Stevie Wonder performs at Fordham University graduation
Music legend Stevie Wonder performed from the Fordham Commencement stage, but not before offering the Class of 2023 some inspiration—and a challenge.
“The youth are going to make the difference. I believe in you. That’s why I sing, and that’s why I’m motivated,” he said at the May 20 ceremony, just after receiving an honorary doctorate from the University.
‘Stand Up and Be Counted’
“Fordham has given you the tools to achieve, to excel, and to do great things in this world. But that’s not gonna happen by sitting on your hands,” he said.
“You’ve got to be activists. You have to vote. You have to serve your communities and you must enlighten the unenlightened.”
Wonder—a winner of 25 Grammys, 32 No. 1 singles, 49 top 40 singles and worldwide sales of over 100 million units—was honored for both his artistry and his leadership on social and humanitarian issues, such as making Martin Luther King Jr. Day a national holiday and expanding the availability of published works in accessible formats such as Braille, large print, and audio books.
‘You Really Do Have To Be Woke’
He challenged the graduates assembled on Edwards Parade to use their education to respond to the realities of the world’s suffering.
“You really do have to be woke. Now, maybe some leaders in this nation don’t understand what being woke is. Let me tell you what it is. It’s being awake. And being awake means being aware…So stand up and be counted as one against oppression, hatred, and let’s keep the truth alive.”
To the crowd’s delight, Wonder performed “You Are The Sunshine Of My Life,” drawing more cheers from graduates and families.
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A 26-foot-tall charcoal sculpture is coming to Rockefeller Center
You might notice Rockefeller Center looking a little different come summer. That’s because the landmark will play host to a special exhibition spotlighting Korean art through June and July, the biggest piece of which—literally—will be a large-scale charcoal sculpture towering at 26 feet in the outdoor plaza.
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Running at Rock Center from Thursday, June 8 through Wednesday, July 26, the exhibition is titled “Origin, Emergence, Return and is presented by the Busan-based Johyun Gallery, the gallery’s first-ever exhibition outside of Korea. Throughout, modern and contemporary Korean art, including more than 70 works from the likes of Park Seo Bo, Lee Bae and Jin Meyerson, will be on view at the Rink Level Gallery, exploring three generations of Korean art from the 20th century to the present.
“All three artists investigate and challenge the notions of abstraction through unique materials–Park with hanji (traditional Korean paper), Lee with charcoal, and Meyerson with CG (computer graphics) and AR (augmented reality),” the gallery team said in a press release.
The exhibit will also extend beyond the 10,000-square-foot gallery space and into the center’s Channel Gardens outside, which will play host to Lee Bae’s 26-foot sculpture of stacked charcoal, marking the first time that a Korean artist will present in the iconic space. The unveiling of the site-specific piece will take place on June 8, with an artist talk with Lee from 5pm to 6pm to discuss the process and inspiration behind the piece, followed by an opening reception from 6pm to 8pm.
The Origin, Emergence, Return showing is part of a larger celebration of Korean culture and heritage taking place at Rockefeller Center in July, where guests can delve into Korean food, fashion, music and more. A weekend’s worth of special events will take place between Wednesday, July 19 through Sunday, July 23, including pop-up activations in collaboration with retailers at Rock Center.
If you want to see the full exhibit for yourself, gallery hours are Wednesday to Sunday from 11am to 6pm, but viewings on Tuesdays are by appointment only.
Yes, that was a magnitude-2.2 earthquake in New York today
We usually leave the earthquake watch to our brethren out in Los Angeles, but New York got a shake-up of its own in the early morning of Friday, May 19.
Hot off the scary news that NYC is sinking under its own weight, a 2.2-magnitude earthquake struck the New York metropolitan area early Friday, hitting about a mile south Hastings-on-Hudson in Westchester County around 2am, per the United States Geological Survey (USGS). The rumblings reportedly could be felt in the lower areas of Hudson Valley, parts of northeastern New Jersey, and around White Plains and Yonkers.
Per social media, it was apparently close enough that people in the boroughs felt a little planetary shimmy-shake, with residents taking to Twitter to question whether the tremors were, indeed, an actual earthquake.
ok need to apologize to the cat for thinking he made some super weird grumbly noise in his sleep last night cuz apparently it was an EARTHQUAKE??? in nyc?!?!?
— s i m o n e 👻 (@sim1cam) May 19, 2023
Never thought I’d feel an earthquake in NYC lol, even if it was only 2.2.
— Ale (@ale_bomaye) May 19, 2023
not sure if anyone else just felt an earthquake in nyc but holy sh*t.
— nikki bikki (@nikkiii_x0) May 19, 2023
Another Twitter user commented, adding in a reply: “The last time i felt an earthquake here was like 10+ years ago /: never happens.”
Despite the seeming unlikeliness of an earthquake being felt in New York City, it has actually happened before, and not all that long ago: back in November 2017, the tremors from a 4.1-magnitude earthquake in Delaware were felt in parts of NYC.
Though experiencing quakes firsthand can definitely feel like a scary situation, luckily there was no immediate reports of damage due to today’s earthquake. Per the USGS, earthquakes of a magnitude of 3 and below will not usually result in much damage or, worse, casualties; that’s more often the case with earthquake magnitudes measured around 5.5 or higher. For reference, the largest recorded earthquake to strike New York State was a 5.9 up near the border of Canada on September 5, 1944, per the NESEC.