After seeing all of the 2010 Oscar nominated short films, I was pulling hard for “Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty” to bring home the gold for best animated short but it was not meant to be. The award winner was Francois Alaux and Herve de Crece’s “Logorama,” which is still a great thing!

I was going back &  forth between who I wanted to win, so was still excited to see this very clever gem win.

According to the directors,

“Logorama presents us with an over-marketed world built only from logos and real trademarks that are destroyed by a series of natural disasters (including an earthquake and a tidal wave of oil). Logotypes are used to describe an alarming universe (similar to the one that we are living in) with all the graphic signs that accompany us everyday in our lives. This over-organized universe is violently transformed by the cataclysm becoming fantastic and absurd. It shows the victory of the creative against the rational, where nature and human fantasy triumph.”

The awesome thing about the win is that now, “Logorama can now be viewed online! Yes!!!!

Enjoy…

Full Crate & Mar – She Was Fly from Full Crate on Vimeo.

Love this video, because its visual magic. Love this song, because it’s aural magic. Hate having to wait until the “Conversations With Her” EP by Full Crate is released in January. I guess I can marinate on this single for the next few weeks in anticipation. From the quick snippets, I know that It will be hot!

Last Friday I worked/attended my 1st masquerade party, the Masquerade Mystique, which was held at the Detroit Music Hall.

I was very excited about this event a) because my friend and client Melinda Anderson of MeMe Designs was the party designer (she always sets it out). b) I always liked Venetian masks but had no reason to buy one until now.

Once I was confirmed to work this party, I began my search for the perfect mask.

My initial thought was to get a “plague mask” but all the ones I liked were upwards of 200 bucks. So since I had my mind on this one particular style, I had to search hard for a reasonable alternative, which was not all that easy.

Searching for a true Venetian mask had me a little stressed after 3 days of tuning up nothing. It was starting to look like I was going to have to order a mask from a European seller to get what I wanted. When I was about to throw the towel in, I got a lead from my girl Brunsli via Twitter & stumbled upon www.magicofvenezia.com, a US seller.

My mask seeking drama was over & they had everything I needed to select from. Actually, I had my Twitter followers vote on a mask for me & the mask pictured above was the winner.

I wore the Zanni Ibiz mask with my Nigerian agbada. The pairing made for a very colorful get-up as my good friend Zana would say.

It was very fun seeing & hearing people react to my look, but I didn’t like the drink women pulling on my nose & saying “oh you have a big one.”

While this was my first masquerade, I was familiar with attire standards; I just chose to Africanize my look. Other obvious 1st timers had no clue how to dress. I was actually shocked to see so many pirates, Wolverine & other character themed looks. Maybe next year, I will issue a what not to wear warning. I’m just saying.

Looking past the costume follies gone wrong, Masquerade Mystique was just excellent! Great food & drink, burlesque dancers, half naked women doing bad bad things (“Eyes Wide Shut” style), midgets little people & a whole lot more. I’m already thinking of my mask for next year & hoping Melinda will hire me again!

Last night during the Chris Brown/Larry King interview, which was a total farce, Negroes started to take over Twitter. Every moment, sound bite, eye roll, denial & blatant lie was dissected by viewers willing to share thier thoughts 140 characters at a time.

Chris Brown being on Larry King was a hot damn mess. It had to be one of the worst interviews that Larry had to suffer through. Chris Brown was basically an ass & didn’t answer any questions. Then there’s the fact that he sounded like he had a Twix bar in his mouth when he talked.

Anyway, back to the take over. When I say take over, I mean a straight up take over all over Chris Browns ridiculous bow tie.

The number 1 trending topic on Twitter for at least 12 hours was “#chrisbrownsbowtie”.

The trend was a huge round of the dozens on the bow tie. People were letting loose making up scenarios & fun facts about the bow tie.

