Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Eric Marable Jr Aka Daan Rana. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Eric Marable Jr, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?
The Flourish Alabama = Full Bloom Initiative, Budding Artists Initiative, Black Arts District
I am Creative Director for The Flourish Alabama (@theflourishalabama).
In 2019, my brother Jahman Hill and I created a non-profit organization called The Flourish Alabama. Our mission? To help young artists bloom. We set out to bring arts education programming to Birmingham’s arts anemic school system. In the last 4 years, we’ve expanded our programming to all 7 high schools in Birmingham City Schools, acquired our own space in downtown Ensley, and collaborated with major organizations across Alabama such as Sidewalk Film Center and the Alabama State Council of the Arts. Through our genuine spirit and community support, we’ve reached heights we could only dream of back in 2019.
From here, we have 3 major initiatives:
Full Bloom Initiative. This is our education wing. We will continue to provide exceptional and transformative arts experiences to our students. They will have access to professional arts and arts opportunities during and after being in our programs.
Budding Artist Initiative. This is our creative production/development wing. Here we seek to help local artists build infrastructure, skills, and a fan base through our adult workshops and events. Our ultimate goal is to be able to make a pathway for artists to have dynamic careers in Birmingham without necessarily having to leave the city.
And our big dream is the Black Arts District. In the heart of downtown Ensley, The Flourish has brought together movers and shakers and developers to envision a place that celebrates the rich history of the arts in the city of Birmingham while providing an arts economy for future artists to thrive and affix their own legacies.
The Arts Collab = Turn Around Schools Initiative, Foundations of Teaching Artistry
I am Project Coordinator for The Arts Collab (@bhmartsed).
Here, our mission is to bring arts education experiences to every classroom in the Greater Birmingham area. Through our Magic City Minds program, we work with local Teaching Artists and Arts Organizations to generate residencies and programming that provide students with a holistic arts experience that pushes them to use their imagination and develop skills that will carry them to new levels of awareness as well as achievement. This year, we are working with the governor of Alabama to intact the Birmingham Turnaround Arts Initiative. This initiative provides funding to the school district and will be used to generate arts programming in 5 elementary schools here in Birmingham. We are accepting proposals from any and all types of Arts Organizations and Teaching Artitsts. The Arts Collab also works to develop Teaching Artists in our city through our Foundations of Teaching Artistry workshop. This is a 3 day intensive for Artists who want to step into the classroom to learn from professional teaching artists and arts administrators from across Alabama.
Daan Rana = The Naked Summer
Daan Rana (@nomoredeadrappers) is my artist name. It is Sikh and translate to “Wise Warrior of God”. This persona is less of a persona, but more of a way to express the truth and power that emanates from my spirit. I love to write songs. I love to perform. I released my first EP titled “Birds of Prey” back in 2022. I am working now to release my second EP “The Naked Summer” this year! Check out my music on all music platforms.
Eric Marable Jr, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
My name is Eric MarabIe, Jr. aka Daan Rana. I’m an Actor, Writer, Slam Poet, Emcee, Singer/Songwriter, Teacher, and Director from Birmingham, AL. I began acting in church plays written by my mother (She’s a genius. You should interview her) and writing poems at the age of six. I wrote my first verse at 13. My family laughed at me so I vowed to never spit again. A few years later, I was filming a poetry workshop for one of my teachers. I wasn’t supposed to participate but I asked to write a piece. At the end of the workshop, after everyone had spit their piece, my teacher asked me if I had a poem. Then, the teaching artist made me spit in front of the whole class. Afterward, he asked me if I had ever done that before. I said no, haha. He then put me on to more poetry workshops at the Central Library and that’s where I met my mentors, the Real Life Poets Inc. I started taking my writing and performing seriously. I continued acting and doing open mics throughout high school and college.
When I went to college at the University of Alabama, I majored in Theatre and minored in Creative Writing. I did work on stage and on film and also traveled across the country to give speeches on pressing social topics with the Alabama Forensics Council (Speech and Debate Team) as well as competing in national poetry slam competitions with the Alabama Student Association for Poetry (ASAP). After spending my senior year doing research on the school-to-prison pipeline (along with all the other messed-up things happening in the education system), I stumbled into an opportunity to become a teacher in NYC. After moving to New York City in 2015 to teach and pursue acting, I decided to focus on developing a creative brand combining all modes of his expression to create work that drives thought, communication, and healing forward. Daan Rana was created to be a more holistic approach to my art and humanity. This year, I started my company, No More Dead Rappers LLC., which seeks to promote safety, realism, wellness, light, and love through community and the arts.
