AHS BASKETBALL COACH NOMINATED FOR THREE GRAMMY AWARDS

Perhaps you have noticed the GMC Yukon in the school parking lot or driving around town with the custom paint job all over.  That belongs to Coach Jeff Flanigan, basketball coach at Ashdown High School and New Traditions science teacher, a.k.a. Giovanni, rapper and song artist who received notification last week that he has been nominated for GRAMMY awards in three categories.

Jeff Flanigan wears many hats: teacher, coach, mentor, father, pastor and inspirational rap artist.  Flanigan, whose stage name is Giovanni, records for Harvey House of Houston under the record label of House Records. On Oct. 22, he found out about his GRAMMY nominations: Best Traditional Gospel Album for Live in the Spirit of Joy performed by various artists,  Record of the Year for “I Know” by Giovanni, and Best Rap Song for “We Need,” written and recorded by Giovanni. 

The GRAMMY awards are a product of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc. in Santa Monica, California.  All nominations will be voted on by members of the Academy and pared down to the five per category that will be announced as final nominees on December 17.  Those five will then be invited to the GRAMMY awards show on Feb. 8 in the Staples Center in Los Angeles, broadcast live on CBS.

Flanigan (Giovanni) has been rapping since age nine and formerly signed with Jet Speed Records in Hollywood from 2004-2007. He describes his style as “positive inspirational rap music.”  It is not officially classified as “gospel,” he says “because of the limitations of where music labeled as gospel can be marketed.”  He wants to reach the largest audience possible with his “Christian-based” messages, which he states are “culled from life experiences.”

He describes his nominated music as “very deep songs that tell true life stories”.  He calls “We Need” an “African-American anthem about things that we (African-Americans) need to do.”  He describes “I Know” as quasi-biographical about a young man who grew up with parents who were drug dealers, so he began to speak of his realizations about life damaged by drugs. “I Know” is featured in the audio-book The Other Side of the Coin, written by Robert Howard and produced and distributed by House Records.  Howard wrote the book while incarcerated at Angola State Prison in Louisiana, where he remains today. 

On the album nominee Live in the Spirit of Joy, Giovanni partnered with another artist, Jerome Jackson, who is a former singer with the well-known group 5^th Dimension.

Despite his musical success, Flanigan continues to teach and coach “because I want to.”  He stresses that being a father is his first love, and this allows him to do that and be close.  His twin sons, Jaden and Jordan – age 6, live in Little Rock.