My One Night Stand With Trey Songz....

This past Tuesday I went to the Highline Ballroom to see Trey Songz perform for his album release concert. Although I've never bought one of his cd's for the first time I was definitely paying attention to him. I'd gotten a hold of his free mixtape "Anticipation" some time ago and loved every minute of it. If you haven't heard yourself it's definitely worth a quick search on the internet to find the free download.

I've never been to the Highline which is located downtown on 16th Street. It sits, awkwardly, next to a Western Beef grocery store. The venue is small but honestly there isn't a bad seat in the house which worked out well for me since I arrived much later than I'd initially planned and the line was wrapped around the corner by the time I did show. Of course, by then, it was virtually impossible to get to the front of the stage. DJ Self dj'd the event and if his set was any indication of what the rest of the show would be like I figured I was in for a big treat. Unfortunately, I was wrong. But first something else about DJ Self - I'd definitely go to any party where he's spinning. He's funny, entertaining and like I said he can put a set together that keeps the dancefloor packed, but I digress. .

Now back to Trey... I think I should, at least, preface all of what I'm about to say with "I'm certain that every thing was not 100% in his hands. Therefore, adequate blame must also be placed on the likes of his band, manager and the sound egineer who occupied the booth." I say this because DJ Self's set sounded perfect - Trey's, not so much. Here I was thinking I was about to hear and see the mastermind behind "Anticipation", someone who I felt had the sustinct possibility of bringing r&b/soul music back to where it belongs - sure underneath all soul songs are about love and sex generally speaking but the greats like Teddy Pendergrass, Marvin Gaye and Luther sing it with such tenderness and clever yet simple word play that it lasts through time. And I thought I'd found my guy...you can only imagine how suprised I was when a total stranger showed up in his place.

When he first hit the stage I could tell immediately that something was wrong with the sound...it seemed somehow muffled and muted, even with the band playing live fifteen feet in front of me. Didn't they have a sound check? Couldn't they hear it too? If they did they kept right on playing, pretending everything was fine. Trey Songz comes out looking cute enough. Donned in mostly black (slacks, shirt and jacket) he immediately goes into the intro to one of his songs but its all off. The tone, the band playing under water,his mic being too low...nothing meshed. I immediately wished he had back up singers. Now mind you the ladies up front are still screaming there heads off. I see a couple of people looking round like WTF but for the most part the audience was in it with him.

From every obviously contrived hand rubbing his jaw and chest to the even more comspicuous shouting of "It's getting hot in here!" while unbuttoning his shirt, **insert screams**, Yes they were feeding right into it - screaming louder than the muffled band at times. I wound up being totally distracted from Trey when the drummer and piano guy finally figured out how bad things were and trying, witout success, to straiten it out. If it weren't for the two shots of Patron and the Carona I had I might've gave up halfway through the set and left but I braved it out for the conclusion. I mean I did pay $30 bucks for this. Around this time I realized that Mary J Blige is sitting in the balcony watching as well. Yall know how Mary do. Sitting all cool behind dark shades. She wasn't dancing though. Not at all from what I saw.

Anyways, he did sing a wide selection of songs. He did a couple old joints I'd never heard of before getting into his older radio hits and of course you can't help but sing along at times. You cant deny it, he does have some hot joints under his belt. He also did some songs off the new album "Ready" and his mixtape "Anticipation". In the end I just couldn't get pass the horrible sound system and the wack, over exaggerated show that Trey put on. I felt like his heart wasn't in it. He looked like he'd done and said those exact same things at every show since he started this tour. He seemed to be simply going through the motions, not really connecting to the us, the audience, at all.

I laughed out loud when towards the very end, in true cheesey fashion, Trey balls up his sweat soaked long sleeve button-down and holds it high into the air. The sweaty ladies go wild!! Some are already jumping as if that'll give them a head start. "Whoever gets this has to sleep in this tonight!" he says, "So who wants it?!" Now, is it me or is that just nasty! I'm sorry but that's some "repugnant sh*t?" (c) Ordell Robbie - Jackie Brown.

Exuse me. Your telling me that you want me to put your sweaty rags on my freshly showered body and then lay in my clean and comfortable bed...and sleep....really? I mean who comes up with this stuff?! It was too much. Yet I couldn't turn away until I watched him toss it into the audience where, I'm sure, it was litterally ripped to shreads. Or so I presume....I honestly didn't stay long enough to witness the aftermath. I didn't have the heart. I didn't buy the cd either. They were selling them in the lobby for $15 when they know perfectly well you can get them for $9.99 at Bestbuy. *smh*

I left through the exit doors feeling cheated. All I wanted was to see the sexy, confident, R&B ladies man with so much potential that I'd imagined "Trey Songz" to be when in actuality he simply tried his best to pretend to be. The point is that I was highly dissapointed in an artist that I believe has extraodinary capabilities to be so much more. Please get your act together baby bro and tighten up your team, your only as good as those who surround you.

And My Weekend Begins...

This weekend started with the BET's Rising Icons taping with Ryan Leslie at the CBS Studios in the city. I was never a huge fan of his but I liked the few singles they've played on the radio (i.e. Diamond Girl, Addiction) so when I had the opportunity to hit up the taping I thought "why not?"

