Happy Birthday Duke Ellington

My love for jazz grew precipitously once I heard it for the first time. I love mostly the communal and spiritual appeal of it. It draws people together. It is community. It is culture. And what I have always gotten from jazz music itself was a wealth of innovative sounds from the extraordinary works that they are.

Original art piece "Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn" by Stephanie Jeannot

I can only imagine the hype it must have been back then, to have flocked to the clubs to see Duke Ellington's sizzling stage performances. He played dexterously and dynamically. It must have felt like world class joy to have been in that swirling atmosphere of sound, clothed in a floor length gown or tux to listen intently and to also move your body like the ripples of a lake to Ellington’s magenta piano caresses and the alliance of elite musicians who bonded with him to create the most amazing live sounds.  

I find joy in swaying my hips around and around to some of the Ellingtonian classics; in my own little oasis or at a live jazz event. If the music is on, I am bopping to it. 

Duke’s string of songs with funky licks and climactic cadences still echoes through my life now. All those intricate patterns that he once played. All the many tempestuous chords and melodic ornamentation that he used to use in the iterations of his work continue to nourish my appetite.

His songs are powerful sounds of revolution. His music carries sounds that blended elements of cultural heritage and pride. Listening to Duke Ellington's songs peppers my day with joy. I might respond with a dance movement or with a simple smile but most of all, I will be met with happy feelings.

Duke Ellington was born on this day on April 29, 1899. Celebrating him and jazz all day. If interested, check out this video of a performance of the Duke Ellington & Billy Strayhorn tune, “Daydream” on YouTube. Here is the link: https://youtube.com/shorts/jVD4fxnavf0?si=Ugx100pUA2a2Rm9K 

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If you liked the photo above that I drew of Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn, 

perhaps you might also enjoy the drawings featured in my book of drawn images and cartoonesque words, Jazz Toons. Get it here: https://amzn.to/3OvegmU

The Bordentown Porch Fest is This Saturday, May 2, 2026

There is much to fret about. The streets of Bordentown City will be bustling with fascinating live music to see and to hear as musicians gather on various porches around town sharing their unique talents with all the different people crowding the pavement, interested in indulging.

I gazed lovingly at a few of the acts in previous years and I can still yap about that monumental day excitedly as if the visually engaging live music performances happened in the beauty of yesterday’s sunset.

And here we are approaching the Bordentown Porchfest happening this weekend on Saturday, May 2^nd, 2026 and once again, scores of creatively charged musicians will gather on various porches around town, doing what they love to do most, which is music.

It brings a smirk to my face to say that I will also be performing at Bordentown’s Porchfest this year sharing a collection of both cover tunes and original songs. Meet me at 4 East union Street in Bordentown City, NJ at 2PM.

I am so looking forward to the vibrant day unfolding and hope to experience your joyful energy in the midst of it all. See you there!

But until then, check out a video taken from last year's Bordentown Porchfest here: https://youtube.com/shorts/_1DIip4HGIk?si=3o0WZ7MW9jqGH5wn

The 2026 Oscars Was Amazing

It is no lie that the song “Golden” from the movie K Pop Demon Hunters was and still is a song that penetrates. 

Whoever wrote that song had incredible vision. Kids everywhere were singing that song with crazed enthusiasm. They gave it the love and attention that it deserved because it is a great song and the singers are killing it as they sing meaningful words of the boundless dreams we have in our hearts. “Golden” didn’t just move young kids but anybody who has the thirst to excel in the world.

I am happy that Hunter/X got a chance to shimmer in the light at this year’s Academy Award ceremony. Their confidence pushed through on that stage before the sophisticated crowd.  It was a magical musical experience. They blew the roof off the place and their performance was met with a well-deserved explosion of cheering.

Their song was the perfect choice to win the Oscar Award for Best Original Song. Truth is, Hunter/X served the world a canvas of magic with their song.

That was just one of the highs of the night that made a smile stretch across my face.  

A few of the other moments that stood out for me was seeing a singer I have had the opportunity to sing side by side with, Mike Yung, win an Oscar award for the Film Short, The Singers. 

What a blessing to see someone you actually know in real time, walk across the Academy Awards stage to get a well-deserved award.

I also loved the fact the Michael B Jordan got the Academy Award for best actor. Sinners was a good movie and I really liked it. I think he is a great actor and ever since I saw him the movie, Black Panther, I have been rooting him on. He is great in every movie that I have seen him in, so I knew it was only a matter of time.  

But what I loved the most was the Best Picture award going to One Battle After Another. If you miss one part in that movie, you miss a lot. This film draws you in and it makes you want to pay attention. The acting is great and the storyline is super unique. Leonardo Di Caprio does some great acting. Any movie with him in it, you are guaranteed to see some great acting because he always does a great job.

Conan O’Brien was a great host for the Academy Awards and my last favorite part was the dance by Misty Copeland with Miles Caton and Raphael Saddiq singing the song, “I Lied to You” from Sinners. It was moving and definitely made the stage come alive.

I guess the entire award ceremony grooved on by as sweet as a love song. This is the first time I watched the awards that I actually enjoyed it from beginning to end. 

What were your favorite parts of the award show?

Bad Bunny Inspires a Multitude of People With His 2026 Superbowl Halftime Show

Bad Bunny was a welcomed change to the Superbowl Halftime Show this year.

Everybody deserves to be celebrated. Every culture should be respected. Every person should be able to have dignity.

Bad Bunny’s musical performance was fantastically good.

