Waiting on my camera to come is like a kid waiting for their birthday. You feel that you’ve waited for forever and you’re just ready to experience it. I’m so ready to embark my journey as a photographer. Been many years in the making. I fell in love with photography and just art in general as a little child and being on Deviantart kind of helped fuel the spark and interest that I had with art with many inspirational artists and just the environment of the site was very welcoming. Wandering on the blogosphere and the internet in general, I’ve gotten to see and explore through many dope minds. Minds that have stimulated, sparked, and challenged something in me that I never knew that was possible, and I’m truly grateful.
I feel that with me doing photography it will help me in other areas of creativity and help stretch my mind and help me explore deeper. Writing poetry, stories, drawing, and just thinking. With a camera you feel more confident to explore and push boundaries, which I think will help a great deal.
I already have so many ideas that I want to do with this camera. Daily vlogs, a show I’m doing with one of my friends, nature photos; the possibilities are endless. No doubt I’ll carry it everywhere with me.
I just feel that with this camera I will see the world differently and hopefully help others see it differently and challenge and spark something in them, just like many have done for me.

Details. I pay attention to details. Detail is the thing that separates one thing from the next. Even though most of the time it seems as though I live in my own world, I notice these things. Studs. Lace. Sequins. The cut or shape of a garment. It’s architecture. Accessories. Color schemes. Color contrast. Stripes. Zebra. Cheetah. The list could go on forever. Just know that I love detail.

I can watch a show or a movie. Notice a belt, notice the shoes,or a pin in their hair and go, “Oooo love the (fill in the blank).” I just got finished watching Sex and the City and Carrie had this belt with studs that she practically wore all throughout the movie, but each time it looked different, it gave the outfit a different effect.

On Saturday I went and explored the town of Bexley. The scenery was amazing. Bright red, bright yellow, bright orange, ombre effects I love when it’s fall. Where I was the streets were alive with people and cars and it was just an amazing feeling to experience. Certain things caught my eye. The Speedway that’s smaller than the one that I live by in Cleveland. How the intersection was weirdly shaped. The flags blowing in the wind. Under the billboard the ledge. On the way back to my campus there was this shrub that covered up the fence but you could still see through to the tennis court. With all of these ordinary things that many people go by and see every day, I somehow saw them differently. I don’t have my digital camera yet(hopefully my money will come soon), but I was mentally snapping pictures of these and thinking to myself, If I did it from this angle, or did this..it would be amazing.

So yeah I see it as this. Detail is everything to me.

Weekly Influence: Lykke Li

I woke up a couple days ago and every morning before i do anything else I check my favorite street brand blogs. Award Tour, Married to the MOB, Hellz Bellz, etc. So I go on whatthehellz?!!! and see this video called Black Cab Sessions where famous recording artists and bands sing their songs in the back of this cab. Well in this video Lykke Li and her band sung,"I'm good, I'm gone"(old song I know) and I was amazed. She is an amazing singer, especially accoustic in the back of a cab. Here it is:



Yes I knew about Lykke Li but I never knew how talented she was. I first listened to "Little Bit" feat. Drake and I liked her but I didn't see what the big fuss was about the song or the collaboration. Now hearing the song without Drake I love it, its more simple. Simplicity is better to me.

I've been on her MySpace and read some of her blogs. How she writes is so abstract, so poetic, in a way that reminded me of me. =] She's an very interesting person.

So in saying all of this, she made me fall back in love with music this week. To pursue I don't know right now; but she's the kind of artist restores my faith in the music business. Where I am right now, I don't know if I can do music, it's something so stifling about this atmosphere. I can't explain it. But I do know that she's one of the reason's why I'm thinking it over, instead of closing that chapter of my life all together. How I want to tackle things, how I wish to create; it's all about the simplicity, it's all about classic things for me. Things that are timeless or innovative.

I will leave you with another one of my favorite songs of mine, she does this one accoustic as well, this performance is very moving and emotional.

Weekly Replays: Week of October 12th

Been negleting my weekly duties to do my influence of the week and my weekly replays.

My weekly replays of the last week(the week of October 12) really didn't corralate with each other or even how my life went. It was just one of those weeks for me.

