Who Inspires Me To Think Of The Endless Possibilites

 “An appearance of prosperity attracts attention always, 

with no exceptions whatsoever” 

(Napoleon Hill)

I grew up with the intense experience of being compared to my older sibling and so my whole life, I tried to be the boisterous audience, watching her and drawing nourishment from her influence.

I wanted to be like her volcanic self. She was cool. She was popular. She was beautiful and she had this supple rhythm to her life that made me want to take a quantum leap away from who I was. Her intelligence was just the tip of the iceberg. She found ways to caress the hearts and minds of our parents and impressed them on every level.

But I came to terms with the idea that we might never be the same because we were so different. She knew how to extend herself individualistically and get things done. I did things in my own customary fashion but never with the concerted effort that she would put into it to get things done in the fashion she did and in the time that she did.

She has always had a great influence on me. With thought and care, she followed through on her goals and made things happen and never seemed to lose that sense of continuity. Nope! She absorbed a nice groove and kept it steady on the beat.

I look up the balance of my life and consider all the intense experiences that I have lived through. She has always been an intrinsic part of my life except my days were spent more with this turbulent sensibility. I lived my life on the brink. I danced to the rhythm of my own songs. I lived with all these emotional struggles which I guess you can call middle-child syndrome.  And the only thing that made my heart flutter was the beauty of nature, books, food and high-voltage music. I was growing up as a future artisan of the world and still with a penetrating influence from the only big sister I would ever have. I can honestly say that of the good things that I planted my feet on, the flurry of activity was often guided by what I thought might gain me a glorious response from her. She was living this model life and I was living with the penchant for getting on the stage and caressing a ballad with a live orchestra. Yet she always had forward momentum and I was battling all the negative energy that would be conjured up in my mind that somehow held me as prisoner in the space and time of the lewdness of my youth where it had happened.

So, I can honestly say that being around my sister is to be in an atmosphere of

tremendous power. She creates ideas in me that opens doors to new life. I can only hope to be like her one day. And then one day out of nowhere, when my parent comes and explores my world while I am on the stage giving all of me into a performance, it leaves me feeling strong and accomplished and that somehow, I used her modally based improvisation in my life to get their hearts propelling towards me with interest. All I know is that having a big sister in my life has definitely made me tweak my design a bit and lately has raised my morale. I guess you can say that you should never let family fall out of your favor because even if it is with a briskness of tempo that it takes them to come around and think that you are more than the equivalent of a tough Monday morning, when they turn their attention towards you, it is like the joie de vivre to feel valued in their presence.

Thankful for my sister. Thankful for her influence on me. And thankful to have a reason to even try; even if the bedrock of my work is to try to impress the people who made me feel at home in my own house when I was growing up all ebullient and innocent. But, even until this moment and seeing her thrive and thrusting through with this ferocious intensity and with this rhythmic acuity, makes me want to push harder with a jolt of urgency to be like her. She gives me a reason to think of the endless possibilities if I never give up. Today, I am clapping enthusiastically for her as she celebrates life. Pardon my outpouring of words but you deserve to know the truth; you inspire me and thank you for the wellspring of influence you provide for me. Hope your day is all that and more.  

Stage Fright Happens . . . Why Faith is a Singer's Most Important Weapon!

It takes baby steps of trust to get on to a stage and to leap forward with a song to share; especially for those who haven’t really performed in front of a crowd much.

I hear it a lot. Miss Stephanie, I’m shy. Miss Stephanie, I can’t sing louder on the stage; my voice might crack. Miss Stephanie, I don’t want to go on the stage by myself. Miss Stephanie I don't want to sing because the guy I like is sitting in the room.

You might not be swimming in agreement with all the things that could happen while you are on stage.  You could fall and embarrass yourself in front of a multitude of people. You could hit a bad note. You could forget your lyrics and melody. You could freeze and be so afraid that you shake the whole time, while you are singing. You could be moving around and your heel breaks. You could not open your mouth enough and fall flat. Your peers could be so displeased with your performance that they start gossiping about you and make you feel so inadequate that you decide you no longer want to do what you were called to do.

But then you could also thrive as you bring life to your music.  You could convey an idea that influences someone in the audience. And you can also be as hot as a blazing fire. You just never know!

It is completely normal to have stage fright. I would even go to the gamut of saying that it might be a little weird if from time to time, you do not experience it. But courage must endure.

Don’t complicate a simple live musical engagement chained to the prison of your doubts. The adventure is a bit more extraordinary when you make an honest effort with an element of self-trust.

Trust that you can do a good job. Trust that you have what it takes. Trust that you can give it your best shot. Trust that you can win and succeed.