Here are my 10 funniest #chrisbrownsbowtie tweets:

• #chrisbrownsbowtie is saying “who gone check me boo”
• #chrisbrownsbowtie has matching gators only found in Detroit
• #chrisbrownsbowtie cures that nasty woman’s disease
• #chrisbrownsbowtie attempted to jump into MJs casket
• #chrisbrownsbowtie got 99 problem but a bitch aint 1
• #chrisbrownsbowtie pee’d on R Kelly
• #chrisbrownsbowtie fucked up the back of Ving Rhames’ neck
• #chrisbrownsbowtie took a hoe bath today
• #chrisbrownsbowtie made my ass late for work
• #chrisbrownsbowtie looks with a dashiki http://twitpic.com/gb219 (you must click this link)

If you think this post & the “#chrisbrownsbowtie” is a joke, well it is but here is a great link to prove that it’s some real life bullshit. Also check out my girl Thembi’s breakdown of the Negro/Beater/Twitter drama.

If you’re not following me on Twitter, you’re really missing out! Im just saying.

Like millions of others yesterday, I stopped my life’s goings on to take part in one of the biggest celebrations of life that we may ever see for our beloved and sometimes misunderstood Michael Jackson.

Watching the celebration online was totally surreal & I can only imagine what the energy inside the Staple Center must have been like.

I was moved many times almost to tears but I stayed strong plus, I did not want to be all crying in public. I do have a rep to maintain.

Anyway, the point I almost lost it for the first time was when my boo Queen Latifah read Maya Angelou’s poem “We Had Him”

“Beloveds, now we know that we know nothing, now that our bright and shining star can slip away from our fingertips like a puff of summer wind.

Without notice, our dear love can escape our doting embrace. Sing our songs among the stars and walk our dances across the face of the moon.

In the instant that Michael is gone, we know nothing. No clocks can tell time. No oceans can rush our tides with the abrupt absence of our treasure.

Though we are many, each of us is achingly alone, piercingly alone.

Only when we confess our confusion can we remember that he was a gift to us and we did have him.

He came to us from the creator, trailing creativity in abundance.

Despite the anguish, his life was sheathed in mother love, family love, and survived and did more than that.

He thrived with passion and compassion, humor and style. We had him whether we know who he was or did not know, he was ours and we were his.

We had him, beautiful, delighting our eyes.

His hat, aslant over his brow, and took a pose on his toes for all of us.

And we laughed and stomped our feet for him.

We were enchanted with his passion because he held nothing. He gave us all he had been given.

Today in Tokyo, beneath the Eiffel Tower, in Ghana’s Black Star Square.

In Johannesburg and Pittsburgh, in Birmingham, Alabama, and Birmingham, England

We are missing Michael.

But we do know we had him, and we are the world.”

Maya’s (like we’re on 1st name basis) words are always on point and right on time. Her words are magical & legendary!

While watching the event I Tweeted live & it was awesome sharing this experience with others in real time from across the globe. A few of my Tweets:

• I’m sure the Staple Center will be filled with people just ready to jump into MJs casket. I hope they have it on lock down. #casketjumper about 14 hours ago
• This service would be over the top if Aretha came out singing “Trouble of the World.” That would break all the way down. #imitationoflife about 11 hours ago
• I’ll never forget when Lionel’s wife beat his ass. I haven’t cared for him since then. But I love the old music. about 12 hours ago
• When are they gonna open the casket? about 11 hours ago
• Al Sharpton either has a tapeworm or he got a gastric bypass. No matter what, he keeps it real & the perm is always fully coiffed & spritzed. about 11 hours ago
• Lets be honest, we’ve never seen a Negro’s funeral run this smooth. NEVER!!!! Its almost unnatural. about 11 hours ago
• I want one of them damn gloves! I must have one. Seriously!!! about 11 hours ago

You know me, it’s hard to stay serious when things are hectic. I have to resort to bullshitting.

So after work, I jumped in my car to head to Detroit to record the vibe at the Motown Museum/Hitsville USA. Have a look at my completed photojournal, which also includes photos from Harlem’s Apollo Theater. The pictures tell far more than I ever could.

