Okay Haven’t Blogged in Ages

Yes I’ve been wrong. Done so much since my last post and it’s not been fair not to share. I apologize and will log in from now on to clue you in. Since last I blogged, I’ve been to the Cannes Film Festival, T.I. entered lock-up and we’ve lost Michael Jackson and now Steve McNair. I will weigh in later. This is just a notice that I’m coming back.

Back in the A

At home, I really thought I was going to get up after a 10 hour drive and whirlwind experience and check out Jesus Christ Superstar, the Gospel version, at the Alliance. I hit the bed and didn’t even come into consciousness until the next morning. I hate it though because my friend Michael Andre Adams tells me it was absolutely fabulous.

Thursday, January 22, was no rest for the weary though. It was the W Buckhead’s grand opening and David, my old boss, and I were attending. I forget the things I was to do that day. Obviously I should have been blogging. My friend Kym Backer hit me to attend a Welcome to North Carolina reception with her and that was delightful. It was held at Magnolia Hall in Piedmont Park, a nice venue that is no secret; apparently many wedding receptions are held there. It had a nice, upscale lodge feel. They had food of course but the dessert was the star, sweet tea gelato. You got to love the South man and then they sent us home with a bottle of wine. With that kind of hospitality, Kym and I will definitely be planning a road trip. I’ve been to Charlotte and Raleigh/Durham but I’ve never done the whole weekend cabin thing and that sounds like a good time.

Oh the Durham area convention and visitor bureau rep listens to my friend Bomani Jones’ sports radio show on 850 The Buzz. That was really wow. I was just mentioning him as I’m prone to do and she was like ‘oh he’s really good’ and that he is. He’s a young cat and while I dabble in sports, I know more than most girls I’d say but I’m not a smack down expert. Bomani will recount things to me that he wasn’t even born to experience and he will know every stat but he’s still got that youthful energy to connect to his own age group. Okay I’m getting off his sack right now.

At the W, it was sort of a promy, debutante theme. I knew it was a big deal but I didn’t really know it was a big deal. The place was packed and there were a lot of folks there. Kenny Burns, Askia Fountain, my Metromix editor Jana Hicks, great friend Isoul Harris, the GT (Guyanese crew) Kym Backer and Gillian Boyce, cool ass Bradley who runs W Midtown’s Whiskey Park, the fabulous Tamara Kimble and artist extraordinaire Anthony Liggins, among many others I’m sure. Whiskey Blue was very cool to me. I kind of dig the country club yacht vibe. The view is cute. I think in the summer it will be a nice spot to check out. Every W kind of captures the vibe of the area they are in. So the W Buckhead is kind of the spin on the whole Buckhead Betty, Old Southern Mansion vibe.

Eating was a problem but drinking wasn’t. I do remember the pomegranate one vaguely. I like champagne though so that was my drink of choice. David and I were hungry so we dropped by Au Pied de Cochon and it was quite tasty. In Atlanta, there aren’t many dining choices around midnight, especially not like what you get at Au Pied. Our server was great and David, still in his New York state of mind, thought the price was a steal. I dropped him off at his own little mansion in Buckhead and headed home to prepare for bed.

Inauguration Day, Pt. 2

As the swearing in ended, people began to gather their things. I thought that I should really begin distributing key chains for my book. I was a little intimidated though. How could I compare to the Barack moment? I heard a gentleman speaking and just felt that he would appreciate African American History For Dummies. Boy did he!! Mr. Lewis Colson of Marygrove College in Detroit actually had a copy of the book in his bag and led me to the main viewing room to prove it was in his bag. He lifted the book before the crowd and announced me. I teared. Who would think? Through the announcement, I found Ivy K. Pendleton. Mr. Colson was there with 107 people so keeping up with him was difficult but we managed to exchange information before we got separated. I lost Ivy and Harold Whitfield, a behind-the-scenes film guy.