I Can Transform ya-Chris Brown feat. Lil Wayne
Chris Brown's 1st single from his upcoming album titled "Grafitti". At first I was not impressed. All summer I've been hearing songs from him talking about how sorry he is and how he's a changed man. I love Chris Brown and I understand he's human. I thought that this song was just to get people to play his songs again. But I just thought that he would come out with material like that on his album. It's a very catchy song, I really love this song. This was the song that woke me up every morning last week. Any time Chris and Lil Wayne collaborate it's magic. But I cannot understand Lil Wayne's line's, "No I can't dance but I can dance on ya." Huh?

A couple of days later I heard what I had been expecting from Chris.

So Cold-Chris Brown
The first time I heard this song I immediately loved the song. It was so heartfelt, you could tell that he wrote this song. To me it's dedicated to Rihanna(he's still in love with her) but qouting from a person who commented on this song, "Just because he does love songs about a girl interest doesn't mean he's talking about Rihanna." I read somewhere that when he said he and someone else wrote the song, they weren't thinking about Rihanna. Bullshit. But this song so good, I don't care who it's about. As long as an artist stays true to their material and sing from the heart, it's a sure way that the song will go to the top.

Keep Forgetting-JoJo
Now this song had to do with my life last one. My love and I are solid for now but last week I kept thinking about the many times that I've tried to get over him, all the countless boys that I used to get over him, and it always came back to him. Every single time. I "kept forgetting to forget about"him. I love him so much.

Break up to make up- Jeremih
Along the same lines of the last songs. We've been through a lot, it's like lets make it stick this time! But I really like the song because of how Jerimih flowed so easily lyrically on the beat. Flawless. I don't really listen to things that are on the radio but this is one of them.

Grown Simba-J.Cole
If you don't know about J.Cole than you need to look him up. As the first signee to Jay-Z's RocNation you can see why he got picked up. Lyrically he's one of the best out of the newcomers to come out this year. His energy on this track is amazing. But really what made me connect to this song was the whole theme to it. He's living his life, not knowing where he's gonna end up but keeps working hard to get to the top.

"Where you going nIgga?- Shit, there aint no telling

Ay, where you going nigga?- Ay, there aint no telling

Yea, they keep on saying where you going nigga, going nigga?-There aint no telling

Cant tell you where Im going, just know I wont stop

Goodbye to the bottom, hello to the top"

I L O V E these songs and they helped me through last week! Music can heal the soul.

But for how long?

GraffiCouture

Been in a bit of a rut. You know when you have so many ideas and inspirations running through your head, not that much time and you don't know where to start? That's me right now and it's just as bad as not having any inspiration. Every idea that I come up with won't be carried out which sucks.

To get going I wanted to show this dope spread in the Paris Vogue. It's called, "GraffiCouture", with graffiti artist KAWS who I like. I adore things that contrast each other that they practically balance each other. This has a street feel but with elegance and high fashion.

Click on pictures to enlarge.




Fashion and art is one good mix. Fashion is art.

I want to take a walk in the rain. I want to take picture and capture everything that is beautiful, painful, and real. & everything in between. I want to write lyrics on my wrist for inspiration. I want to put effort into everything that I do, even when I don’t feel like it. I want to go to operas. I want to go to plays. I want to perform at a poetry slam. I want to go to a coffee shop and just people watch and write. I want to put the same song on repeat all day. I want to go see foreign films and make up my own plot. I want to go to a film festival. I want to go to different cultural festivals. I want to get on the bus, look out the window and just ride. & if something looks interesting I get off. I want to watch a different movie everyday. I want adventures. I want boredom. When I see that I should speak up, I should speak up. I want to explore. I want to think. I want to feel. I want to write. I want to create. I want to say how I really feel instead of just sugarcoating things. I want to cry when I feel like it. I want to yell if I want. I want to sing if I want. I want to be in control. I want to be happy. I want to want. I want to need.

Most of all, I just want to live.

Nothing’s stopping me.

"Ghosts and Documents"

Looking around, waiting for the lecture to start, I wondered what possessed all these people to come here tonight? What were their reasons? Were they also aspiring writers like me wanting to hear words of wisdom, or just experiences from a great author? Were they forced to come; to get credit for their class? Or were they locals who just love to read and want something to do for the night? We all came there for different reasons, probably got different messages and revelations about writing, reading, ourselves and the world. Past. Present. Future.

