George The Poet

Last month I went to see George The Poet at Start The Bus but before I write about the show let me just give you a bit of background.

I've been following George's career for a hot minute. Like most, the first I heard from him was 'My City' published ahead of the Olympics. Some time passed and then he popped up again on 1xtra and I was mesmerized. I remember tidying my room when his live lounge came on and it was one of those moments when you just sit down and take it in.

After that I searched every YouTube video, found the Chicken and the Egg EP and vowed to see him live and talk to him one day. Fast forward a year or so and here I am, working at BBC Radio Bristol and he's coming to Start The Bus!

So I send an email to his manager to say 'oh hey I see George is coming down, can I get an interview?'... No reply. I call Start The Bus looking for an alternative email address... No reply. So I think ok, well I'll give them a couple of weeks - he must be busy. It gets closer to the event, I think, let me just get a ticket to be sure I actually get to see him anyway. Sold out. SOLD OUT?! Naaaaaah. I don't THINK so.

Believe me when I said I chased this guy for a solid month and then finally, a week before the event, I got an email back and a number. I organised a chat before the gig, thought about the questions I was going to ask and felt confidently prepped.

Slight hiccup occurred when my back went out and I was left horizontal the day before the event. I'd been looking forward to this for more than a month and then my backs gonna go and do that to me?! Peak. I laid up in bed for the whole day before boshing two very strong painkillers and heading out to do my first ever solo interview.

This was the result...

Watching George The Poet I felt like I was a part of history in the making and isn't that what this generation needs? Someone to lead and inspire not just through a talent but with a wide breadth of knowledge that you can't help but be drawn into, and listen to. It was like being in a university lecture where you didn't feel talked down to but included in the concepts that were being discussed.

Afterwards George sold and signed his book Search Party, I'm pretty sure everyone bought one. Here's my favourite poem from the book, named My Mandela.

If you ever get the chance to see George, make sure you do. Your eyes will be effortlessly opened by the end of it.

Smear

Lick words off the lips

That always say too much

Know that a conversation

Could be ended by a touch

One action could last forever

The dimensions of a moment, soft

When dissected in such a manner

That finds all the meaning lost

Open arms to demented tongues

Trapped in a fierce abrasion

Embrace the serpent sent

To seek division in the equation

Multiple minds that constantly find

A means for which to battle

To stand apart from cold-hearted ones

And take a back seat in their struggle

D'Angeloooooo

So yeah, D'Angelo happened.

I don't mind admitting that I was late to D'Angelo. Obviously I'd heard Brown Sugar and Lady but I didn't actually get to album listening levels until maybe 2012? But when I knew, I knew.


D'Angelo is just sex. Every song has an unavoidable eroticism. When I listen to Lady it makes me think of lazy mornings in the summer with pillow talk and orange juice. Unassuming, relaxed, happy.

Black Messiah is a different kind of drop. The jazzy instrumentation you'd expect is still there but with a bit more of an edge. To me Black Messiah is less of a seduction and more an expression of frustration - which was mirrored in his live gig.

Of course the vocal was flawless, we'd expect nothing less but the bass - jheeeeez. From the first song the entire place vibrated with this deep bass that seemed to ripple through the audience and promise an unexpected experience

A solid rock backbone ran throughout, with the performance feeling like three chapters. The beginning that smacked you hard with the new tracks, then a bit of a breakdown into old school classics before moving onto the finale which I guess was a mix of both. Each chapter was reflected in the outfit changes.

Black leather and an electric guitar started the show before moving into a checkered poncho (?) for some 'salsa tones' before returning in a black vest. Has he still got it? Maybe not in the way he used to but the guy looks good for his age! You can't knock that. My buddy was all 'Noooo, he got fat....' No he didn't, he got older. And he's still working it... Though to be fair when he started grinding against the mic stand I think everyone looked away in uncomfortable embarrassment.

Overall, it was wicked. Because I got to see D'Angelo. In the flesh. And close my eyes and listen to his sweet nectar voice. Over excitement was captured in the abundance of videos that were snapped until I ran out of memory...doh. But I saved enough for Brown Sugar. Win.

Below are my shaky hand vibe catching vids. As many as could be taken before becoming that dickhead that spends the whole gig filming.

@Bristol: Love and Luck

So I know its a bit late to write about Valentine's Day but mine was so wonderfully weird that I really felt like I should share. Especially as I'm making my way down to @Bristol tonight for Giles Petersonn- got my memory a whirring...

