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Hello one and all again. This is Ma'at who is working overtime in cyberspace to give you all what has been going on with me since the last time you all eyed me on my website. Again I would like to thank everybody for checking out my blog giving me pointers including paragraph identation (LOL). As they say in the world of art, this is a work in progress and I am definitely taking to consideration of your feedback. Third time must be the charm because 100.3 The Beat's The Freeman Bosley Junior Show and its cohorts--Bosley, Pat Washington, Nicci Roach and Darion Phelps--keep giving me props on their Sunday morning show last Sunday. I am totally greatful to you all for pumping me up like you do. Thanks again and I am looking forward to actually being on the show for a possible guest spot (and my schedule is open. LOL). All right, let's get down to the beeswax...

Last Friday, I had the opportunity to check out local painter Cbabi Bayoc's new art showing called "Family Portrait" that is now being featured at Powell Gallery that is located at 3514 Delmar (www.portfolio-stl.com). But before I got there, let me tell my show drama. OK. My business partner, Jewelanda Hodges(who just got a grant to do a documentary for KDHX-TV--You go girl!) and I trekked over to the gallery and we wer walking toward it. All of a sudden, I felt the bottom of my black boot felt loose. My first thought was, Oh-oh. Ive had my big sole combat boot fixed about a year ago for the sole coming off. Well, I wish the shoe fixer was there when I was about to walk to the gallery. Next thing you know, the sole of my show just came off on the sidewalk, just two minutes away from getting to the gallery (I'm just glad it didnt happen inside the gallery)!!

Well, with anybody, a sense of troubledness came over me and I was like, "Man, do I have an extra pair of shoes in the car?" NOPE. Jewlanda tried to hold in her laughter, but she couldnt control herself. So, what I did was pick up my sole, told a few walkersby by that yes, I dont have a sole on my boot, and proceeded toward the gallery. Jewelanda told me to find somewhere to hid the sole so I can retrieve it when we leave the gallery, Well, good thing there was a hideout place which was right behind the Portfolio Gallery sign. I was too outdone, but I was liek, well, I just keep on walking and act like nothing happened. true, I felt like Quasi-Moto walking up in there, but I think I played it off to the point where nobody noticed becasue it was very packed up in therr with many of Bayoc's fans.

When Jewelanda and I got up in there, Bayoc was about to address the crowd about his paintings that were hung (He had his newborn strapped on his back--awwwww) Some of the usual VIPs were up in therr like ST. Louis American's Bill Beene, The Post's Kevin Johnson, local actress Fannie Lebby, attorney Cheryl D.S. Walker (It was soooooo good to see you !), Flo Valley Professor Laurencin Dunbar (My you are taaaaallllll), writer Byron Lee (thankx for the parapraph tip) , Allyson Price (you are lookin mighty happy these days) , Monica Tyson, and the FBJS's Nicci Roach (I'm waiting to to be on your TV show. LOL), to name a few. Portfolio curator Robert Powell into'd C'Babi (who has slimmed and buffed and cut off his dreads since the last time I saw him) and he thanked everyoen for coming. he said that he was painting even before the event. This brother is so underrrated and so modest. He was painted and sold paintings for the Roots, Erykah Badu (who I hear used to be an item when Badu was a student at Grambling State) and the one and only Prince. He even got a bit emotional when talking about his themed work, "Family Portrait" which deals with black family love. Afterward, I jibbed him and asked him if he remembered me. And he said yes, "the guy who writes." Then, I checked out the art work (one of his works that was not featured in the show is "Daddy's Love" which is posted on my blog). he has a jazzy, caricaturish flavor to his work. It kind of remind me of paintings that were featured on the show "Good Times": earthy, street with class. His works valued in proice from $85 bones all the way up to 2,500. If you want to check out his paintings, they will be hanging all this month and next month. After it was over, I ran into flymusic's Annie Burks who was carrying her few month old daughter Eden. She always gives me love telling folks about my writing, whoever is in her area of speak and I want to thank her for keeping me hyped.

Last Saturday afternoon, I checked out the local DVD, "Crunk"at the Tivoli Theater in the University Loop. It is a 60 minute "quasi-documentary" about the hottest new dance craze that's been been popping in the STL. It featured many local crunk "tween" dancers (including Little G, as in Ginuwine) and featured over 20 or so youngsters doing serious battling or "crumping" with each other. It was screened and produced by local music mover and shaker Sonny Metcalfe of Black Independent Film And Music (When you get the chance, check out the webcast on Uncle Rudy's Show(That's Nelly's daddy) at stlblackout.com) It was also hyped to see most of the audience were the dancers and their families and their cheering at the screen when they saw themselves (They will be doing a sequel of sorts with smaller kids called "Littel Feet" in the near future). Local talent scout Nate Jackson emceed the screening(I didnt know you had an office all up in Club Formula????) . They filmed most of the scenes at Club Dreams, and it really chronicles this new style of dancing which involves pop-locking, nino-poppin, some fast jitterbug leg work and full of attitude. Afterward, I went to an afterparty they had for the cast at Cicero's down the street from the Tivoli and it was cool. They served up some pizza and wings and I conversed with Jewelanda, April from JMPRODUCTIONS (who is PRing "Pieces of a Dream") and Marvin, who is a bouncer, at Formula, skater boi, and was an extra in the upcoming flick, "Pieces of a Dream," (that will be premiering in Chi-Town at the Ice Theatre Feb 27-Mar 2).

