Archived Q&A with Harry Belafonte

• Q

  

  HBODocs

  Please welcome Harry Belafonte to his very first HBO Connect Live Chat. Please say hello, Mr. Belafonte.

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  I say hello.

• Q

  

  Mark Muller

  Mr Belafonte, would you ever run for president? I have often considered writing your name in on principle, since I believe in you & your politics.

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  Although I would encourage all citizens to participate in our democratic process which would include running for political office, I don't think that I would serve this country well trying to be an elected official. Perhaps if I did not have a platform as an artist with a global constituency, I might be thinking differently. One of the advantages of being where I am, is that although people may not agree with my point of view, there would be no need for them to suspect that what I say is rooted in partisan politics. But thanks for asking.

• Q

  

  Sharise Rogers

  Hi Mr. Belafonte, I'm a 25 year old black actress that is pursuing my career in Hollywood. I was wondering do you have any advice for those that are entering this business?

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  Scream help and get out.

• Q

  

  Ian Desai

  Would you consider teaching?

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  I believe that all of us who are in the arts in fact do teach. We instruct, we relate thoughts, stimulate ideas and influence public opinion. That's what artists do. In a way, it's what teachers do. I have on occasion stood before university students in a capacity as lecturer and have enjoyed the experience. I consider that teaching.

• Q

  

  Microphone Mechanics

  can you talk about your role in the making of the movie "Beat Street" and why it wasn't covered in the documentary. It's a classic film and important in the evolution of Hip Hop. Thanks and salute

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  At the very dawning of the modern Hip Hop culture, I thought Hip Hop expression was a remarkable tool for communicating thoughts and ideas. As I began to pursue the sources of the culture, in the south Bronx here in NY, I really fell in love with the potential I saw, and I attempted to use my platform to describe the earliest manifestations of the Hip Hop culture hoping to influence public perception, and discourse on the subject of Hip Hop, hence I made the film "Beat Street." I'm currently working on a new documentary called "Another Night in the Free World" - in that, much will be said about "Beat Street," Hip Hop and the remarkable way in which people globally are beginning to exert their rights over their lives. Much of the content of this film will be Hip Hop.

• Q

  

  Jonathan Correia

  Hi Harry, Was wondering what is your favorite song to sing?

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  That's a tough question. My repertoire is so varied in terms of its international outreach, and I admire the culture of so many countries, its hard to pick any one single song that I would call my favorite. There are some songs that hold great sentiment for me. One of them, that I truly love performing was the song "Try to Remember" from the musical play, "The Fantasticks."

• Q

  

  gluckstadt

  What do you think of the #occupywallstreet movement?

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  I wish I were 18 again. All of my resources would be spent supporting this wonderful expression on the part of so many young people globally.

• Q

  

  Sheldon Taylor

  Sir, your previous challenges and struggles shaped you and provided a sense of self. Do you feel today's technological conveinences cripple us in any way?

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  In all of today's technology the choices are vast and extremely exciting in the capacity to translate human thoughts and feelings. Like all such great forces, it also has the capacity for negative use, but I suspect the good it all serves will far outweigh the bad. Having said this, however, there are some sentimental losses like having a wonderful social exchange over a delicious meal with everybody's face not being buried in an iPad.

• Q

  

  Judy Paul

  I understand more than 800 hours of footage was amassed in the creation of this movie, and that you are behind filming other people who have lived extraordinary lives in order to tell their stories as well. What's / who's next?

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  A film that takes a look at social movements as they appear in today's world. The film called "Another Night in the Free World, " and I am sure that it will carry images and commentary of some interesting personalities.

• Q

  

  TheSpirit5683

  Mr. Belafonte what was something very valuble that you would say you learned from Dr. King through out your duration of knowing him?

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  That anything is possible, if directed by a moral compass in the service of life.

• Q

  

  Joi C. Ridley

  What are your thoughts on the recent dedication of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial on the National Mall?

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  It was important that the monument be erected, however I have not yet seen it and would like to reserve further thoughts until I have.

• Q

  

  Ashley Gloria

  What was the greatest day of your life?

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  The greatest day of my life was living all of them.

• Q

  

  mrsoulthemovie

  Hello again, Mr. Belafonte, Wondering if you've seen recordings of all the 5 episodes of the Tonight Show when you guest hosted in February 1968? You certainly made history!

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  Yes, I had the privilege of seeing them because we selected certain clips that were used in Sing Your Song.

• Q

  

  Abigail W Stevens

  Please excuse my photo, it's for Halloween... I was curious if you had a favorite place in the world to visit and why...

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  Moving through the hills and valleys of the places where my youth was spent. They can be found in the blue mountains of Jamaica, and I visit there often.

• Q

  

  Demetrous Mrcolonypark Shepherd

  Looking back over your career, what would you say was the defining moment that set you on the path to iconic status?

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  The day I was asked to sing the role of the balladeer in John Steinbeck's play "Of Mice and Men." It was an important production given at the New School of Social Research in New York. It was in this play that I discovered the true power of the song.

• Q

  

  Mike Pell

  What do you think is the biggest hurdle for todays youth and our future leadership and how can we make a difference in todays climate? \

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  Finding truth in the midst of so much that obstructs it.

• Q

  

  Rich Lightner

  Your song continues to raise spirits, thank you. What authors and artists raise yours?

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  A great Irish playwright by the name of Shawn O'Casey was one of my earliest influences as a playwright and as a piece of great literature. The rest of my choices would sound rather pedestrian, like Shakespeare, Dostoevsky, Charles Dickens, John Steinbeck, Zora Neale Hurston, James Baldwin, August Wilson, and the list goes on and on. Shakespeare certainly stands tallest in this forest of pleasures. From the point of view of artists in the fine arts, I much admire Diego Rivera of Mexico, Charles White of America, forever in love with Haitian folk art, mad for African sculpture and carvings, and almost all of the great artists who came out of the Impressionist period. Among actors I have a deep and very protective appreciation of my friend Marlon Brando, Anthony Hopkins, Morgan Freeman, Meryl Streep and Ruby Dee, and a whole group of folk artists like Odetta, Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie and Bruce Springsteen. And a place of supremacy, the author Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

• Q

  

  HBODocs

  That’s it for our Live Chat with Sing Your Song’s Harry Belafonte. A big thank you to Mr. Belafonte for joining us today. Is there anything you’d like to add before we end the chat?

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  Harry Belafonte says:

  I would like to thank each chatter for engaging me in this delightful exchange.