Over the past few weeks I’ve had fairly recently released albums for my weekly selection. This week I’ve decided to go back to my favorite time of music, ’93-’97, with Erykah Badu’s debut album Baduizm. It seemed like the choice was calling me, she’s been floating around in my head recently because I’m finalizing DJ Dummy to spin her concert after-party in Dallas during NBA-All Star weekend. Also I’ve been in a creative rut, since I’ve been back from Florida and needed something mellow, but would tickle my brain. What could do that? What would make go On and Onto the Otherside of the Game, make me want to climb an Apple Tree while rockin’ an Afro, and make feel like I’ve traveled to my Next Lifetime, where there are 4 Leaf Clovers and no Drama? Certainly, Ms. Badu…well Sometimes. Her or I got some crazy PCP from the sounds of it. (click any of the Baduizm links to see why I said all that =0) )
Anyway…Baduizm will be my creative remedy for the rest of the week!
I started week 3 in Florida and ended it back in good ‘ol NYC. I’ll start by saying please forgive Sunday’s outfit, it was my 1st day back, and the weather was crap, so I only left the house to do laundry, and I’ll leave it at. (hahaha that kind of rhymed) Anyway, I just had to put that disclaimer out there…i love that shirt, i think its hilarious, but wearing it out seems like I’m trying to advertise.
Although it wasn’t particularly hot in Florida, I decided to make use of the sunshine and hang out with my mom’s new cows. I was happy with quite a number of the shots; you can’t go wrong with natural light. My favorite image is Friday, it was a breezy afternoon, and I love how the scarf and dress swayed in the wind; my favorite outfit though is Tuesday. Probably anytime I wear that dress it will win my outfit vote, it’s my go-to casual dress! It was a great find from my good friends at Loveday 31, an awesome vintage shop in Astoria. Monday almost won, because I think it’s the closest mesh of my style (although i don’t feel i have or should have to have a particular one), but as I said, I love that dress. What are some of your thoughts?
*** oh and actually click on the pictures or links, I find that the colors are a bit more accurate and less compressed than what’s embedded in the blog.
Here is Sade’s new video from her upcoming album of the same name, Soldier of Love, which comes out February 9th. Sade pretty much can do no wrong in my book, but as per her usual, her video is pretty boring and cheesy. It’s a 90s video with a shoe shine, not even gloss. But for someone who will be 51 in three days, can you really fault her? She looks absolutely stunning even though, someone should have told her that a silver sequins jumpsuit isn’t exactly in…not sure if it ever was.
Regardless, I can not wait to hear the album and I hope she decides to tour. I was able to see Sade perform on her Lover’s Rock tour; it’s my second favorite show of all time.
Oh, the label is on a big no embedding kick, so by the time you read this, you’ll probably have to watch the video on youtube.
If you haven’t caught the free album streaming or bought the early release on iTunes yet, today marks the release of Vampire Weekend’s sophomore album, Contra. Since I like Vampire Weekend and was counting down the days to give the album a listen, Contra is this week’s featured album.
Sometimes when you listen to a band’s second effort you end up being disappointed because they ventured way onto another spectrum, trying to experiment with their sound. This isn’t the case with Vampire Weekend; you can tell that there has been growth, but all and all, minus Ezra Koenig’s voice sounding sexier than i remember, they sound the same. As is said, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it, and apparently it’s not broken, because they have a slue of already sold out shows coming up! I will say though, i dearly miss the violin, i didn’t hear my favorite sound on any of the tracks, the violin is one of the reasons i loved them, oh well.
My favorite song on the album is Diplomat’s Son, every time is comes on I start dancing and want to be on summer vacation, grooving with a boy at a beach party at sunset, with a drink in one hand and a doobie in the other! The way the album started with Horchata threw me off, it didn’t sound like an album-starter, but after that i was quite pleased. Overall the album was fun and uptempo, with a strong ska-like influence, including an 80-esque vibe.
There wasn’t really a song I disliked, The Clash inspired Taxi Cab didn’t exactly mesh with album, it was a little darker and mellower than the rest of the tracks, but I still really like it. Plus it went well with I Think Ur a Contra, which was slow and pretty and a perfect way to end the album.
For me, California English, Giving Up the Gun, and as mentioned Diplomat’s Son were tracks that stuck out in my head.
If you want to check out the album you can listen to it on the Vampire Weekend website, just click here. Also, if you haven’t heard the 1st single, Cousins, or seen the video that came out for it in November, you can check it out below; i was raving about this video last year. Ok, now go listen to the album, particularly Diplomat’s Son so you can get your groove on, it’ll automatically make you feel sexy and want to go on vacation!