Whilst booking an 'alternative' Valentine's Day guest for BBC Radio Bristol, I got talking to the press office who invited me down to At-Bristol: After Dark.

It was much less sinister than it sounds. Essentially; At-Bristol opening its doors to couples and singles to come and play without any pesky kids running around hogging the machines - and of course nothings really adult until there's a bar... Brilliant.

So I went down there with a couple of friends and I have to say, I had a ball. The problem with At-Bristol is there's SO MUCH TO DO. I feel like I'd only be satisfied after five solid hours of running around in order to hit everything properly, but regardless I managed to pass through some main attractions,

Firstly: 'Have A Go Heart Dissection' *not: much more do-able after a strong double*

I'm not particularly squeamish but it was pretty intense. It felt like I'd hopped back a decade to Year 9 Biology and I'd forgotten that smell. That very specific smell of a raw pigs heart. It actually surprised me that I recognized it quickly, maybe it was that mixed with the artificial smell of the gloves but  bleeeeeurgh. Saying that, I couldn't walk away...and a twisted satisfaction playing with it... Evidence caught on camera...

Next was standing in a womb...that was odd. I think the idea is that you feel like you're a baby - the floor moved, the walls vibrated, mum's voice was heard muffled, and then you were birthed. It was an experience....

After I went to the Wiltshire Chilli Farm and took part in their Chilli Challenege. Holy crap. I can handle spice but the last one they gave me to try was madness. It was black. Do you know how disconcerting it is to voluntarily eat something that is pitch black? It looked like danger..and yes, it burned. Beautiful chilli flavours though, it you're a chilli lover, you need to check these guys out.

Last pit stop was the planetarium where we were taken on a journey around the solar system... If you haven't visited the planetarium before, the seats are practically horizontal. It was amazing though, I've heard whispers of films maybe being shown on that screen and good lord, if they put horrors on in there the whole place would be blubbering wrecks.

Here's a short 'n' sweet package I made post visit...


A huge thank you to At-Bristol to inviting me to come down and get up to mischief! Next visit will be Gilles Peterson at The Planetarium - eeeeek!!

Here are some more meaty pics... *insert cheesy heart in hands quote here*

 

HAPPY WEDNESDAY!!!

Here's a little suttin suttin I actually recorded a week ago when I was in the middle of THE MOST inspiring week.

You know some days when you just wake up and you're like yeah, everything's gonna be ok. I'm not  perfect, the world's not perfect but perfection is a myth and fuck it, I'm happy so I'm gonna sprinkle that happiness onto everyone.

That's the kind of mood I was in, and it lasted ALL WEEK.

Then then this week I'd tired myself out by being so happy and things took a bit of a dip on Tuesday so I wallowed like a melodramatic wallower before tackling a
situation  and waking up today
LOVING LIFE AGAIN.

The relevance of this picture: St Patrick's Day
Be happy for the Irish and their sexy voices!

Because of this, I'm reclaiming Wednesdays. They get a bad rep for being that mid-week day when everyone's just waiting for the weekend to arrive. But when I was talking to a friend recently he made the very good point that time is just in our heads. After pay-day comes and the resulting elation you feel begins to dwindle sooner every month until you get a pay rise/new job and the cycle starts again, people are just counting the days until the month is over and they can breathe again.

How depressing. That we're counting each day to go by until we can relax by either 'living for the weekend' which seems to have been translated into 'get as wasted as possible and try to shake the resulting hangovers by the time work comes round again' or getting more money.

So... Fuck money. Fuck the idea that relief and release depends on something outside of your control. Be happy in being here, living life, having the opportunities that are available to you and be grateful. Spread some love and joy and happiness around you when you've got some to spare because even if you spend a little more effort smiling at someone you don't know, they might need that smile. They might really appreciate that little bit of human connection that doesn't cost you anything. And you'll feel better for it too!

So yeah, HAPPY VIBES ALL AROUND Beautiful people!!!

The Gigantic Beard That Was Evil....

OK so I am the first person to admit I have 'geek like' tendencies. In fact, my favorite purchase this month was my Marvel shorts (yes Primark).

So when I found out a graphic novel had been adapted to the screen by Bristol Old Vic I was first in line to go and check it out for BBC Bristol.

