Queen Muhammad Ali Explained

Birth Name:Queen Melé Le'iato Tuiasosopo Muhammad Ali
Birth Date:November 12
Birth Place:Watts, Los Angeles, California, U.S.

Queen Melé Le'iato Tuiasosopo Muhammad Ali (born November 12) is an American filmmaker, composer, social activist and visual anthropologist.[1] [2] Queen and her husband Hakeem Khaaliq founded Nation19, a magazine and film production company, and she is the director of the Manuia Samoa, a social wellness hub in American Samoa.[3]

Early life

Queen was born in Watts, Los Angeles, California, to an American Samoan mother who worked as a teacher, and an African American father who worked as a percussionist and singer and toured the Caribbean. After graduating high school at an early age, she attended Mt. San Jacinto College in Riverside County, where she studied art. Her grandmother, Princess Masaniai Tunufa'i Le'iato Tuiasosopo, is the daughter of Tuli Leʻiato, a Faʻamatai paramount chief of the islands of Tutuila and Aunu'u.[4] [5] From 1999 to 2007, part of which coincided with her time in college, Queen worked as a teacher at a private elementary school.

Career

Queen was a composer on the MTV reality show Adventures in Hollyhood, starring rap group Three 6 Mafia, which premiered on April 5, 2007. Queen and Hakeem Khaaliq were consulting producers on the MTV reality show T.I.'s Road to Redemption, starring rapper T.I., which premiered on February 21, 2009.[6] In the winter of 2010, the couple established Nation19, first as a printed magazine and artist collective before expanding into visiting lectures, photography exhibitions and film production with emphases on ethnography and hip hop culture.[7] [8]

In 2014, the couple produced ¿Quiénes son los afro-mexicanos? (Who are the Afro-Mexicans?), a two-part documentary short film that aired across Univision stations,[9] premiering on July 14 and July 15 on KTVW.[10] It also aired as a combined one-part short film in some markets.[11]

In 2015, the couple produced and directed the documentary short film

  1. Bars4Justice
which had its premiere on October 1 in Phoenix, Arizona. The film was shot on August 9 in Ferguson, Missouri, documenting the first anniversary of the police shooting and killing of Michael Brown.[12] [13] It screened across film festivals internationally, including the 24th Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles in February 2016 and the Museum of Modern Art's 17th Doc Fortnight film festival in Manhattan, New York in February 2017.[14]

In 2016, the couple produced and directed the documentary short film War on Us, starring Rhymefest and Jasiri X in Bogota, Colombia, which had its premiere on April 19. The film highlights the negative consequences of the War on Drugs and was screened at the Museum of Drug Policy's pop-up exhibition held in Manhattan, New York on April 19–21 coinciding with the Special Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGASS) that discussed the "world drug problem" and policies around it.[15] [16]

Activism

Queen was an organizer and speaker at the Indigenous Peoples March held in Washington, DC on January 18, 2019, where she highlighted the health issues faced by American Samoa and Pacific Islanders,[17] [18] and was a speaker at the first Indigenous Peoples Movement conference held in Houston, Texas on May 10–12.[19] She was a speaker on the December 21, 2020 virtual session of the Inter-Generational Dialogue (IGD) organized by Global Peace, an initiative of ACCORD (African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes) based in Mount Edgecombe, South Africa.[20] The IGD was a part of the Global Conversation initiative launched by the United Nations in January 2020 to mark the body's 75th anniversary.[21]

On February 2, 2021, Queen was selected by the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco as part of its YBCA 100 honoring a hundred "everyday heroesartists, activists, and community leaderswhose work is in service of building sustainable, equitable, and regenerative communities" held virtually at the YBCA 100 Summit on April 3.[22] [23] On February 25, 2023, she received the Acie J. Belton Life Achievement Award in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.[24]

Personal life

Queen Muhammad Ali and Hakeem Khaaliq have three children. Their daughters are Melé Aliyah Khaaliq and Manaia Oli'oli Khaaliq.[25]

Works

Filmography

YearFilm and televisionDirectorProducerWriterEditor or
Composer		Notes
2007Adventures in HollyhoodReality TV series
2008T.I.'s Road to RedemptionReality TV series
2014¿Quiénes son los afro-mexicanos?[26] TV short film
2015
  1. Bars4Justice
 [27] [28] [29] 		Short film
2016War on UsShort film
2016The Last Matai
2022Comin' Up Short [30]

