and Davis, was constructed to replace an older public library at what was then called Lee Circle. Proceeds from the 1958 sale of that property helped fund construction of the new building, which is four times the size of the previous one. It was located closer to the city’s new civic center, including City Hall, which opened earlier in the year.

“When the main public library opened its doors for business Monday at its new stand, the sparkling modernistic structure at 219 Loyola, a major milestone in the city’s free lending of knowledge was passed,” wrote The Times-Picayune in a Dec. 18, 1958, editorial.

According to the newspaper, the new, four-story branch could hold 1 million books in addition to extensive record, periodical and art collections. A mural depicting the history of New Orleans by noted editorial cartoonist John Chase stretches behind the main circulation desk. The Louisiana Division and City Archives have been a source for historians and researchers for decades, including your humble scribe.

While it remains an important resource for New Orleanians of all ages, the building is showing its age. In November, New Orleans Public Library officials said they planned to spend $9.5 million to replace the HVAC system, boilers and elevator at the main branch. According to The Times-Picayune, those repairs should be completed by the end of 2024, but there is a long list of other repairs that will still need to be addressed.

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15

e c a e p ’

n a w How the

humanitarian crisis in Gaza

hits home

Story and photos by Sar ah R avits

PRIOR TO OCTOBER, Mohammad Alkurd, better known to his 30,000 Instagram followers as “Mo Munchies,” spent his days pretty much living out his dream.

The 33-year-old had just gotten to a good place in his career, pursuing twin passions of trying out new foods and creating short viral videos that showcase some of the city’s hidden culinary gems. Often, he would punctuate his videos with the highest form of a compliment: by declaring a dish to be “Mo-nificient.”

“I talk about what you see: the dishes being assembled, how it’s supposed to taste,” he says. “I’m not good at faking emotions ... I want my audience to experience the same thing I’m experiencing in that moment.”

But Alkurd’s whole life was turned upside down when Hamas launched its deadly terrorist attack against Israel Oct. 7.

The Israeli military’s immediate retaliatory response was swift, fierce — and for Alkurd — costly beyond measure.

A few days after the war started, he

TOP MIDDLE: PalestinianAmericans call for an end to bombings in Gaza TOP RIGHT: Signs at a humanitarian aid benefit

received a frantic phone call. Through sobs, his mother told him that 20 of their close relatives had just been killed during an airstrike in central Gaza.

Many of them had been sheltering at the now-destroyed house after evacuating the northern region over safety concerns.

Years ago, he had visited that home and has fond memories of playing with his cousins. To think they were suddenly gone threw him into a state of shock.

“I was in shambles,” Alkurd says of the day he received the tragic news from his mother. “I was just numb. I wanted to crawl into a hole and disconnect. This was the first time in a while that I’d lost somebody so close, and losing that many close relatives at once — I really didn’t know how to process it.”

In the weeks since, Alkurd says at least 200 family members and friends have died in Gaza — victims of a bloody conflict between two governments that none of them asked for.

These days, the fans who once turned to him for restaurant recs are now getting much more than they initially smashed the “follow” button for. He regularly amplifies local calls to action, including protests and benefits for Palestinian humanitarian aide. He also created a list of Palestinian-owned restaurants and other businesses to support.

PAGE 17

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e ‘w t s u j t

TOP LEFT: Simon Moushabeck is a musician who tries to dispel harmful stereotypes about Palestinians.

G AMBIT > BESTOFNEWORLE ANS.COM > NOVEMBER 27 - DECEMBER 3 > 2023

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‘We Just want peace’ His emotions are raw, though he is trying to channel his grief into shedding light on the plight of Palestinians. Through his posts, he says he’s hoping to dismantle stereotypes about his community being violent, or worse yet, that innocent civilians deserve to be put in the crossfire.

“What’s the easiest way to open someone’s heart?” he says. “It’s through education. It’s the window that opens people’s minds and allows them to see a different perspective.”

Israel’s war on Hamas, which has resulted in thousands of civilian casualties, has hit close to home for many in the Palestinian community here.

Adding to their trauma is the fact that many can’t get in touch with their families due to communication blackouts from bombings and lack of fuel.

The latest wave of violence started when Hamas, an extremist militant group in Palestine, launched its brutal attack that killed an estimated 1,200 Israelis, including women, babies and the elderly.

In the wake of the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised to “destroy Hamas’ military and governing capabilities.”

Israel’s military responded by besieging the Gaza strip — which is home to two million Palestinians — with airstrikes, a ground invasion and effectively cutting Gaza off from the rest of the world. That’s resulted in fuel, food and medical supply shortages.

But over the past month, there has been growing concern from humanitarian groups and the United Nations that Israel’s military tactics may be war crimes of “collective punishment” amid a complete siege of Gaza.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian affairs, which relies on Gaza’s Ministry of Health for figures, reported Nov. 18 that the death toll was at least 11,078.

The UN also said the attacks have destroyed or damaged nearly half of Gaza’s housing units, in addition to schools and hospitals. As of press time, Israel and Hamas had reportedly agreed to a temporary truce to release 50 Israeli hostages and 150 imprisoned Palestinians.

Many in New Orleans who have ties to Palestine are grieving and hosting demonstrations, calling for a ceasefire and an end to the occupation. They are also calling on the U.S. government to condemn, rather than support, Israel’s bombardment of Gaza.

Adan Murad, a 27-year-old marketing professional and one of the organizers of a recent Palestinian film

Mohammad Alkurd

Protesters rally downtown New Orleans to end the siege in Gaza festival, has been helping organize protests to call to an end to the violence.

“To be Palestinian is to be an activist,” she told Gambit at a recent protest in Jefferson Parish. “We’ve been exhausting ourselves, grieving and fighting to have people see our right to exist. We don’t get to just grieve.”

Murad says her family moved to the New Orleans area when she was a child because of “unlivable” conditions in the West Bank, another Palestinian territory.

“All we want is to be humanized,” Murad says.

She says she’s been outspoken about the plights of Palestinians living under oppressive conditions long before the latest onslaught of violence. But she says the local Palestinian community and their allies “have never come together like this before.”

Alkurd, meanwhile, says he has been in despair over the loss of his extended family members who have been killed in Gaza. He has also been attending protests and speaking on their behalf, in addition to curating content online. But he says he is cautious about what he posts online, because he wants to encourage thoughtful discourse, not online rage.

“If I type out something angry, I’d get looked at as the stereotypical angry Arab, and people would get shut down,” he says.

As the bombardment in Gaza continues, Alkurd has become a prominent figure at local pro-Palestine rallies, calling for a ceasefire and the liberation of Palestinians from what he describes as “dehumanizing” conditions under Israeli occupation.

He says working on solidarity efforts gives him a sense of catharsis and a way to channel his immense grief.

“I had never created content around (Palestine) until recently,” he says. “Sometimes I’d post if someone made a racist comment that I felt needed to be addressed or brought to the community’s attention in an educational sense. This time I said, ‘OK, enough is enough.’ I have a platform and I need to use it.”

At a Nov. 9 protest, Alkurd encouraged the crowd to keep standing up for the people in Gaza whose lives are in danger.

“All they hear are bombings and fighter jets,” he said.

“We have to be the voice. We cannot forget Palestine.”

Though communication with his family in Gaza has been scarce given the conditions, Alkurd says they’ve been encouraging him to continue his activism.

“They are keeping me going,” he told Gambit.

“Whenever I ask them what they need, they just say, ‘Keep talking about Palestine.’”

Local musician Simon Moushabeck also has ramped up personal efforts to humanize Palestinians and shift away from harmful stereotypes.

