W.O.W. : Michelle Obama

So ... we're getting things started again and we are OH SO OFFICIAL ... so we thought, who best to bring our ladies a new word of wisdom ... but the MOST OFFICIAL first lady, herself.



I was thinking as I was grinding ... (which is ALWAYS how it should be done ... head first) ... about why in the word e a s e and mikey and i go SO hard ... and I thought to myself ...

"Self, of course! We do it for the people! ... But it's more than that ... we do it because we can't NOT do it. We do it because it has to be done. Like our ladies!"

And so ... of course the first lady concurred.

She said, kho kho (cuz we cool like that) ...

All of us driven by a simple belief that the world as it is just won't do - that we have an obligation to fight for the world as it should be.

and then i was like ... but what if it's too hard or too much or too ... well just too hard and too much like something we can't handle?!?

and she said ...

You can't make decisions based on fear and the possibility of what might happen. We just weren't raised that way.

and i was like ... oh ... aight.

so, my loves, keep it pushin' ... and stay you. stay AUTHENTIC.

kholi.

The A-List

So, many of you have been out of the loop ... mostly because ::ahem:: we've left you there ... ::crosses fingers:: don't hate us. We've been preparing for what we'd bring you this fall and ooooh boy! ... SPRING will be sprung, ladies! Just wait!

(p.s. we totally need an intern ... so you chicks should make that happen ... we write EXCELLENT letters of recommendation ... -_- ... ok, i guess we give a percentage of profit ... but spread that word too far)

ANYWAYS ... Just in case you're wondering ... AUTHENTIC has created it's A-List!

What's the A-List you ask!!! Ohhhh, you know, just Philly's hottest women doing SUPER DOPE ish (ya ... it's been awhile since I've talked to you pretties, I'm tryin' to stay PC)!

We'll have more info on the A-List later, but what you should know right now ... is that TONIGHT ... the A-List is bringing you one of the hottest parties in Philly! At NONE OTHER than ... THE RUM BAR! Dig it.

One of our favorite Philly DJ's and a definite member of the A-List has been brining you consistent contentment for a lonnnng while now! If you don't know about it .... well ... reading is ALWAYS fundamental.

"...Any Questions?" Music For~the~Soul

Brought to you by DJs Phoenix and BeFree:

For over a year we have been bringing you what we wanted (and figured others would too), a beautiful respite from the club life, where people can get together and vibe, share stories, dance, and find out about the varied and interesting lives that we live.

"...Any Questions?" is also a space for artists to enjoy an audience. And if anyone missed ELLEN TIBERINO creating a beautiful mosaic on sight, WOW! that was an inspiring night!

We have a number of exciting collaborations with artists, organizations, and performers coming up for the summer season.

JOIN HERE for all of the updates :)

Last Thursdays

Spinning - Soul, Funky House, Jazz, Downtempo, & Sexy Hip-Hop

Taking you from a simmer to boil!

Fantastic Drink Specials

Full Dinner Menu

Dedicated to massaging your senses with music, food, drink, and fantastic company.

6pm-10pm

@ The Rum Bar - 2005 Walnut Street w/ Vena (Bartender Extraordinaire)

"BROOKLYN SUPERHEROES" go to B-GIRL BE :: A Celebration of Women in Hip-Hop :: MAMA SAID KNOCK YOU OUT

As part of the fourth installment of Intermedia Arts' hugely successful festival B-Girl Be: A Celebration of Women in Hip-Hop, this Friday the all-female art show "Mama Said Knock U Out" will open its doors in Prince's hometown, Minneapolis. Curated by Michele Spaise and Theresa Sweetland, "Mama Said Knock U Out" is an international visual art exhibition that will showcase 28 female artists from around the world who use their visual voice to empower, inform and organize. These women are employing hip-hop culture as a means of expression, connection, education and social and political activism globally. The show will feature a select group of very talented female artists who are influenced or work within the hip-hop community.
Representing the feminine wing of the Brooklyn creative force, I'll be showing two pieces entitled Brooklyn Superheroes 1-2, along with the works of my friends & fellow artistas, Abeni Garret, JenOne, Sarah White, Alice Mizrahi, Toofly, & Minneapolis-native C-Rocka.

