Life of a Photographer: Rock The Bells

Because you know me, you know there's a story behind this photo, which happens to be my favorites from the Rocks The Bells Festival this past weekend in Detroit (or shall I say the Detroit Area). Post coming as soon as I get my mind right.

140 Characters @ A Time: Michael Jackson

Yesterday on the drive home I was listening to “All Things Considered” on NPR like I do most days. If you are a NPR listener, you know all about “driveway moments," so lets just say that I had the worst driveway moment ever.

My driveway moment started after anchor Robert Siegal, in haste noted that singer Michael Jackson was rushed to the hospital after being found unconscious from possible cardiac arrest.

As I sat in my car, I screamed nooooooooooooo! I knew that he had died. I felt it! Not only that, after a cardiac arrest, survivability chances are very slim to none.

With that on my mind, I continued to sit in my car dumbfounded & lost. It took me almost an hour to make it into the house. I felt like I just couldn’t move at all.

Once I collected myself a little, I took to Twitter for more info & to share my thoughts.

When I started to share my thoughts & collect information, the rest of the world must have also done the same thing because Twitter was hardly moving.

Here are some of my tweets from the time that I got the news till the time I was finally able to go to sleep.

• OMG, is Michael Jackson gone?
  
• Please don't tell me I need to pull out my pleather Thriller Jacket. Please......
  
• In my best Florida Evans voice "Damn! Damn! Damn!" I don't care what they have said, I loved MJ, well B4 alleged molestations & whitening.
  
• Mom just called & told me Michael Jackson was dead & she said & Farah too. I said fuck Farah. MJs death trumps all. This is major!
  
• I lost my virginity on a red velvet couch listening to the "Off The Wall" album. #michaeljackson
  
• [Updated at 3:15] Pop star Michael Jackson was pronounced dead by doctors this afternoon after arriving at a hospital... LA Times.
  
• Michael Jackson’s death is crippling Twitter. Could Twitter be the unheard of 4th death this week?
  
• My 10 year old just asked me what Michael Jackson’s last words were. Kids think of everything.
  
• People talked a lot of shit about MJ, but I'll tell you what, the world is mourning this man. The fucking world! #bitchesalwaystalkshit
  
• Am I the only one fighting back a teary breakdown? I'm a mess right now!
  
• When I was a kid, I asked my mom if MJ used the bathroom. She said of course, he's human like you & me. I thought he was so much more.
  
• Tired of how the news is talking about all of MJs legal issues. How about we focus on what he meant to ppl & not scandal. #dissedevenindeath
  
• If I had a bedazzler, I would be making me a MJ glove like right now.
  
• Taking a break from my MJ death watch. Great news! Getty Images wants 10 more of my photos. Got my Kool Aid on boo! #imgoodatwhatidobitch
  
• Typing a blog post & listening to "Liberian Girl." Naku penda piya-naku taka Piya-mpenziwe. #michaeljackson
  
• Bout to call it a night, but before I do, I have to listen to "I Cant Help It." My favorite Michael Jackson song.
  
• "I cant help it if I wanted to I wouldn't help it even if I could I cant help it if I wanted to I wouldn't help it no no no." I wont cry. #liar
  
• If I had a Wave Nouveau, I would comb the shit out of my baby hair tomorrow & stunt on them hoes in the board meeting.
  

To get a clue as to how popular this unfortunate this story is in terms of Twitter & the internet, read this. It will also clue you into the relevance of the image above if you are not familiar with Twitter & a little more.

Music From The Diaspora: Zap Mama: ReCreation

Yesterday, I attended & photographed the Zap Mama concert, which was put on by the Ann Arbor Summer Fest.

Two weeks ago, when I checked the Ann Arbor Summer Fest website, I have to admit, I was excited & pleasantly surprised to see one of my favorite (Afro-world) artists coming to town, but hey, why not?

So after I calmed down & got my mind right, I made contact for press credentials & not much later, it was on & popping.

I’ve been a fan of Zap Mama’s for quite some time and so has my 12 year old baby sister Sade believe it or not. I find her music to be exciting, exotic, intriguing & comforting all at the same time. Zap Mama may prefer the all-inclusive term Afropean. Call it what you will, it's just plain awesome!

If your familiar with Zap Mama’s music & her many collaborations with many US artists, but not her personal history, you may be inspired by her dramatic beginnings in Africa. I’ll let you do the Googling. Trust me it’s worth it, its like the stuff movies are made of.

Down to business; like most concerts that I shoot, I was able to shoot through the 1st 3 songs of the performance before I had to put my gear up. I had to move quickly because the 1st couple of songs only lasted minutes, almost like a series of short interludes.

After the 2nd song, things started to take off & the audience was starting to get infected with Afrobeats, which made many crowd the dance floor. The environment at this point became strangely harmonious especially when a call & response ensued. The crowd reaction was awesome!

Once I was done shooting, I was finally able to sit back & enjoy the set in comfort, well there was little comfort because I was kinda doing a chair dance.

Zap Mama performed many songs from her new album “ReCreation,” which I’m loving as I still discover it. She also did a wonderful tribute to Mariam Makeba, which got another great audience response. Talk about a crowd that knows its world music. Oh wait, then there was an awesome improv of Manu Dibango’s “Soul Makossa” (Mama ko mama sa maka makoosa. Mama ko mama sa maka makoosa. Mama ko mama sa maka makoosa.).

And without a doubt Zap Mama’s live vocals are simply incredible. Her deep vocal range, improvisation & ability to make any sound beautiful were an aural treat. At one point, I thought she had an instrument, then I noticed she didn’t, it was all her. Wow!

All the while, the crowd danced on vibrantly.

Unfortunate for me, I had to leave the show early just as Zap Mama started to perform some of her more popular work like “1,000 Ways.” I was hoping that I could hear “Poetry Man”, “Yaku” or “Bandy Bandy” but I saw & heard enough to satisfy my soul. I really did.

On a note of irony, I found many similarities between Zap Mama & Erykah Badu. Each have an unique eclectic style, but the stage presence almost seems to be one. I noticed that right off. Even still, both get high marks from me.

Again, I invite you to discover Zap Mama’s new album and some of her older works if this is all new to you. Chances are you are already in the know because you’re here & on the same vibe anyway. I’m, just saying.

To see a few more images from the show, click here.

Music From The Diaspora: Art of a Hustler

During Raheem DeVaughn’s performance at the Capital Jazz Festival a few weeks ago, I joked to my friends that he is always hustling & putting out mix tapes. Not five minutes after I made that statement, he told the audience to go online & download his new mix tape, which was scheduled for release June 15th. I was like hell no as we all laughed at my almost “Psychic Friends” connection. I really know how to call things out.

So, June 15th has come & gone & you best believe that I copped the new 19 track “Radio Raheem DeVaughn” mix tape, titled “The Art of Noise.” Oh, did I mention that it’s free? It’s a recession boo!!!

Is free better? Well in terms of to Raheem DeVaughn’s new mix tape “The Art of Noise” compared to his last studio release “Love Behind The Melody,” I say yes! I mean, I’m a fan but, “Love Behind The Melody” was a total disappointment for me & the only track from it that I like, no, actually love is “Energy.”

So anyway, getting back to the new joint; I have to say that I’m loving it, yes really actually loving it.

Of the 19 tracks, I’ve been playing 9 of them non-stop & of those 9, 5 tracks are totally kick ass. As far as I’m concerned, DeVaughn should have released an EP with my favorites. It would make for one helluva seller.

My top tracks include in no particular order:

• “Insomnia” – Straight up a put on & lets fuck tune. Fellas this is a get some pussy shit. Get you CD-R ready & set up a date with your boo!
• “Planet Body Rock” – This is one of my summer sound track hits. It’s hot! Gives me this 90s feel & I love that.
• “Weather Man” – A chilled track with a little of the dreaded auto tune but its applied appropriately here. A hip-hop beat with a sexy theme. Nothing like talking about getting your boo moist.
• “Hennesy Joint” – A very chilled basically instrumental jump off, almost like a very nice long interlude with a smooth melodic hook.
• “Night & Day” - An Al B. Sure remake. This shit is chopped & screwed for 09. A total bonus in my book on an old school tip (are the 80s really old school?).
  

Never underestimate the power of a good mix tape!

So with all this said, you need to cop this shit before it’s too late leaving you stuck on stupid. I’m just saying.

Download Link

Competition

Who rocked it better, the chicks or the queens?

140 Characters @ A Time

As I have mentioned before, I fucking love Twitter! It allows me to share random thoughts, get things out of my head & act as a voyeur as I peep into other people's lives.

One recent fad going on with Twitter are memes. Unlike many blogging memes that I’ve encountered, the Twitter memes are actually fun & quick because you only have 140 characters to get your point across.

For instance, there was a meme where you had to list “3 turn off words.” A few of my tweets included shit like; “I’m broke bitch”, “I take Valtrex” & “won’t give head.”

So when I got home yesterday, I logged onto Twitter to see what was going on (I now comsider Twitter to be a news & fun bullshit info source). Once, I logged in, I noticed that there was a new meme going on called “11th commandment.” The point was to name an 11th commandment obviously, so I got busy coming up with shit that I believe actually needs to be written in stone.

Here are a few of my 11th commandment tweets from last night:

• Thou shalt not "superman" any hoes.


• Thou shalt not confuse rap with hip-hop under any circumstance.


• Thou shalt not post drunk tweets and forget to delete them in the morning.


• Thous shalt not believe that Mary J Blige has real talent.


• Thou shalt not be found dead in closet bound & gagged with dick & nuts all tied up after getting into some freaky shit.


• Thou shalt not consider yourself a photographer if thine cannot shoot in manual mode.


• Thou shall have at least 1 really good white friend with good credit willing to co-sign.


• Thou shalt not wear Apple Bottom jeans if thine bottom is melon shaped and or coupled with a muffin top.


• Thou shalt not wear corn rows over the age of 29. This include you Charlie Wilson.


• Thou shalt not cum inside unless thine has a job with benefits to support a jump off baby.


• Thou shalt not jack off when thine wife is asleep in the same room.


• Thou shalt not covet US slavery reparations checks, even if the Black Messiah is in office.


• Thou shalt not listen to Nancy Grace longer than 4 minutes.


• Thou shalt not were flip flops in the work place unless it's located at the beach.


• Thou shalt not leave the house ashy as hell.

Did I miss any? Do you have any to add. Come on, this shit is fun!

Hammer Pants Dance

I'm sure that you've seen this video circulating around the internet but I just had to post it cuz it's funny as hell.

I would love to be in a place gets flash mobbed, what a cool idea!

Anyway, while I love this promo video for MC Hammer's new reality TV show titled "Hammer Time," I refuse to watch it. I mean, some shit just does not seem like it needs to be on Prime Time; like MC Hammer.

And the burning question on my mind is who made all these damn pants & are they really making gold lamay in large quantities like this. I guess so, right!

Music From The Diaspora: In Ya Ear

I’ve been slipping on my music recommendations, so it’s now time to right that wrong!!!

Lately, I’ve been listening to a variety of tunes, ranging from house music to ghetto/misogynistic rap with a little R&B thrown in for good measure.

So cutting to the chase, this is what's up musically.

Hot House:
Osunlade – “Offering” & “Paradigm” albums, which I actually ordered from half.com because they are not available on iTunes or elsewhere online. Both of these CD’s are a MUST HAVE. You hear me? A MUST HAVE for any real house head!

Cuts like “Midnight Ceremony (Osunlade's Black Messiah Mix)”, “Black Man”, & “Cantos A Ochun Et Oya” are pure ass movers & head boppers!

BTW, I also downloaded Osunlade's most recent compilation release "Mix the Vibe: King Street Goes Yoruba" & it is pure hotness! Available on iTunes or eMusic

Get in where you fit in & pick these joints up!

Random Rap:
OMG! Don’t hate me, but I just got a few rap tracks from back in the day. Thanks to listening to “Back Spin” on XM Satellite Radio, I have been grooving to “1st of Tha Month” & “Thuggish Ruggish Bone” by Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. And please don’t trip on me jamming to “Just Don’t Bite It” by N.W.A. I feel so dirty listening to this mess but I’m loving it.

When I told Suite Suzy of my latest rap acquisitions, she was like, is you crazy???

Cool Jazz:
I was doing some random web surfing the other day looking for an album that I never found & now can’t remember but I stumbled upon this 30 year old hot as hell 2 cut album titled “Black Renaissance” by Harry Whitaker. The songs “Black Renaissance” & “Magic Ritual” last a total of 40 minutes & they leave you wanting more of the alternating afro poly-rhythmic vocals, horns, bass & clever keys. It’s hard to believe the music is almost as old as me but sounds like contemporary compositions. If you are brave enough to click the link, you will find a really interesting back story to this album & how it was almost lost forever.

I love it when I accidentally find great music.

R&B: The good kind, you know the kind they don’t play on the radio.
A friend of mine emailed me recently. No wait, she actually Facebooked me & was like you gotta check out my girl ChinahBlac! So, like the music junky that I am, I hit ChinahBlac’s Myspace page & was immediately blew out by her style & vocal talent. I mean BLEW OUT!

So I copped her album & it is on heavy rotation. I just can’t get enough of her songs “Woe”, “Touch Me With Your Handz,” & “Get Away.”

Most Recently, I found out that I actually heard ChinahBlac perform last year when she was in Detroit singing back-up for Jill Scott. My girl Vivrant Thang from the “Songs In The Key of Life” blog helped to jog my memory with a video she posted on YouTube. Check it out so you can see what I’m talkin’ bout’.

On a final R&B note, I am so digging on Brittany Bosco's album “City of Nowhere!” Thanks to the “Truth Seekers Radio” podcast, I’m up on my new boo in my head! The album’s title cut “City of Nowhere” is sexy with an edgy grit, that makes me hit repeat many times. I just checked my play count & I’ve listened to it 46 times since I downloaded it a little over a month ago. Repeat Repeat Repeat Repeat Repeat Repeat Repeat Repeat Repeat Repeat one more time Repeat...

The funny thing about all of my recent music discoveries is that they are not new, just new to me, with the exception of ChinahBlac whose album just dropped recently. This tells me, that the radio & other mainstream outlets is not the best or only place to find good music. I’m just saying.

I guess this will count as my official "Black Music Month" post. GO me!

Since I have your ear, do you have any new/obscure/old/whatever music recommendations? Talk to me!

@ The Movies: A Good Day TO Be Black & Sexy

There has been a lot of positive buzz over "A Good Day To Be Black & Sexy" throughout blogosphere over the last few months.  Most notably, the buzz has been hot on the Invisible Woman’s blog (one of my most favoritestness spots to visit) who recently covered this independent flick that delves into Black relationship intricacies & sexuality in a refreshing perspective through 6 vignettes.

When it comes to independent reviews, The Invisible Woman has never disappointed me, but in this case, I was a little apprehensive. Maybe it is because I was like how can this film be any different from anything that I’ve seen in the past.

Nevertheless, after reading her interview with director Dennis Dortch, I was like, let me break this off & decided to rent the movie via iTunes (only $3.99).

So the movie starts & my interest was immediately piqued with the vision of a woman having an orgasm while in while the room was spinning & music being played backward. Very interested! Then the jump off occurred in this vignette aptly titled “Reciprocity.”

Home girl got hers & refused to break her boy off. Yeah, this may sound like blah, but the dialogue & circumstances between this hard pressed Negro eager to bust a nut & his boo, who was like back the fuck up was very intriguing. Oh did I mention that they were not in the room alone.

What a way to open the film!

The following vignette titled “Her Man” straight up reminded me of Kwame Kilpatrick & Christine Beatty. Maybe that is because of their complexions & the fact that the light skinneded (yes I did say skinneded) woman was the jump off who refused to let her man leave.

“Her Man” started off very sexy, VERY & ending like WTF on a relationship note.

This scene along with the rest in the movie seems all too real. I mean that actors appear to be real people, in real circumstances & it was very easy to identify with them in one way or the other.

