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That Night Stevie Wonder Showed Up At Liv In DC
I’ve had the pleasure of up-close and personal meetings with several celebrities in my life, of which 90 percent are because of the many years I’ve been associated with Bohemian Caverns in DC, and particularly the few years I managed Liv (which is closing; you might have heard). But most pale in comparison to the…
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How to Talk About Kanye With Kanye Stans
I am a fan of Kanye West.* I love his music and like to have discussions about his cultural relevance, and I look forward to hearing new music from the Louis Vuitton Don with the best of them. Aside from the many leather-bound books that adorn my home, I have physical copies of all his…
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It's Official, Love & Hip Hop New York Made Me A Fan of Papoose
I’ve been a watcher of the Love & Hip Hop franchise for years now. I dedicated real life space to the Hollywood cast, was marginally invested in the New York cast until the past few seasons thanks largely to the shenanigans of one Peter Pankey aka Peter Gunz, and Atlanta has had its fits and…
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An Open Letter To Everybody Involved in the Creation of Rihanna's "Higher"
Dear Love Haters: I recently took the time to check out Rihanna’s newest album, Anti, which was a much different sound from her than I expected. I’d heard many people talk about the album’s direction not being the typical paint-by-numbers Rihanna album, but waited to check it out. It’s quite a good album. It’s all pleasant surprise…
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Dear Black Men: Black Women Always (Always!) Show Up To Events. Why Don't You?
In 1999, girl group 702 (which included my boo-in-my-head at the time, Kameelah Williams) released the song “Where My Girls At?” It is a great song from a great group from the ’90s that brings me much joy and happiness. Well, it’s 2016, and I’m asking, “Where my dudes at?” Why am I asking this?…
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Where Are the Men?
In 1999, girl group 702 (which included my boo-in-my-head at the time, Kameelah Williams) released the song “Where My Girls At?” It is a great song from a great group from the ’90s that brings me much joy and happiness. Well, it’s 2016, and I’m asking, “Where my dudes at?” Why am I asking this?…
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An Open Letter to Everybody Involved in the Creation of Rihanna’s ‘Higher’
Dear Love Haters: I recently took the time to check out Rihanna’s newest album, Anti, which was a much different sound from her than I expected. I’d heard many people talk about the album’s direction not being the typical paint-by-numbers Rihanna album, but waited to check it out. It’s quite a good album, or at…
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Learn to Trust Yourself
Disclaimer: The following words do not work if you are allergic to common sense or if Kanye West is your spirit animal. They work only if you have pledged allegiance to good decision-making. Until I saw the movie Brown Sugar in the early aughts, I’d never heard the term “trust yourself.” That might sound crazy,…
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I Miss the Old Kanye
Kanye’s latest album, The Life of Pablo, has been reviewed and discussed at length in the almost week since it was made available via Tidal, and not always for good reasons. The music is super well produced, and the featured artists all add wonderful layers to what is a pretty schizophrenic project. The music is…
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3 Lessons in Blackness at the Black Solidarity Conference
This past weekend, Damon Young and I had the pleasure of speaking at Yale University as part of its 21st annual Black Solidarity Conference. Since it was a conference dedicated to issues surrounding blackness, I’m going to share a few things that stood out to me: 1. HBCUs and PWIs, HBCUs vs. PWIs, everybody hates…
