SapphicSoul.com

Everyone knows I sings, and many people know I love women…if you didn’t, now you know. But, that’s all you really know about me. So this is your chance to get to know a little more about me outside of my music. I’m going to share with you 9 random opinions I have about life, politics, pop culture, and anything else I can think of. Wanna know more about me? Take note:

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1. Barack Obama is not the savior of the Black race, or the U.S.A. Sure, if he becomes president, it’ll mark a step in a positive direction, but let’s look at what New York City did to David Dinkins; he had so many great ideas that he could not impliment because the city (i.e. the NYPD and the FDNY) did not support him, so they ran him out. There are countless other examples (Former D.C. Mayor Marion Barry comes to mind…), but I have 8 other opinions to point out.

2. I won’t vote until my ballot REALLY counts. In 2000, Al Gore won the popular vote, but for some reason a little panel called the electoral college voted George Walker Bush into office. Aren’t they supposed to represent our voice? We said one thing, and they went in the opposite direction. Hope they’re kicking themselves right now.

3. Republicans flip flop just as much as any other party. Case and point, this video:

…need I say more, ladies and gentlemen?

4. Ice T saying that Soulja Boy “single-handedly killed Hip Hop” is a bit over the top. I mean, I’m not a fan of him by any means, and the Superman is a dumb dance, but Soulja Boy brings the element of “fun” and “dancing” back into Hip Hop and music, and that’s cool with me. His rhymes are wack, but getting people to dance in the club once again is great for the culture.

5. Hip Hop is not dead, but the music industry certainly is sucking the life out of it! How many non-talented, wannabe thug rappers/jiggaboos with no true sense of Hip Hop history do we really need? There is a fair amount of great MCs out there who can really revive the Hip Hop music industry, and they’re not all clean cut or politically correct. Who? Well, let’s see…Pumpkinhead, Immortal Technique (he will rip you apart!!), Wordsworth, Substantial (plug!), Session (a very dirty MC), PackFM, Tonedeff (the best flow in Hip Hop. Period!), and countless others can do more than keep Hip Hop alive and kicking, so stop worrying about how much money you can suck out of these acts via ringtones and really, really give them a chance!

6. Ethanol needs to become the new gas of choice for cars, like RIGHT NOW! Even one of the richest oil tycoons in Texas agrees (I’m sure it’s something else for him to capitalize on, but hey…)! There are 42 states in the U.S. that grow corn, more than enough to sustain us and the economy for a looong time-so, ummm, what’s th holdup…? Someone please explain it to me.

7. If the Jews can get reparations, then dammit, so can we! 23 trillion isn’t too much to ask, is it? I mean, this country killed over a 100 million Africans and other people of color during the last 500 years, and continues to infect our children, so 23 trillion is simply a drop in the bucket compared to the blood you’ve spilled…but, that’s just me.

8. Church and state should remain separated. Not everyone in this country is a Christian, at least the last time I checked. And please get your facts straight: Pilgrims came to this country to escape religious persecution and practice any religion they chose freely. I believe a relationship with God, or The Most High, is personal. We have Atheists and even Satanists living in this country, and as long as they’re not harming anyone (like some of you pro-Life activists like to), allow them to be who they are; it’s really none of your business. Gays and lesbians are included in this.

9. Marriage is not solely a Christian institution. Frankly, I think the process of getting married in this country is ridiculous. You need a marriage license to get hitched…what??? A lifelong relationship is sacred and nothing on a piece of paper, or anyone outside of that relationship, should define that.

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This is merely a tiny bit of who I am-I can’t apologize if it offended you.

Yeah, I know you were home watching the Boston Celtics stick their foot in the Los Angeles Lakers’ ass for the last time to win the championship, but you could’ve watched the game AND witness Nhojj, Tyran Gem, and myself, awe the crowd all at once! It only would’ve added more excitement to your day (if you were rooting for Boston, that is…GO BOSTON!).

What I’m saying is…it was more than a great night; it was a phenomonal night!!

The small, intimate space that is Billie’s Black could not contain the soulful voices that reverberated from it. Everyone that came through in support of Queer Black Cinema left with smiles on their faces…well…the food helped, also. Def Poetry Jam artist ButtaFly Soul, who acted as host for the evening, kicked it off with some good ol’ spoken word, then the multi-talented artist serenaded the audience with a song you may be familiar with; it goes something like, “Summertime, and the livin’s easy…” Fill in the blanks, I ain’t writin’ the rest.

Next up was Tyran Gem, who wooed everyone with his smooth, church-bred vocals. Although he only performed two songs, they were both songs that could easily hang in your mind for a while. My personal favorite was the last song, “Not Ready”, which is a conversation between he and his love, and how the latter is not ready to be in a realtionship. Hot song…truly!

I was next up to rock the mic, and according the crowd response, rock it, I did. I opened with “Fairy Tales (The R.I.T.S. Remix)” which features Substantial, but since he wasn’t able to be there I had to spit his verse on his behalf; I think Stan would be proud.

If you haven’t heard the song, or Substan’s vicious verse, click here.

Next, I did a song called “Paradise (Take Me Away)”, which is one of my more concious songs. I wrote it around the time of Johnnie Cochran’s death, and one of my first thoughts was, “Wow, we’re losing so many of our pioneers. Is this generation going to carry the torch onward?” It’s up to all of us to make this world a better place, and pushing any kind of hatred, whether it be racial, gender-related, sexual orientation-related, etc., is morally indecent, and is a ultimate disservice to humanity. But, that’s what the song touches on. Be sure to look for it on my upcoming EP, Fulfillment, coming soon in 2008!

Finally, I performed the crowd favorite, and my own personal favorite, “Lovestruck”. What’s great about this song (and I’ve told this story a million and one times) is that I started writing and composing it at age 11; it was the second song I ever wrote. It’s simply written, but the melody and emotion contained is all its own; what it possesses is extremely difficult to come by. Again, if you want to hear it, go to my MySpace profile.

In all, it was a nice performance. I definitely gained some new friends/fans that night.

Last, but certainly not least was the headliner, Nhojj. I’d never seen him perform live, and I had never met him formally-we’d regularly shoot each other comments on MySpace. But, man…what an introduction. The man certainly held his own. If you’ve ever seen Nhojj perform, you know it’s an event. His breath control is out of this world, and his voice is fluffy, soothing, and amazingly angelic. He performed five songs for the QBC audience, and they ate them up…including me. I was hooked.

Here’s a taste of what Nhojj did at the QBC Benefit:

I hope this clip makes you feel bad…you missed it, chump!

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On top of the top-notch peformances, the food was delicious! We also viewed previews of upcoming shows and short films, including the sitcom, The DL Chronicles; I, personally, would like to see that show.

In the end, founder and CEO Angel Brown put a great fundraiser together. I met some great folks, and I hope to see them again soon. Thank you, Queer Black Cinema, for once again, inviting me to your benefit…and thank you for the champagne (I haven’t opened yet; I’m going to save it for an appropriate occasion)! Thanks to everyone who came out and supported that evening, not only with your donations, but with your presence as well.

And thanks, once again, to the Boston Celtics for shutting cry baby Kobe and his cronies up for good! We finished in just enough time to see the second half of the game. Hee hee!

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Wanna see more photos? Go to my Photos page.

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More on these artists:

Nhojj

Tyran Gem

ButtaFly Soul