The LasT WorD ROCKS! at Moonstone Arts Center

The LasT WorD ROCKS!
Moonstone Arts Center
Thursday, September 15


Report by: Bryant Nnadi


The LasT WorD is ground zero for the “Movement for a DoPeR PhiLLy.” It is an all-ages monthly open mic/performance art fiasco orchestrated by Saint Skribbly LaCroix and featuring the top readings and performances by the most eclectic performing artists in the Tri-State area.

I would have to agree with Skribbly's description, but let me add that this art fiasco is more than just a great place for wanderers to find poetry and live open performance art. The Last word is also ideal for young budding artists who need a stage to practice some of their in-progress work. Since I've been going to these episodes/ shows I've been getting the vibe that I'm in a practice hall, lightly critiquing my friends work in the library. It doesn't hurt that the lovely people who organized the event, cater including wine and an assortment of baked goods. I feel as if I had joined a private membership that fills a certain void inside.

The ambiance was subtle and still. I wished there were more women present, making the droves of masculine energy walking through the door and into the room more balanced, but like I said before; it's a good thing they serve wine here. One of my favorite bursts of energy at this event is when the host messes up the introduction of the next artist to the stage. First the host breaks out into his speech, which goes "The next Performer is going to leave nothing home,.." and then the crowd finishes "But he's going to leave it on all the stage." Now if Skribbly forgets how to finish this sequence, all of a sudden the audience starts to bombard him with barrage after barrage of Yo Momma jokes. It's one of the bravest acts and creative ways to keep the crowd engaged in a show. The whole place erupted in laughter when all of a sudden one joke made it to the stage in clarity going, "Yo Mama so freaky, she could suck peanut butter through a coffee straw." There was also a championship battle for Swag on the Mike between Mike joseph Johnson and Reem GameFace Hall. Both poets offered their own styles and think tanks for the audience to connect but in the end GameFace would emerge as the victor in a three part series, which lasted the whole first half of the night.

The performances were ok but I would be lying if I said that they were ground breaking or amazing. I didn’t even stay for the whole event after the first intermission. I had enough of the event for the first hour and felt like it was the perfect time to wander off into the night. I still recommend to giving the last word a shot. If not for the poetry, go for the drinks and baked goods. So if you looking for a relaxed environment where you can get a simple drink and listen to some poetry I would say hit up The Last Word every third Thursday of the month at Moonstone Book store. I placed the address below. Till next time, I’ll give you my adventures in the Philly nights.


Bryant Nnadi
Vanache on Twitter as @vanache_vida
facebook.com/vanache
http://www.vanache.us

Rockers! In July at the Tritone July 27

I hope you've been having a great summer. Here for the readers is a report that's been simmering on the stove a while, but now it's ready! Enjoy-Adam

Rockers! In July at Tritone

Wednesday July 27, 2011

Report by: Bryant Nnadi

Hope this summer has be providing spectacular adventures for you as much as they have for me. Let me tell you about this party I went to at the Tritone.

I followed a gang of my friends to the Tritone for a coveted Wednesday night party that I've been growing hip to called Rockers. Rockers is apart of a growing collective of young artists, musicians, and trendsetters that embrace the attitude of getting down to business and having fun. Last night's party (Rockers! in July) featured Throwdown Syndicate, Revolution I Love You, Mighty Paradocs, and Dj Maggy Thump. The master of ceremonies for the evening was Skribbly La Croix from The Last Word open mic series; whose voice and magnetic persona was perfect for coaxing party goers into each musical odyssey. On a regular night at Rockers, one could expect to see interesting bands, a lot of dancing and diversity, and tons of sex appeal. It's a rock party!

Last night I wasn't so much in the Rockers mood due to an extensive travel schedule that had me subjected to over 8 hours of moving back and forth between Washington D.C., New York, and Philadelphia. You can imagine that my wings were more than exhausted, but I had intended to make an appearance to the show and I couldn't disappoint myself. Fortunately, Rockers wasn't your typical night out on a Wednesday. I was delighted when I arrived at the venue and I saw a relatively packed house sitting at their tables gawking at the stages performers not doing much jumping around. "Revolution I love you!"--thats what the awkwardly cute girl behind me is screaming out loud as she throws back her PBR. I'm also noticing that there are more chairs and tables out then usual. On a regular night where I haven't been traveling I would want more out of a party, but at my low energy level the slow start of the night was perfect!

Revolution I love you were awesome too. The group consisted of two guys with guitars that would accompany themselves with laptops, keyboards, and all kinds of guitar pedals. Their overall sound was funky with influences of light hearted punk. Perfect for jumping around or sitting and savoring.

As the the night meandered on, that awkwardly cute girl I mentioned earlier walked up to me to strike a conversation. Coincidently, I've met this girl before and it just happened to be tonight that we run across each other again. She had glasses and medium wavy reddish brown hair that came a little past her shoulders. Thin pouty lips, shorts and a flowery blouse. I wouldn't be doing her justice if I didn't describe her body. She had fairly nice breasts and her butt was of a nice proportion, but it was her legs that stole the show. It was obvious that she put some time into working out in the gym, running, or simply dancing at all her favorite parties. We talked for quite a while about various subjects like work, life, food, and play. We even had a few drinks together and watched the few people that dared to mosh on the dance floor for their sweet release. All of a sudden Revolution I love you finished their set and Skribbly La Croix bolted on stage to introduce the next act coming straight from Washington D.C. They call themselves the Throwdown Syndicate. I wasn't too involved into their set, but they had a 90's hiphop spymob groove. So think rock with a dreaded up front man. The final act to hit the stage was The Mighty Paradocs. In the band you have two lead female singers who have spunk, attitude, and raw sex appeal. The duo's charismatic stage presence is guaranteed to have you floored with excitement. When The Mighty Paradocs got into their electric set of songs, the audiences energy level went from 0 to 60 in 2 seconds. I couldn't help but get involved in the fiasco when my cute friend asked me if I wanted to dance. Of course I do!

