Tha Artivist Presents...Words, BEATS AND Pix!!! @ Zora's was even sweeter the second time around…

Tha Artivist Reports...
"The Blacker the Berry the Sweeter the Juice."

On Thursday night Nov. 17 Tha Artivist Presents...Words, Beats and Pix!! @ Zora's Lounge was definitely tooth achingly, cavity producing great in an afrocentric black berry sort of way!!!

Or as the late great Professor X of the X Clan would have said…
"IT WAS VANGLORIOUS!!!"



Once again those in attendance received a treat of artastic excellence…I, R2C2H2 Tha Artivist was given a warm, generous if a little comical introduction by my brother the creative genius in training also known as Mr. Jordan Hayes…I then attempted to warm up the crowd with my comic relief efforts…


The first act of the evening was spoken word and martial artist Rasta (pronounced Hasta) a.k.a Da Fourth Letta…He proceeded to serve some lyrical and sensual hot chocolate from his new anthology of 70 plus poems entitled Soul Searching for Chocolate Lovers…The charming Rasta with his seductive green eyes definitely had the ladies demanding hot chocolate with a side order of smores…Make sure to check out Rasta/Da Fourth Letta's website at http://www.poemsbyd.com and buy his book…

Rasta also teaches the martial art form known as Capoeira was originated by enslaved Africans in Brazil which combines dance, fighting and ritual…Go to his website at http://www.ncapoeiramemphis.com and sign up for classes today!!!



Yung Blac, a fixture at Tha Artivist Presents…Words, Beats And Pix!!! @ Zora's, blessed the audience with another helping from his toe tapping mix tape Money Matt 2 Yung Blac…Introspective and crunktrospective at the same time I look forward to seeing and hearing more from this yung gun in the near future…

Make sure you check out Yung Blac's website @ http://www.myspace.com/yungblacmusic and get his c.d.

Not to be outdone another regular and crowd favorite, rap delight Foley rocked the mic with offerings from his new c.d. The Hostile Takeover Vol. II…

With his usual swagger Foley takes the audience on a ride combining Nelly's crowd pleasing charm with the lyrical command and dexterity of a Big Daddy Kane in his prime...Check out Foley's website @ http://www.myspace.com/digichilddlife
and buy his new c.d.


I wouldn't be surprised if those two were nominated for a BET Hip Hop Award or two sometime in the near future…Yung Blac and Foley definitely have the skills and presence to match some of the best and well known in the Hip Hop game…No K Fed!!!

The audience was offered a rare and special treat when Mr. Ekundayo Bandele a.k.a. "The Moses of Hattiloo Theatre" laced the audience with one of his original spoken word performances impromptu…Although a novelist and playwright at heart Mr. Bandele definitely have the presence and command of a true thespian…My favorite piece of his or as I like to call it "Diary of a Mad Black Man" was definitely a highlight of the night…It's very exciting because it involves direct interaction with the audience…When Ekundayo said "beep, beep" the audience said "honk, honk"…The purpose of this interplay was to simulate a person getting caught up and trying maneuver his car out of an Atlanta traffic jam…Bandele wrote this piece while he was teaching classes at the prestigious Morehouse College in Atlanta…The piece really is a metaphor for life as a young Black artist trying to make a way when others and circumstances are saying no way…Although he haven't recited this work in awhile and he had a "false start", the end result was truly beautiful and heartfelt…Beep, beep!!! Honk, honk!!! Power to the people!!!

To add more frosting to to a very sweet desert, the audience was treated to an historic and artastic collaborative effort when Rasta now Da Fourth Letta (rap persona), Yung Blac and Foley decided to do a group freestyle…None of these artists worked together before and so it was a pleasure to know that my event created an atmosphere which provided for a special and history making night…

And last and certainly not least providing the proverbial cherry on top, the talented Mr. Andre Miller put the exclamation point on the evening with his beautiful improvisational painting which paid homage to jazz…

I met Mr. Andre Miller when we were both featured artists at the Delta Fine Arts Evening with the Arts @ The National Civil Rights Museum…

A former Memphis City Schools teacher, a proud member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.
and Memphian with historic and vast knowledge of the city and its surroundings, Mr. Miller wowed the audience with his amazing skills with paint, brush and canvas…If you are interested in finding out more about the Mr. Miller please feel free to contact him through the following e-mail:
andremiller06@hotmail.com

Although Tha Artivist Presents…Words, Beats and Pix!!! will not be seen this December, please be on the lookout for this unique showcase in January…No one show is ever the same so be ready to support and be a part of history while having a qualitative 'edutaining' time!!!

If you are interested in being a featured artist for future installments of Tha Artivist Presents...Words, Beats and Pics!!! please click on the following link:
http://weallbe.blogspot.com/2006/11/r2c2h2-tha-artivist-is-looking-for.html

Check out the following links to view summaries of past Tha Artivist Presents…Words, Beats and Pix!!!:
http://weallbe.blogspot.com/2006/10/tha-artivist-presentswords-beats-and.html
http://weallbe.blogspot.com/2006/09/artivist-brings-legacy-of-artastic.html
http://weallbe.blogspot.com/2006/08/we-shall-be-overcomedwith-joy_07.html
http://weallbe.blogspot.com/2006/08/word-of-art-tha-artivist-and-brothas.html