Don’t judge the moment by the lack of understanding of his language or the cultural symbolisms that he shared. There are millions of people living in the United States and so many different languages that are spoken in this huge melting pot. Don’t let his lack of English speaking be the reason you run into issues with what he had to give on one of the world’s biggest stages. If understanding did not dawn on your face as he represented the beauty of diversity, you are missing the bigger picture. If you are focusing on the truth, every moment of the performance was great.

In my opinion, the cultural references were on point. There were men working out in the fields. There was someone selling Fresco on the side. Pure coconut drinks were being sold by the street vendors. There were people playing dominoes. There were masons with their bricks building. I love that Cardi B was there with him in support and that he brought out Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin.

Bad Bunny’s Superbowl Halftime Show was everything you could want in peeling back the stigmas. What he had to give was beautifully influential. There is a gorgeous aspect to being different. Everybody does not have to be exactly the same to be effective. There was nothing mechanical about his performance; he was himself and the message that cascaded from the entire 12 minutes was that cultural heritage matters.

He electrified the atmosphere despite the odds that were thrown at him from a world not ready to totally accept him, and he did it well. I was draped across the couch watching the game and had to get up to dance when the musical halftime show started because the rhythms were fire. He showed the world what he was made of and I enjoyed every moment of it; especially when he gave a shoutout to all the Latinos and mentioned Ayiti. Yes, I am Latinx. I love it. 

I think people will be reminiscing about his halftime show for years to come. The entire performance was a symbol of hope for all.

 

Talk Talk Talk

 

I was in the supermarket the other day and witnessed a lady curse out her three-year-old daughter like it was a normal thing. The child got scared and ran away from her but then came back and it was all willy nilly again.

I am all for disciplining children. I mean, you have to do what you got to do to get your child to respect and listen to you but it made me think about a few things.

Children walk into a classroom setting and they will curse out their classmates and teachers at such a young age and the teacher will think that because they are reporting it home that their child is using profanity, that it will change things. I can remember hearing kids who can barely formulate a sentence, use curse words like they were sailors; and knowing exactly what they were saying at that. To me that was crazy. You call home to say something. But if the parent does it as a way of communicating in their normal day-to-day, what will really change?  

It was none of my business, I know, but it was so out in the open that it just made me a little sad.

I think about my own upbringing and the first time I ever heard my mom say a curse word was when I was in my forties and I had never been more surprised to even realize she knew them because I never heard her use them. But every family is different.

Back on the writing grind again and I can say I probably wrote about 5,000 words today. The first free write 1000, additional words to the short story book I am gathering together, and a song that I added to my YouTube for Kids Channel entitled “Talk.”

“Talk” is about using your voice to say what you mean and to say it effectively without impatiently yelling, cursing or being rude. It’s about using your voice to speak lovingly when using your voice.

If you are interested, you can check it out at the following link https://youtu.be/k7uq74Fa0Y4?si=MhyyBwWAg3-CfhXi

A Writer Writing

A new month is upon us, and the truth about it is that we have been blessed to see another month. We are well into 2026. Thank God for the January that he brought us through. We survived the frigid temperatures and the days that came to greet us with open arms. 

I am on a new reading challenge that I joined, where I committed to read 100 books this year. I read four this month already and am on my fifth one, ironically, which is a book of inspiration for writers entitled "1000 Words: A Writer's Guide To Staying Creative, Focused, And Productive All Year Round," by Jami Attenberg. 

This book encourages writers to write 1000 words every day, and one of the things I put to paper was an acrostic poem for the February that is about to embrace us:

Frozen days that have not changed since December

Every day seems colder now than I could ever remember

 

But hope stands tall when the new month comes to play

Ready or not, February swings into bat and comes in to stay

 

Under the frigid temperatures that linger in the air is what we ride

A handful of salt we scatter all around us to not slip and to not slide

 

Running to love because God up above saw it fit to keep us and to bless us

Yes to living life as if it were golden and we leave our lives in his hands and trust

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I don't know about you but, I am grateful to have been kept and am beyond grateful for God's grace that got me through January in its entirety 

https://youtube.com/shorts/EfcQ7xedv60?si=TK0CkK5Xqx3Cel0H

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If you liked that poem and are interested in checking out some of my other poetic pieces, please support my creative endeavors by investing in one of my poetry books:

Pulchritudinous: The Poetry Collection

https://a.co/d/6bRnrY3

And Then There Was the Music

https://a.co/d/iiPTpq2

Songs For My Mother

https://a.co/d/40AE8Wo

Songs for My Father

https://a.co/d/fAciQp0

New Year Mindset: Live For Today

Yesterday is a figment of the past. Today is here. Tomorrow is on the way.

Fresh pain that fills your heart from yesterday should be hung up with a pin like laundry on a line. The long journey ahead requires a light load.

No more starving yourself of love and forgiveness.

Feed your spirit with things that give you positive energy. Stop reflecting upon the could’ves, should’ves, would’ves that stay crammed up in your mind. Focus on the cosmic whirlwind of today and be totally present in the now moment. Don’t just tolerate the wind. Flutter and conquer it like the royal being that you are.

Enter into this new week with acceptance of who you are. You are not your mess. You are not a mistake. You are bigger than your falls. Your mistakes do not define you. You are better than your yesterday. Stop letting your past dismantle your spirit. Stop allowing others to dictate how you feel about life.

You are more than enough. You are blessed and highly favored. You are loved by a God who adores you. He molded you uniquely and wonderfully. You amass a whole lot of power. You are worthy of love. Your smile affects people.

Soooooooooo…

Glow up today!

Level up today!

Show up today!

Warrior up; because this fight is your life and you are more than enough…

More Than Enough Short on YouTube