The funny thing about “Her Man” is that I was singing “The Other Woman” by Nina Simone in my head (I love that song!).

The complexities of the jump off relationship & needs, are all spelled out here. And my mouth was held open till then end.

Vignette 3, “Tonight 1” seemed a little hood compared to the 1st two scenes but it gave an insight into a young woman’s reality & need to not compromise herself. Actually, I think this would be a good scene to show a group of young woman to illustrate that you need to protect yourself, mentally, physically & sexually.

Vignette 4, “Reprise” kinda fucked me up because it went back kinda to the scene in vignette one. You remember when I said that there someone else was in the room. It’s the roommate & her boo handling their business in a very anal way (you do the math).

Homegirl in this scene fucked me up & reminded me of this cougar that used to dig me, who wanted to go there with me. Not the kid boo!

All I can say about this, is that is was nasty & sexy. Nasty in a good/bad way.

Vignette 5 “Tonight 2” picks up where “Tonight 1” leaves off & the cavalry comes to rescue the young woman that did not sacrifice herself. I though that “Tonight 2” dragged a bit but it was interesting watching this young woman catch feelings for her friend’s older brother through song, rememories, fries and the ending of innocence. The makings of a complicated jump off.

The last vignette “American Boyfriend” was one of my favorites & it dealt with a young Negro boy being the love secret who’s held up in his Chinese American girlfriend’s bedroom as her parents visit.

This shit was straight up funny & reminded me of when I met Suite Suzy’s parents who showed up early from a vacation & I was laid up in their house.

What Black movie is complete without a dinner scene? “American Boyfriend” brings a dinner scene full of uncomfortable moments, a lesbian coming out of the closet, parents wanting their Chinese daughter to date/marry an Irish boy & a kiss that fucks up the whole scenario.

This scene is sure to make someone you “oh hell no” a few times.

Bottom line is, “A Good Day To Be Black & Sexy” is a great production! It showcases love, emotion & sex without the hypersexuality or raunchy B movie effect. In fact, I found all of the scenes to be very artful & in great taste.

There are a lot of directors that need to take a few pages from Dennis Dortch’s playbook, because homeboy set this off.

Before the credits finished rolling, I was on Amazon.com buying the DVD to have in my archive & since I was caught up in the moment of great Black cinema, I copped the soundtrack also (soundtrack is the bomb). Money well spent.

“A Good Day To Be Black & Sexy” is another shining example of Black cinema done right!
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Official Description:

Press play on A GOOD DAY TO BE BLACK AND SEXY. A mixed tape of deftly arranged vignettes on Black Love, Sex, and Reciprocity. What you hear may be unrecognizable at first… Neo-realistic intimacy between black people found in rare grooves previously drowned out by the sounds of modern hook-ups and bougie preoccupations, a cacophony of mass-produced beats created with drum machine loops and software. A Good Day to be Black and Sexy is that dusty LP you find in the crates. But as soon as you put the needle to wax, all the forgotten lyrics return to your lips in this dreamy love sonnet to the beautiful and chocolate coated. The intro track is a prelude into the heavily sensual world of expectations - the rhythm that drives the film. Erotic moments are lullabies that turn into syncopated groves without notice. This record skips, and jumps to the hook of a Millie Jackson remix. An anthem belted out by a minx who knows her limits, but can’t resist testing the boundaries.

It’s a song a sistah can roll her neck and snap her fingers to, exuding, at least for the moment, the confidence that every Black woman wished they had underneath the facade. When the bridge is over, a slow jam slides in- the one from prom night when curfews were extended and hotel rooms were reserved. Back when wistful notions of love were only true when written in diaries and carved on school desks. A sticky interlude eases in and out of the song, and you move a little closer and wrap your arms around to dance tighter, until growing up too fast and maturing too late, causes innocence to be lost too soon. Needle getting closer to the middles leaving the last cut a re-imagined version of masculinity, basketball, and the inability to freely love who you want to love, at the ease that non-Negroes take for granted. Time runs out and so does the tape. Eject

Music From The Diaspora: Hot House

Without a doubt, house music is my favorite genre of music. Hypnotic beats, soulful vocals, subliminal messages & drama, make house music the shit the world over.

Someone once asked me when I fell in love with house; no wait, no one ever asked me that. Anyway I fell in love with house in 1985 when I met one of my 2nd or 3rd cousins (we were all cousins back then) who was a true house head & 10 years older than me.

He would play his house mix tapes when I went to over his house to get my hair cut. He would always tell me about the clubs he went to that I wished I could to go to when I turned 21. His stories coupled with the live radio broadcasts on Friday & Saturday had me hooked on music that my peers did not understand. My friends were to caught up into the emergence of mainstream rap music videos & Air Jordans (I was too so don’t get me wrong).

I just wanted to dance my heart out to rapid repeating beats with people who liked Detroit & Chicago house like I did.

Many years later, I’m that house head that my cousin was. I get to go to the parties above & underground. I get to mingle with a class of beautiful people you do not see in the day light hours & I love it.

Finding good house music can be hard if you don’t know a few DJ’s or troll the internet constantly being on the prowl for good house. Fortunate for me, I know great DJ’s & have friends who keep me in the know. Plus I’m always on the internet looking for something hot to jack my body to.

This may seem weird but my favorite subgenre of house music happens to be gospel house. Yes, I know; I’m Atheist but will I praise the lord through a good beat & banging vocal.

And yes, I have caught the Holy Ghost on the dance floor. Speaking in tongues sipping on cocktails & dancing was quite fun. No, I’m just kidding.

As I mentioned earlier this week, I have my DC road trip coming up next week so I had to get some new tunes to keep me motivated for my 8.5 hour drive. Last night after some blog reading on Soul Bounce & some song sampling on a few music sites, I copped a few new house hits. Actually all of them are not new, they are just must haves in any good house music library.

Here are my new jams & recommendations (watch your wallet!):

• A Taste of the Honeys - Essential (Mr. V's Essential Mix)
• Anto Vitale ft. Tamara Wellons - Broken Wings (Original Mix)
• Headphonism - Stay Home and Chill
• Jeff Mills - Gamma Player (Blue Potential Version)
• Les Nubians & Eric Pierre - Just Come By (Viens prs De Moi (Greg Gauthier's Dance Culture Remix))
• Malik Alston - Butterfly (Amp Dog Knight/Jovante Remix)
• Nina Simone, See Line Woman (CASAMENA Basement Remix)
• Peven Everett - Feelin Who You Are (Neter ''S'' Het-Hera Blu Fix 7 Mix)
• Ski Oakenfull - Heavenly (Yam Who Mix)
• Terrence Parker - Love's Got Me High (Tribute Mix)
• Tokyo Black Star - Blade Dancer (Dixon Edit)

These must have tracks can be found on either iTunes, eMusic, Traxsource, Rhapsody or from a bootlegger near you.

@ The Movies: Knowing + An Urgent PSA

Yesterday after work, I made a mad dash to the movies to check out Nicolas Cages’ new movie “Knowing."

Since Nick’s last good movie was in the late 90’s I was not expecting a miracle but I got one.

The previews of the movie looked pretty good but my initial apprehension was over the fact that I thought this was some hero saves the world movie. My apprehension stems from my desire to sometimes see the world and or mankind explode & die off. Yes, sometimes I root for total destruction and the bad guy.

So, “Knowing” offered everything that someone like me needs to feel the value of my 10 bucks; DESTRUCTION & mass death. Wait, I must sound sick.

This flick is on the long side but that is more than made up for in quality sequences that are both intriguing & surprising. Some of the scenes are etched into my mind permanently, big time. Like some of the scenes I want to tell you about beat some of the scenes from “Unbreakable” (train crash) & “Final Destination” (airplane crash & highway accident). Some juicy shit!

With this said, I will not go any further as it would be easy to spoil the entire movie.

The down points of “Knowing” include Nick’s horrible hair plugs & obvious yuck-mouth veneers. Oh yes, some cheesy dialogue & lackluster supporting character development. All these downers together really don’t mean shit because the movie is still fucking AWESOME & soooooo much better than “Watchmen,” which I think sucked more than a little bit and dare I compare it to “Madea Goes to Jail?”

Anyway, “Knowing” is officially on my 2009 must get the DVD list.

Official Synopsis:
In 1958, as part of the dedication ceremony for a new elementary school, a group of students is asked to draw pictures to be stored in a time capsule. But one mysterious girl fills her sheet of paper with rows of apparently random numbers instead.

Fifty years later, a new generation of students examines the capsule's contents and the girl's cryptic message ends up in the hands of young Caleb Koestler. But it is Caleb's father, professor John Koestler, who makes the startling discovery that the encoded message predicts with pinpoint accuracy the dates, death tolls and coordinates of every major disaster of the past 50 years.

As John further unravels the document's chilling secrets, he realizes the document foretells three additional events -- the last of which hints at destruction on a global scale and seems to somehow involve John and his son.

When John's attempts to alert the authorities fall on deaf ears, he takes it upon himself to try to prevent more destruction from taking place. With the reluctant help of Diana Wayland and Abby Wayland, the daughter and granddaughter of the now-deceased author of the prophecies, John's increasingly desperate efforts take him on a heart-pounding race against time until he finds himself facing the ultimate disaster -- and the ultimate sacrifice.

Movie Trailer
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Movie Etiquette PSA: Women, I advise you not to share popcorn at the movies with your boo unless you know that he washed his hands or you love the taste of dick & nuts.

I have seen some janky shit jump off in the mens room. Like guys taking a piss, then walking right out. Then once they hook up with their boo, they dip right into the bag of popcorn.

One of my own horrible movie mens room experiences was when I went to relieve myself, I ran into an acquaintance whom just walked away from the urinal. Once he saw me, he reached to shake hands. I looked at him like he was crazy & said no thanks dick hand.

On a personal note; I hate using the short urinal. It just feels kinda weird.

@ The Movies: Medicine For Melancholy

Last summer I read a movie review for "Medicine for Melancholy" on the Invisible Woman's blog & got really excited to see this independent film dealing with an urban relationship. After I saw the trailer, I knew that I had to see this film. So since it was not widely released, I contacted the director of the film; Barry Jenkins.

Unfortunately, he at that time had no idea when the film would make its way to my area, because it was making the flim festival rounds. Bummer right!

Anyway, fast forward seven months later to February 2009: I was checking the film schedule for the Detroit Film Theatre & the 1st film that came up was "Medicine for Melancholy." I got so excited that I did my bitch scream aloud at work, which was partially embarrassing.

So I hit Suite Suzy up to see if she could make arrangements for us to do a movie date. Five minutes later it was on for a Sunday afternoon jump off.

BTW, I love the Detroit Film Theatre. They always have obscure movies that I would never see if it were not for them. I have seen some AWESOME independent & foreign films there.

So on to the movie - The official description:

"Medicine for Melancholy is a love story of bikes and one-night stands told through two African-American twenty-somethings dealing with issues of class, identity, and the evolving conundrum of being a minority in rapidly gentrifying San Francisco-a city with the smallest proportional black population of any other major American city."

The movie had me intrigued all the way through as it took some really interesting twists in terms of hoe baths, turning a jump off into a potential boo, interracial dating & relationship insecurities.

As the movie progressed, I found myself wanting Micah & Jo to leave it all behind & move on together but if it were real life, it would not be that easy as they both had some issues that needed to be resolved.

I think Barry Jenkins did an phenomenal job orchestrating this sexy, funny, simple but complex story making it seem very real & very human. If you fell out of love with Black love & or Black movies (don't blame Tyler Perry, LOL), this film will give you a glimmer of hope.

After the film was over, Suite Suzy & I had an interesting conversation about Micah & Jo. We discussed what it means to be a good Black man & how a Black man could win the affection of a Black woman who has an easy life with a white boo when she acts like she wants something else. Very fascinating! Suite Suzy mentioned that she overheard a conversation in the ladies room between two Black ladies who basically said fuck Micah, stay with the white man & live good. This is slightly controversial for sure.

I know I cannot wait for this to come out on DVD, because I'm gonna be one of the 1st Negroes to cop it & then invite friends over for a viewing & discussion (I like doing that kind shit). According to the movie's distributor, it will be available on DVD this spring.

So, YES, I'm in love with this refreshing movie!

Lastly, Invisible Woman did a great interview with Barry Jenkins late 2008; here's a link. Go Invisible Woman!!! And thx for keeping me on my toes cinematically speaking!!!
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Other movies that I've seen recently & recommend that you get off your ass to go see are:

- Gran Torion - One of my friends was actually in this flick & I really enjoyed it! Filmed in Detroit, intense story line & the relationship transformations in this move are endearing & mind blowing. Talk about an ending!

- Curious Case of Benjamin Button - I just can't say enough great things about this film. It's like "Forrest Gump" meets "the Green Mile". And yes, you are sure to see a magical Negro or two.

- Slumdog Millionaire - This movie really surpasses all of the hype about it. It is not a feel good movie, so please do not get it twisted. It is filled with tragic circumstances, abuse & ultimately love & triumph, an interesting combination for sure. I'm taking my momma to see it next weekend on a little date. On a related note, I feel bad that the kids who really made the movie are getting the short end of the money stick as they are back in India living in a slum as they portrayed in the movie. How fucked up is that???

- Taken - Loved this & Liam Neeson is now my best white friend in my head.

@ The Movie: From the Oscars

I watched but there is no commentary. I however do want to introduce you to the short film "New Boy", which was nominated for the best live action short.

"New Boy" did not win the Oscat, but I thought it was very good & powerful in its short play.

Music From the Diaspora: Tamara Wellons

One of my bestest favoritest things in the world is music, good music! I’m always on the prowl for something new & last week I found about Tamara Wellons, my latest musical addiction from someone that I follow on Twitter

The Twitter poster suggested that “Tamara Wellons was his new Jill Scott.” Since I would drink Jill Scott’s bath water I had to see how awesome this Tamara Wellons really was.

Upon 1st listening, I was like there just is no comparing anyone to my boo from afar (Jilly from Philly) but that is not to say that Tamara is not on her A game. In fact I was blown away after listening to a few of the samples on Emusic.

So last Thursday I decided to download:

“Like Rain (Movement Soul Mix)”
 “Smells Like Teen Sprit”
 “Oh Well (BahSonik Remix)”
“Insane”
“Caught Up (Yourba Soul Mix)”
“Time’s Ticking”

These 6 cuts alone have totally fucked up my last few days because I cannot bring myself to listen to anything else. Actually, I just checked my play count in iTunes & I’m ashamed to say how many times I listened to “Caught Up (Yourba Soul Mix)”. This song is so super sexy, so smooth, just so, so….

Tamara’s range is quite amazing, I mean anyone who can take Nivana “Smells Like Teen Spirit” (one of my all time favorites by the way) & literally jazz it with sex appeal is one bad mutha!

The upbeat make your fingers snap & head bopping flow of “Insane” is also preventing me from wanting to listen to other music in my library. With this all said, I’m loving me some Tamara Wellons.

Are you up on Tamara yet? If not, you now have no reason not to be. Maybe if urban radio got its shit together we could enjoy artists like Tamara without having to be at the right place at the right time on the right website.

@ The Movies: Traitor

This past weekend, while on vacay, I decided to head to the movies to check out Don Cheadle’s new flick “Traitor”. Up until now, I though everything Don touched turned into gold because he is just that good but in the case of “Traitor”, Cheadle’s touch did not produce gold, it produced brass. As a matter of fact, it produced a brass dildo that fucked me out of $10.50.

In “Traitor” Don had an OK performance in general but the movie overall was a piece of shit. Well, piece of shit is a little harsh, so let me just say that it was not worth the $10.50 that I shelled out for it. Maybe if I paid the twilight price of 5 bucks I would have better feelings about it.

The story line was focused but yet disjointed at the same time. The start of the movie had no tie to the story in a cohesive way. The characters were not developed at all & they popped out of nowhere & disappeared as quickly as they came. Looking back, I still have no clue who Don was, what team he actually worked for or anything else.

