Bjork at Shoreline: The Pleasure Is All Ours

Fantastic show, esoecially for hardcore Bjork fans. The focus was on intense, pulsating electronic balladry and Bjork's powerful, emotive voice. The material was primarily less accessible but superb songs from "Homogenic," "Vespertine," et al, interspersed with the excellent new "Volta" material, opening with a chugging "Earth Intruders." Lots of colorful characters in the audience and plenty of flava, too! Classic dance hitmaker Bjork didn't appear until the final few numbers, with a smoking "Army of Me" and the always undeniable "Hyperballad," my all-time favorite and evidently loved by many in attendance. The accompaniment and backing choir were flawless and the final encore of the incendiary "Declare Independence" sent us out into the chilled night with a roar. We needed the extra energy to deal with the Shoreline's horrific parking lot and its lack of a cohesive way out. One day they will have as many people guiding you out of the lot as they do showing you where to park.

Singing "evilshallowassways" at Laney

So this past Tuesday my voice teacher, Lucy Kinchen, announced to our class of 60 or so voice students that she had some very talented class members that she wanted to impose upon to perform for the class. To my surprise, she began speaking about me, telling the class that I had a CD out and that I was a real poet and had my own style of singing and music and she wanted me to do one of my songs for the class. She also said my songs had strong messages that needed to be heard. I was so flattered. After class I asked her which song she wanted me to do, and I had surprise number two. She wanted me to do "evilshallowassways." This was unexpected because Ms. Kinchen leads a gospel chorale specializing in Negro spirituals and I just never thought that would be a song she liked but she said she loves it, so I agreed to do it.

Returning home, I searched through stacks of tracks and found a CD copy of the backing track for the song and began practicing it. Immediately I remembered what a challenge that song was. First, it is sung in a lower register than is normal for me. Second, it is all vocals over a dancey trancey beat and there is barely time to breathe throughout. I tried out different hand gestures and body movements for the performance and was satisfied that I was ready.

I called my producer and co-writer, Skarlo Paine, and he met me at Laney College on Thursday morning. When it came time for performance, Ms. Kinchen again big upped me and my project, saying the music was very avant garde with a lot of heart and passion. I felt ten feet tall hearing those complementary words from one of the most influential people in my entire life. We put the CD in the ancient CD player, went to Track 3 and the track began to play...and it skipped the intro and went straight past where I would begin to sing! We tried again, same thing. Someone in the class yelled out, "Hey, better late than never!" Of course they got jokes.

I introduced Skarlo in the audience and I just began singing right where the track was and the class wasn't ready for the inyourfaceness of the song but they were either smiling and nodding their heads or their mouths were hanging open. Not what many expected, no doubt, and my voice wasn't where I wanted it to be, but I just hung in, got into the song and the beat and the message and soared. It was nerve-wracking and fun at the same time. As I got to the final chorus repeat before the fade-out, the track stopped and went right into the next song. The class began clapping, someone shouted, "Now tell us how you really feel!" and I ended. I don't know who was more relieved, me or the class, but I did note Lucy Kinchen's facial expression. She was very proud and happy. That is good enough for me.

It was a great experience because I showed up and did it. Maybe everything didn't go perfectly, but I still sang my song, an authentic representation of who I am and I love the song. I am so honored that Ms. Kinchen asked me to perform it and I'm ecstatic that she likes my work enough to promote it in this way and give me a wonderful opportunity to bring it to an audience. And it definitely is what it is...

"The Hip Hop Project" A Superb Documentary That Really Touches A Chord

The reviews were good. The premise was interesting: following a group of teenagers making a hip hop album and changing their lives, hopefully not "Fame" or "Let's Put On A Show Kids" for the new millenium. I love hip hop. So we made our way to the Emery Bay Theatres after a delicious and judiciously paced dim sum at Old Place on Grand Avenue in Oakland. But when I walked into the stadium styled movie house and discovered I was the only one there five minutes before showtime, I had to wonder. "Oh yeah," I thought, "We'll have a private screening!" A handful more patrons straggled in as the previews ran.

Then "The Hip Hop Project" began, and within minutes audience size and any other considerations were swept away by the sheer power of this superb documentary and the stories of the young artists it chronicles. The main protagonist is Bahamian-born Kazi, abandoned twice by his mother, homeless through much of his teenage years and rescued by a publicly funded arts school and mentoring by rap legend, Doug E. Fresh. Kazi overcomes his prodigious life obstacles and goes on to head up an arts school Hip Hop Project in New York City, with the goal of corralling talented teenagers and not only helping them get started in the music business, but teaching them integrity, ethics and compassion along the way. Lofty goals, and it is to Kazi's credit that he succeeds admirably with the two main youngsters profiled here, Cannon and Princess.

Cannon's mother has recently died of complications from multiple sclerosis and Princess has endured an abortion that has left her torn and troubled as well as the incarceration of her father on drug charges. Kazi helps them to put their pain in their music and transcend the drugs, hos, cars and money cliches rampant in today's gangsta dominated hip hop and the results are thrilling. The journey from establishing the school through the individual triumphs and growth is riveting, and none as much as Kazi's own courageous self-confrontation when he reconnects with the mother who threw him away and makes an honest effort to begin a new relationship, as well as his struggle to establish his own artistic identity and his budding romance with a stunning and smart music industry mover.

Bruce Willis and Russell Simmons make appearances supporting the project, and there is a fundraiser at an uptown party full of gay men and society women that ended up being surprisingly sweet. I found myself identifying strongly with all three main artists as they pursued their dreams, creating music that honestly reflects what they are going through and following their vision through to a finished product. I was moved to tears at several points in this amazing film and felt very connected to what was going on by dint of the fact that I have just recently completed a similar journey with my own CD.

As we left the theatre, I turned to Skarlo Paine and said, "Makes you wanna set up the recording equipment again and get busy, doesn't it?" He agreed, adding that I had just put out my record. His came out in 2005. But I can still write towards it!