Southport!!!!!

Southport Weekender

May 10th 7:35pm

When did it become ok for young people(21-23) to use profanity loudly and 
audaciously in front of their elders? I'll be 43 in June and I still respect my 
elders. My brother Dennis is not even 50 good and I wouldn't talk any kind of 
way in front of him. I'm sitting here at the airport,waiting on the plane when 
this young girl walks by talking on her phone very loudly. She was extremely 
comfortable with using profanity in front of me. I'm clearly old enough to be 
this girls father. There was no respect. It feels like the standard of class has 
gone down.  Well anyway, the plane is here. 

May 11th 6:42pm

Dawn Tallman and I were on the same flight. I thought Kenny Bobien would be 
traveling with us but I suppose he'll meet us there. Natasha Watts picked us up 
from the airport. We went to her beautiful place where she served us lunch. We 
ate with her family. That was really sweet. I could have stayed there for at 
least another hour. We were so tired. It was Natasha who set this whole thing 
up. The thing is, Natasha is an artist! But she switched hats and  acted as a 
booking agent. She got me and Dawn this gig! That impressed me. I know some 
booking agents that can't get me a gig at a local bar when I have the number 1 
record on the charts. There's just something about being hungry as opposed to 
having talent....
Anyway it's exciting. The electricity is all over the place. There are plenty of 
artist here already just walking around. I feel ready!! Our names are on a tee 
shirt with some of my heroes. Patrice Rushen, Brand New Heavies, Robert Glasper, 
Jill Scott and such. People are walking up to us, recognizing who we are. Wow. 
This is feeling good. 
Tonight I'm going to see Robert Glasper, Caron Wheeler, and a few others 
perform. 

8:50pm

I just saw Robert Glasper and his band at the restaurant. They were beautiful. 
No attitudes no superstar vibe or nothing. And the truth is, Jill Scott is 
probably the headliner of this entire event, but I'm more excited to see them 
perform. Dawn and I go over to speak and introduce ourselves only to find out 
Robert and his drummer knew Dawn from way back! They were trippin. Robert 
started calling songs that Dawn used to perform at the Village Underground. Now 
here I am, a huge Robert Glasper fan, and he's a fan of Dawn!!! I already know 
Dawn is a super talent, but because we're so much like family, it's easy to take 
that for granted. Well Robert Glasper and his band certainly reminded me of who 
Dawn is outside of being my friend.. I just stood on the sidelines watching in 
awe as they were loving on Dawn. Wow.. Frank McComb was eating lunch with us 
also. He was cool. Very talented man. I thought his vibe was a little......not 
like Robert Glasper's. But Cest La Vie.
Later on we went to see Glaspers set and they were again amazing. I seen them in 
NYC. Dawn and I practically begged him to play a song entitled "Open Mind." He 
actually squeezed 8 bars of it in his set just cause we asked. I'm forever a 
fan. 
Afterwards we went to see Frank McCombs, but on our way to the room where Frank 
was, we were stopped by quite a few people wanting to take pictures and shake 
our hands. I'm always pleasantly surprised when that happens. So we get to 
Frank's set and there was some issues with the sound. Seems like he didn't have 
a sound check. While we were on our way out, guess who's standing there??
Go ahead. I'll wait.....
Gregory Porter!!!!!!! 196?What,  196?Who?
Man, I almost passed out!!! I just gave him a hug and wasn't letting go. That 
mans album is beautiful. 

May 11th 3:29am

I'm laying in bed thinking, wishing, hoping, dreaming, praying. I'm feeling 
pretty good. I suppose I should sleep. Thinking about my monthly party. Should I 
do it in Jersey or NY? Sunday afternoon to evening or Monday nights? If you're 
reading this, hit me on FB and let me know your thoughts. 

May 12th 4:46pm

Random thought. I wonder what are the motives of all the entertainers here. I'm 
sure we all have different reasons as to why we do what we do. Some need 
attention, think that they can get rich, always wanted to sing but really can't, 
are called and born to do this. 
Anyway, I'm headed out to meet Natasha and Dawn for lunch and we'll go see Jill 
after that. Yay!!!

May 13th 1:10am

I enjoyed my day. The highlight of the day was obviously Jill Scott's 
performance. She looked amazing. I mean really amazing. The band was amazing. 
The sound was too loud and blaring but hey, it's Jill Scott. She sounded good. 
Her voice was in good shape. I saw a lot of Londoners that I've not seen in a 
while. That's always cool. It's just nice to see others from around the world 
who share the same passion for the music. 

