Speaker 1: My League, but has how the knowledge you want? League,
Speaker 1: but has how the knowledge you need? League. But yeah,
Speaker 1: they have out the books that the whole wild world
Speaker 1: want to read. League bus Well. This was a great week.
Speaker 1: This was a big week. This was something we've been
Speaker 1: planning for several months. And why would I do any
Speaker 1: episode other than Independent Book Store Day since it fell
Speaker 1: on April thirty of this Saturday. And my next episode
Speaker 1: is which is twenty three. I'm on number twenty three
Speaker 1: is you know a few days? So my episode is
Speaker 1: gonna be on Independent book Store Day. We had over
Speaker 1: twenty independent authors and we had Terry Crews headlining our
Speaker 1: Independent book Store Day. We took pictures with Terry Crews
Speaker 1: and the independent authors. He spoke about his book Tough
Speaker 1: My Journey to True Power. He did a great shout
Speaker 1: out about Malik Books and me personally. Um, we just
Speaker 1: had a wonderful time. Each author came up and spoke
Speaker 1: about their book. So we had storytelling, poetry, author discussion,
Speaker 1: and music and our DJ, DJ Holloway. She turned it
Speaker 1: up all day from twelve to six and it was
Speaker 1: just a fun, festive and fun day for the whole family.
Speaker 1: We also did a big blowout sale two for twenty dollars. UH.
Speaker 1: We had best selling book hundreds of titles of best
Speaker 1: selling books two for twenty dollars at the event UM.
Speaker 1: And we also hosted Oscar winner and author Matthew Cherry
Speaker 1: at Malik Books at Balwin Hills Crenshaw Marci. It was
Speaker 1: like two locations, one party. So at when I was
Speaker 1: talking about Terry Cruise in the Tuning, I'm talking about
Speaker 1: Westfield Covis at Malik Books at Westfield Cover City Mall.
Speaker 1: When I'm talking about Matthew Cherry, I'm talking about Malik
Speaker 1: Books in the Balling Hills Cresham Mall. So it was
Speaker 1: two locations, one party, and that's how we did it.
Speaker 1: And we gave away one hundred free books of hair
Speaker 1: Love signed autograph copies with Matthew Cherry at Malik Books
Speaker 1: and Balling Hills Crenshaw Mall. And it was just a wonderful,
Speaker 1: wonderful day UM to have Matthew Cherry at bale Hills
Speaker 1: taking photos with the kids, UM demonstrating a new product
Speaker 1: that he has coming out in partnership with UH with Dove,
Speaker 1: and so he got a hair product, a hairline since
Speaker 1: his book was on hair love. Hey the Dove the
Speaker 1: Corporation partner up with Matthew Cherry. Now he has a
Speaker 1: hairline and in association with what his brand and UM
Speaker 1: it it's a fun festive day, many pictures. People came
Speaker 1: out by the Huntings and supported our event and Matthew Cherry,
Speaker 1: Uh took a lot of pictures with the community. UM
Speaker 1: gave out a hundred free books signed and you know
Speaker 1: we had extra books and he you know, saying how
Speaker 1: many books you had at the store. And he brought
Speaker 1: the two cases that we had brought for the story
Speaker 1: and signed them and brought him and told us to
Speaker 1: give him out. So, hey, how blessed we was. And
Speaker 1: you know his event started at noon and what happened
Speaker 1: was we told uh it was enough time because the
Speaker 1: event at Wasstfield Coast City Mall was twelve six, so
Speaker 1: you had every you can do both. You can start
Speaker 1: at that ball held then jump right on over to
Speaker 1: Westfield Coast. But when we had the big shift thing,
Speaker 1: so two parties, one location, Independent Books or Day hosted
Speaker 1: by Malik Books, headlined by Terry Crews, Matthew Cherry and
Speaker 1: twenty independent authors. It was just so a wonderful day
Speaker 1: and every fun fund people loved it. The authors loved it,
Speaker 1: Terry loved it, Matthew loved it. The mall both Baldwin
Speaker 1: Hills and Westfield loved it. So it was a wonderful day.
