Saturday at Marygold's
Marygold's Ballroom, 8827 Annapolis Rd, Lanham, MD 20706


This was my first time here.

Robin, Tracey and her Cousin C, Torrie, Val "Tina Turner" (celebrating her birthday), Archie from Trouble Funk, Brenda, Devlin from EU/Raw Image, Jai, Fee, Archie, Mike Jones, RE Angie, Shaunte (Stacey's Cousin), Wea, Tony, and Benji (taking pictures) were there.

Familiar Faces
Lorenzo and Sean were not present. Googie played bass and worked the PA at the same time.
Donnell said, "Happy birthday Tina Turner. Special dedication to Libras"
First set
1) Alternating Damila-led Jazmine Sullivan's Need U Bad - it had a light crank Donnell chanted, "Wait a minute!" / Percussion solo
Theos was there.
2) Scooby-led Sunshine - it started with a light crank and then rose to a full crank, Scooby said, "We're celebrating life tonight", Scooby chanted, "Wait a minute!" / Percussion solo - Scooby chanted, "Oh oh oh", Scooby chanted, "Eya eya" / "Ya party with me" / "___ Got a birthday" / Donnell-led "Dance with me y'all" -->
3) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - it cranked
4) Quese & Damila-led "Can we do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!"
5) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Hey ay"
6) Scooby-led Trey Songz' Can't Help But Wait - Scooby chanted, "Wait a minute!" / Percussion solo - Scooby chanted, "Shake your body body, move your body baby"
7) Donnell & Quese-led We Don't Need These Phones - it cranked, Donnell chanted, "Wait a minute!" / Percussion solo
Candi W. and Kia were there.
8) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda - it cranked, Donnell said, "We're going to welcome home my man here properly, my man Bojack", KayKay was onstage
9) Donnell-led "25, 25, 25" / Rare Essence's Work the Walls - it cranked, Donnell said, "Happy Birthday Jordan", Mike danced / Bojack tom solo / Rare Essence's Hook Me Uppa / KayKay-led TI's Swagger Like Us
Donnell Jr. and Rochelle were there.
10) Donnell acapella Tina Turner's (Credence Clearwater Revival's) Proud Mary
Byrd, Muffin, and Sally were there.

RE Angie played the congas during the break.

Second set
Donnell said, "We're shooting a DVD next Saturday at Tradewinds. For his birthday, Jammin' Jeff is going to play naked."
1) Scooby-led Phil Collins' In the Air Tonight - it was laid back at first and then cranked, Donnell chanted, "Wait a minute!" / Percussion solo - Donnell chanted, "Eya eya"
2) Damila-led Rihanna's Take a Bow - it cranked, Donnell chanted, "Wait a minute!" / Percussion solo
3) Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease) - it cranked
4) Donnell-led "Party party, everybody" / Scooby-led The Dream's I Luv Your Girl / "___ Is bad"
5) Donnell-led "Jump your body" - it cranked -->
6) Scooby-led "Uh oh uh uh oh" - it cranked, Scooby chanted, "Hold it", Scooby chanted, "Shake, shake your body baby" / "___ Is on the premises" -->
7) Donnell-led "Contagious outrageous" / Alternating Rare Essence's All Da Time / Rare Essence's Uh Oh (Heads up) (lyrics only) / Bojack tom solo - Donnell chanted, "Dance with me y'all", the crowd did the yell from All Da Time, DJ Big John flashed a portable light as the equivalent signal to turning on the house lights -->
8) Donnell-led "Back it on up" - it cranked
9) Donnell & Scooby-led Do You Think About Me? - it had light crank, the house lights came on / Donnell-led "Slow Funk and grind girl" - Byrd danced with her shadow and shaped her hair / Quese, Damila, and Scooby-led Lil Wayne's Mrs. Officer / Instrumental / Donnell-led Gangsta - Bojack played toms, it cranked, Mike danced, Donnell rapped
Tameka was there.
Donnell joked that Omarr was short for DC Omarrion, "he slicked it up".
It ended at 3:20 AM. I enjoyed it.

Friday at the Holiday Inn
Holiday Inn, 2460 Eisenhower Ave, Alexandria, VA 22314



The promoter, CeeCee, recognized me.

Trouble Funk
The line up was: Big Tony Fisher (lead talker & bass), T O'Brien (vocals, keyboard, and cowbell), Shaza (rapper), Jerrica "Sweetness" White (vocalist, started performing late in the second set), Tony (guitar), Allison (keyboard), Archie (trumpet), Valentine (Sax), Yukon "Bigfoot" Denali (drummer), Chris (percussion)
Tony, Chris, Shaza, Archie, Big Tony, TOB


Tony, Chris, Shaza, Archie, Valentine, Bigfoot


Archie, Valentine, Bigfoot, TOB, Big Tony


Big Tony, TOB, Allison
First set
1) Big Tony-led "25 and older, get your hands up" - it had a light crank, Big Tony did announcements -->
2) Alternating TOB-led Kanye West's One Night Extravaganza - it started with a light crank and then rose to a full crank, TOB went to the front, TOB said, "If you got a damn drink in your hand, put your hands up", Shaza rapped, TOB said, "Trouble get busy", Big Tony soloed, the second time around, Big Tony chanted, "Back to back, side to side" / Percussion solo - Tony, Shaza and Valentine danced, the crowd shouted, "Oh break it down" and TOB said, "What you say?"
3) Big Tony & TOB-led Slick Rick's La Di Da Di - it cranked, the crowd recited the lyrics / Percussion solo
4) Big Tony-led "___ got a birthday y'all" / "Happy birthday to you"
5) Big Tony & Shaza Hey Fellas - it cranked, Big Tony chanted, "Take it to the bridge"

Second set
Valentine warmed up by playing Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein II's My Favorite Things
Big Tony did shout outs. He said, "This is the Trouble Funk set".
He announced that the next song was being performed by special request:
1) Big Tony-led E-Flat Boogie - it cranked
2) Big Tony-led "We're going to get this started off right" - it cranked, Chris played toms, Big Tony said, "This is officially Alley Cat's birthday" / "We're going to keep it on the..." - Shaza rapped, Shaza sang "Happy Birthday" to Alley Cat / Shaza-led "___ in the house" (my name was mentioned), Chris went back to playing congas, Tony soloed / Big Tony-led "B-E-A-T, Gimme that beat" / "Alley Cat got a birthday y'all" / "Happy birthday to you" - they held mics to the crowd
3) Valentine Sax solo / Alternating TOB-led Dave Hollister's One Woman Man - it cranked, TOB went to the front, Big Tony soloed / Percussion solo - TOB said, "Help me out horns, gimme some hits" / TOB-led Trillville's Some Cut / Dave Hollister's One Woman Man (instrumental) -->
4) Big Tony-led "Work it" - it cranked / TOB-led Blazin' Squad's Flip Reverse - Shaza rapped
5) Big Tony-led Let's Get Small - it cranked, Big Tony chanted, "Throw your hands in the air, do it like this y'all", Big Tony chanted, "Hey Bigfoot, make it Funky" and Bigfoot soloed, Chris conga solo, Bigfoot drum solo, Big Tony bass solo / TOB-led Flo Rida's Low, the crowd applauded
Big Tony introduced Sweetness, their new female vocalist and she came onstage.

Tony, Sweetness, Chris, Shaza, Archie
All pictures (except flyer) taken by and Copyright - Jordan Rich
6) Sweetness-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up - it cranked
7) Big Tony-led Drop the Bomb - it cranked
8) Sweetness-led Alicia Keys' No One - she held her mic to a fan
They were done at 1:20 AM. Like Tomcat told me last week, they were really tight - they must be rehearsing a lot.

Saturday at Tradewinds
Tradewinds Night Club, 5859 Allentown Way, Camp Springs, MD 20748

I was not able to bring a pen in, so all of this is off the top of my head.

Toya, Nita, Lisa of the World (celebrating her birthday), Shaunte (Stacey's Cousin), Felecia & her sister, Keysha, Shawn, Shantel, Mike Smith, Renee D., and Theos were there.

Familiar Faces
Mike "Hardstep" Taylor was not present.
First set

Sean, Scooby, Wendell, Godfather, Jammin' Jeff, Damila


Jammin' Jeff, Damila, Donnell, Bojack, Smoke, Quese, DP


Wendell, Sean, Godfather, Scooby, Lisa of the World, Damila, Packy, Donnell , Quese, Smoke
1) Instrumental - Donnell did birthday shout outs / Damila-led Jazmine Sullivan's Need U Bad - it cranked / Bojack tom solo
2) Scooby-led Sunshine - it cranked -->
3) Scooby-led "Ya Party with me" - it cranked
4) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh"
5) Quese & Damila-led "Can we do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!"
6) Donnell-led "Familiar Faces is for the Grown & Sexy"
7) Donnell-led "Jump your body" - it cranked / Bojack tom solo
8) Donnell & Quese-led We Don't Need These Phones - it cranked
9) Donnell, Scooby, Damila & Quese-led Do You Think About Me? - it had a light crank / Donnell-led Donna Summer's Love to Love You Baby (tease) / Rick James' Mary Jan (tease) / Scooby-led "DC Girls, they drive me crazy" / Quese-led Luther Vandross' Never Too Much / Donnell-led Vinnie D's $55 Motel (tease) / Can We F*ck (Touch) Tonight?
Cindy, Nicole (BF, celebrating her birthday), Angie, Tricia (celebrating her birthday), Archie, Keisha (celebrating her birthday?) & Jan, and Dominique (celebrating her birthday) were there.
Little Benny (celebrating his birthday), Mousy, Keta, and Tasty were there.


Little Benny and a fan


Tasty, Jammin' Jeff, Toya, Nita, Lisa of the World

Steve Roy of Suttle introduced himself to me.

Second set
1) Scooby-led Phil Collins' In the Air Tonight - it cranked / Donnell-led "___ Is in the Building"
2) Damila-led Rihanna's Take a Bow - it cranked
3) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh"
4) Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease)
5) Donnell-led "Party party, everybody" - it cranked / Scooby-led "Uh oh uh uh oh" - Scooby chanted, "Stick out your butt, shake what you got"
6) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda - it cranked
7) Donnell-led Miss Keta Will You Dance for Me - it cranked, Lisa of the World, Tricia, and Tasty danced
8) Donnell-led "25, 25, 25" - it cranked / Rare Essence's Work the Walls / Bojack tom solo / Maino's Hi Hater -->
9) Donnell-led "Contagious, outrageous... gonorrhea, syphilis, HIV" / Rare Essence's All Da Time / Rare Essence's Uh Oh (Heads Up) (lyrics only, no sample)
10) Donnell-led Public Enemy's Welcome to the Terrordome - it cranked / Smoke conga solo -->
11) Donnell & Little Benny-led ? (Rare Essence song) - it cranked, Bojack was on congas at first, then GoGo Mickey of Rare Essence

Shantel, Smoke, Damila, Lisa of the World, Tasty, Bojack, ?, Donnell Jr., Renee, Scooby, Donnell, Little Benny
RE Angie, Grady of Rare Essence, and Mia were there.
Rochelle was there.

CandyLady was there (working).


Angie & Tricia
All pictures taken by and Copyright - Jordan Rich

Friday at the Cardinal's Nest
Cardinal's Nest, 3748 10th St NE, Washington DC 20017


Rochelle (toosweet), Sherray (Always Showtime!!), and Tomcat were there.