Performed by the Bristol Old Vic Young Company, it was funny and showed maturity beyond the collective's years. Clever observations of adults in the workplace - they zoned in on the mundane, confusing world of office
work.

Anyone that has worked at an office knows that really, no-one knows what the hell is going on. You walk in, push some papers, sit in a few meetings, and leave wondering what you actually did to earn the money that's going to pay your rent.

The Gigantic Beard That Was Evil turns this world on its head after main character Dave grows a huge unmanageable beard. Scruffiness is blasphemy in this clean, proper, paper pushing world.

Adapted from this graphic novel by The Young Company, it was very impressive to see the meaty characters that were discovered through cast's humorous improvisations.

So many themes interwove in this story, the most prominent to me being how society views Death; as something to be feared instead of accepted.

Then the lengths people will go to in order to remove something that doesn't quite 'fit in'; ostracizing instead of accepting.


Here is a small audio package that was put together by myself after the play.



A huge thank you to Stephanie Kempson (Director) and Kathleen Fitzpatrick Milton (Assistant Director/Assistant Music Director) for talking to me after the production as well as the cast: Julia Head, Joshua Robinson, Esther Lawrence and Elliot Winter.

Here's an unedited rendition of 'Here' which was the theme for the piece sung beautifully by the actors.



Looking forward to my next visit where I'll be watching Abulations...

Colombia, I miss ya

It´s been quite hard for me to write about Colombia because I have so many different feelings about it. There are positives and negatives and in a lot of ways I feel like it was my pheonix moment. I sank my furthest anad rose my highest. I think out of everywhere I travelled in South America, it was Colombia where I really learnt something about life, and not just myself. It was a place where I was able to stay somewhere without judgement and expectation, and really look at who I was, what I offered, what I took away, and who I wanted to be.

I will never stop feeling blessed at being welcomed into a family that housed me, and fed me, and included me for four months. The genorosity and base goodness in people was shown to me in Bogotá, and I miss my Colombian family every day.

It´s hard to pin point exactly what I did in Colombia because really I just lived. I went and did the tourist thing for the first two weeks, met some wicked lifelong friends, partied, and then went and got a job teaching English for four months. The whole thing was pretty surreal. Anyone that´s been to Colombia would tell you that Bogotá is not the cream of the crop in terms of location. The weather is madness-summer in the morning, torrential rain in the afternoon, normally followed by fog, and then blistering cold at night time. It´s true what they say, Bogotá has every season in one day. I was lucky enough to start my stay in the summer months which span December-February...but after that the weather showed its true colours. I got caught in a storm with not enough on more than once.

Not to say Bogotá dosn´t have its good points, the old city is beautiful. Alegria´s hostel, which I stayed in during my tourist moments, was an amazing old house with old wood that had a lovely homely feel. I´ve recommended it to all travellers. It´s where I met four awesome Americans, a couple of Irish lasses, a mouthy Northerner, and a London chick who kidnapped me and took me to San Gil before worklife reality kicked in.

It was hard making friends in Bogotá though, it has to be said. The language barrier was...well, a barrier but also in hindsight, I was working through some personal things. It's only on reflection you realise how strong a subconcious can be. I think I needed that loneliness to remember that actually it's OK to be alone. It might be boring at times, it can be fraustrating, but ultimately, you get a lot more done when you're not surrounded by people. Thinking, reflecting, planning, recouperating... It´s so easy for me to get sucked into being around people all the time as; an entertainer, a friend, an agony aunt, a raver.... Never-ending labels that I put on myself and then think I have to live up to, and actually it's a choice. I choose to be those things, or not to be.

However, saying that, after a month of this I realised it was time to make friends. I did this in probably the most stalker-ish way possible. Went to a toursit attraction market... Alone. Heard some people speaking English so went and stood by them... Alone. Sensed they were about to move on and practically shouted, "OH HI!!! YOU SPEAK ENGLISH TOO? NICE TO MEET YOU. I DON´T KNOW ANYONE.... SHALL WE EXCHANGE NUMBERS/EMAIL/ANYTHING???!!!"

I am often described as charmingly subtle.

Thankfully these people were just as nuts as me so we ended up having a ravey night together where they cooked my dinner and took me out to a tiny club that played techno all night. Not normally my type of music but hey-after 6 months of salsa I was up for a change!

There's still so much more to say, about the family I stayed with and the places I went, life however must continue to go on. So, to be continued xxx