Friday at Safari Steakhouse
Safari Steakhouse, 9430 Annapolis Road Lanham MD 20706

Peg Leg, Dave, and Kim were there.

Familiar Faces
First Set
1) Grover Washington Jr.'s Mr. Magic
2) Halima-led The Brand New Heavies' Never Stop
Donnell said, "You know I told her Googie, don't ever sing while I'm talking."
Nikiya was there.
Mike said, "Make a resolution to like the person that looks like you."
3) Mike-led Raheem DeVaughn's Ask Yourself
Donnell took off his riding cap because Nikiya wore one. They both laughed.
4) Halima-led Fantasia's Free Yourself
Kimberly and Darrell, Sanisse, Yolanda, Tiffany F., "original" Nikki, and Ebony were there.
5) Donnell & Halima-led (Sade's) Cherish the Day - Kimberly pulled me on the dance floor, but I wasn't feeling it, Mike said, "What are you going to do, Jordan?", I waved him off
Neita and Nikki were there.
I talked with Tiffany F. and put my arms around her. Donnell said, "Are you talking to my woman?" I said, "She doesn't mind sharing?" Donnell said, "Who's sharing, I know I'm not."
Monique, Tijuana, Shameika and 6'9 were there.

Paul said, "I think GoGo's corrupting you. You aren't the quiet man you used to be."

Second Set
James was on backup vocals.
Donnell said, "Lock the door, lock the door while we got nothing but women in here" repeatedly.
DJ Flava (aka GoGo Rudy) said on the PA that people who have parked on the street now need to move their cars or they'll be towed. Donnell replied, "If you need a ride home, we're going to have to consider a few things."
1) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable
2) Percussion solo - Donnell chanted, "People call me milk" repeatedly, Mike sang in an affected voice, "You went to prison, it's all your fault", Donnell said, "That where Mary J. Blige stole that from", Halima sang something
3) Halima-led Faith Evans' Again
4) Instrumental - they played sounds used in "Unh, unh unh", Donnell said, "Don't nobody dance" repeatedly, Mike said something I couldn't hear
5) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - Funky Stuff guitar riffs
6) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - the crowd responded
7) Donnell-led "___ Is in the house" - a woman said to me, "I know you don't like this sh*t." I told her I've been a GoGo fan for ten years.
8) Alternating Mike-led Prince's Take Me With You - Halima held her mic to ladies to sing it / Prince's Sexy M.F. (tease)
9) Donnell-led Hold the Note - band members held their fists up and fans held their arms up / "Brandywine, friends of mine" chant / "Seek Abundance every day, Seek Abundance every way" / "Eya eya" and the crowd responded "Ho" / Percussion solo - nice crank especially by Smoke, Donnell said, "Say what?" and the crowd shouted, "Wind me up, Smoke!" repeatedly, Donnell said, "Do what?", Halima sang a tease of Stevie Wonder's Do I Do "Do I do what you do", Halima said, "Wind up, Smoke", Donnell said, "By yourself, Smoke" and Smoke played a true solo
10) Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh" - the crowd responded, Donnell chanted, "Deeper, deeper" repeatedly
11) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda - Donnell chanted, "Go down baby, go down"
12) James-led R. Kelly's Slow Wind
Janetta was there.
Donnell kidded Patrick about women dancing with him (Patrick's girlfriend was there). Patrick said, "Are you going to drive me home?"
Donnell said, "If you're family, you got to be at the Hilton."

Shawn and Keisha were there.

Jay Gotti was there.

Third Set
Donnell said, "It's a little tight tonight. Somebody steps on your toes, it's alright"
1) Donnell-led D4L's Laffy Taffy - Donnell did announcements, DJ Flava was on backup vocals
2) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Tell Me
3) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up
Maya, the bartender from Zanzibar, was there in the audience. She wore a "Happy New Year" hair band.
Dey was there. She said, ?Off the record!?
4) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That
5) Percussion solo & riffs - Donnell said, "Time to party everybody, we came to party"
6) Donnell, Jay Gotti, & Halima-led It Is What It Is / Donnell-led "Brandywine, friends of mine" chant / Donnell rapped about Pam & Sam, he said, "I forget the rest"
Donnell said, "When you leave, please leave carefully. I know what I forgot" -->
7) Donnell-led Trina Was Great
8) Halima-led Mary J. Blige's Be Without You - I danced with Monique
June was there.
Donnell said, "Lord, I never thought I'd see the day when Mike (not Muse) had a girl (Neita) around his arms. I thought he had the Arthur Ashe." Mike went after Donnell with a broom. He wanted a PA and went back to Telando. Mike said, "They don't have but one (choice)." Donnell said, "They didn't have the hat (a Redskins baseball cap) that fit, but you didn't mind then. Give me an eight: 'all we have is a five and three quarters'".

I said to Patrick as I walked out, "Hi Patrick." He said, "So you figured out my name? That's just what he calls me; my name is Derek." Patrick and Tony had been pulling my leg about Patrick's name. I have corrected my blog accordingly.

Thursday at Zanzibar
Zanzibar on the Waterfront, 700 Water Street SW Washington, DC 20024

Tanya with four of her friends (including sisters Trina and Selena), Bobbie Westmoreland, Nena, Darrell, Danielle (Wellfhed), and SweetAngelmd27 were there.

Delano and Pinky were there.

Familiar Faces
First Set

Dwayne, James, Lorenzo, Mike, Doc, Donnell, Jacques, DP
1) Mother's Day - Donnell went on the floor

Doc, Lorenzo, Dwayne, Donnell, Stomp
I was paying attention to other things, so may have missed a song in between.
2) Mike-led Raheem DeVaughn's Ask Yourself - Mike went on the floor
Cookie, "original" Nikki and Ebony were there.

Doc, James, Dwayne, Lorenzo, Mike, Stomp, Donnell, Jacques, Smoke, DP


Dwayne, James, Lorenzo, Doc, Mike, Donnell, Jacques, DP
3) Mike-led Ruff Endz' Someone to Love You - the dance floor filled
Michon, Sanisse, and Yolanda were there.
Donnell did a shout out to Bobbie and whole TMOTT crew.
4) Halima-led Jill Scott's Whatever
Halima said, "Okay, we got to party y'all".
5) Halima-led Erykah Badu's Cleva - Halima sang, "Ooh, ooh", Halima altered the lyrics to "with my makeup"
DeeDee?s Cousin Michelle was there.
6) Halima-led Sade's Pearls - Halima went on the floor
I introduced myself to D Ball.
Big John, the DJ, joked that Halima needed to report to the back bar to talk about all the broken glasses (because of her singing).
Simone, Shawn, and Big Don Pimp were there.

Arielle, Los, and 6'9 were there.

Second Set

Mike, Jacques, DP, Smoke, Packy, Darrell, 6'9


Doc, Lorenzo, Mike, Doc, Jacques, Smoke, Packy, Darrell


Sanisse (leaning on railing), 6'9, Doc


6'9, James, Mike, Shawn, Michon, Los


Lorenzo, Smoke, Doc, Dwayne
1) Halima-led Alicia Key's Unbreakable
2) Mike-led Toto's Georgy Porgy - intro / Bobby Valentino's Slow Down - they played different riffs / Percussion solo
Donnell did another shout out to the TMOTT crew and to his Verizon homies.
3) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - the crowd responded
4) Donnell-led "Do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!"
5) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - Donnell grunted/shouted, "Hey yeah?", they played different sounds
6) Mike-led Stevie Wonder's Tell Your Heart I Love You
7) Mike-led John Legend's Used to Love U - Mike said, "Get down Miss Brown"
June was there.
8) James-led R. Kelly's Slow Wind

Selena told me we had already met.

Third Set

Lorenzo, Godfather, Jermaine, Stomp, Omar, Smoke, Jacques, Shawn


Darrell and 6'9
1) Donnell acapella Raheem DeVaughn's Is It Possible (tease) - warm up
Donnell talked about Maisha, and either Lorenzo or Godfather played:
2) The Temptations' My Girl - instrumental tease
Donnell responded, "You know I'm old Maisha"
3) Donnell-led D4L's Laffy Taffy (tease)
4) Alternating Mike-led Prince's Take Me With You / Prince's Sexy M.F. (tease)
Nikiya was there.
5) Donnell-led Hold the Note / Sade's No Ordinary Love (tease) - altered lyrics
6) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up - a guy said to me, "They about to knock (Rare) Essence out, huh?", Halima sang, "Ooh, ooh ooh ooh" (different from the "Gimme the Woo" response), Donnell chanted, "Eya, eya" and the crowd responded, "Ho"
7) Alternating Donnell-led Tom Tom Club's Genius of Love (tease) / Rare Essence's Spotlight (tease)
8) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That
9) Donnell & Halima-led It Is What It Is
10 Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh"
Donnell said, "Loveboat, Loveboat is that what you're going to do at the Zanzibar? You are going back to the Black Hole?"
11) Halima-led Mary J. Blige's Be Without You

Darrell in the middle
Michelle came up to me and grabbed my hair. Godfather smiled.



6'9 and Nikiya of Seek Abundance


Jacques, Stomp, Packy, Smoke, Paul, Omar, Shawn, DP, and Godfather
All pictures taken by and Copyright - Jordan Rich

When I walked out, the guy who was handing out flyers for the New Years Day show with Familiar Faces, Publicity Band and L!ssen said to me, "You need to come to all the shows I pass out flyers for." I asked why. He said, "They love you. They party harder when you're there. I saw you one time pimping a girl in the corner. She was a nine and half."

Darrell & Muffin's birthday
Takoma Station, 6914 4th St NW, Washington, DC 20012

Kimberly and Darrell were there.

Big Darrell (celebrating his birthday), Vonshawn, Tim (LJ), Dave, Monica and her sister Aloma "Pumpkin", Ebony (with a new long hairdo), Michon, Candy, Omar, and Pinky were there.

Familiar Faces
First Set
James sang backup.
1) Grover Washington Jr.'s Lock It In The Pocket - Donnell went on the floor, Donnell called out hits, then called up Darrell do so and wished him a happy birthday

Jacques (only top of head visible), Darrell, Doc, Stomp, Donnell, Godfather, DP, Lorenzo, Dwayne, Omar


Smoke, Doc, Stomp, Donnell, DP, Lorenzo, Omar, Dwayne


Smoke, Doc, Stomp, Donnell, Godfather, Darrell, Lorenzo, Omar, Dwayne
Tamara was there.
Donnell said that Mike was going to be taking a break soon, so he was going to work him to death tonight. He talked about how they go back a long way, "A hundred pounds ago." Mike said, "Twenty pounds ago."
2) Mike-led The Stylistics' People Make the World (Go Round)
Shawn, Shaun, and Tracy S. (with Darrell's cake) were there.