The only thing that I walked away with from the movie was a feeling that border patrol agents are stupid (yes I know it is a move but also in real life), Jihad is not a good name for a domestic pet, Muslim extremists are angry & dangerous as hell. There was very little else to walk away with. And basically, this is the type of movie that you rent from Blockbuster when they are out of the really good movies.

I really don’t have much else to say about the flick except that I want a partial refund.

If you seen’t it, what are your thoughts???

I pissed a few people off with my last movie review so don't trip on me of you see this one. I'm just saying!!!

In other Entertainment news:
My show “The Shield” is back on the air in its final season. The 1ft episode aired last night & it was hot as hell. I love to hate so many of the characters & will be watching to the bitter end.

If you are a fan of this show & are watching, I wanna bet you that Vic will be fucking that FBI agent by the 3rd episode.

Another Man Done Gone

After shooting today’s macro florals my, iPhone went off indicating I had a text message.

Once I put my gear up, I checked the message to get the sad news of Isaac Hayes’ death this afternoon.

I was taken aback & thought about how my aunt Val introduced me to his music many, many years ago & how we listened to it in her bedroom @ my grandmothers. I also thought about how my mom loves “Hot Buttered Soul” to death, then I smiled when I remembered the “warm salty nuts” “Chef/South Park” t-shirt that Suite Suzy gifted me once.

So today I dedicate my photos to the memory of Issac (see more here).

On a similar note: I called one of my friends tonight & broke the news to her. During the conversation we both noted that death happens in threes & we both wondered who would be next. I said no matter what I hoped that it was not me. She then laughed & said nigga, I doubt that it will be a photographer, your just not big enough!!! I died with laughter (tacky pun not intended!).

On a unrelated note: With the Beijing shanking, the death of Bernie Mac, the war in Georgia, Kwame Kilpatrick facing yet another new (as of Friday night after his jail release) bond violation, John Edward’s pussy escapades & finally Isaac Hayes’ death, I wondered what the fuck else was going to jump off.  Well I got a call around 7pm from Cousin Dee’s Boo, the Yellow African.  He said, I have news, I was like I already know.  He was like, nigga no you don’t & I was like of shit, what is it???  He was like I proposed to your cousin & to that I said about damn time!

They are on their way over now for one of Suite Suzy’s fresh back pound cakes & champagne.  Hopefully this news broke the cycle of the drama that seems to be non-stop this weekend.

@ The Movies : The Dark Knight

So I finally was able to get a ticket today to see Batman: “The Dark Knight”.  I was going to take Sade because she liked the last Batman (“Batman Returns”) movie but when it was time to go, she said no & I am happy that she did.   “The Dark Knight” is not a kids movie by any means!!!!!!

The newest installment of the Batman franchise is no joke and blows the lid off of the other releases on many levels.

The plot line was fairly basic but the twists & turns along the way were very unexpected.

Christian Bale had another stellar performance but I think he was upstaged by Heath Ledger’s demented “Joker” character.  I had heard a few stories about Heath being nominated for an Oscar & I now know why.  It was almost scary watching him & I can almost see why he offed himself.  Perhaps he got caught up in the mystique & craziness of the Joker. 

If any other Oscars are mentions, they should definitely be for make-up & cinemaphotography

At one point during the car chase scene, I thought I was going to go into a seizure because it was so visually stimulating.  It was way intense!!!

It was so intense, I am going back to see it Tuesday on IMax.

I wish I could say more but there is so much to say, I will leave it to the real movie critics.  I will totally recommend carving out 2.3 hours and be ready for loads of ass kicking action & delicious violence.

DoYouLikeBaduLikeIDoBoo

Erykah Badu performed last night in Detroit with the Roots & the show was KICK ASS. I got so many awesome shots & I am so feeling myself right now. I may post one more, but I think this is a pretty good tease for now.

Don't you just love press passes???

Bygbaby Week in Review

Yes, this is all about me. The post is long, kinda boring but I had to get it all out or die from excitement.

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Monday I had a test in my math class that I was feeling pretty confident about because I had been hitting the books consistently over a period 3 weeks. This test had to be the test that I made my comeback on because I totally fucked up on got a 69% on the 1st one. So I had to prove to myself that like so many others before me, I could do it.

So I took the test, which took me a good hour. After it was over I felt good, went home, changed into my gym gear, hit the gym, came back home, ate dinner & eventually fell asleep.

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Tuesday: I woke up feeling pretty good but nervous about the test from the day before. Got ready for work, hit the plantation for 8 hours, came home to cook dinner, went to the gym, ate dinner & eventually fell asleep.

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Wednesday: So today was the day I got the results of Monday’s test & I was pretty much on edge all day wondering how things ended up. Work was boring as usual & after 8 hrs, I hit Whole Foods for an in-class snack & some two bite brownies just in case I needed to console myself after getting my test results.

So now I am in class & the instructor said that he would pass the tests back after the break; everyone was like damn.

Anyway, we jumped off into chapter 4 & that shit was not so easy to comprehend but I will be working my ass off over the next few weeks to keep up.

Now it’s break time. I pull out my snack & beverage & await the test results. Five minutes later, the instructor stops in front of me then gives me smirk. At 1st I was like what was that all about, was he laughing at me, was he like great you did it, what???? Bottom line is it was a smirk of you did it. I got a 94 fucking %. So I was so geeked, I could not concentrate one bit after the break.

My come back is now on & poppin’!

After class, I went home, changed into my gym gear, hit the gym & watched ANTM while working the elliptical, came back home, ate a delicious Thai dinner that Suite Suzy picked up for me & eventually fell asleep after basking in the glow of my math victory (can you say run on sentence like a mutha!!!).

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Thursday: I woke up feeling fucking great & glowing because of my successful math comeback. Got ready for work, hit a 9am work mtg, returned to the office for a few hours, then left for the day to pick up Olivia & Sade because they had a half day of school & I wanted to spend some time with them.

It’s now 1150am & the girls & I are on our way to lunch. Lunch was god but the conversation was much better. It is really fun listening to them voice their opinions (sometimes). They are quite strong in how they feel about things & speak with such conviction to be so young. It’s good to see my kids more advanced than I was at their age.

Now it’s 2pm & we are back home after stopping at the store to pick up some movie snacks. The rest of the afternoon was spent watching “Stardust” (rented in iTunes), popping milk duds & whoppers.

OK so now it’s 4 pm & I get an email from Vonnie @ Honey Soul who informed me that singer Anthony David was trying to get in touch with me. So moments later Anthony David & I touch base & he tells me that his record label wants to BUY the impromptu photo that I took of him back in Nov 07. I was like what???

He was then like name your price & it’s on. So at this point, I had to consult with one of my professional fashion photographer friends & he was like don’t accept anything less that ?00 but don’t lose the sale so be flexible at the same time. I was like for real? He was like hell yeah.

OK so now I am back with AD & was like my price with rights is ?50 or you can have all 6 for ?000. He was like no problem, let me hook you up with the record label rep (Universal Republic Records).

Hours later after all negotiations, my price was honored the paperwork was submitted & the images were sent.

So you can imagine I was on cloud 9 all fucking afternoon through the evening. The kids heard all of the discussions & were like OMG is that for real. They were like, we are so excited for you baba/brother. It felt good to her my babies talk that way. I then got in touch with my boo to share the good news & she shared that same sentiments as the kids.

During all of the negotiations & other shit, I attended a talk on becoming a stock photographer by professional photographer Ric Kasnoff. I learned a lot & hope that one day some I can put the information to use.

About 1030, I made it back home did some paperwork, & eventually fell asleep. Notice, I did not have dinner, I was too tired & went to be slightly hungry.

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Friday: I woke up feeling fucking great & glowing because of my successful math comeback & my 1st photo sale!

Eventually, I scroll up into the plantation, work until about 1240pm then hit the Toyota dealership to test drive that Prius that I mentioned a few months back.

After being up in that bitch for 3 damn hours, a deal was made & I am now the proud “pre owner“ of a Prius. The one I wanted was not in stock & had to be ordered. It should be in by Wednesday next week. I am pretty geeked about my new car & the fact that I will be rolling fat like my boy Larry David!!! My car not is 24 bucks cheaper plus all of the gas money I will be saving. Cha ching!!!

The ride on the Prius was smooth, very quite & pretty roomy for a small vehicle. My gas guzzling V6 days are almost over!!!!!!!!!!!! BTW, I got mine in the "magnetic gray metallic" color.

It’s now just before 4pm & I roll up to the house & see Suite Suzy off before their 3-day girls weekend in western MI somewhere. I will miss them but looking forward to a quite house, mos def.

So I run in the house to spend some of the money I earning on my photo sale. I now have a new Nikon 85mm & Nikon 12-24mm lens on the way.

It’s now almost 5, so I take a quick leak then hit the freeway to head to the Centaur for after 5 cocktails.

My BFB winded up meeting me & we chilled while talking some shit like we do with some of the other bar flies. About 730 my boy “Bouncer Locs” asked me if I was going to the Jill Scott concert that was jumping off @ 8. I was like no, I could not get tix in time. He then said he had 2 & could not go. He offered them to me for 125 bucks. The wheels in my head were turning big time. I was like hold on let me consult. Fifteen minutes later, BFB had the tix in hand after making the money exchange in a weed smoke filled car (nothing like a contact buzz after a few martinis). Fifteen minutes after that we were up in the Fox in our seats (half way decent seats).

We caught the end of Raheem DeVaughn’s set, which was just OK. I mean, I really like Raheem but that new CD Is wack!!!!!!!

Now it’s a little after 9pm & my boo Jilly from Philly on stage looking good & sounding even better. She burned the stage up for 2 straight hours & totally gave me an eargasm!!!

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I ended my best 08’ week ever on such a high note, unlike that bitch ass Kwame Kilpatrick!

What the fuck is next?

On TV: Prince Amongst Slaves +

Last night I tuned into the PBS special documentary "Prince Amongst Slaves", which detailed the life of [Prince] Abdul Rahman & his 40 years spent as a slave in America. I have heard the story before but this documentary took it to a new & great level!

I know you saw it so I would love to know what you thought. Did you read the book?

While watching it, I found that I stopped breathing a couple of times because the story was suspenseful at times & then there were two points where I felt a tear about to pop out that I had to control. And without really having to say, I did get angry as I would with anything else dealing with the subject matter.

The Antwon Fisher moment at the end brought it all home & really showed that through all, we have conquered as a people.

PBS always shows stellar programming during BHM & this year is no exception. The cool thing also about PBS is that they show love throughout the year without question.

Here is a link to the 2008 BHM PBS line up.

Switching topics but not really but kinda.

I have 2 mud cloth sets & this is my favorite (you may have seen me in it here). It was made by a Senegalese friend's sister back home in Africa. His family actually manufactures many clothing goods & his sales here help support his family, here & in Senegal. I am thinking about making this image my blog header for the month but I have to muster up the initiative to make that happen & right now, It is not looking so hot.

About Mud Cloth (if interested):

Bogolanfini (“Bo-ho-lahn-FEE-nee”), which translates as “mud cloth” is a long established tradition among the Bamana, a Mande speaking people who inhabit a large area to the east and north of Bamako in Mali. The origin of this cloth is believed to lie in the Beledougou region of central Mali. Hand woven and hand-dyed mud cloth uses a centuries old process using numerous applications of various plant juices/teas and mud to dye hand woven cotton cloth.

Traditionally, Bamana women made the mud cloth. Bogolonfin, for Bamana women, has always been an essential component in the marking of major life transitions, such as birth, marriage, and death. Bogolanfini is a living art form, with techniques and motifs passed down from generations of mothers to daughters. Bamana hunters also wear Bogolanfini in the form of red mud cloth laden with leather amulets, forceful visual symbols of the supernatural powers believed necessary for successful hunters to possess. Each piece of mud cloth tells a story. No two pieces are alike and each pattern and color combination has a meaning. The symbols, arrangements, color as well as shape of the mud cloth reveal secrets. The mud cloth is also used to define a person’s social status, character or occupation. Bogolanfini is an expression of Malian national identity and a symbol of belonging to African culture. (source)

Mixed Reviews @ The Movies

Last Monday instead of going home to deal with the X-mas drama that Suite Suzy had swirling around the house; I opted for the movies, my favorite hideout. I had to choose between "The Golden Compass" or "National Treasure: Book of Secrets" as nothing else appealed to me. I decided on seeing "The Golden Compass" because my inner child forced me to indulge in this movie about fanciful adventure.

In all actuality, I wanted to see this movie for a while & wanted to take my kids but they were not interested. Anyway, cutting to the chase, I really liked this damn movie! It kept me entertained throughout & I think I shouted out with excitement a couple of times (along with others). I did find parts of the movie predictable but that never turned me off because I had to remember the intended audience.

The protagonist Lyra Belacqua, played by Dakota Blue Richards was brilliant, strong & convincing throughout. Usually some of these child actors get on my nerves but she managed to make the cut of those who know what they are doing. The main antagonist Marisa Coulter, played by Nicole Kidman was interesting because NK in real life seems to be a cold person (not that I'd really know) so I'm not sure if this role is a stretch for her.

One thing I think that would have made the movie better would have been blood! There were a couple of scenes that just called for blood to be spilled, but because of the intended audience, they had to keep it family friendly. I am hoping they come out with a directors cut!

When the movie was over, I was like no, don't stop, I need to know what happens from here! So I guess I'm hooked by this good story like most of the other fantasy tales that have made it to the big screen ("Harry Potter", Lord of the Rings, "The Chronicles Narnia" etc). The Golden Compass ended like it will be followed by a sequel, but from what I'm reading online, a sequel may not be happening. Even though the ending was a huge cliffhanger, I walked out feeling good about the 7.50 I spent to be taken to another place.

Thursday of this same week, I had a little time on my hands that I needed to use to decompress & I chose to do it at the movies, of course! "National Treasure: Book of Secrets" was the only option & officially the last movie I will see this year.

I really liked the 1st "National Treasure" movie because it reminded me of a modern "Indiana Jones", with all of the adventure, girl, & the ultimate treasure. Well this new piece of the NT franchise has all of that but it lost so much flavor. I found "National Treasure: Book of Secrets" entertaining but it was far too predictable & it was almost to the point that I was guessing what the characters would say next. In contrast, I was always on my toes with the "Indian Jones" films.

I really don't have much else to say so I will just leave it here & tell you to wait to see this movie on the FX network in a few months.

Fin...

Well the semester is finally over & it ended on a high note when I got my research paper back tonight. Last week after I presented my information & turned in he final draft, I was like I better get an A. I worked really hard & I would not feel good with a B. I gotta keep my GPA up so I can get that damn scholarship when I transfer.

So after I got my paper & basked in the glow of my grade, I bounced & headed for the gym. I had to be there by 8pm so that I could catch the finale of “America’s Next Top Model”, while working the elliptical.

It was an intense hour. I think I found out, that I work more effectively while listening to my music vs. watching TV & working out. By the time the show was over, I still felt good about burning 516 calories. I also felt good because Saleisha won cycle 9. I would have also been happy to see Chantal win, as she was another one of my favorites.

Anyway, I weighed myself & I am now down a total 7 lbs! I am pretty excited!!!

Music from the Diaspora: Red Earth: A Malian Journey

Earlier this month while on a road trip to Detroit to shoot an event, I heard a very fascinating interview with NPR’s Melissa Block & jazz diva Dee Dee Bridgewater on All Things Considered. They were discussing Dee Dee’s latest CD Red Earth: A Malian Journey which is a tribute to her African Roots.

Before the interview even began, I was hooked when I heard a clip of one of her new cuts “Afro Blue” & then I became totally engrossed with every word that Dee Dee spoke as she described her process for developing this new master piece.

