Last Wednesday I met a writer, Marc Goldsmith, who’s doing a 365 day music blog at the Hammer Museum after a program on LA, and Passing Strange with Stew and Heidi of The Negro Problem. Sunday morning he reviewed my album. LA is really made up of people who do things and don’t just talk about it! Check out the full review here: http://bit.ly/tSbfNf.
Just got in from another inspirational night at the AFI Film Festival. Saturday I saw “Mama Africa,” a doc on Miriam Makeba. You need to see it. Beyond the music, it’s so inspiring to see her as a young woman speaking at the UN calling for sanctions on South Africa in 1962. It blew me away to see her strength at such a young age in such different times. (And so ahead of the times, unfortunately, in her call, seeing as it took decades before meaningful sanctions were in place.) Tonight, the inspiration came from a feature called Kinyarwanda which follows several intimate stories through the genocide toward the healing of the nation. Just a beautiful film. I went in nervous about how it would affect me, but Alrick Brown takes you through these stories with a tenderness that shows how forgiveness can come even at the end of such horrific experiences. It opens in LA on Dec. 2.
Oh yes, and what inspired the blog title is the line on their promo postcards. “Please take a minute to let someone know that you LOVE or FORGIVE them.” I like that.
(Check out the show tonight, 8 Oct 2011, 8:30pm)
Silent on a Harlem Street
Turned my head and chanced to meet the one
Feeling short of words to say
I shook his hand
He walked away
So long
So long to be recreating
Everyday we’re beginning
When do we arrive at that new day?
Or is it here?
I aligned myself with you
Your spirit’s joy your cold hard truths, c’mon
You taught us how to fight the system
Knowledge of our true existence
Then fell to square one
So long to be here creating
Everyday new beginnings
When do we arrive at that new day?
Or is it here?
In times of silence,
Times of quiet,
You have time for introspection
You have time to change
You said, “I believe I’ve changed
“If you stand up and do something
You can really become something
So this is what I do
And so it is
“The smile I see in others faces,
I play a song, plant a thought,
There I see myself”
A gift so strong he couldn’t keep (it).
Passed to us and now we weep
So long
So long to be recreating
Take us to that new beginning
When do we arrive at that new day?
I say it’s here
That new day
That new day
That day is here!
Singa is the extremely talented seven-year-old on of my friend, Sanni. As you can see we’ve bonded! The first clip is from Germany while I was touring there. The family lives half the time in Los Angeles, too, so they got to come to my house concert this weekend in Santa Monica. Of course I had to have Singa sit in! (I also just added a clip from this weekend at Oshunmare.)
And a little drum solo in “Moment in the Sun.”
Yes, I planned for summer when I left for Europe. Maybe that wasn’t smart..especially when heading to Scandinavia.
Would you believe the church was closed on Monday?
LISTEN TO Second Half of the Bet (pop-up)