A New Anthum For Brooklyn

While we are busy preparing to launch our radio hour here, I came across a few interesting people and groups. One that I simply had to share was this fun tune paying tribute to the Republic of Brooklyn.


It's from a group called The Seal Breakers featuring Paula Sheniece. While she may hail from Jamaica, Queens, Ms. Sheniece put a lot of love into this song. Hell, I thought she WAS from Brooklyn while watching the video.

Hope you all are finding a way to stay cool in this heat. Click here for numerous ways to cool off, including finding a cooling center. Back to the grind for me, WE GOT A RADIO SHOW TO LAUNCH!

Nihara Nichelle Joins the Radio Team

Hey everybody. Hope you're keeping cool out there as it is blazing here in the heart of Brooklyn. I love the posting from the Bk Historical Society about the cracked fire hydrant acting as a temporary "pool" for the neighborhood.

Things are heating up here for Why I love Brooklyn Radio Hour. We're getting more interest in the project than we expected. Nihara Nichelle blessed the studio this morning and recorded her promos. We know she is a busy woman but we are so excited to have her involved.



Well, what ever you find yourself doing, be sure to stay cool and hydrated in this heat.

WILB Blog Expands Into "Radio Waves"

What's up everybody. I hope this day finds you almost as excited as I am. I've been wanting to return to the radio waves since I left college radio. Now, I'm using this blog to create an opportunity. With the help of Nihara Nichelle and some other friends, we will be bringing you a monthly talk radio show.



It should get interesting, especially when we open up the phone lines. Make sure you "tune in" this summer!

Brooklyn Festivals in Full Swing

I discussed a few of the concert options last week. Another thing to take into consideration living in Brooklyn is the festivals and block parties, the icing on the cake that is called New York City. Sometimes you have to overcome boundaries (be it natural or man made) to really get the max from Gotham City.

Speaking of crossing boundaries, the Brooklyn Historical Society is amongst the supporters of Loving Day, a celebration of love overcoming institutionalized racism. Held in a park at 23rd & FDR right across the river from Greenpoint, they serve up bbq, beer, good music and good people. I always enjoy the annual celebration. Not only for the personal reasons of my mixed background, it is a great party. It's worth the trip into the city for an afternoon of fun. Matter of fact, it was the second video I made in the WILB video series.

A festival that has kicked off yesterday is the Northside Festival, giving a platform to emerging music and film. Only a few years old, it has grown quite quickly in the short time it has been around. Originally 50 bands, now they are bringing "350 bands in a span of four days to nearly every music venue across Williamsburg and Greenpoint (and some secret surprise spots too)".

A few other festivals worth mentioning this weekend. Every weekend is the festival of food known as the Smorgasburg, featuring a total of 75-100 vendors. This is also the third Sunday of June (time flies!!) so it's time for the Food Truck Rally at Grand Army Plaza. With all sorts of creative types, it has a festival feel. If fine art is your thing, this Sunday is the closing of the Brooklyn Waterfront Artist's showing. They will have the silent auction where you can get quality artwork at bargain prices. 

Speaking of art, I'm a little intrigued about the BangOn!NYC in 3D Festival, claiming to be the first of it's kind. They are billing it as a 3D-immersive festival in Williamsburg, featuring 2 stages of electronic music with 3D video mapping and a silent disco in a 40,000 sq ft air-conditioned indoor/outdoor warehouse. Also featuring food trucks, vendors, rides, aerial performances, large scale art installations and a giant 30' inflatable slide, it sounds like a fun afternoon.

 

There's many other such activities this weekend. I'm excited to go to the Mermaid Parade next weekend. I was really worried that that bitch Sandy hit Coney Island a bit too hard. But you know that tough, gritty spirit of Brooklynites won't let anything slow 'em down. What ever you do, this weekend, Brooklyn, have a great weekend!

Signs Of Summer Finally Surface In Brooklyn

What up, everybody! It's been a busy busy time over here. Summer is definitely here and the shows have begun. If you didn't hear, Rakim* gave an incredible performance (as if we'd expect anything less of the God Emcee) last night in Red Hook Park.



