Today I have a painting available for sale on everydayoriginal.com. I’ve spoken about Django Jane and how it’s empowered me in the past. So today I just want to focus on my personal experiences with @janellemonae .

Firstly, Janelle Monae is one of my top top favorites! I remember first discovering her around Violet Stars Happy Hunting, and falling in love with the world of Metropolis she was crafting. I was just graduating from Highschool when I started listening to her, and immediately I felt so seen, heard, and embraced by her music. I would carry my “Imagination inspires nations” pin way too many places. The genre defying music, the afrofuturism, the storytelling, the LAYERS of her music, complete with amazing vocals, bombastic dance and energy, and the band and production and the list goes on.

Then I saw her live and was completely blown away. Central Park in 2008. The early years at Afropunk. Touring with Raphael Saadiq. Seeing my first Erykah Badu show, and Janelle opening.

I remember in this third picture, we were simply waiting in line at the venue in the streets of NYC and Janelle really just drove up and entered the hall. She was so warm, so kind, gracious, and genuine. I could tell she was busy and in work mode and yet she stopped to greet us and was so thankful that we were waiting in line to see her. And then later when she performed she gave us so much love and energy! She put her trust in us to help her start crowd surfing. And I believe during Come Alive or Cold War she poured water on us, danced with us, and the entire show was a true energy exchange that felt so sacred. It was the embodiment of the power of music and performance. And I’ll never forget those moments. Despite being a different art form, she has absolutely been formative to my artistry.

Now I’m just hoping for another opportunity to see her live! I missed her when she came to vancouver for Dirty Computer. And it’s been toooo long since I’ve seen her live. (Maybe before electric lady was officially released??)

#djangojane #janellemonae #dirtycomputer #fandroid #femthefuture #imaginationinspiresnations
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