Out on the streets in the cold, amazingly my friend, DJ Blak Magic and I were able to connect via cell though I couldn’t get through to most people. We agreed to meet up at Union Station because we could easily find it. When I got there, there were thousands of people. I went to call Blak and he was standing right by me. Though it was cold, we scoped out Obama items, including Obama water and Obama hot sauce. There were many times we dipped into much warmer spots. Eventually we walked to where he was crashing on G Street and the house was full of interesting folks. That’s also where we watched a bit of the parade. Blak was hitting the road to head back South and I hitched a ride. We scooped by David’s, grabbed my things, got directions to Virginia where Joya and Leslie were, without getting lost or stuck in traffic.

Blak charged his laptop and he was off. I enjoyed a Chinese dinner with the ladies and Zachary. We watched Michelle and Barack dance and reviewed her fashion choices. The dress wasn’t a big hit with them but I must say I like it more and more as I see it. The daytime outfit was a bonafide crowd pleaser. No disagreements there. Zachary and Allison got to bed and so did we. Joya, Leslie and I were hitting the road at 3 a.m.

We actually managed that for real and we were on our way, whipping through states. In North Carolina, there had been a snow storm on Tuesday that we missed. As we rehashed our experiences, it was just amazing how smoothly it all went for each of us. They didn’t get stuck in the cold. Didn’t get claustrophobic on the mall. Even got seats on the Metro. Just fortunate.

Terrence wasn’t so fortunate. There was a change in his flight and he got stuck in the airport because it left at a different time. He got on a flight at noon and, ironically, arrived in Atlanta around the same time as we did. My car was at his house and Leslie was running off to class and dropped me off with Joya. Terrence scooped me but had to rush to work. During the ride, we caught up on each other’s experiences. His was slightly more frustrating but he was glad to go. He was glad that we all had such a smooth experience, especially given the last-minuteness of it all.

I was very happy that I went. Thanks again Terrence, Leslie, Joya, David, Blak!! Special shout-out to Stephanie Abdullah who actually worked the festivities serving our nation. She also attended the Commander-in-Chief’s Ball. We will have to revisit Ms. Abdullah one day who served in Iraq but still came to her adopted home of Los Angeles during that service and worked the red carpet of the BET Awards. Steph is living in two worlds for real–a soldier and a publicist. I was also happy to hear that my other old boss Roz Stevenson had such an awesome time. Let’s just pray he can spread that magic to the economy.

Inauguration Day, Pt. 1

Inauguration Day began a little sleepy for me. David had a plane to catch so he was up and out by 6 a.m. I was up about half an hour later because I had a story to finish before I could join the festivities.

As I wrote the story, I listened to Tom Joyner and it was intriguing. They weren’t holding back on how very cold it actually was. Since I knew that I was going to watch the Inauguration from the Rayburn House Building where John Conyers was sponsoring a viewing party I wasn’t too worried about the cold. That didn’t mean I didn’t have to dress warm. Freezing temps are no joke so I was very layered.

I sent my story off, took care of my business, bundled up and hit the streets. From the moment I walked out the door I was in Inauguration mode. There were literally five people right out the door on their way to stand in the cold. It was 9 am in the morning. As I felt my way up Constitution, asking the DC cops and ambassadors how to get to the Rayburn building, I took a few missteps but it was very invigorating to see DC. I’ve been there before but I never walked pass the Library of Congress, which supplied many of the photos in African American History For Dummies. Just taking in street names like Independence brought a smile to my face.

Once I arrived at the Rayburn building, I thought I might have trouble because I had my purse and a bag containing my book. I was relieved to go through security without incident. I guess I should mention that former Price Is Right beauty Claudia Jordan was also in the line, trying to figure out where she should be. I don’t know if she was covering the festivities but she looked very warm and camera-ready.

Inside, I actually went to John Conyers’ office, not realizing that the viewings were downstairs. Because it was in the House office building, I didn’t really expect us everyday folks to be in the midst but we were, which is fitting since our tax dollars do pay for the building. Detroit was definitely in the house and they came in all ages. Young, old, not so young, not so old. Minnesota had a nice set-up (huge TV screen, plenty of coffee and hot chocolate as well as breakfast food) and Danny Davis of my native Illinois was doing his part. At the end of the day, John Conyers issued the invite I received so I stuck with that. Not to say I didn’t bounce around but when showtime arrived I was with the Conyers group.

