WAYNE SHORTER, Tom Thumb

The Labaque Sisters at the Hollywood Bowl!

Photo by Mista Jaycee

Last night, Mrs. Jaycee and I went to the Hollywood Bowl for "Classical Thursdays". Ahhhh, MOZART! Last night the Labaque Sisters played duel pianos with the LA Philharmonic. Mrs. Jaycee and I got some very nice seats courtesy of this awesome organization called Project Ensemble. Project Ensemble's mission is to give inner City kids the chance to hear classical music. If you are interested in donating to this worthwhile organization and or would like tickets please Contact Patrick at www.Projens.org

So dig, we were supposed to be there at 8pm but we took the 405 (Santa Monica) Freeway to the 101 South (Los Angeles) Big MISTAKE! The traffic going to the Valley and the West side is just BANANAS! We got there at almost 9PM! So, we missed the Labaque Sisters playing Mozart: Thamos, King of Egypt (entr'actes), and K. 345 Mozart: Concerto for Two Pianos, K. 365 but we had plenty of time to get ready for more great music from "Smilin Nick" Nicholas McGegan, Conductor, we led the Phil in the Mozart: Symphony No. 36 in C, K. 425 ("Linz").

Katia and Marielle Labaque Photo Courtesy of the web

I really enjoyed this piece and I assure you that I am not being flippant when I refer to Conductor Nicholas McGegan as "Smilin Nick". He smiled all evening and it was infectious! I smiled along with him and smiling is something I think we all sorely need.

Conductor Nicholas "Smilin Nick" McGegan Photo Courtesy of the Web

BE Prayerful! BE Mindful! BE Careful!

Jaycee

Spoken Word Artist/Poet Gia Scott-Heron in Long Beach!

Spoken Word Artist/Poet "Miss Gia" Scott-Heron

This past, Saturday Night ,I grabbed my camera and drove over to the Village Treasures Art Gallery in the East Arts Village. The Art Walk happens every 2nd Saturday Night on Linden Ave and Broadway. It's a cool thing, but I ignored the Art Walk. because the Poet "Miss Gia" was getting down at Village Treasures and I wanted to check her out!

Gia Scott-Heron and I have known each other for "Years"! She featured at Soulstice at the Original Shades of Afrika in the East Arts Village (Downtown) Long Beach! I remember meeting her clearly. A Mic and Dimlights Founder "Bess Kepp" was featuring at Soulstice that night and "Gia" and Poet "Bomani" were along for the ride. "Bess Kepp and Bomani " introduced her to me and spoke highly of her and her talent. I remember her first sets.

She had a real chip on her shoulder cause people kept lumping her poetry in the same vein as "Jill" Scott or thinking she was just coasting off the name and fame of her Papa "Gil Scott" Heron dig? But she's "Gia" and she has her own magic. By the way Bess and Bomani, in case I've never said it! Thanks Guys!

Gia rocks! Now, this past Saturday night, Gia was promoting her Spoken Word cd "Souletree". She opened with pieces about the state of the world, the price and gas and just being sexxxy! She performed favorites like "Nine". For all those Fellas lookin for that Girl that's an absolute "Dime" this is a must hear!

Finally, she closed her set with a gem of a piece called "The Beauty Within"! One of the greatest pleasures I've experienced as a Spoken Word Poet is hearing one that makes me want to just put down my pen. When that happens it motivates me to push to the next level of my own art! Gia is one of those poets that can elicit that response.

Grab a Copy of Souletree and pre-order Miss Gia's new set.

www.myspace.com/missgthepoetess

Mista Jaycee with "Gia" Scott-Heron

BE Prayerful! BE Mindful! BE Careful!

Jaycee

Grim Sleeper Suspect Arrested!

In 1985 and 1986, the last Effin thing, South Central Los Angeles needed was a Serial Murderer. Gang Violence was at an all time high, so much so, that the decade was termed the bloody eighties. You could open a box of cracker jacks and get a vial of crack!

A Black Serial Killer? This was unheard of! We didn't fit the FBI profiles. What about Wayne Williams of the Atlanta Child Murders Mista Jaycee?

Exception to the rule! Most of the time Serial Killers were White Males in their 40's ,not Black Men! But on top of everything there was one loose in South Central preying on Black Women! He was dubbed the South side Slayer, the South Central Killer and a whole bunch of other B/S nicknames. Then, one morning, the media reported a shootout where police killed who they believed to be a suspect in the South Central murders. The bastard was dead! There were no other killings! We were at peace for years or so we thought!

Then, a killing happened again; It had been 14 years. The so called media really didn't go back to investigate the slayings of murdered Black Women. They didn't ask why there seemed to be no case file, no clues but the media did manage to do one thing give the Serial killer, a catchy new name! The Grim Sleeper!

Last evening a suspect was arrested in the slayings due to DNA evidence. Good! Now, let's talk about what really matters! The victims! You remember them! The ten Women who died! Ask why the LAPD didn't do more back in the 1980's and see if there is anything we can do now to make sure that the Police have the tools to do their jobs and the mandate to see it through!

Let's not make this bastard famous by giving him a catchy name just a nice comfortable jail cell in which to live out the rest of his days on earth!

BE Prayerful! BE Mindful! BE Careful!
Jaycee

Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th of July Folks! Have a safe and Happy Day!

BE Prayerful! BE Mindful! BE Careful!

Jaycee

Really California? A Reagan Holiday?

My home state of California is in the toilet! Unemployment is super high! College tuition has gone up 30%! That right Students are being taxed! Yeah, I'm throwing a rock at all the No New Taxes/Low Taxes advocates! Where were you when the students got taxed? This is the 2nd increase in a year! It's a tax!

California's infrastructure is falling apart. So, I'm thinking hummmmmmmmm, High unemployment, lots of work to be done equals The State hires it's unemployed to work on the infrastructure! But that would be too much like RIGHT! That would actually make sense! So the assembly and the state senate are NOT proposing that! Instead outgoing (Thank God (IAM) ) Gov. Arnold Swartenegger reduced State Workers pay to minimum wage of $7.75!

Hey Arnold! Rent and House notes have not gone down! In fact, they've gone up unlike my pay!

But all that aside what pisses me off even more is that the State Senate is actually burning daylight trying to give Ronald Reagan a day of recognition! There is a bill named SB 944 that proposes February 6th as Ronald Reagan Day! The bill stops short of making it a State Holiday! It proposes that California Students, for example, study Reagan's achievements and legacy. Hummmmm.. "Cat sup is a vegetable"

Kids need to know that!

How bout how he emptied the state mental hospitals and swelled the ranks of the homeless? California did not have a large homeless population until after he was the Governor! How bout when Ronald Reagan was campaigning and rode to power by swearing he would repeal Prop 14. The Fair and Equal Housing Amendment in California! Yeah, let's study the legacy of Ronald Reagan!

He became President! "Welfare Queens" anyone? What about the massive deficit he created? How about how he ignored the AIDS epidemic until 1986? How bout how the IRAN/Contra affair happened on his watch? No, No, let's have the kids study the proliferation of military style weapons in the "Urban Centers" during the Reagan years? How bout the so called CIA Crack Connection?

Folks need the Assembly and the Senate to do the "Real" work! Not fluff bull shit bills like this!

BE Prayerful! BE Mindful! BE Careful!

Jaycee