Sunday, May 22, 2011

Jose James' Special Brand of Magic

Jose James is a jazz/soul singer with a soft baritone and a heart that you can hear through his music. Minneapolis-born and bred, James has released three albums, and each one has given listeners a different perspective on who he is as an artist and as a human being. He's traveled from traditional jazz to hip-hop- influenced experimental soul, and back again, all the while exhibiting his talent for writing, producing, and of course, singing. His voice is warm, strong, and effortlessly smooth. After listening to his music, it becomes clear that James is both a student and master of his art. And he matches his technical expertise with emotional honesty.

Friday, May 13, 2011

My Mother's Keeper?

In the Black community, there is no one more sacred than mama. And with good reason. Most of our mothers are superwomen: making a way out of no way, sacrificing their dreams for ours, playing the role of mother and father with little support. They deserve our praise. But this exaltation comes with a heavy burden for some daughters. There is an expectation in the black community that mothers and daughters should be the best of friends. But this simply isn't the case for may of us. In fact, some of us stifle our needs as daughters in order to maintain the appearance of being BFFs with our moms.

Read the rest on ForHarriet.com.

Sunday, May 1, 2011

On Suns and Planets

Dontcha love it when a Twitter discussion leads to a personal epiphany? One of the tweeters I follow, @at1_ment, posted some interesting information about introverts and extroverts. For me, it was a revolution in the way that I perceived the world. Here's a summary:

Introverts are like the sun. We radiate our own energy, and we tend to pull others into our gravitational sphere of influence.

Extroverts, on the other hand are like planets. They breed life, and give purpose to the energy emanated by the introverts.