Updated 7/6/2009 – Well this image has been up for a week & yet, Ive posted no story. Well thats because I was thinking long & hard trying to figure out how I could spin a positive story & I’ve been able to come up with nothing.

Truth be told, no one that I know who attended the Chicago or Detroit Rock The Bells Festival had much positive to say. I talked to one of my peeps in Chicago who was working on writing an open letter to the Detroit Rock The Bells Festival organizers & she wanted my POV from a media aspect. This is what I sent her:

“From a media perspective, I have very little to offer on the Rock The Bells Detroit in terms of concert content. As a photographer & blogger covering the music, sharing my experience is going to be difficult because when you’re shooting, you cannot focus on anything other than getting the shot.

With that said; 1st off, I was able to photograph through the first 3 songs of each performance, which is pretty standard. However, after those first 3 songs I was escorted out of the venue with several other photographers. The only way we could go back in was if we were to put our gear in out cars between acts. This would have been a complete hassle a) because of the distance b) breaking down gear & having to put it back together is time consuming etc.

So basically, my whole purpose for going & driving 95 miles each way mostly a waste. I got great photos but could not report on any music.

Then there was the fact that Bustah Rhymes canceled his performance. This was a huge let down! The acts got shuffled around & I missed two performances because of BRs cancellation & subsequently tweaked artist line-up.

Annnnnd then, there was the fact that I was not able to photograph any of Damian Marley’s performance because he came on after Nas’ 3rd song. The media contact at DTE Music Center was not movable or willing to let any of us capture Damian, so I just left at this point disappointed & wondering if I should have bothered to even attend.”

So later on in the evening after I responded to my girl, I decided to contact my RTB media contact directly with a regurgitation of what was said earlier:

“Hi XXXX,

Thanks for setting me up with access to the Rock The Bells Festival in Detroit. I thought that I would share with you the fact that I had a awful experience covering the event as a photographer and blogger.

1) I was escorted totally out of the venue after each and every performance. I was only allowed back in if I put my gear in my vehicle, which was parked a considerable distance away making it virtually impossible.
a) The initial directions that I received did not indicate where to park or which entrance to access etc. This was a minor annoyance.

2) I was not able to observe any of the musical performances, as a result I’m lost as far as writing a story for my blog and readers. I felt that the overall point of my coverage was blown.

3) None of the photographers were able to photograph Damian Marley at all because he came out on the 4th song performed by Nas. Many of us considered Damian Marley a big draw and we were allowed no coverage as we were escorted out again.

I have to say that I was greatly disappointed as a new media member. I truly think that the process at the DTE Energy Music Center could have been handled much better…

Tafari”

Much to my surprise, I got an almost immediate response back. Which read:

“Tafari,

I am sorry to hear all this and that you had these issues and did not enjoy your experience at Rock the Bells. You were only confirmed for a photo pass as the amount of press tickets available to us was limited so we could not fulfill your full request. Photo passes only grant access in and out of the photo pits – without a ticket, you are not allowed to roam the grounds to observe the show. I’m sorry you were not aware of that prior to the day but tickets were available for the show.

In regards to shooting Damian Marley, we have already been informed of this issue, which was news to both us as well as his publicist. Standard photo rules for all artists is the first 3 songs. Damian and Nas, as we were all informed, were performing together with their new material so the fact they did not appear together until song 4 was shocking. We have since discussed this with both of their parties to make sure that issue does not happen again for the rest of the tour as you are correct in that these 2 together is very big draw for the tour…

Again, my apologies.

XXXX”

I really appreciated the response back & it looks like it all breaks down to communication, communication, communication, & more communication. Too bad I feel like I was on the losing end of the gap.

Even with the drama that I encountered, I’m sure as a fan in the crowd, I would have loved the festival because all of the performers gave tremendous energy & the crowd was mos def feeling every act.

So since I do not have a more positive & comprehensive story to offer, please enjoy the images that I captured, which tell a different story. A hip-hop story!

