Tweeting Everything- Letting your fellow tweeters know you are awake, looking at television and what not is so not interesting. I mean, is someone going to say back to you “awe you awake, where did you wake up at?
Retweeting Compliments- Doing this is truly the equivalent of saying Good Job to yourself and patting YOURSELF on the back. I mean it cool and all that people think your awesome, but how much more awesome would you be if you just told yourself that you were proud of you? Build up your own confidence, don’t rely on someone else’s gratification. Especially randoms.
Passive Aggressive Tweets-If you are going to “go in” on someone at least provide some links or additional information to help them do better. Twitter beef has to be a balance of addressing behaviors (low blows) and resolution. We should want everyone to be great! If someone is crazy, how about tweeting some links for them to get some help. Or if you’re going to call someone a hater, tweet some quotes to help them really think about why they are
Twitpic’ing Pictures of Your Stuff- I know you are so stuntastic(I made up this word) and hella ballerific, but who are you trying to prove this to? Everyone else who doesn’t care because it’s not their stuff, so save the pictures of your alleged Gucci, credit card receipts and fake red bottoms for your own viewing purposes.
GPS Location- Okay, it’s cool if you’re a celeb and your fan wanna keep tabs on you. Hell, everyone wants to know where Justin Beiber is hanging out. But if you are just Tamika from the block we don’t need to know that you are at the Holiday Inn in downtown Detroit.

Retweeting Follow Friday’s Featuring YOU-It serves no purpose to retweet Follow Fridays with your screenname, don’t realize you are encouraging people to follow you, who are already following you?

I had tons of people asking me about my my commencement address I gave at Mt. Clemens High School on June 2, 2010. I know everyone has been bitting their nails in anticipation of what random inapropriateness I had to say, so here you are!

It is so exciting to be here today celebrating Mt. Clemens High Schools graduating class of 2010!

I would like to thank Dr. Muncachy, Mr. Bruce and Mrs Campau for inviting to be a speaker here today.

I know what you guys are thinking… “who is this 17-year-old posing as this year’s commencement speaker?”

Don’t worry, I am definitely pushing thirty, and there are a few teachers here today can vouch for me…like Ms. Clemens and Ms. Volz.

Just a decade ago, I was right where you are right now. ..only difference was I was WAAAY COOLER!

Instead of being “All the way turned up” I was “All about the Bejamins” Diddy was Puff Daddy or P-Diddy or Puffy or something.

And during this portion of the ceremony I was twiddling my thumbs, thinking about how I couldn’t wait to get to college so I could get in somebody’s nightclub and order something on “the rocks”, get a tattoo, and stay out all night.

Sorry parents, it’s the truth. Even with my 3.9 GPA and full ride scholarship to Kent State…I did it.

Sometimes, even surrounded with the most supportive team someone cannot live up to their ultimate potential. Honestly, I can say that many people that I sat next to at my graduation, didn’t. You can have the best teachers, the most supportive parents and still not achieve you full potential.

Although, there were times in my life I did make mistakes. Everyone does. But, mistakes or setbacks don’t have to stop you from reaching your ultimate potential.

My parents had me on a short leash and had high expectations for me. I am the 4^th generation in my family to graduate from college. If I remember correctly, I think all the way up to 11th grade I could only go 2 houses to the right and three to the left—because you know those people who stayed in that white house were crazy, and on top of it my mom worked in the district so I couldn’t get away with anything…ever.

Needless to say, once I went to college I did explore, and when I graduated I was pregnant with my daughter. Many people would have used that as an excuse, a reason to give up or just stay stagnate, but, I knew I was blessed with a gift and I would be doing a disservice to myself and to God if I didn’t press forward.

I was responsible for shaping my future and how successful or unsuccessful I was going to be in life.

And that’s what I want to focus on today: the responsibility each of you has for your success.

We are living in a tough time right now. I don’t need to stand here and explain to you the trouble that we are facing you can turn on the TV and see what is happening all around you. But you are guys are lucky.

Your families, your teachers, and everyone in your life have done everything they can to make sure you have what you needed to get to this day.

