About this Event
Reviewing the bestselling memoir of filmmaker, professor and recording artist MK Asante, NPR said, “In America, we have a tradition of black writers whose autobiographies and memoirs come to define an era. . . . Buck may be this generation’s story.” Maya Angelou called the award-winning book—which is currently being adapted into a major motion picture— “A story of surviving and thriving with passion, compassion, wit, and style.” Asante’s raw and resonant new book, NEPHEW: A Memoir in 4-Part Harmony (Amistad; May 21, 2024), is both a companion to Buck and a standalone work that delves into a complicated family legacy of secrets, addiction, faith, and redemption in a wholly unique way.
As urgent, resonant, and essential as The Fire Next Time and Between the World and Me, a poetic, raw, and inspirational love letter from the bestselling author of Buck, written to a nephew who was shot nine times and survived—a reflection on life, overcoming odds, finding your voice, and the power of music and family.
Waiting in the emergency room at Temple University Hospital in North Philadelphia where his eighteen-year-old nephew, Nasir, lay unconscious after being shot nine times, MK Asante began pouring his heart and soul into a series of letters to a beautiful, dying Black boy so full of life.
As Nasir fought for survival, MK realized there was so much—too much—that he had kept from his nephew, starting with the truth about his father, MK’s brother, Uzi, whom Nasir had never met. MK could no longer remain silent because in many ways, his nephew was repeating the mistakes of the past. MK began his confessional to repair family bonds—to save Nasir from the same streets that stole his father and to introduce him to the man and family history the young man had never known. The result is this beautiful, poignant, and raw family memoir.
An explosive, innovative memoir of family, faith, poetry, secrets, love, race, poverty, redemption, addiction, Philadelphia, hip-hop, J*il, purpose, mental health, and violence. Nephew is fast-paced, intimate, lyrical, educational, and inspirational. It is the epic, painful, poetic, and miraculous redemptive story of a new generation—a new style of memoir for a new decade, the rhythmic story of a family in love, struggle, and verse.
MK Asante is joining us on the Busboys stage to share his tender memoir that has Essence Magazine calling him the next "voice of his generation". Copies of the book will be available for purchase during and after the event, and Asante will be signing following the program.
This event is free and open to all. Our program begins at 6:00 pm, and will be followed by an audience Q&A. Copies of NEPHEW will be available for purchase before and after the event. Please note that this event is in person and will be livestreamed.
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MK Asante is an award-winning filmmaker, recording artist, distinguished professor, and the bestselling author of Buck: A Memoir. He studied at the University of London and earned a B.A. from Lafayette College and an M.F.A. from the UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television. He is the host and co-executive producer of While Black, a Snap Original docuseries produced by NBCUniversal, Indigo Development and Entertainment Arts, and Main Event Media. Asante has been featured on CNN, NPR, The Breakfast Club, VH1, and MTV. His essays have been published in the New York Times and USA Today, and his inspirational story “The Blank Page” is featured in the number-one New York Times bestseller, Chicken Soup for the Soul: 20th Anniversary Edition.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Busboys and Poets 450K, 450 K St NW, Washington, United States
USD 0.00
