Pamela Yasutake, a Seattle-raised professional dancer and entertainer, stopped by the Black Media Matters Studio for a one-on-one interview and tap dance lesson with Besa Gordon. During her sit-down with Gordon, Yasutake covers everything from her start in dancing, her renowned dance troupe, the Syncopated Ladies, her troupe's appearances on the Late Show with James Cordon, So You Think You Can Dance, the film Spirited, and more. When Yasutake isn't performing for large audiences, she's instructing tap dancing classes at the Northwest Tap Connection, a dance studio based out of Rainier Valley.

This past weekend, Besa Gordon stopped by the National  Hockey League's United by Hockey Mobile Museum while attending the 2024 Discover NHL Winter Classic Legacy event. The traveling museum, which started its seven-month tour on October 14, invites fans to learn more about the NHL's future generation, all while checking out hockey memorabilia from various players, interactive videos, virtual reality, and podcast recordings. 

Are you looking for a new podcast to get hooked on as 2024 begins? Look no further than Chino Y Chicano. Hosts Matt Chan and Enrique Cerna bring their life experiences to the table as they speak to guests including Washington State Senator Joe Nguyen, Congressman Adam Smith, Opera Singer Jose Iñiguez, Award Winning Journalist Deborah Horne and many more.

Today, the Seattle Sports Commission announced Seahawks Legend K.J. Wright as host of the 89th annual awards show, and global superstar Megan Rapinoe as the recipient of the Paul G. Allen Humanitarian Award presented by Microsoft.

Trae Holiday got her start with Converge Media in the company’s early stages, working alongside Founder Omari Salisbury as a content creator and reporter. Fast forward, and Holiday was the host of the Morning Update Show, a COVID-focused show which morphed into one of Seattle’s leading sources for news and current events.

As 2024 begins, a busy year lies ahead for Seattle's eight professional sports teams. Keeping track of those teams and more is Charles Hamaker, host of Circling Seattle Sports, who recently has stopped by Back2Besa and The Day with Trae to talk about the Winter Classic and the CSS team.

Written by Besa Gordon - Ready to feel like a kid again? I think what’s dope about the attractions curated by the Woodland Park Zoo is that they make it so that you don’t have to be a kid to enjoy them. I had the opportunity to go and check out their holiday attraction, WildLanterns, and I kid you not. It’s something you have to see in person for yourself.

Written by Besa Gordon - Happy Saturday! Now, I’m not going to lie. It’s been about two weeks since I’ve been on FOX 13 Seattle’s Good Day Seattle, but that’s because, like most people, I took off for holiday, but I’m back now. This week me, and Erin Mayovsky highlighted a few of the stories that are on Back2Besa this week like the Winter Classic, United By Hockey, the NHL creating a hockey for all space in Tacoma, #JamalClause, and WildLanterns.

Written by Besa Gordon - Typically, on Fridays, I stay home if I can prep for the weekend, but when I found out MoPOP was throwing a farewell party for their exhibit Contact High, I had to get dressed and take one more look at this epic display of Hip-Hop history.

The Seattle Kraken were able to keep the positive momentum moving forward following their big win in the 2024 Winter Classic with a 4-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators, as Seattle scored the first three goals of the night while Joey Daccord was rock solid in net once again, pushing the point streak to ten games and the winning streak to six games.

On Tuesday, January 2, the Seattle City Council swore in five new members. After reciting oaths in front of a live audience, Joy Hollingsworth, Rob Saka, Cathy Moore, Maritza Rivera, Bob Kettle, and Cathy Moore joined the council. Dan Strauss and Tammy Morales returned to their previous positions as council members. In contrast, Sara Nelson, a council member who's been in office since 2022, was elected president. Teresa Mosqueda, a council member serving since 2017, effectively stepped down to join King County Council after winning her campaign in that election, leaving open an appointment for a new Seattle City Council member. The council has 20 days to appoint someone as Mosqueda's equivalent, with this countdown beginning on January 3. If the council does not appoint someone after this period, they must convene every weekday, except for holidays, to vote until the appointment is filled.

“The connection with community on this project has been more robust, fruitful, and emotional than I was prepared for. I don’t think I will ever experience a job like this again.” Says Patrick McGlothlin, Senior Project Manager at Lydig Construction.

The new Rainier Beach High School’s model is Build The Beach For Us By Us, and it’s needless to say the efforts are led by the community and built by Lydig Construction. Through their work with the Seattle Public Schools and programs like ANEW, they’re working to create opportunities for individuals to have successful and fruitful careers in construction.

In case you missed it, in the South End of Seattle and Rainier Beach Community Center is where Rob Ross, who is the founder of United Business Connections, held a Black Vendors Market where over 25 Black businesses were gathered with a lot of self-care items, plus clothing and accessories that uplifts Black beauty and Ezell's Famous Chicken even stopped by and feed the community.

Joining Trae Holiday on this episode of The Day With Trae is K. Wyking Garrett, the current CEO and president of the Africa Town Community Land Trust (ACLT). In this episode, the community leader talks to Holiday about his organization's mission, how and why it was founded, and the numerous projects it's created to fight against gentrification and maintain Seattle's Black community in neighborhoods such as the Central District.

In the 2024 Winter Classic, the hosting Seattle Kraken defeated the Las Vegas Golden Knights in a 3-0 shutout, as Eeli Tolvanen, Will Borgen, and Yanni Gourde all scored in a day that celebrated the city of Seattle as a true hockey town.

Starting the New Year, Trae Holiday is back with a brand new season of The Day with Trae. For this first episode, Holiday is joined by life coach Heru Tchaas Amen for Mindfullness Monday, a segment happening now every Monday. The founder of Heru Health, a holistic life and wellness service focused on helping others find peace and balance within their daily lives, Tchaas Amen offers a variety of programs on how to transform one's life positively by integrating various meditation exercises and visualization practices into one's life. In this episode, Tchaas Amen, an advocate of energy work, explains his "FIVE" tips for living a balanced and healthy life: "focus on one's energy work," set intentions with purpose, and visualize success every day.

Monday, the Seattle Kraken host the Vegas Golden Knights for the 2024 Discover NHL Winter Classic at T-Mobile Park, but I wanted to take a moment and make sure you know about all the things happening not only on the ice, but also off the ice. Check out what’s happening starting tomorrow below via www.nhl.com

Because we are heading into a new year, we wanted to relive some of our favorite stories we have covered here on Back2Besa. This week on Back2Besa, we relive the time I headed to Boon Boona Coffee in Renton and not only learned more about coffee but how to make it in the traditional Ethiopian way; we remember and honor those whose lives were taken from us far too soon over at Day Of Remembrance which took place at First AME Church in Capitol Hill.

The National Fair Housing Alliance, Abt Associates, Northwest Fair Housing Alliance and the Fair Housing Center of Washington are completing a study as a requirement of a law passed in Spring 2023 that creates a program to address the role of government institutions in housing related racial discrimination in Washington.

Jonathan Batista, the pioneering Black Principal Dancer at the Pacific Northwest Ballet, adds another accolade to his illustrious career.

Awarded the prestigious Entertainer of the Year 2023 title by POCAAN, Batista’s triumph arrives a year after his historic elevation as the first Black Principal in the ballet company’s history.