Yesterday on the drive home I was listening to “All Things Considered” on NPR like I do most days. If you are a NPR listener, you know all about “driveway moments,” so lets just say that I had the worst driveway moment ever.

My driveway moment started after anchor Robert Siegal, in haste noted that singer Michael Jackson was rushed to the hospital after being found unconscious from possible cardiac arrest.

As I sat in my car, I screamed nooooooooooooo! I knew that he had died. I felt it! Not only that, after a cardiac arrest, survivability chances are very slim to none.

With that on my mind, I continued to sit in my car dumbfounded & lost. It took me almost an hour to make it into the house. I felt like I just couldn’t move at all.

Once I collected myself a little, I took to Twitter for more info & to share my thoughts.

When I started to share my thoughts & collect information, the rest of the world must have also done the same thing because Twitter was hardly moving.

Here are some of my tweets from the time that I got the news till the time I was finally able to go to sleep.

• OMG, is Michael Jackson gone?
• Please don’t tell me I need to pull out my pleather Thriller Jacket. Please……
• In my best Florida Evans voice “Damn! Damn! Damn!” I don’t care what they have said, I loved MJ, well B4 alleged molestations & whitening.
• Mom just called & told me Michael Jackson was dead & she said & Farah too. I said fuck Farah. MJs death trumps all. This is major!
• I lost my virginity on a red velvet couch listening to the “Off The Wall” album. #michaeljackson
• [Updated at 3:15] Pop star Michael Jackson was pronounced dead by doctors this afternoon after arriving at a hospital… LA Times.
• Michael Jackson’s death is crippling Twitter. Could Twitter be the unheard of 4th death this week?
• My 10 year old just asked me what Michael Jackson’s last words were. Kids think of everything.
• People talked a lot of shit about MJ, but I’ll tell you what, the world is mourning this man. The fucking world! #bitchesalwaystalkshit
• Am I the only one fighting back a teary breakdown? I’m a mess right now!
• When I was a kid, I asked my mom if MJ used the bathroom. She said of course, he’s human like you & me. I thought he was so much more.
• Tired of how the news is talking about all of MJs legal issues. How about we focus on what he meant to ppl & not scandal. #dissedevenindeath
• If I had a bedazzler, I would be making me a MJ glove like right now.
  
• Taking a break from my MJ death watch. Great news! Getty Images wants 10 more of my photos. Got my Kool Aid on boo! #imgoodatwhatidobitch
• Typing a blog post & listening to “Liberian Girl.” Naku penda piya-naku taka Piya-mpenziwe. #michaeljackson
• Bout to call it a night, but before I do, I have to listen to “I Cant Help It.” My favorite Michael Jackson song.
• “I cant help it if I wanted to I wouldn’t help it even if I could I cant help it if I wanted to I wouldn’t help it no no no.” I wont cry. #liar
• If I had a Wave Nouveau, I would comb the shit out of my baby hair tomorrow & stunt on them hoes in the board meeting.

To get a clue as to how popular this unfortunate this story is in terms of Twitter & the internet, read this. It will also clue you into the relevance of the image above if you are not familiar with Twitter & a little more.

Two weeks ago, when I checked the Ann Arbor Summer Fest website, I have to admit, I was excited & pleasantly surprised to see one of my favorite (Afro-world) artists coming to town, but hey, why not?

So after I calmed down & got my mind right, I made contact for press credentials & not much later, it was on & popping.

I’ve been a fan of Zap Mama’s for quite some time and so has my 12 year old baby sister Sade believe it or not. I find her music to be exciting, exotic, intriguing & comforting all at the same time. Zap Mama may prefer the all-inclusive term Afropean. Call it what you will, it’s just plain awesome!

If your familiar with Zap Mama’s music & her many collaborations with many US artists, but not her personal history, you may be inspired by her dramatic beginnings in Africa. I’ll let you do the Googling. Trust me it’s worth it, its like the stuff movies are made of.