TIDBITZ. I checked out the Kimora Lee Simmons (who is pictured on my blog) interview done by KMOV's Donna Savarese (that she filmed in NYC during Fashion week earlier this month) that was on KMOV-Channel 4 Last Thursday and it was not what all the hype was. It was supposed to be about the controversy dealing with her "divaness" in the fashion industry being one of the top fashion deisgners in the country. What we got was a five minute or so fluff piece about her background growing up biracial -Asian and black(she grew up in Florissant and went to Lutheran North) with retro pics of her growing up, how she got into the modleing biz (House Chanel discovered her at age 13 anbd sent her overaseas), how she met her husband former CEO of Def Jam and Phat Farm Russell Simmons (at NYC Fashion Week in 1999) , and her selling her multi-million fashion line conglomerate Baby Phat for 140 million. Other than that, it wasn't really too telling. When Savrese asked Simmons--who is 30 years old-- about her being spoiled and she said that she wasnt and that she worked hard to get to where she is and said that she termed the phrase "hip-hop couture", oh, and they said that her "The Viewesque" talk showLIfe and Style on the Oh Network was cancelled, also pubbed her new fashion book on empowerment , "Fabulosity." I kind of figured the piece wouldn't be as juicy as once pumped to be. But I got to give Kimora her props. She is an STL native and she is definitely a fashionista pioneer. I have nothing bad to say about her, I just wished the piece was more E-True Hollywood Story than a commerical... ........Hip-hop is mourning the loss of hip-hop producer Jay Dee aka J Dilla who died last week at age 32 from the immune disease lupus. The musician – real name James Yancey – worked with many artists including De La Soul and The Roots. He was recently described by Rolling Stone as "a top-ranked architect of soulful hip-hop," while The Neptunes' Pharrell Williams named him his favorite producer. J Dilla was a member of rap trio Slum Village and released solo album Donuts just last week. Parts of it were recorded when he was in the hospital. He had also worked with names such as Common, The Pharcyde, D'Angelo, Erykah Badu and A Tribe Called Quest....Local socialite Jamie Spencer will be trekking to Chi-Town, on Feb 27 to audition as a background singer for newly Grammy winning artist John Legend . Good luck to ya!... Is it me or should Fox 2 Elliot Davis' "You Paid For It" segments should be expanded to 30 minutes, and and he should have his own show? What's going on with that? As of this writing, I would have seen the feature segment that Fox 2 will have on on local hip-hop photographer Suzi Gorman (who's motto on her biz shoots all of the hip-hop artist here in the Lou. Now Fox 2 has a bumper to get people watching about her shooting Nelly and the St. Lunatics and the thing that Nelly refused for her to shoot with him. OK. I'm sure it's not what we think. But I will be tuning in to see. Comedienne Sommore was in town this week performing at the Funny Bone in Fairveiw Heights, Ill. (Comic View's SheryL Underwood was up in therr a few weeks back), local model and actor Christiaan Coffield went and will hopefully give me a report on her show. ..Local attorney and Club Formula co-manager Kwame Thompson has a blogsite . It is legalrebellion.blogspot.com. I checked it out and it's quite a read. He talks on everyday subjects and politics from a black P.O.V. (I'm glad to be your inspiration KT. LOL)

MA'ATIDBITZ .I will be meeting with Majic 104.9 personlaity Selena J this Sunday to talk about appeearing on her upcomng Saturday evening radio show, "Soul ternatives" ...I don't know if I told you all, but I was a movie extra in the upcoming film, "Steel City." (You can check out more of this flick on imdb.com--the film's movie poster is posted on my blog on the right hand side) ) It was filmed in Alton, Ill. (a few weks after "Pieces of a Dream" wrapped ) December of 2004 and I was in the courtroom scene with actor John Heard. The film has been shown at the Sundance Film Festival last month in Utah and the director, Brian Jun., is Webster University grad hails from Alton. The film, which was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, is a story about a dysfunctional family in Illinois who holds it together when their father goes to prison. I can't wait to see the film when it is distributed nationwide. I will keep you posted!

OK. Well, that will be wrap. If there's anything you want me to pub or hype, give me an email at maatspear@yahoo.com.!