Of course it being a BET production they weren't prepared or professional but I guess to be honest with myself I new it wouldn't be. They told us to get there just before nine pm and that Ryan would be on at ten. Of course he didn't come on til 11:30pm but at least they tried to keep us preoccupied in the casting room with free sandwiches and non -alcholic drinks (yea, I know). They also asked random questions about BET's rising icons and offered up shitty gift bags if you answered correctly. I actually won one and found a "The Wire" t-shirt, a scully, a hat, a couple cd's of artists I've never heard of and and old ass Kelly Rowland dvd. If it weren't for the fact that I'd met a couple of people who weren't only cool and good looking but also intelligent enough to hold a decent conversation I probably would have left after the first hour passed.

Once they let us into the room where the show would actually take place things pepped up considerably. They proceeded to strategically place us where they wanted us to go but me and a new found friend (who had been there since 5pm) made a b-line for the white sofas. An audience coordinator asked to place me in front of the stage but then realized I was dressed too casual. I was glad to stay on the sofa. The veiw couldn't have been better.

For the most part it's not a show it's a television production so the artist only performs four songs, though he sings them all twice and they have us clap randomly as to get shots for editing purposes I presume. I can say Ryan Leslie has an abundance of energy that clearly radiates out into the audience. He's thinner than I expected but his swagger is multi-demensional and he's pretty funny. I can tell he loves what he's doing and watching him in process is quite entertaining. I'll definitely check for him in the future and watch his career with a curt eye.

We were leaving by 1am and so I texted my homey Village to see if he could get me into club Mansion (M2) since he throws a party there every Friday night. He told me to come through and I partied there until four in the morning. The crowd was just a tad bit ghetto, but the dj was aight and after a few drinks I didn't notice. Of course it was pouring by the time we left and I'd parked a block away so rather than run to my car and risk breaking my neck running in four inch heels I decided it would be smarter to simply walk. Of course I was drenched when I reached it but at least I had my good old Wire t-shirt from my BET gift bag to dry off with.

All in all the night was cool enough. Nothing too crazy happening either way and just tipsy enough to fall instantly into a deep sleep afterwards. Who could ask for more.

From My Lips To God's Ears

Today it's cold and raining but after two days of absolutely gorgeous weather I can't complain. I went to the dentist this morning, after missing my last appoinment last month, only to find out that they don't except my current insurance. The funny thing, though, is that I asked them if they accepted my insurance when I made the appoinment and the young lady who asnwered the phone said yes. Unfortunately for me, she didn't bother to tell me which of the selected branches of said insurance that they accept specifically. I wasn't too mad since the visit gave me the opportunity to leave the house this morning and there's something about watching people hurry to and fro in the early morning streets of New York City. That being said, I'm glad i'm back at home watching the rain fall from my living room windows.



Yesterday a very good friend of mine had a party to observe the canabis holiday of 420. I showed up around three with a twelve pack of Coronas and Pilsbury cookies. So many old faces that I hadn't seen in ages showed up. It's always a good time at Corren's and yesterday was no different. I do wish I would've gone back after I left though. Ahhhh, just as well...



On Saturday I went to an NYU continuing education information session that was less painful and more insightful than I thought it would be. And I must say after going through it I feel like the admission process is a lot less intimidating. That's not to say it's easy but still...

What I wanna be when I grow up...

I've been accepted back to school and I'm feeling pretty randy about the idea of going back, though it's forcing me in the interim weeks of figuring out exactly what it is that I want to do with/for the rest of my life. That's some pretty heavy shit to contemplate on and much more difficult to answer than expected. From day to day my interests point me in so many directions that one moment I want to be in music, the next marketing, the next an actor. You can see how the task of pinning down one specific career path can be. That being said, when I'm confronted with the same question posed to me when I was a young girl, If it weren't for money, what would you do? It's a powerful thought! For they say when your work is what you would gladly do for free, then it's really not working at all and one part of life's mystery is solved for you. Bam! Just like that. And so my journey begins. I know exactly what I would do if money weren't a factor. I would be a writer...of books, and poetry, screen plays and editorials. Perhaps be the editor of a great magazine. And so I work from there. From a crazy idea filled room that I, in some kind of way, must find a way to the beauty in my mind.

Things are pretty much going how they've been going for the last few months. Seemingly since the holidays the job search has slowed down considerably. I think it's time for me to revamp the resume, make the recruiter rounds and kick up some dust. With all this stimulus talk I'm figuring I should be doing some stimulating of my own.

That being said I'm actually doing fine. I should be writing more but other than that I'm feeling optimistic about life in general. Last weekend a friend of mine invited me to club Runway for the opening night of his weekly "Blame it on the Goose" Sunday night party with Ryan Leslie which was a lot more entertaining than I'd initially thought it would be. Not that my friend can't throw a hot party, he most definitely can but since I've been going out for a while now it gets pretty old, pretty fast.

Long story short....cute club, sorta ran down but not enough to call it a dump. Sound system was ok, I've heard better and I've definitely heard worse. Ryan sounded just like his record. Still not sure if I'd want to see him live but from what I saw in person and what his interviews I heard on the radio he seems personable enough. Not sure if I'll be making a habit out of attending every Sunday but I wish Vill all the best with this new endeavor. Maybe next time I'll take pictures.

And lastly, anyone else annoyed at all of this anti-stimulus talk. They don't like it but they want that money tho!

*shakes head*