The newspaper editors would like to thank all of our readers and participants this past semester. This year we were able revolutionize our consistency in posting articles as well as cover a much wider variety of topics. We had articles about reviews, satire, world news, music, along with political and moral issues. Words cannot express our appreciation to our staff with their eagerness to cover relevant issues. This, along with our readers constantly supplying positive feedback and taking part in our polls made the Village School Newspaper more interactive than it ever has been in the past. We hope you all enjoyed our content as much as we did providing it.

Once again, thank you everyone for an amazing year.

A Matter of Perception:

A cartoon in honor of Memorial Day

To perfectly picture and encapsulate the message of the man named Vince Staples is a task that can easily be perceived as overwhelming. 22 years breathing, his demeanor commands respect due to his ability to articulate his intuition creatively.

Vince was born on July 2, 1993 in Long Beach, California. Vince has often voiced his love for his hometown and depicts it as the laid back ghetto, being as it is not as wild as Compton but still maintains the qualifications of the hood. This being said, Vince has made an active effort to make sure the culture of violence and drugs is not glorified, as artists like Schoolboy Q and Kendrick Lamar do similarly.

Vince had never imagined himself to be an artist of any sorts in the past. As a child, his only concern was enjoying his environment. He became a crip affiliate and eventually dropped out of high school. In his earlier years, Vince describes his lifestyle as enjoyable, as it provided a sense of community and it was standard for the resident colored men of Long Beach. It wasn’t until the summer of 2006 that Vince saw the lifestyle rear up its ugly head. As friends began to pass away and the violence became more commonplace, Staples saw the culture as it really was. However, he did not let the realization of such harsh reality curb his loyalty. To this day, Vince voices his allegiance to the set but also makes a point of stating that the lifestyle is not one to desire.

As time began pass, Vince had no idea as to what he should do with himself. He found he had no specific ambitions and as a result began to experiment with different hobbies. A friend that would later become his manager suggested rap, and after realizing his natural affinity for the craft and a constant urging by fans, Vince took the ball and ran with it.

Due to manager’s reputation in the hip-hop world, it was not difficult for Vince to find fellow artists to work with. He started out with features on tracks with Odd Future and eventually spread his name throughout the world of rap, working with Artists like Common, Future, and Mac Miller along with producers such as No ID.

Vince uses the platform he has as a rapper to tell stories about his experiences as well as speak through his own perspective. He released his debut album Summertime ‘06 to critical acclaim on June 30 of 2015.

Vince Staples’ artistry has only started to blossom. His unique and mature view of his surroundings will continue to propel him to greater heights.

As of May 20th, Uber has joined the race in utilizing driverless cars in their business. While driverless cars have already been invented, it is still a very new thing and is rarely seen. Now, Uber is going to be one of the first to actually test these driverless cars. Testing will occur on the streets of Pittsburgh, PA. The car, which is a hybrid Ford Fusion, will be collecting mapping data and all while testing its self driving capabilities. Also, self driving cars have the potential to save millions of lives. 1.3 million people die every year in car accidents — 94% of those accidents involve human error. “From the first steel mills to the laboratories at Pitt and Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh has a long history of innovation. Now we’re taking another step forward, this time as home to Uber’s Advanced Technologies Center, where some of the world’s leading innovators are helping to shape the future of transportation. We’re excited that Uber has chosen the Steel City as they explore new technologies that can improve people’s lives — through increased road safety, less congestion, and more efficient and smarter cities.” -William Peduto, Mayor of Pittsburgh

Muhammad Ali with the Beatles.

Muhammad Ali, a legendary boxer who retired in 1981, died of septic shock on Friday, June 3rd, at the age of 74. Muhammad Ali was a three time world champion heavyweight, and only lost 5 of the 61 fights he participated in during his career. Tragedy struck shortly after his retirement when, in 1984, he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s syndrome. It is believed that he developed the syndrome, in part, due to head trauma sustained during boxing. Despite this setback, he remained active in the public eye for years after. He endorsed Ronald Reagan in 1984, published an oral history of his life, traveled to Iraq during the Gulf War to negotiate with Saddam Hussein, and lit the flame at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. These notable appearances gradually diminished over time, and halted entirely when he began to confront serious health problems in 2013.

Muhammad Ali was born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr., on January 17th, 1942. He began boxing at 12 years old, and 10 years later he became world heavyweight champion after an upset victory over Sonny Liston. He quickly gained a reputation for his endearing bravado and impressive results. In the ring, he was notable for having great reflexes and mobility, especially in comparison to other heavyweights. He constantly moved about, circling his opponent, jabbing, and dancing about to avoid punches; thus it is apropos that his most famous catchphrase would be “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee”. After defeating Sonny Liston he converted to Islam under the guidance of Louis Farrakhan, the leader of the same organization that Malcolm X belonged to before his assassination, who gave him the name for which he is now famous. This, along with his refusal to be drafted into the Vietnam war, antagonized the white political establishment. He became a counterculture icon in the process, but he was arrested and stripped of his boxing titles. Although he appealed successfully in 1971, he had lost 4 peak years of his athletic career. He regained his title in what was certainly the most dramatic, and probably the most famous, boxing match in history dubbed “The Rumble in the Jungle”.
In addition to his impressive professional achievements, he also maintained an active family life. He was married four times and had 9 children, two sons and seven daughters. One of his surviving daughters is now a retired professional boxer herself. Muhammad Ali was a great man and we should all mourn his death.

Art is a hard field of work to make it big in, so if you have aspirations to become the next Leonardo da Vinci, you’re chances are extremely miniscule. On the other hand, you can always refine your skills in order to pursue that field.

Think about things. Is this something you can do and want to do. You know?

That being said, there are many professions having to do with art. Museum guide, museum curator, museum art preservation, graphic designer, graphic artist, architect, illustrator, fashion designer, gastronomist, art therapy, advertisement, chef, anime artist, manga artists, composer, singer, dancer, actor, writer, playwright, director, interior designer, and many many more.

Whether you’re considering going to art school or not, have a portfolio. At some point you might be asked to show some work and having it ready may save some otherwise missed opportunities. Also, before deciding to attend art school, speak to people who have already been through art school and people with experience if possible. (May or may not be beneficial. I just looked up this stuff, man…..)

Attend art college fairs, apply to art college programs, but during this time, continue to make art. Its easy to loose site of thing, but keeping the passion for art alive can help you remain grounded (again, I just searched for this stuff online….)

And hopefully you’ll be able to make a living.. Just do you or whatever..