“There’s a narrative that we’re terrorists,” he says. “That type of dehumanization is what allows this violence to continue.”

Moushabeck says that, to him, being Palestinian is about a sense of community, music and bonding over a good meal.

He grew up in Amherst, Massachusetts, where he says the nearby colleges often drew scholars from the Middle East. They would frequently find their way into his family’s home to bond over a home-cooked meal, during which they would end up swapping stories.

“If there was a Jordanian, a Lebanese person, a Palestinian — they would end up just coming over to our house all the time,” he says. “I met a lot of people that way.”

These days when he performs, he often wears a keffiyeh, a checkered scarf that has become a global symbol of Palestinian solidarity.

Sometimes after gigs, he gets asked about it.

“I’ll talk to people after my gigs about the (keffiyah’s) pattern,” he says. “People see me as a person. They might get invested in me through my music or some other means. If they like my music, and then they’re like, ‘Oh he’s Palestinian?’ The message is: Palestinian lives are just as valid and sacred as everyone else’s.”

At a recent demonstration, Yasmin Khaled, who owns the downtown clothing shop Rio, said she was also there for one main reason: to show that “Palestinian lives matter.”

Meanwhile, those in New Orleans who have ties to Israel worry that the conflict will further elevate anti-Jewish sentiments, which have PAGE 19 already been on the rise.

17 G AMBIT > BESTOFNEWORLE ANS.COM > NOVEMBER 27 - DECEMBER 3 > 2023

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Adan Murad at a Nov. 18 protest Last month the New Orleans Police Department decided to ramp up security for local synagogues and other Jewish institutions as the fighting intensified overseas.

Some of that, at least in New Orleans, appears to be largely precautionary.

But Arnie Fielkow, a former New Orleans City Council member and former leader of the Greater New Orleans Jewish Federation, says he remains concerned that a wave of violence could hit the community.

Indeed, antisemitism has become increasingly normalized at the national level, particularly on social media sites like X, where owner Elon Musk has joined far-right extremists and openly embraced anti-Jewish sentiments and conspiracy theories.

“The rise in antisemitism is scary and concerning,” Fielkow says.

“The Jewish community represents less than 3% of our country, yet 60% of hate crimes are directed against Jews. We’re in unprecedented times.”

So far, there have not been any major incidents of violence at the local level, although a handful of demonstrators were arrested during an off-campus protest near Tulane University Oct. 26 after a brawl broke out.

Tulane has since increased its security measures, while both Jewish and Palestinian students have expressed concern over their safety.

Adan Murad says the Jewish community is the “most important ally” for the cause to end the violence, and she hopes that more people will join the movement to liberate Palestine. She also rejects accusations that the protests are anti-Jewish in nature.

“There is a conflation between Zionism and Judaism,” she says.

“We are calling for a cease-fire.

We’re calling for equal rights for both

people … We never call for anything other than equality.”

Murad says that ultimately, both Jews and Palestinians of any religion face the same dangers from antisemitic and racist movements — and share a common history of oppression. That, in part, may be why so many Jewish Americans have participated in protests calling for an end to the violence in Gaza.

“These are two groups who have been oppressed and are now coming together,” she says.

Noor Salem, a 28-year-old Palestinian American and owner of French Quarter store Denali, says he attended a recent protest because the ongoing conflict puts both Israelis and Palestinians at risk.

“At the end of the day, no one is safe,” he says. “We just want peace.”

One day, Mohammad Alkurd hopes for a world where he can go back to posting food content and showcasing more of the local, immigrant-run restaurants in and around New Orleans.

But he also dreams of one day returning to Gaza, to pay respect to his deceased relatives and share his experiences with his viewers back in the U.S. “I just want to be able to go home freely and explore my hometown and even see the rest of Palestine,” he says. “I’ve never been able to do that. I want to break bread in Jerusalem and eat knafeh in Nablus.”

Until then, local Palestinian Americans will continue the calls for peace in the region and maintaining contact with their loved ones however they can.

“All of us are feeling this,” Murad says. “All of us are family.”

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Chalmette homecoming

FORK + CENTER

An elevated MeMe’s Bar & Grille | by Beth D’Addono AS A CHALMETTE NATIVE SON, MEME’S CHEF-OWNER DOUG BRASELMAN

knows there are two things his parish customers won’t abide.

“A restaurant can’t get away with sub-par flavor or small portions,” says Braselman, who bought the iconic restaurant on W. Judge Perez Drive in January. “The food has to be good, and you need to feed people down here.”

Braselman is more than up to that task. A long-time chef and fixer for Emeril Lagasse’s restaurants, he was the guy sent in to help struggling restaurants get on track. He spent three years in Charlotte, and more than three in Orlando. When it was time to come home, the pandemic struck. Along with a few other Emeril’s colleagues, Braselman started the Furloughed Four, a catering company specializing in multi-course, wine-paired dinners for clients in their home.

Another one of the four, Ray Gumpert, is often in the house at MeMe’s. He was the manager at Emeril’s flagship and the sommelier in charge of its extensive wine list.

He’s another sign of positive change at MeMe’s. He and Braselman walk the line between keeping longtime customers happy and attracting new diners to the restaurant’s impressive cuisine and wine options, offered at reasonable prices. Braselman didn’t want to spend a lot on the physical space, and really, the 100-seat restaurant didn’t need much beyond fresh paint. He did add New Orleanscentric art by Jessica Elliott, an art teacher from Christian Academy.

“From the start, we wanted to keep things that worked on the menu, but elevated,” Braselman says. “We are also emphasizing seasonal and local ingredients.” That includes local oysters and shrimp that fishermen drop off on their way to the seafood houses downtown.

While holding onto the much-loved pan-roasted crab cakes and barbecue shrimp, Braselman added appetizers like a sweet and spicy honey Buffalo

shrimp with blonde barbecue sauce, ovenroasted meatballs with mozzarella fondue and crawfish boudin egg rolls with pepper jelly vinaigrette.

In the entree department, the grilled double-cut pork chop with mashed sweet potatoes isn’t going anywhere, and nor is the chicken Parmesan with angel hair pasta.

But now there’s a blackened Louisiana redfish served with fried green tomatoes, crawfish remoulade and Southern coleslaw.

He expanded the steakhouse classics to include a 14-ounce strip and a 32-ounce tomahawk rib-eye for two. Most of the appetizers are in the $13-$18 range, and entrees, other than the steaks and redfish, are below $30. Sides including roasted Brussels sprouts, loaded baked potato and grilled asparagus are amply portioned and priced at $8.

The oyster program remains robust, with char-grilled, Rockefeller, Thai chili and bacon and blue cheese options.

Raw Gulf oysters are available as well, but the previous ownership’s oyster happy hour is gone. Oysters are priced between $12 and $14 for a half-dozen and $18 and $23 per dozen. Raw oysters are usually market price, which translates to upwards of $26 a dozen at many seafood houses.

Gumpert took a measured approach to improving the wine list.

He recalibrated the list to spotlight lesser-known brands. Saintsbury chardonnay is a tropical, lightly oaked wine that some folks may not be familiar with. The Albert Bichot

Email dining@gambitweekly.com

La Cocinita restaurant GOURMET FOOD TRUCKS WERE STILL A NEW IDEA BACK IN 2011 when Rachel

and Benoit Angulo started theirs, a truck for Venezuelan street food dubbed La Cocinita. The bright red rig always stood out, even when it was parked outside of the couple’s apartment on Prytania Street.

Now, many changes for their business later, the two are set to open a brick and mortar restaurant.