Speaker 1: Kudos to my team, particularly secret webbing, my wife. Kudos
Speaker 1: to everybody that helped us make this possible. Chinese as
Speaker 1: a vendor coordinator, who Um was just so wonderful and
Speaker 1: we just thankful. You know, we had all hands on
Speaker 1: debt and everything went smooth. I want to mention one
Speaker 1: more thing, and the reason why independent authors uh very
Speaker 1: important to Malie is because when I first started Malik Books,
Speaker 1: independent books had a lot to do with my awakening
Speaker 1: and my spiritual quickening, and as a result, I really
Speaker 1: lead have a love for independent books. Many of these
Speaker 1: books that I stocked in my store hard to find
Speaker 1: and rare books. It was simply published by independent authors
Speaker 1: about our culture, about our history, and these books woke
Speaker 1: me up. Like I said, when I first started my podcast,
Speaker 1: I had a degree, but I didn't have a knowledge itself.
Speaker 1: You need to know who you are and you need
Speaker 1: to know your path so you can know your president
Speaker 1: and your future. You can't just cut your roots away
Speaker 1: and then tart out a path in this world without
Speaker 1: knowing yourself and your ancestors. So independent books and these
Speaker 1: books made up impact in me or quickening in me,
Speaker 1: And so I loved independent books. A lot of these
Speaker 1: books is out the day wasn't even available, they wasn't
Speaker 1: published by mainstream publishers. The industry began to publish a
Speaker 1: lot of materials written by black authors simply because you know,
Speaker 1: black people read black people by books, and that's a market.
Speaker 1: And so if it wasn't, hey, you wouldn't see a
Speaker 1: lot of these materials out here. And so representation matters.
Speaker 1: And as a result, you know, we want this inclusivity,
Speaker 1: we want equity, we want to be represented. So a
Speaker 1: lot of these books that are out here today is
Speaker 1: simply the level the plan field where everyone has a voice,
Speaker 1: everyone is as representation, and that's important. Everyone needs to
Speaker 1: feel important, everyone needs to know their important, and everyone
Speaker 1: has a story, everyone has made a contribution in this world.
Speaker 1: Needs that voice need to be magnified. And so I,
Speaker 1: you know, love independent authors and they mean a lot
Speaker 1: to me. And I writed twenty of them. Twenty of
Speaker 1: them came and heard the call and I wanted to
Speaker 1: make sure when we marketed this event that they was
Speaker 1: included in the marketing. When we did already promote the
Speaker 1: buried the twenty independent authors like thirty seconds into a
Speaker 1: minute commercial, I said, no, this is not gonna work.
Speaker 1: They are part of the headline. There is no show
Speaker 1: without the independent authors. There is no event without the
Speaker 1: independent Yes, Malik Books an independent bookstore and I'm representing
Speaker 1: you know, they represent what I represent, So therefore I
Speaker 1: need them to be right there teg headline along with
Speaker 1: Terry Crews. They're a major part of the events. So
Speaker 1: we had to revamp the script so that it would
Speaker 1: include the twenty independent authors with Terry Crews. So stay
Speaker 1: tuned for episode twenty three Independent Bookstore Day. Malik's Bookshow
Speaker 1: is hosting an independent book store Day. I have some
Speaker 1: publishers that came and visit Melik Books and is at
Speaker 1: the independent bookstore celebration, and they have a publishing company
Speaker 1: as well as they have published their own books, and
Speaker 1: I just want to get some few words from them
Speaker 1: about what is it called againishing the infinite publishing? So
Speaker 1: talk to us about the books that you published and
Speaker 1: what's your upcoming projects. Thank you so much that I'm Kai,
Speaker 1: I'm one of the co founders. We've published a new book,
Speaker 1: Cause You to Splendor, a journal copy, the Be Grateful
Speaker 1: Journal about the Seasons, and now we're gonna Our next
Speaker 1: big project is the Book of d h which really
Speaker 1: stands where the Book of Dreams and Hopes follows. The
Speaker 1: pretty big mover and shaker in the Nike game. He
Speaker 1: came and changed things around and got it, got it
Speaker 1: to the Jordan brand, to the Lebron, all these key players.