Faces U Know
The line up was: Doc Hughes (lead talker & bass), Sean "Kal-el" Gross (vocals), Michael Muse (vocals), Halima Peru (vocals), Adia Doores (vocals), Dwayne Lee (guitar), Glenn Cobb (keyboard), Stomp Dogg (drummer), Supa Dave (congas), Kirky (percussion)
First Set - 8:34 PM
Halima had her mic stand in the middle of the dance floor and also walked around, as much of the audience was in the booths in the back of the club.
Halima said, "Happy Friday y'all"
1) Instrumental - it cranked
2) Halima-led Mary J. Blige's My Life - it had a light crank, Halima walked around to the back, Dwayne soloed, Stomp cranked
Halima went back to the stage. Adia and Mike went from the back of the stage to the front.
3) Sean-led Al Green's Love & Happiness - it had a light crank
Mike said, "Taking it to back in the day".
4) Mike-led Marvin Gaye's I Want You - it had a light crank, Mike sang on the dance floor
5) Adia-led Jill Scott's Whatever - it had a light crank
6) Sean & Halima-led Jordin Sparks' No Air - it cranked, Sean and Halima sang on the dance floor -->
7) Mike-led The Stylistics' People Make the World Go Round - it had a light crank
Ty (Delano795) was there.
8) Sean-led Usher's Here I Stand - it had a light crank

Supa Dave's girlfriend, April, came over and said, "Here's something you can write: 'She stole my seat!'"

Second set
Halima again brought her mic stand to the middle of the dance floor.
1) Halima-led Ledisi's Think of You - "As the world turns, You're always on my mind" - it had a light crank, Stomp cranked
2) Sean-led Gerald Levert's Funny - it cranked / Stomp drum solo / tom solo / Sean & Adia-led "When I look into the mirror, the way that I feel, soon you will find, so cold" - Adia sang on the dance floor -->
3) Sean-led Familiar Faces' Reggae - it cranked, Adia was still on the dance floor, Kirky played the toms / Akon's We Taking Ova (tease) / Damian Marley's Beautiful - Halima stood on the windowsill
4) Adia-led Beyonce's Flaws and All - it cranked, Tomcat danced with Halima, bubbles went over the stage / Percussion solo
5) Sean-led Usher's Bad Girl - it cranked / Percussion solo -->
Mike said, "To all the haters in the house, I wish you lots of love"
6) Alternating Halima-led Jill Scott's Hate on Me - it cranked, Halima sang on the dance floor, Halima said, "Haters got a job to do so do it" / Percussion solo -->
7) Doc-led Rare Essence's Work the Walls (tease) - it cranked
They finished at 10:32 PM. I enjoyed it.

I talked with Tomcat about Trouble Funk, Deep Band, and the WHAT? Band. He said that Trouble Funk was really tight.

After they were done, I heard the Epitome was going to play next, but I went home as I needed to chill, it's been a hard week.

I talked with Danielle P. (Wellphed), Alicia, and Chere. We asked Dwayne why the headliners were up first. He said this was their first time playing here. He said every club asks them to do Smooth R&B.

Billy Cobham at Blues Alley
Blues Alley, 1073 Wisconsin Ave. NW Washington, DC 20007

Billy Cobham is my favorite drummer, especially the work he did under his own name and with George Duke, but I had never seen him perform in person before now. I considered going to all four nights, but in the end opted to go to both shows tonight.

Billy Cobham's Spectrum Band
The line up was: Billy Cobham (drummer), Dean Brown (guitar), Victor Bailey (bass), Tom Coster (keyboards).
Early show ~ 8:10 PM
1) Mirage - it had a light crank / Billy soloed - it cranked
Billy announced the title of the song before and said the next song was another new song to appear on their next album. He introduced the rest of the band.
2) Obliquely Speaking - it cranked / Bill solo
3) Spectrum? - it alternated between crank and laid back, Victor soloed, Tom clapped, Billy soloed, Dean walked over to Tom
4) Billy drum solo - it cranked / ? - it had a light crank / Dean guitar solo / long Billy solo - a cadence and more
5) Panama - it varied from light crank to laid back to full crank
Billy announced one more before we close:
6) Red Baron - it varied from light crank to full crank.
It ended at around 9:20 PM.

I got Billy to autography my copy of the Billy Cobham Anthology. I also bought a copy of his album Fruit from the Loom.

Tom warmed up. Billy tuned his drums.

Billy changed his shirt (from a light green t-shirt to a white collared shirt) and his bandana (from tan to purple).

Late show - 10:21 PM
1) Billy warmed up - it had a light crank
2) ? (familiar, Stratus maybe?) - it went from crank to light crank
3) Spectrum - it cranked / Billy drum solo
4) Two for One - it went from a light crank to a full crank / Billy drum solo
5) Billy drum solo - it cranked / ? - it had a light crank
6) Billy drum solo - it was incredible, it cranked, first he played just with his feet, then with mallets, at first one each hand, then two each hand, then back to one each hand, then drum sticks, then by hand
7) ? (familiar) - it had a light crank, Billy soloed, Tom soloed, it rose to a full crank
Billy said they would perform one more song, he asked for requests. One guy said, "Hip Pockets", but Billy said they hadn't practiced that. Then the guy said, "Lady of Spain" and Tom said, "I think you're in the wrong kind of club."
Billy said they would do something featuring Victor Bailey.
8) Quadrant 4 - it cranked, Victor soloed
It ended at 11:22 PM. I loved it. I am sure that Stratus and Crosswind were among the songs performed tonight.

I drove from Blues Alley to Mirrors.

Familiar Faces & Chuck Brown at Mirrors
Mirrors, 33 New York Avenue NE Washington, DC 20002



I missed Crossover Band's performance.

Junior, working the sound, said hello to me.

Familiar Faces - in progress at 12:13 AM
The line up was: The line up was: Donnell (vocals & Sax), Scooby (vocals & guitar), Damila (vocals), Quese (vocals), DP (vocals & trumpet), Wendell (guitar), Googie (bass), Godfather (keyboard), Lorenzo (keyboard), Jammin' Jeff (drummer), Smoke (congas), Packy (cowbell)

Googie, Scooby, Lorenzo, Wendell, Damila, Donnell, Quese
X) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - it cranked / "Hey ay, Hey ay" / "Familiar Faces is for the Grown & Sexy"
X+1) Scooby-led GoGo Is My Business - it cranked
Shaunte (Stacey's Cousin) was there.
X+2) Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease) - it cranked
X+3) Donnell-led "Party party, everybody" - it cranked / Alternating Scooby-led "Uh oh uh uh oh" - Scooby chanted, "Throw your hands in the air, throw your hands up", Scooby chanted, "Stick out your butt, shake what you got", Scooby chanted, "Hold it!" / Percussion solo / "How low can you go" / Donnell chanted, "Killazoo!" / "Brandywine, friends of mine" chant
Sanchez was there.
X+4) Donnell-led "Jump your body" - it cranked, Smoke played toms, Quese rapped / tom solo
Mike Jones and Peg Leg were there.
X+5) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda - it went from a light crank to a full crank, Smoke played toms and Packy played cowbell
X+6) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Lock It - it cranked, the frontline strutted around the front of the stage, Donnell did a birthday shout out to me (my Birthday's not until October 7th), Mike danced
X+7) Alternating Donnell, Scooby, Damila, and Quese-led Do You Think About Me? - it had light crank, Donnell went on the dance floor / Donnell-led Donna Summer's Love to Love You Baby (tease) / Vinnie D's Porno Star - Donnell sat on an amp singing directly to one of the twins / Rick James' Mary Jane (tease) / Scooby-led "DC Girls, they drive me crazy" / All of them sang Lisa Stansfield's All Around the World (tease) / "Slow Funk & grind, girl" / Donnell sang, "Do you listen to my heartbeat?"
Nicole (BF) was there.
They stopped, then were told they had a little more time.
X+8) Donnell-led Notorious BIG's Warning / Keith Murray's Call My Name (tease) / "Wait a minute" echoes
They were done at 12:55 AM.

Ray and Gary were there.

Chuck Brown & the Soul Searchers - 1:44 AM
The line up was: Chuck Brown (vocals & guitar), Anthony "Little Benny" Harley (vocals & trumpet), KayKay (rapper), Sweet Cherie Mitchell Agurs (keyboard & vocals), Bryan Mills (Sax & keyboard), Brad Clements (trumpet), Greg Boyer (trombone), Karlston "Ice" Ross (bass), Kenny "Kwik" Gross (drummer), Mighty Moe (congas), Marcus (percussionist) with special guest: Gregory "Sugar Bear" Elliott (vocals).

Bryan, Brad, Greg


Marcus, Chuck
1) "Wind me up, Chuck" - it had a light crank / Earl Hagen's Harlem Nocturne - Bryan soloed, Brad soloed
2) Chuck-led "Lock it in, pop it in" - it had a light crank / Chuck chanted, "When you walk in the door" and the audience responded, "Hello hello!" / Chuck rapped, "Feel freaky deaky style" / "Ho oh, uh oh uh oh" - Twin was onstage / "25 and older, get your hands up" / "Hey ladies" / North, South, East, West" chant
3) Chuck-led Hoochie Coochie Man - it cranked, Bryan soloed, Greg soloed, Chuck soloed, KayKay went onstage, a girl grinded with me / Mighty Moe solo -->
4) Chuck-led Louis Jordan's Run Joe - it had a light crank, Sweet Cherie made faces to the lyrics -->
5) KayKay rapped "You want the good sh*t, I've had it up to here, clear out, I've had a lot of friends, I've had a lot of foes, that's the way it goes" / "I'm still here, I ain't going nowhere" -->
(KayKay acted as lead talker for the rest of the set)
Sweet Cherie walked to the front of the stage:

Sweet Cherie, KayKay, Chuck
6) Sweet Cherie-led "everyday, what you waiting for, it's time for you to get up, baby baby baby, choke it" - it had a light crank, she and KayKay danced -->
7) Sweet Cherie-led Mary J. Blige's Mary Jane - it had a light crank -->
Little Benny walked onstage

Brad, Greg, Little Benny
8) Instrumental - it had a light crank / Little Benny-led "Y'all tired yet?" / "I'm a keep, big boys too" / Rare Essence's Do You Know What Time It Is? / Lil Wayne's Stuntin' Like My Daddy - Little Benny did the "Ride Out" dance, "Hold up, wait a minute!" / Percussion solo / Cat in the Hat
Sugar Bear went onstage

Sugar Bear, Sweet Cherie
All pictures (except flyer) taken by and Copyright - Jordan Rich
9) Sugar Bear & Little Benny-led Freak A Deak All Night Long - it cranked / Little Benny-led Rare Essence's One on One - KayKay held her mic to a guy in the audience
10) Sugar Bear-led "Are the Redskins the real deal? Better than the Eagle? Who's going to the Super Bowl? / Junior M.A.F.I.A.'s Crush on You / Sweet Cherie danced with Sugar Bear and rapped "Yes, indeed" / Sugar Bear-led "Wind me up, Chuck!"
Derrick Curry of EU was there.
11) Chuck did shout outs / Percussion solo / KayKay-led Chuck Baby - KayKay held her mic to the audience, Little Benny played the trumpet -->
12) Chuck-led Duke Ellington's It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That GoGo Swing) / Chuck-led Lionel Hampton's Midnight Sun - the house lights came on
13) Chuck-led Sho Ya Right (tease) - it had a light crank -->
14) Chuck-led Bustin' Loose - it cranked
They were done at 3:01 AM.

No Label at the Black Family Reunion
Black Family Reunion, National Mall, 15th St & Jefferson Dr SW, Washington, DC

No Label was the opening act for the main stage. They were originally supposed to perform on Saturday, but I believe the entire Black Family Reunion was rescheduled to Sunday due to Tropical Storm Hannah.

No Label (CJ, Danni Blaze, DaDa, Krys, Shawn Michelle)
& Faces U Know (introduced as the No Label Band): Dwayne Lee (guitar), Doc Hughes (bass), Glenn Cobb (keyboard), Stomp Dogg (drummer).

Stomp, Doc, Dwayne


All pictures taken by and Copyright - Jordan Rich
1) Whatchu Like
2) Shoes
3) When
4) Actions
I enjoyed their performance; their singing was really integrated with the band.