Now, it’s time for you to do your part… So you need to get serious. Think beyond your 5 mile radius, your dreams don’t have to stop in the Clem or East of 8 mile.

Right now I am calling on you, the graduates to stand and show the world the value and worth of the life that you are living.

Small thinking and small doing should make you uncomfortable. So, learn to become allergic to mediocrity.

Using Your Gift

Every single one of you has something you’re good at. Every single one of you has something to offer. And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is. That is what opportunities, exploration and education and the practice of a craft can provide you.

My first Job right after graduation from college was at the voice newspaper in New Baltimore. It was a small weekly paper, which I provided the majority of the content for. The biggest story I ever wrote back then was about sidewalks…the city wanted them, the residents didn’t. I know…a far cry from CNN’s top story.

From there I went on the Channel 7 WXYZ where I was able put together coverage and write about the Detroit mayoral scandal, the Stephen Grant Case and field producing for the Woodward Dream Cruise and the Detroit Grand Prix.

And who would have thought that working with a bunch of fatties at Weight Watchers would help my writing career so much. It’s okay don’t worry I can say fattie I am a big loser down 40 pounds with the WW. Writing for the company’s CEO Florine Mark has allowed me to motivate thousands of people to live the best life the can, campaign for our nation’s President Barack Obama and current Mayor of Detroit Dave Bing and learn a little Hebrew. Mazel Toff!

If it wasn’t for these things, these experiences… I would have never been able to write a screenplay for a national theatrical release. I would not be able to continue to expand my horizons and try new and different things.

In the real world that is where you start. You won’t graduate from college and be Anderson Cooper, Oprah or Bill Gates. You’re not going to record a song on your Macbook and hit the top of the billboard charts right away.

The big breakthrough in the search of success comes when one recognizes one’s talent. We look at other people and marvel at their success. You go around saying I want to be like Lebron James or you want Kim Kardashian’s booty—no matter how fake it is. We are solely impressed with their talent, abilities or looks. We think they are different from us; that, somehow they belong to another species which we are not a member of. We look everywhere else outside, rather than looking inside ourselves and identifying the assets hiding within us.

There may be acres of diamonds in our own backyard and we may be hunting for diamonds all over the desert. Make sure you know the diamonds you possess. This is a good time to take the inventory.

It Ain’t Easy

Anything worth having isn’t going to be easy. But that shouldn’t stop you from aiming high. Magic Johnson said it best when he spoke at Wayne State last week saying “Just because you’re poor doesn’t mean you should have poor dreams”.

You’ve gotta learn to not sweat the small stuff. There are going to be road blocks, bumps, sometimes you’re going to go right when you’re supposed to go left. That’s life.

I am sure everyone has heard the saying anything worth having takes hard work. I mean think about it, the odds of someone making it to the NBA are slightly better than one in a million. Lebron James didn’t go from the high school to the pros because of sheer talent. He worked hard to be great. During the off season, when he travels the country for commercial appearances, while other athlete’s party he’s at the gym shooting until he makes no less than 400 shots. He has unscheduled practice time on cold winter nights. This man’s worth ethic is unreal. That is why he is great.

So, even when you’re struggling, even when you’re discouraged, and you feel like other people have given up on you – don’t ever give up on yourself.

Sacrifice

Success really all depends on what you are willing to sacrifice. If you’re willing to change or alter your lifestyle to succeed you will receive something far better than instant gratification. This success is LONG TERM.

Remember, not everybody is going with you. Some people and things you will have to leave behind. But don’t sweat it, it and they were just dead weight anyway. Turn to the person next to you and tell them…K-I-M (keep it moving).

Giving Back

As you move forward, don’t forget to take some of your time to give back.

Mentorship is so important.

Someone stuck out their hand to you, to help, to guide you. They didn’t necessarily have a college degree or a portfolio but they maybe had some kind words that helped you along your way. Everything counts. You can be someone’s mentor starting today. You can make a difference in someone’s life.

I caught up with Jamie, a mentee of mine who I met at Cass Technical High School who now is a sophomore at Michigan State a few weeks ago. She told me that something I told her stopped her from getting into a lot of trouble recently, and I couldn’t figure out what it could be.