Jacques, Doc, Mike, Donnell, DP, Lorenzo, Omar, Dwayne, Patrick (security)
3) Mike-led O'Bryan's Lady I Love You - Mike talked about how all you needed to do with is hold a woman gently by the back of the neck and say, "I love you", Darrell joked that he still didn't know what to do, some of Darrell's guests followed Mike's advice, Mike went on the floor

Jacques, Donnell, Doc, Stomp, Mike, James, Lorenzo, Dwayne
4) Mike-led Toto's Georgy Porgy - the dance floor filled
Cookie, June, Tijuana, and Shameika were there.
5) Mike-led John Legend's Used to Love U
6) Halima-led Mary J. Blige's Be Without You
Donnell did a shout out to Muffin for her birthday.
7) Halima-led Erykah Badu's Cleva
Nikiya was there.
8) Halima-led Sade's Pearls
Donnell talked about how they are playing at the Hilton in Alexandria for the PBMC's New Years Eve party, "You wouldn't know it from the commercial on the radio. We love you anyway Cookie."
Robin was there.
Darrell introduced me to Neita. He said, "Watch out he writes down all the bad things you do." I said, "Only if you do bad things." Neita said, "I love Darrell."

Sanisse and Yolanda were there.

Second Set

Nephew in front, Smoke and Jacques
1) James-led R. Kelly's Slow Wind - Neita danced with me, Kimberly said, "The bass player (Doc), the drummer (Stomp) and Godfather are locked in a groove."
"Original" Nikki and Ebony were there.
2) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable
Donnell said, "We got my favorite runaway slave up in here, Donny Ray"
3) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - the crowd responded
4) Donnell & Mike-led "___ Is in the house"
6'9 was there.
5) Mike-led Stevie Wonder's Tell Your Heart I Love You
6) Donnell rapped about Little Trey from UCB
7) Trey-led "Sexy lady, Give me your number, I'm going to pick you up on Saturday" - Donny Ray sat in on backup vocals, Donnell also sang it at the end - to prove he can sing

foreground: Doc, Stomp, Patrick (security), Donny Ray, Mike, Michon
background: Godfather, DP, James (only top of head visible), Donnell, Trey, Lorenzo, Dwayne, Nita, Tony (security), Candy (part of head and grey hat visible)
End of Trey and Donny Ray sitting in
8) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Tell Me - Donnell chanted, "Eya, eya" and the crowd responded, "Ho"
9) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up
10) Alternating Donnell-led Tom Tom Club's Genius of Love (tease) / Rare Essence's Spotlight (tease)
11) Donnell-led Rick James' Mary Jane (tease)
12) Donnell-led $55 Motel (tease)
13) Mike-led Lisa Stansfield's All Around the World (tease)
14) Mike-led Prince's Take Me With You - I danced with Ebony P.
15) Donnell-led Hold the Note / Sade's No Ordinary Love (tease) - with altered lyrics
16) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That
17) Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh"
18) Donnell & Halima-led It Is What It Is
Mara and Shawn from After Hours were there.
19) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - Funky Stuff guitar riffs
20) Donnell-led D4L's Laffy Taffy
Donnell said, "You know what we forgot to play?" -->< BR> 21) Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease) - verses for Muffin and Darrell
Donnell said, "I didn't know Stinky Dink was in here, that changes things."
Donnell said, "6'9, I see that Seek Abundance got all kinds of new shirts and sweatshirts. I ain't got nothing but one that's two years old. I don't even need to wash it for it to stay black."
Donnell said, "Stinky Dink, this is where the stars be partyin'. We go back a long time, since the sand box."
22) Donnell acapella Family
23) Donnell acapella "Sexy lady, Give me your number, I'm going to pick you up on Saturday"
Sharika was there.
Patrick said, "Next time, take pictures on his (Tony's) side."

Darrell's birthday cake
I told Darrell not to forget his cake, that if he didn?t take it, I would. It was the same type of cake as my birthday cake and that was delicious.

Muffin's birthday cake
All pictures taken by and Copyright - Jordan Rich (Unfortunately, I accidentally put the camera into small function, so the pictures (except for Muffin's cake) are all compressed).

It was raining after the show ended. I walked past June and two women I didn't recognize standing under an awning. One of them said, "Hi Jordan." I would have talked to her, but I wanted to get out of the rain.

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

This was earlier than their normal Tradewinds shows. When I arrived at the parking lot, I found a space on the asphalt, the first time in months.

Tamara was there. She asked me if it was normally like this at Tradewinds. I told her no, that it is normally much more crowded at that point.

Kiki and Cindy arrived and I saw down at a table with them. At one point, they went to the bathroom. The people sitting at the desk behind me asked me what I was writing. I told them about my website. They recognized me as a regular and joked about my head bobbing. "Original" Nikki and her friend briefly sat down with me. I introduced myself to them. Nikki's friend is named Ebony, I recognized her as coming with Nikki to FF shows on a regular basis. "Original" Nikki said, "I remember you."

Chanel, Tracy S., Mama Chelle, March, Angie, Delano, Ron Moten, Jennifer, Ebony P., Natalie, Shawn, and Sanisse were there.

Familiar Faces
First Set
James sang backup. Charlie was the second percussionist.
1) They started to perform the music to Anthony Hamilton's Since I Seen't You - Donnell said, "I don't know what you all are waiting for, I'm ready to party. I was here last night all by myself." / Mike-led Anthony Hamilton's Since I Seen't You - Donnell said, "Tracy, it's your birthday", he also did a shout out to Tadonna whose friends told him is also celebrating her birthday
Tracy (celebrating her birthday), and Miss T (Theresa) & Miss V (Vernice) (who the band had teased Dwayne about how they danced with him in July), and KD were there.
2) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable
3) Mike and Donnell spoke over percussion
4) Mike-led Toto's Georgy Porgy - they played different riffs than usual
5) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - the crowd responded, DP held his mic to fans
6) Donnell-led "Do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!"
7) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - Funky Stuff guitar riffs
8) Alternating Mike-led Prince's Take Me With You - Mike said, "Sexy Theresa", ladies sang it, Mike and DP held their mics to female fans / Prince's Sexy M.F. (tease)
9) Alternating Donnell-led Hold the Note - nice crank, especially by Smoke, the crowd shouted "Wind me up, Smoke!", Donnell said, "Say what, do what?" / Sade's No Ordinary Love (tease) - altered lyrics
6'9 was there.
10) Percussion solo - Donnell chanted, "Got? to party, everybody" repeatedly, Donnell said, "What you say? Wind me up, Smoke? You want Smoke to do what?", nice Smoke solo
Nikki was there.
11) They started to perform the music to Donny Hathaway's This Christmas - Mike said, "I (and the band) want to wish you a merry Christmas and a safe New Year. All I can say is I'm broke now." / Mike-led Donny Hathaway's This Christmas - Mike said, "Godfather, take 'em home baby."
Ray was there.
12) Stomp briefly played the music to Fantasia's Free Yourself
Mike said, "We're briefly going to (break)... Go get yourself a drink and how about those damn Redskins!"
Simone, JoJo, Kevin Lee, Renee, Slick Rick, RE Angie, and Pinky were there.

Tyrell, Shonda, Stacey, Tina Tuner, Lashonda, and Nikiya were there.

Second Set
1) James-led Slow Wind – Ebony and Natalie stood above the dance floor because it was too hot, Natalie really felt hot, it was so packed that I only briefly tried to get on the dance floor (I was at the bar at the start of the set), I’ve never seen it that packed before.
2) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Tell Me - Donnell said, "It's Don & Mike's birthday", Donnell chanted, "Eya, eya" and the crowd responded, "Ho"
March, Tamiko, and Monique were there.
3) Donnell-led D4L's Laffy Taffy - Donnell said, "Don't make me mad, Renee. Don't make me pull you off the stage.", later Donnell said, "Renee, I'm about to come back there, you've got one more shake."
4) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up - Donnell added, "Stop lying", Halima improved, I went back on the dance floor, it was a little less crowded than before
5) Donnell-led Tom Tom Club's Genius of Love (tease) / Rare Essence's Spotlight
6) Donnell-led Vinnie D's $55 Motel (tease)
7) Mike-led Lisa Stansfield's All Around the World (tease)
8) Donnell-led Vinnie D's Porno Star? (tease)
9) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Overnight Scenario
10) Donnell-led Rare Essence's "I'm bad bad, the wickedest man alive, wickeda"
11) Mike & Donnell-led Rare Essence's Lock It
12) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Work the Walls - different transition / "Brandywine, friends of mine" chant
Angie was there.
13) Donnell-led It Is What It Is - different transition and start, Donnell started with "I am what I am", Donnell sang, "Down in the city, working of the man everyday"
Shadonna and Choo Choo were there.
14) Donnell-led Trina Was Great
Slim Goodie and L-Boogie were there.
15) Halima-led Mary J. Blige's Be Without You
16) Stomp played the sample "She's your queen" from Coming to America, he continued to play his sampling pad as they packed up
Yolanda was there.
Sean from After Hours said hello. Doc said Sean was "The next big thing that's coming out of DC." I said the Washington Nationals are the next big thing coming out of DC.

NDB, 3DB, and Fatal Attraction at Bud's
Bud's 501 Club, 501 Morse St NE, Washington, DC 20002

I have put up the written transcript of my interview of Michelle Holmes last year online.

Bud, wearing a Santa hat, took the covers. Rob Sabbakhan, NDB's manager, was right there and he said hello.

Upstairs, Preston Blue, Kato (Fatal Attraction's co-manager), and SweetAngelmd27 all were surprised to see me.

The pre-recorded music being played was GoGo. A couple of guys traded dance moves to it.

New Dimension Band
NDB was up first. I wanted to see them with a real system. When I saw them last year in their hometown of Richmond, they didn't have big speakers. It was nice to see them in DC. Some of the faces had changed in the band. Their line up was: Steph (lead talker - he took over much of the interview I did with them), Francois (female lead singer, she wore a Michael Vick jersey), an acoustic guitar player/backup vocalists (also played tambourine), a backup vocalist/cowbell player, a bass player, two keyboard players (one of them wore a baseball cap that had 804 printed on the front and the shape of the state of Virginia on the back), Junie (percussionist - congas and timbales, he played shirtless), and a drummer. They had a nice beat going during their sound check. Steph said, "We made a long long long trip to party with our out of town relatives." Steph also did a shout out to Kato. He announced it was Junie's birthday. He also did a shout out to the haters. Steph announced that their first song was an original by Francois. They did a group prayer with the band huddled together. That first song was with acoustic guitar (he sat as he played) and percussion. The acoustic guitar wasn't used after that for the rest of the night. The sound was rough, but they definitely cranked. There's no doubt that despite them being based in Virginia that they perform authentic GoGo. They initially had about twenty fans in the audience, but it grew to about fifty by the end of their set. A group of ten or so had a GoGo pic taken then went on the dance floor and were really responsive to NDB. Nena was there, she wore a Santa hat. Rob was calling out signals to the band. Fans were beating their feet. Steph said at the end, "It's time to go right now." Rob announced an upcoming show. Their set was about an hour. Steph asked me, "Did you have a good time?" I said yes. He said, "That's where it's at."