Speaker 1: He helped to bring those stories together and make it
Speaker 1: yeah moving. Well that's an amazing because what I found
Speaker 1: is that you know, and most of these industries, you
Speaker 1: find that someone is African American has made a significant part,
Speaker 1: played a significant part. So this is news to me.
Speaker 1: So you know, I'm very intrigued by that. Tell me
Speaker 1: about your your projects and the books you self polished.
Speaker 1: Thank you so much. So we are a black owned,
Speaker 1: women owned publishing company based in l a And so
Speaker 1: we started in and we're getting our feet and in
Speaker 1: the publishing game. We have a journal out and we
Speaker 1: have the Future Splinter, which is an afro futurist books
Speaker 1: collection of short stories and poems. And our next one
Speaker 1: is a business memoir style where he really teached Damon
Speaker 1: Haley really details the trajectory of his life, his career
Speaker 1: and how he's helped and mood and pivoted and changed.
Speaker 1: And we're the really winner's mindset, what that really does
Speaker 1: for him and how it helps other people to This
Speaker 1: is great, This is great, This is great. Kai here
Speaker 1: is very great. Shoy. She's the illustrator of a lot
Speaker 1: of our books. She's also an author. I have an
Speaker 1: upcoming children's book coming out next year. Uh Kai has
Speaker 1: written a book of poetry called them The Depths of
Speaker 1: an Nema. So we're movers and shakers ourselves. We love
Speaker 1: books O. Our family has grown up around books and
Speaker 1: it's just been a pleasure working with different creatives and
Speaker 1: so we're just excited to be doing this in our community. Well,
Speaker 1: we appreciate you coming to the independent bookstore day and
Speaker 1: visiting Malik Books and sharing some tipbits from my podcast
Speaker 1: called Malik's Malik's Bookshop bringing the world together with books,
Speaker 1: culture and community. Thank you a lot. I got another
Speaker 1: this brother didn't got comedy, both merchandise, T shirts, everything,
Speaker 1: Brother tell us about all of your your industry here,
Speaker 1: because that's what I'd say. I empire here, Empire merchandise. Yeah.
Speaker 1: I started a cent of media group in as an
Speaker 1: alternative to comic books that were not offered at that
Speaker 1: time in comic box shops or bookshops. So I started
Speaker 1: the l A New Being Warrior, which is uh a
Speaker 1: cosmology based in Zulu cosmology, and it's it's storyline is
Speaker 1: such a fantasy world of Nubia created by the Twin Guards,
Speaker 1: and they decided to separate their world that they are
Speaker 1: power into colors and deserve it in certain tribes within
Speaker 1: the movie here, and what you're seeing is color developed
Speaker 1: in Nubia storyline down to my second issue, going supposed
Speaker 1: to be six issues altogether. Hopefully you come in enjoy
Speaker 1: the ride. Well, brother. I love how you branded your
Speaker 1: whole comic book industry. Brother, your representation matters. Brother. I
Speaker 1: love the shirt, love the bat, I love the comic book.
Speaker 1: I love the story. Thank you, brother, independent books that
Speaker 1: we celebrate. I'm moving on to another author. I'm moving on.
Speaker 1: I'm moving on. I'm right here at the table braiding
Speaker 1: crowns of friendship. Hey, hey, hey, Christine. Okay, Brandon Crowd
Speaker 1: of Friendship is a book about a young Christine who
Speaker 1: moves to a new state goes to a new school.
Speaker 1: When she gets to the school, she meets a little
Speaker 1: friend and she's really happy. And then by the time
Speaker 1: she gets to the last class, she needs a little
Speaker 1: blond girl who makes fun of her braids and really
Speaker 1: makes her feel insecure about who she is. Um she
Speaker 1: runs out of the class. A little friend runs after her.
