We are so happy to have an opportunity to talk to the Award-winning producer, Warryn Campbell and his wife, Erica Campbell (Grammy winning Gospel artist.) We talked to Erica and Warryn about Father’s Day and the importance of celebrating men, and in particular, the black man on this day.
They both are in agreement that fathers are not getting the same type of love and attention that mothers get, particularly on Father’s day. Warryn says:
“It’s an overarching theme at the barbershop. It’s what we talk about. How Mother’s day comes around it’s crazy, but when father’s day comes around it’s barely a whisper. I’ts like we’re not really appreciated like that.”
Erica goes on to agree by sharing that you can even see the difference in the card section,
“It’s even reflected when you go to the card section at the store Mother’s Day has cards everywhere. But Father’s Day has a small section. I think that it’s unfair that we expect them to be perfect. Now we should put expectations on the men in our lives. But if we are there to help them when they fall or fail…it think it speaks something different to them. Like I know you may have got it wrong, but you made a mistake…you’re not a mistake.”
Erica says that we have a job to celebrate our fathers which is why they’re really glad to be a part of the P&G “Groomed for Greatness” program that invites men into the beauty conversation. The P&G products included are Crest, Head and Shoulders Shampoo and Braun shaving products.
Check out what else Erica and Warryn have to say about celebrating our black men on Father’s Day in our interview below.
BMWK: Warryn, since you are public figure, does it ever cross your mind that you are providing an image of manhood and fatherhood to other boys and men in the community?
Warryn: Constantly…Constantly! Fortunately for me, I was able to live in the house with my father and my grandfather. There were three generations in the same house. They were not as public as me. But they were both preachers, so they meant a lot to the community. So, I got to watch them do it. And growing up as a kid, I already knew who I was and knew what I was going to be. So when I’m out moving around, I don’t do it without their voices in my head. My grandfather is not here anymore, but I hear him talking to me, saying: “Son, remember what your last name is. Remember that people watch you and people look up to you… so you have to watch what you do and watch what you say.” I have been like that since I was 13 years old…living my life with the shadow of my family name behind me.
My son is five year’s old, and if you ask him what kind of man he is, he’s going to tell you 3 things right now at five years old: I’m a Godly Man, I’m a Campbell Man, and then his is going to put his fist up and say: “I’m a Black Man!” He’s been doing that since he was 2 years old.
BMWK: Warryn, what would your ideal Father’s Day be like?
And as far as me personally, I can have a day where I just sit down. You know fathers we just work so hard. We want to just sit down and just be around people that love us. Just cook me a nice plate and let me sit on the couch and be with my family and watch some kind of game on TV.
BMWK: Erica, what things do you appreciate the most about Warryn as a father and a husband?
Erica: I appreciate that he comes from a legacy of fathers and great Godly men. I think that probably has the most influence on how he is with me and with our children and even with the people around him. And it’s something that my daughters and my son watch when they see how he operates. Especially having a church now, it just puts a different responsibility on him. But because he has such a heart for people and such a desire to be excellent and be a man of influence that makes a difference in the community, it’s just wonderful to watch. He does an excellent job.
And I know that every man wonders at some point, if I’m doing an excellent job. So, I’m telling you know now baby…you’re doing a great job.
If more men heard that more often, it would shift something in their heart and in their minds and in how they move throughout their lives.
I think that is what is so great about this My Black Is Beautiful “Grooming My Black Man for Greatness” campaign overall. Because it starts the larger conversation. As women, we don’t pay attention…we don’t do as much for them as we do. But they work hard too. And they love their children too. And they love their families too. It may come out a different way or may be expressed in a different way. But they need to be loved and celebrated just as much as mothers.
BMWK: And we totally agree. Our men, our black men, need to be celebrated, not just on Father’s Day, but every day.
BMWK Family – how do you plan to celebrate the men in your life this Father’s Day? Do you agree that fathers don’t get as much appreciation and recognition as mothers?