http://thefoodfilmfestival.com/
Oct. 23-27, 2013
CrazySexyCool: The TLC Story
They wrote the hits that we still love to sing. They were the fashion trendsetters that kept all eyes on them. Through each smile shown and each tear shed, the, seemingly, invincible Tionne T-Boz Watkins, the late Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes, and Rozonda “Chili” Thomas, gracefully exemplified and embodied the strength that every woman should have.
With so many to choose from, it’s hard to tell which song is more catchy. Is it the New Jack Swing vibes of Aint 2 Proud 2 Beg and What About Your Friends, the R&B groove of Creep, the slow, soul-tinged Red Light Special, or the sassy R&B/hip hop fusion of No Scrubs? With TLC, the possibilities were endless as the hits continuously cascaded like waterfalls (pun intended).
On Monday, October 21, 2013, VH1 aired the long-awaited original television movie, CrazySexyCool: the TLC Story. TLC fans everywhere tuned in to watch intently as singer/actress Drew Sidora, actress/singer KeKe Palmer, and rapper/singer-songwriter/dancer Niatia “Lil Mama” Kirkland, brilliantly portrayed the Grammy Award winning 90s trio.
Set in modern-day Atlanta, CrazySexyCool showcased the group’s glorious highs and devastating lows. The compelling two and a half hour biopic chronicled the group’s early lives, including how they met, their meteoric rise to fame, personal heartbreaks, bankruptcy, and health issues (T-Boz’s Sickle-cell anemia). It, also, featured a not-so-detailed imagery of the tragic death of group mate and friend Left-Eye, whom rapper Lil Mama portrayed, flawlessly.
For TLC fans – old and new – the VH1 depiction was pretty much on point, in terms of the different circumstances that took place and the ways in which they occurred. One of the moments that shocked viewers the most was the group’s personal/professional relationship with their former manager Perri “Pebbles” Reid, who was classily portrayed by actress Rochelle Aytes. The film sheds light on Pebbles’ alleged shadiness, as she made millions from the group’s success while they endured financial troubles. (Carl Payne plays L.A. Reid)
From greed to bad contracts, from manipulation to those infectious sing-along hits;infused with narration from actual members T-Boz and Chili, CrazySexyCool: the TLC Story is a striking, yet mind-boggling portrait of authentic nostalgia at its finest.
Kendrick Lamar turns up – Highlights from the 2013 BET Hip Hop Awards
The Boisfeuillet Jones Atlantic Civic Center in Atlanta, GA is still scorching from the hip hop havoc brought on by the 2013 BET Hip Hop Awards. Hosted by Uncle Snoop, aka Snoop Dogg, or Snoop Lion, as we now know him, the two-hour show was full of delightful surprises. As always, there were a few moments that stood out among others.
First was the Cash Money Millionaires reunion with well-known rapper/producer Mannie Fresh and rapper Juvenile. As the crowd gleefully sang along, Fresh performed an impromptu version of the absent Lil Wayne’s “Go DJ” and was then joined by Juvenile to give an exciting performance of “Back That Thang Up”. Although they kept him there in spirit, Lil Wayne’s presence would have been the icing on the cake of this nostalgic performance.
Fellow hip hop diva Eve presented Hip Hop pioneer MC Lyte with the Lifetime Achievement award. The L.Y.T.E. proved why she was and still is, one of hip hop’s first leading ladies.
An unexpected moment towards the end of the show was when 90s hip hop heavyweights Bone Thugs and Harmony hit the stage with a medley of their hits, “Thuggish, Ruggish Bone” “1st of tha Month” and an explosive rendition of “Crossroads” which was a tribute to the late Hip Hop pioneer and mentor Eazy-E.
The always show stopping Lil Kim made an appearance during the third cypher.
The Real Husbands of Hollywood gave a comedic cypher of their own. Actor JB Smoove, actor Duane Martin, actor Boris Kodjoe, actor/rapper Nick Cannon, rapper Nelly, and comedian Kevin Hart under his Hip Hop moniker “Chocolate Drop”, delivered a performance that was hilarity at its finest.
But the crowning performance that still has people talking was one given by the lyrically gifted, and Album of the Year recipient, Kendrick Lamar. The Compton California native gave a rousing performance of his hit “Money Trees” along with his Top Dawg Entertainment colleague Jay Rock, but his shining moment came during the fifth cypher. Joined by his fellow TDE colleagues, the rising hip hop star delivered a freestyle that left the others floored. His current album, the features that he’s done on others’ projects, and his freestyling prowess, are just a few reasons why Mr. Lamar is dope beyond his years and a force to be reckoned with in the hip hop industry.
With these one can only what next year’s show will be like.