Nobody is perfect. Everybody makes mistakes. Every day is a learning experience. And if you are someone who has failed to learn new things in your daily lives, you probably are not really living.

To succeed at anything, you must take a chance. Don’t be so afraid of the gift that God gave you that you miss the opportunities to use it in the way that he created you to. Get on the stage, scan the crowd with excitement and don’t allow even a flicker of doubt to discourage you. Use your gossamer wings to take on the daunting task.

Give your audience your most focused attention and don’t let them know your fear. Have a semblance of power. Stay emotionally focused and bring that dramatic fire to them. Promote your cultural diversity as you were meant to; one tiny leap at a time. The first leap: venture out onto the stage and smile with confidence and say hello, my name is . . . You’ll find that it is not really that necessary to wall off your heart because the feeling of sharing your gift is immensely beautiful. Then the conversation will no longer be Miss Stephanie I can't but Miss Stephanie, I did. How exciting is that! 

The fact that you are standing on the shoulders of giants who came way before you might shift your mindset and put you in a more relaxed lifestyle. Every pro was a beginner. Every beginner has to start fresh from somewhere. Every fresh start builds up character. Draw on the decades of accumulated sounds, singers, musicians and music as a whole that you have been influenced by. Being who you are organically doesn’t require that much effort. Get on the stage and be the fabulousness that you are. 

Don’t let anything ever dilute your trust in God. He gave you your gift for a reason and that is an unwavering belief. Make sure you never let go of that truth and include him in everything to understand your role in this by and by; even into your performances. And even after the performances because faith is a great weapon to have in every situation. And knowing how emotionally based sharing your talent really is, you never know how as a person you might be affected by your own strength if you come to a point where your cup was less than full and you couldn't do what you always have been able to do without problems; especially as a singer since your body is your instrument. A cold, tiredness, and mental well-being can change everything. Faith can be the cure. You can have improvisational skills, know every chord backwards and forwards. You can know all the different possible harmonies you could use to make the song pretty. But if you do not have faith, you need to add that to your musical tool kit. 

Regardless if it is your first time or your hundred thousandth, you can still get stage fright so do not feel like you are alone in your experience. It still happens every now and then to almost everybody. The important thing is to take your fears head on and to do what you were designed to do with enthusiasm. You got this! 

Speaking of stage fright., it is crazy to think that even after all this time, sometimes I get those butterflies in my stomach, get on the stage and shake with fright as I start to vocalize into the mic. Such was the case one night at this beautiful venue in Novorossiysk, Russia. We drove from Kransodar to Novorossiysk and after 6 hours on the road, we made it; only for me to have about thirty minutes to compose myself before we had soundcheck and then the show. So I was nervous. And then I looked at all the unfamiliar faces and there came the shaking. SMH! 

Check out footage from that concert. It was a live performance of my original song "Wherever You Are" with the Sergey Koronev Project here:  https://youtu.be/MoW_UmKqUPo

All I can say is, thank God that my fear subsided!  

THANK YOU FOR CHECKING OUT MY BLOG POST! 

Having Your Own Song And Dance

As time passes by, it is a true thing that we improve, evolve and persist with effortless grace.

We grow and we weave into our lives, our own patterns of thought and opinion. 

Some of the things that might have touched us at the core when we were teeny boppers, no longer move us. Especially with the years of sophisticated knowledge that we have accumulated as the days passed us by, and we somehow no longer feel so attached to the cultural mainstream because we learned to have independence of mind. 

In other words, we are all works in progress and the more we age, the more we become our own intricate sidewalk ballet dance.

Aspiring Artists

As music lovers who also have braved the walk of trying to share something as personal as our own art that emerges from the depths of our soul, our taste in what we indefatigably listen to even changes over the years. We often become disconnected from the majority and it is not so important to be drawn by what everybody else is listening to, and we develop our own unique style.

I can say in truth that tradition never goes out of style. I don’t think there is a day in my life that I will ever not enjoy Haitian Compas music or Christian hymns because I grew up listening to them and fell in love with them, even before I flowered my own thoughts in my mind. These tones hung in the air for years and years and may never antiquate but some of the things I was listening to in grade school or high school are not things you will find on my Ipod or Spotify playlist, while some others are. If you are someone who addresses people through your art, then your heart may gravitate towards something else; something different than you used to love back in your history and much different that what you initially thought you’d actually enjoy.

I guess, we always have a hope that we can reinvent the wheel in some way and with our breadth of knowledge, create a budding interest in the public sphere; especially in our family and peers. I mean, what aspiring musician doesn’t want their family to think that working on their priceless art is not a waste of time and effort and worth the escapade?   

