You Should Be Here: Stevie Wonder Is Taking Songs In The Key of Life Show on Tour!

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*taps mic*

Is this thing on?

My last drive-by post was about Stevie Wonder. So why not keep the party going. After all, this is a blog named for one of the most classic albums ever created!

Last December, I flew to LA for Stevie’s annual House of Toys concert, where he performed Songs in the Key of Life in its entirety for the first time ever. Nothing but death would keep me from it.

I intended to blog about it and all that good stuff. But I did the next best thing. I Instagramed the hell out of it.

I donned my finest, most-treasured jewels

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and headed over to Nokia Live Theatre for one of the most special musical experiences of my entire life. It was an honor to be there and not one moment went by the entire show that I didn’t feel blessed beyond measure. 

I won’t review the show almost a year later. You can read about it here.

From the beginning, I knew Stevie would take this show on the road. So today’s announcement came as no surprise. Music lovers in 11 cities across the country will get to experience what we all did that December night—three hours of complete musical bliss. Yours truly intends to be in the house again. This will make three times that i’ve seen Stevie live. It still doesn’t seem like it’s enough.

Check out the lineup. This one is worth traveling for if it’s not coming to your local music arena. I’m considering going in DC and Philly.

November 6 – New York, NY at Madison Square Garden (On Sale: September 22, 10am EST)
November 9 – Washington, DC at Verizon Center (On Sale: September 29, 10am EST)
November 11 – Boston, MA at TD Garden (On Sale September 22, 10am EST)
November 14 – Chicago, IL at United Center (On Sale September 22, 10am EST)
November 16 – Philadelphia, PA at Wells Fargo Center (On Sale September 22, 10am EST)
November 20 – Auburn Hills, MI at The Palace of Auburn Hills (On Sale September 22, 10am EST)
November 22 – Atlanta, GA at Philips Arena (On Sale September 22, 10am EST)
November 25 – Toronto, ON at Air Canada Centre (On Sale September 22, 10am EST)
November 29 – Las Vegas, NV at MGM Grand Garden Arena (On Sale September 29, 10am PDT)
December 3 – Seattle, WA at Key Arena (On Sale September 22, 10am PDT)
December 5 – Oakland, CA at Oracle Arena (On Sale September 29, 10am PDT)

Purchase tickets to the shows here.

There are pre-sales for those that must be front and center. Tickets go on sale for Citicard holders on September 16th through Citi Private Pass. There’s also a Facebook Fan pre-sale sponsored by LiveNation. The code is KEY.

Do YOU plan to be front and center at this show?

Here’s a sneak peak of what I hope goes down in your city: 

Check out India Arie, who joined Stevie on a couple songs, getting down with the get down!

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We came to partay!

 

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Stevie Wonder Reacts To Verdict In The Trayvon Martin Case

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Another reason why Stevie is the 8th Wonder of the World.

He’s putting his money where his mouth is and pledging never to perform in Florida or any other state where Stand Your Ground laws exist. Activism is nothing new for Stevie though.

Bow down.

A Song For Trayvon

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playlists for brothas, songs for healing

As I sit here 24 hours after the verdict was read, I remain in a state of depression, disappointment, disillusionment, disgust and every other “d” word you can think of — except for denial. It’s quite clear, yet again, that the lives of our black boys (hell, black people period) continue to be worth nothing. How does it feel to be a problem?

I’m going to stop here because I am absolutely not a cultural critic or an academic and I prefer to stay in my lane. I know a little bit about music. I know that it can help heal. Although right now, it seriously feels like nothing, not even putting it in God’s hands is enough. That’s coming from someone who is deeply spiritual. It’s becoming quite clear that this was not a case the prosecution cared to win since it appears they are quite capable of winning the cases they WANT to win.

We’ve got to act and I’m proud to see so many people coming together across the country peaceably to help each other process this and figure out how to continue supporting Trayvon Martin’s family as the fight continues and also the families of those being murdered in Chicago and all across the country.

This playlist, “A Song for Trayvon, is dedicated to Lester Chambers, a black musician who was assaulted on stage while trying to sing a song for Trayvon. The jury was still deliberating when the animal attacked. And WE are the problem. Mercy, mercy me.

Music Events: Jilly From Philly In Convo With National Museum of African Art

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When this event popped up on my timeline, any other plans I may have had for that day mysteriously auto-deleted from my calendar. Certain artists have the power to make that happen. Jill Scott is one of them.

On Friday, August 9, Jill will be in conversation with Johnnetta Cole as part of the National Museum of African Art Director’s Discussion Series.  We always love to hear Jill sanging and you can do that here and here. However, Jill is also a multi-talented actor, author, poet and philanthropist. In the midst of the beautiful, culturally rich space like the Museum of The American Indian, I expect it to be great discussion.

Tickets are on sale to the general public now here. Get them while they’re hot! I fully expect this to sell out.

This is the latest in the series of discussions that have previously featured icons such as Maya Angelou and other artists and musicians.

Conceptualizing and planning events like this would be my dream job. #WriteItMakeItHappen

#ThrowBackThursday “Reminisce” With Bilal (For Dilla)

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This one is for Dilla.

Yesterday’s DC Loves Dilla show was nothing short of amazing. Shamefully it was my first one but certainly won’t be my last. Each and every artist that graced that stage brought their “A” game for Dilla, one of the most prolific producers of our generation. If you’re not familiar, please check the resume.

Bilal has much history with Dilla and I was thrilled when he was added to the show at the 11th hour, maybe right around the time that Black Thought decided he had better shit to do.

For this edition of #ThrowBackThursday* on the blog I decided to go with a classic from 1st Born Second, the Dilla produced “Reminisce.” I recorded this one at a show back in 2007.

Last night, D.C.reminisced on the career of a great man. Of 10 years since the release of Ruff Draft (yes, I turned ALL the way up for Crushin). It was a great night for D.C. music lovers.

*Yes, I know #ThrowBackThursday is a photo meme. But I do what I want!