The restaurant version of La Cocinita is now planned for 4920 Prytania St., with a menu of dishes from Benoit’s native Venezuela.

That address was previously a location of Parran’s Po-Boys, though many will remember it for its long run as the Japanese restaurant Kyoto. La Cocinita is slated to open here in May. La Cocinita means “little kitchen” in Spanish, though this iteration will have an expanded menu. That will

Chef/owner Doug Braselman and sommelier Ray Gumpert at MeMe’s Bar & Grille.

PHOTO BY CHERYL GERBER / GAMBIT

Beaujolais is a food-friendly gamay with soft floral notes that pairs beautifully with fall dishes.

Every Tuesday, beginning at 6:30 p.m., all bottles are half price, a promotion geared to get the word out to wine lovers outside of the Parish.

“We’re just 20 minutes from downtown,” Gumpert says.

Although he never imagined living back in the Parish, never mind owning a restaurant there, Braselman is loving the warm welcome that his neighbors and community bring to his table. “I actually see my relatives,” he says.

“They never came to Emeril’s.”

?

WHAT

MeMe’s Bar & Grille

WHERE

712 W. Judge Perez Drive, Chalmette, (504) 644-4992; memesbarandgrille.com

WHEN

HOW

CHECK IT OUT

Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sat.

Dine-in

A fresh start at MeMe’s in Chalmette

PHOTO BY KATHLEEN FLYNN / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE

include a broader range of arepas, the griddle-cooked corncakes filled with cheese, sauces and meats, like pollo estofado (braised chicken) and lechon (roasted pork).

“We’ll always have tacos, but we really want to expand the options and emphasize the Venezuelan roots that started this,” Rachel Angulo says.

“We’ve had a strong emphasis on accommodating different diets, and one of the nice things about having a newer, bigger space is that we can do more with that too,” she adds.

The restaurant will use counter service and have a full bar.

Raised in Caracas, Benoit Angulo started cooking at an early age and moved to the U.S. to pursue a culinary PAGE 25

G AMBIT > BESTOFNEWORLE ANS.COM > NOVEMBER 27 - DECEMBER 3 > 2023

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PAGE 23

career. He and Rachel met while working at Commander’s Palace. The idea for a food truck came up one night while they were bemoaning the dearth of late-night food options.

Benoit missed the street vendors he knew back home along a strip known as “Calle De Hambre” (Hunger Street), and he introduced Rachel to arepas. Their food truck hit the road in 2011.

The Angulos also operate a food truck and restaurant version of La Cocinita in Chicago. For the New Orleans restaurant they are partnering with their long time manager, Joe Sturtz.

La Cocinita was part of the first group of vendors at the Pythian Market food hall in downtown New Orleans, but lost that location when the food hall closed in 2022.

Meanwhile, the big red truck is still in circulation in New Orleans, mostly doing the catering events.

The new location is part of a cluster of Uptown businesses, with the Creole Creamery ice cream parlor right next door.

There is also a fine Honduran restaurant in Kenner called La Cocinita; the two are not related.

— Ian McNulty / The Times-Picayune

Po-Boy Fest winners

THE OAK STREET PO-BOY FEST TURNED ITS NAMESAKE STREET into

a playground of different po-boy possibilities, with classics served alongside some wild flights of local culinary imagination.

In the end, a Harahan restaurant and a local food truck won big, sweeping all awards between them.

More than 30 vendors lining the street represented local restaurants, food trucks, caterers and social organizations. Some served po-boys in line with their own specialized niches of barbecue, seafood or vegan po-boys, while others used the festival to get creative. Here are the winners: • Best of the Fest: Southerns Food Truck for the grits and grillades po-boy (fried grit sticks, roasted pork and gravy).

• Best Shrimp: Southerns Food Truck for the Lt. Dan po-boy (fried shrimp with garlic herb aioli and sweet heat sauce).

• Best Seafood: Seither’s Seafood for Voodoo fish and chips po-boy (blackened redfish with slaw and Zapp’s Voodoo potato chips).

• Best Pork: Southerns Food Truck for the grits and grillade po-boy (fried grit sticks, roasted pork and gravy).

• Best Beef: Seither’s Seafood for the killer beef po-boy (sirloin tip with gravy and potato sticks).

• Best Specialty: Southerns Food Truck for the turf and turf po-boy (braised pork belly, smoked beef rib, onion rings). — Ian McNulty / The Times-Picyaune

Warehouse District Lounging

IT WILL BE MORE THAN A COCKTAIL LOUNGE, but not really a restaurant.

That’s why Andrew Duncan calls it a “loungerie.”

That is the concept for Jolie, which is now taking shape in the Warehouse District.

Duncan is part of a consortium of partners who are developing Jolie at 324 Julia St. It’s slated to open by early December.

Jolie is in an old brick and cypress warehouse that was previously home to World of Beer.

“We want to be an upscale cocktail lounge, with exceptional drinks, with a bit of fun and flair, not taking it too seriously,” Duncan says.

The kitchen will field a range of a dozen or so French-inspired dishes.

Jolie will keep later hours than a restaurant, but not see the wee hours of a nightclub. So at the intersection of these roles, Duncan combined the idea of lounge and brasserie for loungerie.

“It’s essentially a cocktail lounge with really nice shareable plates,” he says.

There will be music Thursdays through Sundays and a happy hour daily.

On the menu, look for dishes like shrimp beignets, tempurafried frog legs, tuna crudo and Parisienne gnocchi.

Duncan is an Englishman who has lived in New Orleans for a decade and previously ran Gravier Social Club, a membership club in downtown New Orleans that has since closed. He’s one of the managing partners in Jolie with fellow Brits Chris and Mark Beardon of the Dallas-based SBBC Hospitum. From its first bar in 2014, Truth & Alibi, their hospitality group has grown to a portfolio of eight bars, clubs and restaurants in Texas.

Other local partners in Jolie are the Crescent Hospitality Krewe, the company behind the Hell’s Gala Halloween ball. One of those partners is Jonathan Brisbi, of the Evangeline Lounge in Mid-City and Hog Alley Lounge in Old Metairie. — Ian McNulty / The Times-Picayune

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Finn Walter Chef

by Will Coviello FINN WALTER GREW UP IN LUBBOCK, TEXAS, BUT HE ALSO SPENT A LOT OF TIME IN SANTA FE and Boston and

traveling in Europe. His cooking experiences mirrored his travels, from stints in Paris to the Michelin-starred Restaurant at Meadowood in Napa Valley. He’s combined those influences to create a vision of High Plains cuisine at his restaurant, The Nicolett, in Lubbock. He lived briefly in New Orleans and now returns to present a seven-course dinner at Mister Mao on Tuesday, Dec. 5. For more on Walter, visit nicolettrestaurant.com. For tickets to the dinner, visit mistermaonola.com.

Why did you open your restaurant in Lubbock?

FINN WALTER: Texas is surrounded

by Santa Fe and places that have food culture. If you are in Houston, you’re in the South. If you’re in Hill Country, you’re in Hill Country. West Texas is different. You’re going to the Southwest. It’s what they picture Texas as.

My goal was always to go back home and utilize things that I learned. I thought that would be Austin. I moved there in 2012 and met my wife.

Then I took a job to open a restaurant, Eloisa, in Santa Fe for an L.A. chef named John Sadler. He is originally from Santa Fe. He’s friends with chefs like Dean Fearing and Mark Miller. He owned Bikini in L.A. Then we found the space we’re in. It reminded me of places I worked in the Napa Valley and in Paris, and there was the potential for us to own the building.

Our restaurant is named for the first hotel where Lubbock was founded.