Our Own Song and Dance

Not every upbeat, catchy tune is for everybody. And though many may be enamored by a tune created more than 800 miles away doesn’t mean that you have to be grounded in love for it. But it is also important to know that the boisterous sounds of today are not the only things that should gain our appeal. If it is, it may be time to expand your knowledge of music.

Maybe you can balance between some of the new and the old. Take a step back and clamor to the sounds that paved the way for what music we have been blessed to listen to today. It is not uncommon at all to fall in love with an antique sound and to be transformed by it.

I can honestly say that I am very influenced by many artists; both of yesterday and today. It is a thrill to my heart to have access to such great music. It was a rude awakening to me to come to find that it was mostly the music of the past that generated motivation in me. Call me an old soul but, the artists of the past seem to have abundant strength and stamina to be able to reach for the stars with every element of their being to be where they worked so hard to be, and it is very encouraging.

For instance, less than 100 years ago, there were no microphones. Singers like opera singer Marion Anderson had to use her own body mechanisms to create a beefy sound with her voice and sing over orchestras of more than ten or more pieces with marvelous intensity. We have the crutch of a microphone and rely on its mechanics to create the solution of sound in a venue. Not saying it is a bad thing because it is such a wonderful thing that we have it a little bit easier, but, that type of power that these artists had; incredible.  Another example is the jazz musicians who had to face discrimination, Jim-Crowism, rejection based on race, being denigrated against because anything that came from people of color was considered savagery, and endless squabbling over prejudices, they still worked towards upward mobility and came to sit in this position of inspiration for streams of people all across the world. And to think that we might feel a little bit unenthused if we go to an open jam session that features musicians who are there more in a competitive state rather than one of a welcoming nature at a platform meant to simply share who you are. These jazz musicians had to endure it and still did what they had to do. 

 

In This Arsenal of Musical Expression

I guess I weaved in this in-depth conversation to say to young singers that they should spend time opening their ears and their hearts to some of the past musicians and singers that skillfully handled this thing called music. Not only will it increase your arsenal of musical expression, but you will find more emotional intensity and also bring more meaning to what you already do.

Listening to singers like Ariana Grande brings change to my world but I am also riding high when I listen to Minnie Ripperton hitting those amazing whistle tones. The music of Beyonce gets me feeling electric. But then I hear a song by the group Lambert, Ross, and Hendrickson, and it warps boundaries for me. Listening to Khalid sing the song “Location” works so effectively on my ears while the ecstatic flow of Donny Hathaway’s rendition of “What’s Going On” strokes the feathers of the skylark that I am. 

Ella Fitzgerald seemed to be always on point. Whitney Houston used such great dynamics. Amel Larrieux won me over when she was a part of “Groove Theory” and since I have every album of hers and have seen her in concert about five times. Faith Hill gets me feeling all tender. Renee Fleming makes my heart weep with joy. Beres Hammond’s music adds fuel to my day. Kim Burrell’s songs gives me a reason to project positivity and Betty Carter makes me want to explore newness in so many countless ways.

Lately, discovering music that I have yet to know has become a worthy pursuit of mine. I find myself absorbing information through the medium of books that leads me to discovery elsewhere. And how fortunate are we to be able to simply go to Youtube, Spotify or Apple Music, etc., to find music from artists that have paved the way, even if they are no longer with us? I have been influenced more than I could have ever imagined and I know that I have barely touched the surface. There’s so much more to discover. 

I say, let yourself be exposed to different things than what you are currently listening to. You never know how a piece of sound art can harmonize with you. You never know how much you might truly enjoy a piece of music that has been a part of this world for over 75 years or has been here even 200 years before our time. You may find that mixing things up is something you love with your whole heart. And what is better than change that leaves you swept up with ideas?

Side Note

Maybe you might be interested in checking out some of mine. I have a website which gets more into who I am, my music, and features some of my past performances and pictures from various shows I had the opportunity to perform in. 

You can check it out at http://www.jnotemusic.com

I am also on Facebook where I post different music related things including videos and upcoming events. You can check out my facebook page and if you feel inclined to like it, please do. http://www.facebook.com/jnotemusic

I am also in Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/musiqal1

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/musiqal 1

And I have a youtube page: http://www.youtube.com/sj1and0

Et Vous?

So what music do you gravitate towards? Are you a radio person? Do you find the feeling of utter peace by listening to classical music? Are you influenced by the 600 million users on Instagram who share their favorite song choices? What kind of music drives you home and leaves you feeling triumphant? Are you even a music person at all? 

Thank you so much for checking out my blogpost! Much love to you. 

