Dance Away the Night Holiday Swing

I always enjoy watching old time black and white films where you see a jazz band doing their music thing and dancers getting wildly into the groove swinging and have always been tempted to learn the steps. If you ever wanted to learn, here is your opportunity.

Join the NYC Parks Department as they bring to you an evening of arts, culture and fun which they like to call: "Dance Away the Night Holiday Swing" which will feature swing dance lessons by the Harlem Swing Dance Society, live dance performances by some of their best dancers and live music by the JNote Quintet: : Kim Clarke on Bass, Danny Dalelio on Keys, Stephanie Jeannot on vocals, Herb Lewis on sax and Napoleon Revels-Bey on drums. .

This event will take place on Saturday December 3, 2016 from 5PM to 8PM at the St John's Recreation Center located at 1251 Prospect Place in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn, NY. For more information, you can call 718-771-2781. It's bound to be a whole lot of fun and it's free.

Stop by if you can!  

November 27, 2016, Jazz on the JNote from 7 to 8PM on the English Connection Media

This Sunday, November 27, 2016, Jazz on the JNote which will air from 7PM to 8PM EST on the English Connection Media.

Jazz on the JNote is a non-stop music flow of jazz hosted by Stephanie Jeannot. Today's episode comes with a twist; a jazz and not-so jazz mix. 

Tune in to hear some fantastic tunes that you might not have ever heard before or maybe you have and you haven't heard for a minute that you love. 

The link to use for your listening pleasure is mixlr: http://mixlr.com/the-english-connection-media/ for this week's show. 

Poem: The Destined Manifest

“Music I discovered that night, was a sanctuary,

a safe place to hide, a place where scars didn't matter,

they didn't exist.”

- Len Vlahos

I sat there clapping in rhythm,

listening to the elastic sound that had struck a chord with me.

I approached the atmosphere that had been taken over by music.

I was taking in tones and feeling all rhythmic.

As limber as a rubber band became my mind;

Peacefulness and love in me began to climb.

My body forgot all about the knowledge

that I’d been burning the candle at both ends.

It had been a grueling week but them sounds

like an energy booster somewhat ironed out the kinks.

I started to leave my troubles behind

as I approached the stage with my glowing light.

The groove was in full swing and I was readying myself

for the destined manifest.

The mystic I’d been longing for was finally in my hands.

Sorry, I don’t mean to be so candid,

but I was tired as shit and experiencing a cold.

I was hoping that the nasal drip thing wouldn’t on stage unfold.

Seeing the faces of the crowd however was spiritually transformative.

Nothing like the sound of music to give me more strength.

I hit the stage, holding my head up high and with the mic in my hand.

The backdrop like the midnight sun; a beautiful illusion.

Thank God for a highly responsive crowd

that made me make more of an effort.

Thank God that I didn’t fall with my stiletto heels

I was wearing under my long flowing skirt.

Thank God I remembered every word

and that my voice didn’t crack.

And thank God that when I tried to hit my high notes,

I didn’t have a cough attack.

Yeah I laid out my individual expression

as the orchestra added their unique contribution.

Yeah I was diving deep into the music

and was drenched in the oscillating fusion.

And yeah, it had been a block of days that I’d once only dreamed of

that hit my heart like a funky guitar riff in a song that I just love.

The mere thought was now my, in the moment, reality.

Yet it wasn’t the arena that made it a safe zone.

I think wherever the music is,

will always for me, be a sanctuary. 

Happy Thanksgiving

“The key to thankfulness is not to view God through

the lens of our circumstances, but to view our circumstances

through the lens of God’s love and sovereign purpose” 
(Anne Graham Lotz).

I can escape into God’s presence thankful for all the spiritually engaging people that have contributed to the joys of my life that make me smile a little wider.

You all push me into new paradigms of thinking. You have accepted me with your arms, open wide and uplifted my spirit in so many ways.

Thank you for all the joyous musical moments you have shared with me.  And thank you for all the times that you were a witness to my strengths in action.

When I weigh my mountains on a scale, it is glaringly obvious that you all encourage my mind and help me to chip away at my doubts and fears. You all help me to experience a deep sense of calm and that peaceful feeling is awesome.

I know I can depend on God because he brought you into my life and filled it with love. I now recognize the importance of acknowledging the deep knowing that you play a huge role in my life.

