Saturday night I was one in a seven artist line up in a Haiti benefit concert. The concert was hosted by ADRA, one of the leading non-profits to send teams of people to Port au Prince right after the earthquakes. There were video clips, pictures, and some of the other artists had spent a lot of time writing original music for the show. It was pretty rockin. I think my favorite part was the sound guy. With mass performers all flooding the same stage with “diva demands” it’s almost impossible to get a sound guy who can meet everyone’s needs. But he totally rocked it! Thanks sound guy, you’re my favorite… I saw someone with a video camera on me during my set. If I can get a clip of the night I will. Holler!
I think that in the fight for the lift on the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, civilian-America kind of has a creed just like it. I have a friend who upon coming out was startled to discover that nobody had an original thought about him being gay prior to him coming out. They thought he was happy single, or just growing into himself. Anything but giving him the courtesy of assuming he wasn’t interested in women. Because who would want to be gay, right? I shake my head at the thinking but when it comes to the ways of the queers we’d rather not think about it. America would rather it be the last possible option. “I’ll love my friends who are like that but I don’t ever want to hear about their queer business,” seems to be the common thought. So I ask the question, is America’s silence to the LGBT culture an injustice? Continue reading →
I recently interviewed a friend of mine for an article I’m (knock on wood) writing for Relevant magazine. His name is Victor Latimer and when I asked him about how his career started the story he delivered seemed to be sprinkled with fairy dust. Victor was originally headed towards a degree in law, but after randomly meeting a guy on his college campus and letting one thing lead to anther, Victor Latimer was discovered.
Every Indie artist has dreamed it. From coffee shops and open mics to sitting desperately in front of an instrument pounding out the tune to whatever song is on our hearts, we’ve wanted to be just like Victor. He toured with big names like Brian McKnight, Lincoln Park, and Diddy (back when he was known as Puff Daddy). Victor Latimer had it all. When one tour or contract would end another would always pick up. But one thing he did tell me though was that with all the quick money to be earned in the business, there was very little room for the consideration of passion, artistry, and craft. And so to stand up for what he believed in, he quit. Continue reading →
February 28, 2010 – 12:35 pm
When I was a kid I fondly remember my social studies class. They called it social studies but it was really history for milddle-schoolers. The difference between social studies and history class was that the historical narrative was a bit more fluff than fact. I remember all those stories of men and women who had gotten tired of their governments constantly ignoring their rights in order to promote a more press worthy agenda. People rallied and rioted and stuck up for what they believed in. Today we have issues with health care, insurance and credit card companies after our wallets, and education costs that keep the best of us paying school fees into retirement age. It’s crazy… but why aren’t we doing anything about it? Where are the history book heroes to step in and save the day? Whose going to tell me what to think so that this constant barrage of my freedoms doesn’t feel so painful? What happened to the buffer between everyday American living and the harsh realities that only third world countries have to live? Continue reading →
February 25, 2010 – 9:35 pm
My heart is a wire
From which tiny questions are hung
A lot o blood pumping through
My heart is a wire
I pick up the receiver
And answer, “oh how do you do”
My heart is a wire
From which tiny answers are hung
A little blood makes it through
My heart is a wire
I lay down the receiver
See, everyone’s calling but you
January 27, 2010 – 10:26 am
In this recession it feels like all of America is frozen. I don’t know if we are like the Haitians, waiting helplessly between the birthing pains for the next tremor to shake our world, or if we are actually sifting around, gathering our positions to tug hard and lift America to its feet once the time is right. I really hope that we are waiting for something good though.
When we look at economic downturns in the past, huge conglomerates fell and large companies lost their corner pocket monopolies on the market. People were fired, college graduates were left to mill about aimlessly snatching up minimum waged jobs. Still some invented their own means of financial support separate from the degrees they’d earned in school. Continue reading →
