Beyonce for Complex Magazine

For the full story and photo gallery, go to Complex Magazine.

Shake Something Spotlight: Meet Tinashe.

I've actually received quite a few emails from fans asking me to feature this young lady in my summer spotlights, but since I hadn't heard from her or her management, I was hesitant.

However, when I received a video of 18-year-old pop singer, TINASHE, covering Lil Wayne's hit song "How To Love," I knew I had to post something. So, here she is.

If her face looks familiar, that's no surprise. Tinashe is the former lead singer of girl group, the Stunners. The Kentucky native has also appeared in several of your favorite movies and television shows. Now, as she embarks on her journey to solo success, Tinashe is performing at small venues and communicating with her many faithful fans via twitter. You can stay up to date about Tinashe's future endeavors by following her on twitter or visiting her personal site.


"Her sexy style, laid-back attitude, and crazy sense of humor sets her apart from other young artists currently in the business; She comfortably inhabits the singing/dancing/acting realm of some of entertainments most iconic firebrands, yet manages to breathe fresh air into an industry of copycats and idea-recycling replicas. Her zest for continuously evolving as an entertainer and keeping people guessing will surely make for an exciting journey." - via TinasheNow



Tinashe - "How To Love" (Cover)

"Your Parents May Not Have Planned You, But God Did."

Rick Warren, author of The Purpose Driven Life, spoke on the success of his best selling book. Whether you're religious or not, this video is a must watch. It definitely inspired and encouraged me. We matter to God. We matter to history. We matter to the universe.... Enjoy!

"The good life is not about looking good, feeling good and having the goods. That's not the good life... It's about being good and doing good. It is in giving our lives away that we find meaning, we find significance."

BLOG 44: "Grandma's Hands"

My grandmother passed away on Monday. There are few people who sacrificed for me the way my grandmother did. Before moving in with my family when I was in high school, my grandmother walked from the other side of our town every single morning to watch me before school. She wasn't the best hairstylist, but on mornings before school pictures she'd throw side ponytails in my hair to make sure I didn't run out of the house looking like sideshow Bob. She showed she loved us by quietly taking care of the small things that we sometimes didn't even notice we neglected. She was wise, and kind, and personified LOVE.

I'm going to miss walking into my parents' house and running upstairs to hug my grandmother. I'm going to miss the conversations we had and the laughs we shared. I'm going to miss faintly hearing her voice in the other room while she was on her phone with one of her many "hotline" callers. Lol. Put simply, I'm going to miss her.

My little brother posted this video on his blog. I remember my dad playing this song over and over when his grandmother, who lived in Mississippi, passed away. I couldn't quite understand it back then, but now it's so clear. Grandparents fill in the gaps that parents sometimes can't. I get it and I'm grateful.






"If I get to Heaven I'll look for Grandma's hands..."

Shake Something Spotlight: Meet Kemist Da Kidd.

Intellect is something that is sometimes lacking in Hip Hop. Artists rarely bring true wit to their party anthems. However, one new mixtape artist has been able to incorporate a sort of smooth savvy into his music that has garnered the attention of the underground hip hop scene.


KEMIST DA KIDD, born Darnell Arnold, is a Dallas-based artist who hails from Freeport, New York. His life hasn't been easy. And it's his uncanny ability to bring the reality of his struggles to each and every track that he blesses with his unique rhyming style that sets him apart from your average mixtape MC.


The 24-year-old lyricist dropped his first mixtape, Like I Bought It Vol. 1, earlier this year to rave reviews. On the heels of the success of his debut, Kemist has been performing at venues meeting fans and gaining new ones. He is truly a rising star in hip hop, and his positivity in spite of life's hardships make him more than worthy for a Shake Something Spotlight.






You can stay posted on Kemist Da Kidd's future accomplishments by following him on Twitter and YouTube. CLICK ON THE IMAGE BELOW to download Like I Bought It Vol. 1. FOR BOOKINGS, email: KemistDaKidd@ymail.com

BLOG 43: Sleeplessness & The Sweetness of Doing Nothing

I hadn't slept in nearly a week. Or, I hadn't slept well at least.

I took a few hours for myself yesterday, tried to find a way to force my body into submission. "Il dolce far niente" is what Elizabeth Gilbert called it in Eat, Pray, Love.... "the sweetness of doing nothing." I turned my thoughts off, breathed deeply and let tears fall if they needed to. I turned off my phone. I didn't eat. I didn't speak. I didn't read or watch TV. I laid on my back and stared at the ceiling as if I was waiting for something to swoop in and carry me away. I did nothing and it was perfect.

There are heavy things going on around me and I've become an expert at being strong for everyone else. It's a role I'm accustom to. I'm positive it's a God-given gift. But in being strong for everyone else, I may have forgotten about me. My lack of sleep may actually be directly related to my inability to lean on someone outside of myself -- to momentarily take everyone else's burdens and place them on someone's shoulders.

I know for a fact that on Saturday, July 2nd for about three hours the burden was lifted... and I'm grateful. I took a long nap and woke up feeling refreshed and re-energized. I know that this season of chaos in my family is only temporary. And in some strange way I'm also very, very honored that my relatives trust me enough to lay their burdens on me.

I'm thankful for the sweetness of doing nothing. And now that I've realized its importance, I'm going to make every effort to carve that time into every week.