When the night was over, outside the venue was the happening spot to exchange numbers and reconnect with friends. I met a few strange characters but I appreciate where the night took me. I wish I had more energy to enjoy everything, but I like how my whole night turned out.

Rockers is every 4th Wednesday at the Tritone for $5, and on Sunday, Aug 21st they will be debuting ROCKERS SUMMER VACATION!; a weekend extravaganza of bands, kick ball, body painting and more for 3 days. For more information about the Rockers visit Superdefstar.blogspot.com.

Bryant Nnadi

Electric Butter at the Walnut Room

A fresh new report from Bryant Nnadi, reporting on a night at the stylish Walnut Room. -Adam

Electric Butter at the Walnut Room, Thursday June 30

Report by: Bryant Nnadi

Last night I went to a party called Electric Butter created by Philadelphia's resident DJ, DJ PHSH (pronounced "fish") at the Walnut Room. The event featured an artist/MC named Buddy Leezle and guest performer Charlie (former drummer for the Philly Hip Hop Group Subliminal Orphans).

The music was a combination of Electro and Dub Step with a twist of live drum & bass. Charlie played off of an electronic drum set, and he would overlap the drums to various tracks that DJ PHSH spun. The performance was amazing, because you got to watch a live remixing of popular songs like SBTRKT ft. Little Dragon - Wildfire (RMX ft. Drake).

During the intermission, Buddy Leezle performed some of his material but it wasn't that good. In fact, it killed the party a little bit. His constant use of the word "bitch" turned the majority of the female crowd away from the stage. After a quick switch up though by DJ PHSH the party was rejuvenated with life and the festivities continued.

As for the crowd is was predominately women. Attractive Women!

I was fortunate enough to snag a dancing session with a rather energetic hipster Asian chic who, for the purposes of confidentiality we'll call "Sasha".

Sasha was the secret star of the party. Of all the many dancers and breakers that fluttered about, Sasha had the attentions of practically everyone in the club-including myself. What brought her to the forefront of everyone’s attention was when she dropped to the floor and performed a dance called the "Body Roll". I never heard of this dance until I saw it in action last night, but when Sasha dropped, time stopped.

If your wondering what the Body Roll looks like, let me draw a mental picture for you.

Imagine someone falling to the ground and landing on his or her knees almost in prayer position. Then imagine the dancer leaning to the floor as if they were going for the title of lowest limbo. Now the next part of this dance is when the dogs come out. After the dancer's back is parallel to the floor, he or she starts to gyrate their hips in a slow winding circular motion. Or, if you can’t imagine this, here's youtube, where there's tons of examples. But keep in mind none of those videos will ever match the real thing in person. I wasn’t as skilled on the dance floor as Sasha was, but I had a good time talking and doing the same old two-step. It’s a good thing that not all dances go out of style.

I never thought I'd walk into a party and I would be a part of an endangered populous.

Although there were a few other men at the party, I could literally count them on my fingers and foot.

Otherwise the demographic was multicultural and stylish. After talking to a few folks, I got a feel for what everyone at the party was into. A lot of people were into Hip Hop and House music, while the rest preferred a varied selection of songs. It was honestly a great time, and I'm not surprised that it was at the Walnut Room.

Electric Butter is held every last Thursday of the month, from 10pm - 2am. So if you're into an upbeat party with great looking people and music Electric Butter is the spot to be.

Bryant Nnadi

Tavern on Camac Karaoke

And now a new writer, Bryant Nnadi, describing a recent evening of karaoke at Tavern on Camac -Adam


Karaoke Night, Tavern on Camac on Tuesday, June 14th
Report by: Bryant Nnadi


Last Night I went to a bar called Tavern (short for Tavern on Camac) that is located off a hidden block called Camac St (near the intersection with Spruce).

I was out with one of my female friends and she is a die hard karaoke freak. In fact her love of karaoke has introduced me to a new scene in Philadelphia that is starting to make some headway. They call themselves the "The Karaoke Night Lifers". This scene consists of mainly after work professionals and artists, but the crowd is rich in personality and, surprisingly, talent.

When I arrived at the bar with my friend, I honestly didn't know what to expect. From the way that television depicts Karaoke, it didn't seem that exciting or much of an adventure to sit around and listen to people ruin your favorite song. Instead I was greeted with a lush atmosphere, reminiscent of what the days when the folks used to party at Studio 54. The lights and decor were lavishly modern and minimalist. At the bar, my first conversation of the night garnered a a good number of people that were all pretty attractive. There weren't that many women in to enjoy the night with, but there were some pretty interesting characters that easily stole the night.

One person (who for confidentiality purposes we'll call Steve) found my friend very interesting and asked her to perform a number of duets with him, from Rent, Cats, & Les Miserables to Showtunes. A part of me felt like he was trying to steal my friend away from me, but another half just couldn't get over how entertaining the whole night was becoming. After a few long winded solos on my part, some friendly Stoli representatives came by and handed out free drinks which made Singing in front of a crowd of complete strangers even more appealing.

By the end of the night, I made new friends, learned a thing or two about Karaoke, and got to enjoy a night at a totally new venue.

I can't wait to see where I end up tonight.

Bryant Nnadi