Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Just A Lil' Bit

What's up people? I know its been a minute but a sista has been biz-zee! My only free evening is every other Tuesday and its been making it a little difficult to keep folks updated on the happenings of TLA. No apologies, but you know how it is.

During this brief hiatus I have been on my usual grind. Between the day gig, pitching pieces to mags, networking, working at the station, and squeezing in time with the fam, its been hectic. No worries though because you have my word I'll be back on TLA Writes with my usual, the new, and anything else pronto.

In the meantime, let me leave you with this. I love my fam. I've got plenty of love for my friends too. But right about now, its all about my family and this hustle. Its all about trying to do what I've set out to do--be the ultimate media hustler. This hustle means I have limited time for my usual activities like calling folks, visiting, and updating people personally on the day to day happenings of TLA. I've said this a million times before, but some recent situations have led me to repeat myself. Out of sight is never out of mind for me. Let me repeat. Out of sight is NEVER out of mind for me. Once you are in with me, you are in for life. It could be two days or two years and I always feel like the people who are down with me can pick up the phone and we can talk as we always have in the past. I definitely invite that too. Pick up my slack. Give me a call if I cross your mind. If I don't get back asap, don't take it personally and chalk it up to the grind. Its that simple.

One thing I've recognized is that not everyone is going to understand, or care to understand, what it is I'm trying to do right now. I also know that being understanding isn't everyones forte. Cool. I may lose some friends during this time and I can deal with that too. Just know that I ain't mad at anyone. Why bother with that when I can focus my energies on things that I know will benefit me and mine? I've got enough on my plate. Those that are down with TLA while I'm in hustle mode will remain. Those that aren't I won't fret. Of course I'll miss them, but when you are into letting things flow, its hard to go against the natural progression of things. That whole reason and season saying is in full effect right now.

Personal shout outs to my fam, my sis Aleana, Word S. Bond, George, Kish, and Reg for simply being you. Its most appreciated.

Until next time be easy.

PEACE

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

Hustle & Flow

I thought I would take advantage of my first free evening in over a week and just go straight crazy on this blog tonight. This week I have come across so many thought provoking items. I couldn't wait to get on and take all those reflections out all over these keys. Instead, I just want to chill. I want to kick back with some magazines, a glass of iced tea, have the TV on in the background, and chill. So that's what I'm going to do. But since I don't want to keep my readers waiting any longer, I thought I'd finally share my good news with all who have been patiently waiting to hear it.

Your girl TLA is a producer. For the past two weeks I have been 'auditioning' as an intern producer for the Hot Boyz show on Power 99 (WUSL-FM 98.9) in Philadelphia. I finally got the word that I can keep the gig for a while. The powers that be wanted to make sure that I could "gel" well with the DJ's and gelled we did. This experience has been wonderful for me thus far. I am learning to come out of my shell so to speak. Writing can be such a solitary experience. Being able to be around people all the time, interacting with callers on the phones, and having a first hand view of what it takes to put a radio show together is amazing.

What do I do as a producer? I take song requests, update the web page, give talking points to the DJ's, and research statistical information on record sales. I monitor & log equipment function and schedule & prep in studio guests. One of the most exciting things I have learned is to record and edit callers using this piece of equipment. You have no idea how much people scream, curse, and holler when they know they are going to be on the radio. What you hear is no where near what I hear preedit.

The two DJ's I work with are really cool. I feel like I am being slowly initiated into a frat as its only female member. They speak softly when I need assurance and harder when I should know better. They keep me on my toes and make me work hard. The more I accomplish, the more willing they are to teach. I love it. They are teachers that I know will become friends.

Yesterday they asked me for ideas to revamp the show. Since I am a woman with a million ideas in her head, I shared one that they seemed to like a lot. Since we were all in a sharing mood, they shared some ideas they had with me in mind. Yup, they want TLA to be on the air covering a feature. I won't divulge yet because they still need to be approved, but if all goes well you'll get to listen to the sweet melodious voice of TLA over the airwaves sooner than you think.

In the next few weeks I'm going to be speaking to a creative writing class at a college about the hustle of a freelance writer. Getting paid too. Who would have ever guessed I'd be speaking to a class of people about how to hustle words and parlay that into other avenues? Not I. The biggest thing I'm learning is that there are no limits to this writing game. The sky is the limit and when change comes, you've got to be ready. I'm not cocky enough to say I was born ready. Not yet anyway. But to bite my girl O, what I know for sure is that the blessing of my gift for words keeps opening doors and its not a coincidence. Its divine intervention working in combination with my drive and passion that's making me unstoppable.

Aight, Hip Hop Honors repeats and Time Out NY have waited long enough. I'll hold on to my thoughts and share with you next post.

Oh yeah, still haven't watched that movie, but I did catch this one . Thumbs up for sure.