She told me,

During a crazy newsroom day at channel 7, I randomly told her to never argue with anyone in a newsroom, we all think we know everything. Just play your role.

Jamie said that was the one thing that stopped her from socking her camera man on a shoot.

Jamie is finished this semester at MSU on the deans list.

You never know who might need your words of wisdom or your guidance. To receive guidance, wisdom, and inspiration from others is a priceless contribution that is not often afforded to those who need it most. So, don’t save it up, share it.

Conclusion

Music has always been a motivator for me. So, fittingly I have come up with a collection of lyrics that I am quite sure you will find helpful along the way.

I know you just want to “BE SUCCESSFUL” but before you go ahead say “OH LET’S DO IT” or “Have a party in the USA’ … Take some time and think before you “THROW IT ALL IN THE BAG”.

When setting goals remember that, “You’ve gotta live with your dreams…so don’t make them so hard”

Everybody, is not going to like you. That is life. So, remember to “Dance up on them haters… & Keep getting funky on the scene” because whether your high or low you gotta tip on the tight rope.’ So it is best to just keep doing you.

Dream Big, ‘cause when it happens…its gonna be real quick.

When you get down, go and steal your little sisters Hannah Montana posters and sing to yourself: “The struggles I’m facing, the chances I’m taking, sometimes they might knock me down, but no I am not breaking”.

And finally, I believe Drake summed it up best in Unthinkable by saying-

Life is what we make it. And a chance is like a picture, it’d be nice if u just take it.

Your success is only limited by your desire.

Congratulations class of 2010. You did it!

The fatal shoting of 7-year-old Aiyana Jones by Detroit police in a raid on May 16, 2010, sent shock waves throughout the country. You would have never thought that it would actually cross the mind of people in 2010  to start playing the 1988 NWA track “F&%k the Police”, but I am not surprised that someone would actually take it there.  People shocked and outraged by the police ultimately just doing their job, have completely glazed over the most responsible parties for the safety and well being of this child…the parents. 

Before you go ham, without all the details of the story, please read the story as covered by CBS below.

Anyway, when did having a child become just an accessory to your life?  Nobody is asking the real questions here when it comes to this story. What we do know is that a person who committed a crime was found in this home. The gun went off while a tussel was occuring between officers and another person. All of this was in occurence while an innocent child was sleeping quietly on the couch. Why would a parent/s place a child that they loved and cared about so deeply in an situation or area of clear and present danger (even without the police present) unless they were operation off of selfish motives?

I have known plently of parents who were drug dealers, prostitutes or just couldn’t care for thier children the way that they saw fit that would never have their child in a place where they’d be in danger.  For me having a child, meant that I stopped living for me. Some of things I use to do, I couldn’t do anymore because they would pose a threat or wouldn’t have a positive affect on my child or their outlook. It’s like the woman who continues to be with a man who beats her, as her child watches; or someone allowing a friend or family member to sexually assault your child, without removal from the situation.

Aiyana Jone’s death, is not about fuck the police. The police were doing their job, seeking the suspected killer of another child. Aiyana’s Jone’s death is about parents taking responbility for what they expose their children to. If you love your children, and you have made everything you do be about them, what you do and what you are involved in will reflect that. Step

DETROIT (CBS/AP) State police will take over the investigation into the death of 7-year-old Aiyana Jones who was fatally shot by a Detroit police officer Sunday during a raid at the girl’s home, a prosecutor said Monday. 

According to Assistant Chief Ralph Godbee, the Detroit police barged into the home with their guns drawn searching for a homicide suspect that was involved in the slaying of a 17-year-old boy. One of the officers was allegedly involved in a scuffle with a woman inside the home when the gun went off and fatally struck the sleeping child in the neck.

Chief Godbee believes the gun was not fired intentionally, but Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said bringing in the state police to investigate the killing would avoid any appearance of a conflict of interest.

“This is a tragedy of unspeakable magnitude to Aiyana’s parents, family and all those who loved her,” Godbee said. “It is a tragedy we also feel very deeply throughout the ranks of the Detroit Police Department.”