Okay I stood most of the time. It was amazing to me that there were people taking pictures of the television screen as if we were actually on the mall. A lady behind me was very animated. For the most part, we listened intently. There were some highs and lows. Barack’s speeech was a tremendous high, as was Joseph Lowery’s benediction. I just loved his inclusion of Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing in it, as well as his homage to Black folks in general. The ending didn’t bother me at all. Perhaps because it echoed the rhythm of Paul Laurence Dunbar, not to mention the direct link to Big Bill Broonzy’s blues song, “Get Back” whose lyrics include, ”If you was white/You’s alright/If you was brown/Stick around/But if you’s black, oh, brother/Get back, get back, get back.”

It was a Detroit crowd so Aretha Franklin could do no wrong. Folks need to leave her hat alone. Elizabeth Alexander didn’t fare so well. People started milling about. One guy actually asked another why he wasn’t moving around and he let him know that he was trying to hear the poem. To my pleasant surprise, Conyers’ team fed us lunch. It was delightful.

The Day Before

As you’ve read, I had no reason to believe that I would actually make it to DC but my friend Terrence changed all of that. He was already going. He’s really smart and got his ticket before Barack won. Thankfully for me his sister Leslie and their stepmom Joya decided to roll at the last minute.

It’s not often that three complete strangers bound by just one person can come together and drive 10 hours in harmony but that’s the power of Barack yall. No truly it was stimulating. Leslie is a mother, wife and math instructor pursuing a PhD. Joya is a newlywed who was once in corporate America. Looking for something new, she moved to Atlanta from California and ended up meeting her husband in her neighborhood. These two women were so on point. They are intelligent and compassionate. I was amazed at how respectful we all were of each other’s opinions. As we rolled from state to state, listening to music and chatting away, we could hardly contain our excitement. I doubt any of us had had sufficient sleep but adrenaline kept us up.

Just before 8pm, we reached Springfield, Virginia where Joya’s sister Allison lived with her son Zachary. Allison is another phenomenal woman. She is a real-life vet with her own practice plus she’s an amateur Martha Stewart. Truly I’ve never witnessed such organization. I didn’t stay with the ladies. I know how I am so my old boss/surrogate dad David was still in DC and he has an apartment near the Capitol, on Constitution. I figured I had a better chance of walking to the festivities than rising early and catching a train. I hate holding people up, really I do.

Getting to David was an adventure in itself. Allison was gracious enough to drop me off at the Springfield-Franconia Metro Station. It’s the beginning and end of the line. It was absolutely packed but manageable. I was delighted to receive my Barack Obama farecard. His picture was even on the paper farecards y’all. They had plastic ones you could order with his likeness as well. From there, I waited in the cold for the train and struck up a little banter with some young cats from California who were freezing. Cali jackets aren’t exactly coats meant for the East Coast. Oh they asked me to describe what frostbite was. Being from Chicago, I, unfortunately, know it all too well.

I had a train change to reach Union Station. While waiting to get on the red line I believe, I saw Michelle Falconer and her family and said “hi” but she didn’t recognize me. Oh how could I not mention that the first train even had a contemporary Abe Lincoln on it? It was just packed with folks that were headed into DC for the inauguration. Folks were all races, ages, shapes and sizes. My friend, DJ Black Magic, was right about just soaking in the atmosphere.

That euphoria didn’t spread to all though. I got off at Union Station, fully expecting to take a cab to David’s. The only problem is the cab driver, who was so on duty and had no passengers, looked straight in my face and decided to drive on by. The young Black female Metro employee or cop, can’t remember which one, was as stunned as I. In the bitter cold, I walked on. I didn’t bring my suitcase so I was relatively light. I figured let me go to a hotel and hail a cab. At the first hotel, the doorman got me a sedan that wanted to charge me roughly $20 or more dollars to go what I knew was only a few blocks. I ended up getting out and spotted the Hotel George. I had stayed there years ago and the gentlemen there were uber helpful. The first cab driver wasn’t quite sure where David’s place was and of course I couldn’t get him on the phone. Eventually I got him on the phone so he was there. My friend Ivy K. Pendleton had already told me that it was North something or another. I’ve forgotten just that quickly. I told Ivy I wanted to go to John Conyers viewing party as standing out in freezing weather with the Atlanta coat I had on was not going to make it. We planned to meet at, uh, 5am. I think it was about 11pm when we made plans but I’m not certain.

