Black excellence in the arts was on full display in a dazzling night of poetry, dance, acting and song – organized as a celebration of artists during Black History Month.

Junior Jeromy Hunt helped organize the event on behalf of Students for the Propagation of Black Culture, in conjunction with Alpha Psi Omega’s Dalton Carroll. 

The event, officially titled “A Night of Black Excellence,” featured Black artists showing off their talents, garnering audience reactions from loud laughter to more-serious poetry snaps. 

One of the first performances of the night came from acting duo La’Diamond Maker and Crystal Daniels, who recreated five iconic scenes from movies including “White Chicks,” “The Help,” “Norbit,” “The Color Purple,” and “Friday.”

Psychology and Communication major Jaden Wilbur recited an original poem inspired by Quentin Tarantino’s 2012 film, “Django Unchained.”

The poem, entitled “Mandingo of the Streets,” gives an account of coming from nothing, all the way to something.

Wilbur said, “Mandingo, Mandingo, that’s the new word, yeah that’s the new lingo / To describe the life we live, made all that money and still started from zero / We still stepped over black ice, we’re still seen as the hero.”

Miss UCA 2023 Jada Simpson lent her talents to the night, arriving on the stage in a black and red dance costume.

Simpson performed a tap dance to “Uptown Funk” by Mark Ronson and explained that she has loved dance since she was a child and has been tapping since she was three years old.

Jimeya Mayes delivered a vulnerable and provocative spoken word performance that caused the audience to “ooh” and “ahh” at the words echoing throughout Ida Waldran auditorium.

Mayes detailed a sensual massage in her poem, but the crux – this physical touch was filling up her body and her soul.

Mayes said, “He made me feel special. He made sure I understood my beauty is not dictated by a scale… His ultimate goal was to eliminate my insecurities, even if only for one night… and now, now I gotta go [get] my next appointment.”

Cece Cullens, a music major, took the stage with a snare drum, showcasing her musical talents. 

The event included a wide variety of artists, which Hunt said was an important part of the planning.

 “We’re going to showcase a lot of singing, dancing, anything … because we know that there’s more to Black artists than people see.” Hunt said.

Carroll agreed that an audience may not appreciate the complexities and variations of less mainstream Black artists.

“Everybody only thinks about celebrities. Those two faces that you get to see every day in the news that represent Black culture, but it’s really more than that. Like here on campus, we have such a wide community of Black artists,” Carroll said. “That is exactly what this whole event is about. It’s not about any single one person. It’s really about every single person on UCA campus, and being able to highlight that talent.”

Hunt concluded by saying, “When Black people get together, magic always happens.”