I am Creative Director and Program Manager for “The Flourish Alabama,” an Arts Education 501(c)(3) based in Birmingham, AL. I am also the Project Coordinator for the Greater Birmingham Arts Education Collaborative (@bhmartsed). I am Poet, Producer, and Lead Writer for “Bloom City,” a creative writing YouTube series. I have done multimedium work as Staff Writer, Song Writer, and Actor for “The Juke Joint Live,” a variety show created by the incomparable polymath Erika E. Wade. I am a Producer, Director, and M.C. for “Sunsets on 6th”, a showcase of up-and-coming RnB and Hip Hop acts in Birmingham, AL. I am also the lead director of the award-winning Off-Broadway production “Black Enough,” a one-person show that was written/performed by one of the nation’s top slam poets Jahman Ariel Hill. I dropped my first Ep “Birds of Prey” back in May 2022. You can listen to it on all streaming platforms.
Apart from being an Artist, I believe one of my greatest gifts is building community. I think of myself as a spider with a vast web of influencers, developers, and creators at my disposal. The connections we make in this life are pivotal to making our dreams possible. I am not afraid to meet new people and to expand that network even further. If I can’t help you get what you need, I know 4 or 5 people that can.
My only really goal in this life is “to seek a life useful”. If you have a dream and you need some support, I am here to help.
We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.
I met my brother Jahman Ariel Hill in Tuscaloosa, AL the summer of 2014. I had just got back in T town for school and was picking up supplies at Walmart when I spotted this skinny dude rocking a toboggan, a hoodie, a Pikachu backpack, and basketball shorts in 98-degree weather. I said “Jahman?”. He said “Eric?”. We dapped up and then he met my family. I also found out later that he was stealing socks from said Walmart. From there, we continued our work on the Forensics Team at the University of Alabama and continued to vibe and grow as teammates and collaborators. Jahman, Our brothers Jamarey Carter, Harrison Defalco, and I would stay up all night listening to 2014 Forest Hills Drive on repeat as we wrote songs and poems, and speeches.
From there, Jahman went on to become one of the best poets in the nation. I went to New York to begin work in the nonprofit world and to pursue my art. We ended up reconnecting in Tuscaloosa in 2017, where Jahman had created the Alabama Student Association of Poetry (ASAP). Through ASAP, we began traveling the country doing poetry slams and also working with non-profits to create poetry programming. As Jahman was finishing up his 2nd Master’s Degree, he created a one-man show as his dissertation. “Black Enough” explored themes of self-acceptance, self-love, and the dangers we battle through as black people to achieve these ideals. Jahman asked me to be his Lead Director and I hesitantly said yes haha. I had never directed a production before but I accepted the challenge. We traveled across Alabama and we had an Off-Broadway performance in the Big Apple.
We both moved to Birmingham in 2019. When I got back, I was asked to create a curated arts event at this amazing spot called “The Freedom House”. As I was trying to find names for it, I thought of a philosophy that Jahman created for his one-man show. The philosophy of “The Flourish. The idea behind this is that we as black people are infinitely possible beings. We are not bound by shame, pain, or trauma. We are free just by the simple fact that we exist and we deserve to feel safe and express that freedom in whatever way our hearts desire. I said to myself “The Flourish at Freedom House”. Then I asked Jahman if I could use it because it was absolutely perfect. He said I could use it and he opened our very first show! We sold out the building and it was a successful event for 2 years. During that time, Jahman approached me and said it’s time to start our own nonprofit. And the rest is history….
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
I had to unlearn the idea that “It’s all about me”. When I was an actor actor, I wanted my name in lights, the red carpets, the accolades, and the love. I wanted to be the star. As I started to realize that maybe I don’t want what I say I want or when I started to realize that I’m not the person I think I am in my head, I had an existential crisis. On the other side of it, I realized that I was trying to portray this idea of a man who was perfect, unbreakable, with a talent that is unmatched. I had to humble myself. I had to reorient my heart and mind towards service. It’s about making better days for my people. I had to show up for the people and not just wait around for people to show up for me. I had to start caring about myself beyond what I can produce and honor all parts of myself. I am charismatic, gregarious, and hilarious, but I’m also quiet, anxious, awkward, major depressive, and ADHD. I have to accept all parts of me for that is the only way I can accept all parts of my people. It’s been the hardest but most rewarding thing I’ve done in my life.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/nomoredeadrappers
- Instagram: @nomoredeadrappers
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000140390958
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-marable-jr-a4795835/
- Twitter: @nomoredeadraprs
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@daanrana300
- Other: https://www.theflourishal.com/ https://birminghamartsed.org/
Image Credits
E.J. Glenn Photography (@ejglennphotography) Janavian Young (@janavian_) Josh Weaver (@team_weaver4life)