On December 8, 2014, Lou Gossett, Jr. sat down for a conversation about Dr. Maya Angelou’s role as a “matriarch” in the lineage of Black storytellers. Interview conducted by directors Rita Coburn and Bob Hercules for Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise (2017).
Chapters:
00:00 – The Black artist scene in 1960s New York
01:06 – Exploring the absurdity of racism through the subversion of Jean Genet’s “The Blacks”
03:47 – “The Blacks” as a catalyst for incorporating Black intellectualism into the American vanguard
05:57 – Angelou taking on a teacher’s role in cultivating Gossett’s sense of racial awareness
07:19 – The development of “Roots” and coming into the fold of its iconic cast
08:51 – The legacy of “Roots” in initiating a global conversation around the story of slavery
12:36 – On how Angelou’s role in “Roots” cemented her position as the matriarch of Black American art
13:51 – Memories of Angelou as a grandmotherly figure in Gossett’s life
15:15 – On how her indelible ability to communicate African American roots persisted until her death
16:04 – Gossett explores his memories of Angelou’s passing and their communication during her final days
17:15 – The legacy of Angelou’s wisdom as continuation of oral traditions from Africa
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