Although police eventually found the 34-year-old slaying suspect they were looking for during the raid, it does not console Aiyana Jones’ father Charles Jones who said “Aiyana was a lively child.”

Charles Jones remembers covering his daughter with her favorite blanket as she slept peacefully on the couch of their Detroit home before heading to bed early Sunday. He awoke to sounds of a flash grenade followed by a gunshot, and immediately rushed to the living room where he says police forced him to lie on the ground with his face in his daughter’s blood.

I am so excited to see the Detroit Lions doing something outside of losing! ha. Anyway, I met Louis Delmas in Miami during Super Bowl at Lounge XLIV (Player Association Event) he seems to be a a real stand up guy. With that said I have decided that I support him.

Detroit Lions star safety Louis Delmas along with his non-profit “We R Love” will host a fundraiser February 27, 2010 in which proceeds from this event will be donated through Delmas’ non-profit organization, “We R Love” which was established in 2009 to help the underprivileged in Haiti.

We invite you to attend the VIP reception taking place on the rooftop of Bookies (2208 Cass Ave, Detroit Mi) from 8-10pm to meet & greet Louis Delmas along with other NFL players in attendence.

Tickets for this VIP reception $40 and include open bar, appetizers, VIP gift bags that also include an autogaphed photo of Louis as a token of his appreciation for supporting a cause that is so important to him and his family.

Click HERE to purchase VIP tickets!

*Tickets are VERY limited and being sold on a first come first serve basis.

Universal Recording artist Newland is a rarity in the major label world of artist. He doesn’t have to write a song about “turning his swag on”…he exudes it. He doesn’t have to pop bottles or tell all the chicks to pop that “p”…they just do it. This guy knows how to carry himself and oozes sex appeal without even trying. It also doesn’t hurt he knows how to write everything from a r&b ballad to a club banger and he’s even gone country. He’s perfect, or at least to me he is lol. Publicle.com was able to catch up with Newland and discuss his latest track “Pillow” and some other randomness. Peep the raw audio from the interview and the official video for “Pillow” below:

LISTEN TO THE NEWLAND INTERVIEW HERE

Keep up with Newland at:
www.twitter.com/iamnewland

“Seems that when some innocent die
All we can offer them is a page in a some magazine
Too many cameras and not enough food
‘Cos this is what we’ve seen
Driven to tears” -The Police

The photo you are looking at above is BEFORE the quake. This tragedy that has Haiti has driven me to tears. On January 12th, 2010 the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere was devastated. The quake didn’t only destroy the country and kill 150,000 or more people, but it took a country that has been in dire straits’ for a century and reduced it to rubble with no way to dig its way out. What I find is so intriguing about the people of Haiti, is that despite living in long-term material poverty, their faith has allowed them to continue to have an enormous amount of endurance, hope and dignity. The people of Haiti still need our help, and just because the Hope For Haiti telethon is over, doesn’t mean that the work is done. The people of Haiti where in bad condition, before the quake. Take a look at these facts:

The government is not able to provide the resources to educate the nation’s next generation.

The unemployment rate is over 80%.

More than half of Haitians live on less than a dollar a day.

There are few paved roads, an inadequate supply of potable water, minimal utilities, and depleted forests.

About 60% of the population lives in abject poverty.

Less than 20% of Haitians age 15 and over can read and write.

Fewer than 75% of children attend school.

40% of the Haitian population does not have access to primary health care.

The United Nations estimates 6% of Haitians are infected with HIV/AIDS. The highest rate in the Western Hemisphere. An estimated 30,000 people die of AIDS every year.

One in twenty Haitians is infected with HIV/AIDS and there are over 150,000 AIDS orphans.

Your donations can do the same for the people of Haiti. If you’re looking for a way to donate, but don’t know where to start, take a look at some of the links below.
· According to the Red Cross’ Twitter page, you can text “HAITI” to 90999 to donate $10 to Red Cross relief efforts. You can also donate online to Red Cross’ International Response Fund. Depending on your carrier you can text two or three times. If you wish to donate more that that amount visit www.redcross.org or call 1-800-RED CROSS.