Speaker 1: She tells her what's wrong. She goes, tells her what happens,
Speaker 1: and then she tells her I'm gonna wear my hair
Speaker 1: braids like yours. And basically when she gets hold she
Speaker 1: tells her mom what happens, and she tells her mom
Speaker 1: tells her she's beautiful just the way she is. And
Speaker 1: the book is just really amazing because at the end,
Speaker 1: the little blond girl says she's sorry, she's just never
Speaker 1: seen hair like hers before. And really, the moral here
Speaker 1: is she just didn't understand her hair texture and it's
Speaker 1: so important for black girls to love their beautiful crown
Speaker 1: and love the hair that they have. Well, I thank you,
Speaker 1: thank you for sharing. That's a beautiful book. We gotta
Speaker 1: have Moleague books and we thankful to you here at
Speaker 1: the independent book store day right here at the Westfield,
Speaker 1: MO thank you very strong read books brother for a
Speaker 1: long time so well all the work to help me read.
Speaker 1: Because right, that's right then My book is My Garden,
Speaker 1: my journey to get my garden back into my life
Speaker 1: when she was up only taking and I wrote this
Speaker 1: book I'm two or three years after the journey because
Speaker 1: there was a lot of emotion that I was boring
Speaker 1: through and for me it was cocarded and released and
Speaker 1: it helped me to realize just how important what I
Speaker 1: did was because I helped excuse, they helped me to
Speaker 1: understand how I coortant. What I did was because I
Speaker 1: connected to so many fathers. We we're going through the
Speaker 1: situation and a lot of fathers have given them home
Speaker 1: and this book once they got their hands on it,
Speaker 1: or some fathers the day they told me that this
Speaker 1: book really helped them to me filled with one of
Speaker 1: the most difficult emotional situations and they were born. So
Speaker 1: it's a it's a book that I encouraged to know
Speaker 1: someone boring through the situation where they're trying to get
Speaker 1: their child like in their life, make sure that they
Speaker 1: get this in there in their hands. I wrote it
Speaker 1: from the very honest perspective. I didn't trash and mother.
Speaker 1: I talked about the things that I then in the
Speaker 1: relationship that helps sever the relationship and to put us
Speaker 1: in there in the position that we were in. And
Speaker 1: if you are a woman going through the situation, we
Speaker 1: have inherited a man going through the situation. Then we
Speaker 1: have to see the hide our emotions. So this fool
Speaker 1: will really explain what they're going through in very civil terms.
Speaker 1: So if anyways hide our escape us, that's my wife
Speaker 1: being more name so it's pronounced blood and about hot okay.
Speaker 1: And if eas of me to show you what the
Speaker 1: book doesn't to tell you. So as we laying green
Speaker 1: pastures and rest beside, you still want us means they
Speaker 1: haven't see that this cup is running over. Don't see
Speaker 1: the want of wife and half hankings and easier to
Speaker 1: be at the continent, slings of the county and it's
Speaker 1: horrible company. Have to think that they are all high
Speaker 1: profood slightly respond to their rides to create sistems being
Speaker 1: post of the educational her prison covering this guy coming
Speaker 1: hands with she out to money or the populations won't
Speaker 1: bringing out the she want all the wall refusing to
Speaker 1: get dirty, flirting for the unloosing a funity about this,
Speaker 1: adding that avoid get your thinking left income community and
Speaker 1: thee I see that is bary what hump aboule throw
Speaker 1: from infancy to tige, change them and in a training
Speaker 1: in their lives for one shop suit so ming greed
Speaker 1: and see the people who have the misnad to believe
Speaker 1: that they didn't intence have placed here. But I'm a
Speaker 1: beneffen consider republic. Do not questionist multiple needs it used
Speaker 1: to be voices because they choose to suffer in silence.