I just came from a lecture in our auditorium; British author A.S. Byatt came to speak to the town of Bexley. Her lecture titled, “Ghosts and Documents” was basically about different authors and their left behind letter’s and words. That then got me thinking about how words and the stories and poems writers create are literally the ghosts of them. Then that got me thinking about any art form and how the art is left behind when the person dies; so a part of the creator is still there like a ghost. That to me is a wonderful feeling, that the words that I write will live on and hopefully touch someone for future generations to come. I had so many thoughts running through my head, so many questions, so much information to soak up in so little time that I spaced out a couple times.

I was about to leave when she finished speaking but they had a question and answer forum that was open for the audience. I didn’t get up to ask her a question but I stayed trying to soak up every little thing that she said. Fortunately, every question were the one’s I wanted answers to.

The first person asked her about her thought process and what happens during then. She talked about how she has a notebook and she puts her ideas in there…and at first it’s very slow going. She said when she first started she wrote about 20 drafts for her first novel. Now she doesn’t fully sit down and write until she’s confident in herself and the idea. Until then she puts pieces of her thoughts in this notebook and when she sees something and gets the urge to write she’ll spend about 2-3 hours writing on it every morning. She also said that even when she wasn’t up to writing, she always made sure she was reading something that related to what she was writing about. This little tip I’m taking and applying to my own writing. I’m always so interested in other people’s thought processes while creating.

The second question was one that I was thinking about during the lecture as well; they asked what will she thought about technology and how it’s basically killing the written word. Emails and texts are faster than letters that can take days to travel. People argue and send love notes through Facebook and text messages. There’s basically no need to write them anymore. I agree; what will happen to written words? She answered by saying that there is a trail with emails as well. Even if you delete it from your inbox or computer, it’s still there. It lingers. But there’s just something about reading words that were handwritten. It seems more heartfelt, you can feel the emotion just seeping from the page.

I could go on and on about my experience tonight and what I’ve learned from her but this post is pretty long.

____

Remember “Art is long, life is short.”

Childhood Dreams...

I just wanna go back. Don't you?

Bringin' me down

Have you ever spent time with someone and their energy, or their attitude brings you down? I encountered that today and whenever I do I hate it.

I won't go through the specifics of the story because truthfully it doesn't matter. I try my hardest to try and surround myself with people who have something to say. Tearing people down just to make a joke or laugh isn't anything worth verbalizing. It's sad really.

Weeky Influence: Levi Maestro

StreetLevel Knows Maestro from streetxlevel on Vimeo.

Levi Maestro. Took him as my new husband a couple weeks ago. =] If you saw the previous post I made about him, I saw him in a random You Tube video and just had to know what his name was and what he was all about. Levi is a filmmaker who has his own blog and show on Hypebeast. It's a show of him sharing with the world all of the things that he experiences, all of the people he comes into contact daily. None of the things that he does or shows is not just for the show, this is his life and he's letting the world get an behind-the-scenes view of it. The first episode I saw was where he went to Virgina Beach and hung out with Lil Jon while doing business. But the opening lines of the episode is what got me hooked. "It absolutely amazes me every time I take a plane somewhere, and I come to a city that I've never been to before, how huge it is. I know that everyday life happens there. But I've never seen it before." That, is when I fell in love with how he thought as an individual. I was smitten. Even though I'm not a filmmaker, nor do I aspire to be(I do want to do documentaries though), I felt that I could learn somethings from him. His outlook on life is just amazing, never is the show about putting someone or someplace down. In the video above he explains the purpose and vision of his show. When he graduated high school he knew that he wasn't going to college so he made a move from Las Vegas to LA. I admire that he knew where he didn't want to be, so that prompted him to make his own moves. He went to LA without any contacts and just started to network and create relationships and connections with people that he thought that was interesting. He worked his way up and was self-motivated. He even toured with Anthony Hamilton on tour earlier this year and traveled the world(which he shows in his blog).I love his quote when he says,"You gotta work hard and do for yourself, cause nobody else is gonna do what you want for you". Which he proved true. Hopefully I can incorporate his go-get-it attitude in pursuing what I want do to. Instead of waiting for others to push me.

I could go on and on about Levi, but I'd rather you check him out for yourself.

Weekly Replays during the week of September 27th

This will be a ongoing segment of my blog. Music is a big part of my life, whether I choose to pursue it as a career or not. It's inspiring. It's gives me hope about life.

What draws you to a song? What makes you rewind certain parts over and over again? What parts makes you smile, or tear up at others?

Is it the words? The melody? The music? The feeling you get when you listen to it? Or a combination of it all?