Monday, October 1, 2007

TLA vs. Tanisha

Music makes me high. Anticipating the arrival of new music makes me even higher. I have been waiting on Dr. Dre's Detox forever, but I found out on Monday its going to be delayed. Again. It wasn't too hard to deal with considering Jill and Queen Latifah dropped this week. When I heard Latifah's cover of Phoebe Snow's The Poetry Man, it really took me back to childhood. My mother LOVED that album. She played it over and over. Poetry Man and Harpo's Blues are burned deep into my psyche. A few months ago I can remember hearing The Poetry Man at the grocery store and it stopped me in my tracks. I hummed in the aisles. I've always wished I could see her perform, but I guess I'll have to settle for her best of CD for now and reminisce.

The winner of this weeks 'Most Ignorant Statement' goes to The Man himself, Bill O'Reilly. O'Reilly felt the need to let all of his listeners know that all of us don't act up when we eat at our favorite soul food establishments. Comparing the happenings at the restaurant where he had lunch with Rev. Al Sharpton with an "Italian restaurant in an all-white suburb" didn't bother me as much as him declaring that black Americans "are really starting to think more and more for themselves". Thank you for letting the world know that Bill. Were it not for you, I'm not sure if I would have felt comfortable deciding if I wanted hot sauce on my chicken wings or salt on my watermelon. Now that you've informed the world, I know I have the freedom to decide such difficult dilemmas for myself. Thanks again Billy. What would us no thinking black folk do without you?

The Devastating Mic Controller Daryl McDaniels, also know as DMC from the legendary Hip Hop group Run-DMC copped himself an Emmy for Outstanding Arts and Culture Programming this week. Earlier this year he starred in a documentary on his personal experience with adoption, "DMC: My Adoption Journey". VH-1 airs it pretty frequently, so if you get a chance, check it out. Speaking of VH-1, October 8th kicks off the annual VH-1 Honors show. This years honorees include A Tribe Called Quest, Snoop Dogg, Missy Elliott, Whodini, and the creator of New Jack swing, Teddy Riley. This show will definitely air multiple times, so don't fret if you miss the premier episode.

Whats my latest preoccupation? I'd have to say its the the '30 Dates in 30 Days' episodes on Essence.com. Five single women get to pick from an array of eligible black men to go on five dates within thirty days. Viewers get to pick the outfits, venues for the dates, and which man each woman should choose. What woman wouldn't love to give her first impression dressed to the nines in the hottest fashions Essence can borrow, get make up applied flawlessly by a professional, have hair coiffed just so, and select a date from some of the finest offerings the ancestors have provided? Its been really exciting to watch the dates and listen to the women describe them on the blogs. They have only featured two of the five women, so its not to late to catch up. I would love to see a male version of the show.

The schedule I have is crazy right now. Yesterday was the first day of rest I've had in a week. The good news is that after Friday I'll finally get to share with you whats been keeping me so busy these past two weeks. What I can say is that it has been a very challenging, but extremely thrilling experience. I had a nervous excitement on the first day, but as the week went on I became so much more at ease. There is so much for me to learn in a technical aspect, and for me that's a challenge in itself. Although I have already learned a few things, the list will continue to grow. I look forward to it.

Today I may find out if my pitch to XXL was accepted. No matter, because I'm staying focused on keeping my words out there in the world. I've already reached out to a friend of a friend over at Koch Records to help me increase my hustle potential. She has been in the industry for years so I'm sure she will have some valuable information to share. In the meantime, I need to get a book to read (I was thinking about this one) because its been over a month since I've read. Reading is my glass of wine and massage all rolled into one. Well reading and a few select television shows. Thank goodness for On Demand because with this hectic schedule I never get to catch Curb Your Enthusiasm, Weeds, or Californication at the normal airtime. If you catch any of them, you'll laugh your butt off. Trust my Aunt Linda.

Mychal Bell was finally let out on bail. Even the prosecutor didn't want to admit it, the peaceful protest rally that took place on September 20th had a lot to do with it. For those of you that went to march, I applaud you. For those of you who wore black on the 20th, I applaud you too. And for those of you who sent your prayers, thank you. Keep sending those prayers for Megan Williams too. The struggle definitely continues.

Some of you may have caught my last post before I revised. It contained a lengthy rant/vent about some of the interactions I've had with my coworker. That's the kind gentle explanation of my words anyway. After mulling it over, I reluctantly did a revision. The main reason I decided on the revision was because I continue to work with this person. Should she ever come across this blog, I wouldn't want to make a difficult situation even more uncomfortable by having her read truthful accounts of my opinions. I created this blog to have a place to express myself creatively in an uncensored manner so I don't plan on making revisions to my word too often. In the future I'll try my best to refrain from discussing my co worker on this blog (at least while I work here) but I'm not making any promises.

I'm a Netflix subscriber and love the no late fee policy. That means I have held onto this movie for almost two weeks just because I can. Maybe I'll find 121 minutes to watch it this week. If I do, I'll post my review.