Saturday at Tradewinds
Tradewinds Night Club, 5859 Allentown Way, Camp Springs, MD 20748

Tracey, Torrie, Muffin, Shelley, Shawn, Nikia, Matthew, Nicole (the former cover taker), Robin, Rhonda, Donnell Jr., and Tasha (River Terrace) were there.

Familiar Faces
The line up was: Donnell (vocals & Sax), Scooby (vocals & guitar), Damila (vocals), DP (vocals & trumpet), Wendell (guitar), Sean (bass), Godfather (keyboard), Lorenzo (keyboard), Jammin' Jeff (drummer), Smoke (congas), Bojack (percussion)
First set
1) Percussion solo - it cranked, Donnell chanted, "Oh my my my" repeatedly, Donnell sang, "Nicole the Bartender"
2) Alternating Damila-led Jill Scott's When You're Around - it cranked, Donnell joked, "Security! Someone is wearing sneakers (Scooby)" / Happy Birthday (same music)
3) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh"
4) Donnell-led "Can we do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!" - it cranked / "Familiar Faces is for the Grown & Sexy"
5) Scooby-led GoGo Is My Business - it cranked, Donnell played air guitar with his Sax
6) Damila-led Rihanna's Take a Bow
7) Alternating Donnell-led "___ Is Yes!" - it cranked / "Keep it low"
8) Donnell-led "25, 25, 25" / Rare Essence's Work the Walls - it cranked / Bojack toms solo
9) Donnell, Scooby & Damila-led Do You Think About Me? - it had a light crank / Donnell-led Donna Summer's Love to Love You Baby (tease) / Vinnie D's $55 Motel (including porno star lyrics) / Lisa Stansfield's All Around the World / Scooby-led "DC Girls, they drive me crazy"

Second set
1) Warming up - Scooby-led "I just want to love you" (tease) - it had a light crank
2) Damila-led Jazmine Sullivan's Need U Bad - it cranked
3) Scooby-led Sunshine - it cranked, Scooby told the audience it was important to vote / "Omarr got a birthday" / Percussion solo - Scooby chanted, "Eya eya" / "Ya Party with Me"
4) Donnell-led "Hey ay, hey ay"
5) Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease) - it cranked
6) Donnell-led "Party party, everybody" - it cranked / Damila-led Fergie's Clumsy
7) Donnell-led "Jump your body" - it cranked / Bojack tom solo
8) Scooby-led "Uh oh uh uh oh" - it cranked
9) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda - it was laid back at first, a totally different style, then went to the usual way and cranked
10) Donnell-led Public Enemy's Welcome to the Terrordome - it cranked / Smoke conga solo / "I Gave my Whole Life" / "The run starts now"
11) Alternating Donnell-led Tom Tom Club's Genius of Love (tease) - Donnell did the keyboard effects vocally, it cranked / Rare Essence's Spotlight (tease) -->
12) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Lock It - it cranked -->
13) Donnell-led "Familiar Faces only" - it cranked -->
14) Alternating Donnell-led Rare Essence's All Da Time / "Southeast, South, Southeast" chant / Maino's Hi Hater (tease)
15) Donnell-led "Had fun with ya, done with ya" -->
16) Instrumental - it cranked

A guy named Calvin talked with me in the parking lot and also introduced me to his friend Mark.

Donnell's 25 Years in the Business Celebration
Mirrors, 33 New York Avenue NE Washington, DC 20002

I was the first customer they let in.

The woman taking covers said, "Hi Jordan" to me, but I didn't recognize her.
Yvette, Felecia "Cricket", Nakia, Tanya, Natalie, Tricia, Lisa of the World & Toya, and Isha were there.

Vybe - 10:21 PM
The line up was: Derrick Holmes (vocals), Kimese (vocals), Jacques Johnson (guitar), bass, 2 keyboard players, drummer, percussionist.


1) Kimese-led Jill Scott's When You're Around - it cranked, Derrick danced with Kimese / Percussion solo - Derrick said to a woman who had arrived and danced long before Vybe started: "You going to last all night?" -->
Tamara (Gemini) of 360 Band was there.
2) Derrick-led "Special new way of love, I want and love you" - it cranked -->
Gary was there.
3) Kimese-led Sade's No Ordinary Love - it cranked / Jacques solo / Percussion solo -->
4) Derrick-led Kanye West's One Night Extravaganza - it cranked, Derrick rapped / Jacques solo -->
5) Derrick-led Usher's Bad Girl - it cranked / Jacques solo -->
Toya and Tasha were there.
6) Kimese-led Fantasia's When I See You - it cranked, a guy came onstage and played the cowbell / Percussion solo -->
7) Derrick-led "money... up and down" - it cranked -->
8) Derrick-led Gucci Mane's Freaky Gurl - it cranked / Jacques solo
Derrick talked about D-Floyd's 25 years in the business and said that Sugar Bear had 85 years in the business.
They were done at 11:18 PM. I enjoyed it. By the end of their set, the dance floor was packed.

Wanda (2nd2None) was there.

Sabrina Fields, Kia, Stacy (Pretty Smile), Maketta, Mary, Sanisse, Kim (Sweet Kim), Kim, Maquita, Juanita, Nicole (BF), and Robin were there.

A woman named Sharon talked with me; she had seen me Friday as well.

EU
The line up was: Gregory "Sugar Bear" Elliott (vocals & bass), Mya (vocals, celebrating her birthday), Kevin "KC" (vocals), Tony (guitar), Ivan Goff (keyboard), Mike Smith (drummer), Derrick Curry (percussion).

Mya, Mike, Kevin, Tony, Derrick


Ivan, Sugar Bear, Mya, Mike, Kevin
Sugar Bear said, "I don't care who you vote for, just vote."
1) Alternating Mya-led Rihanna's Take a Bow - it had a light crank, Sugar Bear chanted, "Gimme that beat!" / Percussion solo - it rose to a full crank
2) Sugar Bear-led "Drop down low & touch the floor" - it cranked / "Uh oh" / "Throw up your hands" -->
3) Sugar Bear-led 50 Cent's In Da Club - it cranked / "Ya ya ya" / "Don't you play with Sugar" / "Ain't got no step" / "Move with your body" - a guy played cowbell / Trillville's Some Cut / 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease) / "Gimme that beat" - Percussion solo -->
4) Sugar Bear & Kevin-led Lil Wayne's Lollipop - it cranked / Nelly's Flap Your Wings (tease) / "Shake it, shake your body" - Derrick played toms / "Hold up, wait a minute!" / "Hey ladies" - they responded "Yeah!", "Can we do it for the fellas" - they responded, "Oh my God!" / "If you're sexy and you know it, raise your hands!"
5) Alternating Sugar Bear-led Freak a Deak All Night Long - it cranked, Derrick played the congas / "Hey ay, hey ay" / Rare Essence's One On One - "Do it for Footz, & Bernie Mac & Isaac Hayes" / Field Mob's Can't Stop Us / "It's your birthday, Mya" / "Hey ay, Ho oh" / Funkadelic's Undisco Kidd "Girls are Bad" / Cops Theme "Bad girls" / ? / keyboard solo - the frontline danced in synch / "Pop the Coochie" - Derrick played toms / Ludacris' #1 Spot "We're so hot, we got the #1" / "Ya ya ya" / Yung Berg's Sexy Lady with altered lyrics "Hey sexy ladies, we're trying to get to know you" / "I want to love you"
Simone, Noelle, and JoJo were there.
6) Sugar Bear-led OutKast's The Way You Move (tease) - it cranked / "Rock that beat, work the middle" / "Somebody's girl is at this party, she wants to get with ya" / "Are you tired yet? - the crowd responded, "Hell no!" / "When are we going to get to the good part?"
7) Sugar Bear-led R. Kelly's Snake - it cranked, Derrick played toms / "Get your freak on, Is that my chick? I don't know" / "Tell me what you feel like doing?" - the crowd responded, "Feel like moving that body" / "Hold up, Wait a minute!" / Kanye West's Gold Digger - Derrick played toms / "Are the Redskins the real deal? Better than the Cowboys? Who's going to the Super Bowl?"
Darrell was there.
8) Sugar Bear-led Junior M.A.F.I.A.'s Crush on You - it cranked, Derrick played toms / Mya rapped "Yes, indeed" / "Go Mya, it's your birthday" / Percussion solo
Sugar Bear said, "I won't play more, I won't disrespect Donnell."
They were done at 12:20 AM. I enjoyed it, as usual. By the end of their set, Mirrors was about as packed as it possibly could be.

Mike Jones, Sashay Shaunte, Tracey, Torrie, Gwynn, Ariel, Ray, and Nikia were there.

Familiar Faces
The line up was: Donnell (vocals & Sax), Scooby (vocals & guitar), Damila (vocals), DP (vocals & trumpet), Mike "Hard Step" (vocals & trombone), Wendell (guitar), Sean (bass), Godfather (keyboard), Lorenzo (keyboard), Jammin' Jeff (drummer), Smoke (congas), Bojack (percussion)

Sean, Scooby, Godfather, (this guy had a guitar strapped on his back but didn't play), Lorenzo, Damila, Wendell, Donnell, Packy


Damila, Wendell, Donnell, Packy, DP, Bojack, Mike, Nephew, Donnell Jr.


Sean, Godfather, Scooby, ?, Lorenzo, Toya, Damila, Wendell, Donnell, Packy, Jammin' Jeff, Lisa of the World
1) Warming up - Donnell acapella Phil Collins' In the Air Tonight (tease)
Jessica, Tim (LJ), and Donnell Jr. were there.
Donnell announced that Quese wasn't there because his Mom had died that morning. Donnell asked for a moment of silence.
Donnell gave thanks. He said on January 7, 1983, when he went to audition for Rare Essence, Godfather came down the steps and told him to play Mr. Magic, which was one of the things he (Donnell) knew. He talked about the experience of his band members: 20 years for Bojack, who started in Junkyard, Derrick Page (next to me my whole life), Jammin' Jeff & Smoke in the Northeast Groovers, Googie 100 years. Little Mike from EU, he's got 28. We weren't supposed to like each other since I was in Rare Essence and he was in EU. The most talented one onstage, Scooby, is the puppy. Scooby pulled in (a crowd) from everyone (when L!ssen had its run). "It's been a pleasure; this is the best bunch of guys I've been with in my whole life." Lisa of the World, been with us since the Howard Theater.
1) Scooby-led Sunshine - it cranked, Scooby held his mic to the audience, Scooby chanted, "Oh oh oh" / "Party with me" / Percussion solo - Donnell said, "Dance with me y'all" and the frontline danced in synch, some girl whooped
2) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Hey ay" - it cranked / "Hey ay, Ho oh"
3) Donnell-led "Can we do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!"
4) Donnell-led "Familiar Faces is for the Grown & Sexy" - it cranked / "___ Da na ah"
5) Donnell-led 911 - it cranked, Bojack played congas, the frontline danced in synch / "Let's walk" -->
6) Donnell-led Brown & White - it cranked, Slick Rick danced onstage / Ride Out - they did the Ride Out dance

Slick Rick leads the Ride Out dance
7) Alternating Donnell-led Notorious BIG's Warning - it cranked, they did the bowing dance / Keith Murray's Call My Name (tease) / Derek Floyd went onstage, hugged his Dad and rapped

Donnell's oldest sons Donnell Jr. and Derek
All pictures (except flyer) taken by and Copyright - Jordan Rich
8) Alternating Donnell-led Tom Tom Club's Genius of Love (tease) - Donnell did the keyboard effects vocals, it cranked / Rare Essence's Spotlight (tease) / Vinnie D's $55 Motel (tease) / Rare Essence's Overnight Scenario (tease)
9) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Lock It - it cranked, Donnell chanted, "If you're 25 and older, put your hands in the air", RE Angie was onstage, Mike danced
10) Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease)
Tina and Mama Michelle were there.
11) Donnell-led "Party party, everybody" - it cranked / Scooby-led "Uh oh uh uh oh" - Scooby chanted, "Throw your hands in the air, throw your hands up", Scooby said, "It's getting hot in here" / "How low can you go?" / Donnell-led Rare Essence's Uh Oh (Heads Up) - Donnell chanted, "Bling bling bling, where my troopers at?" -->
Sanchez was there.
12) Donnell-led "25, 25, 25" / Rare Essence's Work the Walls - it cranked / "Outrageous" rap / Rare Essence's All Da Time
Peg Leg and Imani were there.
13) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda - it cranked -->
14) Donnell-led Public Enemy's Welcome to the Terrordome - it cranked / Smoke conga solo - the house lights came on / "I Gave my Whole Life" -->
Stacy (ChooChoo's Cousin) was there.
15) Donnell, Scooby, & Damila-led Do You Think About Me? - it had a light crank / Donnell-led Donna Summer's Love to Love You, Baby (tease) / Scooby-led "DC girls, they drive me crazy" / Donnell-led Lisa Stansfield's All Around the World (tease) / "Horny horns"
Angie W., Angel, Candi W., Bobbie Westmoreland, Shawn, Nena, Marvin, Fee, Janetta, and Chantelle were there.
They were done a little after 2 AM. I enjoyed it.
During their set, another woman who saw me Friday came up to me, as well as a woman who saw me at Juste Lounge the Friday before.