Artists: Abeni Garrett, Alice Mizrachi, Amanda Lopez, B Fresh, Catiesha Pierson, Chanel Kennebrew, Corinne Santiago, C-Rocka, Desdamona, Erotica67, Faith 47 & Rowan Pybus, Janelle Olson, Jennifer Rasinski, Jessica Kitzman, Katrina Knutson, Keegan Xavi, LadyKFever, Lauri Lyons, LICHIBAN, Monica Kelly, Motel 7, Niz, Sarah White, Shannon Joyce, Steph 1, Tamiko Mitchel, Tiffany Smith, and Toofly.

EXHIBIT ON VIEW August 28 - October 23, 2009 /// Opening Night Reception—
Friday, August 28, 2009 // 6-9 p.m. at Intermedia Art // 2822 Lyndale Ave S, Minneapolis //Free and open to the public

BROOKLYN SUPERHEROES 1-2 (16"x24" mixed media on wood)

"PUMP": AUTHENTIC's 1st Birthday w/ Miami's DJ DIMPLES

It's been a WHOLE YEAR already!

AUTHENTIC's been loving you long time ... for about a year now! Soooo .... It's our BIRTHDAY!

And DJ DIMPLES is coming allll the way from MIA to help us celebrate! All our other AUTHENTIC chicks are coming too!

BE there! Mix and Mingle w/ AUTHENTIC's A-list! Meet all the awesome women artists, musicians, poets, fashion designers, etc, etc, we've partnered with this year ... AND ... meet a few new faces we've just hooked up with!

If you're not coming for the $3 drink specials and gorgeous women ... get into the cupcakes, body paint, and uh ... duhhhh ... DJ DIMPLES bringing you such sweet heat allll night long!

So come out ... see all the folks one last time before you really end your summer ... and PARTY w/ a PURPOSE!


FLUID NIGHTCLUB
THURSDAY, August 13, 2009
10 pm-2 am
$10 gets you PUMPED!


AUTHENTIC: kholi:: e a s e

Mic Check: CNN's "Black In America 2"

"Any excuse to get some pussy," pierced the aftershave & witch-hazel filled air that surrounded me as I sat in my barber's chair for my weekly haircut. Queen Latifah's image flashed across the shop's television screen. The entertainment news reporter stated that the performer was publicly announcing that she had suffered sexual abuse as a youth. The reporter went on to say that Latifah revealed the abuse to her parents at age 19, but has more recently come to terms with the abuse as an adult.

 

Queen Latifah is no stranger to media speculation of her sexuality and she's often answered that she's comfortable with whom she is and that the happenings of her intimate relationships aren't open to the public, hence the title "intimate." Sadly & ignorantly a middle-aged black man felt compelled & comfortable enough to say that this woman who has been a positive role model for women of color and women in general was only coming out with her testimony of survival in order to come out as a lesbian & meet little to no resistance from the public because the anti-gay public (especially the black community that is deeply wrought homophobia) would pity her & write off its disdain for her sexual expression. It is a shame that this man, like many ignorant individuals, forges a correlation between sexual assault or abuse & homosexuality. Fortunately, the work of statistics is on the side of reason. Rape or molestation rarely sways an individual’s sexual preference or orientation.

 

What was most appalling to me as I sat in Chair #3, I listened to several black men dismiss their sister's testimony for folly. Many saw it like the man who felt her admission was a ploy for her future coming out. Others saw it as unfortunate, but they still “knew” she was gay. Neither group understood that her abuse was the subject of the news broadcast & her expression of her intimacy was not. Still, in this ignorance, many of the men applauded her assumed lesbianism as if she was oddly their comrade. "Bitch betta get that pussy. Ain't nothin' wrong with pussy," they laughed.

