I continuously celebrate him as the best musician of our generation but yesterday, for lack of better words, sucked. Sure, his music was everywhere and there were tributes plastered all over social media but my King of SassNShade is no longer with us and it breaks my little purple loving heart.
It was one of those days that made me sad because I know we’ll never experience a musician of his caliber in our generation again. I’m totally grateful to have been alive during his life though, and will probably be one of those old folks talking about the greatest entertainer of all times cross-dressing while ripping the guitar and the time he wore buttless pants on national television. I’ll have stories for days, music for years, memories forever and all of that jazz but I still feel like little a piece of me is missing. I guess this is how Elvis fans feel.
I won’t pretend to know every single album, rhyme, or guitar lick…I just know up until last year, April 21st was the first time I spent a day knowing this majestic creature would no longer hypnotize us with his magic
What’s your favorite Prince song?
Mine might be I Would Die 4 U. <3
I first saw her, like many Apple fan boys and girls in 2016 presenting the big UI update for Apple Music during the much anticipated WWDC. I promised myself somehow, someway – I would end up on this woman’s team. Months later, that’s exactly what happened, but this story is less about me and more about celebrating the power moves this boss chick is making while sprinkling her Black Girl Magic all over the tech industry.
Boz has had quite the track record, totally Googlable, but I have to mention how she’s contributed to some of today’s most iconic pop culture moments through collaborations with an army of A-list musicians like Beyonce, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Taylor Swift and Drake. She’s even won multiple awards, titles, and spots on coveted tech and music industry lists to back up her growing accomplishments. She’s pretty cold.
Zane Lowe, Boz Saint John, and Larry Jackson photo courtesy of COMPLEX.
My first day on campus and the first time I’d sat in on weekly meetings, I saw this unicorn of a woman sitting tall at the head of the table. I couldn’t believe it was the same lady I just witnessed, in that bomb pink dress, rapping “Rapper’s Delight” in a room full of hipster nerds and tech geeks. Her presence was absolutely awe-inspiring and I’d never seen anything like it outside of the movies. She was brilliant, fashionably fabulous, had the most amazing flawless skin, was practically an Amazon, and a straight shooter with amazing jokes. The cherry on top…she was actually nice! I will never forget her kindness and willingness to engage the staff. Her energy just made you feel like she striving for greatness and demanded you to do the same.
News broke on last Friday that she would no longer be with Apple Music and many folks were surprised. Regardless of “the signs” and her growing demand, many of us felt hopeful to see her commit a few more years to Apple and bubble her way up the music executive chain. I mean, in a pretty short span of time, she started the path as a culture changer for Apple and her star power was definitely on the rise. She was also, notably, one of the few executives from Apple to keep up a blossoming personal brand outside of the tech giant. But though all the planets seemed to align for her reign, her departure just felt inevitable. My girlfriends and I would sit and discuss the business moves of many of her colleagues. We just knew she was going to have something big up her sleeve within the next two years. Monday June 5th, two years became 6 months and the inevitable became a reality. Boz resigned from her Head of Global Marketing role to enter a C-level position as the Chief Brand Officer of Uber.
Now let’s talk about how major this is for a split second. We all know Uber has had a rough couple of months over the last year but they Bat-Called a Black woman to save their image and brand. She’s literally Olivia Pope-ing the technology industry one company at a time! Killing it #fortheculture! Pause…you need to soak that in. Apple Music’s subscription numbers have increased immensely while under her expertise and marketing guidance (also Googlable). Pepsi, (pre Kendell-gate) was on an all time high with epic music marketing activations and performances that further exposed the company to it’s thirsting millennial customer base. So considering what little I knew of her pretty cool career…I realized, Boz doesn’t leave dumpster fires. She leaves rainbows and butterflies with every move she makes. (You’d know exactly what I’m talking about if you ever met her.)
So while I’m sure she’ll be sorely missed at Apple, she has the opportunity to leave her biggest glitter bomb yet at Uber where they desperately need her reinvention magic to keep them in the game. And for that, we all wish you nothing but success Boz! We’re rooting for you. Make those Boz moves girl! <3
She’s elusive, mysterious, sensual and poetic… but who is she? There have been long-time whispers from fans that the identity of RCA’s latest femme fatale is none other than the talented Gabi Wilson.