I introduced myself to Lo, RE Angie's friend.

I talked with Peg Leg outside on the way to my car.

Reverend Tony Lee's Birthday Celebration
Community of Hope A.M.E. Church (formerly Furniture Galaxy), Iverson Mall, 3799 Branch Ave, Hillcrest Heights, MD 20748





Ant was there.

I talked with Duane Face for a while.

I talked with TonySax.

Reverend Tony Lee's brother Bill joked about him joined AARP, needing a walker, but then said he was "one of the coolest pastors in the DMV area."

Ten Commandments Band - 9:35 PM
The line up was: TCB Tony (lead talker), J'Real (PG Slim on TMOTT, rapper), DB (male singer), David Hammett Jr. (singer), JP (male singer), Flo (singer), Tia L. Singleton (singer), Brandon (keyboard), Tim (keyboard), AD (keyboard), Scoonie (keyboard), Wed (drummer), Breeze (percussion).

DB, Flo, Tia, David, JP


Brandon, Tim, AD, Scoonie, J'Real, Breeze


Scoonie, Wed
1) Tia-led Roy Ayers' Everybody Loves the Sunshine - it had a light crank, for this song it was DB, David, JP, Flo, and Tia
After the song, David and Tia left the stage and were replaced by TCB Tony and J'Real.

DB, Flo, Scoonie, TCB Tony, Wed, JP, Breeze
2) Alternating TCB Tony-led "Praise God" - it cranked, TCB Tony did a shout out to me / J'Real rapped / TCB Tony said, "Redskins fans! Cowboys don't get the pre-season twisted. Happy Birthday Reverend Lee."
3) Alternating TCB Tony-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - it cranked, they held their mics to the crowd / "We rap about the Reverend Lee" - the frontline danced in synch -->
4) Alternating TCB Tony-led "Get low" - it had a light crank / Flo-led Jill Scott's Golden - it cranked, Breeze played toms / TCB Tony-led "Hands up, hands up" / Flo-led Happy Birthday
5) TCB Tony-led "We're going to kick rock that devil" - it cranked, the frontline danced in synch (including a kick as part of it)
6) Alternating TCB Tony-led "Oh hey, I see a cross when the lights get dim, then I can find my way" - it cranked, Breeze played toms / J'Real rapped "Oh lord, don't let me go" / tom solo / conga solo - DB organized line dancing on the floor in front of the stage -->

7) JP-led Taste of Honey's Boogie Oogie Oogie?
They were done at 10:20 PM. This was my first time seeing them, I enjoyed it.

Walker Mill was there.

I talked for a bit with XCB's sound man, Demetrius Owens, who had sat in with Familiar Faces on congas a few times back in 2004.

Antoinette (Agent Gomez), Audrey (DaRemxx), and Ty (Delano795) were there.

Submission Band - 10:52 PM
The line up was: Damont "02" Wood (lead talker), Jason "Scottie Jay" Jones (vocals), Drew "Chuckin' Drew" Wilson (guitar & vocals), John Roberson (bass), Alphonzo "Phonzo" Hampton (keyboard), Shannon "Worm" Moore (keyboard), Kenton "KC" (keyboard), Greg "King" King (drummer), Dana "Double D" McWhirter (percussion), Sam "Black Heart" Wolde (percussion)

John, Worm, KC, Sam, Phonzo


Phonzo, Worm, KC, Double D, Sam


Worm, Drew, King, Scottie Jay, Sam, 02
Reverend Tony Lee said, "Submission was the first band to pay with me at Ebenezer."
1) 02-led "You got me in the place" - it cranked
2) 02-led "Excuse me while I dance" - it cranked / "Party with SMB"
3) Percussion solo - it cranked
4) 02-led "5 TVs" - it cranked, Sam played congas and Double D played toms
5) 02-led "Take the picture" - it cranked, Sam played congas and Double D played toms
6) 02-led "Praise party, the more you hate on me, the more blessings I will receive, I'm straight..." - it cranked, Double D played congas
7) 02-led "It's a Holy Ghost party" - Sam played congas and Double D played toms, it cranked / "We keep rolling, rolling..."
8) 02-led "Well if it weren't for God, we wouldn't be able to..." - it cranked, Double D played congas
9) 02-led "I toss and turn" - it cranked, Sam played congas and Double D played toms / "What you going to do when they come for you?" / Percussion solo
They ended at 11:33. I enjoyed it a lot.

Members of Peculiar People were in the audience.

Kraisy Praise - 11:54 PM
The line up was: Lead Talker, 2 other male vocalists (one may have been a guest, he didn't perform the whole time), female vocalist, TonySax (Sax & vocals), D. White (guitar), Keith Snowden (bass), Duane Face (keyboard), another keyboard player, Jammin' Jeff Warren (drummer), Supa Dave (congas), Darrell (percussionist).

Duane Face, TonySax, Keith, Jammin' Jeff, lead talker, male vocalist, female vocalist


guitar player, Duane Face, Keith, percussionist, keyboard player, Supa Dave, April (Supa Dave's girlfriend)
The lead talker said, "Y'all are seeing the watered down version. In 2000, we used to wear three piece suits!"
1) Lead talker-led "We going to pray, We come to lift God up"
An additional male vocalist joined the frontline.
2) new male-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" / Percussion solo - "Put your hands p" - it cranked -->
3) new male-led "Get yourself..." / Rare Essence's Geraldine - it cranked / "Get your hands in the air" / Percussion solo - lead talker-led "Everybody now, Darrell hold that cow (bell)" -->
4) Lead talker-led "Open the door, let 'em on in" - it cranked
5) Lead talker-led "Keep it Gospel" - Supa Dave and Jammin' Jeff did rolls, it cranked / female-led "I want to be more like Christ" / Jammin' Jeff solo - he played the side of an amp, a fan, etc. / Percussion solo
6) Lead talker-led "It isn't how we play, it's what we say"
7) Tony Lee-led "Put your hands up & give to praise" (music from Grover Washington Jr.'s Mr. Magic) - it had a light crank / "Gimme something D. White" and he soloed / "Gimme something Keith" and he soloed / "Come on Jammin" - Jeff stood up and played with his hands on every one of the band members and the front of the stage / "When I ask you a question, I want you to respond, Who you love? I love God. Raise your hands" / Rare Essence's One on One with altered lyrics "Put your hands in the air and do it for Jesus" - it cranked / Supa Dave conga solo - the frontline danced in synch / Funkadelic's Let's Take It to the Stage with altered lyrics "__ and don't know how" / "They got a whole lot of Funk back there" / the music went faster and faster "Sha bop & rel star" / "to the brothers" - percussion outtro (the toms play was reminiscent of Bojack)
They finished at 12:32 AM. This was my first time seeing them. I enjoyed it, especially Jammin' Jeff's performance.

Faces U Know - 12:55 AM
The line up was: Halima Peru (vocals), Sean "Kal-el" Gross (vocals), Adia Doores (vocals) Kenny "Doc" Hughes (lead talker/bass), Dwayne Lee (guitar), Chris Wright (keyboard), Stomp Dogg (drummer), Supa Dave (congas), Kirky (percussion).

Stomp Dogg, Kirky, Adia, Supa Dave, Dwayne Lee


Chris, Kal-El, Stomp Dogg
1) Warm up: Stevie Wonder's Higher Ground (instrumental) / Chris keyboard riff
2) Halima-led Mary J. Blige's My Life - it had a light crank
Demon Killa of Unseen Band and Showtyme of Da Mixx Band were there.
3) Sean-led Gerald Levert's Funny - it cranked / Percussion solo - Doc chanted, "It ain't no joke"
4) Sean & Halima-led Jordin Sparks' No Air - it cranked -->
5) Sean-led Damian Marley's Beautiful - it cranked, Sean said, "Can't go too long with this song here, I'll get in trouble" / Familiar Faces' Reggae / Kirky tom solo / Supa Dave conga solo -->
6) Adia-led Erykah Badu's Danger - it cranked, Adia walked around, Halima played the cowbell / Tony Lee-led "Jack and Jill went up the hill, on the way, they met God and he told them about the One, Amen" / Rare Essence's One on One (instrumental tease) -->

Kal-el, Doc, Tony Lee, Dwayne, Supa Dave
All pictures (except flyer) taken by and Copyright - Jordan Rich
7) Halima-led Jill Scott's Hate on Me - it cranked, 02 went onstage
8) 02-led Rare Essence's Work the Walls - it cranked / Soulja Boy's Get Silly
9) Chris closing riff
Their performance ended at 1:40 AM. I enjoyed it.

Tony Lee said that these were his favorite bands; he mentioned that Stomp & Halima were here every Sunday.

Ben's Chili Bowl 50th Anniversary Celebration
930 Club, 815 V ST NW, Washington DC 20001

One of the Ali brothers from Ben's hosted the event.

Throughout the performances, they had still pictures shown on a screen above the stage of the Ali family and celebrities at Ben's Chili Bowl, including Bill Cosby, Anthony Williams, Marion Barry, Doug Duncan, George W. Bush, Hilary Clinton, Sharmba Mitchell, Chuck Brown, EU, Carmelo Anthony, Malik Yoba, Serena Williams, Smokey Robinson, Dave Chappelle, Chris Tucker, and more.

Lady Pcoq and POEM-CEES - in progress around 4:40 PM
The line up was: Lisa "Lady Pcoq" Pegram (vocals), 3 male vocalists, percussionist, DJ, bass player.
1) Male (2 of them)-led "Chili fries and half smokes"
2) Male (2 of them)-led "She's (Lady Pcoq) got the heels on"
3) Lady Pcoq-led "Travel"
Their set ended at 5 PM. I wasn't feeling it. I sat on the upper level, right side during their set.

Freddi Vernell
Comedian who was voted "funniest federal government employee". I really didn't find her funny.

Thomas Sayers Ellis was there, taking pictures.

