The lights dim as a sold out crowd sit quietly facing the jazz quintet and a microphone that was center stage awaiting the main act. The one and only 1st Verse. The room had such a jazzy feel, The bar just to the back of the room filled with patrons, the waitresses navigating their way through the packed room from the tables and back to the bar. The seating was very personal. Very intimate. As you would expect everyone was dressed for the occasion. The only thing missing was the momentary light from a match and the resulting clouds of smoke, but in these times the No Smoking signs make this no longer apart of the experience. It's now replaced with by illuminating cellphone screens and smart watches. But outside the artists circled near a row of parked cars, pass around the ceremonial jazz cabbage. Smiles, handshakes, and introductions ensue as the smoke dances against the midnight sky. The venue is called LowDown, and is very important to the Fire In Little Africa project because it was where the first video  "Shining" was shot. This was another installment of the series of shows titled Jazz In Little Africa. This time headlined by the legendary 1st Verse.

PSA: if want a music journalist to come to your show. Put them on the guest list. There are a lot of great publications that always are good go to to help get your the word about your show out there. That includes IndyPot, 20onDaTown, Woklahoma, ASLUT, and Oaka, Root Tulsa, Black Wallstreet Times. ok.1, Etc. 

As 1st Verse walked into the venue the band jammed, friends and fans embraced. Accompanying 1st Verse was a line of featured artists all featured not only on the guest lists but most importantly as artists that were there to support him on stage. The artists settled along the back wall of the venue as 1st Verse went backstage. If there’s nothing else he's gonna give you a show. His years of performing on virtually every stage in Tulsa has helped him to develop a familiarity and a comfort level with the stage. His performance was like an old friend as he talked to the crowd between songs. He's a true Master of Ceremonies. His words cut like a well sharpened knife, and again his confidence in his mastery allows him to smile after he delivers a lethal verbal assaults. The syllabalistic assault of Verse is so crazy that he could say, "sufferin succotash". And the crowd would snap their fingers in amazement of how he even fit it into the verse. That cat was in his pocket. 

This night wasn't only about 1st Verse though. This was a night to celebrate and the relationships that he has built along the way. Some of these artists came all the way from Oklahoma City to be apart of the show. Do you know how hard that is to do? But that's a testament to how much weight that 1st Verse's name carries. He started the show off and like the star player, setting the tone with his song "Greatest Feeling" off his collaboration project with dj noname.called 1st Name. And like the star he tagged in artists to accompany him on stage as if it was a WWE tag team match. Guests artists included; Tra3Qwan, K.O, Mr. Burns, Young DV, KeezyKuts, Pade, and Bettyman. Everybody that was on stage seemed to be at optimal bars. It goes to show that anytime that you're on a track with 1st Verse that you tend to step your bars up. Sometimes though you even step outside of what is expected. Mr. burns a lyrical assailant in his own right, surprisingly on this night lent his vocals as he performed the track “Pixel Fade” which is off 1st Verse's EP Throwed Lenses. A project that was produced by Oklahoma legend John Moreland. This night highlighted just how expansive 1st Verse's catalog is.

It was important to highlight the band. As they brought so so much to the atmosphere and the overall sound of the performance. 1st Verse is no stranger to performing with a live band. His Verse And The Vapors shows is just one example of his love for performances with live bands and the added musicality it offers to the performance. And it was important to highlight their talents. 1st Verse left some room for the band on the second verse of VSXOasis. He let the band get some. Led by Chris Combsy on the guitar, Bobby Moffett Jr. on the piano, bass player (unknown) , Josh Raymer on drums, saxophone (unknown). The was band was out of sight.

​I asked 1st Verse. What do you feel like you brought to the Jazz in Little Africa show?

  
Thanks again to 1st Verse for inviting us to the show. Make sure you follow him on all his social media:

Instagram: @1stthingsverse
Twitter: @1stThingsVerse
Spotify: 1st Verse

What an event! I'm talking about the Listening Party for 2Peece's EP "Sometime in June". The event was held on September 29th at The Black Wall Street Gallery. The host, 2Peece was dressed sharp to the letter T. Smiling as always, he was noticeably excited about letting everyone to hear about this amazing journey he's been on. So let's get into the event and the project called "Sometime in June".

​The thing about a good song is that it attacts not only listeners but it also attracts other artists. So when 1st Verse invited artists to come on stage and spit some bars to his song "All Of The Players", you could see the artists salivating to get on the mic. But anyone that knows 1st Verse knows that his lyrical assault and smooth delivery is a hard act to follow. But for the ones that did step on stage they proved just that they too are hard acts to follow.

Many artists look down on a free show because it means for them that their art isn't being rewarded. So why do a free show? In many cases there are benefits to doing free shows, for example, exposure to a wider audience. The huge halftime Superbowl performances are for free, so are award show performances like the MTV Music Awards and the Grammy's. the hopes though is that you have access to a bigger audience that will then convert into fans. But what many don't know also is that you can actually be paid even when the venue says it's a free gig. The word of the day is Performance Royalties.

Alexander Hamilton. I met him. If you look at his Wikipedia pages you may be wondering how did I meet Alexander Hamilton when he died in the 1800s? Firstly, anybody can write anything on Wikipedia. But also people do curate the pages for accuracy. So yes! It's true he did die in July 12, 1804. But it's also true that on September 1st, 2019 I did meet Alexander Hamilton. But not only that, I relived his life. How you might be thinking? Through the musical play "Hamilton". Inspired by the 2004 biography Alexander Hamilton by historian Ron Chernow. Writer Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote a musical that included music, lyrics, and a book. What's most significant about this play is that it is hip-hop. The play also incorporated other musical styles like R&B, pop, soul, traditional-style show tunes. But for the most part this was Hip-Hop's. This was for the culture. By the culture.

King Spencer for mayor! Some may think this is a bold statement given his inexperience in politics. However, politics doesn't mean change. As Barak Obama put it "Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek."  Change is what King Spencer didn't wait for. Change was what he became. Never was this more apparent than at his 6th Annual Hoop2Help AllStar Game fundraiser that happened at the Salvation Army West Mabee Boys & Girls Club.

It's Friday! You made it. I made it. We all made it! Those days are gone of hurrying home from school on Friday to catch 106 & Park's Freestyle Friday competition. Where stars were made. OK maybe not stars. But at least it was a platform for artists to get their 15 minutes of fame. Who could forget Jin?