The cab ride was just a mere $5.50. I knew that my instincts had been right. One should expect to pay more for a sedan but really it was down the street. This man was expecting something closer to $30 to go a few blocks. By now David was fully home. We chatted a bit. Delighted to both be in DC. He was leaving the next day but had attended a few events and soaked up the Barackmosphere. I was to write a story due by 9am but I ended up crashing and had to get up early the next day, on I Day, to finish.

Sorry I Left You

Yes I have been wayward. I could give a zillion excuses but I won’t. It’s not that I haven’t been doing stuff. I checked out Kooza at Atlantic Station on January 2. Check out my tips at http://atlanta.metromix.com/events/article/ten-things-to-know/871319/content. I’ve attended friends and family day and the grand opening of Tin Lizzys, the former location of Six Feet Under in Grant Park which just moved next door. I’ve sipped drinks at The Palm, Luckies, Whiskey Park and Twist for a story I’m writing. I attended an advanced screening of Notorious. I liked the movie but it’s not the greatest thing ever to me. I, of course, invite you to share your comments of how you will watch the film again and again.

I was so sad when I began drafting this post over the weekend because I, the author of African American History For Dummies, was not in DC and there was no real hope of going.  That changed unexpectedly Sunday night. A dear friend, Terrence Harris, contacted me because his sister Leslie was heading to DC and needed someone else to roll with her and he thought of me. The plan was set at around 10pm Sunday night and we were on the road to DC Monday morning at 8am so my next posts are about my experience in DC. Please be forewarned that I didn’t do any parties or any VIP anythings. I was simply in the atmosphere and that, in itself, was invigorationg.

New Year’s Eve Lil Wayne Concert Pt. 4, Lil Wayne

After T-Pain, the set was stripped down. Metallic was the theme and, in many ways, it looked more like a rock set than a hip-hop one. Whereas T-Pain was over the top, literally considering his circus theme, Wayne, by comparison, was very minimalist. His musicians and DJ weren’t necessarily on the stage. Most of the time they were above Wayne’s head. Many times, they were hidden. Like a construction site, the DJ, who obviously admires Kid Capri, was lifted up and down the most out of the band. Projectors were used to create backdrops. Dancers were kept to a minimum and there was one main back-up singer, D. Woods’ sister Shanell. There was no denying that the spotlight belonged to Wayne.

Robb D. Cohen/ Robbsphotos.com

He burst on the stage backpacker style and just began to rip it. For most of the show, it was just him and a mic, like it should be. It was the ATL so he had guest appearances of course. He even incorporated his opening acts. Bobby Valentino was on hand for ”Ms. Officer” as was one-half of Playaz Circle, Tity Boi, for “Duffle Bag Boy,” which electrified the crowd. Wayne was so generous and performed “Lost” with Gorilla Zoe as well as “Turnin’ Me On” with Keri Hilson. Shawty Lo came on stage, as did Baby. I swear I saw Khaled earlier during T-Pain’s show.

Robb D. Cohen/Robbsphotos.com

I guess I should mention Wayne and Pain’s battle of 2008. In the end, it’s a tie cause, really, what would music in 2008 have been without either. I don’t know how well the T Wayne movement will be but it’s such a logical move you can’t be mad. The duo is mad comfortable with each other and they entertain. Me, personally, I’m with Nas on the “One Mic” tip ’cause really that’s all Wayne truly needed.

During one particular stretch of Wayne catching his breath and changing clothes (I must say I really enjoyed the tux with the locks out and the kicks, real hip-hop dapper), artists from his Young Money Entertainment label led by Mack Mane, who spent more time on stage with Wayne than any other performer, got a little shine.  They didn’t overstay their welcome though.

Of course the countdown, if you can’t guess, was so sick. Bringing in 2009 with hip-hop in the building was insane. Wayne was repping for keeps. I wondered why he shouted out Anderson Cooper but I learned later that Anderson showed the ”Lollipop” performance from Lil Wayne’s set during CNN’s NewYear’s Eve show. Dang, CNN recognizing that you’re on fire is so official. Throughout the night, I saw the camera but it was never distracting. Really it was hard to take eyes or ears off of Wayne.   

