[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 43, Number 25 (Monday, June 25, 2007)]
[Pages 849-851]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at a Reception for Black Music Month

June 22, 2007

    Thank you all. Please be seated. Thank you. Rachel, thank you--
thanks for coming; thanks for the introduction; and thanks for 
representing the United States. Proud to have you here.
    I want to welcome you all right here to the people's house. I'm 
pleased you could join us for this annual celebration of Black Music 
Month. This is an event I've always looked forward to. It's a chance to 
listen to some good music--[laughter]--and to be with some good friends. 
It's an opportunity for us to thank artists whose work inspire our 
country. And so thanks for coming. I hope you enjoy the day as much as I 
do.
    I appreciate the fact that Alphonso is with us, Alphonso Jackson and 
Marcia. He's the Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban 
Development. Dr. Dorothy Height is with us. I'm proud you're here, Dr. 
Height.

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Thanks for joining us. My friend Bob Johnson has joined us. He knows a 
little something about black entertainment. [Laughter] Thanks for 
coming. Roslyn Brock, vice chairman of the NAACP--I'm proud you're here, 
Roslyn. Thank you for coming. Thanks for joining us. Dyana Williams, 
president of the International Association of African American Music 
Foundation--she knows something about music. [Laughter] I appreciate 
Kevin Liles, executive vice president of the Warner Music Company. Thank 
you for coming--and Jonathan Platt, senior vice president of EMI Music 
Publishing and Virgin Records. Appreciate you all being here. Thanks for 
coming.
    Most of all, thank you all. Thanks for taking time out of your day 
to come. One of the best things about living here is that some of the 
best musicians come to play. [Laughter] It's amazing what kind of talent 
you can draw here at the White House. [Laughter]
    And over the years, American Presidents have seen some fantastic 
African American musicians here on the White House stage. President 
Chester Arthur--you might remember Chester--[laughter]--he welcomed the 
first black choir to perform at the White House, the Jubilee Singers 
from Fisk University. President Benjamin Harrison hosted one of the 
first black soloists to play at the White House, Sissieretta Jones, who 
was the daughter of a slave. President William Howard Taft invited 
Joseph Douglass--grandson of Frederick Douglass--to perform here. 
Franklin Roosevelt hosted the great Marian Anderson, when she performed 
``Ave Maria'' for the King and Queen of England. President Ronald Reagan 
hosted Mikhail Gorbachev and invited the legendary Pearl Bailey to 
entertain. And when he introduced her, he just simply said--simply, 
``our Pearl''--``welcome, our Pearl.'' [Laughter] I hope the translator 
got that right. [Laughter]
    And Laura and I had some incredible entertainers and Americans sing 
for us and our friends. We've had Eartha Kitt, Patti Austin, B.B. King, 
Irwin Mayfield, Aaron Neville--just to give you a taste of what happens 
here at the White House. Each of the performers has inspired people 
across the world with their talents, and each performer has brought 
great pride to the United States. It's really a great country that can 
produce a diverse group of musicians that can serve as ambassadors about 
what's right about America.
    And we're proud to welcome some new musicians here to the White 
House today. We're just keeping in a long trend of Presidents who have 
welcomed some of our great musicians here to the White House. So as we 
honor Black Music Month, it makes sense to bring some talent here to 
entertain us.
    Karina Pasian grew up in New York City. She's the child of 
immigrants from the Dominican Republic. Her parents are both teachers in 
the New York Public School System, and early on, it became clear that 
Karina had an incredible gift for music. At age 3--that's the definition 
of ``early on''--[laughter]--she was singing and studying piano. By age 
12, she was performing at the Coliseum in Rome before a television 
audience of more than a half-million people, alongside Alicia Keys and 
Stevie Wonder and Andrea Bocelli. Today, she's 15 years old. She's 
already recorded her first album.
    And despite her young age, she tackles very mature issues with her 
music. She sings about hunger and disease in Africa and the genocide in 
Darfur. And we appreciate that clarity, appreciate her bringing these 
issues to focus to help more people understand that the world's got to 
do something about it now, before it's too late. I will tell you, the--
America is in the lead when it comes to HIV/AIDS on the continent of 
Africa; we're on the lead when it comes to feeding the hungry; we're on 
the lead when it comes to eradicating malaria. And that's where we need 
to be, and that's where we will stay. And I appreciate very much Karina 
bringing this issue to focus. We're proud that you're here, and we're 
proud that you brought your big heart to this stage.
    We're also going to welcome Kem Owens, who learned to love music 
growing up in Detroit listening to R&B greats. He listened to them on 
his mom and dad's radio. He taught himself to play piano at the home of 
his Baptist minister grandfather. But as a teenager, this good man lost 
his way. He became addicted to drugs and alcohol, and eventually, he 
became homeless. Today he finds a home, a warm home to welcome him. He 
was sleeping on the ground near a building on the

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Detroit River, and he said this: God found him and inspired him to set 
his life straight. With the help of the Almighty, he overcame his 
addictions and he rediscovered his passion for music. In 2001, he used a 
credit card to finance the production of an independent CD he called 
``Kemistry.'' Get it--Kem Owens? [Laughter] Kemistry? [Laughter]
    The disc sold 10,000 copies in 5 months. It caught the attention of 
music executives in New York who signed KEM to a major label deal. He 
has gone on to become one of America's most popular R&B singers. But he 
knows the audience he's truly playing for. He says, quote, ``I want my 
life to be one that God will be pleased with. I'm by no means a saint.'' 
I know what you're saying, KEM. [Laughter] But he went on to say, ``My 
eye is on the prize. He's not done with me yet.'' We're proud to welcome 
such a man to the White House today.
    And finally, Tourie and Damien Escobar discovered their love for the 
violin in the third grade and soon found themselves studying classical 
music at New York's finest conservatories. But they grew up in a tough 
neighborhood, and soon Tourie and Damien had dropped their music, 
dropped out of school, and fallen in with a bad crowd. Yet their mother 
and aunt never gave up hope. And with their encouragement and prayers, 
these two brothers returned to the music they loved.
    They formed a group called ``Nuttin' But Stringz,'' performing a new 
music fusion that bridges classical, R&B, and rap. I'm looking forward 
to it. [Laughter] They started by playing on subways and went on to win 
amateur music contests at the Apollo Theater. And last month, they 
released their first album. Here's what Tourie says: ``The passion for 
music and the violin saved my life.'' And today that passion has brought 
these talented musicians right here to the White House.
    All these artists represent the best of our country. They represent 
hope and hard work. We're looking forward to hearing them perform. 
They're going to be in a long list of performers who have come here to 
be able to entertain the country, to lend their musical talents to this, 
the people's house.
    I appreciate them coming to help us celebrate Black Music Month. I 
appreciate you all joining to help celebrate Black Music Month. May God 
bless you, and may God continue to bless our country.

Note: The President spoke at 3:04 p.m. in the East Room at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to Miss USA 2007 Rachel Smith; civil 
rights leader Dorothy I. Height; and Robert L. Johnson, founder and 
chairman, The RLJ Companies.