3rd Dimension Band
This was my first time seeing 3DB. Their line up was: four vocalists (one of them a singer), a bass player, three keyboard players, three percussionists (one congas, one timbales, and one with multiple cowbells in a setup similar to Jacques from FF), and a drummer. There was also a guy sitting in a chair next to the cowbell player, I don't think he played anything. They also had a group huddle before they performed. They did a shout out to New Dimension Band and said, "We just came from the Black Hole that was crazy." They continued on NDB: "That trip from Richmond isn't an hour, that's a mission, a mission of love." They also did a shout out "to the one deuce n*ggas, we could play in Africa and they would get a green card to come see us." They started off with Donny Hathaway's This Christmas. They had a richer sound than NDB, and also cranked. They did a chant of "Where y'all from?" The frontline was very energetic, they had some nice harmony. At the end, they said, "Thank all the haters. If you down with 3DB, we out of here now." Tappy (or Taffy?), a white guy, came over and said he read my blog. We recognized each other from the recent Junkyard show. They also played about an hour.

Fatal Attraction
I recognized Wayne and Chevy from when they came to Familiar Faces shows in July and August. Teago (their other co-manager) was there. I kidded him about his Bob Marley shirt. He said, "Yeah, mon." He asked me, "Is this your first time seeing them?" I told them it was. I was looking forward to them since Ras Lidj called them "the best frontline in GoGo". Their line up (some I got from their website) was: Wayne (lead talker), Chevy (female singer), Daryl (vocalist, trumpet (he warmed up, but never played it), and cowbell), Jock and Vadda (vocalists), Brandon (bass player, played sitting down), JR and Kendall (both with double keyboards), a percussionist (congas, timbales, and roto-toms), and Ron (drummer). Wayne mentioned this possibly being a live recording. Wayne said, "We do two sets on Monday nights at the Market Lounge." They did a group talk facing the back wall before they played. A couple of people were joking about my taking notes. They also were energetic, sometimes jumping in the air, had synchronized dances, and had nice harmony. Their frontline is good, but I wouldn't say they are the best in GoGo. Their percussionist played timbales and roto-toms most of the time. He played congas both with his hands and with drumsticks. Fans were beating their feet. The security guard asked me what I was writing when I went over to watch the percussionist. They played a late song that was laid back, Chevy sang "Slow Down" (I didn't recognize it as the Bobby Valentino song). While she sang, the other vocalists and one of the keyboard players did exaggerated slow movements. They called out, "Where y'all from" and Wayne held his mic to the crowd. Daryl stood on one of the monitors. The last thing they did was, "Wack that sh*t". They finished at 3:02. Wayne said, "Hail to the Redskins." They are definitely good, but I prefer more conga play.

The one thing I didn't like was that there so many people smoking cigarettes.

As I walked out, Preston asked me, "Are they blogworthy?" I said, "Of course!"

Thursday at Zanzibar
Zanzibar on the Waterfront, 700 Water Street SW Washington, DC 20024

Dey (new hairdo), Songbird, and missshaunte were there. Dey said, "Everything tonight is off the record." They need to lighten up; I don't write everything I hear.

Bobbie, and RE Angie were there.

Familiar Faces
First Set
James sang backup.
1) Grover Washington Jr.'s Mr. Magic
2) Mike-led Toto's Georgy Porgy
3) Mike-led Stevie Wonder's As - Mike sang on the dance floor
Danielle (Wellfhed) was there.
Mike said, "Damn, when Stevie did that sh*t, he knew what he was singing."
4) Halima-led Jill Scott's Golden - Donnell and DP played their horns on the dance floor
5) Mike-led Raheem DeVaughn's Ask Yourself - Mike sang on the dance floor, at one point, he sang directly to one woman and said, "I really do", after singing, "I love you"
6) Halima-led Sade's Pearls - Donnell said, "She got the flower in her shoe y'all. It's my baby Halima's birthday.", Halima took her mic stand on the floor, she ended up on one knee
Delano was there.

A guy asked me if I was working. I said, "No, why do you ask?" He said I'm a white guy at the GoGo. I told him I go to most of their shows and told him about my thesis. He was happy that someone was working on a thesis on GoGo.

Kimberly and Darrell were there.

Dey introduced me to Nataki (~butterflies~).

Second Set
1) Alternating Mike-led Marvin Gaye's I Want You - Donnell stopped it, you could smell burning, Donnell told Vincent to shut down the big speakers / Ralph Blane & Hugh Martin's Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - they performed this on the monitors while waiting, Omar and Googie checked out the big speakers with flashlights, then when they were satisfied, they went back to I Want You
Pinky and Sanisse were there.
Donnell did a shout out to all the TMOTTers present, he said, "All except the big boss man Kato, haven't seen him in a minute".
2) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Slow Down
Keisha, Halima's stylist, was there.
Donnell did a shout out to "Miles, the funniest man alive."
Yannie from L!ssen Band was there.
3) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable
4) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Tell Me
5) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up
JoJo and Simone were there.
6) James-led R. Kelly's Slow Wind - Donnell said, "All the fellas can go get the ladies a drink. We need the ladies to slow wind."
Donnell said, "Special dedication to all the TMOTT members, that's our family"

Cookie was there.

Doc joked about Paul ordering, "A Remy and Coke, hold the Remy!"

I introduced myself to Vaughn, another FF equipment guy.

Packy was "beating off Vincent": he played Jacques' percussion instruments and was beating the drumsticks against Vincent's back.

Some guy said to me, "What's up pimp?"

Third Set
Donnell said, "We're staying late tonight, so if you have to work tomorrow, you might want to slide out."
1) They started to perform the music to Fantasia's Free Yourself - Donnell asked Nephew if he was giving him a Christmas gift since Donnell gave him one last year. Donnell said, "I give to receive.", Donnell said, "Sean and TJ from After Hours are here; this is where the stars be partyin'" / Halima-led Fantasia's Free Yourself
Peg Leg and Nikiya were there.
2) Alternating Halima-led Floetry's Say Yes - Sean sat in on vocals / Lionel Richie's Hello (tease)
Donnell said, "I wish I can sing. I can sing."
Kelvin Robertson of Y2K was there.
3) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh"
4) Donnell-led "Do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!" - Donnell added the line, "Do it for Halima"
5) Alternating Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - different beats, Halima sang, "Baby baby" / Donnell-led "Brandywine, friends of mine" chant
6) Mike-led Stevie Wonder's Tell Your Heart I Love You
Cookie asked me why I bob my head to the music. Nikiya said, "Tell her you are keeping the beat."
7) Yannie-led Erykah Badu's Danger - she improved
8) Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh"
9) Alternating Donnell-led Trillville's Some Cut - Donnell said, "If you have to work in the morning, you might want to slide out. We're going to party all night", James sang backup / Notorious BIG's Warning / Keith Murray's Call My Name (tease) / "Wait a minute" echoes
10) Donnell-led "Hey Halima, it's your birthday!"
11) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That
12) Donnell-led It Is What It Is - I danced with a girl who pointed to Lorenzo while we danced and he smiled, she said to me, "I see you at every show!"
Most of the audience left.
13) Halima-led Mary J. Blige's Be Without You - TJ sat in on backup vocals
Donnell said, "I got everybody but you TJ." She said, "It's okay."
14) Stomp played the sample of "She's Your Queen" from Coming to America - Donnell said, "Stomp is my best singer", Stomp sang along, someone said, "Sexual chocolate!"

Jimmie Parker talked with me about helping on my thesis. He said it needed to cover all aspects.

As usual, guys were handing out GoGo flyers to everyone who walked out. Nece asked me why I had flyers since I was at every show. I told her they were for different bands. I save the flyers for my thesis. JoJo asked me, "Are you taking notes right now?" I said, "No." I originally didn't take notes; everything from the blog was from the top of my head. Over time, I would bring paper to jot down things I had forgotten to write online. Then I needed to take notes when I decided to keep specific setlists - I could probably remember most of it off the top of my head, but not the proper order.

Here's another description.

Halima's birthday at Takoma Station
Takoma Station, 6914 4th St NW, Washington, DC 20012

Yvette, June, Kevin Lee, and Jay Floyd were there.

Ray, Omar, Tamara, and Ebony were there.

Familiar Faces
First Set
James sang backup tonight.
Donnell apologized for the late start. He said, "Our drummer (Stomp) was in an accident and is on his way."
Vonshawn played drums
1) Grover Washington Jr.'s Mr. Magic
Tim (LJ) and Angie were there.
2) Mike-led Stevie Wonder's As
3) Mike-led Ruff Endz' Someone to Love You - Donnell said, "Lorenzo starting every song, my man Lorenzo is catching up, Jordan"
Donnell did a birthday shout out to Halima (her birthday was at midnight, December 22nd) and said she would do the rest of the set. She was not happy about the public birthday announcement. Stomp arrived and they switched up the drums.
4) Halima acapella Rachelle Ferrell's Peace on Earth
Marvin from TCB was there.
5) Halima-led Sade's Pearls - Jacques kept time (usually Stomp does)
Cookie was there.
The rest of the band (including Stomp) went back onstage
6) Halima-led The Brand New Heavies' Never Stop
7) Halima-led Jill Scott's Golden
8) Halima-led Mary J. Blige's Be Without You (debut) - Donnell said to Tamara, "You know this song? Can you help her out, baby?" and Tamara sat in on backup vocals
9) Mike-led Happy Birthday (to Halima) - initially with Lorenzo on keyboards, then acapella, Mike said, "We're going to do this acapella"

I asked Lorenzo about Vonshawn. I asked if he played in a band. Lorenzo said no, that he plays in church.

Stinka was there.

6'9 was there.

Second Set
1) James-led R. Kelly's Slow Wind
"Original" Nikki, Darrell and Angie W. were there.
2) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable - girls sang along
3) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh"
4) Donnell-led "Do it for the ladies, Oh my God!" - Donnell added, "Do it for Halima, it's her birthday!"
5) Mike-led Stevie Wonder's Tell Your Heart I Love You (debut)
6) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up - Donnell added the line "Stop lying" again
E of L!ssen Band was there.
7) Alternating Mike-led Prince's Take Me With You - the ladies sang it / Mike-led Prince's Sexy M.F. (tease) / Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease) - verses for Halima and Tiffany
Lima was there.
8) Donnell-led Hold the Note
9) Donnell-led Sade's No Ordinary Love (tease) - altered lyrics
10) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - the house lights came on, they played Funky Stuff guitar riffs
Pinky was there.
11) Donnell & Halima-led It Is What It Is
12) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That
13) Donnell-led Trina Was Great
14) Donnell-led D4L's Laffy Taffy

Yvette said to me, "Why is it that the room is full of crazies?"