One thing from the interview really resonated with me was when Melissa asked Dee Dee if she knew anything about her African heritage before the beginning of her Red Earth project & Dee Dee said “I didn’t know anything. And as a matter of fact, to be perfectly honest, I had grown up with very, very negative impressions of Africa. In, you know, schoolbooks where they would talk about Africa, it was always like the Africans were savages. I had no idea that there were African kingdoms, that there were, you know, these deep, cultural roots, you know, the whole, griot oral historians. You know, I didn’t know this stuff because we weren’t taught that in school.” To that statement, I was like hello!!! I also felt proud because I am teaching my children about the beauty of Africa as I learn myself (it's really up to Black parents to learn & teach our children as much as possible about our own heritage because these white school systems are not down for the cause).

During the interview Dee Dee also talked about how Mali had this draw to her, some type unfamiliar familiarity but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it until she visited Bamako. To hear her describe the experience made me want to touch down on the motherland even more. On her website she says “The calling was so strong, so forceful, that I had to heed its inaudible cry. I took wing, and was guided to the land of my forefathers. The RED EARTH has always spoken to me, from the time of my birth in Memphis, Tennessee.

When I touched the red earth of Bamako, when I inhaled the Malian air, when I heard the tambours, and listened to the griots, I felt my spirit begin to dance.

I saw myself in the people; I saw that our customs were the same. I found the answers to long-standing questions about the ‘how’, the ‘where’, and the ‘why’. I was invigorated and inspired; my soul was filled with an inexplicable peace.”

I could go on & on about how awesome the interview was but I’m not, I beg you to listen to it yourself (here).

One thing that I would have asked Dee Dee would have been if she got a DNA test to confirm her link to Mali. Actually I guess it really does not matter because ignorance is sometimes bliss & adoptive homes are just as welcoming.

Lastly while I am on Dee Dee's jock, I stumbled across an interview that she gave Baltimore Sun reporter Rashod D. Ollison where she said "...With this album, my concern was that my people, our people, would hear it and maybe it would inspire other brothers and sisters to make that connection with Africa. With this record, I've come full circle." To that I say, you have me all in but then again, you are preaching to the choir.
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Back to the music.
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Since I got the CD, it has been in heavy rotation especially the song “Red Earth (Massane Cisse)”. It has this strong Blues jump off blended with heavy Afro poly-rhythms that just gets my head boppin’. She really has the Griot song style down pat & it shows in this cut I think also hearing her talk about red earth reminds me of playing in the dirt as a child in Alabama & then getting in trouble when I got home because I ruined another Salvation Army outfit.

“The Griots (Sakhodougou)” also has me addicted its words and sound. This cut also drives my imagination wild when I close me eyes & imagine people dancing on the continent when the song hits the orgasmic crescendo. Most of the song is in either the Songhai or Babara language & I have no idea what they are saying but of course I sing along. Good thing music is a universal language!

My last highlighted favorite is “Afro Blue”, where her Griot skills are showcased yet again wonderfully. “Afro Blue” is an up-tempo jazzy cut infused with African percussions that really make this song go over the top. I have also determined that this is a good song to listen to a few times while cleaning the kitchen after dinner.

Other favorites include:

• Bad Spirits (Bani)
• Long Time Ago
• Children Go 'Round
• Four Woman

I’ve always considered Dee Dee to be a very diverse artist but she mos def stepped her game up with something to offer the jazz, blues and Neo Afro rhythms fans on “Red Earth: A Malian Journey.”

If you have this album, I would love to know your thoughts…….. So talk to me…………

About Last Night XIII: Urban Organic Music Festival (UPDATED)

Saturday (11/17/07) I was assigned to photograph the 6th Urban Organic Music Festival at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD). When I heard about the event 2 weeks ago I got excited a) because Amp Fiddler was hosting and b) because Roy Ayers was the featured act (one of my favorite jazz musicians).

The Urban Organic Music Festival features great music workshops for those wanting to break into the business, a concert that has an eclectic mix of hot new R&B/Neo-soul (what's really new with soul) acts from across the country and always tops it off with a cherry by having a music heavyweight on the bill like my new friend Roy Ayers. Bottom line is this event is a must do for any serious music fan; it attracted online R&B maven Honey Soul, who I kicked it with briefly.

My evening at the MOCAD started around 8pm and like most events, the coordinators were happy to see me, gave me my press kit and let me in to do my thing.

So now I am up in the spot and the crowd was already thick, luckily I was able to get in some quick photos of many of the artist before they went on (talk about busy!).

As the hours went past and the who's who of Detroit showed up, I grew exhausted longing for a 15-minute nap (I was vending Quench Essentials yesterday in 2 locations from 9am-730pm) but that was not going to happen. Between taking performance photos and kicking it with friends, I got occasional adrenaline rushes that got me to 10pm when Roy Ayers entered the building. Here is shot of Anthony David and it is one of my favorites from the evening.

Now that Roy was in the spot, backstage took on a different tone. Everyone was excited and enjoyed the vibe that this living legend was giving off.

After things slowed down, I was able to kick it one on one with Roy (guess who was ultra excited). This was a moment that I had been hoping for and I had my questions ready to go.

First I asked Roy, what was on his mind when he wrote "Kwajilori" (one of my absolute favorite songs). When I finished asking the questions, he chuckled and said that he did not write it. His bass player at the time wrote the song and when he heard it the 1st time, he knew that it had to be recorded. I told him that Kwajilori also makes me smile and feel good about life and he said that was the point; then we both laughed.

Secondly, I said "Roy, I love "Brand New Feeling because it gets me in the mood", we again both laughed. I then said, excuse my French and no disrespect intended at all but.......... when the vocalist (Merry Clayton) sings, it sounds like she is fucking, she sounds so very sensual: Roy, what was going on during that time. He was like man if you only knew! He said that "she sang like she knew how to do it" and again, more laughing.

Before we parted ways, I let him know one more time how his work influences me and always gets me singing and feeling great. Usually at events I do not get photographs of myself because I trust no one with my camera and last night was no exception. So I was like, Roy, lets take a picture. He was like how, no one is around then I said, I got this and did my thing. He was like, man you are BAD! Minutes later he was on stage.

Although Roy’s set was 4 songs long, it lasted for over an hour and he set it off!!! He started with "We Live in Brooklyn," which sent the large crowd of fans out of control with excitement. He then smoothly transitioned to "Searching" and the crowd started singing. Once he neared the end of “Searching,” he asked the crowd what they wanted to hear then an unanimous thunder of the word SUNSHINE flew back at Roy, seconds later it was on and poppin’. This version of "Everybody Loves The Sunshine" lasted about 30 minutes and included improv duets with most of the artists that performed that evening including Amp Fiddler, Monica Blair, YahZarah aKa Purple St. James, Melissa Young, Alison Crockett, and Profit (a new Detroit based rapper, who really got the crown hype). I mean this performance was an orgasm for the ear!

The evening wrapped with a dance favorite "Runaway". I think most of the crowd including me was up shaking their thang and singing the hook (doo be doo, run, run, run - doo be doo, run, run, run - doo be doo, run, run, run).

After the concert was over, Amp Fiddler announced the after party location and people started to file out. I said fuck that, I need to sit down before I passed the fuck out, eat & take my ass home. I made it home about 2am totally drained of energy but glowing thinking about the time that I spent with one of my idols.

Oh I forgot to mention that Roy asked for my card and I excitedly gave it to him. I hope he hits me up, how cool would that be???

::::::::::::::::::::::UPDATE::::::::::::::::::::::

Yesterday, I was contacted by Drake Phifer, the founder of Urban Organic because he stumbled across this post & loved the photos. We did a little business & he will be forwarding many of my photos to Fusicology & Detroit's Ambassador magazine. Guess whose geeked???

@ The Movies: Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married

Well, I got married for love, the love of my then babies momma & the love of my sweet baby Olivia (I cannot believe I just said that mushy shit).

What I really wanted to start this post out with was the fact that I found my precious (wedding ring). Actually Suit Suzy found it yesterday with going through my laundry. We were both relieved that it was found but I think Suite Suzy was more excited than I.

I think she sees the ring as a shield against anyone looking to get some of my hot dick & nuts. I was happy that it was found because that I had one less thing to be dogged out about.

Needless to say, I will not be taking my ring into the gym anymore!

Anyway……….

Saturday me & my boo went on a childless date for a little dinner for a movie (finally). Of course we went to see Tyler Perry’s “Why Did I Get Married”.

I am not in the mood to go into all of the details, so I am just going to say, if you have not seen it yet, go ASAP!

We both loved the movie & thought Tyler outdid himself bit time. I appreciated all of the characters & that bitch “Mike”.

Putting myself out there, I got a little teary eyed on a few scenes because I was seeing somethings that resonated with me as far as my behavior, feelings & thoughts. Some of the scenarios mos def showed me that I was in a good relationship that needs some nurturing, patience, understanding & sex.

This is the 1st movie of Tyler’s that I would not consider a “Black” movie & that is OK. I think anyone can see this film & walk away with something that they can relate to good, bad, ugly or all.

Jill Scott did a wonderful job & I would love to see her & her tib ole bitties in more films. There was a point where I thought that her song “Wanna Be Loved” was going to be played because it would have fit this movie so well.

I have yet to talk to anyone who thought the movie was wack, so I guess that is saying something really good. Not to mention that it has taken in more than $53.2 million so far

“Why Did I Get Married” is more proof that we are more than drug dealers, jokesters, losers, $2 hoes (Halle Berry) etc.

With all of this said, Tyler, if you are reading this, I am no longer mad at you for making "Daddy’s Little Girls".

Have you seent' the movie yet? What are your thoughts???????

Music from the Diaspora: Panacea

When I blog about music, I prefer to discuss artists who are off the mainstream radar. Basically I pretty much hate most mainstream music as I see it as an insult & diss to my mentality. With this said, I would like to put you up on "Panacea," a pair of hip-hop artists who are off the mainstream music radar.

Panacea (Jason Moore aKa "Raw Poetic" & Kyle Murdock aKa "K-Murdock") hails from DC & their hot newest album is titled "The Scenic Route."

I heard about the release last month (Sept 07) on Giant Step and decided to check them out. Usually I don’t check out hip-hop or rap releases, so I'm happy that I did not follow my normal rule because I found a true hip-hop gem.

After I popped on the Giant Step jukebox & listened to "Flashback To Stardom" (ft Raheem DeVaughn) I was like hell yeah, then I listened to "Pops Said" & was like I am Panacea’s newest biggest fan.

A few minutes later, I downloaded a few cuts from iTunes & put them on heavy rotation (along with Common & Jill Scott). After a week or so, I decided that I actually wanted the entire CD, so I called up my girl Zana @ Spectacles & asked her to order it for me. 3 days later, it was in my hand & it was all good.

You may be asking why I ordered the CD when I could have just downloaded it off iTunes. Well, I ordered the CD because I really want to support these artists & have something tangible to show them support. Also, I believe in supporting quality Black businesses, especially friends whenever possible!

Anyway, "The Scenic Route" is a true hip-hop album full of positive (but not corny) messages, melodic, trippy & rock filled beats. "The Scenic Route" reminds me of underground shit from back in the day, when you could just chill & bounce your head without felling angry or like you needed to fuck a "hoe" or "bitch" after a song went off.

My standout favorites are:

• The Scenic Route
• Flashback To Stardom***
• Pops Said
• Between Earth & Sky***
• Bubble
• Katana
• One Shine

If you are a true hip-hop fan, then you need to add this album to your collection soon.
-----------------------------------------------------------
From their Myspace Page:

Their sound has been described as "A Tribe Called Quest meets Final Fantasy", and some listeners have even made comparisons to The Roots and Outkast. But forget a classification, this is just exceptionally good, unique, and timeless music. Panacea is based out of the Washington DC area where producer K-Murdock, a Maryland native, has provided his fantasy hip-hop soundscapes for soul singers such as Raheem DeVaughn and W. Ellington Felton. Emcee Raw Poetic, a long time resident of Northern Virginia who originally hails from Philadelphia, has been rhyming since the age of 14.

His natural, almost conversational flow and signature storytelling lyrics fit perfectly with K-Murdock's soulful and sometimes spacey compositions. Their obvious chemistry is incredibly rare, and favors such accomplished duos as Gangstarr and Pete Rock & CL Smooth. Whether they're in the studio composing music at a prolific rate comparable to legendary jazz pianist Bob James in the 70s, or on stage performing live backed by Virginia-based progressive hip-hop band RPM (www.rpmband.com), Panacea has all musical bases covered!
-----------------------------------------------------------
Online Reviews:

~ "This is a feel good album – period. That’s about the easiest way I can describe Panacea’s "The Scenic Route." Such a feel good album, in fact, that I threw it in my headphones this morning and decided to take "the scenic route" to work…." (Hip-Hop Linguistics)

~ "If Rawkus is attempting to recapture the spirit of its late-’90s heyday (before a gruesome implosion that expedited hip-hop’s Diddy-fication), it’s got a promising find in D.C.-based Panacea. Emcee Raw Poetic and producer K-Murdock aren’t exactly Talib Kweli and Hi-Tek, but Panacea imbue their sophomore album, The Scenic Route, with an infectious blend of street-corner philosophizing and Native Tongues-inspired charm…." (Tiny Mix Tapes)

~ "...MC Raw Poetic and producer K-Murdock proved what they are capable of in their first release, Ink Is My Drink, delivering a truly unique and cutting edge freshman release. With The Scenic Route, they are breaking the mold. Don’t expect a mere new-and-improved version of Ink Is My Drink this time around. K-Murdock delves into new sonic soundscapes, tapping into influences from early 70’s progressive rock and beyond, while bringing the listener on a rollercoaster ride of tempos, BPMs and overall composition." (Fresh Press Media)

I hope that Panacea blows up but keeps their true hip-hop flow.

About Last Night: Brother Sister

My post title is inspired by The Brand New Heavies song titled “Brother Sister” from their “Brother Sister” Album

“Don't let your young life get you down
It always had a certain mystery
Many changes come to everyone
About the time that they turn seventeen
Grandma said at times you'll feel a sting
There'll be sharp turns and uphills and closed doors
Then she said hold onto your faith
'Cause in this world you've got to go and get yours

So you stand up
Be strong go out there
Hold on to the real thing that matter
'Cause no one's gonna hand it to you on a silver platter
There's no need to feel you're on your own
Just let your intuition guide you through
Take one step toward what you believe
Don't be afraid to make your move…

… Don't be scared go out there
Just stand up my brother sister
Hold on
To the real things that matter
'Cause no one's gonna hand it to you
On a silver platter
Stand up my brother sister
Hold on to the real things that matter
'Cause no one's gonna hand 'em to you
On a silver platter”

Last night, I took advantage of the tickets that I scored for the National Ballet of China at the Detroit Music Hall.

I got 2 tickets & since we could not get a babysitter, I attended the performance with my little sister Sade. Sade is a dancer so Suite Suzy & I knew she would appreciate this more that Olivia as she is more into sports.

The show jumped off @ 8pm & we got to the Music Hall about 7:40, ran up to the Will Call window & copped my tickets. Now with 15 minutes to spare, we hunted for a parking spot & ran back to get our 3rd row seats.

Things kicked off promptly as it should have & that was great. Unfortunately & embarrassingly, niggas were strolling in all late, & I mean like 20 minutes into the performance. Why can’t Black people show up on time???

This was my 2nd ethnic Ballet & it was quite different than the "Les Ballets Africains" from the Republic of Guinea. Well maybe comparing the 2 is like comparing kiwis to rambutans.

The NBC performed 7 acts & of these, Sade & I only liked 3 of them & it was funny because the 3 had a Asian flare where as the others where pretty boring & very European. The acts that we enjoyed were 5."The Same Moonlight" 6."Natual Melody" & 7."Butterfly Lovers".

During the fest acts, I understood why men in general do not enjoy going to the ballet. I found them to be acts to be very feminine & soft. Not only that, I got hard to tell the women from the men. They all had on tons of make up, & their bodies were flat as a board. In some cases, judging by genitals was not a help. I called Suite Suzy during the 2nd intermission & told her that I felt emasculated; then we both laughed.

