Nekita Thomas: “The Artsy Kid in the Hood”
This Out of the Archives podcast episode features narrator Nekita Thomas, who talks about Chicago’s Dearborn Homes and the designs of the everyday in public housing.
“You Hear What I Do”
featuring Tom Tom Washington
Out of the Archives, Episode 30
Thomas “Tom Tom 84” Washington, founder of the South Side Big Band, has composed music with Earth, Wind, and Fire, the Chi-Lites, Phil Collins, and countless more stars.
In “You Hear What I Do,” Episode 30 of Out of the Archives, learn about how growing up in the Ida B. Wells Homes shaped him into a prolific contributor to the soundtrack of America.
Episode notes, sources, and resources
- “Tom Tom” Washington’s South Side Big Band revitalizes midcentury hip, from the Chicago Reader
- Explore Tom Tom Washington’s discography on Discogs
Music in the episode:
- Additional music by Robert Van Vranken
- Hear music from the entire season in our season playlist
About the series
Out of the Archives is the National Public Housing Museum’s oral history-based podcast, created from interviews with public housing residents across the United States.
About the season
Season 5
Black Creative Innovation in Chicago Public Housing
Across season 5 of Out of the Archives, listen to abridged interviews with public housing residents whose innovations helped put Chicago and Black creative practices on the map.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
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