Wow! Looking Back Over 2017. Can't Believe The Year Almost Over.

Every week when I start to plan how I will go about putting together a new episode for my radio show Jazz on the JNote, I tend to look up birth dates or interesting facts about the giants of jazz that surround the air date of my show so that when Sunday at 7PM EST comes, theenglishconnectionmedia.com has a show that I actually put my whole heart into. 

So it was no different this morning when I started doing research so that I could put together an outline of what I planned to do for this Sunday’s and as I looked at the calendar to jot down the date on which my next episode would air, it became a tear-jerking reminder that 2017 is almost over. This Sunday will be October 1^st.

The stores are already selling Halloween candy and are already promoting for the coming winter, Thanksgiving and Christmas. 2017 is flying and I can’t believe it is almost over.

2017

This year has been an evolving educational journey for me. I thank God for all the days that he woke me up with a proper frame of mind. Though we tend to make our new year’s resolutions and plans, I still try to debunk the mystery around how the days somehow simply manifest themselves. So many different nuances and color were added to the budding little old me that had me feeling so connected to his nature and many of them were unplanned. I guess you just have to be ready to embrace each moment as it is being presented because you never know how time will unravel itself even if you do plan your calendar on how you want things to go. But, to have found myself in so many atmospheres of appreciation and exchange has left me feeling mingled with joy. 

The photo above is a classic example of this. Nine months and nine separate events from each of the months that have come and gone in 2017 like for instance, filming a video for my song "Enjoy Life" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alV2ULnr9z8) , singing at the Irkutsk Philharmonic in Siberia, and for the first time ever in my life, performing a set of just original music which I wrote, that made a big difference in the person I am becoming. Other things that excited me were the trip to Vermont that I was dying to take which was on my summer bucket-list, exploring Jim's Vineyard again and getting to share some of my original tunes at his amazing summer bash, recording new songs for a forthcoming project that I am really excited about, meeting some of the most beautiful tap dancers in Brooklyn and also embracing their classes and, coming back into a new academic year and feeling a little bit more confident to share information that I didn't know that I had to share on the art of singing and stage performance with some really amazing teenagers. So, if you ever see me posting about theoretical things about singing as in for instance practicing your craft or being prepared for performances, a lot of times, it is directed at them. 

2017 had it its good days and bad days. But the good days outweighed the bad and that is always something to feel positive about. I guess when the ninth month of a year comes to an end, it is okay to start thinking about melting away the limits of the year to come. I have 2018 etched in my mind and all I can do is hope to confront it appropriately. Yet, the year is not over with October, November and December set to make their appearance soon in which there is still a wealth of things to see and do. 


One thing is for sure though; 2017 will leave a lasting impact on me and will forever be absorbed in my memory. For all the silver landscapes, cringe-worthy moments, sparkles added to the routine of my days, progress from taking baby steps to taking more giant steps toward worthy pursuits, squeezing some of the ambiguity out of my life, and soaking up knowledge about the world and the person in me that I am discovering more and more each day, I am thankful.

What’s left? What’s left is to perfect who I am as we embrace the forthcoming year. Though I accept all my layers as they are, there is definitely some tweaking worth the resolve; I’ll admit that. Nothing wrong with change; no matter how you slice it.  I mean, in all honesty, we are all an amalgamation of years of experimentation on our own selves. We are presently wading in the deep waters of the 2017 version of who we are. But I trust that I'll be better than I am in the coming year. 

For me, I can say, it's time to de-clutter and to make room for the 2018 version of me. Are you ready? 

There is Always a Reason to be Jubilant; Enjoy Life

In the most mundane moments when you fall deep into thought, and you feel like you want to penetrate into solitude based on your situation that leaves you experiencing doubt, let your soul be inspired by painting a picture in your mind of something great that happened in your life which once delighted your eyes. Don't let doubt control the way that you maneuver this world. Just a thought but . . . who did God uniquely and wonderfully custom create to be ruler over many things?

There is always a reason to be jubilant.

Encourage your own self by remembering all the good about you and about your current position, and let that add the spring in your step that you need to allow joy to grow in the fertile corners of your heart. You are so very blessed!  Don't ever let your doubts hold you in as a prisoner. God is bigger than all of that. That's the mustard seed. Don't let go of it and don't ever forget to let God's faith empower you. 

How could you not feel full of life and warmth when you find a reason to smile about your own self?

Let the good you have experienced be etched in your mind and create for you a catchy and upbeat song and dance (some call this life) for you to take on your existence and the world. I mean in all actuality, who’s world is this? 

The Reason Why I Sing!

While many things may tug at me for my attention, I find music to be the one I respond to the most.