All in all, it was good & Sade really enjoyed it, so I guess the mission was accomplished.

After the show, we went to Twingo’s (yes again, it’s good dammit!!!) for dinner & conversation. During dinner, we talked about her next pomp on competition & her dream to go to nationals (home girl is pumped & highly motivated). Once dinner was scarfed down, we shared a banana split that sent us both over the top.

By the time we got home (midnight), we were beyond exhausted. I think we both crashed & snored the night away.

If you are interested, please check out my photos from the show here.

A Groupies Proof

Did I already brag that I got Celia & Helene of Les Nubians autograph??? I am such a fucking groupie!

About Last Night XII: Les Nubians

Last night Suite Suzy & I had another hot childless date & boy was it a great outing. It was great because we had tickets to see one of the best Afro-French duos ever; Les Nubians.

Last month when it was announced that Les Nubians were coming to town, I dropped everything to get to the Music Hall’s box office to get us tickets. I mean everything! I have been a fan ever since “Princesses Nubiennes” dropped in 1998. I have all 3 of their albums & listen to them all the time. The funny thing is that I speak no French but sing every word.

So last night, I cut class early turning in my English paper to pick up Suite Suzy so we could hit Twingo’s for dinner before the show.

Dinner was great & we had a wonderful conversation about the separation of Black socioeconomic. We also discussed our childhoods compared to our kids & I think we both learned something new about each other. So after we dined (I had the pork tenderloin topped with cherry cola BBQ sauce, chorizo polenta & maytag blue cheese coleslaw) we hit the road headed for the Detroit Music Hall.

Twenty minutes later, we were in our seats & 10 minutes after that, my girls Helene & Celia hit the stage looking Afro-Sharp!

The set lasted a good 1½ hours & they performed all of my favorite songs (listed in order):

Saravah

J'Veux D'La Musique

Sourire

Embrasse-Moi

Desolee

Insomnie

Tabou

Demain

Makeda

Temperature Rising

Upside Down (cover of Fela Kuti’s hit)

No Regret (unreleased)

After the set was over, I asked their road manager Angela if I could take a picture of them & get an autograph (yes I’m a groupie). She told me to hang around & she would get me hooked up.

Well we hung around & she more that hooked me up, she gave me a very special gift. I was able to go backstage & chill with them. We sat around talking about the state of Black Music with an emphasis on Hip-Hop. The entire conversation was being recorded by a film crew doing a documentary on Hip-Hop & it was tight!

We hung out for about 2 hours & I just felt like I was in heaven. After everything was said & done, I got some awesome photos of the ladies, got my “One Step Forward” album cover autographed & basked in the glow of spending the evening with people who made/makes impact my life artistically.

All the way home, Suite Suzy & I were just in shock of the experience. I mean, I was so geeked, I could hardly sleep & currently running on fumes at work while I pull this post together.

I tell you, when you have a camera & not afraid of asking for what you want, all kinds of doors open. Point in case, I also met the chairman of the board of directors of the Detroit Music Hall & told him I wanted to see the National Ballet of China. He was cool as hell & hooked me up with a theater manager who is getting me tickets to Saturday’s performance.

I was also able to talk to one of the Hip-Hop documentary interviewers & copped 2 tickets to see John Singleton next month, who will be discussing media portrayals of Black life.

I’m so happy that I am not afraid to be tacky & tenacious because it paid off like a mutha fucka last night!!!

Warning: Adult With Toys

Never fuck with an angry Black man who - has high cholesterol, a big belly, a schizophrenic narcissistic personality disorder, a nephew named Thug Passion, hates watermelon & likes to play with toys.

My point is, well, I really don't have a point but it is Thursday night & I'm doing my weekly Thursday night jump off so you know I'm sipping on something nice. I have to start my weekend one day early & shit why not.

Anyway tomorrow actually today, Suite Suzy & I are having a childless date & we are both looking forward to it. We are starting off @ my favorite after work spot (the Centaur Bar), then enjoying a movie at the Detroit Film Theater & wrapping the evening at Twingos, which has become one of our favorites places to stuff our pie holes. Oh yeah, I would like to mention that we are going to see a move named "LaLee's Kin: The Legacy of Cotton". Yahoo describes it as:

"A vicious cycle of poverty and illiteracy plagues the contemporary Mississippi Delta; the legacy of slavery, sharecropping and the cotton industry. In this setting, against imposing odds and extreme hardship, great-grandmother LaLee Wallace, head of the African-American Wallace family, struggles to ensure a better future for her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Also fighting poverty is Reggie Barnes, Superintendent of schools in the district. The school district is on probation from the state because of its low performance on standardized tests. But Barnes feels that his teachers face special problems trying to educate the children of illiterate parents, and he knows that if they can break this vicious cycle, there will be hope for the future."

Saturday I have a photo shoot in the afternoon, I am doing a few models & also some product shots so it will be pretty busy & in the evening, I am covering a store opening. Sunday I am back on the grind packaging Quench Essentials so send to LA for goody bags that will be given out at the Bordeaux (headed by Montserrat Gonzalezlugo (Monet Lugo), couture designer from Hermes and Jean Paul Gaultier) fashion show. More details on that later but I do know that Quench will hopefully touch some A-list skin!

Before I bounce, I had to share a photo of my friend Godwin Rabbit. I took this photo earlier today & love the final result. Check this link out to see what I used for the background. I think it's pretty amazing.

Holla,
Bygbaby

The Fat Lady Never Sung

Recently I purchased some lighting equipment to step my photography game up just a little bit. The items arrived last Thursday but I was very busy and could not play with anything this weekend because I was covering the opening of the opera season here in Detroit.

Yes, I went to the fucking opera for the 1st time in my life & it was fucking awesome! The opera I saw was Cyrano & the world premiere jumped off in Detroit this past Saturday.

Friday I attended the opera ball as a photographer representing the Detroit Fashion Pages & this event was fucking awesome (am I saying fucking awesome too much???). 1st of all, the tix were 600 bucks & luckily I was able to partake in all of the luxury & let me tell you, it was very luxurious.

Saturday, as I mentioned was the opera opening & I enjoyed every minute of it. The music was phenomenal, the costumes spectacular & everything else was just unreal. I guess the most unreal thing is the fact that I had a box seat in the inner circle. Seated next to me was local Detroit royalty. The current & former mayor & a whole bunch of mutha fuckas with all kinds of money.

After the opera, I attended the gala dinner, which was also 600 bucks per plate. This event was off the chain as well. The food, drink, & networking was plenty & yes I was working while having the time of my life.

At the risk of being ghetto as hell, I was able to sneak my BFF BFB in & he also sat in the box with me after intermission & attended the gala dinner. BFB had a ball & said one of his life dreams came true that night. The dream was to attend the opera at least once.

So between the two $600 a plate dinners, the Detroit Opera House was able to raise 3.5 million dollars. YES! You can see photos from both events here.

Anyway back to what this post was supposed to be about. Tonight when I got home from the plantation, I set up my lighting shit & went into the back yard for some photo fun.

Here is my favorite picture out of like 60. I got this chair from Ikea a few months ago in the “as is” area & have not used it since I got it home. Well I guess tonight I found the true reason why I was compelled to buy this somewhat useless red chair.

When I was going through my photos, I was thinking to myself, if I could have one person fill this chair for a once in a lifetime portrait, who would it be. After careful thought, I said, I would love for my grandmother who was known as mommie by all to be staring back at me through my ebony colored lens. I would give anything to see mommie for the slightest of a second. Even better would be to capture her in a photo that I could cherish forever the same way I cherish her memory now.

If you were the photographer & this was your empty red chair, who would be your dream to photograph & why come.

Listening Party for 1: Jill Scott's The Real Thing

If you ain’t got Jill Scott’s new album “The Real Thing: Words & Sounds Vol. 3”, you need to get yo’ ass to a store ASAP. Fuck iTunes & the rest of that online shit; this is the type of album where you need the entire CD at your disposal!

I think I was one of the 1st fanatics to go to my local Circuit City to pick it up Tuesday & it was so worth burning up my gas & work break.

Last night I was in the zone during my listening party for 1 sipping on my Courvoisier (yes, I am "The Ladies Man"), which was a birthday gift from my favorite Angry White Woman (Thanks Amy).

As my buzz took over my body & mind, I felt Jill in front of me serenading me with her smooth melodic soulfully sensual vibe. Damn I wish Suite Suzy could sing like this to me (I wonder if I could get her to lipsynch???). Well maybe not cause I would probably loose my job from falling asleep at work because of the night before (I think you know what I’m saying).

Anyway, the CD is packed with jams but my standouts other that "Hate on Me" are mos def:

• Crown Royal***
  
• Epiphany
  
• My Love***
  
• Insomnia
  
• Only You
  
• All I
  
• The Fact is (I need you (Live in Paris))***
  

I hope that my boo comes to town soon, so that I can throw a pair of my Tommy Hilfiger tighty whities on stage (again, yes, again)!

If you spent your money wisely & got this album, what are you feeling???

How Do I Look?

This hot slow motion shot was taken at the 30th Dally in the Alley (2007) in Detroit. This model was rocking a costume designed by Detroit Artist Ziam. This was my favorite shot from the show that I captured out of like 45. The motion blur is like ghostly perfect!

The Dally in the Alley is a true Detroit favorite event & jumps off the Saturday after Labor Day!!!

This Dally brings out people from all walks of life & no one is shamed by anything & I mean anything. I always have a great time at the Dally; well except for last year but that is kinda a long story.

I would ask you to caption this models thought as she hit the end of the runway but I am afraid of what you might say. Fuck it, caption it anyway, say in 6 words or less & I’ll go first. If I break my damn neck…

On a somewhat related note, hopefully soon, I will be able to give you the news that some of my work made it into one of Detroit hottest life style magazine, Hour Detroit. I am still waiting to hear & my fingers are so crossed now cuz this will be a major boost for my work.

New York City: I Don't Know Why I Love You

My post title is inspired by Gil Scott-Heron's "New York City" cut from his "It's Your World" album 1976.

“New York City, I don’t know why I love you
Maybe it’s because you're mine

Like so many others, I found it all to easy to stand off at a distance & criticize

But there ain’t nothing wrong with the city
Just some people been wrong there like every where else

New York City, I don’t know why I love you
Could be that you remind me of myself”

So I have been away for a few days on but now I am back up in this bitch with a vengeance & fully energized.

While I was out, I was in NYC on a lover’s getaway with my boo & now wife of 8 damn years. My 8th anniversary was last Thursday (07/12) & it was the best ever!

Suite Suzy & I always vacation for our anniversary & for the last 5 years we have been doing it in NYC. Yes I know, I know every year the same ole thing, right? Wrong! Each trip that we have had to NYC has been different from the others as we always discover new places, try different hotels, restaurants & neighborhoods, so it’s like we go on a different adventure in NYC every year.

This year we decided to go at a very slow & relaxed pace just kinda doing whatever happened & that is exactly what we did & it was fun being there without any concrete plans. Actually we had one plan that was confirmed & that was to hang out with Cluizel but everything else was up for grabs.

To spare you from all of the boring details, I’m just going to touch on trip highlights which made this trip one to remember.

Before I get into any of this I want to note that this year’s anniversary trip theme song was “Funkanova” (click to listen) by Wood, Brass & Steel. Every trip has to have a theme song!

The Highlights:

Meeting Friends:

• Daniel Marie – On our 1st night in the city we decided to go out for a few mojitos before dinner at the Bar in Victor’s Cuban Café (If you love mojitos, you have not had one until you had one @ Victor’s). So we perch at the bar near this seemingly quiet guy but soon as we placed out order, we found out that his ass was not quiet at all. The local bar fly introduced himself as Daniel Marie, who had a heavy European accent. He later revealed that he was from Geneva, CH & explained his fondness of yodeling.
  
  We actually sat and talked with Daniel Marie for over an hour & had some fun discussions on politics, the world cup (which I knew nothing about) & men pissing on toilet seats. We usually do not meet to many New Yorkers who engage in conversations especially in Manhattan so kicking it with Daniel Marie was really cool.
  
  
• Michelle aKa Cluizel – A little over a month ago we agreed to meet on my trip & I am so happy that we did! Cluizel is just as much fun in person as she is online. At first I was nervous cuz I never meet any online friends so to help present a clean image of myself, I decided not to be as ghetto as I am online, but that all went down the tubes after my 1st drink at the Negril Village, which is where we met for dinner. Cluizel, Suite Suzy & I turned that bitch out, laughing & talking more shit than a little bit.
  
  After dinner we hit the Village where the outing took a somewhat strange twist just before 9pm. We went to the village because the day before I purchased a new bead for my nipple ring & was having a hard time getting the new one in so I needed to go back the piercing parlor to have it put in. We get to the parlor, explain my dilemma & the weird sista working there hooked me up & minutes later my red new nipple bead was in place & I was happy. Once it was in Suite Suzy put me on the spot & requested that I show everyone my large nipple & nipple ring to which I was like no, because I was not sure if NYC was ready to see my nipple but the next thing I know, my shit was up & the nipple was out! The only thing running through my mind as my nipple was on display was OMG, Cluizel must think I am really out of my mind.
  
  Once all of the nipple drama was over, we all decided to get a genital piercing because they had a special & Cluizel demanded to go first, we were like ok! Just kidding, what of kind of people do you think we are??? After all of the nipple-based fun we decided to head to Times Square for some desert at Cold Stone Creamery one of my favorite places to be gluttonous. Shortly afterward we parted ways until the next time. Cluizel thanks for being you!!!
  
  Cluizel if you are reading, click here: mmmmmmmmm

Hotel, Leisure & Relaxation:

• Dream - Somehow I found out about this hotel and after I saw the website, I knew this would be the hotel to help make this trip over the top. Suite Suzy read a few reviews and they were not that great and I almost changed my mind but I said fuck it, let’s just do it.
  
  The Dream hotel had me hooked as soon as I hit the lobby and saw this huge saltwater fish tank, floor to ceiling & larger than life bronze statue of an Asian warrior with 2 bitches attached to him, one on either side. Unfortunately out room was not read yet so we had to kill like 4 hours so we had a little breakfast & ran a few errands to pass the time.
  
  It’s now about 130pm & we are walking into our room & it looked just like it did online. The bed was like floating on this blue light, there was a massive flat panel TV on the wall & bottom line is I was just like yes! This is what I am talking about! Because we had to get up at the ass crack of dawn to get our flight we were pretty tired especially when you factor in we got very little sleep the night before, so we decided to take a nap. Next thing you know, it was almost 4 hours later, then about 2 hours after that we get a ring at the door. I look out the peep hole & see a cleaning lady so I opened the door. She explained that she was there for turn down service & asked if we needed anything so we got a few extra towels & before she left, she gave us 2 big apples & wished us a good night.
  
  I had never been to a hotel that did turn down service before so it was a real treat especially on days we stayed gone for pretty much the entire day. The staff were all extra courteous & professional, with all this said, we will mos def stay at the Dream again!!!
  
  
• Washington Square Park - This is our park & a must do each time we go. WSP is always jumping with activity and I must say that the people watching some of the best if you are into people watching. It was just nice to be there sipping on a cold bottle of water, sitting under that shade having fun telling stories with my boo as life was happening around us.
  
  
• Chelsea Market - We found out about this place watching the Food Network & come to find out, this is where the Food Network is located. The Chelsea Market was busier that a beehive & filled with wonderful sights & smells. If you like baked goods, you would think that you died and went to heaven & if you are a diabetic, I caution you!
  
  This place almost has everything from a few grocery stores, restaurants, bakeries & little exotic boutiques to name a few. The Chelsea Market is the type of place that makes you want to live in NYC so you can go there everyday to get fresh foods.
  


• NYC Botanical Garden - OMG, you know I love flowers & all things botanical so this was a must do. Suite Suzy & I decided to visit Saturday morning & spend the afternoon there. This outing was soooooo beautiful not only because the flowers were breathtaking but also because Suite Suzy & I were slowly strolling through gardens spending some real time, which is hard to do any other day in our normal lives. Visiting NYC’s botanical garden seems like it is a real treat no matter what time of year you go because there is so much there.
  