 

How do we alleviate the homophobia & misogyny in these familial spaces? The former stems from the latter, but both do not always so conspicuously share the same space.

 

The barber shop has been a cornerstone of the black community, providing black American men with solace, dignity, & above all else, brotherhood. Its impact & importance has always carried & sustained by word of mouth -- truly legendary. But it wasn’t until rapper-turned-actor-turned-director Ice Cube explored the barber shop’s role in the black community, how it nursed the black male ego, & how it provided a space for dialogue to progress (and regress), encouraging socio-cultural & political discourse. The barber shop is "the black man's country club," as proclaimed in Ice Cube's movie "Barber Shop." Any topic is up for discussion, elder members have “senrority” (seniority), & pussy is always a sweet topic. Sometimes women are discussed, too. As a black man I listened to men who could be my father or uncle or grandfather degrade Queen Latifah's womanhood, dismiss her struggle, & applaud their own assumptions about her sexuality. All was fine until I spoke up & asked "what if she was your sister or your daughter or wife?" As a gay man I empathize with the need to demand my privacy & my humanity without seeming closeted or not proud of whom I am. There's a fine line between lacking pride & being private. My fellow barber shop attendants seemed to feel that Latifah's sexuality should be up for public debate & scrutiny. However, the women in their lives were not to be subjected to such disrespect & intrusiveness. Many of the regulars in the barber shop know that I'm gay & oftentimes I don't think they realize that their opinions are ignorant & offensive. Other times, I’m sure that they know they speak hurt. 

 

Now, don't act like you haven't thought about it. You know you want it. Everyone thinks about it. Most of us do it, often.

 

The clip included shows one doctor’s efforts to use the barber shop’s nurturing environment to inform & encourage black men to attend regularly scheduled doctor’s appointments. Chicago’s “Project Brotherhood” combats the distrust in a Eurocentric medical pathology that has shown time & time again that it has no regard for the sustaining of the black man, & ultimately dispels the fear of the emasculating experience of placing one’s health in another’s hands. Black men are afraid of doctors because we don’t always comprehend that our greatness can only extend into the next generation if we honor our bodies mentally, emotionally, and physically. Signing up for proper medical & life insurance coverage has been the talk of the town or at least Washington, D.C., for over a year. President Obama mentioned his hopes to reinvent America's healthcare system & has even called for bloggers to aid the cause & spread the word. Congress plans to review the reform bill before the end of its summer session.

 

The barber shop is part of the black man‘s kingdom, a kingdom that requires his greatest health; a kingdom that he did not build & cannot maintain by himself. Hopefully, “Project Brotherhood” and programs like it will encourage black men to respect the Queen. There can be no U.N.I.T.Y. until he acknowledges his hand in misogyny. Till then, black women will be waiting for him to answer “who you callin’ a bitch?!”

 

 

 

THIS WEEKEND!!! Get Ready....

This is probably one of the hottest parties you'll attend this summer! So, if you missed Volume 1...then be a part of Volume 2...details are on the flier..BUT, if it's too small...let me spell it out for ya ;)

This Saturday, July 25th @ 9pm....Littlefiled, NYC: 622 Degraw btw. 3rd and 4th Aves...Planet Brooklyn! 21 and over...$10 in advance/$15 @ door...here 4 tix

Then, you should plan to attend the AUTHENTIC brunch..part 2! @ 40th and Walnut..Marathon Grill 11-1pm, Sunday July 26th!

-good eats

-good drink

-good people

-great conversation

PLUS!!! It's our BIRTHDAY!! well. August 13th to be exact..we're narrowing down who will bring the atmosphere and the location..but mark your calendars for that night for sure!!

JAM packed weekend...no matter where you are, one of these events are reachable ;)

ciao!

e a s e

kholi

We Love Choklate

... You should too!