(The hotel) was owned by the first mayor of Lubbock, and it was where the ranchers and the bankers and the outlaws all kept a bed under one roof.

What defines your High Plains cuisine?

W: I think working with Sadler, one of the pioneering fathers of Southwestern cuisine, it’s taking an approach that is Southwestern, but informed. Doing Southwestern food in a thoughtful way. Our soundtrack is filled with Guy Clark, The Flatlanders, Terry Allen, people who are from West Texas or Lubbock specifically. Lubbock is at a point where it is embracing people

that used to get out as fast as they could. I moved from Lubbock to Berlin, Germany, and went to college in Maine. I got pretty far.

On our opening menu, we did beef cheeks. We would call it a beef cheek brisket. We’d do a beef cheek that would get a 72-hour braise with black truffles and our house red wine. If you read our food menu and our wine menu, it pretty much echoes my travels and the kitchens I have worked in, but hopefully approaching these things in a way that makes sense in time and place.

On the menu for Mister Mao, we are going to be doing a lamb neck that we approach in the style of a brisket. Lamb’s neck is my favorite part of the animal.

We either get Texas or Colorado lamb. We wrap it in a crust of approximately eight types of peppers.

We treat it with a brisket rub and roast it overnight in a single portion size and finish it with local stone fruit wood.

We have a beef cheek bao that we are doing. I try to focus on my strengths. I trained in pastry, and there weren’t a whole lot of people baking bread out here (in Lubbock). We can bake bread or steam bread, we can do it in all sorts of ways, but let’s stuff it with beef cheeks and bring in those other things with the goal of tapping into flavor memories.

Our green pozole is a flavor memory of mine from a place in Santa Fe. A lot of people will say I have had only red chili and braised pork shoulder. But I didn’t grow up with that. If I tried to make that, there are 20 grandmothers who can make a much better version than me. If you are trying to create a flavor memory, our pozole is the most intensive thing we have on the menu. It will always be on our menu. It’s made with five ingredients. But to have someone say that tastes like what their grandmother made, it’s very specific.

How does your Michelin star cooking fit in?

W: Meadowood was my finishing school. It was good to be on a team that got three Michelin stars and four

WINE OF THE

WEEK

PROVIDED PHOTO BY ERIC W. POHL

stars from the San Francisco Chronicle.

The influence and approach is in everything. The nuances to our crab dish or our yuca churro reflect it.

I like to do things that feel thoughtful to the guest. We have the yuca churro.

Yuca is indigenous to this area. It was used by the Comanche to make rope or soap. If there was no buffalo, they would eat it as a vegetable. It’s also something I learned to work with in French kitchens in San Francisco. I like things that overlap. You can see yuca chips in the Caribbean.

I was like, we’re not gonna just fry it.

I cooked it down into a puree to look at it. It’s like taro root and poi in Hawaii.

When you cook it down, it gets gummy.

The further you cook it and blend it, it reminds me we can treat it like a Spanish-style churro. That’s fair food out here. We add yuca blossoms and citrus zest. Then let’s take caviar and add that. What’s High Plains cuisine about caviar? I get caviar from two women I know in San Francisco and have their own caviar company. They sell this to the best restaurants in San Francisco and Napa Valley.

There are lots of things that look great on Instagram. At Meadowood, (chef) Christopher Kostow talked about if at the end of the day the food doesn’t taste good, we have failed.

Riunite

Lambrusco

Riunite Lambrusco is a semi-sparkling wine with a lively and bright ruby-red color. It has a soft and harmonious taste. The perfume is fresh and fruity. Ideal with simple and light dishes, it is excellent to pair with traditional Italian cuisine as well as spicy dishes, grilled meats, and pizza.

DISTRIBUTED BY

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3 COURSE INTERVIEW

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C O M P L E T E L I S T I N G S AT W W W. B E S T O F N E W O R L E A N S . C O M

Out 2 Eat is an index of Gambit contract advertisers. Unless noted, addresses are for New Orleans and all accept credit cards. Updates: Email willc@gambitweekly.com or call (504) 483-3106.

8 Fresh Food Assassin — 1900 N. Claiborne Ave., (504) 224-2628; Instagram, @8freshfoodassassin — Chef Manny January’s serves lamb chops, T-bone steaks, salmon, crab cakes, deep fried ribs, fried chicken and seafood-loaded oysters. No reservations.

Delivery available. Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sun. $$ Acorn — Louisiana Children’s Museum, 12 Henry Thomas Drive, (504) 218-5413; acornnola.com — Blackened shrimp tacos are topped with arugula, radish, pineapple-mango salsa and cilantro-lime sauce. No reservations.

Breakfast and lunch Wed.-Sun. $$ Angelo Brocato’s — 214 N. Carrollton Ave., (504) 486-1465; angelobrocatoicecream. com — This sweet shop serves its own gelato, spumoni, Italian ice, cannolis, biscotti, fig cookies, tiramisu, macaroons and more.

Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sun. $ Annunciation — 1016 Annunciation St., (504) 568-0245; annunciationrestaurant.com — Gulf Drum Yvonne is served with brown butter sauce with mushrooms and artichoke hearts. Reservations recommended. Dinner Thu.-Mon. $$$ Banana Blossom — 500 9th St., Gretna, (504) 500-0997; 504bananablossom.com — Jimmy Cho’s Thai dishes include smoked pork belly and pork meatballs in lemon grass broth with egg, green onion, cilantro and garlic.

Reservations accepted for large parties except weekends. Delivery available. Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sat. $$ Bamboula’s — 514 Frenchmen St.; bamboulasmusic.com — The live music venue’s kitchen offers a menu of traditional and creative Creole dishes, such as Creole crawfish crepes with a goat cheese and chardonnay cream sauce. Reservations accepted. Lunch, dinner and late-night daily. $$ The Blue Crab Restaurant and Oyster Bar — 118 Harbor View Court, Slidell, (985) 315-7001; 7900 Lakeshore Drive, (504) 284-2898; thebluecrabnola.com — Basin barbecue shrimp are served over cheese grits with a cheese biscuit. Outdoor seating available. No reservations. Lakeview: Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sun. Slidell: Lunch Wed.-Fri., dinner Wed.-Sun., brunch Sat.-Sun. $$ Broussard’s — 819 Conti St., (504) 581-3866; broussards.com — Rainbow trout amandine is served with tasso and corn macque choux and Creole meuniere sauce. Reservations recommended. Outdoor seating available.

Dinner Wed.-Sat., brunch Sun. $$$ Cafe Normandie — Higgins Hotel, 480 Andrew Higgins Blvd., (504) 528-1941; higginshotelnola.com/dining — The menu combines classic French dishes and Louisiana items like crab beignets with herb aioli. No reservations. Breakfast and lunch daily. $$ The Commissary — 634 Orange St., (504) 274-1850; thecommissarynola.com — The central kitchen for Dickie Brennan restaurants has a dine-in menu with a smoked turkey sandwich with bacon, tomato jam, herbed cream cheese, arugula and herb vinaigrette on honey oat bread. No reservations. Outdoor seating available. Lunch Tue.-Sat. $$ Curio — 301 Royal St., (504) 717-4198; curionola.com — The creative Creole menu includes blackened Gulf shrimp served with chicken

$ — average dinner entrée under $10 $$ — $11-$20 $$$ — $20-up and andouille jambalaya. Reservations accepted. Lunch and dinner daily. $$ Desire Oyster Bar — Royal Sonesta New Orleans, 300 Bourbon St., (504) 586-0300; sonesta.com/desireoysterbar — A menu full of Gulf seafood includes char-grilled oysters topped with Parmesan and herbs.