When I sachet my hips back and forth while I am on the stage singing with a smile of humor and frankness even when sometimes, it is with an empty fuel tank of energy, it is because you all push me into a level of self-acceptance. You help me to see the light at the end of the tunnel. You leave the amazing impression on me that there is still hope. You are like the kisses that were worth waiting for that give me a tranquil outlook on life. You all are a staple in my life and I thank you so much for being a part of my world.

As I spend the day experiencing joy with my family and celebrating Thanksgiving Day, I hope that you all have good, deep moments in your day. Safe travels to all those moving around to get to their point of celebration. I pray that love fills your day and that the volcano brewing inside bursts into electric joy and blessings. 

Whatever it is that you do, that it may be meaningful and generate for you a smile. That peace of minds may be yours for the taking and the keeping. Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

Enjoy!

Travel and Love Wherever You Are

When you disembark on a journey that you have never been, don’t just accept the image of what has been told. Instead, explore the possibilities, gain a visual, discover new truths, make social bonds and find the commonalities of the people wherever you are. You’ll be tickled more by it.

If you stay present moment oriented while you are there, you will not jump to conclusions about what might or might not be and instead you will find ways to inhale the environment like you would oxygen by going with the natural flow of the experience.

Let the surroundings resonate with you while navigating your way around. Try to make sense of where you are camped from a different vantage point other than the stigmas. You will find that the people you meet seem very familiar and are not that different than you. Just bare the fact that we are all a result of our surroundings and we all get on with our days in our own personalized fashion yet, these are not things that should prevent us from loving each other as we are. We can still bring people smiles and capture the hearts of many while doing what we can with what we have while tackling life with the uniqueness we all showcase in our own individual way.

It’s crazy to think of the multitude of responsibilities I had to carry on just to do what I love to do the most. Though it was taking the familiar path of singing before a crowd, I was being pushed outside of the comfort zone because I was no longer in my home court where I had grown accustomed to performing. I had to deal with the freezing cold temperatures that NY doesn’t always get. I had to be able to intentionally communicate with folks who spoke in a different language than my knowing. I had to professionally work with all my heart whether I was at 100 or feeling under the weather. And I had to know the difference between being in a place where it is a party everywhere and always attitude as opposed to being in a place where I am working. I had to be able to stay centered and think clearly even if I got wounded in the field or was met with condescension. I had to believe in God’s ability and have faith in the journey that he lead me on.

I wasn’t chasing happiness however; I was experiencing it. I was walking the atmosphere of a place I had never seen and am still recovering from the potency of it. Experience changes the essence of who we are because you are better able to form your own opinions of the world. You get a taste of it for yourself. To me, it causes positive change. And the fact that I was doing what drives my soul is in fact one of the greatest honors of my life. Each moment was a moment of growth on my humble first steps into the world of music touring and each moment to me as precious as gold.

As I backed away and came back to my reality, I realized there is so much to love. The rhythms and sounds of the unthought of dimensions I was fortunate to see stays spinning around in my mind. Love for it resonates with me. I love to love the simple idea of planting my feet on different grounds around the world. Based on that, I know that the

best is yet to come.

Today is songwriter Wednesday. I wrote this song "Wherever You Are" and had the pleasure of performing it live at Ufa Jazz Club in Ufa, Russia. I think that you can find a reason to love something about wherever you are positioned in the world when you are where you are. And so, I dedicate the song to all you lovers of travel who inspire me. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, photos and stories of your travels. God bless you all!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mE0PvUWTch0&index=30&list=PLtEabtb9kz4JfOcuFHckwPhoyjqiYJTdq

Thank you so much for checking out my blog post!

#tbt HARMONY

Seems like yesterday when I set out to meet producer, Paul Garrod in Herman Griem Park in Wheatley Heights, NY to film the video for the tune "Harmony." I wrote the lyrics and he wrote the music to this song and also blessed me with the opportunity to film a video for it. 

Seems ironic to have come into harmony with a person to do something that we do not do on a daily basis and to make it work without any drama or issues but with the same mindset of completing something and making our goals come into fruition which was to have a final product of a video and for "Harmony" to also be the title of the song and the moving frame.

After three wardrobe changes in my car, we had something to work with. He did such a great job at editing, using nature's own greens as a green screen to add cool special effects to it. 