Mambo Sauce - 5:22 PM
1) Nate introduced them, one at a time, as they walked on stage - Drew came onstage and soloed, which included playing the Star Spangled Banner, it cranked / "the hottest female drummer since Sheila E" (I guess he's never seen Cindy Blackman or Susie Ibarra, both beautiful women but more importantly great drummers) M.A.M.B.O - Twink soloed with Drew playing, Khari played on the keyboard and then the bass, Chris, Pep, Yendy, and Black Boo joined in, Black Boo chanted, "I want some Mambo, gimme some sauce" / Pep tom solo
Black Boo said, "Anyone know about GoGo in the house? Anyone new to GoGo? This is GoGo."
2) Yendy & Black Boo-led Damn Joe - Black Boo played the cowbell, it cranked, Yendy chanted, "Party with me"
3) Yendy & Black Boo-led Come On - it cranked, Pep played toms, Black Boo chanted, "We'll lock it down like, Khari let's go" repeatedly and everyone except Twink danced in synch, Black Boo stopped it and asked for audience participation, Yendy said, "This is his favorite part y'all" and they resumed
Black Boo said, "Give yourself a hand. Any of y'all believe in miracles?"
Yendy said, "I know more of you believe in Miracles. Come on, clap with him."
4) Yendy & Black Boo-led Miracles - the audience sang the lyrics, but Black Boo stopped it to ask everyone to sing along, Yendy said, "Clap with me" and then they resumed, it cranked, Pep played the toms, Khari took Black Boo's shirt off the mic stand and put it on, first on one arm then fully on
5) Chris played a keyboard riff
6) Black Boo & Yendy-led Long Time Comin' - it alternated between crank and laid back, Drew went up front and soloed, he got on his knees / Black Boo & Yendy chanted, "Go Pep!" repeatedly, Pep backed up while playing the congas, Chris played keyboard hits Two guys in front of me said, "Give it up that lady in the middle!" Black Boo first pointed to Yendy, then Twink.
7) Black Boo & Yendy-led Go - Twink danced and then sat down and played and they went to the full crank, there were some lyrics unfamiliar to me, Black Boo said, "You ain't never seen nothing like this" and pointed at all the other band members, Black Boo and Yendy chanted, "Cool walk with me", they stopped it, Black Boo said, "Fellas, I know you can party harder than the ladies" and it resumed
Black Boo said, "Washington Redskins" and there were cheers.
Black Boo said, "Dallas Cowboys" and there were boos.
Black Boo said, "George Bush" and there were boos.
Black Boo said, "Obama" and there were cheers.
Black Boo said, "We would like to sing this song to Obama:"
8) Black Boo & Yendy-led Welcome to DC - it cranked / Drew outtro
10) Chris closing riff
Their performance ended at 6:15. It was a nice performance. I was on the floor up front for their performance.

I am in the middle, Sayers' friend Dehejia is in the front in center.
Picture taken by and Copyright - Thomas Sayers Ellis

Unfortunately, this would turn out to be the last time I would see them in this configuration as on October 22nd, they issued this announcement:
First off, Mambo Sauce would like to thank everyone that has supported us thus far. Your support is greatly appreciated and we never take that for granted. Because of your constant support we feel we owe you some type of explanation on the current situation. To end all speculation, yes it's true; Mambo Sauce has parted ways with our former singer Yendy Brown. We've also made a mutual decision to part ways with RedCRecords and Red 1 Management. The issues that surround this break up will not be discussed in a public forum because we think it's unprofessional and reckless. Yendy Brown and Malachai are still loved in our hearts and we refuse to defame their character in the name of good publicity. Yendy has given us many years of creativity and showmanship and we wish her the best of luck with her future endeavor. There is no debate that Malachai is the founder of Mambo Sauce. He has put in blood, sweat and tears to get us to where we are now. The truth of the matter is business decisions were made on both sides and we came to a mutual agreement that it was time to part ways. We wish Malachai much success with his label and management company. Check out his new artist, we've been hearing a lot of good things about him (myspace.com/nickhakimmusic). As for Mambo Sauce, all decisions that were made were well thought out with the rewards outweighing the setbacks. Besides, a setback is a setup for a comeback. We are determined to represent you well in the national music field and it will take more than obstacles, tough decisions or opinions to stop us. We are far too familiar with the road that the underdog has to travel. We live by the phrase "failure is not an option", so we are option less. With that being said, we already have a new singer in place. Come see how we rebound with your own eyes. Check out our schedule at myspace.com/mambosauce. We assure you that you won't be disappointed.

Once again, thank you for your continued support. We look forward to seeing you in the crowd soon.

Sincerely,

Mambo Sauce Entertainment, LLC

Also, Red posted:
Hey everyone,

Unfortunately, these are not rumors. Yendy was let go from Mambo Sauce and Tree and I have stepped away as well. There is no beef or love lost, just a difference of opinion in the overall direction of the business. We wish Mambo Sauce the best. I am currently managing and developing a new artist named Nick Hakim (myspace.com/nickhakimmusic). I will continue to push on with my mission to package Go - Go in a way that the outside world can understand and appreciate it in addition to attempting to improve the way Go - Go is performed and disseminated locally. Tree has begun managing Unseen and Yendy will be writing some songs with them and they will be her band, although she is not a member of Unseen.

Malachai
Red C Records | Red 1 Management

The host said, "You read about GoGo being violent. Do you see any violence here?"

Howard G
Comedian, known for the Senate Insurance "Kiss my bumper" TV commercials. He was funny, including participation comedy with Annie and Lauren from the audience.
Sayers had me go outside during his performance to take my picture. I saw Tracie (Model Chic) walk out and talk to some of the members of Mambo Sauce while I was out there.

Wes Felton & Friends - 6:10
The line up was: Wes Felton (vocals), 2 other male vocalists, Dennis Turner (bass, I recognized him from playing with Jammin' Jeff's The Band and Patrice Bowie), keyboard player, drummer.
The "friends" were: Wayna (female vocalist) and Raheem DeVaughn (male vocalist).
Wes did silly, exaggerated dancing before they started.
1) Wes-led "Wake up, sister" - it alternated between crank and laid back
2) Wes-led "every time she... that I love to go, postcards from the edge" - it had a light crank
I went upstairs (to wait for Trouble Funk's set) because the music quickly bored me.
I said hello to Ras Lidj, who came up after I sat down.
3) Wes-led "it didn't occur to me" - it had a light crank
Wes brought up the first of his friends, Wayna.
4) Wes & Wayna-led "curiosity" - it had a light crank
I said hello to Junior, the sound man.
5) Wayna-led "killing, killing, killing" - this was a song about police brutality, it had a light crank
6) Wes-led "Thank the lord, giving me one more day" - it had a light crank
Wes talked about the pioneer rappers in the area, including Stinky Dink and Fat Rodney.
7) Wes-led "They call me Wes" - it cranked
Wes asked for requests. He talked about some guy "yelling in his ear".
8) Wes-led Breathe It In - it had a light crank, Raheem DeVaughn joined in
His music was too light and I didn't like the constant harangues and yelling. After it was over, I went back downstairs.

Danny Williams
He was somewhat funny. However, after his performance, the host apologized for Williams' use of the n-word.

Trouble Funk - 7:54 PM
The line up was: Big Tony Fisher (lead talker & bass), T O'Brien (vocals, keyboard & cowbell), Shaza (rapper, he took pictures throughout the performance), Jakki Williams (vocals), Dave Gussum (guitar), trumpet player, Sax player, trombone player, Allison (keyboard), male keyboard player, Timothy "Tee Bone" David (percussion, celebrating his birthday), Lil Beats (percussionist), Yukon "Bigfoot" Denali? (drummer).
I yelled happy birthday to Tee Bone before the set.
Chuck's granddaughter Janice danced onstage throughout the set.
1) Warming up - Big Tony said, "My man Tee Bone got a birthday, happy birthday Tee Bone"
Big Tony said, "We took a break, but I told y'all, Trouble Funk never stop."
Big Tony asked for a moment of silence for Robert "Syke Dyke" Reid. Then Big Tony said they would perform the first song they recorded together (which I knew he meant E-Flat Boogie)
2) Big Tony-led E-Flat Boogie - it cranked, Big Tony said, "If you're 25 and older, get your hands up"
3) Big Tony-led "We come to boogie down, we got Trouble in the house tonight, everything's going to be alright" - it cranked / Xavier's Work that Sucker to Death (tease)
4) TOB-led Kanye West's One Night Extravaganza - it cranked, he chanted, "Throw your hands up" / Shaza rapped
5) Big Tony-led Hey Fellas - it cranked, Shaza held his mic to the crowd / Tee Bone percussion solo - the crowd shouted, "GoGo Tee Bone", Big Tony chanted, "Nine for nine, ten for ten, thank you for coming in"
6) TOB-led Trouble Funk Express - it cranked, Big Tony chanted, "Y'all tired yet?" and the crowd shouted, "Hell no!"
7) Big Tony got the crowd to say, "Pump it up, pump it up, pump it up" / Big Tony-led Pump Me Up - it cranked / Shaza rapped, TOB played the cowbell, Big Tony had the ladies say "Ow" and the fellas say, "Freaky deaky" -->
8) Big Tony chanted, "Everybody raise your hands in the air like this y'all" / Big Tony-led Lets Get Small - it cranked / drum solo / conga solo - Shaza chanted, "Go Tony" / tom solo - Big Tony chanted, "I like it, I really really like it"
9) Big Tony-led Don't Touch That Stereo - it cranked
Chuck Brown came onstage and the crowd shouted, "Wind me up, Chuck!"
10) Chuck chanted "Ho, uh oh, uh" / "Twenty-five and older, get your hands up" / "Hey ay, Ho oh" / Chuck rapped / "When you walk in the door" - the crowd chanted, "Hello, hello" / "Tell me what you feel like doing y'all" and the crowd responded, "Feel like moving that body!" / "Oh oh oh oh"
11) Chuck-led Duke Ellington's It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That GoGo Swing) - Chuck held his mic to the audience, Jakki held up an umbrella / GoGo Mickey conga solo - it cranked -->
12) Big Tony-led Drop the Bomb - it cranked
It ended at 9:11. They released a PA from this performance.

I left after the set even thought I would have liked to see EU because I had things to do and it was a weeknight. EU released a PA from their performance here.

Friday at Juste Lounge
Juste Lounge, 4867 Cordell Ave, Bethesda, MD 20814

Joe Robb (spelling?) 10:38 PM
1) I Wonder
2) Happy Birthday
3) Fatal Attraction
4) I'ma Give It to Ya
He was done at 10:52. He sang over a track - he had a nice voice.

Chris, the bartender, was there.

L!ssen
The line up was: Michael Thompson (singer), D'angelo "Dayo" Jones "Dayo" (Vocals), Pam (singer), Lawrence Farmer (bass), Samson "Moe" Dixon (keyboard), Velle Watts (keyboard), Marc Jackson (trumpet), Eric Jackson (Sax), Delano "Peany" Bowden (congas)
First set - 11:26 PM
1) Michael-led Raphael Saadiq's Ask of You - it had a light crank
2) Michael-led "special kind of love, all around the world" - it had a light crank, the crowd recited the lyrics
3) Pam-led Ledisi's Alright - it had a light crank and then rose to a full crank, the crowd recited the lyrics
4) Pam & Michael-led Erykah Badu's On & On - it had a light crank, the crowd recited the lyrics -->
5) Michael-led Luther Vandross' Never Too Much - it cranked
6) Michael-led R. Kelly's Step in the Name of Love (Remix) - it cranked -->
7) Michael-led Rick James' Mary Jane - it cranked, the crowd recited the lyrics -->
8) Dayo-led ? - it cranked
9) Dayo-led Lil Wayne's Lollipop - it cranked, a couple of girls danced with me
10) Dayo & Michael-led Kanye West's Good Life featuring T-Pain - it cranked, there was a lot of audience reaction, Dayo chanted, "Put your hands in the air, now hold them there" / Percussion solo - the crowd shouted, "GoGo Peany", Dayo chanted, "What's his name?", the crowd chanted, "Oh whoa oh"

During the break, a girl wiped off my shoulders during Lil Boosie & Webbie's Wipe Me Down.

The break was too long for me, I got bored.

I talked with Pam before the start of the second set; she's said filling in while Yannie has something else she's doing.

