Here’s some photos from the evening!

Comedian Sheng Weng from the Bay Area talking about dropping the kids off at the skate park, eating pomegranates, and his bum “applauding”. Oh dear. I was giggling with glee the whole time though. Teehee. No wonder he’s been featured on Comedy Central.

Singer/Songwriter Cynthia Lin performed a special set in dedication to Haiti. She made my heart warm despite the brrrrr of winter.

Lookie my girl Sahra Nguyen, aka NASH, go! Boston reppin to the fullest: Poet, visual artist, and armed with a new talent of graphic design, what??! Like her mama, she’s a gangsta. Buy her chapbook and read about her here.

So I really need you guys to check out The Kitchen Cabinet, “the most punk non punk folk band in this town”. The lead singer has a charming voice, and I swear you’ll be disarmed by their enchantment. Listen now!

Last but not least is sweetheart Maya Hatch, whose music I’ve been obsessed with since November when I was introduced to her songs via her myspace page. I was instantly addicted. She tours Japan again in two weeks, so if you’re in the Eastern Hemisphere…look for her in a jazz club near you!

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Sidenote: Sulu Series is held at the Bowery Poetry Club, which by the way, has a brand new cafe that I adore: “Celebrate” cafe, run by the Lower East Side Girls Club, provides an empowering space for young women to develop themselves personally, professionally, and creatively in a healthy way. Their treats are handmade and delicious, and proceeds go to the supporting the organization. I’m sooo bout it. Learn more about the Girls Club here.

I got it from FLY.

Lately (or who am I kidding, my whole life really), I’ve been getting really frustrated not seeing enough Asian girls on magazines, tv, etc. My fabulous friend Tina just went on a business trip to Hong Kong and I eagerly asked her to bring me back a few Chinese fashion mags. I was so excited when she brought home two shiny new publications: Elle Hong Kong and Elle Singapore. I practically tore the plastics off the magazines, and was delighted to flip through pages of Asian faces, but alas…

Much to my dismay, what I saw were pages upon pages of Caucasian models, and numerous ads for skin whitening creams. Mans. Darnit my people, we gotta get it together, you know. I was quite a bit disappointed, to say the very least.

Luckily, my gals over at M.I.S.S. are amazing enough to feature a diverse palette of lovely superwomen who all do amazing things, and I am so happy they include YAY Asian Girls! And wow, what an honor, I got to be a part of it too.

Adriel said it best….”a world without Michael Jackson is like one day realizing the metric system is gone”. For the first time in my entire life, I have to consider a reality without MJ…I’m not sure how, but this morning, I’m giving myself the opportunity to re-live my childhood and love the music all over again.

Because we could never really say goodbye:

my short offertory of the day:

the sun sets in my laryx

the moon wanes on my eyelids

i see and speak the sky

the God in me

Rising.

I came to New York City for inspiration. I needed it, needed to stay inspired and look for new ways to motivate myself to create. They told me this is the exact place to find it. They were right! I’m inspired here everyday. And lately, the inspiration comes from the most unexpected situations.

Last week, via an invite from some friends, I RSVP’ed to Fast Company’s event celebrating their most current issue  honoring the 100 Most Creative People in Business. I was originally juiced to go because there were rumors that my Pharrell would be there, and of course, what girl wouldn’t go and greet her boyfriend? (buahhaha)

Little did I know that I could find such an incredible, electric (no pun intended) kind of inspiration sitting in on a talk about the future of robotic surgery. Suddenly, my circuits were sparking, my light was turned on, and I was buzzing with an unlikely excitement. Seriously. Fast Company drafted an incredible list of creative people to feature on their magazine, and I left feeling so inspired, the most current issue has become my current fixation.

For someone who idenitifies as an artist, I realize that I think about “creativity” within a very limited scope. Modes of creativity, in my mind, is applicable to more traditional mediums, ie, art, music, film, fashion, etc. Coming to the Fast Company event opened my eyes to creative breakthroughs happening in places I don’t often think about: genetics, food production, technology, product development, outer space, even! Well, I actually do think about outer space quite often, but I think about it from the viewpoint of a martian transplant on Earth, not the actual planet/universe/earth science composite of it all. This issue opened my eyes to successful people ranging from high tech (Neri Oxman, issue cover girl) to high fashion ( Marc Jacobs), music geniuses (Pharell Williams) to genetic brainiancs (Dr. Anthony Atala ). The Law of Attraction must have been in tune with my current source of inspiration, because the night after, I found myself in a conversation with a geneticist from Vancouver on the A train. Fascinating!