Dwayne said he's management now. I told him I'd believe it when I heard it from Donnell.

Sunday Redskins-Cowboys game watch at Cranberries
Cranberries, 5740 Silver Hill Road, Suitland, MD 20747

Stomp introduced me to a bartender from Cranberries he said was named, "Rockin' Cranberry". He said her real name is "GoGo Mia", she protested that. She wore a Redskins baseball cap.

Marquis Melvin, Mara, and DJ Skeet (wearing a Cowboy jersey) were there.

Ebony and Sonya sat at my table. Natalie joined us a half time. Natalie told Sonya and me about some interesting experiences with Ebony.

Nicole, the cover taker at Safari, was taking covers.

RE Angie, Cindy, Kiki, Shawn, Boo from Hypnosis, Derek Floyd, Ron Moten, Tracy S., LA, Chanel, and Peanut were there.

The result of this Redskins-Cowboys game was the same as the prior one, but this time the Redskins allowed no suspense: they led 28-0 at half time and won 35-7. Familiar Faces played after the game was over.

Junior worked the PA.

Familiar Faces
First Set
The line up was: T (male singer), Halima, Donnell, DP, Googie (bass), Dwayne, Godfather, Lorenzo, Stomp, Smoke, and Charlie.
1) Donnell acapella Rare Essence's I'm Getting Ready (tease) - sound check
2) Percussion solo - Donnell called out various things, including saying, "Googie played the bass, did you know that Jordan?" / Donnell-led "___ and a" with DP shouting, "Come on and Yeah!" / Donnell chanted, "Swing your body baby" / Guitar riffs as transition to -->
3) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable - I danced with Cindy
Nikki was there.
4) Percussion solo
5) Toto's Georgy Porgy - instrumental intro, a Cowboy fan said, "Don't stop. One more time!" / T-led Bobby Valentino's Slow Down - I danced with Kiki
Sixx was there.
6) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - the crowd responded
7) Donnell-led "Do it for the Skins, Do it for the Redskins, Oh my God!" - T sang, "Oh my God!", Donnell added, "Do it for the Cowboys": he stopped and was laughing and then continued
8) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - Funky Stuff guitar riffs
6'9 was there.
JoJo, Simone and their mom, Faith, were there.
9) Donnell & Halima-led Prince's Take Me With You - the ladies sang it
10) Donnell-led Hold the Note - I danced with Natalie, there was nice crank, Donnell had Smoke wave while he played the congas
Choo Choo and James were there.
11) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda (literal tease)
12) Halima-led Sade's Pearls

Darlene was there.

RE Angie played congas during the break, as did a male fan.

Sharmba Mitchell was there.

Daniel Gibson, President of a DC Cluck-U, gave me his business card.

Second Set
James was on backup vocals
1) James-led R. Kelly's Slow Wind - Ebony and Natalie worked on my dancing
2) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up - Donnell said, "Put your hands in the air if you're a Redskins fan", I danced with Kiki and LA
3) Alternating Donnell-led Trillville's Some Cut - different beat, I danced with Tracy and LA, James sang backup / Notorious BIG's Warning / Keith Murray's Call My Name (tease) / "Wait a minute" echoes
4) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That
5) Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh"
6) Donnell-led It Is What It Is - Donnell said, "I don't know why you still here, I'm about to leave"
7) Donnell-led Trina Was Great
Donnell said, "Cowboys, thank you so much."
8) D4L's Laffy Taffy (tease) - instrumental
Donnell said, "Going to Baltimore, Mo's, off the money I made tonight".
9) Stomp played the sample of "She's your Queen" from Coming to America.
Donnell said, "Simone, JoJo, come get your mama. I don't know what you're trying to do (Faith was trying to kiss him.)." Donnell said, "Security!"
JoJo went to get her.
Donnell said, "Get a room, mama, daughter, that might not be a before or after."
Nephew said, "Classic entertainment."
Donnell said, "Now I see where they get it from. Mom's you taught 'em well, swear to God. I got an old woman specialist; Dave come get it."
Donnell made fun of a Cowboy fan wearing a Cowboy sweatshirt, "What a clown outfit. He put a clown outfit on, we swept you all. What we give you all, a field goal? A touchdown, we had our fourth string in, a linebacker named Campbell... our scabs..."

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

I talked for a little bit with John, the cover taker.

Jacques was there, not playing. He did play in their earlier Saturday gig. I talked with Lorenzo about it. It was a private office party in Baltimore. All of those who played in it talked about how good the food was.

Los and Nikki were there.

James was not here tonight.

Familiar Faces
First Set
Donnell said, "We going to have a public burning. Anyone wearing Cowboys gear, we'll trip them naked and burn their clothes."
East Coast, the DJ and a Cowboys fan, said, "If they win, I'll wear a Redskins jersey."
1) Mike-led Dave Hollister's One Woman Man / Percussion solo - Mike sang something so high I couldn't make out what it was / 6 Minutes percussion solo - Donnell did a shout out to Groovy? James, Donnell said, "We're going to do whatever Audrey wants us to play"
Ray was there.
2) Donnell-led "Welcome to the show ___"
3) Halima-led Erykah Badu's Cleva - Halima changed the line to "With my makeup"
Shameika, Tijuana, Kiki and Cindy were there.
4) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - the crowd responded
5) Donnell-led "Walk in the door and you're going to GoGo, Say what?" - the crowd responded, "Hello"
6) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - they played different riffs, Mike said, "Eh" repeatedly, Mike was doing bug eyes
7) Percussion solo - Donnell said, "Eya eya" and the crowd responded, "Ho"
8) Alternating Donnell-led Brown & White / Ride Out / Northeast Groovers' The Water / Mike-led Parliament's Aqua Boogie (A Psychoalphadiscobetabioaquadoloop) (tease) - I danced with a woman
Shawn was there.
9) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda (tease)
10) Alternating Donnell-led Tom Tom Club's Genius of Love - Donnell did the keyboard effects vocally / Rare Essence's Spotlight
11) Donnell-led Vinnie D's $55 Motel
12) Donnell & Mike-led Lisa Stansfield's All Around the World
13) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Body Snatchers
14) Donnell-led "25,25,25" / Rare Essence’s Work the Walls
15) Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh"
RE Angie and Tamiko were there.
16) Mike-led Raheem DeVaughn's Ask Yourself - T, a male vocalist, sat in
Tracy S., Blak, Slick Rick, Nita, March, and Yolanda were there.

Packy went on about how exaggerated T's singing was and that he stuck his tongue out while singing.

Donnell was teasing Stomp about his contributions to Northeast Groovers. He said that all the big hits were when Jammin' Jeff was the drummer. When Stomp would mention songs, Donnell would say, "Has anyone heard of this song?" For one of the songs, Vaughn, a equipment guy, said he did and Donnell said, "You don't count, you're only twelve years old."

Nephew and I teased Dwayne about his bright purple shirt.

RE Angie played congas during the break.

Monica was there, the first time I have seen her since February 18th.

Robin (celebrating her birthday and that of her girlfriend) was there.

Second Set
1) Mike-led Bernard Wright's Who Do You Love
2) Alternating Mike-led Prince's Take Me With You - the ladies sang it / Prince's Sexy M.F. - interrupted by a fight
Shadonna was there.
3) Donnell-led Hold the Note - I am not certain because I was paying attention to other things
4) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up - the crowd shouted, "Wind me up, Smoke", Mike was on backup vocals (unusual for this song), it cranked, Destiny was getting down, Mike said, "I see you, shake that moneymaker"
5) Donnell-led Trina Was Great
There might have been another song in between; again I was paying attention to other things.
6) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That
7) Donnell & Halima-led It Is What It Is - Mike sang lines / Percussion solo
8) Donnell-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable

Friday at Safari Steakhouse
Safari Steakhouse, 9430 Annapolis Road Lanham MD 20706

I talked for a bit with 02. I talked with him about Submission Band. He said that they are playing on New Year's Eve. I hope to attend that and FF's NYE show. We also talked about Familiar Faces. He's been chilling lately and when he goes to shows, he goes to observe and pick up the music. I asked him if he would sit in with FF, he said to work with Donnell "would be a dream come true".

Kim and Dave were there.

Kiki, Cindy and Archie Paige were there.

Familiar Faces
First Set
For the first set, Googie played bass and set the PA, while Omar worked the PA.
James was on backup vocals.
1) Donnell acapella Tyrese's Sweet Lady (tease) - sound check
2) Grover Washington Jr.'s Mr. Magic
3) Mike-led The Stylistics' People Make the World (Go Round)
4) Mike-led I Dreamed You
Shorty Q was there.
5) Halima-led Erykah Badu's Didn't Cha Know
6) Halima-led Sade's Pearls - Googie worked the PA as this song only requires the keyboard players and Stomp keeps time, it was unusual to have it not end the set
Yvette was there.
Mike asked, "How many of you are rooting for the Redskins Sunday?"
6) Mike-led Toto's Georgy Porgy - it cranked, especially Smoke and Jacques (cowbell), it came to a sudden stop
Mike asked DJ Flava (aka GoGo Rudy) to play some Christmas music, but Donnell asked him not to.

Ebony, Shawnisse, Danica, Love, and Black Heart were there.

Doc arrived during the break and took over on bass; Googie went back to the PA.

Shadonna and Peg Leg were there.

Second Set
1) Donnell acapella Rare Essence's I'm Getting Ready - sound check
2) Halima acapella "It's your anniversary" - sound check
Donnell said, "Three sets, happy hour set, the warm up and the wig splitter."
Donnell said, "That’s what I... about Cowboy fans. Why don't they wear jerseys from current players, they wear jerseys for Roger Staubach... Their new players are some sh*t. Who's the dude who tried to sell a boat load of weed? Not Michael Irvin, he tried to smoke a boatload. The dude with the U-Haul, Leon Lett, made a million dollars and tried to sell some weed, stupid sh*t. Not Dexter Manley, he used cocaine, everyone did in the 80s. Irvin got caught with a pipe; it had his lip prints on it."
Halima said, "He was holding it for a friend." (Who could possibly believe that garbage?)
Donnell said, "He got caught with those whores at that hotel..."
Donnell said, "Lorenzo get off the goddamn phone, she ain't with nobody..."
Tyrell was there.
3) Alternating Mike-led Dave Hollister's One Woman Man / Percussion Solo / Donnell-led Rare Essence's I'm Getting Ready (tease) - Donnell said, "Smoke's already warmed up, I don't know which one I want to do."
4) Halima-led Erykah Badu's Cleva - Halima changed the lyrics to "with my makeup" / Percussion solo
6'9 was there.
Donnell said, "Something must have happened, 6'9 is already here."
5) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - the crowd responded
6) Donnell-led "Do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God" - the crowd responded
7) Donnell-led "When you walk in the door, you got the GoGo, Say what?"
8) Mike-led John Legend's Used to Love U
9) Mike-led Prince's Take Me With You - women sang it / Prince's Sexy M.F. (tease)
10) Donnell-led Hold the Note
Between Cleva to Hold the Note, I danced variously with Cindy and / or Kiki.
11) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda
Simone and JoJo were there.
12) Alternating Donnell-led Trillville's Some Cut - Halima played on a conga, James sang backup / Notorious BIG's Warning / Keith Murray's Call My Name (tease) / "Wait a minute" echoes - Mike sang, "Spread your wings and fly", Halima sang, "Da da da da"
13) Donnell-led Tupac's Hail Mary (tease)
14) The started to perform the music to R. Kelly's Slow Wind - Donnell said, "Slow it down before we take it to break, this is for the ladies. Fellas, go get them a drink, we just want the ladies", Halima called out drink names / James-led R. Kelly's Slow Wind - I danced with a woman
16) Bells - instrumental sample
Donnell said of a guy wearing a Cowboys jacket, "Who let him in with that ugly jacket? That's the ugliest jacket I ever saw. I don't know who let these 'Bamas walk around like that... My man Roe said he's a Cowboys fan, I was going to let him do something..."