For me it's a little bit of everything. Some songs I like because of the beat, how the person flows on it, the feeling I get from it. This past week (the week of September 27th) was the first time I questioned why I replayed certain songs over and over again. They all had meaning, they all had a depth to them. Importantly, they all had a relation to my life and what I was going through at that time. This prompted me to look up the lyrics of the songs and decode them a bit. Since being in my Intro to Literature Class, I love picking apart words that have been put together. I no longer look at words as words. They all symbolize something, they all have some meaning.

Scatterbrain-Radiohead
This song has special meaning to me and this is the song I'm currently listening to it right now. When I first heard it, I heard a cover of singer Muhsinah, which is as good as the original. You couldn't really hear what she was saying clearly at some parts but I connected to it. The feeling, the song as a whole. I found out it was a cover and then looked up the lyrics. The lyrics were very all over the place, it was like looking in the mind of a scatterbrained person, which was the effect Radiohead was going for. The lyrics weren't made to be able to decode or even completely understand. You make sense of it in your own way. How this relates to me? People say I'm scatterbrained. Which is true. My thought process is not in a straight line which is one of the things that I love but sometimes can get annoying. Like when I do homework or take a test, I rarely start at the beginning. I jump all over the place, I may even stop writing an answer to go to another and come back to it. Sometimes I choose what's hard first and then go to what's easy last. I may even go work backwards from the back of the sheet just because I feel like it. I don't always have a reason for what I do. But it's getting to be annoying right now because I'm at college and I'm still in the process of figuring out what I want to do. I know that I won't have one career, I have goals in life, I just don't know what to pursue first. I have no plan. So every other day, I could be in a good mood because I just came from , my favorite class and then the next day I say "F**k college." My relationship with college is rocky. It's been that way from the start. In my next post I will elaborate on that.

Aquarius Rising-Sy Smith
I came arcoss this randomly while on Last.fm last week. Immediately I could relate to the words, the lyrics and even the music. I'm also an Aquarius. I have this fascination with astrology and so I will try and read up and soak up all I can about Aquariuses. A lot of the information is true too. This song made me even more proud to be an Aquarius. Here are some of the lyrics that I liked the most.

Cherish tradition yet unorthodoxed

I'm unpredictable and so out of step
Ahead of my time and bent on intellect

I'm fascinated with the future unknown
Experimental when I get into my zone

This is me in a nutshell. There's so much more to me than that.

Perfectly Blind-Day 26
I've had this song for awhile but never really paid it any attention until last week for some reason. Brian and Will in my opinion have the best voices of the group but Que's voice in the first verse is what drew me to the song in the first place. What got me listening to the song over an over last week was the combination of the voices, lyrics and the emotion through their voices. I love a song that tells a story and this was told beautifully even though the subject matter isn't all that pretty. About a man who's lost in love, hence the title. The lyrics are filled with imagery and emotion, which I needed last week.

My wide eyes, straight with red lines

Visions of me and you
Shattered in a day like broken glass

Mind is torn, Heart is torn
Violently craving
A substitute for you

I'm constantly on and off with this guy that I've known for about 7 months. Like college, it's a rocky, ongoing battle within myself. But every time I'm willing to stay and follow him blindly because I love him. Which is how I interpreted the song and connected with it. The last two lines(and the line:Could you take me as I am?) I can relate to and I'll probably write about it in a later post.

It Kills Me-Melanie Fiona
I found this song while I was losing the constant battle of asking myself should I give what me and my love have another chance. The message, lyrics and Melanie Fiona's intensity are what I connected to in this song. Of her wanting to stay and stick out her relationship so bad she's willing to risk her sanity is exactly how I felt and still feel. I often question myself. But it always comes back to him. My 1st love.

Ooooh I gotta be out my mind to think it’s gonna work this time
A part of me wants to leave, but the other side still believes
And it kills me to know how much I really love you
So much I wanna ooh hoo ohh to you hoo hoo

Been gone but...

things are changing. I'm no longer in this production group I was going to be in where we push tracks to artists in Atlanta. I will further discuss that in later posts and sound off about what I think of the music industry and I what I've seen so far. This week has been crazy. I'm still kinda sick but will be back at the writing in no time. That's really what I want to focus on right now. I have things to say that need to be said. My influence of last week I have neglected to write but hopefully I will write it tonight. This week just has been a test of what's really important, and what's just necessary. I'm still learning. I always will.

*Now off to clean my room and watch Sabrina. I love Audrey Hepburn.