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Liberty Bell
Liberty Bell Center
Liberty Bell
Part of the U.S. National Park Service and Independence National Historical Park, the Liberty Bell’s home on Independence Mall looms as powerful and dramatic as the bell itself.
Throughout the expansive, light-filled center, larger-than-life historic documents and graphic images explore the facts and the myths surrounding the bell.
People from around the world snag a photo in front of the iconic American symbol and its dramatic backdrop: Independence Hall.
Best of all: The Liberty Bell Center is free to visit, with no advance tickets required.
For more information go to: www.VisitPhilly.com
LOVE Statue
LOVE Park
LOVE Park
No Philly experience is complete without snapping a photo in front of one of The City of Brotherly Love’s best-known landmarks: LOVE itself.
The famous Robert Indiana sculpture is in John F. Kennedy Plaza — better known as LOVE Park — just northwest of City Hall. Installed in 1976, LOVE was briefly removed in 1978, but popular demand brought it back where it belongs.
In conjunction with the renovation of John F. Kennedy Plaza, the sculpture was restored, repainted and reinstalled in its original location in 2018.
For more information go to: www.VisitPhilly.com
LOCATION & CONTACT:
LOVE Sculpture
John F. Kennedy Plaza
15th Street and JFK Boulevard
Philadelphia, PA 19102
Mural Arts
Around Philadelphia
Mural Arts
For over 35 years, Mural Arts has united artists and communities through a collaborative process, rooted in the traditions of mural-making, to create art that transforms public spaces and individual lives.
Mural Arts engages communities in 50–100 public art projects each year, and maintains its growing collection through a restoration initiative. Our core program areas—Art Education, Environmental Justice, Porch Light, and Restorative Justice—yield unique, project-based learning opportunities for thousands of youth and adults.
For more information go to: www.MuralArts.org
LOCATION & CONTACT:
Lincoln Financial Mural Arts Center
1727-29 Mt. Vernon Street
Philadelphia, PA 19130
General: (215) 685-0750
Tours: (215) 925-3633
info@muralarts.org
People
Barrett Brooks
Former Football Player
Barrett Brooks
Brooks played his first four years in the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles, starting for the first three of those years.
He’s a staple of the Philadelphia sports landscape, as a key part of the NBC Sports Philadelphia’s venerated Eagles Postgame Live show after each Birds game.
Honorable Jim Kenney
Mayor of Philadelphia
Honorable Jim Kenney
A lifelong Philadelphian, Mayor Jim Kenney grew up the oldest of four children in a South Philadelphia rowhome. Jim was sworn in as the 99th Mayor of Philadelphia. Since 2016, he has championed bold anti-poverty initiatives, including the expansion of free, quality pre-K; the creation of Community Schools; and the historic investment of hundreds of millions of dollars in parks, recreation centers, playgrounds, and libraries — all because Philadelphia became the first major city in the U.S. to pass a tax on sugary drinks.
The Administration successfully led the return of the School District to local control and continues to defend Philadelphia’s values as a Welcoming City while making significant strides in criminal justice reform. Now in his second term, Jim is focused on advancing racial justice and driving an equitable economic recovery from COVID-19 to ensure that Philadelphia is a city that works for all.
Kathy Sledge
Singer, Songwriter and Producer
Kathy Sledge
Kathy Sledge is a Renaissance woman — a singer, songwriter, author, producer, manager, and Grammy-nominated music icon whose boundless creativity and passion has garnered praise from critics and a legion of fans from all over the world. Her artistic triumphs encompass chart-topping hits, platinum albums, and successful forays into several genres of popular music. Through her multi-faceted music career and her legacy as the signature voice in Sister Sledge who originated worldwide anthems like “We Are Family,” which was added to the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry in 2017, and “He’s the Greatest Dancer,” Kathy’s inspired millions of listeners across every generation. Iconic producer Nile Rodgers says it best: “Kathy has one of the most original and unique voices in pop music. Always has and always will!” While Kathy Sledge has tapped into the power of her voice, she consistently sets new standards of excellence. As a dynamic live performer, she’s also developing her passion for producing shows for the stage and screen.
Presently, she’s producing several live concerts and headlining festivals worldwide. She conceived both The Brighter Side of Day- A Billie Holiday Tribute and “Kathy Sledge presents: My Sisters & Me,” a Classic Concert series that features “Sisters In Song”, Deniece Williams, Karyn White, and CeCe Peniston. With an impressive stylistic versatility, Kathy remains a vibrant presence in nearly every genre of popular music.
As one of the most sought-after voices in dance and pop music Kathy collaborated with renowned London-based production team Horse Meat Disco on recent chart-topping club hits “Jump Into the Light” (2020) and “Falling Deep in Love” (2019). Kathy received the “Outstanding Contribution Award” at the highly acclaimed Ibiza DJ Awards. “Music is my passion,” she declares. “It’s what I love to do, throughout my music career, and now more than ever.”
Branching into film production, Kathy, with her daughter Kristen Gabrielle, launched “Family Room,” an interactive series developed as a mother-daughter talk show, designed for network television. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, they launched the series on IG live, directly from Kathy’s home, where D-Nice, Questlove, Sinbad, Donnie Wahlberg, Sheila E., Macy Gray, and many more surprise celebrity guests are among the thousands of viewers who tune in twice a week from across the globe. Also in development, Kathy is Executive Producing a film project based on her personal memoirs and the heart-felt story behind the iconic “We Are Family”.