Keisha, Vic, and Bizzle were there.

Omar spent the whole break talking to a girl, but he "didn't get nothing."

Third Set
Donnell said to Cookie (not the PBMC one), who was celebrating her birthday; "Did you do that? I'm even going to say what you did, don't do that?"
Donnell announced that they would be playing with Publicity and L!ssen Band at the Fur on New Year's Day.
Donnell again said to Cookie, "Don't do that."
Halima said, "Security!"
1) Halima-led Alicia Key's Unbreakable
Nicole (new hairdo) and Lashonda were there.
2) Donnell-led "___ Is in the house"
3) Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease)
4) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - Funky Stuff guitar riffs
Choo Choo was there.
5) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Tell Me - briefly interrupted when security removed Cookie, I danced with a woman
6) Donnell & Halima-led Lighter's Up - Halima held up a flashlight and used it as a spotlight, Donnell said, "Eya eya" and the crowd responded "Ho", Donnell said, "Stop lying" in response to Halima's singing "Ain't going to smoke no mo'", Halima sang the verse the second time around
7) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That - Halima said, "Peg Leg", Donnell said, "Peg Leg, did you get her to say that?", I danced with Shorty Q
8) Donnell-led Trina Was Great - Halima played a conga, I danced with a woman
9) Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh"
10) Donnell-led "25,25,25" / Rare Essence's Work the Walls - Smoke played timbales, I danced with Kiki
11) Donnell & Halima-led It Is What It Is - Jay Gotti sat in (before Halima's part), Donnell said, "I don't know why y'all still here, we been done."
12) Donnell said, "Uh uh ah" over percussion
13) Stomp played the sample, "She's your queen" from Coming to America.
Donnell called the band members, Omar and Googie into a meeting in the lounge, probably to discuss the logistics for their show in Baltimore tomorrow night before they play at Tradewinds.

Wednesday at Takoma Station
Takoma Station, 6914 4th St NW, Washington, DC 20012

I talked for a while with Derek Floyd (Donnell's second son). It was briefly interrupted when he and Marquis Melvin helped bring in Donnell's stuff. I asked him how often he performs (he's a rapper). He said not often. He said it's hard performing with a live band (like when he sits in with Familiar Faces) because he (and Donnell also) has to yell. He said that that's hard for him because he has bronchial asthma, he needs to get in shape. He said it's also hard for him when he sits in with Familiar Faces since Donnell's mic is set for Donnell's vocals, not his. He did say that he worked with Jauhar and recently finished recording his own album called "1:18 or 118" after a Bible verse. He said that his job is working with community service. He said that he had problems when he was growing up and he uses those experiences to help others. He said that he doesn't have much to give other than his heart, which he gives through his music. He said that he really respects his father as an artist (he later said his Dad doesn't really know just how much he looks up to him). He said that he tries to follow his Dad in that respect, he doesn't want to be his Dad, but that he wants to follow his professionalism (Derek didn't use those exact words, but that's what he meant). He talked about how he wants to stay humble, but it can be hard. He knows so many people around the city because of his dad and himself, some people call him "the prince of the city." He said it's hard when like at the Night of Elegance, he performed in front of 3,200 people. He said he wants to keep away from people using drugs and other negative influences. He plans to pass out a number of copies of his album in order to generate a buzz. He said it's hard to have a relationship when working in the music business. His regular job and recording take a lot of time and girls (including his girlfriend), expect a lot of time with you. He said he just finished his album and now he's working on another one. He also talked about his working with Marquis. He said he first met Marquis in Miami and met him again later. Marquis is also working with Jauhar. Derek said that he is now writing songs for Marquis. He said that Marquis can sing really well in way he can't, so it's a good match. He said they are like brothers now. He also said he thinks they are both going to succeed in the music business. He said Marquis will probably sing tonight. I told them both that Doc and Dwayne didn't really believe Marquis had quit the football team until I posted a quote from Rich Rodriguez (head coach of West Virginia's football team). Marquis smiled. Derek plans to take college classes next semester, psychology and communications because he feels they are important to bettering his art. He applauded my writing on my blog and asked if that was my profession. I told him no, but I plan to continue writing.

Ray was there.

Familiar Faces
First Set
1) Blueprint - instrumental, Donnell said, "This is our theme song right here. This is the blueprint, how we want everything to be", Donnell played his sax on the floor, it really cranked / Donnell called over Halima to sing, he said, "A dancer (why he said dancer, I'm not sure) is all about improvisation. That's the difference between an artist and a musician, what they can do on the fly. Halima improved (the music was different from Blueprint, it was just grooving)
Tamara, Tim (LJ), and James were there.
Donnell said, "Off the top of her head. Come on up here Tamara. I've been looking at you like Allen Iverson, throwing no passes... part of the family."
2) They started to perform the music to Vivian Green's Emotional Roller Coaster - Donnell said, "I think they already know what they want you to sing" / Tamara-led Vivian Green's Emotional Roller Coaster - Halima was on backup vocals
3) Mike-led Stevie Wonder's As
Spanky was there.
4) They started to perform the music to Michael Jackson's I Can't Help It - Mike said, "From one legend to another. For those of you who haven't, pick up the new Stevie Wonder album. There's a song on there that will make you cry." / Mike-led Michael Jackson's I Can't Help It - they played some new riffs in it
Britney, Shadonna and June were there.
5) Mike-led O'Bryan's Lady I Love You - James was on backup vocals (and for the rest of the show), Mike went on the dance floor
Donnell said, "Where you at Quisy (spelling?, he meant Marquis Melvin)? He's young ladies, he may look old, but he's young. We took him down to Miami; we had to keep a rope on him. Got to watch what he sings, he's got a dirty mind. Keep it clean."
6) Marquis-led John Legend's So High - the crowd sang along
Donnell said, "Look here ladies, when I said young, I mean young, so don't scream at him. He wrote a filthy little song..."
7) Marquis-led Secret
Donnell said, "He's seventeen, so don't serve him. He's Jauhar's boy, filthy little pervert. Come on Halima, let's get it mature. Listen up Quisy, so you can write a grown and sexy song like this..."
8) Halima-led Sade's Pearls - Halima ended sitting on the floor
Archie Paige, Nikki and Monique were there.
9) Halima-led The Brand New Heavies' Never Stop
Donnell did announcements. He said, "We will be at Tradewinds on Christmas, not Christmas Eve. Ray can stay home and wrap the presents. You got a lot of deliveries to make."
Shaun was there.

6'9 was there.

Fon (not sure I heard right), security guy I talked with at Legend. He said he's from UNXpected Entertainment.

Second Set
Donnell announced that Chuck Brown would be the third band with Familiar Faces and After Hours Band at the New Year's Eve event at the Hilton in Alexandria.
1) James-led R. Kelly's Slow Wind
2) Mike-led Bernard Wright's Who Do You Love
3) Mike-led Toto's Georgy Porgy - intro / Bobby Valentino's Slow Down / Percussion solo
4) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable - I danced with Angie
5) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - the crowd responded
6) Donnell-led "Do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!" - the crowd responded
7) Donnell-led "If you're twenty-five and older, put your hands up" -->
8) Donnell & Mike-led Rare Essence's One on One (Footz version) - Doc held Halima's hand up, the crowd responded / Rare Essence's "Going to Hollywood"
9) Alternating Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Tell Me - Donnell led it off by saying, "From the old school to the new" / Donnell-led Rare Essence's Hey Tamika (tease) - I danced with a friend of Angie's until Angie got jealous and separated us
10) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That
11) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up - Donnell shouted, "Eya eya" and the crowd responded, "Ho"
12) D4L's Laffy Taffy - instrumental, Donnell joked, "I didn't know Godfather knew this" --> Donnell said, "Hey Dwayne, give me the gangster sh*t before we get out of here"
13) They started to perform the music to It Is What It Is - Donnell said, "This is the gangster sh*t" / Donnell & Halima-led It Is What It Is
14) Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh" (Donnell calls it, "We put it in")
Donnell announced that they would be playing at Cranberries on Sunday for the second Redskins-Cowboys game.
Donnell said, "I got Ray's real name. He likes to call himself Slick Ray, but that's not what's on his license. Ladies, give me some money and I'll tell you his name."

Archie said, "Write that DeeDee was there."

Pooh was there. I asked him who he's playing with. He said Marc Cary. Dwayne said Halima needs to edit her lyrics in It Is What It Is; she needs to replace Donnell's name with his. Pooh said, "Both Dwaynes (or Duanes) say that."

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

Peg Leg, Ebony, Natalie, and Danica were there. Ebony introduced me to Tamika (celebrating her birthday), and two sisters, Javon and Kintrea (I am not positive on the names; I usually need to hear someone's name multiple times due to the loudness of the music playing). They were all having a lot of fun.

Nicole, the bartender, was wearing a tiara. I asked her why she didn't wear it last night.

Chanel, LA, Tracy S., and Pinky were there.

A dude from the TMOTT crew that frequents Bud's asked me about FF. I danced with a female friend of his.

Renee, Cindy, and Delano were there.