· The Canadian Red Cross has a Haiti Earthquake fund. Donations can be made online at www.redcross.ca/helpnow, by calling toll free 1-800-418-1111 by sending the text message “REDCROSS” to 30333 to make a one-time donation of $5, or at any Red Cross office.

· Haitian-born musician Wyclef Jean’s grassroots organization is accepting donations via text. By texting “Yele” to 501501, you’ll automatically be donating $5 to the Yele Haiti Earthquake Fund. Check out Yele.org for more information.

•Unicef is directly supporting the children of Haiti. There are over 300,000 orphans currently. The Organization absorbs all the administrative cost for the donation drives so 100% of your donation will go directly to the Haiti relief fund. Call 1.800.FOR.KIDS (1.800.367.5437) or visit unicef.org for more information.

•The French organization Doctors Without Borders has been doing work in Haiti for years. Donate at DoctorsWithoutBorders.org.

We all started out 2010 washing ourselves of the memories of 2009 and gaining a renewed sense of hope for what’s to come. Unfortunately, once we hit what is now Spring, the strive for better fades and old memories may be dug up leaving us lost without a purpose. Your outdated beliefs, assumptions, behaviors and habits are blocking you from living your BEST LIFE. So, what should you do to peel away that old mentality and connect with your deepest purpose? “The 21-Day Consciousness Cleanse” by New York Times Best Selling Author Debbie Ford focuses on detoxing your soul. To move forward you must cleanse your physical body of accumulated stress and toxicity or in laymen’s terms: You’ve gotta kick out the bad to breathe in the good. Publiclee was able to catch up with Ford and here is what she shared:

The Spiritual & Emotional Wellbeing Connection to Achievement

Why aren’t we able to achieve our goals? We can’t achieve our goals because we don’t feel like we have the inner strength or the motivation to actually make tough choices. And we don’t believe we can make tough choices because we have bought in to some old negative belief about ourselves that now lives in our consciousness. If we don’t shift the way we feel about ourselves and don’t connect with this inner resource that has the power to deliver us the goals that we desire, we will often run out of motivation early in the process. While it’s true that our actions determine our outcomes, the thoughts and feelings we experience on a daily basis exert a powerful influence on our actions. All goals – including the goal to lose weight or adopt a healthier lifestyle – are made more potent when we are clear about why we want it, and how we will feel once we achieve it. If we try to initiate positive life changes without first addressing any underlying disappointment, frustration, or resignation that may be lurking beneath the surface of our consciousness, we will be fighting against ourselves the whole way. By acknowledging and then releasing these self-sabotaging thoughts and emotions first, we open up the space inside ourselves, inside our consciousness, for lasting change to take root.

Meditation is Needed Everyday

There is a saying, “If you don’t go within, you go without.” So much of our waking attention is externally driven. We get focused on the hustle and bustle of daily living, making ends meet, and pleasing others. The 21-Day Consciousness Cleanse is an opportunity to move our attention from the outer world back to ourselves. The daily meditations are easy to do and only a few minutes, but they reconnect us with our internal source of motivation, courage and internal strength and help us to stay focused on what we can do to experience more fulfillment, have more fun, and live our lives in a way that makes us proud. Each meditation ends with something I call Soul Food – a mantra that we can repeat throughout each day to align our every thought and action with our intention. It’s very powerful.

What is a Consciousness Cleanse?
I think of the Consciousness Cleanse as a detox diet for the soul. In the same way that a physical cleanse purifies the body of accumulated stress and toxicity, The 21-Day Consciousness Cleanse purifies our minds and emotions, recharging us with strength, clarity, and inner peace. The Consciousness Cleanse is designed to clear away the difficulties of the past – our struggles, stresses, hurts and resentments that might cause us to overeat and sabotage our diets. When we are liberated from guilt, regret, insecurity, and the heaviness that we carry around from the past, we find the internal courage to make choices that empower and inspire us.