I know I sound like a diehard Wayne fan but not before this tour. I mean I’ve always loved him when he just straight spits cause the flow is just straight ridiculous and this “I Am Music” tour has just elevated him another notch. Yeah eight Grammy nods and platinum out the gate say a lot but, when you can have all that, and come out and rock a freaking arena like a cipher on your block, that’s really hood to me. It’s hip-hop, baby, and I ain’t mad at Wayne at all. Thank you for a truly memorable New Year’s.

2009 started off with such a bang. The show ended around 1 a.m. Jana dropped me off and called it a night. Me, I hit UPTOWN and caught up with my friends Kimanne Allena and Sonya Owens. Kenny Burns was on the mic from the VIP livingroom set urging folks to touch themselves. E-Class was spinning. I ran into photographer Donna Permell, event planner Eboni Bowman, comedian Griff, among others. I finally got a drink then. I got home at a reasonable hour and just crashed all day.

New Year’s Eve Lil Wayne Concert Pt. 3, T-Pain

After Keyshia, there was a break to put together T-Pain’s stage show. We all know he’s got the circus theme and it takes a minute to put together. He had a ballerina, some dancing kids or midgets (I wasn’t sure what they were). At some point he had the little Britney. He really had us going because we thought Britney was coming out. These days that’s not so outrageous, especially when you consider that Justin Timberlake is on the “Can’t Believe It” remix. Had I not seen mini-Britney on MTV, it may have been a bigger shock. I guess T-Pain and I were watching the same program. It was a crowd pleaser but I didn’t really care for it that much.

T-Pain, Philips Arena  Robb D. Cohen/Robbsphotos.com

I know T-Pain is very talented and I so respect that. It’s not like he was pushed very hard and his talent won out obviously. Like everyone else, I’m with the hooks for Plies, the buy you a drinks and “Chopped and Screwed” but, for me, his show could have been cut by 20 minutes. He actually did a mini-spot to showcase his skills beyond the autotunes, vocoder, talkbox or whatever it is. I’m old school, meaning that I remember Roger and Zapp, not to mention when Sounds of Blackness did a song with the whole vocoder, talkbox thing. I don’t quite remember Stevie Wonder running with that whole effect a lot but Stevie Wonder is so mega-talented that he can really do anything. I wish I didn’t look so jacked on the picture Stevie and I took last year, thanks to my friend LaTanya Marble who has the dream job of being Stevie’s publicist. She’s been to Oprah’s Montecito estate, South Africa and Japan with Mr. Wonderful, just to name a few. Yeah, some people have all the luck.

Back to T-Pain. I recently read an article where T-Pain was being credited as the innovator of this and how folks were ripping him off. Now I understand you can’t control other people not knowing but I feel artists should correct such ignorance. It doesn’t take away from T-Pain’s talent to acknowledge Roger Troutman. I was still working at Rap Pages when Roger Troutman was killed by his brother. We covered his death because he was a big part of the West Coast hip-hop sound. We knew what he meant to the area we were from and we paid homage to that.

For all I know T-Pain does do that. Maybe he never heard of Roger Troutman before he started doing his thing. I doubt that but hey it works for him. Jana really enjoyed his show and is willing to go scoop his album. I don’t mean to sound like I’m hating because I’m not. It’s America and there’s really something for everybody here. For me, I was just ready to get to Lil Wayne. But, maybe one day, I will talk to T-Pain myself and ask him the questions I want him to answer.

New Year’s Eve Lil Wayne Concert Pt. 2, Ms. Cole

Now Keyshia Cole was the reason I was even there. Thanks to Tresa at Interscope I was able to witness the evolution of Ms. Cole until I can get my interview of course. I know there are folks who won’t admit that they actually watch The Way It Is but I do keep myself in the loop. I watched it from the beginning and was really impressed the second season when she and her family got some counseling.

