Nephew's Birthday at Safari
Safari Steakhouse, 9430 Annapolis Road Lanham MD 20706

They did work on Annapolis Road as I drove up - only one lane was open in each direction for a bit.

Donnell Jr. stood out front as I walked up. He said hello as I passed him. The policeman who is there practically every week in uniform stood out front talking to the cover taker, Nicole. He wasn't in uniform: he wore a tan suit.

There was a long table set up by the bar for Nephew's birthday guests, of which there were many.

The band was set up in the Bike Week configuration, but DP stood in front at first.

I talked with Doc and Dwayne about Marquis Melvin and the blurb I emailed them.

Donnell was not the only one in the band with a portable set up - Doc warmed up standing by me, on the opposite side of the stage from where his amp is. I think DP had a portable horn mic as well.

Jacques asked me if I was coming to the Holiday Inn show. He said it was for his birthday and he was promoting it.

Familiar Faces
First Set
During the set up, Donnell talked about the horns on the monitors. Paul said, "Googie, don't argue with Donnell, you know he's always right."
Donnell did a joking shout out to Tim (LJ): "it must be a special occasion because LJ never comes out on Fridays." (Of course the special occasion was Nephew's birthday).
1) Miles Davis' Tutu
Mike, a trombone player, arrived and sat in for the rest of the show - I talked with him after the second set
2) Grover Washington Jr.'s Lock It in the Pocket
3) Parliament's P. Funk (Wants to Get Funked Up) - instrumental
4) Instrumental
DP moved back, so that they were in the normal bike week configuration
Halima said, "How y'all doing. Make sure you tip the bartenders extra."
5) Halima-led Brand New Heavies' Never Stop
Mike said, "Welcome to Safari Steakhouse this evening."
Mike then said, "Ladies, in your search for the real man, you may have to ask yourself if you have a man who can make you believe twenty minutes is an hour and twenty minutes"
6) Mike-led Raheem DeVaughn's Ask Yourself
Halima said, "This is for us ladies. You ever had a man..."
The audience yelled, "Yeah, Yeah"
Halima continued, "We go to heaven, we get back on this Earth and we really know what's going on"
7) Halima-led Fantasia's Free Yourself - excellent as usual
8) Halima & Mike-led Floetry's Say Yes - both excellent / Halima-led Lionel Richie's Hello (tease)
During the performance of Say Yes, Halima said, "Sometimes it's just a song, but sometimes it's personal. Get on with it, come on out of here, I'm sorry, let me get on with it. They don't sing like this (like Mike), I want but wish"
She specifically addressed a man in the audience, encouraged by women in the audience: "You may never have been put out, but you ever had to explain yourself?"
She went on the dance floor to address him up close.
She thanked the audience for their applause.
Donnell said that Colleen Rowe was there celebrating her birthday.
Donnell said, "I'm putting this tape out." (To prove it?)
Donnell joked about Tasty, "I'm the Pappy!"

June, Delano, Archie Paige, Keisha, Angie, 6'9, Shawn, Shaun, Lisa of the World, and Ytee were there.

I talked with Keisha, I asked her about how they were supposed to be filming Sunday at the Fur. She said it was switched to an event in December. She said because of that, she went on her planned vacation in Miami. I told her how good the show was, she was disappointed that she missed it. She said it is hard for them to film where the audience is more than three hundred people because of the people in the way of the film crew. She said that it was would be hard to film here (at Safari). I told her about the other documentary people who had met with me.

Second Set
1) Instrumental Prelude / Mike-led Anthony Hamilton's Since I Seen't You
Donnell said to Stomp, "Don't make me go back there".
He held his mic stand horizontally so that the mic pointed right at Stomp.
2) Mike-led John Legend's Used to Love U - the frontline danced
3) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh"
4) Donnell-led "Do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!" - Halima and Mike posed in the appropriate times
5) Donnell-led "Da na ah"
6) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - Halima bounced and used a lot of nonverbal arm & hand gestures, the frontline danced
7) Donnell-led Ludacris' Number One Spot - Donnell bounced during the "bounce, bounce" part
8) Mike-led Prince's Take Me With You - the frontline danced
9) Donnell-led Hold the Note - the band held fists up
10) Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease) - "Go Nephew, It's Your Birthday"
11) Alternating Halima-led Gwen Stefani's Hollaback Girl - the crowd shouted "That's my sh*t!" / Donnell-led Rare Essence's Hook Me Upa / Donnell-led Kanye West's Gold Digger (tease) "Go down baby, go down"
12) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda (tease)
13) Donnell-led "Back in the day, when I was young, and not a"

Net Boo, Tracy Smoot, Tasty, Keta, Love, Yolanda, Sanisse, Tata, Tijuana, Michon, Candy, Shadonna, and Blak were there.

Stomp had no shoes on, only his socks. Doc said, "Stomp is a big twelve year old." He also told me that Mike, the trombone player, was an original member of EU.

RE Angie, Nikiya, and Sixx were there.

Third Set
1) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Slow Down
2) Alternating Donnell-led Trillville's Some Cut - the frontline danced / Notorious BIG's Warning / Keith Murray's Call My Name (tease) / "Wait a Minute" echoes / "Brandywine" Chant
3) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That - Halima bounced and used a lot of nonverbal arm & hand gestures, there was a nice percussion solo
4) Donnell-led Kanye West's Gold Digger - strong percussion
5) Donnell-led Djayz's It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp (tease)
6) Donnell-led Rare Essence's What N*gga What?
7) Donnell-led Rare Essence's All Da Time "aya awa-ah"
8) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda (tease)
Donnell said, "Lorenzo stop"
9) Donnell-led "25, 25, 25" / Rare Essence's Work the Walls
10) Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease) - "Go Nephew, It's Your Birthday"
11) Mike-led Lap Dance - nice percussion, Donnell chanted "Swing your body", Mike "Swing"
12) Donnell-led Common's The Corner - just the sample and Donnell rapping, Jay Gotti also sat in and rapped
Donnell thanked Mike for sitting in. He said, "He goes all the way back to Black Love, we busted Reality's ass!"
13) Donnell chanted "Brandywine, friends of mine"
Donnell said that Nephew may have set a new record. Donnell said, "Back then they didn't want you. I need to get some cake back there, me and Stomp."
Dwayne said to Donnell, "Don't leave the stage!"
Donnell talked about people being missing, "Now on milk cartons, Stomp is missing. Gone so long like the Bar-Kays or Sly Stone."

I talked with a woman who had been at every show since last Wednesday except the Katrina Benefit. Her name is Nikki.