Drums United

Sat, 23 Oct 2010 12:30:52 GMT

The sight & sound of percussion from all over the world uniting into one rhythm was awesome, both musically and metaphorically. There was so much awesome it's hard to single anybody out, but still, the Senegalese drummers (Aly N'Diaye Rose on a set comprised of sabar, djembe, and bougarabou; Maracas Pape Thiam on tama) were spectacular to behold; Niti Ranjan Biswas made sounds emanate from the tabla that I've never heard from any instrument before. I was a bit disappointed that the timbales sat idle most of the night, but really it's hard to find any fault with the show, and I think they were missing their usual timbalero besides.

I've also come to the conclusion that to enjoy a concert as much as I'd really like to, I'm going to have to be on stage. We'll have to see about that. ^^;

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Janelle Monae <3

Fri, 23 Jul 2010 04:20:17 GMT

From this interview, passed along by badgerbag:

Monae is clear that she makes her artistic decisions to give others courage to break out of the norm. She says:

That's what I've always been fighting for - making sure that people love themselves for who they are, and we don't pick on people because we're uncomfortable with ourselves, or who they are. That's been my message, from when I was young to now. There are lots of young girls out there who are struggling with their identities… afraid of being discriminated against or teased. I take risks and use my imagination so that other people will feel free and take risks. That's my hope.

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shadowspar

Drums United

Janelle Monae <3