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.

My Personal Reflection After Sandy Hits

Hurricane Sandy made it's way up thru our area and left a lot of people digging out. Some people are still brushing off debris, if they are lucky. A lot of people lost their homes and some did not survive the storm. This has made me very grateful for my family's and friends safety.

My experience during the storm was a rather lucky one. My wife and I stocked up on food and ice, plus candles. We figured being on high ground of Brooklyn, we'd be pretty safe against the storm surges and coastal floods. I now have a new found respect for all those hills I climb on my bike rides around this city. For they have been a protecting agent for me.

After the storm passed thru, I was anxious to get outside and see what had happened. Upon looking out the window, I saw a small pumpkin left in the street. After talking with some neighbors in the building, we decided to stay tucked away in our apartment.

With the storm taking the turns it did, NYC was still in Sandy's clutches and we were still at risk for high winds. Power outages and flying debris was my biggest worry for what could affect us. However, I did leave the house a couple of times, but that was for a job interview (crossing fingers) I had on Wednesday and for work on Friday.

While I was riding my bike to both, I saw a lot of the damage to Bed Stuy. I did not see much on Wednesday riding along Lewis Ave to West Bushwich. However, on Friday, on my trip down MacDonough Street, I was amazed at the amount of large downed trees that crushed cars. One could only hope that no one was seriously injured by these uprooted trees.

One thing that has disturbed me a bit was the notion that natural disasters do not affect Americans like other places. True indeed, my neighbors have some great grit and will rise to a many challenges. However, These types of occurrences grant immunity to no one. They can and do happen, all of the time.

We must remember that recovery is not some sort of restart button that fixes things immediately. These are the times we need to band together to help those in need. We also need to be patient as the recovery process will take a lot of coordinated efforts. This, however, does not act as an excuse to the failings the Red Cross. And Bloomburg finally realized the slap in the face it was to try and have the marathon amidst all the devastation. Then again, he should have done it much sooner.

Finally, I would like to take a moment to thank Lydia Callis. To me, she went a bit beyond her call of duty and helped to put a smile on many worried peoples faces. Her charming, over-emoting while signing for Mayor Bloomburg has become a viral hit.



It added a bit of laughter in my home at a much needed time. And not at her expense. No, it was her exaggeration of the mayors tone that had us busting a gut and forgetting our worries, even if only for a few seconds.

Brooklyn Opens It Landmark Arena

I have been a busy little bee over the summer and my lack of posts speak to that. As many ideas I have had for new videos, I just wasn't able to make some time. Sorry, I've been busy with the development of my Anti Bling company, among other things. I do see that I have folks who check in regularly to see what's new here and I really do appreciate the support I have. I plan on making a few over the remainder of the month so I have a few to share in the coming time. But in the mean time, check out a time lapse video of the construction of Brooklyn's hottest new attraction, the Barclay Center.



I have had mixed feelings about the development project since the beginning. As a child, I grew up hearing about the Dodgers from my granny. It excited me to know that a professional team in one of the 4 major leagues was going to be back in Brooklyn. Having lived for some time by the Atlantic Yards, I was excited to see Prospect Heights and Fort Greene have better access to the neighboring areas. But the scale of the project seemed way out of place.

While all things grow and change, I feel remaining connected to the history and development is important. By creating sky rise towers surrounding the arena, it would have dwarfed the surrounding neighborhood. More importantly, the existing infrastructure was not prepared to handle the new influx of people. I also didn't like the fact that a housing shelter was closed in the middle of the winter to make room for construction storage.

I still have some mixed feeling about the development. While I am excited about having a Brooklyn team to cheer on (being from Detroit originally, the Nets is the first apparel I donned that isn't Tiger or Piston gear), I'm still leery of how drastic a change the future towers will bring. Having a feel for the community in that area, it would be a shame if it were lost to create a new "Manhattan" in Brooklyn.

Brooklyn Serves Up Another Night Of Donuts

When I left Detroit for NYC, it was a weird feeling. I had a lot of great times in the hip hop scene but I knew it was time to move on. Things just weren't the same, especially seeing as how Proof and J Dilla were gone when I decided to go in 2006.

Photo: Regan Coule

I found myself partying a bit more again to throw off some of the homesick blues. I was hoping to find a place that reminded me of St Andrews back in Detroit. One of the things that helped my love affair with Brooklyn begin was all of the Dilla parties that were being thrown in the county of Kings.

The year after he had past, I think I went to four event dedicated to the man. Pharoe Monch host one in Williamsburg. Mary Pryor, a Detroit transplant, held a fundraiser for his legacy in Cobble Hill. Brooklyn seemed to show more love than Dilla's own hometown. While this hurt a bit, it reminded me of the love Dilla received from the St. Andrews crowd. With that, I felt that I was home finally.

As the years passed, less parties were thrown in his honor. This year, I've only heard about one event. While a bit disheartened. I'm glad to see that Donuts Are Forever is continuing to champion his legacy, while raising funds for the scholarship with that namesake. DAF6 at Brooklyn Bowl the past Sunday did not disappoint.