Most of all, being around successful people fueled my drive even more, and it made me excited at a future I’ve been envisioning as of late: Professor of Cultural and Media studies- of course, that’s in the distant future, but someday, I do hope to get my doctorate so I can teach in Universities. Oh grreat. I’l be in college forever. Either way, my parents will get the Doctor they always wanted, now aren’t they?

My point in all this, is that we have to challenge ourselves to think outside the box! Go out and live the world! The world will surprise you with a kind of inspiration that makes you feel alive. Just don’t go out and make out with everyone and call it inspiration. You don’t wanna be that kind of fast company. nahmean?

Oh, and I did not see Pharrel, but I did increase my Nerd points. Does that count?

Natural Electricity babay,

Dr. Roobz

RSVP@christianrichchicago@gmail.com

It’s no secret, gentrification has permeated in unsuspecting cities and districts all over the country. Out in West Oakland, Emeryville (the “city” within the city)  is spreading further and further out, giving way for striking juxtapositions of crackhouses and luxury condominiums all in the same street. Flower pots, grass, Whole Foods, and brand new slabs of concrete on the sidewalks serve as the signal that the populace will slowly become more deprived of melanin. Other words, white people are coming.

Here in New York City, the drastic transformations within the city occur in a far more compacted, more obvious spaces. There are millions of universes that exist between a span of 2-5 city blocks, universes that transform before your eyes before you can realize where the hell you’ve ended up. On the block uptown where I’m staying, there are outdoor cafes galore, mimosas toasted every morning, and Columbia University professors exchanging lecture points over a pleasant gourmet pizza lunch. Walk one single literal block up towards 124th, and suddenly, the air changes. Forget gourmet. Now you get liquor store, chicken shack, and cold rusted brick buildings that look so tired they seem to be heaving through the cracks in the wall. It’s what real estate brokers describe to me as the more “colorful” neighborhood. Go past 123rd, and you’ve crossed the invisible wall.

Welcome to Harlem, yall.

Yet, it’s still beautiful. It’s a different kind of beautiful though. Not the kind that’s always pleasant. Tough love is what it is. But then again, this whole city is like that. As my girl Kristia put it, New York isn’t the kind of city that likes hugs. More like a head nod, you know? Just tip your head up to respect the game, nothing too touchy.

But as someone who just moved here, I’m soaking in the city like a fresh sponge. In Cali, we drive around so much, that a lot of places  between point A and point B go ignored. Here, walking everywhere allows you to experience all the different points in between, and all these within-city alternate universes trigger all your senses. It’s a trip to recognize that an Ivy league school with Ivy League bank accounts rests right on the crest of Harlem, just a few short blocks from the place where I witnessed a man struck down from a gunshot wound during a cab ride home the other night. Opposite worlds live within a few feet from each other, and everyone just goes about their daily living like they don’t notice.

I guess now I realize what Sammy was trying to tell me about kids tagging their names along on city property. Inner city kids taking back a kind of ownership of their city, letting everyone know they were there, that they exist.

The writing’s on the wall. Know it’s there.

Recognizing,

Young Roobz

Watch the episodes HERE. (I tried to embed the videos, but it didn’t work. darn. Go on the site and watch, its my morning inspiration for the day!

Parade is on Madison Avenue from 40th to 27th Streets- someone correct me if I’m wrong, yeah. More info on Cj’s Ethnik Roots blog, check here.

In light of all the festivities, Pnoy Apparel is putting on a benefit showcase that I’ll be hosting, and I’ll be joined by fellow Filo artists from the West to the East, so come out and see how my people do!

JUNE 6th, NYC: Shirt the Kids Charity Showcase by Pnoy Apparel

What: Shirt The Kids Charity Showcase NYC
When: June 6, 2009
Where: Rebel NYC 251 West 30th Street, NYC
Why: Every $5 dollars buys a Sammy The Sunshine shirt for an impoverished child
Price: $10 – All proceeds go towards Shirt the Kids Charity Campaign
Performers: Bambu, Kiwi, Deep Foundation, Ashley Robles, and Ruby Veridiano-Ching
Time: Doors open 7:30pm – Performances start 8pm