September 17, 2010

Grooves

Tamar Kali’s “Black Bottom”

tamarkali

Dang, I missed you! I hope y’all missed yourselves some Hotness. It’s been a very interesting time. Got hacked, but I’m back. Instead of starting off by venting, lamenting, celebrating and reliving the last six weeks, I thought I’d do what I usually do when jump-starting relationships, I talk about music– the communal salve that connects and instantly brings us all back to the middle again. While experiencing both online and offline challenges and revelations, Read more...

July 26, 2010

Grooves, Real Talk

Being A Bad Girl: Badu vs. Minaj (Part 2)

Nicki_vibe

Bad girls make art that comes out of experience and not style. -Linda Goode Bryant

Have you seen the June/ July 2010 issue of VIBE magazine? It’s a double cover featuring Nicki Minaj and Erykah Badu. Both ladies are adorned in body paint. For Erykah it’s the kind inspired by the Indian henna work often seen on Hindu brides-to-be. Nicki’s body paint is more cartoonish than culturally based. Her entire upper body– ta-tas and all, Read more...

July 17, 2010

Grooves

Kimberly Nichole’s Yellow Brick Journey

Kimberly-Nichole

Earlier this week I was reading the latest issue of Elle magazine with Rihanna on the cover and was totally struck by her style, stance and sound. She’s got flavor for days, problem is, when it comes to her vocal ability she kinda comes up short. I sat back and imagined how awesome it would be if Riri could really sing. Then on Thursday I popped in a CD by a singer named Kimberly Nichole Read more...

July 15, 2010

Grooves, Real Talk

Being A Bad Girl: Nicki Minaj (Part1)

NickiMinaj

You know the state of hip hop is really in trouble when a rapper who has yet to drop her own record AND who lip-synchs her live performances wins a BET Award for Best Female Hip-Hop Artist. I was out of the country on vacation, but got back just in time to see Chris Brown boo-hoo his way to redemption and see Nicki Minaj proclaim she’s “fighting for women.” Ugh! Fighting? For me? Homegirl flashed Read more...

June 9, 2010

Grooves, Real Talk

From Bootylicious to Bionic

erykah_robot
christina_thtnss

What’s up with all these ladies morphing (at least on their album covers) into super sci-fi singers? Just as many women, particularly Black women, we’re beginning to let go of living up to this mythic Superwoman hero of a Mother, Wife, Working Girl, Sista-Friend, it seems like Erykah Badu, Janet Jackson, Janelle Monae, and Christina Aguilera have all shed their hot pants to become super beings ready to take over the music industry and yeah, Read more...

April 16, 2010

Grooves

Meshell Ndegeocello @Joe’s Pub

meshell-cazell

I keeps me some Meshell Ndegeocello music on play at my house. The way she uses religious metaphor and political commentary and weaves it into this radical, seductive swirl of melody, bass and lyric always blows my skirt up and wig back. I really like her music and I like her. Like so many Virgos she’s laid back, outspoken and she wears her heart on her sleeve. Last Friday I went to see Meshell, personally Read more...

April 11, 2010

Grooves

Janelle Monae @Highline Ballroom

Janelle_performing
On Thursday night I was shown some extraordinary birthday love and treated to dinner and a VIP-pass to see Janelle Monae’s show at the Highline Ballroom. This was only my second time seeing the Wondaland phenom, and so I was revved up especially since I had already heard most of her upcoming album– The ArchAndroid, which I think is blazing like a Drew Barrymore double-crosser in Fire Starter. If Erykah is the ultimate Read more...

March 30, 2010

Grooves

Erykah Badu’s “Window Seat” Video

05_Flatbed_2 - MARCH
Late Saturday night while waiting for Erykah Badu, who’s known as @fatbellybella on Twitter, to hit the stage at Good Units, I began tweeting and looking for updates. There were a flurry of messages about her new video for “Window Seat.” Vulnerable. Intimate. Provocative. Butt-naked were tweeted and retweeted. I gotta admit the butt-naked part threw me off. Was the video a mile-high romp with her baby daddy, Jaye Electronica, all while sitting Read more...

March 26, 2010

Grooves

Nina Simone Tribute @Harlem Stage

nina_tut

Tonight at Harlem Stage, the Black Rock Coalition Orchestra presents one of their most captivating incarnations– their all-female tribute to the inimitable Nina Simone. I saw this tribute at the Schomburg and like The High Priestess of Soul herself, it was brazenly exhilarating. It was unmitigated Blackness! The 18-piece ensemble, which also performed in France is directed by Tamar-kali and features Imani Uzuri, Joi, Lisala Beatty, Latasha Natasha Nevada Diggs, Angela Johnson, Toli Nameless, Read more...

March 22, 2010

Best Of, Grooves

GROOVES: Esthero’s “Black Mermaid”

I met Esthero 10 years ago. We were both at a professional crossroads. Do we go left, right or do we stay? Unsure, I stayed. Esthero or Lil Dukes Up as she is affectionately known was a brave bird even back then and took a leap, giving the finger all the while flying through the air. From that moment on I wanted to be just like her.

It was late summer 2000 and the best Read more...