HBO FILM SPOTLIGHTS A KID FROM VALLEJO
10-year-old excels in ‘MLK Oratorical Fest’
Gregory Payton appears gracious, attentive, thoughtful, and pensive. And mild-mannered. Yes, surely mild-mannered.
But on stage with an audience? The 10-year-old blossoms like a rose in spring. A kid, sure. But the Vallejo fourth-grader is emphatic and confident. Extremely confident. Dare we say Dr. Martin Luther King confident?
HBO thought so. That’s why Shannon and Jamilio McClain’s son is one of the featured students in the Feb. 18 documentary, “We Are the Dream: The Kids of the Oakland MLK Oratorical Fest.”
A film crew covered the 40th annual contest last January featuring speeches and poems at Oakland’s Skyline High School. The top students were also filmed at home or, in Payton’s case, at church.
That’s where the lad honed his people’s skills, according to his father, a fifth-year pastor at the Rising Star Baptist Church in Oakland.
“He typically does the welcomes, speeches, those types of oratorical things at church,” Gregory’s dad said. “He’s naturally gifted and pretty intelligent. He’s definitely not shy.”
The newfound celebrity and his parents sat down at their comfortable Vallejo home last Thursday, obviously all thrilled with the speech results and national broadcast.
“It feels great that I get to be known, that I get to be seen outside of school. People know who I am now,” said a smiling Gregory, somewhat professorial behind his black-framed glasses.
Memorizing a three-minute, three-page speech delivered to a packed auditorium was “a lot of hard work,” Gregory said… but worth it.
“People were giving me a standing ovation and I realized I did very good. I was proud. The person who helped me write my speech, she was crying,” Gregory said.
The honored student sifted segments of King’s last speech, “I’ve Been to Mountaintop,” while incorporating parts of Psalm 23 from the Bible.
“I practiced it a lot,” Gregory said. “About 10 times or more.”
He said he isn’t so mildmannered in front of an audience.
“I am a different person. I speak louder and sound different,” Gregory said. “Some of my friends told me I sounded like Dr. King.” Confident, to be sure. “He couldn’t stand in front of the crowd if he wasn’t,” said his father.
Gregory was — up until this school year — a student
in the Oakland Unified School District, which allowed him to participate in last January’s oratorical competition. His dad married the former Shannon Stallworth last August when Gregory and his mom joined his dad and grandma in their Vallejo home.
The contest began at each Oakland school and progressed “kind of like a tournament to see who could go to the finals,” Gregory explained. “I won first place and have a plaque from it. I believe it’s in my room. I’m glad I won first place.”
Gregory’s mother, grandmother Elora Howard, and church members attended the finals of the oratorical event founded by Donald Oliver to showcase the students’ skills beyond testing and reading scores.
“It was really emotional to watch,” Gregory’s mom said, adding that it was “definitely me” who was most nervous. Ultimately, for no
reason.
“He did it with a lot of passion. I could really feel the words,” momma McClain said. “It was a real emotional time; a lot of people crying. It seems like the more he did it, the more emotion came out.”
“He memorized it and presented it and did fantastic,” reiterated Gregory’s dad, grateful that HBO “really appreciated his oratorical skills.”
Gregory’s photo is featured in promoting the film and he’s in the video trailer of the documentary produced by two-time Oscar winner, Oakland-born Mahershala Ali from “Green Book.”
“It’s exciting,” Jamilio McClain said, admitting he was “shocked” to see Gregory do so well.
“You understand that your children have talents. This gave me the opportunity to quantify or just see what that talent meant,” he
continued. “I was amazed. Since he’s been young, he’s always been able to speak. And he sings. He’s pretty amazing. He can stand before a crowd and really express himself.”
Most importantly, added Gregory’s dad, “I hope he understands Dr. King’s legacy as it related to the civil rights movement and struggles of African Americans have had to overcome,” and that King’s speeches “should allow Gregory to understand the influence oratorical skills can have on people’s life, that Dr. King was an amazing man and allowed his oratorical skills to influence a nation, if not the world.”
The key to a good speech, pondered Gregory, “is to make sure what you say, you mean it and you’re telling the truth and you know what you’re talking about. That it is a big deal.”
From the speech and research, Gregory learned that King “was a wonderful man. He gave so many different speeches and fought for civil rights.”
Looking down the road — or beyond the pews — the pre-teen envisions a pastor’s career, following in the footsteps of his grandfather and his father.
“I think as long as he puts his mind to it, he can actually accomplish anything,” Gregory’s mom said. “Right now, his heart is on being a pastor. He wants to preach.”
“Like my mom said, I could do anything if I put my mind to it,” Gregory said, finally admitting that stepping on stage “was a little scary.”
“Then I took a deep breath and started talking,” he said. “I’m proud of myself for doing it in front of all the people. It was good to get it over. I’m glad I was able to do it.”
As if doing well in the competition wasn’t enough, it’s all gravy that HBO turned the event into a documentary.
“I get to be in a TV movie. It’s amazing. It’s going to be good,” said Gregory, hoping his friends in Jesuina Taylor’s class at Highlands Elementary in Vallejo are watching.
Even with the pre-documentary broadcast exposure, the acclaimed speaker has yet to be asked for his autograph.
“Not yet,” Gregory smiled. And years from now when he’s president … his priorities?
“Help the homeless. There’s a lot of homelessness,” Gregory said. “And make houses more affordable.”
HBO’s documentary, “We Are the Dream: The Kids of the Oakland MLK Oratorical Fest,” is Feb. 18. To view the trailer: