Creative Juices Archives - Page 6 of 10

Fashion Forward: Doc’s Spontaneous Vintage Hairdo

First, let me not be rude and wish you all a very Happy Holidays! I hope you all are able to enjoy this lovely season, day by day, with joy as it’s the time of the year that we spend with our families.

Lately, I’ve caught on to a terrible trend developing where people are drifting further away from their families, spending more of their holiday’s on their “solo dolo” tip. For Thanksgiving, I didn’t find too many of my friends with their families this year, and half of my family who would normally be joining me for dinner, had to report to work. Blah! It’s was so off-putting, especially since I had to work, too. I’d like to be with the people I love on the holidays, but whatever. That’s another topic I don’t want to focus on in this blog.

Earlier this week, I did something rather spontaneous. I got my hair done by someone who isn’t my normal hair dresser. *gasp* I’m pretty loyal when going to a specific person to get my hair done. I’ve gone to the same hair dresser since my elementary years.

But the Monday before Thanksgiving, I woke up upset and started scrolling my Facebook timeline with a mission to find something to uplift my spirits. I can’t remember why I was upset. Obviously it wasn’t that important. Haha.

I had nothing to do for the day; I was absolutely free when I stumbled across a status from a girl I went to high school with. She was asking for a model to help her with a photo shoot for the day.

“What the heck! I might as well.” Thanksgiving was only 3 days away. I thought it was cool to be someone’s model and have my hair done for the holidays. So I replied to her request.

We scheduled a time to meet up at 11 am. She hooked me up by working those talented hands of hers. Then, BOOM! My sexy level turned up by the time it hit 2:30 pm on a Monday afternoon.

Shanae Thomas did my hair in a total of 2 and a half hours! It turned out looking awesome. I had to take some vintage selfies to match my stylish curly bush.

“Ain’t I cute?!”

Shanea specializes in styling natural hair as she works at natural hair shop Natural Locs Salon, in northwest Baltimore, off of the Baltimore National Pike. She’s been doing hair for a total of nine years, starting in 2006 when her mother no longer could do her hair because of carpal tunnel. Since then, it’s been all about hair; teaching herself how to plait, braid, maintain locs, and furthering her knowledge in hair care by attending cosmetology school.

Shanae’s love for hair has influenced her journey with natural hair.

For three and a half years, Shanae has been perm free and strutting her fiery red, orange and blonde locs with tremendous pride. She hopes to spread her talents along to others so they may transform their natural manes into something that flares with personality, screams out distinction, and transform into ways they could’ve never imagine.

For Shanae to take on doing my hair without knowing the true amount of thickness on top of this head, I say “AMEN” to her because it’s one hell of a task! Ask anyone who has touched my head. It’s thicker than the corn fields in 1984 horror film “Children of the Corn.” But I’ve been told it’s a playground for a hair stylist. It definitely is not for me.

Shanae explained to me her reasoning for posting her status that Monday morning. She’s focused on building her hair portfolio and needed a model. She’s currently building a portfolio to show off what she can do, and to give her that edge she needs to qualify for hair competitions across the nation, one being the 23rd Annual Official Golden Scissor Awards, home for where the 2014 BOBBI BOSS America’s Next Top Stylist will be announced. The awards will be held this December 7th at the Washington Convention Center in DC.

Shanea added me as one of her hair clients in her renowned hair portfolio. I’m absolutely honored after seeing her extensive lists of clientele on her Instagram page (ShaysNaturalStyles).

My experience visiting another hair stylist was rewarding. My phone is full of lots of new selfies and I have a protective style that’ll last me awhile. I am pleased! I guess, I should add and scratch off being someone’s hair model on my bucket list, too. What do you think?

Do you like how my hair turned out for the Thanksgiving Holiday? Leave your comments below. Would you like to schedule an appointment, send all inquires to shanae623@gmail.com.

Did you check out my recap of the Boulevard of Chic’s fashion show? Read Lights, Camera, Fashion! Recap of Boulevard of Chic Fashion Show on Doc’s Castle Media.

*All photography, except for my selfies, were taken by George Robinson of GRobinsonPhotography*

Vote for Doc’s Castle Media in 2014 Mobbies Maryland Blog Competition

What an honor! I have been nominated under three categories in the 2014 Mobbies Blog and Social Media Competition. Yay! Thank you everyone!

I have never been nominated in any competition as such, especially for my writings, and I’m extremely thankful for all of you who were active in deciding to nominate me under the following three categories: Best Label Defying Blog, Best Music Blog, and Best Personal Blog.

This competition is sponsored by the Baltimore Sun and the Creative Alliance, LLC.

I love to write, though I didn’t always know that. Doc’s Castle Media opened my eyes to my talents. I always knew I had a knack for ideas because I always owned a composition notebook or sketchbook full of thoughts since the age of 10. But to really take an active role in blogging or any kind of journalism, my mind wasn’t with it until it was made one of my duties to complete while working for an internship. I strongly opposed the idea of being a journalist my entire 4 years attending high school. I guess now, I’ve made myself out to be a liar because look at my site! It’s 3 years going strong with over 300 blog posts. I write like a journalist and I do it a lot!

I write because I believe that my voice matters. I believe that my thoughts and feelings about things carry value. My whole purpose for creating a blog was to use my words to influence others to do something meaningful in their lives. Each day, I ponder the possibilities of that actually happening. Seeing that people took the time to nominate me has shown me that my purpose might be working. Apparently, I offer something you all like.

I often talk to people while I’m out in the streets of Baltimore or while on Facebook, and people compliment me on my commitment and dedication to continue writing about what’s happening around the city from a unique and entertaining perspective. I appreciate that plenty of you take notice. I’m even more grateful to hear that many of you read on a consistent basis. It’s still weird getting this type of attention from writing freely. But I love you all more each day as you continue to support me and share my thoughts with the world! It drives me more…like really, I’m so motivated to keep doing this.

As I’m busting my tail to provide something unique and special for you all, please do me the favor in voting for me, just as you all nominated me, in this year’s annual Mobbies Blog and Social Media Competition. It’d mean a lot to me if I could actually win in any of the categories I’m nominated for.

Below is the link to the directions for voting for the nominees in the 2014 Mobbies. Please register with one of your social media accounts and vote for Doc’s Castle Media!

As 2015 slowly approaches, Doc’s Castle Media looks to include a few new additions to the website. I’m counting on my readers to offer me some new suggestions for what you all think can make Doc’s Castle Media a little better. Please leave your feedback and concerns in the comments below as I’ll review all of them carefully. Hopefully I’ll get some very good suggestions that’ll spice the site up.

Have you read Doc’s Castle Media submission for the Editor’s Pick in the 2014 Mobbies Competition? Read Hopping on that Train Back to 1990s on Doc’s Castle Media.

Shoutout to Baltimore Punk Rock Band Ballyhoo for Setting Off Halloween The Right Way

This Halloween, I did something I’ve never done before. I attended an 80s/Halloween Dance Party, also reggae/rock concert, at Baltimore Soundstage hosted by Baltimore’s own punk rock group Ballyhoo.

Courtesy of HFS 104.9 Alternative Rock and CBS Radio, I experienced my first rock concert and 80s Dance Party, all in one night. How great was it that the stars of the evening are from Harford County, Maryland, just a jump, hop, and a skip from Baltimore city.

My natural high from the evening’s festivities started when I heard about Chipotle Mexican Grill’s yearly Halloween special, three dollar meals for anyone dressed in costume. Of course, since I was working for HFS 104.9, I wasn’t dressed to walk in Chipotle to get some grub. But please believe, I worked out some magic and found an Annabelle (view preview for film) mask in the CBS company vehicle to take up on the offer. I was hungry and determined. I was not going to wait until next year to get some $3 Chipotle.

I knew I was going to have a good night. Halloween’s so weird. People are so happy to impersonate others. They find anything to dress up as. At the party I’ve seen all types of costumes. From 80s hipsters to zombie princesses, people were creative in creating their costume for this annual bash. It was HFS 104.9’s duty to grant prizes to those party goers who were best dressed while they signed up to win tickets in our station’s contest for a future concert.

See more pictures of people’s Halloween costumes on HFS 104.9 Website

It definitely was different from what I’m use to. I’m always attending hip-hop showcases and shows. It was like breath of fresh air to be taken out of what I’m use to and see how another audience, or group of music lovers, listen to what they enjoy.

I haven’t listened to punk rock, or basically any music genre other that hip-hop, pop & R&B, in a while. When growing up, I had a rock music phase in the 10th grade, simply jamming to a range of rock music from indie rock, alternative, and heavy metal. It was a period when Sony MP3 players were popular, and I had the classics from Fallout Boy, Bullet From My Valentine, Paramore, and Killswitch Engage on a playlist. I don’t know whatever happened to me keeping up with my collection of music. But that breath of fresh air was amazing.

Tribal Seeds was the opening act for Ballyhoo. They’re a reggae band from San Diego, California. The lead singer of the group sounds similar to the Marleys. So it was cool to hear the sounds he contributed for my ears that night. I’m not use to listening to too much reggae. But it was enough for everyone to get their hips swaying and head bobbing for the night. All I needed was some rum punch to set it off. Too bad I was working.

Ballyhoo rocked out something simply awesome. They played out the rest of the night quite well. The crowd suddenly gotten fuller and became ALIVE. I’m sure by this point, majority of the audience might have been drunk after going to Baltimore Soundstage’s bar multiple times.There were 2 extra bars created to serve the growing crowd. So it was “TURNT,” for real!

See more pictures from the event at HFS 104.9 Website

Ballyhoo turned up during mid-party as a reminder that Halloween night was just beginning. There will be plenty of time to spare once the concert was over for many people who’d participate in the Fells Point and Federal Hill Halloween tradition. But for that moment, Ballyhoo had everyone’s attention. The venue’s ora completely changed, and I was enjoying feeling like I was partying during the wee hours of the morning when in actuality, they hopped on stage at 10:30 pm. My favorite memory of the night was when the bass player started playing the bass and my butt was jiggling on my seat. It was so loud and funny. My coworker and I were laughing so hysterically about that. Of course, I’m simple for getting enjoyment from that. Haha.

The crowd was really into their performance; waving lighters, singing along to the music, and dancing. I could tell people really were enjoying themselves. For Ballyhoo, this was another successful Halloween showdown and a night well spent in their hometown.

I’d love to have the chance to work at another rock concert. Better yet, I would love to be invited to an indie rock concert outside of CBS. I’m very active in the hip-hop scene but I wouldn’t mind dabbling in the festivities of other genres of music. I’m not aware of many venues that host these concerts or many of the Baltimore indie bands. (If you know of any, please be sure to list them in the comments below so I may invest some of my time getting to know some of the Baltimore indie bands.)

I also met a friendly hip-hop artist while working at Ballyhoo’s concert. We talked for 15 minutes exchanging music and I made sure to get his contact information because the songs he let me hear were awesome! Anything that sounds better than a rapper on a trap beat is going to catch my attention and his sound is far from trap music, maybe a little dubstep is what I’ll call it. Below, is a song from Duck Meyer’s Soundcloud. Please take the moment to listen to his track and leave some feedback in the comments below.

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/158314849″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /]

Would you like to see more indie bands on Doc’s Castle Media? Send me links, submit some of indie bands from the DMV that you like. Doc’s Castle Media welcomes all!

Are you a frequent visitor of local clubs and restaurants in Baltimore? Make sure to read Doc’s Venue Review for Club 347 on Doc’s Castle Media.

Nominees for 2014 Maryland Music Awards Are In

So the nominees for Maryland Music Awards have been revealed!

Were you aware of the Maryland Music Awards? I know I wasn’t. There has to be a better way to be informed about such things. I found out about the awards through reading another blog. But I didn’t hear any more reports about this newly found music celebration until I started doing an extensive Google search. I wonder why they didn’t include the people who commonly write about independent Maryland artists for this selections process, or why they didn’t send word out about it to the local magazines and bloggers.

Nominations are already in! Here’s the video announcing this year’s nominees.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2khxYdJwQiY]

I don’t know any of these artists. Do you? Haha. I guess, the show will meet it’s purpose by promoting awareness of each of these artists. But come on, I know hip-hop artist in Baltimore with more buzz than any of those who were mentioned.

I look forward to more of these award shows. But for the next go round, lets add some more artists that I can actually vote for in the next show. I wish all the current nominees the best of luck in their journey to being the first to win a Maryland Music Award.

To read more about the Maryland Music Award, check out their site here.

How do you feel about the Maryland Music Awards? Will you be tuning in to watch it? Leave your comments below.

Did you see the last Music Highlight? Read Quinn Shabaz Day One ft. Jimmy Apoet and Leon Dominick on Doc’s Castle Media.

Music Highlight: Quinn Shabaz “Day One” ft. Jimmy Apoet & Leon Dominick

Ever met a rapper that seems to have a song for every moment in a person’s life? I call those people trendy rappers because they have music for everything, even songs for when you feel the urge to smack someone. This week’s music highlight is Quinn Shabaz.

Meet Quinn Shabaz:

Quinn began rapping in 2005. That may seem relatively recent being 9 years ago, but he’s musical experiences stretches back to his elementary school days, as he began playing the saxophone in the 3rd grade. By the time he graduated from middle school, Quinn was able to play the saxophone, the drums and the guitar. Like many of other great musicians, Quinn also was apart of his church’s choir. He spent 4 years singing for his church, while he focused on his writing skills until 2012 where he released his first musical project “Alternative Thanksgiving” with long time friend Leon Dominick. The following year, Quinn released his first solo project “Love&Hooligans” and not too far behind dropped his 2014 mixtape “Good Heart, Bad Habits.”

With only two solo projects under his belt, Quinn is showing us a job well done. When tuning to Soundcloud to find a song to share with my readers, I chose to share the most played. “Gator” is a song about pimp slappin a bitch. I can’t put it any simpler than that. Ha-ha! So if you’re in one of those moods full of pure frustration and can’t seem to let the tension go, I’m sure “Gator” can help with that.

But that’s not what I wanted to highlight in today’s post. I wanted to share Quinn’s music video “Day One,” which includes two previously featured artist on Doc’s Castle Media, Jimmy Apoet and Leon Dominick. It’s a song about true friendship and hanging out with people who’s been around since the beginning. I’m talking about those best friends you wouldn’t trade the world for.

Did You see my cameo? Ha-ha!

I really loved what Quinn did by taking it back to those celebratory cookout days in this video. It symbolizes a moment that everyone should experience when people spent time with their loved ones. I’m sure some of you had that experience this week, spending some time with your Day One’s during this Labor Day weekend.

Quinn Shabaz is definitely worthy of this week’s Music Highlight shoutout! I enjoyed every bit of his latest album. To hear more from him, follow his soundcloud at Quinn Shabaz.

The best moment to play Quinn Shabaz’s “Gator” is when…. Fill in the blank sending your comments, below!

Another favorite from “Good Heart, Bad Habits” is Cruise Control. I added the single in one of my fashion videos for Boulevard of Chic. Read Lights, Camera, Fashion! Recap of Boulevard of Chic’s Fashion Show on Doc’s Castle Media.

#SoIFlowLive Recap w/ Graffititech & Greenspan

So what did you miss last night? Well, if you didn’t notice me spamming your Instagram, I attended SoIFLowLive artist showcase held at the brand new Play Hookah Lounge.

The event was hosted by the lovely JanaeTru, blogger for the notorious TruDat Blog. She did an awesome job hosting last night’s festivities by keeping the crowd laughing and ready for the evening’s honored guests.

This Wednesday at SoIFlow, it was all about Baltimore’s own music producer Graffititech and Bmore hip-hop artist Greenspan. Each of them brought some oomph to the night.

The night began with Graffittech. Instead of having the event turn into a strictly a listening party for his set, he decided to be a little different, and brought an entourage of artists with him to perform over his beats.

In honor of one of hip-hop culture’s legendary artist, Graffititech also allowed the audience to take a listen to his 13 year anniversary tribute to the beloved Aaliyah. We rocked out for a minute for his tribute had Bmore written all over it. He remixed Aaliyah’s “Are You That Somebody?” by giving it a homey sound and we danced to a brand new “Baltimore Club” song in remembrance of her. (Take a listen to the track.)

Following Graffititech came DJ Blaqstarr. As one of the event sponsors, he blessed the stage with his musical graces. Years of his musical expertise showed him to be transparent because we could all tell this guy put in a lot of work to be where he is today. All we can do is respect this man for what he does.

Greenspan wrapped up the night for us. Along with him came Al Great and Ashley Alexander. All three of these great talents actually whipped me back into shape after being blown away by the hookah I was sharing with Janae. Janae was a little blown away up there hosting, too, as she mentioned the hookah gets her a little dizzy. It’s all good tho. Ha-ha!

There was also a buffet included with the ticket purchased for the event. It didn’t have much but after tweeting that I hadn’t eaten all day, that plate of chicken and salad saved my life. Then when I turned around and I saw some banging jewelry by New Vintage By Sam and wished I had some more money.

I’m steady shaking my head at myself because I was literally a starving artist last night.

Though the night was amazing, I can’t help to fathom why there wasn’t more people there to savor the experience with me. Once again it was artists supporting other artists. The artist-to-fan ratio was whack. I’m glad to see we got each others back out here in Baltimore. But we still need to bring out those crabs who only want to watch me post from my Instagram account. Haha! A change is coming Baltimore, indeed.

Never the less, I enjoyed my time at SoIFlowLive and I highly encourage others to support. SoIFlowLive is every Wednesday at the Play Hookah Lounge from 7-10 pm.

Based off what you see, did I convince you to come out to more local hip-hop events? Leave your comments below.

Did you see the other Aaliyah Tribute via another Baltimore artist? See Maryland Rivers Tribute to R&B Legend Aaliyah on Doc’s Castle Media.

#TheMixx 2014 Recap… If You Missed It

What an electrifying Monday yesterday turned out to be as I attended The 2014 Mixx Music Festival hosted and sponsored by The Keenan System and Downtown Locker Room.

Directly across the street from Morgan State University, artists from all over the DMV area came together in live performances to wake up MSU students from their summer slumbers in preparation for tackling another school year filled with all nighters, term papers, and dreaded finals. Who’s ever ready to leave their summer freedom for that?!

There were live performances from both familiar faces and some new. But I have to say the most sensational had to be from Malik Ferraud. The party began when he brought an entourage of other local artists with him onstage to put on the best performance of the night.

Don Trunk stole the show for a little sec., too.

Lor Scoota also put on an exceptional show performing his infamous hit “Bird Flu.”

Other performers who rocked the stage last night were as follows…

Maya Milan

Dee Dave

Visto

and Pop.

For it the be the first day of school, it definitely didn’t feel like it. The energy of both the performers and the crowd was phenomenal, and at the same time quite peaceful. That’s why it’s no telling exactly why festivities were cut short by the police. This crowd, full of mature young adults, quietly and respectfully cleared the field at the request of the officials. I guess, it was too live for a Monday. But it’s looking up with great possibilities for next years Mixx Fest.

