Harry Belafonte, the Pioneering Artist-Activist

The New Yorker Radio Hour

WNYC Studios and The New Yorker

News, David, Books, Arts, Storytelling, Wnyc, New, Remnick, News Commentary, Yorker, Politics

4.2 • 5.5K Ratings

🗓️ 30 April 2023

⏱️ 13 minutes

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Summary

We take it for granted that entertainers can—and probably should—advocate for the causes they believe in, political and otherwise. That wasn’t always the case: at one time, entertainers were supposed to entertain, and little else. Harry Belafonte, who died on April 25th at the age of ninety-six, pioneered the artist-activist approach. One of the most celebrated singers of his era, he had a string of huge hits—“The Banana Boat Song,” “Mama Look a Boo Boo,” “Jamaica Farewell”—while appearing as the rare Black leading man in the movies. At the same time, Belafonte used his platform to influence public opinion. He was a key figure in the civil-rights movement, a confidant of Martin Luther King’s; a generation later, he worked with Nelson Mandela to help bring down apartheid in South Africa. Belafonte joined The New Yorker Radio Hour in 2016, when the staff writer Jelani Cobb visited him at his office in Manhattan.

This segment originally aired September 30, 2016.

Transcript

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0:00.0	This is the New Yorker Radio Hour, a co-production of WNWC Studios and the New Yorker.
0:09.9	This is the New Yorker Radio Hour, I'm David Remnick.
0:12.8	We take it for granted today that entertainers can and maybe should speak out for the causes
0:17.5	they believe in, political and otherwise.
0:20.3	That certainly wasn't the case in the past, but there was a great pioneer in this, the
0:25.4	artist activist Harry Belafonte.
0:28.3	And he just died at the age of 96.
0:31.3	One of the great entertainers of his era, Belafonte had a long string of hits, the banana
0:36.3	boat song, jump in the line, Jamaica Farewell.
0:41.3	Down the way where the nights are gay and the sun shines daily on the mountain top.
0:48.3	I took a trip on a sailing ship and when I reached Jamaica I made a stopper time.
0:55.8	As well as a career as a leading man in the movies.
0:59.2	But at the same time, Belafonte was a key figure in the civil rights movement, a friend
1:04.3	and confidant of Martin Luther King Jr.
1:07.5	And a generation later he worked with Nelson Mandela to help bring down apartheid.
1:12.7	In 2016, the New Yorker's Jalani Cobb went to pay him a visit at his office in Midtown,
1:17.9	Manhattan.
1:20.7	At the age of 90, Belafonte was still at work with his team, planning the details of
1:25.3	an upcoming festival.
1:29.0	So Mr. Belafonte's office is like an archive.
1:34.9	When you walk in, there are his gold records that are on the wall and then there are posters
1:41.2	from some of his films and you kind of walk through his biography by looking at what's
	...

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