Photo: Gregory Malcolm

Arriving early to assure wifey and I got in, we were able to stake out a great spot to enjoy the festivities. It also allowed us the chance to hear how Dilla had an effect on other people in the NYC area. I am always curious because Dilla really did create an impact on my life, as well as numerous friends back home. It's amazing how many people were deeply moved by him without ever meeting him. For the first time, I met a woman (pictured to the left) who had his name tattooed on her. I've heard about it online but never actually seen a Dilla tattoo in the flesh.

Once the show got under way, it was hard for me to really concentrate on much else besides the music.From the first time I heard his music, Dilla has always had that effect on me. Sunday was no exception.

Photo: Regan Coule

I was hoping to hear something new from Dilla's catalog, since he has unknown amount of unreleased material. I thought maybe Prince Paul or Neil Armstrong had a few gems they wanted to treat us to at this years event. Unfortunately, I didn't hear anything that I haven't heard before.

Nevertheless, it did not discourage me from enjoying the energy from a thousand plus Dilla heads. After all, that is the real reason to go to Donuts Are Forever at this point. I have yet to see the level of appreciation people give to his work than any other hip hop artist.

Note: Why I Love Brooklyn would like to give a special thanks to iHeartDilla.com for allowing us to republish their photos. We would also like to thank Brooklyn Bowl for giving us press access.

Salutations From Brooklyn

Dear readers,

I am writing this letter to apologize for neglecting this blog. I have been away from my writing outlets due to my new company, Anti Bling Store. I started making my own necklaces last summer and got huge responses. The last month I have been working diligently to spread the word on a limited budget. When you don't have money to spend, you must spend time on it. Things have been working out pretty well so far, aside from the lacking of post on this beloved blog.

Fear not though, my loyal followers. I do have something to entertain you with. My best friend, with whom I've grown up with, and his team have put together a great video called "Brooklyn Insiders". Their first feature is with the world renowned artist Lee Quinones.


Brooklyn Insiders: Lee Quinones from Chuck Gibson on Vimeo.

Again, I do apologize for the disappearing act. I never intended on being so neglectful. Sometimes life has a way of pulling you in a different direction. Sometimes for the bad, this time for the better. I still have immense love for Brooklyn and want to share it with everyone. I still have so many videos to make and share. So please, be patient and know that I have not abandoned this blog.

Signed,
Gregory Malcolm H

PS - Nice job, big homie!!

Slick Rick Rules the Brooklyn Bowl

Friday night at the Brooklyn Bowl, roughly 700 people got more than they bargained for. The bill for  the night said F.Stokes and Slick Rick, nothing more. Not only was there a few extra bands involved, but it was a special show for the headline act.

As I wondered the floor before the show began, I heard people discussing which song they had hoped to hear. I can't tell you how many times I heard "If he plays Children's Story, I can die happy." They have obtained their ever lasting bliss and much more that night.

For the second time in a month, I have caught F.Stokes live on stage. I was pretty impressed the first time around, even though it was half way through his set. This time, I was able to watch him introduce himself to music fans unaware of his work. And he definitely has a way of doing such a haunting task. It takes an experienced performer to go in front of hundreds of people eagerly awaiting a hip hop legend. F.Stokes definitely filled that demanding role.

DJ Kaos

His style of stage play puts him right in the middle of the audience, literally at times. He doesn't rely on any types of gimmicks to captivate the crowd. He takes his experiences of growing up in the gritty, blue collar Midwest, as well as his travels along the way, and appeals to the intellect and humanity of his audience.  He also has a way of making you connect to the wordplay of his music. During a song he dedicated to small town life, he reminded the audience that New York City, while being a major megalopolis, is nothing more than a large, squeezed together collection of small towns.

Following F.Stokes was the Lifted Crew.A 10 piece ensemble with an influence from all over the place was the perfect back drop for Slick Rick to do his thing. Before he came out, Lifted Crew blessed the crowd with a few of their joints. With a good level of harmonizing and just plain ol' enjoying their time on stage made for a good set. The crowd was awaiting the headliner but they managed to get the crowd moving.

When The Ruler finally entered the stage, the place went nuts. The crowd almost matched the sound system in greeting his highness with great excitement. He knew what the people came to see and did not disappoint. He played the classics that made him a household name, such as Hey Young World (one of my fav's), Mona Lisa, etc. When he performed A Children's Story, I looked out into the crowd and swore almost everyone was rhyming right along.

In between songs, folks were treated to a surprise. The show was a week prior to Slick Rick's birthday. The show stopped for a moment as a cake was brought out and folks could give their well wishes. It was a brief moment but made me feel as I was a part of the celebration.

After his set, a group by the name of Deathrow Tull was to close out the night. I always love live shows because you always seem to get introduced to new music. I was not disappointed with these guys. They have a very funky vibe with a let your hair down attitude. You could tell these musicians were having a ton of fun closing out the show. I'm not too familiar with their work but I look forward to getting to know them.

All in all, it was a great night to end the week with. Everyone that performed gave a great show and the crowd was open to what the night had to offer. Of course, when you get a little extra, you are a bit reluctant to be, well, reluctant. Speaking of a little extra, I walked away with a little more than I expected as well.

Thanks for the drop and happy birthday, Slick Rick!!