Reservations recommended. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$ Dickie Brennan’s Bourbon House — 144 Bourbon St., (504) 522-0111; bourbonhouse.com — There’s a seafood raw bar and dishes like redfish with lemon buerre blanc. Reservations accepted. Lunch and dinner daily. $$$ Dickie Brennan’s Steakhouse — 716 Iberville St., (504) 522-2467; dickiebrennanssteakhouse.com — A 6-ounce filet mignon is served with fried oysters, creamed spinach, potatoes and bearnaise. Reservations recommended. Dinner Mon.-Sat. $$$ Down the Hatch — 817 St. Louis St., (504) 766-6007; 1921 Sophie Wright Place, (504) 220-7071; downthehatchnola.com — The Texan burger features a half-pound patty topped with caramelized onions, smoked bacon, cheddar cheese and a fried egg.

No reservations. Lunch, dinner and latenight daily. $$ Dragonfly Cafe — 530 Jackson Ave., (504) 544-9530; dragonflynola.com — The casual cafe offers breakfast plates, waffles, salads, coffee drinks and more. Delivery available.

Reservations accepted. Breakfast and lunch Wed.-Sat. $$ El Pavo Real — 4401 S. Broad Ave., (504) 266-2022; elpavorealnola.com — Sauteed Gulf fish is topped with tomatoes, olives, onion and capers and served with rice and string beans. The menu includes tacos, enchiladas and more. Outdoor seating available. No reservations. Lunch and early dinner Tue.-Sat. $$ Felix’s Restaurant & Oyster Bar — 739 Iberville St., (504) 522-4440; 7400 Lakeshore Drive, (504) 304-4125; felixs.com — The menu includes raw and char-grilled oysters, seafood platters, po-boys and more.

No reservations. Lunch and dinner daily. $$ Frey Smoked Meat Co. — 4141 Bienville St., Suite 110, (504) 488-7427; freysmokedmeat. com — The barbecue spot serves pulled pork, ribs, brisket, sausages and and items like fried pork belly tossed in pepperjelly glaze. No reservations. Lunch and dinner daily. $$ Froot Orleans — 2438 Bell St., Suite B, (504) 233-3346; frootorleans.com — There are fresh fruit platters and smoothie bowls such as a strawberry shortcake and more using pineapple, berries, citrus and more. No reservations. Outdoor seating available.

Breakfast and lunch daily. $$ Juan’s Flying Burrito — 515 Baronne St., (504) 529-5825; 2018 Magazine St., (504) 569-0000; 4724 S. Carrollton Ave., (504) 486-9950; 8140 Oak St., (504) 897-4800; juansflyingburrito.com — The Flying Burrito includes steak, shrimp, chicken, cheddar jack cheese, black beans, rice, guacamole and salsa. Outdoor seating available. No reservations. Lunch and dinner Thu.-Tue. $$ Katie’s Restaurant — 3701 Iberville St., (504) 488-6582; katiesinmidcity.com — The

eclectic menu includes a Cajun Cuban with roasted pork, ham, cheese and pickles.

Delivery available. Reservations accepted for large parties. Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sun. $$ Kilroy’s Bar — Higgins Hotel, 480 Andrew Higgins Blvd., (504) 528-1941; higginshotelnola.com/dining — The bar menu includes sandwiches, salads and flatbreads, including one topped with peach, prosciutto, stracciatella cheese, arugula and pecans. No reservations. Dinner Wed.-Sat. $$ Legacy Kitchen’s Craft Tavern — 700 Tchoupitoulas St., (504) 613-2350; legacykitchen.com — The menu includes oysters, flatbreads, burgers, sandwiches, salads and a NOLA Style Grits Bowl topped with bacon, cheddar and a poached egg. Reservations accepted. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$ Legacy Kitchen Steak & Chop — 91 Westbank Expressway, Gretna, (504) 513-2606; legacykitchen.com — The menu includes filets mignons and bone-in rib-eyes, as well as burgers, salads and seafood dishes.

Reservations accepted. Outdoor seating available. Lunch and dinner Mon.-Sat. $$ Luzianne Cafe — 481 Girod St., (504) 2651972; luziannecafe.com — Cajun Sunshine Beignets are stuffed with eggs, bacon, cheese and hot sauce. No reservations.

Delivery available. Breakfast and lunch Wed.-Sun. $$ Martin Wine & Spirits — 714 Elmeer Ave., Metairie, (504) 896-7350; 3827 Baronne St., (504) 894-7444; martinwine.com — The deli serves sandwiches and salads such as the Sena, with chicken, raisins, blue cheese, pecans and Tabasco pepperjelly vinaigrette.

No reservations. Lunch daily. $$ Mikimoto — 3301 S. Carrollton Ave., (504) 488-1881; mikimotosushi.com — The South Carrollton roll includes tuna tataki, avocado and snow crab. The menu also has noodle dishes, teriyaki and more. Reservations accepted. Delivery available. Lunch Sun.Fri., dinner daily. $$ Mosca’s — 4137 Highway 90 West, Westwego, (504) 436-8950; moscasrestaurant.com — This family-style eatery serves Italian dishes and specialties including chicken a la grande and baked oysters Mosca.

Reservations accepted. Dinner Wed.-Sat. Cash only. $$$ Mother’s Restaurant — 401 Poydras St., (504) 523-9656; mothersrestaurant.net — This counter-service spot serves po-boys, jambalaya, crawfish etouffee, red beans and rice and more. Delivery available. No reservations. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$ Neyow’s Creole Cafe — 3332 Bienville St., (504) 827-5474; neyows.com — The menu includes red beans with fried chicken or pork chops, as well as seafood platters, po-boys, grilled oysters, salads and more. No reservations. Lunch daily, dinner Mon.-Sat., brunch Sun. $$ Nice Guys Bar & Grill — 7910 Earhart Blvd., (504) 302-2404; niceguysbarandgrillnola. com — Char-grilled oysters are topped with cheese. The menu also includes wings, quesadillas, burgers, salads, seafood pasta and more. No reservations. Lunch daily, dinner Mon.-Sat. $$$ The Original Italian Pie — 3629 Prytania St., (504) 766-8912; theoriginalitalianpieuptown. com — The Italian Pie combo includes pepperoni, Italian sausage, ground beef, mushrooms, onions, bell pepper, black olives, mozzarella and house-made tomato sauce. No reservations. Dinner and late-night Tue.-Sat. $$

Orleans Grapevine Wine Bar & Bistro — 720 Orleans Ave., (504) 523-1930; orleansgrapevine.com — The wine bar’s menu includes Creole pasta with shrimp and andouille in tomato cream sauce. Reservations accepted for large parties. Outdoor seating available.

Dinner Thu.-Sun. $$ Palace Cafe — 605 Canal St., (504) 523-1661; palacecafe.com — The contemporary Creole menu includes crabmeat cheesecake with mushrooms and Creole meuniere sauce.

Outdoor seating available. Reservations recommended. Breakfast and lunch Wed.-Fri., dinner Wed.-Sun., brunch Sat.-Sun. $$$ Peacock Room — Kimpton Hotel Fontenot, 501 Tchoupitoulas St., (504) 324-3073; peacockroomnola.com — Black lentil vadouvan curry comes with roasted tomatoes, mushrooms and basmati rice. Reservations accepted.

Dinner Wed.-Mon., brunch Sun. $$ PrimoHoagies — 8228 Oak St., (504) 3151335; primohoagies.com — The menu of hot and cold sandwiches includes a classic Italian hoagie with prosciutto, salami, hot capicola, provolone, lettuce, tomato and onion.