Baltimore is on the rise! People are opening up their support for local talent, don’t you think? Would you attend next years The Mixx Fest 2015? Leave your comments below.

Did you know that the Beat Auction is today? Get the details about the beat tour on Doc’s Castle Media.

Maryland Rivers Tribute to R&B Legend Aaliyah

It’s been a long 13 years since the lost of the very talented R&B legend Aaliyah. But we continue to show our respects as we honor her in numerous ways. Often through artists current works, we send messages to close relatives and people who played huge parts in Aaliyah’s life by showing our appreciation for how much Aaliyah contributed to the hip-hop culture. We couldn’t get to where we are in hip-hop without her. We damn sure haven’t forgotten our beautiful angel.

Now we know Maryland Rivers hasn’t either. Sometime yesterday, published to James Jones YouTube was the release of Maryland Rivers and the TSU dance crew tribute to Aaliyah. Boy, did they shut it down!

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dmQN4u8xJU]

R.I.P. to our hip-hop princess.

Lights, Camera, Fashion! Recap of the Boulevard of Chic’s Fashion Show

What a great feeling it is when I can say that I’ve completed another task from my Bucket List. Last weekend, I participated in my first fashion show. Boulevard of Chic asked me if I was interested in participating in their 2nd fashion truck rally, which took place on the Rash Field in the Baltimore Inner Harbor.

It was an honor to be apart of a fashion show that seemed better suited for the people and by the people. In a professional runway show, it’s apparent that the show isn’t for the people. The average person can’t be spotted at show like it. But at the Boulevard of Chic’s show, anyone can be seen there. The people spotted at last Saturday’s event most likely supported venues there by purchasing something from their tents. So to be wearing something that someone probably bought by the end of the day, I felt honored and pleased to know that the show was of good use to onlookers.

I worked my stuff in what I was provided. My make up for the fashion show was done by Candace Tingen of Metamorphose Industries LLC. She did a wonderful job. She also does professional makeup artistry for bridal, film, print, and any other special occasion a girl should look spazzy for. So if you’re seeking someone with professional work experience, check out Candace. The outfit I modeled, which is shown on the picture above, is from Hannah Mone’t, which is Maryland based fashion retailer that caters to women of all shapes and sizes, from small and petite to curvy and chic. So if you’re into that funky type of style, Hannah Mone’t is the place for you.

There were a lot of other nice clothing lines and small businesses that participated in Saturday’s show, check some of them out in the video below.

Did you see all the goodies from the 1st Boulevard of Chic Fashion Truck Rally? Read Fun at Baltimore’s 1st Fashion Truck Rally on Doc’s Castle Media.

Doc Participates In The Boulevard of Chic’s 2nd Fashion Truck Rally

Today is a big day for me. I’ll be participating in a fashion show. Yay! This fashion show is in promotion of all the fashion trucks that’ll be at this weekend’s truck rally event for Boulevard of Chic.

This is the second Boulevard of Chic event I’m attending. The first event was held earlier during the spring. This one is different because it’s adding a new addition to its truck rally that didn’t take place at its first in April: the Boulevard of Chic’s fashion show.

BOV is all about supporting local DMV small businesses so they’ve picked a few local lines and some local bloggers to help kick off a good show and catch the attention of some of Baltimore’s savvy shoppers while they shop at the Rash Field in the Baltimore Inner Harbor this Saturday afternoon. I’m so excited to participate in another one of their events.

If you’d like to see a great line up of bloggers model some of the DMV most popular fashion trucks attire, come through and support the Boulevard of Chic 2nd Fashion Truck Rally. I hope to see you there!

Visit:
Rash Field in Baltimore Inner Harbor
(Near Key Highway)
12 pm to 7 pm

Would you shop from a mobile fashion truck? Leave your comments below.

Did you read about the last Fashion Truck Rally by Boulevard of Chic? Read Fun at Baltimore’s 1st Annual Fashion Truck Rally on Doc’s Castle Media.