Familiar Faces
First Set
James sang backup the whole night.
1) Mike-led Marvin Gaye's I Want You - Donnell said, "Lots of beautiful women, come and get them fast, before he gets them all", Mike said, "That's the bunny man", I danced with Kintrea, Donnell said, "Charlie is just getting here, he must think he's all that", I danced with Ebony
Archie Paige, Rory "DC" Felton (formerly of Rare Essence), Tracy, and Arielle were there.
Mike did a shout out to Miss Brown.
2) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable
Stacey and Nicole, the cover taker at Safari, were there.
3) Donnell-led "___ Is in the House"
I may have missed something since I was paying more attention to my dancing with women than the music.
4) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Slow Down - I don't know if they did the Georgy Porgy intro
5) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - the crowd responded
6) Donnell-led "Do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!" - the crowd responded
7) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized
6'9 was there.
8) Mike-led Rare Essence's One on One (Footz version) - Renee held Halima's arm and they both danced, Donnell said, "Get the cowbell, DC" and DC did sit in on cowbell, the crowd sang along, James held his mic to the crowd
9) Mike-led Prince's Take Me With You - Natalie, who was dancing with James, sang on his mic
10) Donnell-led Hold the Note - end of DC sitting in, a guy said, "Wind me up, Smoke" and so did Natalie on James' mic, Donnell said, "Say what?", Donnell said, "Eya eya" and the crowd responded, "Ho"
RE Angie was there.
11) Mike-led Raheem DeVaughn's Ask Yourself
Los, Slim Goodie, Dey, JoJo, Shameika, and Simone were there.

Charlie said, "Where is DC? He owes me $30. He pounded the hell out of my cowbell, turned it into a soup can."

Jackie was there. She had a good birthday (it was Tuesday) and she went to Takoma Station on Wednesday.

Second Set
Donnell said, "A quick moment of silence for Richard Pryor." He had died earlier in the day. Donnell said, "Some of you are too young to know Richard Pryor. We try to play the oldest stuff to keep the young ones away. I don't want to jinx it, but I think we have the grownest & sexiest party ever here."
1) James-led R. Kelly's Slow Wind - Donnell said, "I don't think the fellas understand this one, ladies." Donnell said to the ladies, "All you need is one more drink."
2) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Tell Me - Mike said, "We got Sweet Keisha from the Solid Gold dancers", Donnell said, "He couldn't hold you with a rope"
Tijuana was there,
Donnell said, "Don't stop the ladies."
3) Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh" - Donnell sang, "Oh", from Donna Summer's Love to Love You, Baby, Donnell said, "What you talking about, Packy?"
4) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up - Donnell said to the bartenders, "I'm only going to say this once, I'm not stopping the show so you can collect y'all money", there was a nice crank
Choo Choo was there.
5) Donnell-led Trina Was Great
6) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That - Donnell said, "Eya eya", Donnell said, "It is what it is, ladies."
7) Donnell & Halima-led It Is What It Is - the crowd shouted, "Wind me up, Smoke", Donnell had Anya (spelling?) dance on the stage floor, Donnell said, "But is it like that, is it really like that?", Donnell and Halima said, "The world is mine" repeatedly, Donnell added a whole paragraph's worth of lines
"Original" Nikki was there.
Donnell said, "On the bus trip, I remember Charlie was so scared, he asked for a double bed. He didn't ask for nothing, he did you a favor and gave you a whole night's sleep." Donnell then turned to James, and said he's been working on his girl for ten years.
Stomp said of Charlie, "He's scared." Donnell said, "Scared to death, when he gets close to something, he has to pull out the Primatene Mist. He has to go to the 7-11, never in my life..."
Donnell said, "I love when they fall in love at the GoGo" of JoJo and Mike.

D is a new sound equipment guy whom I first saw on Thursday.

Friday at Safari Steakhouse
Safari Steakhouse, 9430 Annapolis Road Lanham MD 20706

Archie Paige was there.

Donnell sang along with a Jaheim song, "Have you ever been in love" during warm ups. He specifically had DJ Flava (aka GoGo Rudy) play it.

Kim and Lolo (new haircut) were there.

Familiar Faces
First Set
James was on backup vocals for the night.
1) Anthony Hamilton's Comin' from Where I'm From - instrumental, Donnell played on the dance floor
2) Mike-led I Dreamed You - Donnell played on the dance floor, later Mike sang on the dance floor
Mike Smith was there.
3) Mike-led Glenn Lewis' Don't You Forget It - Mike said, "Whoever is in control of the fire, you ever go over to someone else's house and the fire's going and it's hotter than hell?", Donnell said, "Leave the fire on, it's sexy", Lolo sat by the fire, next to where I stood
4) Mike-led Raheem DeVaughn's Ask Yourself - Mike sang on the dance floor
5) Halima-led The Brand New Heavies' Never Stop - Mike was being a ham with his movements
Tim (LJ) and Diva were there.
Mike said, "She said, 'Hey'". Donnell said, "That's my Verizon homie, Maisha (spelling?)."
6) Halima-led Sade's Pearls - Halima took her mic stand on the floor
Sanisse, Quita (celebrating her birthday) and her sister (both of whom I met at the Fur), and Shaun were there.

Diva introduced me to YoungONE

Nicole, the bartender from Tradewinds, and Shauny, the bartender from Safari, were there.

Supa Dan asked me where my paper was at and laughed when he saw me writing.

The fireplace by the dance floor was out.

Second Set
1) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable
L-Boogie was there.
Donnell asked them to dim the lights and they did.
2) Percussion solo - Donnell did announcements
3) Mike-led Toto's Georgy Porgy - intro / Bobby Valentino's Slow Down - they turned on some more lights
Yolanda was there.
4) Donnell-led "___ Is in the house"
5) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - the crowd responded
6) Donnell-led "Do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!" - the crowd responded
7) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized
8) Alternating Mike-led Prince's Take Me With You - Halima conducted the ladies / Prince's Sexy M.F. (tease)
9) Donnell-led Hold the Note - the strobe lights came on, the crowd said, "Wind me up, Smoke", Donnell said, "Saw what? What you going to do?"
Donnell said, "We got some old school in here"
10) Alternating Donnell-led Tom Tom Club's Genius of Love - Donnell did the keyboard effects vocally / Rare Essence's Spotlight - a spotlight came on and Packy used a flashlight as a spotlight
11) Mike-led Lisa Stansfield's All Around the World (tease) - the crowd sang along
12) Donnell-led Vinnie D's $55 Motel - Donnell was doing the fully lyrics and the crowd was singing along, but he cut it off after he said, "You don't know what? I thought you was the real old school up in here" and abruptly went to -->
13) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Roll Call
14) Mike-led Rare Essence's One on One (Footz version) - the crowd sang along
Tiffany was there.
15) Mike & Donnell-led Rare Essence's Lock It
16) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda - it went dark again
17) Halima-led Fantasia's Free Yourself / Alternating Floetry's Say Yes / Lionel Richie's Hello (tease)
6'9 was there.

Charlie was there.

Third Set
1) James-led R. Kelly's Slow Wind
Cookie was there.
2) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Tell Me - Donnell said, "Eya eya" and the crowd responded, "Ho"
Peg Leg and Los were there.
3) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up
4) Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh" - a guy tried to get me to dance with a particular girl, but she was doing her own thing
Blak was there.
5) Alternating Donnell-led Trina Was Great - Donnell said lines from Brown & White / 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease) - same music as "Unh, unh unh"
6) Alternating Donnell-led Trillville's Some Cut - Donnell asked Tony to remove someone, he said, "I don't care who you are, we don't do that sh*t in here." / Notorious BIG's Warning - the guy who had prodded me to dance asked me if I was writing an article, I told him about my website, but he said he wouldn't be able to remember the URL / Keith Murray's Call My Name (tease) - Security put out the guy that Donnell had requested, Donnell said, "That's why you should have put him out the first time instead of letting him cop a plea." / "Wait a minute" echoes - Nicole said hello to me, she asked, "Do you know who I am?", I said, "Yes.", smooth transition to (starts with Dwayne playing guitar riffs from Kool & the Gang's Funky Stuff) -->
7) Donnell-led It Is What It Is - Donnell did a shout out to Chi Ali from After Hours in the audience, Donnell said, "We will be together on New Year's Eve"
Blak said hello. I told him that Coke is releasing a new soda with his name, Coca-Cola Blak. It has coffee in it.
8) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That
9) D4L's Laffy Taffy - Godfather played a little bit before Donnell cut him off.
Donnell said, "Lolo, you know I'm just cheating (with Kim), but you're my main girl."
Some guy shook hands with Donnell. Donnell said, "Bring me a moist towelette. He might have the Eazy-E, the Arthur Ashe... You can't get that from a handshake?"
10) Donnell acapella Tavares' Remember What I Told You to Forget - he cut it off with "F*ck it, I forget (the rest)."
Donnell said, "We're going to start putting people out on an argument, on a bad look. We're going to put their pictures up like at Eastside."
"Original" Nikki was there.
A girl asked me what I was writing; her friend pulled her back by her belt. I followed them and talked with her.

Thursday at Zanzibar
Zanzibar on the Waterfront, 700 Water Street SW Washington, DC 20024

Bobbie Westmoreland was there.

The black curtain that was a backdrop for the band last week was gone.

Familiar Faces
First Set
Dwayne played drums (just this set)
1) Mike-led I Dreamed You - Donnell went on the dance floor playing his Sax, later Mike sang on the dance floor
Big Don Pimp was there.
James was there, he was on backup vocals.
2) Mike-led Ruff Endz' Someone to Love You
Cookie was there.
Donnell thanked everyone "For coming out despite the weather reports."
3) Halima-led Sade's Pearls
Donnell said, "I played that too early. I think I don't know what to play after that."
4) Halima-led Jill Scott's Whatever
5) Mike-led John Legend's Ordinary People

Arielle was there.

June and his wife Shadonna were there.

Second Set
Donnell referred to the upcoming New Year's Eve celebration with Familiar Faces, After Hours Band, and "a soon to be announced guest."
Sanisse was there.
Donnell said, "You going to party with us, Krystal (spelling)?"
1) James-led R. Kelly's Slow Wind (first or second performance) - the poor girl who was the only one dancing on the dance floor left the dance floor a few minutes in and unfortunately fell on her head
Yolanda and Nikiya were there.
2) Mike-led Toto's Georgy Porgy - intro / Bobby Valentino's Slow Down
Nicole, the bartender at Tradewinds, and Darrell were there.
3) Halima-led Faith Evans' Again - featured a Smoke conga solo, Stomp played samples used in "Unh, unh unh"
Kimberly and Darrell, who I met here last week, were there.
Donnell said, "I think Michael Muse is doing the matrix."
4) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable
5) Mike-led John Legend's used to Love U
6) Donnell-led Ludacris' Number One Spot

6'9 and Tony were there.

Third Set
Donnell said, "That's my hat you got on 6'9, better take it off."
1) Mike-led Bernard Wright's Who Do You Love
2) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - Dwayne played guitar riffs from Kool & the Gang's Funky Stuff
3) Alternating Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh" / Vinnie D's Porno Star?
4) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Tell Me - a girl was pushing on a guy as they danced, they both fell over (not hurt)
5) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That
6) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up - very smooth transition -->
7) Donnell & Halima-led It Is What It Is - Donnell said, "Sh..." repeatedly, Donnell said, "I don't know why y'all are still here, we been done"
8) Donnell & Mike-led Lap Dance - Donnell said, "I see you Nicole, even though you aren't drinking what you was last week. It's not your birthday. It is your birthday? Nobody told me." / "Just in case you didn't know, my baby is free & single, she's single tonight"
Choo Choo was there.
9) Stomp played the sample from Coming to America, "She's your Queen"
10) Donnell acapella Tyrese's Sweet Lady
We checked both breaks and it wasn't snowing yet, but after they were done performing, it was.