Educational exhibits and installations

Design and multimedia

Michael Jackson commissioned Queen and her partner Hakeem Khaaliq to design for his This Is It concerts. The work included the design of the Earth Song website, design of MichaelJacksonCO.com website, print campaigns and the design of the Earth Song logo.[37]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Black African Coalition brings award-winning documentary, #Bars4Justice, to ASU. www.statepress.com. 2016-03-07.
  2. News: Samoan artist to create 'Manuia Samoa' wellness hub. 2017-12-11. Radio New Zealand. 2017-12-11. en-nz.
  3. Web site: American Samoan woman takes local health issues to the nation's capital. 2019-01-30. www.samoanews.com. en. 2019-06-16.
  4. Web site: ENTRY POINTS - Queen Muhammad Ali. LLC. The Music Snobs. entrypoints.fireside.fm. 2017-12-09.
  5. News: WBAI Pacifica Radio NY: Voices and Visions interview w Nation19's Queen Muhammad Ali Hosted by the remarkable Malika Lee Whitney. Whitney. Malika Lee. WBAI Pacifica Radio NY.
  6. Web site: Responsibility Is A Lifestyle: It's Time to Bury Da Beef. T.I. 2009-06-11. Huffington Post. en-US. 2017-12-09.
  7. https://web.archive.org/web/20240221141239/https://voyagephoenix.com/interview/check-queen-muhammad-ali-hakeem-khaaliqs-artwork/
  8. Web site: African Diaspora Authority Dr. Runoko Rashidi Lectures In Arizona For First Time. . https://web.archive.org/web/20150313062326/http://azinformant.com/african-diaspora-authority-dr-runoko-rashidi-lectures-in-arizona-for-first-time/. March 13, 2015.
  9. Web site: Culture Clash: New Univision TV Documentary Reveals Afro-Mexican Struggle for Identity . . February 6, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221003150306/https://www.ebony.com/culture-clash-new-univision-tv-documentary-reveals-afro-mexican-struggle-for-ide/ . October 3, 2022.
  10. https://www.univision.com/arizona/ktvw/quienes-son-los-afro-mexicanos-video
    https://www.univision.com/arizona/ktvw/afro-mexico-parte-2-video
  11. Web site: El México invisible: Afromexicanos . Univision . 13 November 2014 . February 20, 2024.
  12. Web site: Activists discuss social injustice at World Premier screening of film in Phoenix! . . October 5, 2015 . http://web.archive.org/web/20160612203304/http://nation19.com/nation19s-new-short-film-filmed-in-ferguson-set-to-premier-in-phoenix/ . June 12, 2016.
  13. Web site: Filmmakers bring Ferguson to Phoenix's Hip Hop community . Nation19 . September 30, 2015 . http://web.archive.org/web/20170920181907/http://nation19.com/world-premier-review/ . September 20, 2017.
  14. Web site:
    1. Bars4Justice a.k.a. Bars4Justice - Available from TWN
    . 2020-12-17. www.twn.org.
  15. Web site: How to travel in one of the most dangerous cities in the world and still be fresh . Nation19 . March 4, 2016 . http://web.archive.org/web/20160307120551/http://nation19.com:80/how-to-travel-in-one-of-the-most-dangerous-cities-in-the-world-and-still-be-fresh/ . March 7, 2016.
  16. Web site: The Museum of Drug Policy Wants You to Speak Your Truth . . Jamie . Maleszka . April 20, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161116184802/http://massappeal.com/the-museum-of-drug-policy/ . November 16, 2016.
  17. Web site: American Samoan woman takes local health issues to the nation's capital . . Fili . Sagapolutele . January 30, 2019 . February 21, 2024.
  18. News: 'We will not be silenced': A march takes on new meaning in the age of Trump . Theresa . Vargas . January 19, 2019. The Washington Post.
  19. Web site: Indigenous Peoples Movement Conference set for Houston . . April 19, 2019 . February 21, 2024.
  20. Web site: UN75 Global Peace Intergenerational Dialogue, New York City - United States . . en. 2020-12-17.
  21. Web site: Global Peace – About . UN75.online . http://web.archive.org/web/20210117190406/https://un75.online/accord/ . January 17, 2021.
    Web site: UN75 – Our Community – ACCORD . globalpeace.me . http://web.archive.org/web/20210119171918/https://globalpeace.me/about/ . January 19, 2021.
  22. Web site: Yerba Buena Center for the Arts announces the YBCA 100 . February 2, 2021 . February 20, 2024.
  23. Web site: YBCA 100 . February 2021. http://web.archive.org/web/20210209172551/https://ybca.org/ybca-100/ . 2021-02-09 .
  24. Web site: Baton Rouge activists receive Acie J. Belton Life Achievement Award . TheDrumNewspaper.info . February 18, 2013 . February 17, 2024.
  25. Web site: Young travelers find a creative way to teach kids about other cultures . January 27, 2024 . February 19, 2024.
  26. Web site: ¿Quiénes son los afro-mexicanos?. Univision.com. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20141111150135/http://mv.univision.com/video/483296. 2014-11-11.
  27. Web site:
    1. Bars4Justice (trailer)
    . Vimeo. 2016-03-05.
  28. Web site: Saturday "Gayle on the Go!", Saturday, February 13th, 2016. KTLA. 13 February 2016 . 2016-03-05.
  29. Web site: Black African Coalition brings award-winning documentary, #Bars4Justice, to ASU. www.statepress.com. 2016-03-05.
  30. Web site: Comin' up Short. 2020-12-17. FilmFreeway. en.
  31. AZFoundation . 1041754628893814789 . Join us on October 11 at The Karen Work Seleznow Gallery for the opening reception of Queen Muhammad Ali & Hakeem Khaaliq Invisible México : Afro-Mexicanos. . 18 September 2018.
  32. Web site: GLOBAL EDUCATION CENTER: THIRD ROOT OF MEXICO. Lester. DeeGee. September 2017. nashville Arts. https://web.archive.org/web/20170920044413/http://nashvillearts.com/2017/08/global%2Deducation%2Dcenter%2Dthird%2Droot%2Dmexico/. 2017-09-20. dead.
  33. News: Invisible Mexico. Nashville Scene. 2017-09-19. en.
  34. News: New exhibit showcases indigenous Afro-Mexicanos through photos. 2017-03-02. Paradise Valley Independent. 2017-03-10. en-US.
  35. Web site: Artists uncover 'Invisible Mexico' through augmented reality Cronkite News. 2017-03-10. Cronkite News - Arizona PBS. 2017-03-10.
  36. Web site: Shout out to Plug1 of DeLaSoul....! #turnupdenver #djchonz City Limitz Dont miss the last day. #APDTA @nation19 @radiobums the artwork of Queen Muhammad Ali & Hakeem Khaaliq. www.facebook.com. en. 2017-03-10.
  37. Web site: Behance.

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