Check out the full video if you'd like here: https://youtu.be/Et2DjrOKJAo?list=PLtEabtb9kz4JfOcuFHckwPhoyjqiYJTdq 

Thank you everyone for checking out my blog post. Have a harmonious day! 

Happy November

Hi everybody. Happy November! Hope you have had a fantastic start to the autumn season. Mine was a bit exciting. I spent it doing my first ever music tour and it was in Russia. 

I did a ten-city tour in Russia performing jazz, pop and some original music in the following cities:

1. Wilson Jazz Festival in Krasnodar
2. Novoross Jazz Club in Novorossiysk
3. Bukowski in Rostov
4. London Music Hall in Sochi
5. A private event in Geledzhik
6. Ever Jazz Club in Yekaterinburg
7. Pravila JAzz Club in Perm
8. Archangelisk Museum in Archangelsk
9. Tatarstan Philharmonic in Kazan
10. Ufa Jazz Club in Ufa

It was a wonderful experience that I am so happy to share with you all. I had always dreamed about singing with an orchestra and I was able to see that day come to fruition. I was also excited to perform some of my original music for the first time ever on an international stage.

I had not know until that moment that people all over the world had known of my music and had been listening to it, including this one teacher who told me she loved my song "Time Machine" and asked my permission to teach it to her students as a way of helping them to learn English.

What an honor. Moments like that will never slip from my memory. I invite you all to check out my song "Time Machine"  which is one of the seven tunes off of my debut album Finally JNote which was recently released to the general public on September 11, 2016.  You can also hear the entire album on Spotify or Itunes; keyword: Stephanie Jeannot. 

Here is the link to "Time Machine": https://www.reverbnation.com/stephanayjnote/song/26681741-time-machine

Thank you so much for all of your support and have an excitingly, wonderful day.  

The River of Life Shared on an International Stage

Welcome on board to my world. In this life lies the landscape that has captured my imagination. I am a Taino work of art. I am the breathtaking Panoramic view of Kiskeya. The seas of the Caribbean gush through my pores. I shine the sun of Latin America each time I smile. America is embedded in my truth. Just by looking in the mirror, I can see the world in my infantile eyes.

I am not the brightest star that soars up into the sky. But I have climbed heights as tall as the Ural Mountains on this thoroughfare I call life and made a sense of home in God’s presence. 

I could unload my heart and tell you all the difficult challenges I have faced to arrive at this shining hour but all the unique experiences that have brought me to this point have somewhat softened my character. Based on that, I find no need to jump back into the -42-degrees Celsius waters of the past to define who I am.  

I am a bronze ballerina who has gone from city to city dancing under the night sky. I am an actress who has scrolled the frames in films like Audrey Tatou in Amelie. I have seen with my own eyes the Kamchatka Peninsula of Russia from Sarah Palin’s window in Alaska.

I have indulged in the amenities at the Georgian wine festival. I have gained energy by breathing in the aroma of the Northern Dvina River. I have explored Suvar Plaza. I have worn the greens of Tatarstan in the Philharmonic theatre of the third largest city in Russia known as Kazan, while singing choruses with the most memorable of orchestras to have impacted my world. 

I have dined in the sun of Troitsky Avenue in Archangelsk. I have done incredible things I had never done before until today like, singing on world stages in my first ever music tour which was in Russia.

I have interacted with others in a foreign tongue to properly present myself. I have traveled far to perform simple tasks around the world that after I endured to the end, was encouraged to keep pressing on.

Life has been a journey which was met confidently. And to have become so immersed in things makes me truly see the vastness of God’s blessings. His hands have made a large exhibition of works worth exploring which can be best seen by changing landscapes and seeing the world from different points of view and not just your own jungle in which you dwell. My sole purpose in writing this is to share with you the great things my eyes have seen; and there is so much more to see. But to retrace my steps of what I have experienced,

I can honestly say that it has 

been wonderful.

I invite you to come to my river. The river of life shared on an international stage with a friend of mine, Tavis Minner and a wonderful band at the Ufa Jazz Club in Ufa, Russia. Together, we sung "Route 66" which is a song that is revered by many around the world. There was so much good music around me and thanks to my friend Anastasiya of the Skyways Band, I can share this video with you all who are willing to watch. It was the love of music shared by each musician that made the night so beautiful. Here is the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrafo-nFcB4

Thank you for reading my blog post!