They say you’re only as relevant as your fans and when you have been off the scene for quite a few years, resurfacing should be well crafted and executed. When I was asked to interview Morris Day at the 2013 UNCF Gala last week, I mentally did a cartwheel into a backflip and started singing in my head and yes, the dance moves accompanied the songs. Morris Day hasn’t pushed out any new hits and he isn’t blowing up on social medias but he was an 80’s classic…at least in my mind, so he got a pass. His catchy lyrics and dramatic stage presence with his trusted side-kick, Jerome, were always entertaining at best.

As I approached his team of people (is a posse still needed?), they were surprised by my request as if it had never been discussed. I was greeted with, “No, Morris will not be doing any camera interviews and you cannot take pictures. You will have to wait until after the show when he is did up.”

Did he just say “did up?”.

My mind was calculating time. It’s 4:30 p.m., I’ve arrived at the scheduled time for this interview per HIS team, which was 3 hours earlier than the commencing of the gala and I was being stonewalled. “Do you mind if I ask him a few questions?” is what I tossed into the conversation. What occurred next blew me away! The men walked a few feet, turned their backs as if to prevent me from overhearing, and started whispering among themselves.  I stood there but my mind was having a conversation which sounded like, “are you kidding me? There are no groupies in here and no Time members in sight or at least none that I can recognize due to time passing.”

The conversation took a wee bit too long and I noticed Morris leaning against a table doing absolutely nothing. I’m guessing that the men were to pose as a shield of sorts so I decided to interrupt. A man turned to me, and while tapping my shoulder for emphasis, said, “uuum, sweetie, we will be with you in a minute. How long did you say this was going to take?”. I wanted to shake my head in dismay. It’s amazing to me that when you see things as they are, no response is necessary because it would be a waste of effort. It was clear that someone’s position has gone to their head and was being translated in an unprofessional manner.

After I introduced myself, I immediately let Morris know that I was a fan of his music and that not too many artists can claim much success over so many decades. As we talked briefly, it was revealed that he wasn’t working on any new projects and he was also not on anyone’s performance schedule.  If wearing shades during the interview was to prevent any visible display of emotion, his face was the tell after mentioning the lack of activity on the calendar. I was disappointed by his lackluster responses and I knew that was my cue to end the Q & A. I quickly brought our exchange to a close, thanked him for taking the time to speak with me, and exited stage left to allow my paparazzi to capture pictures of the evening.

>Morris Day, thank you for showing me that ego trumps being a class act. No longer will I think of your tunes as timeless pieces of musical history. Oh, Baby, you were definitely not Cool and the Color of Success has you Daydreaming of visions of grandeur. I understand that A Man’s Pride may be Tricky and have you in Dreamland, but this Sexy Socialite won’t be Standing on the Line for any of your performances.

MiMi with actor Jeffrey Wright, who plays Beetee in the Hunger Games: Catching Fire
and also stars in Boardwalk Empire as Dr. Valentin Narcisse.

Without having seen a trailer for this movie nor read any prior reviews, I entered the theater with eyes wide opened waiting for 90 minutes of hopeful pleasure. With a cast of Hollywood A-listers ripely picked for these roles, I couldn’t imagine who was going to be selected for supporting and lead nominations. With Penélope Cruz, Brad Pitt, Cameron Diaz, Javier Bardem and Michael Fassbender as driving forces in a $20 million drug deal gone sour, they managed to make a noir film sexy and glamorous. Well, the fashion was at least glamorous.

The Counselor, written by Cormac McCarthy, and directed by Ridley Scott, gently teased the viewer and set the stage with a nameless lawyer (Fassbender) pleasing his soon-to-be fiancée (Cruz). Their dialogue was that of two young adults trying to navigate their way in a bedroom like amateurs learning the sexual ropes. Quick screen change to the desert, where Reiner (Javier Bardem) and Malkina (Cameron Diaz) watched a pair of pet cheetahs hunt while drinking martinis. If excess and luxury are the nature of the game, then The Counselor has lured you in. As any typical plot of a drug deal gone bad, the movie maintains your interest with sex and fashion, beautiful cars and homes and gratuitous scenes such as Diaz performing a split, sans underwear, atop Reiner’s yellow sportcar, and bringing herself to orgasmic heights.

There’s a tremendous amount of dialogue that carries you throughout the movie while waiting for the next scene to shepherd you to the end. And for reasons never explained, the Counselor has decided to enter into a drug deal with Reiner. It’s briefly touched on that he works as a public defender, but his need to move the large amount of cocaine or how he aligned himself with the cartel is left to our imaginations. Unfortunately, too many of the details require the viewer to creatively piece the movie together.

If you’re looking for a Netflix movie to share with your partner while winding down for the evening, then this is one worth putting in the queue.

12 Years a Slave – A Will to Live

Movie director Steve McQueen’s “12 Years a Slave” is an intense work that challenges viewers to imagine what it was like to be a slave. It isn’t the first film about slavery in the United States but it may be one of the few that forces you to challenge the lies peddled by media and storytellers. Written by John Ridley, it tells the true story of Solomon Northrup, an African-American, who, in 1841, was sold into slavery. We are introduced to Solomon (Chiwetel Ejiofor)http://http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiwetel_Ejiofor as a slave cutting sugar cane on a plantation. Through a series of memories, when Solomon was living in New York with his wife and two children, we learn a familiar story that tugs at our heart strings and brings tears to our eyes.

As a man used to the civil liberties of freedom, Solomon gladly accepts the invitation to dine with two White traveling artists in Washington while his family travels elsewhere. With flowing wine and talks of music, a drunken Solomon soon finds himself shackled and chained in a basement for days in preparation to be sold into slavery. As he moves from master to master, you can’t help but wait for the moment when twelve years comes to an end. During the movie, there is no awareness of the years passing and Mr. McQueen keeps the movie moving efficiently with emotion. Ejiofor make you feel it in your bones. When he yells in pain from the beating of a whip, so do you. You feel his sense of embarrassment when bathing and sleeping in front of others and his need to remain alive. McQueen’s delicate dance of displaying Solomon’s formal education while managing to conceal it as not to anger the White man, grasps you with force.

In the pre-Civil War United States, Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a free black man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery.

In the pre-Civil War United States, Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a free black man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery.

This is a story of one individual but also a familiar situation for many that we will never know. Solomon was a black man born into freedom, living in the North, yet couldn’t vote but he enjoyed some of the privileges of whiteness. Once enslaved, his need to survive deepens. We are aware of his internal struggle to maintain his dignity as well as his life on each plantation. Solomon witnesses and experiences brutality at the hands of crazed owners who take pleasure in the hedonistic act of beatings. With a movie so heavy with slavery’s extreme, it was almost ironic and laughable to see the masters holding church services frequently while peddling the Lord’s verse.

At one point in the movie, Solomon is strung up in tree in the blazing heat while the master’s wife and plantation hand watch over him and the other slaves eventually return to business as usual. Barely able to step on his toes in very moist mud, he manages to survive being in a noose for almost a day. McQueen’s brilliant display of performances throughout the movie takes the viewer on an emotional roller coaster ranging from tears to anger to disgust then rage.

“12 Years a Slave” is not an easy film to watch. At times, it’s unbearable but, it’s one that should be seen because it will make you think twice about what it’s like to be free.

Directed by Steve McQueen; written by John Ridley, based on the book by Solomon Northrup; released by Fox Searchlight Pictures.

With: Chiwetel Ejiofor (Solomon Northrup), Michael Fassbender (Edwin Epps) Lupita Nyong’o (Patsey) Alfre Woodard (Mistress Shaw) and Benedict Cumberbatch (Ford)