Down to business; like most concerts that I shoot, I was able to shoot through the 1st 3 songs of the performance before I had to put my gear up. I had to move quickly because the 1st couple of songs only lasted minutes, almost like a series of short interludes.

After the 2nd song, things started to take off & the audience was starting to get infected with Afrobeats, which made many crowd the dance floor. The environment at this point became strangely harmonious especially when a call & response ensued. The crowd reaction was awesome!

Once I was done shooting, I was finally able to sit back & enjoy the set in comfort, well there was little comfort because I was kinda doing a chair dance.

Zap Mama performed many songs from her new album “ReCreation,” which I’m loving as I still discover it. She also did a wonderful tribute to Mariam Makeba, which got another great audience response. Talk about a crowd that knows its world music. Oh wait, then there was an awesome improv of Manu Dibango’s “Soul Makossa” (Mama ko mama sa maka makoosa. Mama ko mama sa maka makoosa. Mama ko mama sa maka makoosa.).

And without a doubt Zap Mama’s live vocals are simply incredible. Her deep vocal range, improvisation & ability to make any sound beautiful were an aural treat. At one point, I thought she had an instrument, then I noticed she didn’t, it was all her. Wow!

All the while, the crowd danced on vibrantly.

Unfortunate for me, I had to leave the show early just as Zap Mama started to perform some of her more popular work like “1,000 Ways.” I was hoping that I could hear “Poetry Man”, “Yaku” or “Bandy Bandy” but I saw & heard enough to satisfy my soul. I really did.

On a note of irony, I found many similarities between Zap Mama & Erykah Badu. Each have an unique eclectic style, but the stage presence almost seems to be one. I noticed that right off. Even still, both get high marks from me.

Again, I invite you to discover Zap Mama’s new album and some of her older works if this is all new to you. Chances are you are already in the know because you’re here & on the same vibe anyway. I’m, just saying.

To see a few more images from the show, click here.

During Raheem DeVaughn’s performance at the Capital Jazz Festival a few weeks ago, I joked to my friends that he is always hustling & putting out mix tapes. Not five minutes after I made that statement, he told the audience to go online & download his new mix tape, which was scheduled for release June 15th. I was like hell no as we all laughed at my almost “Psychic Friends” connection. I really know how to call things out.

So, June 15th has come & gone & you best believe that I copped the new 19 track “Radio Raheem DeVaughn” mix tape, titled “The Art of Noise.” Oh, did I mention that it’s free? It’s a recession boo!!!

Is free better? Well in terms of to Raheem DeVaughn’s new mix tape “The Art of Noise” compared to his last studio release “Love Behind The Melody,” I say yes! I mean, I’m a fan but, “Love Behind The Melody” was a total disappointment for me & the only track from it that I like, no, actually love is “Energy.”

So anyway, getting back to the new joint; I have to say that I’m loving it, yes really actually loving it.

Of the 19 tracks, I’ve been playing 9 of them non-stop & of those 9, 5 tracks are totally kick ass. As far as I’m concerned, DeVaughn should have released an EP with my favorites. It would make for one helluva seller.

My top tracks include in no particular order:

• “Insomnia” – Straight up a put on & lets fuck tune. Fellas this is a get some pussy shit. Get you CD-R ready & set up a date with your boo!
• “Planet Body Rock” – This is one of my summer sound track hits. It’s hot! Gives me this 90s feel & I love that.
• “Weather Man” – A chilled track with a little of the dreaded auto tune but its applied appropriately here. A hip-hop beat with a sexy theme. Nothing like talking about getting your boo moist.
• “Hennesy Joint” – A very chilled basically instrumental jump off, almost like a very nice long interlude with a smooth melodic hook.
• “Night & Day” – An Al B. Sure remake. This shit is chopped & screwed for 09. A total bonus in my book on an old school tip (are the 80s really old school?).

Never underestimate the power of a good mix tape!

So with all this said, you need to cop this shit before it’s too late leaving you stuck on stupid. I’m just saying.

Download Link

Who rocked it better, the chicks or the queens?