Delivery available. Lunch and dinner daily. $$ Rosie’s on the Roof — Higgins Hotel, 480 Andrew Higgins Blvd., (504) 528-1941; higginshotelnola.com/dining — The rooftop bar has a menu of sandwiches, burgers and small plates.

No reservations. Dinner daily. $$ Tableau — 616 St. Peter St., (504) 934-3463; tableaufrenchquarter.com — Pasta bouillabaisse features squid ink mafaldine, littleneck clams, Gulf shrimp, squid, seafood broth, rouille and herbed breadcrumbs. Outdoor seating available. Reservations recommended.

Dinner Wed.-Sun., brunch Thu.-Sun. $$$ Tacklebox — 817 Common St., (504) 8271651; legacykitchen.com — The menu includes oysters, and dishes like redfish St. Charles with garlic-herb butter, asparagus, mushrooms and crawfish cornbread. Reservations accepted.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$ Theo’s Neighborhood Pizza — 1212 S. Clearview Parkway, Elmwood, (504) 733-3803; 2125 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Metairie, (504) 510-4282; 4024 Canal St., (504) 302-1133; 4218 Magazine St., (504) 894-8554; 70488 Highway 21, Covington, (985) 234-9420; theospizza.com — A Marilynn Pota Supreme pie is topped with mozzarella, pepperoni, sausage, hamburger, mushrooms, bell peppers and onions. There also are salads, sandwiches and more. Delivery available.

Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sat. $ Tito’s Ceviche & Pisco — 1433 St. Charles Ave., (504) 354-1342; 5015 Magazine St., (504) 267-7612; titoscevichepisco.com — Peruvian lomo saltado features beef sauteed with onions, tomatoes, cilantro, soy sauce and pisco, served with fried potatoes and rice.

Outdoor seating available on Magazine Street.

Delivery available. Reservations accepted.

Lunch and dinner Mon.-Sat., brunch Sun. $$$ The Vintage — 3121 Magazine St., (504) 324-7144; thevintagenola.com — The menu includes beignets, flatbreads and a veggie sandwich with avocado, onions, arugula, red pepper and pepper jack cheese. No reservations. Delivery and outdoor seating available.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$ Zhang Bistro — 1141 Decatur St., (504) 8268888; zhangbistronola.com — The menu of Chinese and Thai dishes includes a Szechuan Hot Wok with a choice of chicken, beef, shrimp or tofu with onions, bell peppers, cauliflower, jalapenos and spicy sauce. Reservations accepted. Lunch and dinner Thu.-Tue. $$

G AMBIT > BESTOFNEWORLE ANS.COM > NOVEMBER 27 - DECEMBER 3 > 2023

O U T T O E AT

G AMBIT > BESTOFNEWORLE ANS.COM > NOVEMBER 27 - DECEMBER 3 > 2023

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A R T S & E N T E R TA I N M E N T PAGE 5

‘A Christmas Story, the Musical’

Ralphie Parker still wants his Red Ryder BB gun in the musical adaptation of the popular holiday film. Rivertown Theaters for the Performing Arts presents the show Dec. 1-17. Tickets $39-$43 at rivertowntheaters.com.

Liz Phair

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gambitpets

Liz Phair’s “Exile in Guyville” was a critical hit when it was released in 1993, and the rocker’s debut album has only grown in its essentialness to the alt-rock canon. Phair wrote the album partly in response to the “guyville” of Chicago’s indie rock scene at the time, and “Exile” has been lauded as a feminist landmark album in ’90s rock because of the way she embraced herself fully in her songwriting. Phair is on a 30th anniversary tour of “Exile in Guyville,” and plays at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 30, at the Orpheum Theater. Blondshell opens. Tickets start at $39.50 via orpheumnola.net.

Holiday Parade

The parade features floats, marching bands, helium balloons and more. The parade starts at the French Market, crosses the French Quarter and ends at Lafayette Square, where there is a holiday concert. At 11 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 2. Visit nolaholidayparade.com for details.

Pretty Lights

Producer and DJ Derek Vincent Smith’s Pretty Lights has been a force in electronic music for nearly 20 years. But following a major Red Rocks show in 2018, the project had been on hiatus — until this spring with the announcement of the 27-date Soundship Spacesystem Tour. He ends the tour in New Orleans with three nights at Mardi Gras World.

Pretty Lights has long had close ties to New Orleans: More than a dozen local musicians appeared on the album, “A Color Map of the Sun,” and drummer Alvin Ford Jr. is a regular member of the Pretty Lights band. At 9 p.m.

Friday, Dec. 1 and Saturday, Dec. 2 and 8 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 3. Tickets are available through ticketmaster.com.

ISSUE DATE

DEC 11

RESERVE SPACE BY

DEC 1

Contact Sales and Marketing Manager Abby Scorsone Bordelon 504-636-7427 or abigail.scorsone@gambitweekly.com

Sierra Green and the Giants

Vocalist Sierra Green has been a mighty presence on Frenchmen Street the last few years, often performing with her band The Soul Machine. With a new album of funk

and powerful soul on the horizon and a retooled backing band, The Giants, Green is looking to have a breakout 2024. Catch Green and the Giants at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 29, at Chickie Wah Wah with DJ Brice Nice. Tickets are $15 via chickiewahwah.com and $20 at the door.

After Midnight

Lacuna Productions is celebrating (but not officially connected to) electronic musician Pretty Lights’ shows in New Orleans with a long weekend of DJs and visual artists. The New Orleans takeover will feature sets

by Chris Karns (a member of Pretty Lights’ band), Cut Chemist (playing a 50th anniversary tribute to hiphop), Skratch Bastid, DJ Nu-Mark, Groovsauce, Parkbreezy and many more. Late-night shows take place Friday, Dec. 1, through Sunday, Dec. 3, at Café Istanbul. There also will be pre-party sets on Nov. 30, Dec. 2 and Dec. 4 at locations around New Orleans. Tickets for late-night shows start at $55, and pre-party events are free. Find tickets and info at beacons. ai/lacunaproductions.

‘Fat Ham’

Le Petit Theatre hosts a staged reading of James Ijames’ Pulitzer-winning play “Fat Ham.” Ijames reworked Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” but with a Black, queer main character, in a drama set at a family barbecue. At 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 29, at Central City BBQ. Find information at lepetittheatre.com.

‘Meowy Catmas’

The Amazing Acrocats return to New Orleans for their annual holiday shows. Felines do various tricks, and there’s a performance by the Rock Cats band. Nov. 30-Dec. 17 at the AllWays Lounge & Theatre. Find tickets via rockcatsrescue.org.

Christmas Wrecktacular

Americana band Loose Cattle throw a roaring holiday party with a sleighfull of guest musicians on the nice list, including Alexis & The Sanity with Jack Craft, Luke Spurr Allen & Arlo, John Boutte, Debbie Davis, Johanna Divine & Andre Michot, The Iguanas, Maggie Koerner, Lilli Lewis, Lola From Nola & Bruisey Peets, Anders Parker, Paul Sanchez and Edward Simon. At 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 1, at the Maple Leaf. Tickets are $22 in advance via mapleleafbar.com.

