What happened at the Birthday show at Leftfield on MArch 4th!?!

Success is the first word that comes to mind thinking about the show last week. *Sidenote, after most shows I have I'm usually out of it, exhausted once the adrenaline has worn off. Then there is the rare case of when I'm so excited from a show that I just can't sit my ass down and I don't know what to do with myself. The latter is what happened to me after this show. Also my conditioning has gotten better over the years so I'm not out for the count when a show is done. I say all that to say this. After a show whether up or down I want to just be away from any computers or people and be in my own head space. But we here now. 

Back to the show! Man my energy wasn't just at a high level. The house was packed which made it that much more charged. I'm still feeling a high from the show. It left me in a place mentally full of euphoria and seeking the next, but wanting to relive the moment. I got my artwork blown up on engineer prints from staples as you will see in the photos below. My team, yes I have a team with me now! They helped set up all my artwork. Which added to the energy already built around the event. There is video footage being edited, so film of my set is on the way. I played with my live band and live beat maker during my set.

I covered Outkast's "ROSES", with a story about a childhood crush of mines who didn't quite reciprocate. I opened my set with a cover of Mos Def & Massive Attacks "I against I" from the Blade 2 soundtrack.  P.Cruz did his own mix of "I Against I" which was ill!

I did an acapella of  my song "Freak Of Nature", which the crowd really dug. I also did a verse from the title "Gone is the illusion".

The band and I did a rendition of my song "I workout" with some crowd participation and we was vibing. Had the whole crowd moving from side to side and chanting "I Workout!". It was great!

I really enjoyed the mix that P.Cruz did of "Knights in Shining Darkness" It sounded real eerie! he even did his own remix of it which is totally different from the live mix he did during the show. Check it out! It's available for streaming and free download! 

https://pcruz.bandcamp.com/track/knights-in-shining-darkness-p-cruz-remix

I think one of the big highlights for me was the live version of my song "Henny On Ice". Which I started with an acapella of the songs first verse which the crowd really enjoyed. The line in the beginning always get's em! You'd think my name was Charles....The way I lay the Dickens. Haha, people love that line so we thought it best that it be delivered with the rest of the verse with no beat playing. 

I previewed the artwork, especially the art that went with the songs during the set. I only had a 45 minute play time so I had to keep it tight.

The bookers of the show were happy with the results, meaning the turn out. They've invited me back to do more shows! i couldn't be happier man! Like I said success. 

Check the pictures below for some visuals of the evening. Great times!! Even More to come!!

My friend Epiphany B, who is a dope artist herself, standing next to a picture of the main character who is a grim reaper in my graphic novel. 

In this pic, my keyboardist Simone Acosta left, far right my bassist Tariq Tucker. In the middle my good friend Tasty Keish with her TK: AM shirt on, rep'n her radio show hard. Then me, shirtless, face paint on, serenading her during my song called "I workout".

Neon light ambiance while rocking LeftfieldBar. This was a damn good show, shit it felt good!

This is art from my illustration book. This piece is called "Groundhog's Day". It was inspired by Bill Murray's movie by the same name and the image in the upper left corner is twilight zone inspired. The endless cyclical cold melancholy day plays out in this song. Stir crazy delirium.

This photo was taken by Annie McCray. All is a blur, the world is spinning. I like this one a lot.

This is a great shot showing my audience from my show. My man P.Cruz from the Hip Hop duo Punskription doing live beatmaking on Ableton. Behind him is artwork from my illustration book, that one is titled "Knights in Shining Darkness". Which he just did a remix of. I'll be posting it shortly. Beside him is the grim reaper who is the main character from my upcoming graphic novel.

This has been a popular picture. Everyone always asks me for it to buy. It's the image for my song "Henny On Ice". Books and individual images on sale soon.

This is the first page from my Graphic novel titled "4". It shows our cast of characters on the verge of sieging enemy territory.

Here is another character from my graphic novel, he is a scarred individual with a tortured mysterious past involving vampires.

As I mentioned before, this is my piece for my song "Knights in Shining Darkness". 

Ahhhh! Squad up, ya know? People in this picture I go way back with. My man's Warren S Britt MC, documentarian. on my right, behind me is my dude Magnit Handz, dope beatmaker. Left my dude Varyius Ways, Educator, promoter, and entertainer. Boss Level. Down front is my homegirl from H.S. Lima who surprised me with a visit! That made my day. Then the fly DJ KK47! beside me. Then Keish next to KK and behind my friend Shavon. Love my peoples man!

My good homie, my road dog Roberto DeJesus. The brilliant mastermind behind Supreme Bars. A monthly MC competition which just branched out to philly. Check them out in NY at the Lantern!

The darkness that passes through me.

The energy people can project can be some powerful stuff. I should know, I have empathy on a level I feel most people I have encountered don't have. I only started seeing any type of similarity within other music artists. We would never talk about it, but I would see how they reacted to certain energies around them and I would see the same reactions, same emotions all over them. It hit me that I actually have kindred spirits in this world when it comes to this empathy thing. I then started to wonder as my mind does if there are people not involved in the arts that experience this but don't know how to express how it makes them feel. I also began to wonder if all my feelings of rage, disappointment, even happiness were nothing more than a by product of what someone else was feeling at the time and if that were true, was I even a real person. Deep stuff right? Well, after wrapping my mind around all that I wrote a song about it in much more detail. Specifically the areas and moments it has affected my life. I named it 'Knights In Shining Darkness'. The darkness being the energy from the people I have encountered. The Knights represent people like myself who still stand firm yet silent when taking on those loads of emotions. Click below to listen to the song.

Hook

My knights in shining, Darkness we dwell again

My knights in shining, Darkness we dwell again

My knights in shining, Darkness we dwell again

My knights in shining, Darkness we dwell again

Verse1

It may sound strange an ambiguous to some

But I can feel the emotions of other humans

A deep empathy from the time I was young

For example I’d have a great day & good fun

Then someone high strung clearly so glum

Under their thumb I’m pressed & so done

A shadow inhaled an then passed through the lungs

That’s where a knight in shining darkness comes from

A man at his post haunted by ghosts

As long as this energy always stays close

I’m bound to the pain wrapped round my throat

The knight in shining darkness no chain mail for coat

So overwhelming I’d keep to myself

Sensory overload circuits would melt

Hours of scrubbing to bring back my health

I wiped myself so hard I gave my skin welps

Writing through pain always helps out a bit

If they pain go away, will I cease to exist??

Hook

My knights in shining, Darkness we dwell again

My knights in shining, Darkness we dwell again

My knights in shining, Darkness we dwell again

My knights in shining, Darkness we dwell again

Verse 2

As I matured new strength had been forged

my focus became sharp as a sword

negativity was strings & some chords

pinpointing its location like blips on a board

Like hearing a ford with ears to the floor

I can feel it coming like never before

Like clothing extra layers and a cauldron

under piles of bodies the heat is engulfing

It came back to me once where I was working

This shorty caught cancer death had been certain

her depression had altered my person

When she left the building I felt a resurgence

full optimism, sunlight through curtains

Now depending on the link I have with the person

I can predict their words before they’re emerging

Feed their pain through distance & deterrent

The knight in shining darkness guides through the current

uphill struggle climate cold & undeserving

The band leader orchestrate tide for the turning

Walk through the pain I know my soul is burning

Hook

My knights in shining, Darkness we dwell again

My knights in shining, Darkness we dwell again

My knights in shining, Darkness we dwell again

My knights in shining, Darkness we dwell again