Older and wurking it!

This is a trailer for an upcoming documentary about stylish New York older women. While their tres chic, over the top sense of style may or may not be you, I love the message: No matter your age, no matter your personal style, wurk it girl! 

Remembering Whitney Houston

I still have her debut album, on vinyl, scratched with use and time. 

It was 1985. I remember listening to it over and over, and thinking it was the most amazing voice I had ever heard coming out of the most beautiful young woman I had ever seen. Three octaves smooth like butter. She became a staple in our home during the 80s and 90s, and my kids, born in '83 and '86, both remember growing up with her music. My daughter sang "The Greatest Love of All" in her middle school choir, and remembered all the words thanks to the constant rotation at home.





I have visceral memories of two of her movies, again related to my family.


We adopted viewing "The Preacher's Wife" as an annual holiday tradition, but my daughter, now 26, loved it so much she watched it over and over, year round.


Her favorite track from the movie:



And mine:



Just this morning, my almost 29 year old son and I were talking about her passing. He was visibly shocked and moved. His hard-core-rap-loving tough guy self, it turns out, had a soft spot for Whitney. He said "She was my girl. The Bodyguard. Oh my God." Me too, son, me too.





And who can forget her rendition of the Star Spangled Banner at the 1991 Super Bowl. The best, perhaps ever.





I remember her fading from my personal life soundtrack as troubles overtook hers and the hits slowly stopped coming. I was sad for her, but never stopped loving her music or hoping she would get over whatever demons gripped her and that she would come back. For us, for her.


Yet she is gone at 48. Preceded so recently by Don Cornelius, Etta James, Heavy D, and of course Michael Jackson. Others who left indelible marks on my life and the lives so many others. I feel so very sad about it all, this loss of artists/celebrities I never met. It's not the wrenching grief of losing a friend or a family member; it's sadness for the loss of people who gave us amazing music that is embedded deeply into our life's memories; artists who mark an era, a time, a place. Forever.


There is an irony when someone famous dies who has slipped into harder times, harder places. Like Michael Jackson, with Whitney's passing, we are flooded in every media/medium possible with tributes and clips of her good years, her greatest songs, her amazing talent. Last night when the news of her passing broke, Twitter was an online community conversation and remembrance. We forget the drama and difficulty. Instead, we remember the music, the gifts we all received, times when the music marked our lives. And we are grateful and in love all over again.


Rest in peace and music, Whitney.

Soul Friday at Hell's Kitchen in Minneapolis!

Soul Friday is March 2!

Soul Friday is a monthly dance party created for queer women of color and friends. 

We're proud to be an event that celebrates brown folks living the LGBTQ life... 


Lesbian/Bi/Trans/Queer Sisters of Color - Get yourself out to Soul Friday to REPRESENT!!! 


We LOVE how diverse Soul Friday has become and want to keep that up. 


We also want to encourage POC folk to show up and show Minnesota how we do it! 


Yeah, sisterfriends! Looking forward to seeing all shades of brown on that dance floor.

Spinning the best in old school, R&B, old and new hip-hop, house, and more.On the decks:

Shannon Blowtorch
Lady L

Lady L's Old school power hour from 9-10 p.m. Come early!

Late night food specials from from 9 p.m.- 1 a.m.

Drink specials! $3 Michelob Golden Light, PBR, and Miller tap; $5 Jameson; $4 Soul Friday shot; $7 Any beer special and shot of Jameson or SF shot.

9 p.m. to close
21+
$5 at the door

Hell's Kitchen 
80 South 9th St
(just 1/2 block east of the Nicollet Mall), downtown Mpls.
There is a parking ramp adjacent to Hell's Kitchen and it's just four blocks from the Nicollet LRT

Join the Soul Friday Facebook page! 

The Facebook event invitation can be found here.


Planning a birthday party or large group for Soul Friday? Call the Hell's Kitchen banquet coordinator at 612-238-1427 to make reservations and find out about our party package. 

To get specific driving directions, go here.

Pariah - A Review

Last Friday, a group of friends came together to go see Pariah, a coming of age story featuring an African American lesbian teenager living in New York. It is a fabulous movie, specific to its characters and geography, but a coming of age story anyone could relate to. It was opening night for the movie and I was shocked and disappointed that the theater was not packed. In Minneapolis we have a huge GLBTQ community and we need to support films like this. But we were there and we loved it. I asked my friend Millicent if she would write a review and guest post it here. She agreed and it's great. But before you read it (below), watch the movie's trailer.




Pariah - A Review
by Millicent

Pariah was one of the best coming of age stories I have ever seen. Alike, the main character, was deeper than most teen characters are in films I’ve seen. She was tomboyish, but not overly so, like her best friend Laura. She liked alternative music, she was quiet and introspective. And she was a writer. Definitely not the stereotypical inner- city black, baby dyke.  Her butch appearance during school was different from what was inside her. I liked the duality in this 17 year old budding lesbian. She knew who she was; she was just trying to find out how to express it.

I can relate to Alike. I, too, am a Black lesbian who grew up in a big city. When I was young it was hard to just be ‘me’. I wasn’t hard enough for the fem girls, and I definitely wasn’t fem enough for the butch dykes. And reading and bike riding and going to foreign films didn’t always sit well with some of the people I knew back in the day. To be a person who thinks for yourself sometimes leaves you alone to find your own way. It takes strength to be an individual, and Alike learns this in the movie.

The movie was different in the way it chose to show where Alike’s conflict came from. Her mother was in denial, of course, but she had support from her father, her sister, and her best friend. The real battle was going on inside her. Could she have the guts to confront her mother? Could she allow herself to seek out others who had the same interests as she did without losing her best friend?  Could she find love and still be Alike? These are the issues she struggled with in the film, and unlike a lot of GLBT films that I see, she actually does something about her problems, and doesn’t die or get treated like dirt at the end. I don’t like tragedy for tragedy’s sake, and this film breaks the mold on typical ‘gay’ films.

It was great to see a rough dyke like Laura portrayed as a deeper character also. She was a good friend to Alike, and had issues with family and work. Her rugged exterior hid a softer side, and I think it was good to show mainstream audiences that these women are complex beings. What you see is not all there is. She reminded me of a lot of my friends from back home. I loved my rugged dyke girlfriends, and that tough exterior was and is often just a mask of who they really are.

Overall Pariah is a must-see for anyone wanting a coming of age story that is truthful and real. I liked it, and I may even buy a copy to add to my collection.

President Obama breaks off some Al Green!

Sing it, Mr. President! So nice to seem him having some fun. This was at the end of a fundraiser at the historic Apollo Theater in Harlem. 





His speech was amazing, too.