The Number 21
In the 1970s, a physician by the name of Maxwell Maltz published a research study that confirmed that it takes roughly 21 days to change a habit. Over the past decade I have supported tens of thousands of people in changing their lives for the better, and have seen over and over that committing to a single intention for this period of time generates enough momentum to keep most people inspired. Because the Consciousness Cleanse is divided into three areas of focus – the past, the present, and the future – the process is accelerated and people notice positive shifts immediately.

Separating the Past, Present and Your Future

The first seven days of the Consciousness Cleanse is dedicated to clearing out the negative thoughts, turbulent emotions, limiting beliefs, and unresolved pain from the past that literally weighs us down and keeps us repeating from making better choices for ourselves. People experience a great deal of release – physical as well as emotional – during this phase. The second seven days provides an opportunity to honestly assess who, what, and where we are today; to get really clear about what is and is not working in our lives. Many compulsive behaviors – including overeating – are merely an attempt to cover up or distract ourselves from a deeper issue that needs our attention. Once we’ve identified the emotions and patterns from the past, we can mobilize the inner and outer resources we need to resolve them. This produces an immediate boost to our self-esteem, energy level and motivation to stick to our goals. The final seven days of the Consciousness Cleanse directs us toward the future, unveiling a road map that will lead us to the actions, feelings, and outcomes that we are yearning to experience. We’re exhilarated and find the strength to look and feel our best.

Watch Yourself Change

The Consciousness Cleanse is a full-immersion process of spiritual renewal that guides us to clean up the past, get honest about our present circumstances, and envision a future that leaves us lit up and inspired. It will support us not only in obtaining our goals for the New Year, but more important, in building a powerful, loving and respectful relationship with oneself.

For more information about Debbie Ford, visit www.DebbieFord.com

Everyone has their own taste in music, but why do you listen to it? How does the music you listen to make you feel, how does it influence you, your mind and your daily life, even your interactions with other people?
The power of music is amazing. Music has the power to stir our emotions. These feelings are gripping – often irresistible – and seem to emerge from nowhere. These feelings color our moods, affect our perceptions and generate a behavioral pattern. The indisputable fact about music is its power to evoke emotions. Music is like a road you walk on, and based on the music you listen to, you could see how it can help plot your journey in life.
For Weight Watchers President and CEO Florine Mark, music was emotionally a saving grace as she went through a recent bout with colon cancer. While she stayed in the hospital recovering she listened to “As bad as I felt, I would put the music on and it really kept me. It helped me to find rest in my discomfort,” said Mark. “I truly believe music is food for your soul.”
The repetition of a line as in a lullaby, the pounding of a drum and the strumming of the strings of a guitar, all have the innate ability to produce a feeling of physical ease. But good music does not stop there. It touches our emotions. True music really reaches far deeper and touches our soul leaving its imprint on us and inspires us to change. Lyrics like the ones in Michael Jackson’s Man in the Mirror or the Beatles’ All You need is Love motivated the masses to give peace a chance and reminded them that change begins with the individual. Powerful songs like this are felt more than heard, and that is what makes music such a baffling mystical experience. Music is created from the heart and molded by emotion. When you find that right mix that can get you through just about anything.
The ancient philosopher Plato said “music and rhythm find their way to the secret places of our soul.” Check out the soundtrack of President Barack Obama and my life soundtrack and think of your own soundtrack and fill your secret places with the rhythm that will drive you to greatness!

Barack Obama (Courtesy of Blender Magazine)
1. Ready or Not –Fugees
2. What’s Going On- Marvin Gaye
3. I’m On Fire- Bruce Springsteen
4. Gimme Shelter-Rolling Stones
5. Sinnerman –Nina Simone
6. Touch the Sky –Kanye West
7. You’d Be So Easy to Love-Frank Sinatra
8. Think –Aretha Franklin
9. City of Blinding Light –U2
10. Yes We Can wil.i.am

Just think about all the old trends that have made their comeback. Plenty of our style icons used fashion to captivate their fans, sparking worldwide fashion epidemics. Prince used tight leather chaps, mesh see-thru t-shirts, spandex and oodles of sex appeal in the 1980s, while Cyndi Lauper paired a tutu with neon tights , stilettos, and a shredded t-shirt. But it is Madonna took the cake with her intense red lip, overpowering accessories and the infamous fingerless gloves. Does this sound a lot like what’s haute right now?