Speaker 1: I'll just don't act out in violence while still there
Speaker 1: would be the people who choose you depend before you
Speaker 1: can't rebound hid. I'm wanna bring the epacity to find
Speaker 1: a pre depressantos before I'm shook the empty Profolms said,
Speaker 1: trickles down here, Saint Prejo mean dat you know? They
Speaker 1: all force to be recognized, a power to be recognized.
Speaker 1: As long as I'm disturbside and in valuable as under
Speaker 1: started before your beneath the her surface all free have
Speaker 1: nument of her has been placed enter the right hands
Speaker 1: before too old as they are not first as did
Speaker 1: he wants to be educated in that school of Monno,
Speaker 1: but not all our children befall pickuns in the system
Speaker 1: beca so still pay you important your whole thing that
Speaker 1: since it's great cand writing and potlets and languages, can't
Speaker 1: understand that they can still feel color in their faces.
Speaker 1: It's a shape both of us who prone, who appreciate
Speaker 1: you stove to see the bordering you're having to think.
Speaker 1: You all have set hip hop lyrics, star breaking back
Speaker 1: over hip more than fe of metaphors, until which its
Speaker 1: mistake him for a little, I think you've offriended. It's
Speaker 1: something next tap it's the only thing that put is.
Speaker 1: And this exclusion to them all be shattered that the
Speaker 1: auto fact of the on impact of the morning lines
Speaker 1: I as that is with their passions, turn dreams and
Speaker 1: your actions which you start the wish of one only
Speaker 1: the prayer and some still exists beyond the store and
Speaker 1: the guns school and from often learning their craft and
Speaker 1: the more distracting of environment, the fo' gonna hamwork and
Speaker 1: their moms only retirement. But we would getting to the
Speaker 1: mind of their values, lose their compliments, amiss our just
Speaker 1: taking their here you ain't still they raised them down
Speaker 1: on years. God left the child away his own head.
Speaker 1: Who talk to the only his end of here? Blue? Yeah?
Speaker 1: Whose trying for the black people? When nobody shows up?
Speaker 1: The chair hitting you? You those chicken berry, the d
Speaker 1: and Jamiel type blue colors that you we never have
Speaker 1: to wear. I swear our children are not lost. Our
Speaker 1: baby are right here. Independent book Store Day had two locations,
Speaker 1: one party, and this young lady came to both. So
Speaker 1: I got to hear from her because she came to
Speaker 1: both of them, and it was this two locations, one party,
Speaker 1: So let me talk to us about your expater said, hello,
Speaker 1: my name is Billy Sarafina. I am the mother of Sunset,
Speaker 1: and we came to both locations in the league bookstores today.
Speaker 1: My daughter has an instagram called Storytime with Sunset, where
Speaker 1: I encourage her to read. She's only eight months, but
Speaker 1: I want to instill it in her early because I
Speaker 1: was taught that reading, you know, was something boring. It
Speaker 1: was a punishment, and I wanna change that narrative for
Speaker 1: my daughter and show her that reading is a fundamental
Speaker 1: Yes yes, yes, yes, yes yes hey. We took famous
Speaker 1: pictures with her child sunset Um with Spike Lee and
Speaker 1: now with Derry Cruise the independent bookstores day. So as
Speaker 1: a customer, um, I see the books are important to you.
Speaker 1: But as a customer for why do you continue to
Speaker 1: come and support my league books? Because of you? Ma Leak?
Speaker 1: You may get seem like it's the best thing ever
Speaker 1: and you are the best owner of a black owned
Speaker 1: business that I've ever encountered. So you just make me
Speaker 1: want to read. Hello, Yeah, I got you like my passion,
Speaker 1: my energy, your passionate your energy, just like see reading.
Speaker 1: It's fine. Yah see my leak sat South. So I'm
Speaker 1: gonna do it. Yeah, I appreciate that you just don't know.