H.E.R. has been praised by the likes of Alicia Keys, Solange’s Saint Heron and music tastemaker, Mr. “Golden Ears” himself, Carl Chery of Apple Music. Her debut EP H.E.R., Vol. 1 was full of moody, melodic tracks and stayed on constant repeat for me while I spent time in Los Angeles last summer. It was the perfect soundtrack to accompany a beautiful drive in Venice, windows down, and passing towering by palm trees on a breezy day.
California, Summer 16
Vol. 1 takes you back to your first intense love. It’s warm, youthful and yet extremely mature. I don’t mean mature in the typically formulated “I’m a woman now so I’m going to talk about sex and get naked because I love myself ” pop princess sort of way either. I mean the lyrics are real and come off genuine to her experiences. Shout out to RCA for letting her do her thing!
She obviously is looking to strike twice with a sonically soothing Vol. 2. and has provided her listeners with a preview to the next level of her artistry. The proof is in the pudding as the old folks say, and yes…this is all kinds of musical pudding. Vol. 2’s pre-release tracks, tease a confident and assured young woman. “Every Kind of Way” is romantic and bodyrolling-fantastic if I must say so myself. You instantly want to sing along to it. Her vocals are sweet and the storytelling is inviting. A listener is drawn into the warm sounds of love and adoration. If you’re a subscriber to one of the big music streaming services, you can check out the other tracks Say It Again and Lights On right now.
If you don’t believe me on how amazing this new, velvety-smooth R&B chick is, feel free to check H.E.R. out for yourself and maybe swing by one of her tour dates with Bryson Tiller beginning this August.
Alrighty… so I wish I would have started this blog around the time that Kendrick came out just to review the album, but I didn’t :-/ whatevs… I’m here now, with wine in tow and my love of hip-hop sitting with this new Beleaf. Now know, I’ve listened to A LOT of hip-hop and I’m not one of those chicks that feels the need to go all Love Jones on you and get super deep with the quotes and artist references. Just understand, this guy makes me feel nostalgic. He’s a beautiful artist and I gets all the feels. I should probably start from the beginning because I don’t know if you’ve honestly heard of him.
I’m a YouTube fiend… and this chocolate drop just so happens to be one of the most creative YouTubers out there. His channel is appropriately titled “Beleaf in Fatherhoodwhere he gives us a raw, behind the scenes perspective of fatherhood for a young African American dad. He has the most chocolatey-amazing family out in California. And I mean, I feel like we’re cousins at this point. They are spiritual, funny as all get out, expressive and loving. There are so many things I adore about this family and I don’t want to bore you too much with their anecdotes. Just take my word
for it and watch the channel. His kids call him Bob (from The Minions)… I mean come on man! The Minions! DUDE… but I won’t get off track. They’re amazing and his channel is dedicated to their love for one another. So this album is ultimately a dedication of love for his humorously chatty wife (Yvette) and his unsurprisingly witty toddlers (Theophilus, Uriah, and the newly added Anaya) best known as The Chocolate Babies.
In Fatherhood has warm rhythmic sounds that can take an 80’s baby back to the playground, sipping water from the fountain on a warm day. The rhymes are clever, sometimes off-timed (at the beginning) but thoughtful. The soul is PERFECT. He gives you his heart and what more can a listener ask for? I say check out Dude’s last album, yeah it’s his last, and bask in the moment of love. <3
[su_quote cite=”I’m leaving hip-hop to become a storyteller.
I’m a Houston Texan living in Silicon Valley as content creator and URM advocate in tech. I have a passion for creating and writing music and am a food lover to the max! Welcome to my space where I get candid about life and share my opinions on EVERYTHING.
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I won’t pretend to know every single album, rhyme, or guitar lick…I just know up until last year, April 21st was the first time I spent a day knowing this majestic creature would no longer hypnotize us with his magic
I’m a Houston Texan living in Silicon Valley as content creator and URM advocate in tech. I have a passion for creating and writing music and am a food lover to the max! Welcome to my space where I get candid about life and share my opinions on EVERYTHING.