  Shit we were there for about 4 hours and still did not see everything. So guess what, we have to put this on the agenda for a future trip.
  
  
• Central Park – When I walk through Central Park, I can hear Roberta Flack singing "That's The Time" in my head. Just something about that song makes me thing she is talking abot Central PArk in spring. Anyway, we took a little stroll through the park before we left Sunday & it again was beautiful! The only thing I do not like about areas of the park is the horses. I mean they are funky as hell almost so bad that if a gust of winds starts up, you can taste the smell.

Arts & Entertainment:

• Guggenheim - Our visit to the Guggenheim means that we have officially visited all of the “major” museums in NYC & I guess we saved the one of the best for last. The Guggenheim is featuring “The Shape of Space” exhibit, which is a pure orgy for the visual sense. The exhibit is very progressive & really seems like something that would be at the Museum of Modern Art, nevertheless it was awesome.
  
  Fortunately for the museum but unfortunately it is under massive exterior repair so we cold not get a good look at the legendary exterior façade designed by celebrated architect Frank Lloyd Wright
  

• Harry Potter: Order of the Phoenix – It’s awesome, nuff said!
  
  
• Platanos & Collard Greens – OK, if you live in NYC r nearby & have not seen this yet, go get some damn tickets now & fuck seeing the Color Purple for now! Platanos & Collard Greens was off the chain it was so refreshing to see something that actually deals with real life scenarios that deals with the relationships of Africans in the Diaspora with a specific focus on Afro-Latinos & Afro-Americans. I will tell you, I am happy that I read the 5 part piece that the Miami Herald did recently on Afro-Latinos because it P&CG dealt with some of the issues presented in the MH.
  
  The one thing that turned me off at this event was some of the crowd. The play started @ 8pm & niggas were still walking in at 830 & someone in my row actually walked in 20 minutes into the 2nd act; OK why did they even bother even coming at all. Why come niggas can’t get no place on time???? Even people in the very 1st row were showing up late as hell. I will not even get into all of these grown assed men wearing hats in-doors!?!?!?!
  

  Hat Etiquette: Indoors, a man should always remove his hat, (particularly in a home, church, courtroom or restaurant) except:
  
  - in some public buildings or public places such as railroad stations or post offices
  - in the main parlor area of a saloon or general store
  - or while seated at the "lunch counter" of a diner or cafe
  - in entrance halls and corridors of office buildings, or hotels
  - in elevators of public or office buildings, unless a woman is present
  - if carrying packages, parcels or bags and both hands are occupied upon entry
  - if the man is an actor or performer and the hat is being worn as a part of a costume or performance

  
  From the website: “Platanos & Collard Greens is the hit romantic comedic play that tells the story of Freeman, an African-American man, and Angelita, a Latino woman, who are both forced to confront and overcome cultural and racial prejudices, while defending their bond from family and friends.
  
  Platanos will remind you of your family, your love and your life. Platanos is guaranteed to make you laugh, inspire you, and make you think!
  

Platanos has enchanted audiences of over 40,000 both Off Broadway in New York City and at over 100 colleges and universities in more than 17 states around the country.”

If it was not for Cluiziel, I would have not known about this production, so thanks again. Luckily, we were able to get like the last 2 tickets available for the Saturday night’s performance!

Good Eats:

• Chevy’s - If you like junk food TexMex, this is the spot. We love it & were bummed out when the closed the restaurant near is at home so we make it a point to go here whenever we are in NYC.
  


• Victors Café - This is some real Cuban & has never disappointed. They have the best pork chops on the damn planet! The pork chops are so good, we made 2 visits for dinner during out trip. These pork chops are so good, they will make you wanna bitch slap your great grand mother. Did I mention that they have phenomenal mojotos???
  


• Frank's Butcher Shop & Steakhouse - This was good little find for lunch while visiting the Chelsea. The portions were good & the prices were just right! I got a chicken club & Suite Suzy got a burger. Although the service was not the best, we do have this on our list to a spot to hit in the future.
  


• Negril Village - OMFG!!! This is one of the best restaurants in NYC. Again thanks to Cluizel, this was a great outing because a) the food was damn good b) the drinks were slamming b) the crowd was hip & chilled & c) the company was great.
  
  I ate like way too much but fuck it you only live once. Here is what I ate Codfish Fritters (app), Collard Green Wontons (app), Jerk Chicken (ent) & 3 caipirinhas; this is just my food. The bill was off the hook but so fucking worth it.
  
  This is mos def on the must visit again list!!!
  
  
• Norma’s - If you love breakfast, this is a must do. This shit ain’t cheap so you can’t go up in hear broke, shit French toast is 17 bucks! I feel bad saying that we go here so much on our visits that the staff fucking remembers us, maybe this is because when I go, I always show a little nipple for a discount. (ask to be seating in Kimberly's area, this sista is on top of her game & is always very nice to Suite Suizy & I!)
  

On our 5 day trip it may seem like we did a lot but we really did not do much for us. Anyway, I took many pictures but too tired now to sort through them all so stay tuned for some snapshots.

For our anniversary next year we decided to go somewhere else & right now we are considering Montreal, The Bahamas, LA/San Fran, San Antonio & Miami. We have a few months to make a final decision & I already excited! But we did decide to do NYC for one of our little side trips.

Peace,
Bygbaby

AB & The Souljourners Next Week

If you are in Detroit or the surrounding area, this is a must attend event. Quench Essentials is a party sponsor & I have tickets available for only 10 dollars!!!!

If you are not up on AB & The Souljourners, I highly suggest that you check them out; this is some hot shit. Wait:::: you can get an AB & The Souljourners taste on my Nappy Head Initial Mix podcast mix here.

Peace & hope to see you out.

Bygbaby

2007 Essence Music Festival

Last night I was contacted about this event, which was/is great news IMHO as New Orleans is redeveloping.

I've never been to the Essence Music Festival because the timing never works out & this year is no exception unfortunately for me. I have friends who have made the trip years ago & the stories that come from the trip make me envious but oh well.

Have you been got any fun quick stories to share & do you plan on attending this year?

Anyway, here are some details for you.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Welcome to "Coming Home," a look inside New Orleans as we anticipate the return of the Essence Music Festival July 5, 6 and 7 to its long-time home, the New Orleans Superdome. A lot has happened since we last met in the Big Easy, when Destiny's Child, Kanye West, Alicia Keys and Lionel Richie were all on hand for "the Party with a Purpose." There are still challenges, but a lot of good things are happening, and everywhere you look, you see signs that the city that throws a party like no other does is ready for the Essence Fest.

Beyoncé, Mary J. Blige, Lionel Richie and Maze featuring Frankie Beverly have confirmed for the Essence Music Festival, which takes place July 5-7 at the Louisiana Superdome. Also on the bill so far are the O'Jays with Keith Sweat and Johnny Gill, Ludacris, Ciara, Chris Brown, Ne-Yo, Steve Harvey and Robin Thicke. This will be the first event in the Superdome since the New Orleans Saints defeated the Philadelphia Eagles to go to the NFC league championship last January. This season was a magical one for the Saints and for its fans, and the dome was very much a part of that magic as it was transformed from the site of tragedy to home of community bonding as everybody came together behind the Saints.

To learn more information on this event and read EMF's "coming home" blog, go to Essence Music Festival's Official Site

Now on iTunes: BygMix (Updated)

Bygbaby is going multimedia on yo ass. The other day I started podcasting on iTunes. The focus of my new podcast (The BygMix) is souly on music, which is my other passion (besides food, blogging & porno movies). If you are an iTunes addict like me, check me out & subscribe especially if you have an iPod thirsting from some good shit.

The BygMix Podcast will expose you to some of my favorites jams old & new. The BygMix will have an eclectic mix of R&B, World, Rap/Hip-Hop, House & anything in between. My aim is to do a fresh mix by every Wednesday but as I am having fun doing this, it may be more frequent, time will tell.

If you are not a iTunes user, you can still check me out online here. If you are using Fire Fox, Safari, or IE 7, you will be able to subscribe from your browser. If you are on any other browser, you need to upgrade.

Here is what you will find on my first casts:

Nappy Head Initial Mix Track List:

• Dj Jazzy Jeff - My Soul Is Not 4 Sale
  
• Stealk Vybe - I Believe
  
• Soulphonic Soundsystem - Eastern Market
  
• Kanye West - Drive Slow
  
• Zo! - Africa
  
• Terry Callier - Love Theme from Spartacus (4hero Remix)
  
• Roy Davis Jr. - Soldiers Listen
  
• Von Pea - Voodoo
  
• AB & The Souljourners - Loves Life
  
• Erykah Badu - Ye Yo
  

Wednesday Jam Session V.1 Track List:

• The Controllers - Stay
  
• Alicia Myers - You Get The Best of Me
  
• Kashif - I Just Gotta Have You (Lover Turn Me On)
  
• Vanity 6 - Nasty Girl
  
• Stephanie Mills - You're Puttin' A Rush On Me
  
• Rich Medina - Can't Hold Back
  
• Naked Eyes - Promises, Promises
  
• The New Rotary Connection - I am the Black Gold of the Sun
  
• Nina Simone - I Can't See Nobody (Daniel Y. Remix)
  
• Erykah Badu - Think Twice (Ft. Roy Hargrove)
  

Diasporic Ghetto Life Track List:

• Marlena Shaw - Woman of the Ghetto
  
• Akon - Ghetto
  
• OutKast - Ghetto Music
  
• Joy Denalane - I'm Ghetto Von Soweto (Auntie's House)
  
• The Family Stand - Ghetto Heaven
  
• Common - Ghetto
  
• Peven Everett - Ghetto
  
• War - The World is A Ghetto
  
• Leela James - Ghetto
  
• Angie Stone - Lover's Ghetto
  

Chilled Lounge Act Track List:

• Nicolay - Indian Summer
  
• Blue Six - Aquarian Angel
  
• BiD - E Depois
  
• Nina Simone - Here Comes the Sun (François K Remix)
  
• D.L. Jones & DJ 2nd Nature - Whoa Bobby
  
• Oezlem - Eyes Burn
  
• Michael Tello - Black Thought
  
• Petalpusher - Breakin' it Down
  
• Plaisia De France - Slave Tempo
  
• Jiva - I Realized (Twilight Bossa Nova Mix)
  
• Moodymann - Not Fallin'
  
• Ski Oakenfull - Hang On
  
• Skye - What's Wrong With Me (Nouvelle Vague Remix)
  
• P'TAAH - The Oldest Story (Swag's New Story Vocal Mix)

Listen to the music,
Bygbaby

Bygbaby's 2007 Oscar Recap

Until last year I never cared about watching the Oscars because movies that I enjoyed the previous year were pretty much not nominated & actors/actresses that I supported were looked over.

Now this year, I have seen almost all of the major releases that have been nominated for an award so I feel pretty passionate about who & what will win.

You best believe that I am pulling for Jennifer Hudson, Forest Whitaker & Eddie Murphy to bring home the Oscar, which I believe will show the world that “WE” can make things happen in a white oriented environment that has shunned us for decades.

So without further adieu, here is my comprehensive but narrowly focused recap of the 79th Academy Awards.

Movies/Actors I Care About That Won:

• Pan’s Labyrinth:
  
  • Best In Art Direction
    
  • Achievement in makeup
    
  • Achievement in cinematography
    
• Dreamgirls:
  
  • Best Sound Mixing
    
  • Best Supporting Actress: Jennifer Hudson
    
• Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest
  
  • Achievement in visual effects
    
• An Inconvenient Truth
  
  • Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song): I Need to Wake Up” from “An Inconvenient Truth” Music and Lyric by Melissa Etheridge
    
• The Last King of Scotland
  
  • Best performance by an actor in a leading role: Forest Whitaker
    

My Favorite Moments:

• Elements in Motion Performance
  
• Ellen’s opening when she talked about how diverse this years Academy awards are this year & when she “If there were no Blacks, gays or Jews, there would be no Academy Awards.” I guess you had to see it because it was both funny & real.
  
• The Dancing Silhouette performances (I don’t remember their real name).
  
• Gwyneth Paltrow's sachet out to announce the best Cinematography award. Home girl had a MEAN walk, almost like a Sista’.
  
• The 50-year foreign film tribute put together by Giuseppe Tornatore Director of “Nuovo cinema Paradiso” (one of my favorite foreign films of all time). It was awesome & I love foreign films.
  
• Jennifer Hudson’s acceptance speech, I actually did my bitch scream because I was so excited to see her win!!! American Idol, eat your hear out & here is another reason to celebrate Black History Month.
  
• The Dreamgirls cast performance: They truly set it off!
  
• Forest Whitaker’s acceptance speech with a special focus on when he honored his ancestors “who guide his steps everyday”. I loved that line & the timing!
  

Disappointing/Boring Moments:

• Céline Dion’s performance (I find her voice annoying)
  
• Looking at tattered Phillip Seymour Hoffman offer the award for Best Performance by an actress in a leading role. He looked like a hot damn mess!
  
• Looking at Jack Nicholson with that bald head & psycho black sunglasses
  

-----------------------------------------------------------
Academy Awards History:

When the first Academy Awards were handed out on May 16, 1929, movies had just begun to talk. That first ceremony took place during a banquet held in the Blossom Room of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. The attendance was 270 and tickets cost $5.

Unlike today's ceremony, suspense was in short supply. Back then, the winners were known prior to the banquet. Results were given in advance to the newspapers for publication at 11 p.m. on the night of the Awards. In 1940, guests arriving for the affair could actually buy the 8:45 p.m. edition of the Los Angeles Times and read the winners. As a result, the sealed-envelope system was adopted the next year and remains in use today.

Interest in the Academy Awards has always run high, though not at today's fever pitch. While the first presentation escaped the media, an enthusiastic Los Angeles radio station covered the second banquet during a live one-hour broadcast. Every presentation since then has had broadcast coverage.

The first 15 Awards presentations were banquet affairs held first in the Blossom Room, then at the Ambassador and Biltmore hotels. After 1942, increased attendance and World War II made banquets impractical, and the Awards moved to theaters, where they've been held since. (read more)
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Black Academy Awards History:

• Hattie McDaniel (1939), Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Gone With the Wind
  
• James Baskett (1948), Honorary Award "for his able and heart-warming characterization of Uncle Remus, friend and story teller to the children of the world in Walt Disney's Song of the South"
  
• Sidney Poitier (1963), Best Actor in a Leading Role for Lilies of the Field
  
• Isaac Hayes (1971), Best Music, Original Song for "Theme from Shaft" from Shaft
  
• Louis Gossett, Jr. (1982), Best Actor in a Supporting Role for An Officer and a Gentleman
  
• Irene Cara (1983), Best Music, Original Song for "Flashdance...What a Feeling" from Flashdance
  
• Prince (1984), Best Music, Original Song Score for Purple Rain
  
• Stevie Wonder (1984), Best Music, Original Song for "I Just Called to Say I Loved You" from The Woman in Red
  
• Lionel Richie (1985), Best Music, Original Song for "Say You, Say Me" from White Nights
  
• Herbie Hancock (1986), Best Music, Original Score for 'Round Midnight
  
• Denzel Washington (1989), Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Glory
  
• Whoopi Goldberg (1990), Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Ghost
  
• Cuba Gooding, Jr. (1996), Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Jerry Maguire
  
• Halle Berry (2001), Best Actress in a Leading Role for Monster's Ball
  
• Denzel Washington (2001), Best Actor in a Leading Role for Training Day
  
• Sidney Poitier (2002), Honorary Lifetime Achievement Award "for his extraordinary performances and unique presence on the screen and for representing the industry with dignity, style and intelligence."
  