Speaker 1: Those words mean a lot to me to hear that
Speaker 1: you know. And I appreciate you. I could precreciate your
Speaker 1: continued support, and we thank you for coming to two
Speaker 1: locations one party independent bookstore day whoop wood Yes, anytime,
Speaker 1: can't wait till next events. Yeah, thank you, thank you.
Speaker 1: I'm a young man from barn came up in the
Speaker 1: middle of the fine of the auto auto industry and
Speaker 1: the rise of the back epidemic, and I easily could
Speaker 1: have been a statistic I have picked four years old
Speaker 1: and I have sold so honored. My wife is not
Speaker 1: here in to day, but I'm going three years Mary
Speaker 1: Bows and I couldn't have made it about her, but
Speaker 1: we this everything who moved to Los Angeles and everything
Speaker 1: to make it in this industry and to make it
Speaker 1: in this business. And I just want to say that
Speaker 1: you can do it too, when this book is really
Speaker 1: all the power how I found true toughness because when
Speaker 1: I the way I came up, it was really about
Speaker 1: the ability to grow punchius and it was about the
Speaker 1: ability to rule to fear rather than love. I found
Speaker 1: true toughness was brilliant about the ability to take punchous
Speaker 1: and the ability to persevere and the ability to endure.
Speaker 1: And that is what I am trying to sell every
Speaker 1: person out there, especially as a young man who's living books.
Speaker 1: This is the fair that I wrote to my well
Speaker 1: world self, that all the stuff that I really wanted
Speaker 1: to know, because when I was a young kid, I
Speaker 1: used to ask all you mean, man, what it was?
Speaker 1: What was it to be a man? And a lot
Speaker 1: of men didn't tell me. They told me that you
Speaker 1: won't find out. And the thing was what was so
Speaker 1: scary to me is that I had a best friend
Speaker 1: and me and my best friend, I said, hey, man,
Speaker 1: if you find out something I don't know, promise me
Speaker 1: you tell me. And if you find that, if I
Speaker 1: find out something you don't know, I promise you tell me.
Speaker 1: We wouldn't conparently ourselves and we will come to you,
Speaker 1: and so I may ever tell you My father was
Speaker 1: then my father. My famous memory was knocking my mother eye.
Speaker 1: And I grew up in a house where I listen, knew.
Speaker 1: I was scared. But this man and the thing is
Speaker 1: he was supposed to be there to protect Niague. The
Speaker 1: whole year was all And that's what reason why I
Speaker 1: decided I need to little breaks and I wanted to
Speaker 1: get in because one day I thought I might have
Speaker 1: to do it. And this is real. And I know
Speaker 1: a lot of people who come from this background and
Speaker 1: from domestic silence, and I've seen it themselves. And you
Speaker 1: made it anyway, And I'm here to tell you that
Speaker 1: that this is not the end of your story. Your
Speaker 1: story just not to find by what I have a
Speaker 1: chill that you can change your story. This is why
Speaker 1: I can wrote the book, because I had to change
Speaker 1: my story, not easily could have been a statistic and
Speaker 1: I want to thank you all so so much for
Speaker 1: being here today and be here to support and the
Speaker 1: independent all the other independent pootsellers out here, and they
Speaker 1: got their own stories to tell. Please go out and
Speaker 1: support every every person out here. This wrote a book
Speaker 1: that that's hard, that has to us fill the way
Speaker 1: to make their way in this world right here. Thank
Speaker 1: everyone here as please support because I do. This is
Speaker 1: one reason why I'm here at Belith Books, because this
Speaker 1: is pretty all about left to take your broadery and
Speaker 1: make it happens. Start small, and he's just leading red
Speaker 1: And I thank you all for me here. I thank
Speaker 1: you so much for having me and I I'll expect
Speaker 1: and love each and every one of them. Thank you all,
Speaker 1: but thanks for listening to Melik's bookshow with topics on
Speaker 1: the shlf, our books, culture and community. Be sure to
Speaker 1: subscribe and leave me a review. Check out my instagram
Speaker 1: at Milik Books. See you next time