Photo from Taste of Minsk 2017 provided by EMM Management

I am thankful mostly for the spring of life that it gives me which is why I have genuine enthusiasm to partake in the art of singing. From the cradle to now in my adulthood, singing gives me motivation. Even in my worst days when my strength is sapped like in the heat of summer, somehow God girds me with strength just to fulfill my passion.

You might wonder why I love it so much. Well, I can honestly say that music gets my heart pumping. It brings my world to life. It animates me and gives me ecstatic joy. It adds sparkle to the routine of my day and I am thankful for the wonderful gift of music, song and voice that God blessed me with and I believe this is what I was born to do. Singing is my purpose.

Photo from Taste of Minsk 2017 provided by EMM Management

I know my most focused attention dwells there but it is only because I am wading in the deep waters of love God gave me to embrace it with confidence. That is just one of the many reason I will forever sing of his mercies. Thankful for every open door of opportunity that he enables me to walk into.

You are Invited:

Perhaps I might interest you in one of the many upcoming singing engagements that I will be participating in.  

On Saturday, September 9, 2017, please join me as I get on stage at the Fort Greene Jazz Festival hosted by Eric Frazier. It will take place in Fort Greene Park located at Dekalb Avenue and South Portland in Brooklyn NY from 3PM to 7PM. 

Photo from Taste of Minsk 2017 provided by EMM Management

I am thinking this event will be one of the biggest of the annual Fort Greene Park Jazz Festivals yet, now in its 8^th year. It is a free event and open to the public I think it will be something that will bring a spark of fun, joy and dancing in the streets of Brooklyn and am so excited to be able to share my talents there. 

Hopefully you can join us this Saturday. If so, see you there! 

How Traveling to Minsk Changed My Life

The pleasing surroundings of Minsk had me in awe. 

Just the simple activity of getting up in the morning and looking out the window to see the beauty of this city in Europe, got my heart pumping. I cannot say that I am totally armed with knowledge about everything Minsk that I would like to have come to know with my own travel experience, but I can say that every minute spent there made me feel animated.

The beautiful waters of the Minsk Sea brought the atmosphere to life. If only I were as bold as a lion, I would have colored outside of the lines and dived into her waves. Yet still, just seeing this different world with my own eyes gave me great elation. If anything was worth changing for me, it would be to know more and to see more in the block of time that I was caught up in the rapture of the magnetic pull of this Belarusian region.

I can honestly say that I had a hard time getting to bed at night because of the time difference. It might have been midnight there but in New York, it was 5PM. That is a time of day when my strength is usually that of a bull pushing through the currents of time. And when its 10PM in New York, in Minsk it is 5AM and I can admit that in a New York minute, my strength starts getting sapped like in the heat of summer.  Yet still, often times, I am up to the wee hours of the morning like a night owl, still with the fire of enthusiasm to persevere in my preparations for success. But nothing like a little bit of pressure and a cup of some good old Americano coffee to cope with to help me in catapulting beyond my yesterday.

Each day it got better and better. I have so many vivid details of the antiquated buildings, the alpine backdrops, the birch trees that lined the highways, the lively and colorful places, people with a grandeur of soul, the food and the amazing music that tugged at my attention and absorbed into my memory. I met so many different walks of life with down home spirits that made me feel as if I squeezed right into the mold. Though we have different dwelling places, we are not that different at all; except for where we call home. So many good moments to keep stored in my cerebral filing cabinet.

I can say that it was a landmark moment in my life to be able to say that I shared my talents there. Artists from all over the world came on one stage under the lunar brightness for the

wonderful Jazz at the Sea Festival. It was valuable for me because I got to experience ambitious people with more years of experience doing what we do in action and it was inspiring. Imagine all the tools and the strategies you can learn just by watching someone else sharing their hand-tailored blessings.

What a great way to perfect my landscape of perception of how one can spread their wings and provide a full measure of joy through music. Evaluating their performances made me reflect on ways I could scale my own performances.  I can say that this musical journey was designed just for my own personal development and growth as an artist and musician.  

Not only do I love Minsk for the beautiful place it was but also because of how coming together in harmony with Belarusian musicians for a night of music made the land come alive for me. I even felt like taking off my shoes during my performance, so I could feel the energy of the land surge through my body.

It makes me see traveling through a lens of love. Traveling expands your understanding of the world. It brings heights of joy that ought to be felt. Traveling is like a veiled breeze on a scorching hot day; makes you look at the world which you inhabit differently. And so, to have seen Minsk in such a majestic way leaves me highly motivated. Traveling to Belarus was definitely one of the most moving forces that will forever burn like a blazing fire in my heart.