Second set
Eric played the Jeopard theme song during warm up.
1) Michael-led Gnarls Barkley's Crazy - it cranked
2) Pam-led Erykah Badu's Danger - it cranked, Michael played the cowbell / Dayo-led "Wanna party with me?" / Michael-led Tom Eyen & Henry Krieger's I Meant You No Harm - Dayo chanted, "Put your hands on your knees and shake your rump" / Percussion solo
3) Dayo-led Lil Wayne's Got Money - it cranked / "It's Dayo and some hos"
4) Alternating Dayo-led "What you wanna do? They just came through the... I know you see me" - it cranked / Michael-led Kanye West's One Night Extravaganza / Dayo rapped / Percussion solo -->
5) Instrumental - horn hits (Familiar Faces used to do this song) / Michael & Dayo-led "Uh oh uh uh oh" - it cranked / Percussion solo / "How low low can you go go" / Dayo-led "Me and you girl, we can do the thing" / horn hits (different from the start of the song)
They were done at 2:02 AM. I enjoyed the performance. Pam is a nice singer, but I was disappointed Yannie wasn't there.

SMV at Wolf Trap
Filene Center, Wolf Trap, 1645 Trap Rd, Vienna, VA 22182

I first heard about this tour from an email on May 8, 2007 with a link to this clip.

This was the second show in the Thunder tour; the album just came out a few days ago.

This was my first time at a show here since I was a kid.

I will never eat at Wolf Trap again. The food is ridiculously expensive and has small portions.

S.M.V. - 8:08 PM
The line up was:
Stanley Clarke (electric & acoustic bass) (fresh off the Return 2 Forever tour)
Marcus Miller (electric bass, Sax, bass clarinet)
Victor Wooten (electric bass)
Derico Watson (drummer, he's in Victor Wooten's band, I saw him perform with them)
Federico Pena (keyboard, a local guy who I've seen perform with Stoney Ellis and talked with at Mirrors)
They stood Stanley, Marcus, Victor left to right.
The first thing readily apparent was how Stanley literally towered over Marcus and Victor.
1) Jam - it had a light crank, Stanley encourage the audience to clap, Marcus played the Sax
Stanley said, "How y'all feel? We got a lot of basses up here."
2) Instrumental - it had a light crank
Marcus said "Thank you" and then introduced, "a young bassist, Stanley Clarke". He also introduced Victor and Stanley introduced Marcus.
3) Instrumental - it had a light crank, Marcus said, "I know, it's too much bass right? Well if you don't mind, check this out."
Stanley introduced the next song:
4) Mongoose Walk - "Thunder is coming", it had a light crank, Federico drove this song / Federico keyboard solo - the people sitting next to me yelled, "Go ahead, Freddy!" / great jamming by Stanley & Victor
Victor said, "Can you just imagine what it feels like standing on stage with Stanley Clarke and Marcus Miller?" Victor introduced Derico and Federico.
5) ? (familiar 80s pop tune) - it cranked
Victor said, "The CD came out just a few days ago."
6) Tutu - Marcus played the bass clarinet (soloed for a bit to start) and Stanley played the acoustic double bass, it had a light crank, Victor walked off to side (even out of view for a bit), then Victor joined in playing, it cranked, Stanley acoustic bass was largely drowned out, Stanley played the bass with a bow and also just with his fingers, Marcus switched to the bass
Marcus said, "Whoever invented the acoustic bass, never imagined anyone playing it like Stanley. As long as he has the big boy out, I wrote a piece for him on the album, Milano."
7) Milano - Stanley continued to play the acoustic bass, Marcus played with basses at the same time, including on a bass stand, Stanley after a while started jamming, playing the acoustic bass like a guitar, the audience stood / Stanley played a familiar classical piece
Stanley talked about "a mission with the bass. The bass player stood in the back, then came guys like Jaco Pastorius. Never judge a musician by the instrument they play, we are musicians first." He talked about forming a "bass army." He also said, "I first met Marcus and Victor when they were this tall (held his hand at about his waist)."
Victor said they would play one more song, about food, "Grits".
8) Grits - Stanley played an electric bass, he encouraged the audience to clap and stand, the house lights came on, for just this song they stood left to right Marcus, Stanley, and Victor, the lights dimmed again, at the end of the song, the three of them stood at the stage arm in arm and bowed together
All five left the stage and then came back shortly after. Federico draped a Sean Taylor Redskins jersey over the keyboard that faced the audience.
Encore
1) Lil' Victa? (it sure sounded like Victa) - it cranked, they jammed again, and bowed together again.
The performance ended at 9:48 PM. I really enjoyed it. There was lots of jamming and the three of them mostly right next to each other a little right of the center of the stage.

You can read a Washington Post review of the concert here.

Familiar Faces at Tradewinds
Tradewinds Night Club, 5859 Allentown Way, Camp Springs, MD 20748

I didn't try to take a pen in, so all of this is off the top of my head.

Damila was outside when I walked up to Tradewinds.

Shawn, Sanisse, Fee (celebrating her birthday), Nikia, Quay (Shorty Q), Mike Jones, Tracey, Torrie, Felecia (T) and her sister, Tricia, Angie, and RE Angie were there.

Familiar Faces
Lorenzo was not present, Scooby only performed in the second set as he performed in the Red Carpet Event with L!ssen earlier in the evening.
First set
1) Percussion solo - it cranked, Donnell said, "Just like old times, we'll ease into it"
2) Damila-led Jill Scott's Whenever You're Around - it cranked / Percussion solo - Donnell chanted, "Eya eya"
3) Quese-led Dave Hollister's One Woman Man - it cranked
4) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh"
5) Quese-led "Can we do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!"
6) Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease)
7) Donnell-led "Party party" - it cranked / Donnell-led "Da na ah" / percussion solo -->
8) Damila & Quese-led Jordin Sparks' No Air - it had a light crank
9) Donnell-led "Jump your body"
10) Donnell-led Hey Damila (Miss Keta) Do Your Dance for Me
Donnell said that Damila's Mother was in the house (it was Damila's birthday) and that she could sing too.
11) Quese-led Secret - longer than usual, possibly added lyrics? / Jammin' Jeff drum outtro - it cranked

Shaunte (Stacey's cousin), Mama Michelle, Tina, Ty (Delano795), Slick Rick, Mousie, Nita, Paulette, their friend Tina, and Pocahontas (celebrating her birthday) were there.

There were cupcakes in the kitchen for Fee's birthday.

Second set
1) Damila-led "I need you, what am I gonna do?" - it had a light crank
2) Scooby-led Sunshine - it cranked -->
3) Scooby-led "Party with Me" - it cranked
4) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Hey ay"
5) Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease) - Donnell yelled it and left out the ends of the lines to let the crowd fill them in
6) Donnell-led "Party party" - it cranked / "___ Is in the House"
7) Damila & Quese-led "It's my party" - it cranked
8) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda - it cranked / Bojack tom solo
9) Donnell-led "Back it on up" - it cranked / Bojack tom solo
10) Scooby-led "Uh oh uh uh oh" - it cranked / "Down to the floor" - Scooby chanted, "Hold it" / Percussion solo - Scooby chanted, "Eya eya"
11) Donnell-led "25, 25, 25" / Rare Essence's Marinda - Darryl "Blue Eye" Arrington of Rare Essence sat in for the rest of the set, it cranked, Jammin' Jeff briefly played the congas / "If you have to believe in something, why not believe in me?" / Maino's Hi Hater
12) Donnell-led "Familiar Faces only" - it cranked
13) Donnell-led Rare Essence's All Da Time - it cranked
14) Donnell-led "Fun with ya, done with ya" - it cranked
15) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Hook Me Upa - it cranked
16) Blue Eye drum solo - Donnell rapped
17) Donnell acapella Herman Kelly & Life's Dance to the Drummer's Beat
It was a nice show.

Friday in Annapolis
I ate dinner first at Jimmy Cantler's Riverside Inn, 458 Forest Beach Rd, Annapolis, MD 21409
I had delicious soft shell crabs and calamari.

TK Sharky's, 2072 Somerville Rd, Annapolis, MD 21401


This was probably the first musical show I've attended in Annapolis.

Junior, Dig Dug, and Vincent were there working.

The Higher Hands - 10:05
The line up was: Jason Crawford (vocals & percussion), Matt Dalton (Sax & backup vocals), Larry Byrne (keyboard), Marty Bouchard (drummer), conga player.

1) Instrumental - it had a light crank, Jason was not onstage at this time
2) "Do that thing" - it had a light crank
3) Jason rapped - it had a light crank
4) The Black Byrds' Do It Fluid - it had a light crank
5) "Put your hands up if you feel alright?" - it had a light crank
6) "Down down down people" - it had a light crank / Percussion solo
7) Trouble Funk's Lets Get Small - it cranked
8) "anticipation" / conga solo - it cranked
9) "H-I-G-her Hands y'all" - it cranked / Rare Essence's Overnight Scenario
10) "What ya going to do?" - it cranked
They were alright, I was entertained.

Two rappers (one named "Bullet Pratt" or something like that, one named Ox) - 11:22 PM
1) ?
2) ?
3) "Blast off, take it to the top"
4) "brother's graduation"
Ended at 11:34. They performed over tracks, I didn't like their performance, it wasn't my thing.

Mambo Sauce
Pep warmed up on drums and Twink played congas.

Chris warmed up by playing Rare Essence's GoGo Oprah and the Mission Impossible theme.
Then Pep played on the keyboard and Chris on congas.

Khari, Pep, Chris
The set started at 12:08 AM.

Black Boo, Pep, Drew, Dig Dug


Khari, Chris, Yendy, Black Boo, Pep, Drew
1) Black Boo-led "I want some Mambo, gimme some sauce with that" - Black Boo played the cowbell, it cranked
Black Boo said, "Happy Birthday Yendy"
2) Alternating Black Boo & Yendy-led M.A.M.B.O. - it cranked, Black Boo said, "Happy Birthday Pep and Twink and Yendy. / Pep tom solo / Chris keyboard outtro
3) Black Boo & Yendy-led Damn Joe - it cranked, Black Boo rapped / Percussion solo
4) Black Boo & Yendy-led Things Will Get Better - it had a light crank
5) Yendy & Black Boo-led Come On - it cranked, Pep played toms, Yendy & Black Boo danced in synch, Black Boo chanted, "Khari let go" and repeatedly chanted, "Khari, make the bass go", they paused and resumed after Black Boo asked for audience participation
6) Yendy & Black Boo-led Miracles - it cranked, Black Boo stopped it to get the audience to sing along, Black Boo held his mic to the audience, Black Boo said, "Let me hear you say 'Oh oh oh, I see the light now'"
7) Yendy & Black Boo-led Long Time Comin' - it cranked / Drew solo / Black Boo chanted, "Go Pep" then Pep soloed on the toms / Twink soloed
8) Alternating Yendy & Black Boo-led Puttin' In Work - it cranked, Black Boo rapped / Black Boo chanted, "Work it out" - Black Boo played the cowbell
9) Chris played a circus theme
Black Boo gave his Go introductory speech. However, this time I was happy to hear the loudest boos for the Dallas Cowboys and cheers for the Washington Redskins of any performance of theirs I've been to.
10) Pep-led "F*ck the Cowboys" - it cranked, then Black Boo said, "Come on man, can't we all just get along?" which the crowd booed
11) Yendy & Black Boo-led Go - it cranked, Pep played congas & toms at the same time, Black Boo chanted, "Go shorty, get it in!", / "Cool Walk with me" - Pep played toms, they stopped and then resumed twice
12) Yendy & Black Boo-led Welcome to DC - it cranked
13) Chris played a sample
14) Alternating Yendy & Black Boo-led Go (reprise) - it cranked, Black Boo chanted, "Go Leos, get it in" / "Cool walk with me" / Drew solo
15) Chris closing riff
They finished at 1:20 AM, with a song that was new to me.

Stephanie "Steph B" Brodie (rapper) and Diamond (singer)

Diamond and Steph B


All pictures (except flyer) taken by and Copyright - Jordan Rich
1) Steph B "I'm the closest thing..." - Steph stopped it to get the sound fixed
2) "Party girl"
3) So Fly
The tracks stopped and Steph said, "The DJ is fired."
4) ?
5) "Hey baby, I got to know you, what's you sign?"
I enjoyed their performance; it was ended by security clearing out the place at 1:46 AM.

