The Watch Night Service is a tradition the grew out of slavery, yet still is an important part of how, for many African Americans, is the only way that a new year should be brought in.

The practice, called “Freedom Night” or named the Watch Night Service, began in 1862, when anxious slaves were waiting on confirmation of their freedom based on the Emancipation Proclamation. Today, the service continues in the church with prayers of gratitude for another year and blessings over what’s to come.

For generations, celebrating Kwanzaa from December 26th to January 1st has been a end of the year holiday tradition that's becoming more widely known and practiced.

So what is Kwanzaa and why are the seven prinicples so important to our daily living? Intrigued? Here's a deep dive into this valued African American holiday that's based on family, empowerment and economic development.

Living on an island and the isolation that comes with it, made Gullah holidays a little different, but special none the less. Getting ready for the sea island holidays was a year long process which made the seasonal harvests an an important part in the preparation that involved the entire family, from children to the elders.

Sometimes, we forget that the ancestors left behind all of the tools that we need for success.

Through creative storytelling, proverbs, and skills, they passed us all a toolbox full of ways that they, even though they were beaten, found ways not to be broken.

West African tradition says that one should speak for themselves and for the ancestors who came before you. Gullah Chef, author and 6th generation farmer, Matthew Raiford is doing exactly that! He has taken his love for the culture, his roots and food and incorporated all of it into a lifestyle and business that is surly making the ancestors proud!

In Gullah culture, the food is deeply rooted in rice and seafood dishes that grew out of the diaspora and its West African influences. Gullah Chef BJ Dennis has built a reputation for not just amazing flavors, but for spreading knowledge about the ingredient's origins.

His Gullah cooking may be what he's known for on a national stage but to him, its important to continue to use the techniques of the ancestors when he's blending his ingredients and every plate comes with a serving of the richly significant history of the food.

Chef BJ has been featured in local, national and international cooking events including the BB&T Wine+Food Festival, Netflix 'High on the Hog', P.B.S 'Moveable Feast' and Bravo's 'Top Chef' and sharing his story with me.

There aren't a lot of Culinary Preservationists out there who have a depth of knowledge on West African food, culinary practices and flavors, especially one who can't break it down like Michael Twitty can. The author of a few incredible culinary based history books, including the Cooking Gene, Michael Twitty captivates as he educates you when he takes you on a culinary tour and shares some fascinating stories and foodways that come from Africa and spans the entire Caribbean, to the east coast, throughout the south and as far away as Louisiana. Get ready for a deep dive into Gullah food history and get a taste of all of the flavors that he's about to cook up.

Every day Americans are using Gullah traditions in what we say and eat. The culture and its foodways can be traced directly back to West Africa for several centuries. Things like one pot meals is just the beginning of some of the cultural flavors, ingredients and Gullah impacts that we enjoy today.

Where did the meals that are connected to Black people and culture that we call soul food or southern cooking come from? Yes, some of the dishes came straight out of the Diaspora, but what are the true origins of all of the rich variety of foods and flavors? And how did they become what has influenced the popular foodways of the South that we enjoy today?

When we don't know a word or what something is, it's easy to let assumptions, misunderstandings or even misinformation lead us to label it as bad and not to be liked. Well, Hoodoo and Conjure have had a bad rap for exactly those reasons. So, here's a crash course on what this ancient ancestral traditions are from a Priestess who not only practices the religion, but sheds a light on why culturally we do a lot of the things that we do everyday.