Grammy-winning, Emmy-nominated alumnus Dom Flemons will speak at NAU Saturday for the annual Ted Johnson Lecture. Flemons is a songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer, actor, slam poet, music scholar, historian, and record collector. In 2018, Flemons released his critically acclaimed solo album Dom Flemons Presents Black Cowboys which was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Folk Album, a Blues Music Award for Best Acoustic Blues Album, and peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Bluegrass charts. In 2005, Flemons graduated from Northern Arizona University with a Bachelor of Arts in English and went on to become a co-founding member of the Carolina Chocolate Drops with whom he won a Grammy for Best Traditional Folk Album.
The Ted Johnson Lecture Series, which is sponsored by the Ethnic Studies program, is named for NAU’s first African American professor. Ted Johnson joined the faculty of NAU in 1969 teaching composition, literature and minority literature. Throughout his 30 years at NAU, Johnson was active in civic and political affairs at NAU and throughout the state. He was involved with many student groups and organizations and was recognized with an Alumni Service Award as well as the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Achievement Award.
When: 7-9 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 17 (Doors open at 6 p.m.)
Where: Prochnow Auditorium