NINEL “NZZY” NEKAY

UNITED STATES / JAMAICA, 24

Project: Grown Folks’ Table
Pronouns: She/Her

Nzzy is a second-generation Jamaican-American Southerner and interdisciplinary cultural worker whose art demonstrates the stifled desires and salvation of Black Americans. “Grown Folks Table” is a documentary that explores the significance of Spades in Black culture. The documentary includes interviews with Black historians, psychologists, political commentators, Spades players, and other community members, in addition to authentic footage of how Spades is played across the country. The project seeks to highlight the game’s declining popularity among younger generations in order to encourage its resurgence, and also serve as an entry point to a larger conversation about the consequences of racial inequities and the generational healing necessary to preserve Black traditions. 

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What communities does “Grown Folks’ Table” serve? 

Through “Grown Folks' Table”, I directly engage and support the Black and Black LGBTQ+ communities I depict. In addition to crafting Black mental health-focused art through an intersectional lens, I incorporate care and community into all areas of my work as essential elements of my creative process. As a victim of racially discriminatory hiring processes, I have built a reputation for hiring predominantly Black non-men as crew members.

“More than ever, I realize that the work done off-screen and off-stage is just as impactful as the production itself, and I plan to continue and develop these practices in all stages of ‘Grown Folks’ Table’.”
Evan Wei-Haas