Later on after we ate, we go to my room and guess who walks out of the 
elevator.... Jill Scott!!!
She was a lot shorter than I imagined. She was really smaller than I imagined. 
And overall, she was really sweet. We were all wanting to take pictures with her 
but she kindly explained that she had a plane to catch. I especially thought the 
Forest green pedicure was HOT!! 
Here I am in front of Jill Scott, actress, singer songwriter, poet. This woman 
co-starred with Janet Jackson, and Tyler Perry. I don't care who you are, when 
someone who has done so much and is that famous crosses your path and takes a 
moment to have a conversation with you, it's really a big deal. I can't stand 
people who say "She's just another human being. No need to get all star struck." 
I was really breath taken. 

A lot of people said that they came to see us. Well that really moved me. I'm 
amped. 
I wonder if we can do a small House Music weekend somewhere in the states. Not 
NYC or Chicago. But LA, or Disney World. Great idea right?
I didn't get to see Gregory Porter perform, but everybody says he was the best 
thing since sliced bread. I hate that I missed him. But I needed the sleep. 
Patrice Rushen performed tonight but I had to meet with Dawn and Natasha, so I 
missed her also. 

May 13th 8:30pm

We did our thing. Dawn, Natasha and myself did our songs and it went over pretty 
well. My voice almost got hoarse toward the end but it lasted. Thank God. 
Natasha did well. This is my first time performing a full show with her. Kenny 
Bobien came through and stayed for our entire performance. That was sweet. Kenny 
Dope, Danny Krivit, and Kerri Chandler was in the house to support. The Great 
Phil Asher played when we were done. He is the most humble guy. I've loved his 
productions for years. He's a very talented guy. 

11:30pm

We go to the Chicago House party to show Terry Hunter some love. Upon arrival, I 
hear this super hot record. Something I've never heard before. I get to the 
booth and Anthony Nicholson was rocking. His set was full of gems. Sounded like 
some of his personal stash. I loved his set. 
Jonathan Woodliffe, one of Southports organizers, walked in with a bottle if 
Smirnoff and juices for Terry. I immediately knew that I was staying. LOL! 
Ghettooooooo!!! I didn't care. Chi is my second home right next to Detroit and 
Atlanta. I told Terry, "We sure gon enjoy that!"
Terry's set was crazy!!! I haven't had that much fun in a long time. He really 
represented. Dawn grabbed the mic and became the hype girl. Terry didn't mind 
and the crowd dug it. Good times. 

May 14th 7:16pm

We got exit row seats. Thank God. Everything worked out. We made it back. Newark 
NJ. Musically I wish I was happy. But I'm not feeling positive when it comes to 
our scene. I'm not giving up, just wish there was some evidence of growth.

May 15th 1:06pm

I'm home finally, and I'm noticing all this talk about gay marriages. President Obama, Jay-Z and a few others are standing up for it, and some people are fighting against it. I'm not sure why anyone has anything to say about who a person chooses to marry their same sex. Now what I'm about to say is going to cost me some acquaintances, maybe even some friends. But I stand for the freedom of expression.

I am a Christian man. I can't go toe to toe with a lot of people in other faiths about what I believe in, but for me, Christianity works. However, my beliefs should never be imposed on anyone. I see a lot of Christians signing petitions and really fighting this gay marriage law.

I'm thinking, they spend more time fighting the gay marriage law than they do preaching Jesus. We really should be extremely careful when we judge! These preachers screaming and yelling about gay marriages and when they get caught in a scandal they want mercy and understanding. Let's practice minding our own business. I personally feel that we all have our own lives and we should do WHATEVER we choose within reason. America is such a diseased whore. She's filled with hypocrisy, hate, ignorance, fear  and false judgement. Black people especially should know better than to judge any person. I've been in a church and listened to preachers quote scriptures, and go off on a tangent. EVERYBODY is guilty of something that the bible says not to do! EVERYBODY!! Why are we so bent on gay people? The black church is the main culprit that annoys me on this subject. We(the black church) are the main ones with closeted gay men in our churches. And we accept it with no problem. We even allow them to sit in our pulpits, and have leadership positions in our churches. Brothers walk in our churches with arched eyebrows, wearing makeup, and manicures that look better than our sisters! Sometimes, if you befriend one of them, they will tell you what's really going on! And we laugh together, like it's all good. Let's be very clear about this, I'm not judging anyone. But if you're going to attack the gay community, Christians, then start at your house first. Start with your church! Then go to the church next door. I don't want anyone telling me what I can or can not do.