Familiar Faces at Tradewinds
Tradewinds Night Club, 5859 Allentown Way, Camp Springs, MD 20748

I didn't try to take a pen in, so all of this is off the top of my head.

Nicole (BF), Archie, Nikia, Troy, Mike Jones, Shawn, Lisa of the World, Tasty, Keta, Tamera (Tasha's friend), Ariel, Keysha, Tracey, Torrie, MeCelle, Cindy, James, Derrick Curry of EU, Shaunte (Stacey's Cousin), Sashay Shaunte, Ian (celebrating his birthday), Mousie, El, Re Angie, Los, and CandyLady (working) were there.

Familiar Faces
First set
1) Instrumental - it cranked and had a Reggae feel / Damila-led "I need you, what am I gonna do?"
2) Damila-led Jill Scott's Whenever You're Around - it had a light crank
3) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh"
4) Quese-led "Can we do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!"
5) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Hey ay"
6) Donnell-led "Familiar Faces is for the Grown & Sexy" - it cranked, Donnell sang at the edge of the stage -->
7) Scooby-led GoGo Is My Business - it cranked
8) Alternating Donnell-led Notorious BIG's Warning - it cranked, the frontline did the bowing dance / Keith Murray's Call My Name (tease) / "Wait a minute" echoes / Percussion solo / Tupac's Hail Mary (tease)
9) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda - it cranked -->
10) Donnell-led 911 - it cranked -->
11) Alternating Donnell-led Rare Essence's All Da Time - it cranked / "If you have to believe in something, why not believe in me?"
Donnell said, "Nine for nine, eight for breaks".
Donnell said he thought about singing something, but it would be right after all that cursing, he would be a heathen.
12) Scooby-led Marvin Sapp's Never Would Have Made It

Second set
Donnell asked for a moment of silence for Bernie Mac.
1) Scooby-led Sunshine - it cranked, Scooby chanted, "Wait a minute!" / Percussion solo - Scooby chanted, "Eya eya"
2) Scooby-led "___ Party with me" - it cranked
3) Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease)
4) Donnell-led "Party party" - it cranked
5) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Hey ay"
6) Scooby-led "Keep running, you got it" - it cranked
7) Donnell-led "Jump your body, drop down to the floor" - it cranked especially Bojack on the toms, it was interrupted by a fight
8) Donnell-led "25, 25, 25" / Rare Essence's Work the Walls - Charles "Shorty Corleone" Garris of Rare Essence sat in on vocals, it cranked / Bojack tom solo

Picture taken by and Copyright - Jordan Rich
9) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Hook Me Upa - it cranked especially Bojack on the toms
10) Donnell-led Maino's Hi Hater - it cranked
11) Alternating Donnell-led Rare Essence's Bodysnatchers - it cranked, Shorty Corleone came back during it to sit on vocals, it was interrupted by a fight, Shorty Corleone sang something during the interruption / Shorty Corleone rapped
12) Donnell & Shorty Corleone-led Rare Essence's Overnight Scenario - it cranked
13) Donnell sang acapella Tasty & Keta Do Your Dance for Me.
14) Donnell sang acapella I Gave My Whole Life.
Donnell said, "They (Tracey & Torrie) have Omarr hemmed in against the wall like Rayful Edmond."

Community Day at Windsor Court & Tower
Windsor Court & Tower, 13802 Castle Blvd, Silver Spring, MD 20904

Mature Clientele - in progress at 3:54 PM
The line up was: lead talker, rapper, Tray (female singer), male singer, bass player/vocalist, 2 keyboard players, drummer, conga player, percussionist.
X) Tray-led "unusual feeling" - it cranked
X+1) male-led Dreams' Shawty Is a Ten - it cranked
X+2) male-led "Party, party, party... salute" - it cranked, the frontline danced in synch / Percussion solo
X+3) male-led "We the best... call me" - it cranked, the frontline moved in synch
X+4) Alternating Tray-led "Put on a show, now it's time to go, real slow, it's over now (the musical beat slowed down as they sang it), I like the way you move it, I like the way you shake it" / tom solo - it cranked
X+5) male-led "I make the most money, do you know what that means?" - it cranked / Percussion solo
x+6) Tray-led (an original) "whatever you want, that's what I wanna do, we can do whatever you want to do, I want to spend a long time with you"
This was my first time seeing them. I had been meaning to see them for a while since they were Perfection Band. I enjoyed their performance; it's nice to see a young conga-centered band.

Peace - 4:26 PM
1) "You going to win some, you lose some, I rather choose not to explain, I met someone... it turned into love"
2) "Step in the club, fly as can be, head to toe, I take control" - he danced
Peace was a male Neo-Soul singer and performed over a track. He was a good singer, but Neo-Soul isn't my thing. He was done at 4:34 PM.

Faces U Know
The line up was: Halima Peru (vocals), Sean "Kal-el" (vocals), Kenny "Doc" Hughes (lead talker/bass), Dwayne Lee (guitar), Glenn (keyboard), Stomp Dogg (drummer), Super Dave (percussion).
Halima said, "Get your lies together now, if Hell is hotter than this..."
Halima introduced the song by saying, "I wrote this song about a good time in my life."
1) Halima-led "He's a soul swinger" - it had a light crank, Dwayne said, "1, 2," and they ended the song
2) Sean-led Al Green's Love & Happiness - it cranked / Percussion solo - Doc did shout outs, Doc chanted, "You came to boogie, you got to do as you feel, the real deal", Doc did a shout out to me -->
3) Sean-led Gerald Levert's Funny - it cranked, Sean chanted, "Wait a minute" / Percussion solo / Doc-led "Been a long time since I left you... pump up the volume", Doc said, "Jordan, you aren't going to change, we going make a dance with you and you aren't going to change", a kid played toms
4) Sean & Halima-led Jordin Sparks' No Air - both Halima and Sean stood on the blacktop leaning against the stage, it had a light crank / Percussion solo - Doc said, "Before we go, Super Dave..."
5) Halima-led Shareefa's Cry No More - it cranked / Sean-led Usher's Bad Girl / Percussion solo / Doc-led Soulja Boy's Get Silly -->
6) Sean-led Ryan Leslie's Diamond Girl - it cranked / Percussion solo - Doc said, "Jordan Rich... You're going to read all about this tomorrow. (to me) Do you know Super Dave?" I shook my head no and Doc joked, "You'll know all about him tomorrow, 'cause that what you do." Super Dave ducked down -->
7) Instrumental (familiar to me, but I didn't recognize it) - it cranked, Doc said, "Hey Dave" / Alternating Super Dave conga solo / Halima-led ? - Doc said, "Last time Dave", Doc said (of Super Dave), "He say it's hot, he's about to pass out." Halima said, "Haters got a job to do, get right to it" / Halima-led Jill Scott's Hate On Me - Doc said, "Alright Jordan, I know you loved it.", Doc thanked the Windsor Court & Tower for inviting them, Doc said, "Dave, I know it's hot, but it ain't that hot. They say I'm picking on him." / Familiar Faces' "Unh unh unh"
It concluded with Stomp playing the sample, "When I say whoa, I mean whoa!"
They finished at 5:49. I enjoyed it and was glad to see them again. This was my first time seeing Doc lead talking.

Summer Spirit Festival
Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 Little Patuxent Parkway, Columbia, MD 21044

This was my first time here since seeing Sunscreem open for New Order in 1993. My taste in music has sure changed a lot since then.

They didn't let people into the pavilion seats until 5:20 PM.

Gwynn was there.

Gregory Hines of WHUR 96.3 FM was the host.

Estelle - 6:19 PM
The line up was: Estelle Swaray (vocals), 2 female backup vocalists, bass player, guitar player, 2 keyboard players, a DJ, a drummer.
1) Wait A Minute (Just a Touch) - it had a light crank
Estelle said, "How are you this evening?"
2) No Substitute - it had a light crank, Estelle said, "Sing to me" and she chanted "Hey" repeatedly
Estelle talked about a relationship with a guy named David.
Estelle asked the audience to stand.
3) Come Over - it had a light crank, a fan named Michael danced with her
Estelle said, "Love is great, crazy struggles."
4) Shine - it cranked, Estelle rapped
Estelle said, "Are you ready for some Roots?"
Estelle said, "Everybody in here clap".
5) American Boy
She was done at 6:45 PM. I had never heard of her when I bought my ticket. She was pretty good, but had sound issues.

Chuck Brown - 6:57 PM
The line up was: Chuck Brown (vocals & guitar), Anthony "Little Benny" Harley (vocals & trumpet), KayKay (rapper), Wiley Brown (tambourine/rapper), Sweet Cherie Mitchell Agurs (keyboard), Bryan Mills (Sax & keyboard), Brad Clements (trumpet), Greg Boyer (trombone), Karlston "Ice" Ross (bass), Kenny "Kwik" Gross (drummer), Mighty Moe (congas), Marcus (percussionist).
1) Wind Me Up Chuck - it cranked / Earl Hagen's Harlem Nocturne - Chuck chanted, "When you walk in the door" and the audience responded, "Hello hello!", Chuck chanted "What do you feel like doing y'all?" and the audience responded, "Feel like moving that body!", they had some technical difficulties / "Hey ay, hey ay" / "Hey ay, Hey oh" / "Poppin'" / "North, South, East, West" chant / Chuck rapped / "Uh oh, uh oh"
2) Chuck-led Hoochie Coochie Man - it had a light crank, I noticed it was raining outside
3) Chuck chanted, "Tired yet, ready to quit?" - it had a light crank / Chuck-led Duke Ellington's It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That GoGo Swing) - Chuck held his mic to the audience
4) Chuck-led Lionel Hampton's Midnight Sun - it had a light crank
5) Chuck-led Moody's Mood for Love - it had a light crank
6) Chuck-led Louis Jordan's Woody Woodpecker - it had a light crank / "I feel it will be alright" / "Oh oh oh, oh my God!" / Louis Jordan's Run Joe / Percussion solo
Little Benny came onstage.
7) Little Benny chanted, "Throw your hands up!" - it cranked / "Eya eya" / "Hey ay, Ho oh" / Lil Wayne's Stuntin' Like My Daddy - Little Benny did the "Ride Out" dance
8) Little Benny chanted, "Hold up, wait a minute!" - it cranked / music similar to Familiar Faces' Gangsta / Cat in the Hat / "Buggin'"
9) Little Benny-led Freak A Deak All Night Long - it cranked
10) Little Benny-led Rare Essence's One on One (tease) - it cranked, Little Benny played the trumpet / "Tired yet, ready to quit?"
11) Little Benny-led Rare Essence's Lock It - it cranked, Little Benny chanted, "Feel alright? Then scream!"
KayKay came onstage.
11) Chuck-led Bustin' Loose (tease) - it cranked
Encore 1) KayKay-led Chuck Baby - it cranked
The set ended at 7:53 PM. It was a nice set.

The Roots - 8:17 PM
The line up was: Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter (rapper), male rapper, Kirk "Captain Kirk" Douglas (guitar & vocals), Owen Biddle (bass), James "Kamal" Gray (keyboards), Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson (drummer), Frank "Knuckles" Walker (percussion), Damon "Tuba Gooding Jr." Bryson (Sousaphone).
The lights went out onstage, signaling they were about to start. They walked onstage in single file.
The drum kit in the middle, later used by Jill Scott's brother during her set, had reflective mufflers - I saw a mirror image of Knuckles as he performed to the right of it.
1) "Get it"
2) Star - it cranked
3) Slick Rick's La Di Da Di (tease) / Mellow My Man - it cranked / Black Thought chanted, "Side to side", Black Thought said, "How y'all feel out there?" / Damon soloed - Damon went to the right side of the stage / Owen soloed / Kamal soloed
4) Criminal - Questlove was on vocals
5) "any time, prove me wrong" / Alternating Captain Kirk-led You Got Me - Kirk soloed / "Tell me about" / Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein II's My Favorite Things (instrumental) / Captain Kirk soloed and walked around the stage, he even did a one handed solo (this to me was the highlight of their set) / Owen soloed
6) The Next Movement - it cranked / The Seed 2.0
7) Black Thought rapped so fast I couldn't make out what he was saying, Knuckles ran onstage and incited the crowd to clap, the frontline strutted back and forth in synch, Black Thought fell melodramatically on his back to the floor, his band mates stood over him for a few seconds and then helped him up.
The set ended at 9:10. The Sun went down completely during their set. They were who I came to see and they didn't disappoint, although of course I wish they played longer, like maybe 3 hours or so :).