But not to worry, there are numerous other shows this summer, some free and others not so free. There is the Celebrate Brooklyn series (concerts, films, dance parties) at Prospect Park and various locations. There is no word yet about the Seaside Summer Concert Series out in Coney Island. The News Herald published that it kicked off this week, but I have yet to see anything else on the web.

As for this weekend, I have been hearing of a lot of things going down. Friday is National Doughnut Day, which is one of the few days my wife leaves me alone while eating them. I just may set up camp over in Bed Stuy to win this:

National Doughnut day is Friday June, 7th, Stop by Dough and for every purchase you could win 4 free doughnuts per week for a year
— DOUGH (@doughbrooklyn) June 6, 2013

 
Then on Saturday, our friends over at Brooklyn Based are doing another installation of their annual immersion series in Red Hook.I keep missing them but hear good things. Bounce on over to Governors Island for the Figment NYC art festival. And if you haven't been to the park in a few years, you don't need to go thru the city to get there.

If you're like me and history is your thing, you might want to head on over to Plymouth Church this Sunday evening. They will be hosting a Juneteenth event. The church itself played a big role in the abolitionist movement in Brooklyn and the greater NYC area.What ever you choose to do, have a great weekend.
* My apologies for playing with the text size, I'm a huge Rakim fan

Historic Restoration For New Rink In Prospect Park

With the temperatures below freezing and regular threats of snow, it is safe to say winter is definitely here. As others might moan about this season, I finds many ways to enjoy it. I haven't been on a snowboard in almost a decade nor have I thrown a snowball in a long time. One thing is a certain every winter: I will go ice skating.

I do admit that this is one of the reasons I high tail it into the city. I live in Crown Heights and find myself in a part of Brooklyn with no ice rink nearby. Some of you may respond by saying "what about Prospect Park". I was going there for a while but they have been closed the last couple of years. Before you freak out and scream about budget cuts, it's because they are constructing a whole new rink on Prospect Park Lake. They are even restoring the old rink site to reflect the original design.



I am anxiously anticipating the opening of Lakeside in Prospect Park but will have to wait one more season before it opens. I don't mind making the trek into the city for free ice skating. However, I do miss having the rink a hop and a skip away. I just hope the new rink is not as bumpy as the old one was so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they have the budget for a new Zamboni machine!

Brooklyn Sitll A Borough Of Opportunities

Hey everybody, despite my job moving and not finding a new one yet, I'm still busy as ever and haven't had a moment to produce another WILB video. The daily hunt for a job leaves me with not as much time as one would think.


Although I do have some ideas for videos, I've been out on Anti Bling sales calls trying to get the Brooklyn necklace out in stores. I want to give a big shout to Frsh Concepts over in Dumbo for believing in the Anti Bling Store and carrying my line. Marvin has great boutique that focuses on emerging artists and designers. He's located in The Shops at 145 Front Street.

I've also been busy working on new projects. You may have noticed the new indiegogo widget on the left. Well, I'm helping my wife bring to life her latest character, Velma. A wonderful and lovable woman who is bubbly and cheerful but just doesn't get it. Her wacky ways are hilarious and the things that fly over her head is even funnier.




Aside from shooting and editing those videos, we've been plugging away with the fund raising campaign. She has assembled the crew and cast the roles. We are now looking to our community to help launch this initiative. We put together the crowd funding at indiegogo.com. Then we created the Facebook fan page. Now we are promoting in various ways we know how to.

Nihara and I ask that you take some time to check it out and give what you can, even if it's just spreading the word. We appreciate all the support we've gotten this far and we look forward to producing the web series. That's right, she has 13 episodes planned and 3 written.

Hopefully the weather is cooperative in the next few days. I'm hoping to be able to break out the camera finally. I have been wanting to showcase Crown Heights for a while. Living over here for a few years has taught me a lot of it's various history. And there are some interesting places and things to do. I should have that up by this weekend.