Baltimore musician Wayne "Coop"er of Basement Boy fame. You can also catch him playing along side DJ Karizma at the Sky Lounge on occassion.
Famed Balto deejay Michael Joyner and Tradawn of Bmore.
(l to r) Michael, Tradawn, David of ICB, Jay Rags, Yvonne
Far right is Junior Vitale....budding Musician. Joined by a passerby.
Tradawn of Bmore and Mike Joyner
"Estaban" of the Inner Corner Band
(l to r) David aka "Esteban", David aka "Fire", "Jay Rags", Michael Joyner.
The Winter Music Conference ran from Tuesday to Saturday. This was a Friday night and there have been so many parties up until this point that our crew was not for any nonscense on this night. Not in the mood for any overly expensive clubs, long non-moving lines, or overly crowded parties. This pic was taken outside of the Sofi Lounge where a host of good dj's were playing including dj Karizma, Herb Martin, DJ Spinna, and more. You could hear that the music was just bumpin' inside but from the looks of things we didn't think we could get the party experience we were looking for. It was a little too crowded.
While me and the rest of the crew contemplated what we were going to do next I just captured a few pics. We heard that a soulful party was moved to the Opium Garden just 2-4 blocks away. A few of us decided to walk over to see.
We took a few pics on the way to the Opium Garden hoping to find a party with less of a packed atmosphere.
After arriving at the Opium Garden and finding a club and line quadruple the size of the Sofi Lounge party we just left, we took a few more pics before heading back to the Sofi Lounge to pic up another party to our crew before rolling somewhere else.
After leaving the Sofi Lounge area we all decided to try another party at the Amika. On the way we see a dude playing congas on the sidewalk. He wasn't bothering anyone, just sharing his talents for a little money. Anyway, when we got to Amika the line was super crowded and they were talkin' $40 to get in.
We took 2 cars up to this location and while waiting for our friends in the 2nd car we decided to walk over to check out the conga player. This was the start of a street party that included a famous Balto dj, club dancers, 2 Inner Corner Band members, rappers, spoken word artists, and pedestrians who turned into dancers.
Me and the folks I roll with love life and having fun so we couldn't help setting off this street party. We wanted to have our own fun outside of any club and help "Junior" fill up his tip hat.
Once our homegirl from Bmore arrived the party really got started. Cameras started coming out of the pockets of everyone to capture the moments created by our street party.
Soon people started stopping to enjoy the show and tip "Junior". Cars started to slow down too. The 2 Cops standing on the median across the street knew we were just having fun and didn't stop the party.
The party was in full effect now. We already had 2 rappers come and spit some really fast lyrics to the conga beats. "Jay Rags", that's me, even performed a spoken word piece in front of the crowd.
The party was happening now. Most people who came by felt our energy and "Junior's " rhythms. The digital cameras and camcorders were really out now.
"..........we are the urban descendants of the Eubie Blakes, the Cab Calloway's, and the Billie Holliday's............."
Our street party lasted well after 3 or 4 am. Soon a parking space opened up right in front of where we were. That was a blessing because "Fire" from the Inner Corner Band of our crew went to get his car that had their instruments in it. When he got back, rhythmic sound s were coming from everywhere. We created a party and was chanting all kinds of fun stuff to go along with the beats. Like the chorus to the song "Jingo" by Candido.
party over here...........We also learned that "Junior" could sing. He was singing and playing the congas. This is what the Winter Music Conference is all about. We had talented musicians on the street playing for a few donated dollars and the love of music.
We got everybody feelin' the energy...........
We almost rap up the party saying goodbye to "Junior Vitale", as he wanted to take a picture of all of us together for his own memories. This was some of the most fun I had during the conference. It was raw. We all packed into one car and drove our friends to their car. We were still feeling the vibes from the street party and was all singing the chant to Louie Vega's "Africa/Brazil" song as it blared from the speakers of "Fire's" car. People on the street were dancing and bobbing their heads to our flow as we headed off to eat breakfast.
daylight had come upon us as we headed back to our hotels missing the free continental breakfast again.