Questlove threw drumsticks and a fan he autographed into the audience.

A couple of women to my left asked me what I was writing; I told them about my blog. Later, when the friend of one of them arrived and sat down next to me, she introduced herself. Her name is Janelle.

Jill Scott - 9:30 PM
The line up was: Jill Scott (vocals), 2 female backup vocalists (one named Chyna Black), B-Rone? (male backup vocalist), guitar player, bass player, Justin Time (keyboard player), trumpet player, Sax player, trombone player, George "Spanky" McCurdy (drummer), percussionist.
1) Rightness - it had a light crank
2) Let It Be
3) The Real Thing - Jill said, "It appears that some of you may not have chose the real thing".
4) A Long Walk - the audience sang along
6) Epiphany "I responded, I fell for the"
7) Insomnia
Jill said, "I wrote that song for everyone in a relationship."
8) Only You
9) Whenever You're Around - the audience sang it / guitar solo / conga solo / drum solo - she called Spanky her "little brother"
10) The Way
11) How It Make You Feel
Jill said, "This is the section of the show I call trying to get you laid."
12) male vocalist-led The Isley Brothers' Between the Sheets
13) female vocalist on the left-led Teena Marie's Portuguese love
14) female vocalist on the right-led Prince's Do Me Baby
15) "if you don't want to" - the audience sang along, I noticed that Questlove was sitting in on percussion (along with Jill's percussionist)
The regular part of the set ended at 10:49 PM.
Jill came out with Chuck Brown
Encore 1) Chuck-led Wind Me Up Chuck / It's Love - Black Thought came onstage and rapped, Chuck & Black Thought left the stage / the percussionist played a tom solo - it cranked
Jill said, "Chuck Brown was the first GoGo I ever heard. When I did that song (It's Love), I didn't expect to be onstage with this man. From Philly, The Legendary Roots, they gave me my first songwriting opportunity."
Jill said that even with all they performed someone was unhappy (an obvious set up to performing Hate On Me). She cursed and said she always uses words that fit. "F*ck 'em"
Encore 2) Hate On Me - it had a light crank, the audience sang along, Questlove had left the stage
Encore 3) Justin Time keyboard instrumental solo - mixed in He Love Loves Me (Lyzel in E Flat) with Classical music / He Love Loves Me (Lyzel in E Flat) - Jill sang it in an operatic style
Jill said, "This is the end of the concert" at 11:12 PM. But she said she would continue to perform. She talked about Obama, saying Black people shouldn't vote for him because he's Black, but instead because he's a good man.
I left at this point. While I respect her craft and voice, her performance really bored me - it was way too laid back for my taste. I haven't been this bored by a musical performance since a Macy Gray concert at Universal Amphitheatre I walked out of in 2000 (fortunately that show was free for me). I only stayed because I (correctly) thought the Roots might do something with her.

Familiar Faces at Shining Star
Club Shining Star, 4646 Suitland Rd, Suitland, MD 20746

I talked with Bojack in the parking lot. He said he was glad that I had stuck with the band all this time.

This was my first time at this venue.

I was glad to see Familiar Faces after not having seen them in a few weeks; I like to see them every week.

Tamara of 360 Band was there.

It was dark onstage to start off.

Familiar Faces
First set - 11:50 PM
1) Damila-led "I need you" - it cranked / Percussion solo - Donnell sang, "I never heard a pocket like this I swear, we ain't going nowhere."
Lisa of the World was there.
2) Jill Scott's When You're Around (instrumental) - it cranked / Damila-led Jill Scott's When You're Around / Percussion solo -->
3) Alternating Quese & Donnell-led We Don't Need These Phones - it cranked, Donnell chanted, "Wait a minute!", the second time around, Quese went to the edge of the dance floor / Percussion solo / Donnell-led "Hold the note y'all!"
4) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda - it cranked
5) Quese-led Marvin Sapp's Never Would Have Made It - it had a light crank / Instrumental - Mike soloed

Mike Jones was there.

Second set
1) Scooby-led Sunshine - it had a light crank, band members and fans held their cell phones up, Scooby & Quese sang on the dance floor, the music rose to a full crank / Donnell-led "Party with me" / Percussion solo
2) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - it cranked
Candi W., Kia, and Ishay (celebrating her birthday) were there.
3) Quese-led "Can we do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!"
4) Alternating Donnell-led "Familiar Faces is for the Grown & Sexy" / Scooby-led "Keep running, you got it", Donnell chanted, "Wait a minute!" / Percussion solo -->
5) Damila-led "Go ahead" - it cranked, Donnell chanted, "Hey Smoke oh!" / Percussion solo
6) Alternating Donnell-led "Jump your body girl" / yell from Rare Essence's All Da Time / "Down to down to the floor", Donnell was at the edge of the dance floor, Donnell chanted, "Wait a minute!" / Bojack tom solo
7) Alternating Scooby-led Uh Oh - it cranked / "How low can you go" / Percussion solo
8) Quese-led Chris Brown's With You "you make me fall in love with you" - it cranked
9) Alternating Donnell-led Public Enemy's Welcome to the Terrordome - it cranked / Smoke conga solo - the crowd shouted, "Wind me up, Smoke!" / "I gave my whole life" - Donnell chanted, "Wait a minute!" / Percussion solo - Packy played the cowbell / Donnell rapped
10) Donnell-led "25, 25, 25" / Alternating Rare Essence's Work the Walls - it cranked, Mike danced / 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease) - for Ishay, who went and danced onstage / Bojack tom solo
11) Donnell, Scooby, Damila & Quese-led Do You Think About Me? - it had a light crank, the house lights came on, Donnell chanted, "Percussion!" / Percussion solo / Quese-led Luther Vandross' Never Too Much / Godfather keyboard solo
12) Quese-led "falling in love" (tease) - it cranked
The performance ended at 2:08 AM.
Donnell joked, "Next week we'll have a new song about Damila and Wet Willies".

02's Birthday Celebration
Byrne Manor, 1501 Southern Ave, Oxon Hill, MD 20745


02 is a friend of mine and I have been bugging my friends in Submission Band about getting together for many months, so I definitely could not miss 02's birthday party.

In doing so, I gave up going to see a couple of special shows, the P-Funk All Stars at the 9:30 Club and the Pink & White Affair (I love the All Star Band).


Demon Killa was the promoter, he greeted me at the front table when I walked in.

Ant, Antoinette (Agent Gomez), Ty (Delano795), Scottie Jay, Sam (Black Heart), TCB Tony, Walker Mill, and 02 were there.

Agape - 9:25 PM
The line up was: 4 vocalists, bass player, 2 keyboard players, drummer, percussionist.


The song structure was very loose to me, but here's my attempt:
1) Instrumental jam - it cranked, they were still warming up, they sang about Christ
2) "Stand up for my... get 'em up" - it cranked, the one vocalist played the cowbell
3) "I won't feel it anymore" - it cranked / Percussion solo
4) ? - the percussionist played toms, it cranked, Mike (Sharp_Shotphoto) was taking pictures onstage
5) "Get your hands up" - the percussionist played toms, it cranked
6) "I gave my life for your life" - the percussionist played toms, it cranked
The lead talker did a birthday shout out to 02 and Scottie Jay yelled, "Woo hoo, we're getting old!"
7) ? - the percussionist played toms, it cranked / tom solo
8) "Straight party" - the percussionist played toms, it cranked
9) 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease) - for 02, who was onstage
10) "Praise to God" - the percussionist played toms, it cranked
The set ended at 10:06 PM. I liked the beginning songs most because I am not a fan of the beat bounce.

Diva, Sweet P, and Sweet B were there.

Peculiar People - 10:26 PM
The line up was: 3 vocalists, guitar player, bass player, 2 keyboard players, drummer, 2 percussionists.


The lead talker thanked 02 and said, "Submission Band saved my life." He said that Submission Band took them under their wing.
The lead talker said this was dedicated to those persecuted for their faith.
1) Look Across the World - it had a light crank and then rose to a full crank, the lead talker chanted, "Put your hands up"
2) "I wanna know you" - they played toms, it cranked
3) ? - they played toms, it cranked
4) "Everybody... for God" - they played congas, it cranked
5) ? - they played toms, it cranked, the frontline danced in synch
6) "he... Christ with our lives" - they played toms, it cranked, the crowd and the frontline were hyped up
7) "Praise God" - they played toms, it cranked, the crowd was hyped up
8) "I don't want to live like this, I don't want to go to Hell" - they played toms, it cranked
Like with Agape, I enjoyed the conga songs most.

A young guy named Engus talked to me for a bit.

You can see 02's Birthday moment by clicking here.

02 did shout outs.

P and Audrey (DaRemixx) were there.

Submission Band
The line up was: Damont "02" Wood (lead talker), Jason "Scottie Jay" Jones (vocals), Drew "Chuckin' Drew" Wilson (guitar & vocals), John Roberson (bass), Alphonzo "Phonzo" Hampton (keyboard), Shannon "Worm" Moore (keyboard), Kenton "KC" (keyboard), Greg "King" King (drummer), Dana "Double D" McWhirter (percussion), Aaron "Fingers" (percussion)

Double D, Fingers, 02, Scottie Jay, John, Chuckin' Drew


Scottie Jay, John, Chuckin' Drew, Worm, Phonzo, KC
All pictures above (except flyers) taken by and Copyright - Jordan Rich

02, King, John, Scottie Jay, Chuckin' Drew, Phonzo, Black Heart


Worm, Chuckin' Drew, Phonzo, Scottie Jay
Two pictures imediately above taken by Mike (Sharp_Shotphoto), Copyright - Sam (Black Heart) Wolde
1) Sound check - it cranked
2) Scottie Jay-led ? - it cranked, 02 chanted, "Throw your hands up"
3) "Swing, When you're praising the Lord" - it cranked, 02 chanted, "Hey ay, Ho oh", 02 chanted, "Where y'all from?", Scottie Jay held his mic stand to the crowd / Percussion solo
4) "Praise party" - it cranked, the crowd shouted, "Hey hey hey" repeatedly
5) Drew-led ? - it cranked
6) ? / Percussion solo - it cranked
7) Scottie Jay-led "I keep holding on" - it cranked / Percussion solo
8) Scottie Jay-led "I'll praise you" - it had a light crank, the house lights flickers, see a clip here
They asked what song they should do next - Agent Gomez said, "Take the picture!" and they did:
9) "Take the picture" - it cranked, you can view it by clicking here.
10) "I love to praise his name" - it cranked / Drew solo
11) "Everybody hands up" - it cranked
It was great; I so wish they would perform on a regular basis. I filmed a number of clips of their performance. This was my first time seeing some of them perform with Submission Band.


Here I am taking pictures during the show
Picture taken by and Copyright - David Leonard of Peculiar People (Gospel Go-Go Band)

The audience was both young and old; with teenagers the largest part of the audience. Submission had the biggest reaction from all.

I wish B could have made it.

About the only negative was the scarcity of parking. There were constant announcements about people having to move their cars. When I left it, it was hazardous driving out because cars and people were competing for space.

You can read a couple more reviews here and here.