We don’t think we need help and to have someone like Keyshia Cole lead the way I’m sure has helped many. Also, Keyshia is like so many of us in that, even though she doesn’t have her career on lock and still has mountains to climb, the burden of supporting her family falls on her because she’s the most successful person in her family. What do you do? You can’t walk away. You just find a way to do it all. Her accountant told her that she needed to stop helping her family and she just can’t do that. Theoretically, it sounds easy and, boy, would life be easier but, as Keyshia shows, you can’t help but help. She’s learning, as we all should, to create boundaries. It’s just super hard one way or the other. I will reserve my comments about the third season and get back to Keyshia’s performance.

Robb D. Cohen/Robbsphotos.com

Did I say how fab she looked? It wasn’t like her trainer had much to do but dang. I definitely have to reach out to him because he’s doing a great job and needs to share his expertise beyond those quick clips. I read comments about people not liking Keyshia’s stage show because it was too Vegasey. I liked how she incorporated Broadway moves with Vegas and a little of the strip club. She looked classy and timeless with two of the three outfits she rocked. I can’t co-sign the Spanish flamenco wrap thing she had on that was black with silver lines filtered all through it, kind of like a flag of sorts. Her voice was cool though there were times when her sound was off. I didn’t know what that was about. Was someone at Philips hating? I loved how she used videos for her songs with rappers who obviously couldn’t join her on stage (Tupac, Kanye, Missy, Lil Kim). She introduced them and all.

Robb D. Cohen/Robbsphotos.com

Now her dancers were very good. There were two guys but they were more eye-candy. The two females were working it, especially the Asian chica. Folks were partying on “Let It Go,” so apropos whether it’s last week, New Year’s or the middle of the summer. I like upbeat Keyshia but she handled her ballads too but it was New Year’s Eve so energy was the order of the day and she kept it energetic for sure.

I remember interacting with Keyshia at the Vibe Awards in Los Angeles in 2005 and, my, how she continues to blossom before our eyes. I always knew she would mean something to us the day my friend Isoul Harris played her debut for me many years ago. I told him I didn’t know her crossover appeal but I knew she would make it with Black people because you could hear the pain in her voice. I didn’t know her story at all  that day but I’m glad to see that she has refused to be stuck in that pain and is doing all she can to be good to Keyshia so that she can be at her best, professionally and personally. We all can learn from that.

New Year’s Eve Lil Wayne Concert Pt. 1

Okay I promised two days ago I would be completely caught up and it didn’t happen. I’m working it out though. Finally I’m at New Year’s Eve. No big meal planned for the next day. My brother swore that he would go on a fast. Gosh darn. I knew it wouldn’t last long but it didn’t put a bump in the road.

Food, however, wasn’t on the agenda for me. I was waiting for Jana Hicks to get to my house. It’s no secret that I’m slow but when it comes to something absolutely going down I’m pretty punctual and can be that way at the drop of a hat. I know, go figure. All the time in the world and I take every minute of it. Little time, got to be somewhere, I’m watching the clock like Bond de-activating a bomb and not missing a minute.

No one believed me but I was ready to roll by 7:30. The show started at 8:30 and I was sure it would. We got in there slightly before 9 and missed Keri Hilson’s show so I can’t comment on that. Oh I guess I should say that we sat next to the AJC’s Sonia Murray, who if you know has covered Atlanta’s music scene for a minute, particularly when no one else in the world particularly cared. Unfortunately she missed Keri’s performance too so I have no feedback on Keri. As she and her dancers were finishing off ‘Turning Me On’, I did see that DJ Mars was her DJ so I got to shout him out.

Keri Hilson, DJ Mars   Robb D. Cohen/Robbsphotos.com

Gorilla Zoe  Robb D. Cohen/Robbsphotos.com

Next up was Gorilla Zoe and he rocked it. He absolutely did the most with the little time he had. I think he did three songs and the growing crowd was with him all the way. The show really began in earnest with Gym Class Heroes. I think my friend Jolon Martin first hipped me to them. Initially I confused them with The Cool Kids who are from the Midwest but there was no confusion about how good they are. Talk about presence and ability to connect. They were so polished. I definitely got an eye for them blowing up even more in 09. Loved them. I so wish they really were from the Midwest but I must say Geneva, New York hop and rock on!!!

Gym Class Heroes  Robb D. Cohen/Robbsphotos.com