May 28: Sheldon Keith “Lazy K” Lofton at Tubman Elementary ES
Thank you so much! Mr. Sheldon was a great teacher and we really enjoyed the visit! We are hopeful to be able to have an in-person experience next school year! —Ms. Whittaker
Sheldon Keith “Lazy K” Lofton joined the PreK classes of Tubman ES (DCPS)on May 28, 2021. Lofton, a Washington, D.C. native and guitarist, welcomed the classes with a guitar riff and some go-go music.
Lofton kicked off the class with a reading of The Day They Found Go-Go. One page of the book celebrates the day a young group of friends heard the sound of go-go for the first time. “What’s that sound?” As Lofton finished that sentence, he played music in the background, a go-go beat. One of the PreK students exclaimed, “I can hear it, too!”
Lofton transitioned from reading the book to sharing about the guitar. He showed his guitar and asked the students if any of them had heard of a guitar before and whether any of them had played the guitar.
Students replied:
“I have!”
“You can play music on it!”
To which Lofton replied, “ I love the guitar, it’s my favorite instrument.”
Lofton showed the students the six strings of the guitar and how each string sounded and came together to make a chord. Lofton shared that musicians count when they make music “1-2-3-4. 1-2-3-4. 1-2-3-4,” the class exclaimed, as Lofton strummed to the beat on his guitar.
Lofton introduced a drum beat as the class counted, “1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4.”
Lofton shared all the places that students could hear go-go, “at a park, at a concert with a stage, on the street where someone is hitting a go-go beat on buckets.” Lofton played another drum beat that was a little faster paced, and as one student heard the beat, he started counting solo.
Lofton celebrated the names of famous go-go musicians. “The most famous go-go musician is a guitar player. Can anyone guess his name?”
“CHUCK BROWN!”
Lofton responded, “That’s right! Chuck Brown, the godfather of go-go.”
Lofton then shared, “Next, I am going to tell you about a band named Experience Unlimited. Has anyone heard of Experience Unlimited?”
Students shook their heads or spoke audibly, “No.”
Lofton then shared, “Experience Unlimited is led by Sugar Bear!”
Students' replies could be heard, “Sugar Bear?”
Image displayed during the class: Sugar Bear with the bass.
“Sugar Bear plays the bass. Does anyone know why the instrument that Sugar Bear plays is called a bass?” asked Lofton.
One student replied, “It’s red!”
“That’s right, this bass is red! And bass guitars have four strings. Remember, my guitar has six strings and a bass guitar has four strings.”
Lofton continued, “Who knows who Trouble Funk is?”
Lofton explained that Trouble Funk is led by Big Tony. He shared details about the photo projected on the screen, highlighting Big Tony and other members of the band.
Image displayed during class: Trouble Funk from Tiny Desk
Lofton then went on to remind the students of the bands they have heard of. “So far we have learned about Chuck Brown. His band was called Soul Searchers. We have learned about Sugar Bear and Experience Unlimited or E.U. And we have learned about Big Tony and Trouble Funk. Next we are going to learn about one more band. Who has heard of Rare Essence?”
Image displayed during class: Rare Essence
Lofton and the Tubman PreK classes counted how many band members were on stage: 11 or 12.
Lofton shared with the students, “Band members can be brothers, can be friends who went to school together, and they can be neighbors. Bands can be big or small. And if you want to learn or play go-go, you can do it too!”
Lofton closed the classroom visit, reminding students that go-go music can be heard in all four quadrants of the city. Northeast, Southeast, Northwest and Southwest. Go-go music is the music of the city and it comes from Washington, D.C.
The PreK classes of Tubman Elementary unmuted and shared their farewells and thank yous.
“Thank you so much! That was awesome : ) We can't wait to have you come back when we are back in the classroom.”
—Ms. Brosnan