In an attempt to be more social and expand my horizons, I decided to venture out last night. I attended a local hip hop show, all by myself. The performers were a cadre of local MCs, backed by a band called the Remix Project. I'll be honest, I think I was more impressed by the scope and versatility of the Remixers, but it was a good show, with the last hour of the show being particularly hype, and the last 30-35 minutes being absolutely infectious. (in a good way) Throw backs abounded, and artists paid homage to their forebearers, always a nice trip down memory lane. Conscious lyrics filled the room as baselines reverberated through the room with a contagious resonance. It was the best $8 I have spent in quite sometime.
The evening began interestingly... I went to this show by myself, for a performance that was supposed to start at 10. (I got there at 9:50ish) The venue was nearly empty, and I groaned to myself thinking that I had made a BIG mistake, so I did what anyone would do in the situation... head to the bar far a drink. A glass of wine can make any bad night a little better in my books... of course by this time, I had been in the club for 3.5 minutes, which means that one of the band techies had spotted me, and the fact that I had arrived alone. He quickly swooped in, and we step outside to chat. His name is Phil*, and after a short amount of time, he has told me 3/4 of his life story, including the fact that he was thirty.... five, plays the bass, was looking to settle down and start a family, that his father was sick and he was thinking about donating a kidney to him, that he was single by choice, hadn't had a relationship in 2 or 3 years, hadn't had sex in over a year, has some random female staying with him for the summer because he was capable of having strictly platonic relationships, and that it was too bad that I had a boyfriend, because it was love at first sight, but we could just become good friends. Let's all say it together kids... TMI! I know WAY too much about you buddy, and I am not compromising my relationship with my beau to become your new best friend. Sorry. He was a nice enough guy though, and introduced me to half of the event staff and got me free ear plugs and offered me free drinks. I took him up on the ear plugs... Anyway, Phil had to work the lights, which meant I needed to find somewhere to sit and watch the show by myself.
Ok, so the show starts at like 10:45 or 11, and the warm up act is real tepid, you know? So I am wondering how this is going to go. The venue is decently filled at this time, with a mixed crowd, mostly white with a few generous handfuls of black folks. I sit down to enjoy the show, and after sometime, a young white guy comes and sit next to me and starts talking to me. His name is Kwame*. Kwame has spent the last 3 years living outside of the US, which is impressive because he's 21. I envy his life. He's almost fluent in Mandarin. He's going to school at Chapel Hill know, and finds the scene a bit dull. I can't help but agree, but of course I don't get out much. We discussed the music and the MC's and he indulges his penchant for using the world "throwback" by incorporating it into every third sentence. So, we are back to watching the show, and this girl in front of us starts flailing around like she is having a seizure. He points and starts clowning. I didn't realize white people recognized the inherently non-rhythmness of other white people, so I was amused. I thought she was trying to crip-walk and was a bit scared for her. A little later, the MC's on the stage call out a name, looking for someone in the crowd. Out of no where, Kwame jumps up and runs up on stage, starting to dance around and giving the MC's dap... Then, as quickly as he went up, he was back next to me. He said he was supposed to breakdance and thought that was his cue. Apparently not. I think he was emabarrassed after that, because he left pretty quickly.
So I am alone again, and this is when the music is getting crunk, so I am really feeling it, you know? This other guy, Aessay* comes and sits next to me. Aessay is one of those black guys who got the memo just a little late about their blackness. He was wearing one of thos surfer necklaces with the shells, and sporting a nasty misshaped afro that would offend any true black man. I am not generally a mean or rude person, but this dude was trying to start a conversation with me at the pinnacle of the show. He tells me that he is in the area studying for the bar, and that he has just finished law school. He asks what I am studying, and why I am out alone, where I am from, etc. Typical feeler questions. Did I mention that the show was extra tight by this point, and I was NOT trying to have a conversation? Sigh. I was a little peeved to be honest, as any hip hop fan would been. Anyway, he hung around until the show had ended, then tried to give me his number. I politely declined, and wished him good luck with the bar. All in a night's work.
* Names have been changed to protect the identites of those involved. Ok, so maybe I didn't change them, but I switched them around...