O Magazine spotlighted Kathy’s remarkable evolution in the feature article “Better Than Ever” (2012). Out of 50 women worldwide, Kathy was among the four that O Magazine selected as getting better with time. They were especially impressed with her production, The Brighter Side of Day: A Tribute to Billie Holiday, an intimate concert that celebrates the music of the 1940s and honors the legacy of Lady Day. Hailed as “a spine-tingling musical journey of an American icon” (NBC 10), the show manifests a lifelong passion of Kathy’s where she explores what it would be like for audiences to attend a Billie Holiday concert. Stanley Clarke, who calls Kathy’s voice “one of the greatest jazz voices I’ve ever heard,” is among the legendary jazz greats who is currently collaborating with Kathy on a jazz project with some of his esteemed peers.
Early in her career, Kathy was often called the female counterpart to Michael Jackson since both came of age on stage as the youngest siblings and lead vocalists in a family group. Fueled by a prodigious musical talent, Kathy’s journey began in Philadelphia, the youngest of five daughters born to Edwin and Florez Sledge. Her grandmother was an opera singer who taught her harmonies while her father was one-half of Fred & Sledge, the tapping duo who broke racial barriers on Broadway. “I learned the appreciation and the art of music through my mother, father, and my grandmother,” she says. Kathy and her sisters honed their act around Philadelphia and signed a contract with Atco Records. At the tender age of 13, Kathy’s lead vocals on “Mama Never Told Me” (1973) furnished the group’s first international hit record in the U.K. Their follow-up “Love Don’t You Go Through No Changes On Me” scored them major hits everywhere from the U.K. to Japan, plus the Silver Award at the Tokyo Music Festival. At 14 years-old, Kathy and her sisters were invited to perform at Zaire 74, a three-day music festival that promoted the historic “Rumble in the Jungle” boxing match between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman. “To this day, that was one of the most powerful and impactful experiences I’ve had,” she says. However, groundbreaking producers Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards (the CHIC Organization) completely changed their lives. The #1 We Are Family (1979) album went platinum and earned plaudits from the rock press. “‘We Are Family,’ beautifully sung by
Kathy Sledge, is a near perfect fusion of gospel fire and disco cool,” wrote Stephen Holden in Rolling Stone. The song’s sentiment also stuck a personal chord with Kathy, who recorded her vocals in one take. Successful collaborations with musical geniuses like George Duke, Elton John, and Narada Michael Walden duly followed. “Take Me Back to Love Again,” the #1 Billboard club hit from Kathy’s debut solo project Heart on Epic Records, a chart-topping cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Another Star,” and several other singles have since powered Kathy’s solo career, which continues to flourish through her recent studio work with acclaimed R&B producers Carvin Haggins and Ivan Barias (Musiq Soulchild, Jill Scott). Parallel to her studio work, Kathy has established an active philanthropic platform through the timeless musical statement of “We Are Family.” After sitting on the Board of Directors for several years, she is an Honorary Trustee and esteemed Emeritus Board Member with Nile Rodgers and the We Are Family Foundation. She is also a Goodwill Ambassador for Antigua and Barbuda, as well as the Halo Foundation. “‘We Are Family’ is a mountainmover,” says Kathy, who proudly performed it for former First Lady Michelle Obama at BET’s Black Girls Rock! and UNESCO’s first Nelson Mandela International Day. As the defining voice of an anthem, Kathy’s regularly invited by royal families and cultural tastemakers around the globe to bring the universal language of “We Are Family” to exclusive events and engagements. And with that passion, Kathy Sledge is forever standing strong in the spotlight, shining brighter than ever!
Lee Daniels
Film Director, Producer, & Screenwriter
Lee Daniels
His first producer credit was Monster’s Ball (2001), for which Halle Berry won the Academy Award for Best Actress, making Daniels the first African-American film producer to solely produce an Oscar-winning film.
He made his directorial debut with Shadowboxer in 2005, and has since then directed the films Precious (2009), The Paperboy (2012, which he co-wrote), The Butler (2013) and The United States vs. Billie Holiday (2021). Of these, Precious was the most critically acclaimed, and was nominated for six Academy Awards, including two nominations for Daniels, for Best Director and Best Picture.
Other films he has produced include The Woodsman (2004), Tennessee (2008), Pimp (2018) and Concrete Cowboy (2020).
Daniels has co-created and co-executive produced the TV series Empire (2015–2020) and Star (2016–2019), both set in the music industry.(2020).
Patty Jackson
Philly Radio Legend
Patty Jackson
The voice is warm…soulful and sweet! PATTY JACKSON, a South Philadelphia native, is a thirty nine year radio and multi-media veteran.
Patty is currently the midday host on WDAS, and listeners can enjoy her iconic voice 10am – 3pm, Monday through Saturday.
Ms. Jackson who was recently inducted into the Philadelphia Broadcast Pioneer Hall of Fame, is an entertainment writer for the Philadelphia Tribune Magazine as well as the Philadelphia International Airport’s official voice of welcome and information!
Jackson continues to strive for greatness on-air, and continues to reinvent herself with her YouTube channel, and her “Patty and the Millennials” podcast!
Sonia Sanchez
Poet, Activist, Scholar
Sonia Sanchez
Sanchez was the Laura Carnell Professor of English and Women’s Studies at Temple University. She is the recipient of both the Robert Frost Medal for distinguished lifetime service to American poetry and the Langston Hughes Poetry Award. One of the most important writers of the Black Arts Movement, Sanchez is the author of sixteen books.
Vernon Odom
Retired local Philadelphia TV journalist
Vernon Odom
He has covered a plethora of major stories during his tenure, ranging from Presidential debates to the 1985 MOVE bombing.
He also hosted “Visions”, a weekly look at urban life in Philadelphia. In November 2004, he was inducted into the Broadcast Pioneers Hall of Fame.
He retired from 6 ABC in 2019, and now works as a visiting professor at West Chester University in West Chester, Pennsylvania.