My Mom always told me it takes about 20 years for trends to come back in style, and that is why she never… ever throws away anything. I Win! (it’s a reccession, a sistah needs to be frugal)

Why do these trends come back in such a hurry? Charkita Glover owns Chargrels Couture, a one of a kind line of line wearable art made from recycled clothing . She says, “Sometimes a particular style is repeated, but it will be switched up a little to make it more modern,” said Glover. “Some styles do run their course, but there are many that are timeless.”

With more and more shoppers attempting to be chic on a budget the eco-craze has now become the thing for the trendy. You have to know when it is time to toss, and when it is time to save. She suggest doing things like shortening jacket sleeves, changing buttons and always hanging on to old t-shirts. The major advantage of eco-fashion (outside of cost) is its smaller impact on the environment. According the website newscientist.com it takes about 25 bath tubs full of water to make one t-shirt. That’s nearly a month’s worth of soaking! When it comes down to it, recycling fashion can contribute to a revolution that pulls upon fabrics and raw materials that have literally already been thrown away.

You don’t have to go to the mall to light a fire into your wardrobe, There are other ways you can pinch your pennies and innovate.
Here are a few Eco friendly or Green fixes that can maximize your style, lay off your pockets and conserve our environment.
• Have a swap party. Invite friends, coworkers, and folks from the neighborhood for a night of coffee, libations, and snacks. Set up tables or an area where guests can lay out their swaps and a dressing room with full length. When everyone is done shopping and trying things on they’ll feel like they’ve just been to the mall on a shopping spree!
• Go online. Try swapstyle.com. Browse through others closets all over the world and post your own items. You can swap, buy, or sell at this Web site free of charge!
• Consider consignment shops. There are many great ones popping up all over the North Shore. Bring gently worn items that you know you won’t wear and see what the stores have to offer at prices far below department stores.
• Share unwanted clothes with friends. Often that piece you purchased last year and never wore really looks better on your friend Lauren, and she would be thrilled to have it. Probably she has something she’s not worn that would look better on you too!
• Check in with the family. Styles always come back and you never know what they might have kept around in one of their many closets
• Try sewing. Classes, some with machines, are available at fabric stores, community centers, and more.

To purchase some of Charkita’s designs head over to www.Chargrels.com

You may recognize Zo! as one of band members from the Grammy nominated group Foreign Exchange, but this guy is actually one of music’s hidden gems. Detroit born/DC-Based Zo! has worked with some of the best including: Slum Village, Platinium Pied Pipers and Finale. He’s even stroked the keys with the Gorilla Funk Mob. Needless to say Zo! is not just visiting. Interestingly enough this extremely talented producer/instrumentalist is also an educator. Anyone invested in bringing out the artistic ability in our youth, get an “A” in my book. Publiclee caught up with Zo! to discuss his newly released EP “Just Visiting Too”, working with Foreign Exchange (including that Phonte) , and how he became a one man band.

You call yourself a musical architect, why is that?

It basically explains my approach and feelings toward creating. There is kind of a discipline that loosely parallels architecture that is associated with layering several different musical elements and fusing them together with a certain structure in order to construct a timeless piece of art.

Both of your parents were musicians, who else would you say are your biggest musical influences and why?

I really allow EVERYONE to influence me positively; I think I’m able to learn more that way. For example, If I hear a piece of a Stevie song that I love but then hear something from a much lesser known artist that I think is brilliant, it’s an all-around win for me creatively. It’s all a part of the ongoing learning and building process you take on as an artist.

How did you learn how to play so many instruments?

One of the only reasons why I initially started in on different instruments was because I wanted to keep live instrumentation in my music without having to be on other musicians’ time. I figured the more self-sufficient I could become in the studio, the easier it would be to complete and release my own projects. With each instrument, I simply would go up to Guitar Center, pick one up… and simply proceed to practice. I tell people all the time who say they want to learn how to play an instrument that it takes two things: time and patience. I just got the instruments in my hands and kept playing them. I also, more importantly I never hesitate to talk with kats who I feel are experts with their respective instruments and pull pointers from them because you want your practice to be purposeful.

