mandrake society radio

Nhojj nominated for two Velocity Awards

mandrakesociety@gmail.com (JW Richard) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 08:51:12 +0000

Out-and-proud vocalist, Nhojj, has been nominated for two Velocity Awards for his latest project, Soul Comfort. These nominations for Best R&B Album and Best Alternative Artist are a continuation of a very good year for Nhojj’s music, as he’s performed at the 4th Annual Barbados Music Awards earlier this year with the likes of Rihanna and Regina Belle. He’s also had one of the Soul Comfort tracks, “Spring Rain”, to be used in the recent DVD release of the film, Finding Me, from first-time Haitian-American filmmaker Roger Omeus, Jr. Nhojj was also recently featured on the Mandrake Arts & Media blog, www.popolio.com, earlier this year as well.

The Velocity Awards, a production of Southeast Boy Productions, L.L.C. in association with Velocity Magazine, are produced in the Washington D.C. metro area and exist to recognize the outstanding achievements of independent artists in the worlds of music, theater, and film. While not all the artists nominated in the Velocity Awards are gay/lesbian identified, several have been nominated for their contributions to independent film, theater, and music including R&B artist, Jesse O, and talk show host, DJ Baker, of Da Doo Dirty Show, who is also nominated in this year’s awards as well for best radio/talk show.

Queer LiberAction’s Blake Wilkinson ousted from Ft. Worth city council meeting

mandrakesociety@gmail.com (JW Richard) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 03:45:18 +0000

As seen on CBS11 here in Dallas and read here in Star-Telegram.com, after demanding several times that the incident at the Rainbow Lounge be moved up from the last item on the city council’s agenda, Blake Wilkinson was ousted from the city council meeting for causing a disturbance. Consistent with Queer LiberAction’s direct confrontational approach as outlined on their website, Wilkinson and 6 others became the first citizens ejected from a Ft. Worth City Council meeting in six years.

Tonight’s city council meeting was to address, among 77 other items, the incident at the Rainbow Lounge on June 28, 2009. Individuals from the groups, Equality Texas and Fairness Fort Worth, requested that several community allies attend tonight’s city council meeting to show solidarity in pressing for an independent investigation to the happenings on that night. The planned speaker for the groups was to be Attorney John Nelson of Fairness Fort Worth and attendees were told to prepare for a long night because of the amount of agenda items, according to the Equality Texas website.

Are you registered for Fire and Ink 2009 in Austin, TX?

mandrakesociety@gmail.com (JW Richard) — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 23:45:19 +0000

As Samiya Bashir would say, “Don’t sleep!”. If you have an interest in gay/lesbian/trans writing and writers of African-descent, you really need to click the banner to find out more and register!

Monday jazz session mixtape

mandrakesociety@gmail.com (JW Richard) — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 10:00:42 +0000

To get your Monday morning jazzed, take this first track by bandleader, Graham Collier, and imagine stepping into the hustle and bustle of the busy and wild city. From there, the large and dark city groove continues. Here’s the tracklist:

1. Graham Collier – An Alternate Aberdeen Angus
2. Adriana – Is it Love
3. Steve Parry – Boogaloo Blue
4. Joe Locke, David Haseltine – What’s Not to Love
5. Abra Moore – Sorry
6. Stan Harrison – What About Peace of Mind?
7. Big Neighborhood – Masters at my table

Siedah Garrett sings “Man in the Mirror”

mandrakesociety@gmail.com (JW Richard) — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 18:32:09 +0000

This is why love Siedah Garrett as a songwriter and performer. This is a great tribute! Relevant to this blog, it would behoove all of us to consider the rights of others and do all we can to make sure our homes and our neighborhoods are a safe space for love and healing. This is the toughest, yet the most rewarding work. And it will take work, not wishing, to make it happen.