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FO R CO M P L E T E M U S I C L I ST I N G S A N D M O R E E V E N T S TA K I N G P L A C E IN THE NEW ORLEANS AREA, VISIT C A L E N D A R . G A M B I T W E E K LY. C O M

To learn more about adding your event to the music calendar, please email listingsedit@gambitweekly.com

MONDAY 27 BAMBOULAS — The Rug Cutters, 1:15 pm; Jon Roniger Band, 5:30 pm; Ed Wills Blues 4 Sale, 9 pm BJ'S LOUNGE BYWATER — Smokehouse Brown Red Bean Blues Band, 9 pm BUFFA'S BAR & RESTAURANT — Doyle Cooper Trio, 7 pm DOS JEFES — John Fohl, 8:30 pm FRITZEL'S EUROPEAN JAZZ CLUB — Matinee All Star Band, 1:30 pm; Lee Floyd And Thunderbolt Trio, 5 pm; Richard Scott and Friends, 8 pm MAHOGANY JAZZ HALL — The Original Tuxedo Jazz Band, 8 pm MAPLE LEAF BAR — George Porter, Jr. Trio, 7 & 10 pm SNUG HARBOR JAZZ BISTRO — Davell Crawford, 7:30 & 9:30 pm

TUESDAY 28 APPLE BARREL — NOLA Groove Collective, 10:30 pm BAMBOULAS — The Villians, 1:15 pm; Giselle Anguizola Quartet, 5:30 pm; Andy J Forest Blues, 9 pm DOS JEFES — Kris Tokarski, 8:30 pm FRITZEL'S EUROPEAN JAZZ CLUB — Richard "Piano" Scott, 1 pm; Colin Myers Band, 5 pm; Fritzels All Star Band with Jamil Sharif, 8 pm MAHOGANY JAZZ HALL — Big Joe Kennedy, 6 pm MAPLE LEAF BAR — TBC Brass Band, 9 pm THE RABBIT HOLE — Rebirth Brass Band, 5 &10 pmROCK 'N' BOWL — Javier Olondo & Asheson, 8 pm SNUG HARBOR JAZZ BISTRO — Larry Sieberth & James Evans, 7:30 & 9:30 pm

WEDNESDAY 29 21ST AMENDMENT BAR AT LA LOUISIANE — Jerry Duggar & The Rusty Rainbow, 8 pm BAMBOULAS — J.J and the A-OK’s, 1:15 pm; Boardwalker and The 3 Finger Swingers, 5:30 pm; Roule and the Queen, 9 pm BLUE NILE — New Breed Brass Band, 9:30 pm CAFE NEGRIL — Colin Davis and Night People, 6 pm CHICKIE WAH WAH — Sierra Green & The Giants Industry Showcase, 8 pm

G AMBIT > BESTOFNEWORLE ANS.COM > NOVEMBER 27 - DECEMBER 3 > 2023

MUSIC DMACS BAR & GRILL — The Dewdrops, 8 pm FRITZEL'S EUROPEAN JAZZ CLUB — Richard "Piano" Scott, 1 pm; Bourbon Street Stars, 5 pm; Fritzels All Star Band with Kevin Ray Clark, 8 pm MAHOGANY JAZZ HALL — Paul Longstreth, 6 pm SNUG HARBOR JAZZ BISTRO — Reggie Houston Quartet, 7:30 pm TIPITINA'S — American Aquarium, Lance Roark, 9 pm

THURSDAY 30 21ST AMENDMENT BAR AT LA LOUISIANE — Big Joe Kennedy, 3 pm BAMBOULAS — Miss Sigrid and The Zig-Zags, 1:15 pm; Christina Kamini and The Mix, 5:30 pm; Wolfe John’s Blues, 9 pm BLUE NILE — Where Y'at Brass Band, 9 pm BUFFA'S BAR & RESTAURANT — Rebecca Leigh & Harry Mayronne, 5 pm CAFE NEGRIL — Sierra Green and the Soul Machine, 10 pm DMACS BAR & GRILL — Paggy Prine, 7:30 pm DOS JEFES — Miss Anna Quinn, 8:30 pm FRITZEL'S EUROPEAN JAZZ CLUB — Richard "Piano" Scott, 12:30 pm; Doyle Cooper Band, 2:30 pm; John Saavedra Band, 6 pm; Fritzels All Star Band withKevin Ray Clark, 8 pm LE BON TEMPS ROULE — The Soul Rebels, 11 pm MAHOGANY JAZZ HALL — The New Orleans Catahoulas, 6 pm MAPLE LEAF BAR — Johnny Vidacovich Trio, 8 pm ORPHEUM THEATER — Liz Phair, 7 pm PEACOCK ROOM, HOTEL FONTENOT — Da Lovebirds with Robin Barnes and Pat Casey , 8 pm ROCK 'N' BOWL — Leroy Thomas & Zydeco Roadrunners, 8 pm SNUG HARBOR JAZZ BISTRO — Brian Seeger Quartet, 7:30 pm THREE MUSES — Mia Borders , 5 pm

FRIDAY 1 BLUE NILE — The Caesar Brothers, 8 & 11 pm BOURBON STREET HONKY TONK — The Bad Sandys, 8 pm

BYWATER BREW PUB — Kings of the Small Time, 5 pm CAFE NEGRIL — Higher Heights Reggae Band, 10 pm KERRY IRISH PUB — Patrick Cooper, 5 pm MARIGNY OPERA HOUSE — Dustan Louque, Margaret Hebert, 7:30 pm ROCK 'N' BOWL — No Idea, 8:30 pm SPOKE+BARREL — Christian Serpas & Ghost Town, 6 pm THE JOY THEATER — Minnesota, Eliot Lipp , Kaptain, 11:30 pm

SATURDAY 2 BLUE NILE — George Brown Band, 8 pm BLUE NILE BALCONY ROOM — The Afrodiziac's Jazz, 10 pm CAFE NEGRIL — Sierra Green and the Soul Machine, 10 pm REPUBLIC NOLA — Ravenscoon, 11:45 pm ROCK 'N' BOWL — Crescent Kings, 8:30 pm THE GOAT — Hillbilly Casino, Dirty Rotten Snake in the Grass, 9 pm THE RABBIT HOLE — Dana Ives Christmas Spectacular, 3 pm

Davell Crawford performs Monday, Nov. 27, at Snug Harbor.

PHOTO BY SCOTT THRELKELD / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE

TOULOUSE THEATRE — Gravity A, 9 pm WILD BUSH FARM AND VINEYARD — Pine Leaf Boys, 6:30 pm

SUNDAY 3 BLUE NILE — The Baked Potatoes, 8 pm; Street Legends Brass Band, 10:30 pm BOURBON STREET HONKY TONK — The Bad Sandys, 8 pm CAFE NEGRIL — Vegas Cola, 9 pm FRITZEL'S EUROPEAN JAZZ CLUB — Big Joe Kennedy Quartet, 2 pm JAEGER'S SEAFOOD AND OYSTER HOUSE — Stacy Weaver Band, 4 pm THE JOY THEATER — Break Science, Vincent Antone, McWavy, 11 pm

SCAN FOR THE COMPLETE GAMBIT CALENDAR

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r u o h t i w n a l Make a p at r a d n e l a c s event l y .c o k e e w t i b m a c a l e n d a r. g

SCAN FOR THE COMPLETE GAMBIT CALENDAR

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50

Q & A

RENARD BRIDGEWATER

BY JAKE CLAPP

NEW ORLEANS NATIVE RENARD BRIDGEWATER FELL IN LOVE WITH HIP-HOP as a

kid, but it was during his time at Holy Cross High School that he became an ardent writer, filling notebooks and message boards with lyrics. As he came of age and while attending University of New Orleans, he took his music to the stage under the moniker Slangston Hughes.

Bridgewater every Thursday, midnight to 2 a.m., co-hosts Draw Fo’ Radio with Thelonius Kryptonite on WWOZ, the station’s first show dedicated to hip-hop. Bridgewater also until recently was the community engagement coordinator at the Music and Culture Coalition of New Orleans. Find his music at slangstonhughes.bandcamp.com.