In week two of my Style Diary I had to challenge myself to not go against my initial idea, which I always have a habit of doing. Most times I usually should follow my gut, and there are other times, like I think now, that I should have listened to the other voice in my head.
I had this idea of playing with seated positions for this week. I wanted to change up the scenery, but I quickly learned that I prefer consistency in my backgrounds, it looks cleaner, and from a photographic standpoint, by the end of the week handling the lighting becomes really easy because you become familiar with the setting. Regardless, I’m suppose to document what I’m wearing, and not how or where I took the picture.
This week I went back home to my small hometown in Florida to visit my family. There is not too much to do when I’m home, and even less when its 30 degrees in the Sunshine state (it was too cold to leave the house Saturday & Sunday). When I’m home it’s a great time to relax with family & friends, listen to the singing of cicadas, eat good food, and not fuss about clothing.
I have another week here, and I’m pretty sure by the end of it I’ll be screaming for the streets of NYC. But for now I’m just going to chill, it makes no sense to get all decked out to walk up and down the mall or Wal-Mart.
This week, it was a toss-up between Monday and Friday, but my favorite outfit was Friday. The colors made me feel happy and vibrant, plus it was a great day of seeing old friends…just one of those days when you feel great about yourself. Hope you have one of those days; enjoy the week!
I have a theory… I think we’re going to start seeing an abnormal amount of young people, particularly 30 something females, dropping down dead from heart attacks. There’s not a direct correlations, with the recent passing of Brittany Murphy (age 32) and Casey Johnson (age 30), but their sudden deaths made me think of it.
Over the past 15 years we’ve seen an increase of people using diet pills to lose weight. A large number of these ‘effective’ diet pills, contain ephedrine/ephedra. Although most don’t admit to it, a large portion of the successful ‘celebrity diets,’ are attributed to ephedra–based supplements such as Superdrine, Metabothin, Ripped Power and Yellow Devils.
People may lose weight, but when they take these drugs their heart rate, blood pressure, and body heat are all increased. On top of that, these crazy people still exercise! They’re making their heart work harder than it needs to. I feel (and I’m not a medical expert, but I’ve been surrounded by them my entire life) that with continual use you are weakening your heart. By 30 something your heart is like that of a 60 or 70-year-old, or it’s just plan ‘ol tired, so it stops and you drop dead.
It has become so common now, that while walking down the halls of my university, I overheard two teens (mind u they weren’t fat) discussing loosing weight. One girl suggested coke, but the other girl responded that she had done that before, and didn’t feel like going that route. She said that instead she was just going to take Superdrine or something to that effect. This kind of talk has become so commonplace, it’s so sad.
New products containing orange bitter, like MetaboSpeed, have been added to the market in wake of many deaths from ephedra, they are supposedly ‘healthier,’ but essentially do the same thing. I could be wrong, but taking diet pills seem like the lazy (and hazardous!) option. It’s a burden and takes extra effort, but I’m a big advocate of upping the greens, fluids, exercise, and getting your mind right.
…oh and a grown ass woman who is a size 00 is just not sexy!
As much as I love being on vacation in Florida (although it’s HELLA cold right now!), I wish I could be in NYC to take advantage of the free writing workshops at Gotham Writers’ Workshop next week. I’m particularly interested in the Creative Writing and Screenwriting classes. Since I can’t go, maybe some of you will get a chance to. The workshops take place on January 12th and 13th, GWW has the previously mentioned classes, along with Poetry, Stand-Up Comedy, TV Writing and much more.
Check out the details here; I plan on going to their free bookstore series later this month.
Not enough people, including myself, know about the very secretive trade agreement, the Trans-Pacific Trade Pact (TPP). There’s no doubt in my mind with the increase knowledge of GMOs, the
Check out the list I did for VladTV, counting down the top Common songs of all time. Do you agree with my selections? VladTV’s Top 25 Common Songs Pick up Common’s new album, The Dreamer/The Believer, it hits stores today! …and if you haven’t seen it, peep Common’s new video, Celebrate. I need a house […]
I’m addicted to The mis-Adventures of Awkward Black Girl! It’s a web series that I was told about in the late Summer by my coworker homie, who actually knows creator, Issa Rae. He told me he thought I’d like it (probably because of my own awkwardness), and that I should check it out. At the […]
Yelawolf I’ve decided to add a new category to What Gets You Movin, and that would be ‘Hotness’! Since I was about 14, I’ve had these mini crushes on people, a new person almost every other week. Nothing serious, just someone or sometimes a subject/entity that heightens my radar for the moment. I’m always sharing […]
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Jai Nima I'm obsessed with freezing moments (photographer); married to the Art of Sound (music aficionado); a dream catcher; the manager of DJ Dummy and an on-camera Host...join me, as I showcase the people and things that inspire and move me.
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