• Jamie Foxx (2004), Best Actor in a Leading Role for Ray
  
• Morgan Freeman (2004), Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Million Dollar Baby
  
• Three 6 Mafia (Jordan Houston, Cedric Coleman, and Paul Beauregard) (2005), Best Music, Original Song for "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" from Hustle & Flow
  

1st Couple of Weeks: The Recap

So far 2007 has been a mixed bag of the good and not so good but overall I cannot not complain will not complain. There have been so many things going on with my life, I thought I would share a few highlights of note.

Week One: Jan|01|07

• I found a Cooper's Hawk trapped in my screened in gazebo, which totally freaked me out. Things got really interested when I called 911 & they referred me to the raptor center for my area who basically told me good luck. I eventually got the hawk out by leaving the door open. Check out the picture & look at those claws. Now I have to deal with paying for a new screen as the hole is to big to patch without looking ghetto.
  


• The Mindspill blog paid off in the tune of $210 US buckeroos! Someone found my blog in Dec & dup the vibe & asked me to write a piece with a positive spin on the state of the Black male in America. This was pretty easy seeing that I was starting one anyway. The challenge was to do it in 500 – 700 words.
  

  When I go started, I realized that this was deeper that up to 700 words so I took the liberty to go up to 900. Even my little addition was limiting. My story focused on a common sense approach to 3 social issues affecting my Brothers out there: imprisonment, STD’s & education. I am waiting to release it hear until I see what they do. Stay tuned.

  As you can obviously see (read my Ghetto Disclaimer), I am not writer & really do not get into the fine details of typos, grammar etc so I had to have my piece proof read like 2 times before I sent it off. Thx Suite Suzy!!!
  

• My baby Sade started menstruating & I am tripping off of this. She is only 9 but her & Suite Suzy have it on lock down after they had their little talk. When Suite Suzy told her that she will be dealing with this for about 40 more years Sade tripped out & said all shit (basically LOL). As a father I ma having a hard time with this as most fathers do not want to see their little girls grow & mature to something little boys want to but their nasty little hands on.
  


• Every year I get rid of someone in my life who I feel hold me back or has a negative force that gets in the way of my progress/growth. This year I had to get rid of a friend (former) who had been in my life for 14 years. The day when I decided to do this it took me a while to accept it & just when I did, I removed her from my phone, address book…. After I did all this, why did she call me asking for advice & was really desperate for help. So like the true ass hole that I am, I was really shity to her then told her that I could not advise her & to call someone else.
  
  I never tell the person that I am eliminating that I am doing so, so I guess that makes me somewhat of a coward but I try not to hurt too many feeling if possible.


• I made the decision to change my name as you may have read. While I am off on my medical leave, I will be completing & submitting my application for change to my local court etc…


• I have this little phone rule that goes into effect every Saturday when I refuse to talk to anyone on the phone before 12 noon unless there is someone in jail, in the emergency room or dead. If the caller is not calling with anything in my criteria, I hang the fuck up. So unfortunately I got a call last Saturday that did fit & it fucked me up!
  

  - The Time: 9am
  - The caller: One of my other mothers Ms Muhammad
  - The circumstance: Death of her oldest daughter Shemei Muhammad

  Shemei transitioned from this life to a better one Dec|27|06 at the age of 33. She died suddenly from a blood clot that traveled from her leg to her heart. It happened at home & she died lovingly in her fathers arms as they waited on an ambulance. Ms Muhammad said that everything happened really fast & of course unexpectedly.

  Shemei had a Muslim funeral & was buried in a Muslim cemetery Jan|02|07. I was really saddened to know that I was not there for the Muhammad’s but they could not find my number & were so bombarded by all of the planning & grief.

  I will miss Shemei greatly & hope that she is smiling down upon me as I type this message with her forever etched into my heart as a dear true friend.

• My girl Zana of Spectacles hosted House DJ Jeff Mills at 5th Ave Detroit & she invited me to be a vendor (Quench Essentials). Because I love to support my friends I agreed thinking that I would not sale much because of the crowd. Boy was I wrong! I did really well & got a few drinks in the process. It was a great night & Jeff Mills turned that shit out!

Week Two: Jan|08|07

• I enrolled into a Math Analysis class so that I can move on the path of obtaining my degree. As mentioned here before I am a math dummy making my way through barely but not giving up (too much). With my pending surgery & math anxieties, I am not sure how things are going to play out. I think I will have to call the decision to continue with the class late next week. It has been a week since classes started & I still have not got off my ass to get a book so that goes to show you how motivated I am.
  
  
• My manager @ work approached me & told me that she was concerned about me getting my name change & that she wanted to discuss it with me. Well here concerns all spun from her hearing stories on about résumé/applicant discrimination based on names (check out this story). After her information discovery, she thought to herself that being Tafari would stop my from my professional/job growth & she did not want that to happen. My manager is on of my biggest cheerleaders so I was not offended at all by her concern & was actually happy that she opened up the dialogue.
  
  I informed her that I was fully aware that I may be bypassed because I have an ethnic name but that was not going to stop me from being & doing Tafari. I also said; If I were to remain Brian & possibly get the call for a job I am still in danger after they look at my skin, hair & strong African features. Furthermore, If I am being bypassed for these superficial reasons I will not know unless someone tells me & that would probably not happen to as I am sure no company wants to face a discrimination case.
  
  Lastly, I to her that I am self determined & that I make my own ways when & if doors are closed in my face. I am not the type of person to sit by & wait for someone to decide if they can deal with me or not. Then I ended with the fact that Kujichagulia is a principle that is a guiding light to my success. After all that was said, she was like well I guess you put all of the thought into this decision & know what’s really going on. Then she said well Tafari I need the budget report by 5.
  
  Kujichagulia (Self-Determination) - To define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves and speak for ourselves.
  


• I had my pre-op appointment with my surgeon & learned that I will be out of work for 2-3 weeks & after I am clear to go back to work, I will have to do physical therapy for like 6 fucking weeks. This is going to be a lot of damn $15 co-pays. I am not sure how this is going to factor into my class.
  
  
• My pre-surgery party @ the Centaur Bar was a blast & my really good friends showed up then. I am happy & blessed to have a strong network of friends both online & offline that are supportive and positive. I bought all of the drinks and food until happy hour ended (my little surprise). By the time all was said & done, I was $280 mo’ broke but it was worth it. Everyone joked that if they knew I was paying then they would have really ordered what they wanted. I paid for like 3 Martinis & appetizers. Thank God the martinis were only 5 bucks.
  
  After sampling so many Martinis myself, I have a new favorite one next to the pomegranate & it is the French 75, which has champagne, gin, sugar & chambord.
  
  French 75 History: Named after the French 75-millimeter guns, this champagne cocktail was created during the first World War by American army officers. The original recipe called for gin, absinthe (now illegal in the United States) and calvados. Calvados is an apple brandy made in France. It is produced from an apple cider and aged in oak barrels for several years. The drink is often served in a small glass during the long meal to re-enhance the appetite.
  
  
• I read a comment that I made one of of Blog haunts (Asabagna), that really impressed me. Some of the crap I write is out there and retarded but I was like wow I said that. What did I say?, well here goes:
  

  “"Although I am Christian, I have a love hate relationship with the religion as a proud descendant of Africans, related to the slave trade & how Christianity was used against our people. I will admit that my feeling on this developed over the last 2-3 years as I am coming out of a white oriented matrix.”
  

  I encourage you to read Asabagna's spiritual journey from the past, present & future. It is deep & I am sure many of you can & will relate.
  
  Thx Asabagna!!!
  


• My Friend Lé AfriKan finally got some shea butter in for me after a 3 week wait since his return from Ghana. I love Lé AfriKan but I hate having to depend on others for my success for things I cannot control. This goes for all aspects of my life.
  


• My girl Zana of Spectacles hosted her last party @ 5th Ave Detroit for DJ Dez of Slum Village & she invited me to again be a vendor (Quench Essentials). Here again I was not expecting to sale much because of the crowd & again I was proven wrong. Cousin Dee was able to assist me this night & I am happy she was there because it was out of control at some points but we made that shit happed.
  
  Zana party was very nice & some of my favorite Detroit acts performed, namely Amp Fiddler & Sum Village. I was also happy to have run into Kenny Dixon aKa Moodymann. Oh wait I forgot to mention that I ran into my best friend from middle school Eugene. It was fun doing a mini catch up with him & also seeing him doing well. Then ironically I ran into a friend from high school & we caught us as well. I mean Detroit is a big city but sometimes it seems so fucking small…
  
  
• This week ended on a good note with Suite Suzy & I going on a date alone with no damn kids! We set our appetites for Étouffée & I was really looking forward to a few of the Willie's punch cocktails, I mean I almost tasted them as I imagined having one. So on the way I decided to call to see if there was a wait or if we needed a reservation but I got a message saying that the line was disconnected so & was thinking maybe I had in wrong in my PDA.
  

  So 20 minutes later we arrive at the restaurant to find it closed & boarded up. We were so majorly let down; it seems like any good restaurant in Detroit or surrounding cannot stay open. Étouffée was a really nice spot that had excellent southern fair. The décor was impeccable & the staff were very welcoming & the best thing about the spot was the strict dress code (IMHO, keep out the riff raff).
  

Thx for listening & I hope that I did not burn your ear up.
Warmest regards my friends,
Bygbaby aKa Tafari

Dancing with my Daughters

Last night I was lucky enough to take my daughters to see the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater perform at the Detroit Opera House. Fortunately for me, the AADT was able to add additional shows in Detroit after they had already left several weeks ago. When I got this 2nd chance I immediately purchased my tickets & decided to surprise my girls with this wonderful gift.

The evening started off by leaving home @ 530 to make our way to Union Street Saloon (Detroit) for dinner, where the meals are always good & the service is almost always bad (in my opinion, my friends beg to differ). We got to Union Street about 615 & it was not that busy, so I knew we could get out within a hour (the show started at 730) so that we could park & get our will call tickets.

Well last night was no exception to the bad service @ Union Street, our server Aaron was nice but slow as hell, I had to keep flagging him down for water, he only checked on us like once on his own & took forever to bring the bill & accept my payment. After all was said & done at the restaurant, it was 730, so yhea, we are late.

I made a mad dash past the Crack Heads panhandling outside the restaurant to the car &made it downtown, parked & got our tickets by 745 (I am out of breath by now from rushing). As we make our way into the Opera House, we were told that there was no late admittance to the show. Naturally, I had to talk my way out of this & was successful ads we got temporary seats in the upper balcony (yes the nose bleeds).

We walked in as the company performed “The Winter in Lisbon”, which was a poly-rhythmic emotional & dramatic piece. This piece was in four parts, the “Opening Theme” (which we missed), “San Sebastian”, “Lisbon” & “Manteca”. “Manteca” was definitely the crescendo in this piece & as it ended a massive image of Dizzy Gillespie appeared on stage which made the crowd more excited. The lights dim as the curtains close & the kids need to use the restroom.

At the intermission we went to look for our seats, and then I noticed that we actually had shitty seats. Since the show was not packed, we took it upon ourselves to get much better seats in the lower balcony. When the curtain came up, I was like hell yeah; our new seats were the bomb! The 2nd set was/is titled “Ife/My Heart”, which started off with an African prayer & solo dance performance that was very engaging, THEN the company performed to “My House - To My Father's House” by Nikki Giovanni.

I had never heard this song/poem before & immediately fell in love with it as I watched the dancers leap like Gazelles on the African pains. I mean, the performers were so graceful & dynamic, that they did not even seem real, a figment of my imagination. My daughters where in awe during this segment, then it transitioned to a very urban tone as they were now dancing to Ursula Rucker’s “Release”. This segment was truly off the hook & symbolic as they appeared to me to be simulating the World Trade Center attack & urban life/plight all at one time. I think I shouted out “YES” as I was wrapped up in the moment. The lights dim as the curtains close & I catch my breath.

So after a brief pause, the show started back up with the “Solo” segment, which kinda reminded me of the Nut Cracker (actually this is a double-entendre because this segment was just the guys & they were in these skin tight pants & all you saw was nuts). I think the entire crown tripped on this piece as I listened to the whispers around me. The guys were doing this penguin-esque type maneuver that made me and many others laugh. Each performer had the stage to himself for several moments then another performer danced onto he stage as the initial one made a dramatic exit, time & time again.

The crowd applauded several times though this piece as the performers were making these intense moves, jumps, turns, twist, gyrations. The lights dim as the curtains close & I need to use the restroom.

The final piece was something I actually saw on video last year in my AA Lit class taught by one of my She-roes: "Revelations". When I saw it in class, I was like wow I would love to see it on stage & almost a year to the date later here I am. This piece to me was tribute to Negro spirituality & how we have overcame adversities & will face the future using our faith as our guide. “Revelations” was developed in 1960 by Alvin Ailey Himself & is a staple of the Dance Company. My favorite segments in “Revelations” were “Processional/Honor, Honor” & “Wade in the Water”.

Seeing the dancers make such a dynamic statement with simple stage props was simply amazing. “Wade in the Water” was really dramatic as one of the dancers appeared to be floating across the stage with a soft flowing umbrella with her flowing white dress as men carried around these poles with waving feathers, & then there was the water itself. The water (blue fabrics) moved as though they were actual something Gaia made herself. Another highlight of “Revelations” was “Sinner Man”, which depicted a lone man trapped in hell, running from the Devil as he looked for a way out.

Revelations consists of the parts:

• Pilgrim of Sorrow - 3 song/dance parts
• Take me to the Water - 3 song/dance parts
• Move, Members, Move - 4 song/dance parts

As things came to an end, the company jokingly took just about 8 bows. Fist in couples, then the men, then the women, then all again, then the main performers… The lights dim as the curtains close, I catch my breath & dread the long drive home.

As I do with any cultural event etc, I charged the kids to draw a picture about their favorite part of the show in addition to writing a journal that corresponds with their picture.

-------------------------------------------------------------
Alvin Ailey Bio

Born in poor, rural Rogers, Texas in 1931, Ailey was the child of Lula Elizabeth Cliff, and the handsome Alvin Ailey, whom she married at 16. She gave birth to Alvin Jr. two years later. He was, according to biographer Jennifer Dunning, "a big baby," reluctant to walk on his own until he was more than 18 months old.

A few months later his father fled the marriage, returning some years on, but this time it was Lula who took off, moving herself and the child to Wharton, Texas, where the two of them picked cotton.

Alvin developed an early interest in art. In 1943 Alvin and his mother moved to Los Angeles.

It was in Los Angelas where Alvin's eyes were opened to the world of contemporary art. Initially, he took dance classes from choreographer Katherine Dunham and later studied under Los Angeles dance teacher Lester Horton. While studying with Horton Alvin pursued college courses in the Romance languages. At various times Ailey was enrolled at UCLA, Los Angeles City College, and Berkeley. He studied authors like James Baldwin, Langston Hughes, and Carson McCullers.

Alvin's appetite for academics was probably why he was attracted to Horton's choreography which consisted of theater pieces based on pictures by Paul Klee, poems by Garcia Lorca, music by Duke Ellington and Stravinsky, and even Mexican themes. When Lester Horton died in 1953, twenty-two year old Alvin was chosen to fill the shoes of his mentor. Alvin became the director and resident choreographer for the Lester Horton Dance Theater. Within one year Alvin choreographed three original dances for Horton's company: Creation of the World, According to St. Francis, and Mourning Morning.

Alvin Ailey was gay and was a longtime lover of David McReynolds in the 1950s.

Ailey started his own dance company in 1958 featuring primarily African American dancers. He integrated his dance company in 1963. He also directed; one notable production was Langston Hughes's Jericho-Jim Crow (1964).

The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater popularized modern dance throughout the world with his international tours sponsored by the U.S. State Department. Because of these tours it is theorized that Ailey's choreographical masterpiece Revelations is the most well-known and frequently seen modern dance performance.