This interview is part of a series reflecting on New Orleans as hip-hop turns 50. Read more at gambitweekly.com.

What was your introduction to hip-hop?

RENARD BRIDGEWATER:

I think I’ve had a couple of different access points. The earliest memory that I have of hip-hop, from a musical standpoint, was MC Hammer.

That was probably one of my first introductions, just because as a kid, everybody that I knew wanted to be MC Hammer. We wanted the MC Hammer pants, wanted to be able to dance like MC Hammer, a lot of emulating him from that standpoint. I think that’s one of my earliest memories.

Then, not too long after that: “House Party 2.” The opening scene for some reason really stuck with me, and I think it also just opened up my mind to what a hip-hop performer could be — or what hip-hop performance could look like. Because the opening scene is Kid is dreaming, more or less, and it’s this cypher that’s going down and [there’s] a dance battle in the cypher. To some degree, I envisioned what that could look like for me if I was in Kid’s shoes.

The last and most focal point of my introduction to hip-hop was my time as a junior in high school. For

some reason, at that point in time, I was starting to really delve into the classics: your “Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers),” your Nas’ “Illmatic,” and other classics like that. Not only listening to the classics, but going back and just really, fully immersing myself into the culture — not just the music but the culture of hip-hop at that time.

I also started writing in ’01 as well. This was at the time when Okayplayer was still [early online], and it was early Reddit kind of stages.

You had your message boards and things like that. I came up at a time where the message board was still a thing, and people would find out about new music there and then go to LimeWire and download it.

That’s where I found myself, to some degree, as a lyricist, because what I would do at that time is read other people’s [rhymes]. Folks were just bustin’ 16s (16-bar verses) left and right in the message boards.

There were even battles that were taking place in the message boards, where one emcee would put their best 16 up against the other emcee. I was doing that, but I was also having those message board battles with folks I went to high school with on AOL Instant Messenger. We would go back-and-forth, and someone would spit two bars, and then you would come back. It was like a virtual battle that was taking place via AOL Instant Messenger.

Who was the first New Orleans hip-hop artist you admired?

BRIDGEWATER: I will always claim, and others will as well, that [Lil] Wayne is the GOAT. But I think back before my full immersion into the artform, Hot Boy Turk. Turk was my favorite of the Hot Boys at the time, and I think he certainly stood out to me and caught my ear very early on in my love of hip-hop.

I think Turk would be number one at that time, and then Mystikal as well just because of his tenure at the time, even before I was like really listening to hip-hop like that. So having a respect for him and his artistry because it had been taking place for

Renard Bridgewater records and performs as Slangston Hughes.

He also co-hosts the weekly show Draw Fo’ Radio on WWOZ. PROVIDED PHOTO

quite some time prior to me coming into the artform — also his charisma, his onstage performance, his overall versatility in the octave that he used on the microphone.

You co-host Draw Fo’ Radio on WWOZ with Thelonius Kryptonite. Were there any New Orleans radio hosts you looked to for inspiration or that you think are important to this history?

BRIDGEWATER: Oh, for sure.

First comes to mind is Wild Wayne, right? He has broken many hip-hop and bounce records on Q93. He’s provided a space for aspiring emcees and rappers with 9 O’Clock Props. He continues to do it right, and not just on air — I think it was called Industry Influence … an event he and Sess 4-5 did for several years in a post-Katrina landscape to be able to provide prizes and networking opportunities for upcoming emcees and artists over at The Hangar. His reach is certainly profound. It’s something that has history to it, and the beautiful thing is he’s still doing it.

I always gotta shout out my fellow OZ DJ, Soul Sister, because of what she’s been able to do. [She plays] a different sound, but she’s always had an appreciation and the respect — and one that has taken place publicly — for hip-hop, for sure.

I also gotta pay respect to the big homie, DJ EF Cuttin. He’s been breaking records for years. He had his show with DJ RQ Away on WTUL called Reel 2 Real that they did for a couple of years, and that was latenight hip-hop, playing a lot of New Orleans hip-hop. So I think to some degree, EF provided the foundations for what myself and Thelonious do now as well.

Reflecting on this anniversary, what does hip-hop mean to you today?

BRIDGEWATER: Oh, man, hiphop ultimately took this shy, nerdy kid and allowed him to fully be himself. [It helped me] not to shy away from the things that I may have gotten picked on about or made fun of [for], because it allowed me to really step into my character and my personality and who I was, who I am and what I really enjoyed about myself.

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GOING OUT

Y’ule time

by Will Coviello

A MARI LWYD IS A DECORATED HORSE’S SKULL on a pole. It’s

part of a Welsh Christmas holiday tradition in which a group carries the totem from door to door.

“At each house, the Mari Lwyd group knocks on the door and starts this rhyming contest, basically asking, ‘Hey, can we come in?’” says William Ransom of the Krewe of Krampus. “The people respond in rhymes, coming up with all sorts of reasons why they can’t come in. If the Mari Lwyd comes in, it gets into all your food and beer, and then it moves on to the next house. It’s almost like caroling.”

Ransom will lead the Mari Lwyd group in this year’s Krewe of Krampus parade, in which a procession of frightening figures hit the streets of Bywater on Saturday, Dec. 2.

The krewe’s namesake is a figure in Alpine lore, who comes out during the holiday season to scare or punish children who have been bad. Krampus is often depicted with horns and goat hair. Krampus figures, or similar looking characters, are common in northern European and Scandinavian countries.

Another common figure represented in the parade is the Barbegazi, which are hairy bearded gnomes.

Mike Esordi founded the krewe five years ago, and the parade features many figures from European folklore, as well as some of the krewe’s own creations. One of the krewe’s subgroups is the Sisters of Shhh. The women in the group all dress in ghostly white and silver, and they often wear headdresses with horns. They walk in front of Krampus to announce he’s coming.

Ransom is in charge of the krewe’s “Y’ules,” a collection of ghostly spirits from various cultures. One of the most popular is the Yule Cat, which is based on an Icelandic tradition.

“The Yule Cat eats people who haven’t received any new clothes,” Ransom says. “You are supposed to get new clothes for Christmas. It sounds unfair to the person being eaten, because no one gave them clothes, but I think it’s meant to make sure you give clothes to others for the holidays.”

There also is a Japanese ghost in this year’s procession. The Yuki-onna is a spirit who appears in snowstorms.

She often holds a baby and asks her

PHOTO BY DOUG MACCASH / THE TIMES-PICYAUNE

victim to hold the baby. But it’s usually a no-win proposition in which she kills the victim or leaves them to die in the cold.

The parade also has several guest groups, including the drumming group Skinz N Bonez, the Aerial Space Squad and Crescent City Fae. The parade’s prized throws are lumps of coal. This year, Krampus will give out lumps made from glass recycled by Glass Half Full.

The parade starts at 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, at Royal and France streets and goes toward the French Quarter.

There is a two-block Accessibility Row on Independence Street, and there the krewe provides a quiet zone with a sensitivity trailer, a sign-language interpreter, a viewing area for people with limited mobility and more. Last year, local weatherman Carl Arredondo broadcast the parade for the visually impaired. This year, he will march in the parade as St. Nicholas.

There are two post-parade parties with music, one at Bratz Y’all and one at Bud Rip’s.

The krewe has filled its calendar with events, including a summertime Alpine Luau and the Halloween season Swampus event. This year, it will have a collaborative event with the Krewe of Joan of Arc. The party will highlight the transformation from Krampus’ season of darkness to the Carnival season’s light.

For parade and krewe information, visit kreweofkrampus.com.

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