Kendrick Lamar’s Cypher freestyle:
Film Review: Baggage Claim, starring Paula Patton
Released on September 27, 2013, the David E, Talbet directed film, Baggage Claim, starring Paula Patton, is a delightful trip around the globe. Based on his book of the same name, Talbet’s story features array situations that a single woman could find herself in while searching for “Mr. Right”.
At the request of her overbearing mother, Montana Moore, a young, unlucky in love, flight attendant, Montana Moore (Paula Patton) is determined to get engaged before her youngest sister’s wedding. After some soul-searching, she finds herself with only 30 days to find her potential soul mate. Using her airline connections to “accidentally” meet up with eligible ex-boyfriends as potential candidates, she travels more than a million miles, finding countless disastrous, yet comedic encounters, all while searching for the perfect guy, who was seemingly under her nose all along.
With an all-star cast including Taye Diggs, Derek Luke, Adam Brody, Boris Kodjoe, Jill Scott, and Lauren London, Baggage Claim is, indeed, a comical flight to paradise.
Baggage Claim is in theaters now.
JOPPA | Comic Strip | “Are you a Scandal Gladiator?”
Candamill Gallery Reflects a New Perspective on the Art-as-Lifestyle Brand
Artistic merits aside, it is a unique and refreshing experience to meet creative personalities Cristian and Cindy Vargas-Candamil, the brother-sister team behind Candamill Gallery. They are simultaneously youthful yet worldly and passionate yet grounded. Their enthusiasm for their work is so infectious, it is difficult to leave the gallery untouched by the vibrance and dynamism.
Since Candamill’s founding in 2012, impressively without investors or external backing, the space reflects the lifeblood and tireless efforts of Cristian, Cindy and the collective of up-and-coming artists they represent. Their self-designed collection of womenswear rounds out the artistic backdrop into a complete lifestyle brand.
Trying to define exactly what Candamill is proves as daunting as pinning a connection between the gallery’s artists. The intensity of their energy and vision takes shape in a variety of mediums and techniques: Avone’s urban basketball scenes, feted by the NBA and ESPN; Technodrome’s slick, Warhol-esque digital illustrations; Sofia Xavier’s haunting, emotional photographs and Hideki Takahashi ‘s complex, monolithic installations. Recent special projects include full design and execution of restaurant renovation for BK City in Pelham, New York and participation in a PBS documentary portraying New York’s aspiring artists.
“I don’t think we know what it is yet because it is all happening at once,” offers Cristian. “Only in hindsight can you step back, put it all together and give it a name.”
From the Vargas-Candamils’ humble origins, growing up in Queens as first-generation Columbian immigrants, they were raised to “make it your own, no matter what you are doing.” Cristian was always a creative child, spending hours drawing and painting. He began creating large-scale murals, later for high-end homes and eventually designing gallery murals in Soho, while immersing into New York’s conceptual art scene.
Cindy’s professional development has followed a more traditional path: studying and working at fashion notables DVF, Zac Posen and Elizabeth and James, before branching out to co-create Candamill’s sculptural clothing line with Cristian. This bold undertaking was spurred by her desire “to take ownership of developing a line’s creativity from concept and emphasize the highest quality in every stitch of every piece.” Candamill’s New York-designed and manufactured clothing is crafted with women of the art world in mind, those who can appreciate its lines and balance and want to stand apart from the crowd. “Ours is a confident consumer who wants her clothing to bridge the gap between art and fashion,” says Cindy. “She is a woman who will appreciate that in every garment we create, no detail has been overlooked.”
With an ever receptive lens on the world, Cindy and Cristian cite their influences as coming from any and everywhere: the gallery’s panoramic sunset views of the New York skyline, architecture glimpsed from the train during a morning commute, new music discovered at a friend’s party, and naturally, the symbiotic relationship between the clothing line and the art pieces that transform the gallery space. “Everything around us becomes part of the process,” says Cindy. “It starts with a feeling and figuring out how to translate it into art and fashion that embody the emotion.”
“We want to create a space where people can experience the brand in a constantly evolving way,” says Cindy, in sum. “We definitely know where we want to end up,” adds Cristian. “We want Candamill to be synonymous with something great, for people to know and expect that whatever we are doing will always be something special.”
Looking around the gallery, at the neon-tinged, mixed media sculpture by the entrance, perfected minimalist garments with poured-over detailing, diverse range of pieces from artists imaginative and distinct, there is an energy to the space so vivid it is almost palpable: of youth, passion, dreams, limitless labored love. One has no doubt that greatness is exactly where Candamill is headed. Or perhaps they are even already there, but are too involved and in love with the process to realize they have arrived, and will continue to again and again.
Candamill Gallery is located at 630 Flushing Avenue in Brooklyn and open for showings by appointment. For more information about the gallery, reference the website www.candamill.com or email info@candamill.com.