I was at your performance with FE at the Charles H. Wright in Detroit this year, what is it like to come back to your hometown and perform?

I have had the opportunity to do that on a few different occasions now and believe me – it NEVER gets old. Getting to go home and play is crazy because not only do you receive unconditional love from the hometown crowd, but it’s also serves as a chance for you to showcase how far you have progressed as an artist and musician – it’s always a good time just to be able to play in front of those who saw me from the beginning of this very interesting ride.

How did you link up with Foreign Exchange?

Well, I first met Phonte back in September ’05 when Little Brother performed at the Blind Pig in Ann Arbor. I think I read somewhere on LB’s message board that he had heard my remixes for “Whatever You Say” and “The Way You Do It” from the Re:Definition album.. so I wanted to check out the show and afterward, say I appreciated the listen. We met, and it turned out that he had the album in his iPod. So we continued to stay in touch and eventually work a month or two later on “Steppin’ Out” (from the 2006 …just visiting album), then work began on the 80’s album. When he asked me to remake the Stevie joint for FE’s album back in early 2007, he said that once they go on the road, he was gonna make sure to incorporate me into the live show. With that being said, the promise was kept and I received the call in the latter part of 2008 saying that shows were starting to book. I called my kats from the band that I work with in DC, The ELs… and we have all been building together ever since.

You did the instrumentals for FE’s remake of Stevie Wonder’s “If she breaks your heart”, does that song have any special meaning to you? and what was it like to have your hands on recreating a classic?

Any song of Stevie’s has meaning to me because he is the greatest of all-time in my humble opinion. It was very humbling when Phonte asked me to remake the song. I was thinking to myself, “…uhhh, but this is uhhh…Stevie.” It was one of those songs where in remaking it, I heard the drum pattern immediately and began to build the remainder of the song from there. I wonder if Stevie has heard the remake yet? I would love for him to take a listen to it…I wouldn’t be able to be in the same room while it happens though. (Haha)

Detroit to me is like the mecca of music, would you agree?

I would agree that Detroit is our music Mecca because we grew up there and in the area – that’s the music and culture that we came up on, grew to love and is a part of us. The Mecca of music to me is the Motherland, Africa…

You currently reside in the DMV where alot of the music has go-go influence, how has that played into your music?

I don’t think that Go-Go has too much of an influence on my music because I haven’t been exposed to it much at all. The one thing I have analyzed is the Go-Go live show. Now as a performer, that’s something you can learn from, in regards to allowing the groove to rock that crowd. But in all honesty, I just haven’t heard a lot of Go-Go music.

Lets talk about Just Visiting Too, you’ve done the same sort of concept before, remaking classic tracks. What would you day is different about this album than the last?

I guess in my eyes one of the main things that I hear is two to three more years of experience sonically and musically. So in short, I think there’s a little more experience behind …just visiting too in comparison to …just visiting.
Out of all the artists you’ve worked with who would you say was your favorite and why? This one is easy, that would be Phonte (of Little Brother and The Foreign Exchange). He’s one of the few kats that I can send music to and not have to say a THING. Plus, he doesn’t just let the sent music sit, in other words, I know that the song will be written and recorded to every time. There’s nothing worse than someone just sitting on music that you have sent to them… The fact that we both have very similar work ethics and musical tastes and have been working together on different things since the end of ‘05/beginning of ’06 makes the creative process run very smoothly. We have knocked out an album together (Zo! & Tigallo Love the 80’s!) so at this point there’s a routine already in place with us when it’s time to work – not to mention there’s just a great deal of mutual respect between the two of us… dude is family here.

What can we expect from Zo! in the near future?

Consistency – I’ll continue to be out with The Foreign Exchange on the road as well as PPP (Platinum Pied Pipers) and you can check for my new solo album coming in 2010 entitled, SunStorm.

You can download “Just Visiting Too” HERE.

For more of Zo! music checkout the following links:

http://musicalarchitect.com/
on iTunes… http://tinyurl.com/6fdyby

http://musicalarchitect.blogspot.com/