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

There was a lot of parking spaces available, probably due to the threat of bad weather and the Taylor-Hopkins fight.

June, Sharon, Kevin Lee, Ray, Los, Sanisse, Kiki, Cindy, Archie Paige and Nikki were there.

Familiar Faces
First Set
James was on backup vocals.
1) Halima-led Jill Scott's Whatever
Lolo, Danielle, and Kim were there.
2) Mike-led Tony Terry's Freaky Little Game / Percussion solo
6'9, Britney, and Jackie (celebrating her birthday this week) were there.
3) Halima-led Faith Evans' Again
4) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - the crowd responded
5) Donnell-led "Do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!" - Halima held her mic to a fan
6) Donnell-led "___ Is in the House"
7) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Tell Me - nice crank especially by Smoke on congas, nice Dwayne solo
8) Alternating Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh" - the frontline danced to the hits, Donnell said, "Sss...", Donnell sang, "Oh" from Donna Summer's Love to Love You, Baby / Vinnie D's Porno Star? (same music)
9) Halima-led Fantasia's Free Yourself / Alternating Floetry's Say Yes / Lionel Richie's Hello (tease) - Mike yelled at the end, Donnell said, "What was that?", Mike said, "That was at the height of the moment", Donnell mocked it
Tijuana, Shameika, Delano, L-Boogie, and Tracy S. were there.
Donnell said they would be playing at the Tradewinds on the 25th, not the 24th. He also talked about the upcoming New Year's Eve show at the Hilton. He said rooms were $99, "Ladies, treat your man on New Year's Eve."
Donnell said, "A moment of silence... for the Dallas Cowboys... get your ass whipped tomorrow."

I teased Dwayne and Doc about their shirts the past two nights. I said Dwayne should have worn the bright blue shirt he wore that night on Friday, when Doc wore a bright red shirt. Doc said, "Why are you picking on my clothes, he (Donnell) is wearing a bandana with a blazer." Mike said, “He's (Donnell) a professional 'Bama.”

Stomp danced in the kitchen and we laughed.

I told Archie about the guys break dancing on Friday. We were laughing about them. Nephew said he got Tony to break them up when the one guy did a full spin on his back and spilled his own beer.

Second Set
1) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable - Halima held her mic to the crowd
Nita, Tata, Tiffany G., and Pinky (dyed hair) were there.
2) Mike-led Prince's Take Me With You
3) Donnell-led Hold the Note - either Stomp, Godfather, or Lorenzo played a new sound
Blak was there.
4) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up - it went dark and a lot of fans held up lit cell phones and lighters
5) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Marinda - Donnell said, "All the way back to the Eastside, that's where we're going to", Halima used a flashlight as a spotlight on the crowd
Simone was there.
6) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That
JoJo was there.
7) Donnell-led Trina Was Great
LA was there.
8) Donnell-led It Is What It Is - Donnell added more new lines, "I change hoes like women change clothes"
9) Donnell-led "25,25,25" / Rare Essence's Work the Walls - a guy said to me, "Whatever you're writing, they crank", Charlie was on backup vocals, Halima played congas, Britney danced on the speaker, Mike said, "Look at Halima y'all"
Mama Chelle was there.
10) Donnell-led Alternating Trillville's Some Cut / Notorious BIG's Warning / Keith Murray's Call My Name (tease) / "Wait a minute" echoes
11) Donnell-led Tupac's Hail Mary
12) Donnell-led D4L's Laffy Taffy - Donnell did a birthday shout out to Jackie, / Donnell Kanye West's I Heard 'Em Say (tease)
Donnell stopped the performance, he said, "I don't know what Tiffany is going to do."
13) Donnell acapella Family - he, Packy and Mama Chelle held their fists up
Donnell said, "Choo Choo, whatever you're wearing, Charlie is scared of this girl, I'll write you a permission slip like first grade, check here."
14) Donnell acapella Sly & the Family Stone's Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin) (tease)
Some guy said to me, "You're here every week!"
Donnell said, "Lolo, keep the boots on, you can take off everything but the boots."
Packy said, "Vincent is waiting for you to say something about him." Vincent stood over by the connection to the mics.
Donnell said, "Who's the real Nikki?" There were at least two last night:

Nikki at the Thanksgiving show at Zanzibar


"original" Nikki (Nikia) also at the Thanksgiving show at Zanzibar
Donnell said, "Yeah, Omar got the number, he's 1-0 at the Tradewinds, undefeated at the Tradewinds."
Donnell said, "Did you see Nicole (one of the bartenders) on Thursday? Bartenders, you don't know who you're working with; she damn near did a cartwheel and the splits on Thursday."
Donnell said, "We need to take up a collection for Vincent, he's got the Arthur Ashe..." Vincent unplugged him and said, "I was waiting on you."

Simone walked out of the club behind me. Her car was parked behind mine. Her sister, Nece, said, "That's the cool white boy who's here every week. You're a n*gger, not a white boy."

Friday at Safari Steakhouse
Safari Steakhouse, 9430 Annapolis Road Lanham MD 20706

The fire was going in the fireplace when I arrived.

Dave, then later Googie, worked the PA.

Familiar Faces
First Set
1) The Roots' You Got Me - instrumental
2) Don't Stop - instrumental (horn hits to start)
3) Mike-led John Legend's Ordinary People - Cindy and Kiki were there. I went over and sat with them.
4) Mike-led Stevie Wonder's As
James was there, on backup vocals.
5) Halima-led (Sade's) Cherish the Day

Cindy said she's interested in Mike's butt.

Sanisse and Yolanda were there.

Two guys break danced during the break.

Second Set
1) Percussion solo
2) Mike-led Bernard Wright's Who Do You Love
3) Donnell-led Rare Essence's What Would You Do (for the Money)? / "It's alright"
4) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh"
5) Donnell-led "Do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!"
6) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - Dwayne played a guitar riff from Kool & the Gang's Funky Stuff
Tamiko was there.
7) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Tell Me - nice Dwayne solo
Tyrell was there.
8) Mike-led Prince's Take Me With You
9) Donnell-led Hold the Note / Percussion solo - Donnell told DJ Flava (aka GoGo Rudy) to turn a light on Smoke, so the ladies could see him, Donnell had him wave while he played
10) Donnell-led Miss Keta Will You Dance for Me - I danced with Cindy and Kiki
11) Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh" - Donnell did "Ssss..." and "Oh" repeatedly, Mike did heavy breathing, Donnell sang "Oh" from Donna Summer's Love to Love You, Baby, which Sanisse completed
12) Donnell-led Vinnie D's Porno Star?
Donnell announced that tickets for $50 were already on sale for the New Year's Eve show at the Hilton. It will also feature After Hours and possibly John Legend. Donnell said, "Ladies, leave your man at home, we put it in like unh, unh unh".

Third Set
1) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable - Halima held her mic to the crowd
2) Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease)
3) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up
Sixx was there.
4) Donnell-led Trina Was Great
A guy turned to me and asked me if I was FunkMasterJ. When I said yes, he said, "I'm oldschool."
5) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That - interrupted, Donnell said, "Are you all serious with all that bumping and sh*t? Check their IDs, we're not about that. We're about working the women: get some numbers, buys some drinks and have some fun (he repeated this a few times). It doesn't matter where you are from."
A guy said to me, "You're always partying!"
6) Donnell-led It Is What It Is - Donnell did a shout out to The Rapper, Donnell added lines, "I am what I am, I'm a raw n*gger, none bigger, pull the trigger", Donnell said of the bumping guys, "Don't just check their IDs, check their birth certificates", Rah sat in performing It Is What It Is, but first he said, "Before I go too far, the whole Southside", Rah said, "Gimme that beat", He called up Michelle Blackwell
7) Rah-led Brown & White - "Wait a minute" / Ride Out Rah said, "I got a whole lot to do, so we can get right to it".
Michelle Blackwell came onstage.
8) Rah-led "I love it... Say again" - the crowd responded
9) Rah-led "You won't ever see my face again, you don't know me, oh oh"
10) Rah-led "I'm an..." - the crowd finished the lyrics, Rah said, "Hold it on up Stomp, bring it on up, twenty-five and older, put it in the pocket, go hey", the crowd shouted, "Hey", Rah said, "Twenty-five and older, Whoa", the crowd shouted, "Whoa", there was a fight, Rah said, "We don't do that, not on Friday nights. We don't promote that, we keep it real grown up."
11) Michelle & Rah-led "Whatcha going to do when... Call that name... in those jeans, ladies", Rah said, "Whatcha going to do when congo city..., Let the beat work", the frontline danced, Rah said, "You still got it in you, you know I love to party. Safari go to work."
12) Rah said, "Settle down, let's start... boom ba bad doo. Stay everyone to show Smoke some love, everyone hands up" - the crowd all put their hands up, Rah said, "Wave to 'em Smoke, ay ay ay", the house lights came on, Rah said, "Get 'em up"
Rah and Michelle Blackwell left the stage.
Donnell said, "That's my man Rapper. You still working, Smoke? We're getting ready to get on up out of here."
13) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Stars Be Partyin' (tease)
14) D4L's Laffy Taffy - instrumental, Donnell said, "I almost forgot about this" / Lil Kim's Lighters Up - instrumental tease, Donnell said, "He switched the song, Godfather knows all the songs"
Donnell said, "Tamiko did you get something for your birthday?" She said yes and smiled. Donnell said, "Nephew we're going to have to have a meeting." She smiled and said no.
Donnell said, "I think we're going to have to have a dress code fellas. I think fellas are going to have to wear a three piece suit in here."
Donnell thanked The Rapper and Michelle Blackwell. Donnell said, "Did you bring church boy? Preacher boy? Rapper messed him up; he used to attend church..." Rah smiled.

One of the guys handing out flyers outside said to me, “What are you doing here? Are you a freak? (because I’m white) “. Another guy stopped him and said, “N*gger was getting down.”

Thursday at Zanzibar
Zanzibar on the Waterfront, 700 Water Street SW Washington, DC 20024

This was only my second visit to Zanzibar (the first was for the Fantasia After Party) and my first to the upstairs area. This was a different crowd than usual for Familiar Faces. It was diverse in make up, including the ages of the fans present. Many people were very dressed up.

Shonda, Michon and Candy were there.

A man named Darrell sat down at a table with me, along with his friend, a woman named Kimberly. Kimberly recognized me as a regular attendant at Familiar Faces shows. She asked me if I was their manager. I told her about my project and she told me all about her love for GoGo.