Bio Source I, II

My Name is Peaches: Thinking of Nina

Yesterday 04/21/06 marked 3 years sine we have lost the High Priestess of soul & all out GODDESS Eunice Waymon aKa Nina Simone. I recall when I heard the news of her death vividly. I was on vacation for the week as I was preparing for my summer gardening cleaning up from the previous years growth. When I came in for the day I grabbed a pop/soda & flopped on the couch sweaty & funky self & popped on the news & Nina’s picture was displayed & I knew what was next; the saddest news ever “MY” Nina was gone. For the next few days, I immersed myself with Nina’s music as a tribute; I guess this was the next best thing I could do vs going to France for her funeral.

As I type this post I am listening to “Funkier Than a Mosquito's Tweeter”. Anyway I will stop here a) because it is 324 am b) I have to get up in 3 hrs to work OT c) this is a saddening topic.

One last note: I am happy that I was able to see Nina perform live in in her last US show @ the Detroit Fox Theater & I was lucky enough to be in the orchestra pit 3 rows from the stage. I wanted to throw a pair of draws on the stage, but my Suite Suzy threatened to cut me if I did, so...

Funkier Than a Mosquito's Tweeter | It is Finished | 1974

You're nothing but a dirty, dirty old man. You do your thinking with a one track mind Keep talkin' about heaven glory but. On your face is a different story Clean up your rap your story's getting dusty Wash out your mouth. Your lies are getting rusty. Can't believe nothing you say. 'Cause I'm around and I see what you do You know you're funky as a mosquito's tweeter. You gotta mouth like a herd of boll weevils. Same old game, same old thing. You never changed Always rappin 'bout the same old thing.

I got something to tell ya. I got something to tell you baby. But you ain't hip to baby. Blowin' minds is a thing of the past. You blew your chance that's why you never last. You want to be a graduate mother. But in reality just another brother. You think you slick but could Stand a lot of greasing .The things you do ain't never really pleasin'. Can't believe nothin' you say. 'Cause I'm around and I see what you do. You know you funky as a mosquito's tweeter. You got a mouth like a herd of boll weevils .Same old game, same old thing. A...lways rappin 'bout the same old thing .You beautiful, beautiful Beautiful, beautiful.

Brought yourself a pot of baked stew. Nothin' worse than an educated fool. Talkin' sex is your favorite conversation. But peace and love is a famous generation. What's in your head has really started. Showing your conversation gettin' kinda boring. Can't believe nothin' you say. 'Cause I'm around and I see what you do. You know you funky as a mosquito's tweeter. You got a mouth like a herd of boll weevils. Same old game, same old game. Same old thing you never change. Same old game, same old thing. Always rappin' 'bout the same old thing!!!!!!!!!!!!
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My Name is Bygbaby & I am Addicted to…

Like Oprah, I always like to tell friend & anyone willing to listen about my favorite things, which change like the weather in Michigan (very often & unexpectedly). Unlike Oprah, I will not be giving away shit, so please refrain from looking under your seat for prizes & consider this a PSA for items that you also may enjoy and or should check out.

As you will see, many of my favorites point to my techno & metro sexuality, so just consider me well rounded in my interests. On another note I guess you could consider my body to be well rounded as well (not too round though).

Technology Addictions:

• Blogging & spreading knowledge be it BS, history or drama in the news, blah, blah, blah
• My online friends Blogs & Forums
• My new lovely Motorola A732 cell which is not yet available in the US; Straight from Hong Kong via eBay.
• Designing in Photoshop
• My Web Host; Site 5
• Downloading music - legally of course ;-)
• Entering dream state now >->->-> I am addicted to the MacBook Pro like a mutha >->->->Awakening from dream state now

Personal Product Additions:

• Carol’s Daughter products:
  
• Healthy Hair Butter (great for fully locked locks)
• Ocean Shea Soufflé
• Groove Shea Soufflé
• Groove Glycerin Bar Soap & Bath Salts.
• Arpege cologne by Lanvin (light & very fresh) great for spring/summer
• M7 cologne by Yves Saint Laurent, the perfect winter/fall fragrance
• Nite White tooth bleaching gel
• Bath & Body works Cotton Blossom bath & shower gel (this is a gender neutral scent in my book so don’t go there)

Entertainment Addictions:

• Television
  
• I actually just got over my Addition to the Flavor of Love (VH1) & The Shield (FX) since they both ended recently :-(
• The Apprentice although I think this season has the wackest participants
• The Best Week Ever (VHI)
• Movies
• Booty Talk 6-10 (I should have not listed this)
• Car Wash
• The Diary of Emily Rose
• Kingdom of Heaven
• Van Helsing
• Music
  
• Black Gold Massive
• Darien Brockington
• Shaun Escoffrey
• Jiva
• Sergio Mendes – Timeless (Produced by: Wil-i-am of the Black Eyed Peas)
• Moodymann
• N’dambi
• Nina Simone (never ending addiction)
• The Rebirth
• Rhonda Thomas
• V.
• Penny Wells

Food/Drink Additions:

• Sushi & Oslo’s Downtown Detroit
• Spicy Tuna - *Raw tuna with some delicious spicy concoction
• Philadelphia Roll – Salmon & Cream Cheese
• Avocado Roll – Avacado w/Wasabi
• Dragon Roll - Eel and cucumber wrapped with avocado
• Jalapeño Roll – Jalapeño w/Cream Cheese
• Ocean Spray Cranberry juice mixed with Pom 100% Pomegranate Juice
• Malibu, Hypnotiq & Pineapple juice aKa The Hpnotiq Blue Breeze
• Patrón Margarita with a salted rim
• Popeye’s Chicken
• Cheesy Grits on Saturday Morning

Basic Life addictions:

• Chilling w/Suite Suzy, when we can get a babysitter
• Talking shit with any & everybody
• Watching my kids grow
• Entertaining friends

Life Without Chef

I have not watched the cartoon South Park in years & obviously missed all of the controversy over Isaac Hayes, his affiliation with the Church of Scientology & the spoof that the South Park producers aired recently.

I watched one of the recent episodes on youtube.com & the show is raunchy as ever. Anyhoo I was surprised to find out that Isaac was a Scientologist, actual pretty shocked but this is America!!!

The episode that aired with Chef coming back depicted him as a pedophile (sick), Here is a link to the videos, Part I, Part II, Part III (pretty gruesome). Chef’s voice in this episode is actually clipped together from previous episodes, if you pay attention, you can tell.

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Posted on USA Today.com (AP)

Last week's spat that pitted South Park against Scientology and Isaac Hayes, with a rumored dollop of Tom Cruise stirred in, led Wednesday night to the animated series' highest-rated season premiere since 2002, according to a Comedy Central spokesman.

An estimated 3.5 million viewers — including 2.3 million in the advertiser-coveted 18-to-49 age bracket — tuned in to watch the show unleash a new salvo against Scientology.

Hayes' Chef character got a true South Park send-off — seemingly killed off but mourned as a jolly old guy whose brains were scrambled by the "Super Adventure Club." (Related video: Scientology satire)

The thinly disguised satire continued the show's feud with Scientologists in its 10th season premiere on Comedy Central.

The soul singer, best known for his work with Stax Records in Memphis, and composing the Oscar-winning theme to the movie Shaft, has voiced the Chef character in South Park since 1997.

He left the show recently because of what he called the animated show's religious "intolerance and bigotry." Founders Matt Stone and Trey Parker said Hayes, a Scientologist, was mad that South Park mocked the religion in an episode last November.

A rerun of that Scientology episode was mysteriously pulled off the air last week amid published reports that actor Tom Cruise, another Scientologist, had used his clout to bury it. A Cruise spokesman denied that.

Hayes didn't participate in making Wednesday's episode; the character's lines appeared to be patched together through tapes of past dialogue.

Chef repeatedly said he wanted to "make sweet love" to the South Park elementary school kids — it seems the "Super Adventure Club" turns its members into child molesters.

The children try to rescue Chef, but in the end he turns to head back to the "Super Adventure Club" — until he falls off a bridge onto rocks, is burned, stabbed and mauled by a mountain lion and bear.

Then he apparently dies.

"A lot of us don't agree with the choices the Chef has made in the last few days," one of the children eulogizes him at a funeral. "Some of us feel hurt and confused that he seemed to turn his back on us. But we can't let the events of the past few weeks take away the memories of how Chef made us smile."

"We shouldn't be mad at Chef for leaving us," the eulogy concludes. "We should be mad at that fruity little club for scrambling his brains."

The door for Hayes' return wasn't completely closed. In the show's final scene, members of the "Super Adventure Club" try to revive Chef, and it's not clear he's really dead.

28 Days to...

Now that BHM (Black History Month) is underway, I would like to refer you, my well informed reader of some great documentaries offered by PBS. I have seen many of these & many are on many are on my gift wish list. I recently saw The Journey of recommend this film, which basically discusses how we all come from African descendants & backs it up with scientific data. PBS offers reading material for all of these selections so if reading is your thing, your are covered. Another great resource to obtain most of theses films is your local library.

Africans in America
African American Lives
Against the Odds: The Artists of the Harlem Renaissance *
American Experience: Scottsboro: An American Tragedy *
American Experience: The Murder of Emmett Till *
Brother Minister: The Assassination of Malcolm X
Journey of Man *
Ken Burns: Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson
Slavery and the Making of America *
The Voyage of La Amistad: A Quest for Freedom *
Wonders of the African World

Now that you have read this long ass list of my recommendations, I need to also tell you that this 2006's Black History Month theme is Celebrating Community: A Tribute to Black Fraternal, Social and Civic Institutions. The annual theme is set by the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, which was established in 1915 by Dr. Carter G. Woodson, a noted African-American author and scholar. Woodson devoted his life to making "the world see the Negro as a participant rather than as a lay figure in history."

Woodson is widely know for initiating Negro History Week in 1926, which evolved into the establishment in 1976 of February as "Black History Month." Some people refer to our month as African American History Month & I have a problem with, because I am not a fan of the term African American. Why, because I am an African King who became an American by default.

Upcoming BHM themes:

2007 - From Slavery to Freedom: The Story of Africans in the Americas
2008 - The Mis~Education of Black Folks

Unpredictable

With the release of his top-selling new album "Unpredictable," Oscar and Golden Globe winner Jamie Foxx ("Ray") brings to NBC his first musical special which showcases some of the music industry's biggest performers in "Jamie Foxx: Unpredictable" on Wednesday, Jan. 25 9-10pm

Filmed at the historic Orpheum Theatre in downtown Los Angeles, the special brings together a concert with celebrated artists from the R&B and hip-hop worlds. Foxx performs with musical legend Stevie Wonder, R&B singers Mary J. Blige (yuck) and Angie Stone, and hip-hop artists Snoop Dogg, The Game and Common. The performances will include the hit single "Unpredictable," a duet of the remake "Love Changes" with Blige, and a medley of "Gold Digger" and "With You" with Snoop Dogg and The Game.

The inspirational special centers on the milestones of Foxx's life and his musical influences growing up in Texas. Dramatic vignettes lead up to each musical performance and portray childhood conversations with his grandmother and family minister, as well as life-changing events such as falling in love and the birth of his daughter.

NBC is not doing any marketing or publicity on Jamie's Music Special on NBC because he stood his ground and wouldn't have any white guest as they requested. However you will be able to find information on their web site about the special The special is up against the second week of American Idol so you may have a decision to make. If Jamie does not get the viewers he needs to be successful, it may give NBC the excuse to never give another black a music special because "it doesn't work". To help Jamie Tivo or tape Idol and watch Jamie, he's worth it.

Foxx recently received a Grammy nomination in the Best Male R&B Vocal Performance category for his rendition of Lutha's "Creepin’" from the So Amazing: An All-Star Tribute to Luther Vandross album . That was just one of Foxx’s recent unprecedented accomplishments.

BTW, there will be an encore performance of the special Friday 01/27/05 on NBC.

The New Apprentice

After watching "The Apprentice" for several weeks, I highly anticipated the 2 hr finale tonight. I usually have my person selected way before hand, but in this season, I was torn between Rebecca & Randal. I was really ok if either candidate won. They both started the show off with some pretty bad circumstances, Rebecca with her broken ankle & Randll losing his grandmother.

There were many great ups & downs throughout this past season, I mean I was addicted & unfortunately had to miss one episode. But the bottom line is tonight was the night, as I waited on pins & needles Trump made his decision & it again would have been good either way to me, but he choose Randal who happens to be quite accomplished. To my surprise after Randal was choose to be THE APPRENTICE, Trump was ready to pull another rabbit out of the hat by asking Randal what he thought about also hiring Rebecca as the 2nd apprentice. This of course tripped me out, so I was hoping Randal would say no. Although I really liked Rebecca, did not want to see Randal's thunder stolen, after all like Randal said, “the show is called The Apprentice, not the Apptrenti." HELLO!!!

Some quick Randal Pinkett Accomplishment Facts:

• Rhodes Scholar & Rutgers African-American Alumni Alliance Hall of Fame inductee
• Holds five degrees in engineering, business, & technology: B.S. from Rutgers; M.S. from the University of Oxford; M.S., M.B.A., & Ph.D. from MIT
• National Society of Black Engineers “National Member of the Year”
• Rockefeller Foundation Next Generation Leadership Fellow
• Founder, president, & CEO of BCT Partners, a multimillion dollar consulting firm
• Founder of four additional business ventures including an inner-city community consulting group & a training & development firm for high-level business professionals
• Featured in Ebony magazine as one of “30 Leaders of the Future” & Parade magazine’s “They Are Changing the World”

From an interview that I watched online, Randal states that the most important lesson he learned from "The Apprentice" was leading by example.

Randal's Home Page

The Hot House

If you are a house music fan I have found the perfect spot for some excellent mixes online via the U.K. @ The Soul Inside of Me. I heard about this website on one of the webs greatest discussion forums found on the Incognito site from Kwame who happens to be the owner & DJ of many of the mixes found on www.thesoulinsideofme.com.

On The Soul Inside of Me you will find over 20 high quality mixes that can either downloaded or streamed. Not only are these mixes at no cost, they range in genre & tempo opening you up to more than what you would here on the airwaves of the US (in most cases). One mix that I have found myself addicted to in particular is KITM Presents It's Just House (Mix Vol. 18) Part 2 which has some awesome tracks such as:

• Roy Davis jr - Moving Up
• Matt Flores - Shine
• Al Green and Ann Nesby - Put it on Paper (Spen and Karizma Mix)
• Sold on Sound ft. Joshua Marquez - Fresh Air
• Jaymz Nylon ft. Bobbi Sanders - Wantcha
• Notenshun - Nt Groove
• Dennis Ferrer ft. Kenny Bobien - Grateful (Fanatix Mix)

Other House music outlets:

• Deep House Music Page
• Garage House Music
• House Music History
• Homecookin'
• Purcle Music
• Traxsource
• Click to Groove

If you are not a House-Head; well, maybe you should be!

Primetime Music Playlist

Now that one of my favorite "Nip/Tuck" show is back with a new season (3), my Tuesday evenings will not be packed with racy/raunchy story lines & plots, but most of all great music. One of the best thing about "Nip/Tuck" is the music & last weeks episode “Momma Boone” was no exception. During a, what some would call a hot Menage Trois between Kimber, Christian, & Kit McGraw (played by Rhona Mitra of The Practice/Boston Legal), the song Inside & Out was played (how appropriate). I later found out that this was a cover of the Bee Gee's "Love You Inside Out" performed by the Pop Rocker Leslie Feist however, her version is titled "Inside & Out".

Feist's album titled "Let it Die" was released Apr 06 (wish I knew about it then) is very good especially for not being a big rock/pop rock fan. Since I got the album a few days ago & have been stuck on:

• Inside Out
• One Evening
• Mushaboom
• When I Was a Young Girl

"Let it Die" has great flow, vibing energy, & mellow beats, so basically a worthy purchase & addition to my collection. Doing some bootleg, research I found that Feist (Canadian Born & Rasied) performed so much over a 5 year period in the 90's, that she lost her voice & was told that she would never sing again. She then picked up the guitar & used it as her voice while training with a voice specialist for years. By 1999 she was able to release her 1st solo album "Monarch"

"Nip/Tuck" is mos def a place to get hip to some alternative music choices.