Familiar Faces
First Set
1) Mother's Day - Donnell went on the floor, playing his horn
Michon and others took pictures.
There was a lot of conversation amongst fans in the front bar area audible on the dance floor.
2) Grover Washington Jr.'s Lock It in the Pocket
A parking valet spoke with Donnell. Donnell announced that the valet garage was closing and people needed to report to get their cars if they parked that way.
3) Halima-led Rodgers & Hart's My Funny Valentine
4) Halima-led The Brand New Heavies' Never Stop
5) Halima-led Jill Scott's Golden

Simone and JoJo were there.

Sharmba Mitchell, Big Don Pimp, and Tony the security guard were there.

Second Set
Donnell did a shout out to Warren Williams, owner of Club U, in the audience.
1) Halima-led Sade's Pearls
2) Mike-led Ruff Endz' Someone to Love You
3) Halima-led Jill Scott's Whatever
4) Mike-led Georgy Porgy - intro / Bobby Valentino's Slow Down
5) Halima-led Faith Evans' Again
I may have missed a song as I was zoning out at this time.
6) Mike-led John Legend's used to Love U
7) Mike-led Raheem DeVaughn's Ask Yourself - there was mic distortion, Mike stood at the edge of the dance floor
Tiffany G., 6'9, and James were there.

Third Set
James was on backup vocals.
1) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable - there was a different break/transition in it
Nikiya was there.
2) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh" - the crowd responded
3) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - Dwayne played a guitar riff from Kool & the Gang's Funky Stuff
Lima was there.
4) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Tell Me - Michon and Candy danced synchronized with each other, Candy was dancing with me, Mike said, "Candy, I think you got Jordan hypnotized", 6'9 did nonverbal gestures indicating writing and Shonda waved her finger at me
5) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up
6) Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh"
7) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That
6'9 brought Go-Go Mickey to the stage.
8) Mike-led Lap Dance - Go-Go Mickey sat in on the congas, he played them from the opposite side of normal (the side where the mics are, across the congas from where Smoke stood), Donnell called "Hey Smoke", but Smoke wasn't playing, he turned around and saw that and said, "Hey Mick"

Benjiy's birthday at Takoma Station
Takoma Station, 6914 4th St NW, Washington, DC 20012

Shaun, Mike Smith, Tim (LJ), Nikki, June, Kevin Lee, Tamara, and Benjiy were there.

Donnell said of Benjiy (Editor of GoGo Swings Magazine), "Little Benjamin Little, I used to walk him to elementary school and drop him off."

Tracy S. was there.

Familiar Faces
First Set
1) Donnell-led Sly & the Family Stone's Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin) (tease)
Donnell said to Benjiy, "I told them, I used to walk you to elementary school, keep the n*ggers off you. Look at him now, he's a big bully. Seven years ago, I almost had to smack him over a picture."
2) Blueprint - instrumental, Donnell played his horn on the dance floor for Benjiy twice / Parliament's P. Funk (Wants to Get Funked Up) (instrumental tease) / Mike-led Donny Hathaway's Little Ghetto Boy - Donnell said, "Don't tell me that isn't you, Benjiy"
Benjiy said, "Keep it moving."
3) Halima-led The Brand New Heavies' Never Stop
Ray was there.
4) Halima-led Whitney Houston's You Give Good Love - Tamara was on backup vocals
5) Mike-led Tony Terry's Freaky Little Game
Archie Paige was there.
6) Mike-led Bernard Wright's Who Do You Love (debut)
7) Halima-led Sade's Pearls

Angie was there.

Second Set
1) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable
6'9 was there.
2) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Tell Me / Wali (another birthday boy) rapped
3) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up
Ron Moten was there.
4) Mike-led Prince's Take Me With You / Mike sang something I couldn't hear
5) Donnell-led Hold the Note
Val "Tina Turner" was there.
6) Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh" - the crowd shouted, "Go-Go Mick-ay"
7) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh"
8) Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease) - verses for Benjiy, Tracy, Wali and more
9) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - Dwayne played a guitar riff from Kool & the Gang's Funky Stuff
10) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That
11) Donnell-led It Is What It Is - Donnell added a rap, also on prodding from 6'9, he said, "I am what I am"
12) Donnell-led Trina Was Great
13) D4L's Laffy Taffy - instrumental
14) Donnell acapella Trina Was Great
Donnell said, "Thank you Tony Tate for celebrating your birthday with us. Tony Tate was the hand clap for (Rare Essence's) Body Moves. He was in the Young Dynamos."
Donnell said, "Mike Smith, the wickedest man alive."
Donnell said, "JC, don't keep looking at me... We can take off together."
Donnell said, "Alright Packy, we need one more meeting, this will be meeting number three."
Donnell addressed Vanessa, Archie's girlfriend, "Guys need to start bringing their girls to the GoGos. Cousin Archie dancing in the middle of the floor (with you). I love when they fall in love at the GoGo. When he puts his shoes on Saturday, you need to put your shoes on." She laughed the whole time as he said this.
Some male fan said to Donnell, "When you going to bring your sand to the beach?"
Donnell responded, "They all in here. You was dancing with one of them."

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

Shadonna, Tiffany F., Tata, Ebony, Natalie, Danica, Cindy, Kiki, Sharon, Tracy, Nikki, Sanisse, Yolanda, Los, Archie Paige, Nita, Paula, Shante, James, Arielle, and Kevin Lee were there.

Familiar Faces
First Set
1) Johnny Burke & Erroll Garner's Misty - instrumental tease during warm up
Tim (LJ) was there.
2) Halima-led Jill Scott's Whatever
Britney sat on the same speaker she did last week.
3) Toto's Georgy Porgy - intro / Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Slow Down - James was on backup vocals
4) Mike-led John Legend's Used to Love U
Pinky and Jammin' Jeff were there.
5) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable
6'9 was there.
6) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh"
7) Alternating Donnell-led Brown & White / Ride Out - Donnell said, "Slick Rick started this sh*t a long time ago"
Slick Rick was there.
8) Donnell-led Northeast Groovers' The Water / Mike-led Parliament's Aqua Boogie (A Psychoalphadiscobetabioaquadoloop) (tease)
9) Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh, let me know if you feel"
10) Halima-led Sade's Pearls
I danced with Cindy for much of the set.
Vic, Mama Chelle, Shawn, and Angie were there.

Sharmba Mitchell was there.

Stomp said, "Stomp is mad because he didn't get any food."

Simone, JoJo and Slim Goodie were there.

Second Set
1) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - different keyboard play, Dwayne played guitar lines from Kool & the Gang's Funky Stuff, I danced with a girl who asked what I was writing
2) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Tell Me - the crowd shouted, "Wind me up, Smoke", Donnell said, "Do what?"
Tracy S. was there.
3) Donnell & Halima-led Lil Kim's Lighters Up
4) Donnell-led It Is What It Is - Dwayne played different guitar lines and then later guitar lines from Kool & the Gang's Funky Stuff, Donnell added new lyrics, a girl came up and claimed her Sprint cell phone, she danced in middle of the stage floor
Donnell asked if Halima was ready, she said no, so:
5) Donnell & Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That - Donnell did the initial choruses, cleared out the women from the stage floor, then Halima took over
Britney danced on the speaker.
6) Alternating Donnell-led Trillville's Some Cut / Notorious BIG's Warning / Keith Murray's Call My Name (tease) / "Wait a minute" echoes
It went dark
7) Donnell-led Rare Essence's Spotlight - they literally used a flashlight as a spotlight (it was the only light on), I danced with Slim Goodie
8) Mike-led Rare Essence's One on One (Footz version) - the house lights came on
Ras Lidj was there.
9) Donnell-led 50 Cent's In Da Club (tease) - verses for Tiffany and other people
10) Donnell-led Trina Was Great / Ras Lidj rapped
I believe Tamiko was there.

Friday at Safari Steakhouse
Safari Steakhouse, 9430 Annapolis Road Lanham MD 20706

Cindy, Kiki, James, Archie Paige, and Arielle were there.

Familiar Faces
First Set
1) Mother's Day - Donnell went on the dance floor playing his horn
Ras Lidj was there.
2) Mike-led I Dreamed You
3) Mike-led The Stylistics' People Make the World (Go Round)
4) Halima-led Sade's Pearls

Lolo, Kim, and Danielle (celebrating her 22nd birthday) were there.

Charlie was there.

Sanisse, Angie, Tracy, Chanel, and Tiffany F. (celebrating her birthday) were there.

Second Set
1) Mike-led Marvin Gaye's I Want You - I was talking with Tiffany F., so I wasn't paying a lot of attention, but I am pretty sure it was I Want You
2) 6 Minutes percussion solo
3) Mike-led Anthony Hamilton's Since I Seen't You
4) Donnell-led rap "So listen to what we say, have a lovely"
Los and Jay Gotti were there.
5) Halima-led Alicia Keys' Unbreakable
6) Halima-led Erykah Badu's Danger
7) Donnell-led "Hey ay, Ho oh"
8) Donnell-led "Do it for the ladies/fellas, Oh my God!"
9) Mike-led Bobby Valentino's Tell Me
10) Donnell & Halima-led Lighters Up / percussion solo
11) Mike-led Prince's Take Me With You
12) Donnell-led Hold the Note
13) Donnell-led Hey Keisha Will You Dance for Me / percussion solo
I danced with Angie during the set.

Stacey and her cousin Shante were there.

Yolanda was there.

Archie joked, "DeeDee was there."

Third Set
1) Halima-led Stevie Wonder's Living for the City (tease) - just playing around
2) Halima-led Faith Evans' Mesmerized - Dwayne played Kool & the Gang's Funky Stuff
Blak was there.
3) Mike & Donnell-led Rare Essence's Lock It / Donnell-led "Lincoln Heights" chant / Mike-led Sam Cooke's Chain Gang
4) Donnell-led Trina Was Great - Jay Gotti sat in
5) Halima-led Mariah Carey's It's Like That
6) Alternating Donnell & Mike-led Rare Essence's Work the Walls / Halima-led Gwen Stefani's Hollaback Girl (tease)
7) Donnell-led "Unh, unh unh, We do the work like... We make it real good, put in like... so you feel real good, like I can feel good" - Halima sang, "Want to... Have a time"
8) Donnell-led It Is What It Is - Donnell added new lines
9) Mike-led Lap Dance - they ended, then Stomp, Packy, Jacques, and Halima (congas) resumed
I danced with Angie, Cindy and briefly Cindy and Kiki during the set.
Donnell talked about some girl wearing a garter belt, he said, "That's Charlie's thing."
Tiffany F. showed a GoGo pic with Mike. She said, "I'll tell the judge, that's when I got pregnant."
Lisa was there.
Donnell said, "Charlie had a thong on at Myrtle Beach, ass all hanging out. I don't believe you got on a girl's bike, I know it, I saw the pictures, he had his ass in the air (like Brown & White). Who got a bike, Charlie needs a ride down to…"
Charlie said to me, "None of that happened."