Woweeee, it's been over a year since our last Brain Candy Calendar! It's lovely to see more virtual and live (or hybrid) gigs on the books, and it's even more exciting to see Lady Brain members getting back to work and having some of their income streams revived. Please do us a solid and show up for these incredible working musicians - buy the tickets, buy the merch, shower them with tips, and let them know how much you appreciate the time and energy that goes into arts and entertainment! Check out the action this month: Wednesday, May 26 - Tori Roze and The Hot Mess at The Casbah on TWITCH Livestream Tune in and join Tori Roze and The Hot Mess as they celebrate their 13th anniversary by rocking the famous Casbah stage, broadcasting live from Twitch. More info. Saturday, May 29 - Julia Sage and The Bad Hombres at Quartyard in Downtown's East Village Julia Sage and The Bad Hombres will play two shows, opening for The Sleepwalkers. Early show, 5:30pm. Late show, 7:30pm. More info. Sunday, May 30 - Lady Brain Presents: API Appreciation House Concert and Fundraiser
An afternoon backyard house concert featuring live (& livestream) music to benefit the SD API Coalition and to support/lift up our API Lady Brain member headliners Tricia Lynn and Thea the Band. Featuring small opening sets from Chloe Lou, Shayna, Corina Rose, and Christina Bernard. Leading up to the event, we'll also be shouting out/lifting up additional API Lady Brain members who can't make it to the event but will be there in spirit, so make sure to keep your eye on the Lady Brain blog! More info.
0 Comments
Welp, that was certainly not the year we planned for. But despite everything, Lady Brain Collective members stayed creative and stuck together, and Lady Brain Presents did our best to showcase their awesome work to the community. Here's a quick video recap of just some of the work we did and fun we had. Thanks to all of our members and Patreon contributors for supporting us - and if you're not yet aboard the Lady Brain train, find out how to join and/or contribute - 2021 will be even better with you in our fam! Video Description: This video slideshow features various social media graphics, photographs of Lady Brain Members, gig flyers, screenshots of virtual/zoom events, and member artwork - all occurring at Lady Brain Presents, either in physical locations or online over the year 2020. The video covers the following topics:
-Community Gatherings (Lady Brain members at open mics, house concerts, venues) -Virtual Showcases (Lady Brain members participating in online events) -Workshops and Meetups (images of hikes, vision boarding, guest speakers, virtual presentations) -Lady Brain Media (photos of podcast guests, Lady Brain writers, online reviews, gig flyers, social media graphics, blog features) -Lady Brain for Hire (gig sharing and business spotlight social media graphics) -Lady Brain for Change (Lady Brain raised $600+ for RAINN) -How to Join - www.ladybrainpresents.com/join -How to Support - www.ladybrainpresents.com/contribute or www.ladybrainpresents.com/shop -See You Next Year & Photo credits to local photogs/friends who captured this year’s events: Sydney Prather, Alyssa Douglas, Darci Fontenot, Cathryn Beeks, Mary Hamer. 10/22/2020 0 Comments October Member Meetup Recap: Zopen Mic
Thanks to all members who participated in this month's virtual open mic meetup! Lots of heartfelt and poignant pieces were shared, covering an array of topics like love and acceptance, social change, processing time and anxiety during a pandemic, and more. In lieu of a community gathering this month, we thought we'd share some of the pieces that were performed on this public platform. Read on for a partial replay and discover if any of these artists' words or music resonate with you!
Julia Sage
Original Song: Here Comes the Clock
Bonnie Nicholls
Original Song: Nothin'
Dishes in the sink, evidence of drink In bottles and cans near the door Unanswered texts, unrelenting requests To see if I've got off the floor All I wanna do is nothin', lie around and give in to the fear All I wanna do is nothin' and slowly disappear Curtains drawn, weeds in the lawn Detritus on the porch Bed unmade, bills unpaid The whole place should be torched 'cuz All I wanna do is nothin', lie around and give in to the fear All I wanna do is nothin' and slowly disappear No energy left to explain the entropy inside my brain Inertia is the only thing that moves me now All I wanna do is nothin', lie around in bed all day All I wanna do is nothin' and slowly slip away Slowly slip away, and slowly slip away Susan Lipson
Original Song: Let's Reframe
Complacency is how things go from bad to worse
And it really is a curse When silent shrugs are all we show. Standing by, not standing up Is the reason things don't change For we ALL must rearrange The status quo. The worst of history repeats Unless we stop the trend. It's up to us to end The unjust treatment we allow. We can say it's not our fault, That we've done nothing wrong, But we owe more than a song; We've got to act and stand up now. Chorus: Who are we? Let's reframe As if viewing Earth from space We're just multicolored folks-- The human race. Who are we, staking claims Based on pigment in our skin When the color of our blood Is just the same?! We're part of systems that allow Injustice to exist Now it's time we all resist The -isms hidden in our laws. No human merits privilege More than any other, We ALL come from a mother-- To grow in peace is our shared cause. Only what we add in goodness Can measure human worth For we're all here on this Earth As vital cogs in a machine. So, if some of us are broken Then ALL of us must fix The social structure, adding bricks To build foundations not yet seen. Who are we? Let's reframe As if viewing Earth from space We're just multicolored folks-- The human race. Who are we, staking claims Based on pigment in our skin When the color of our blood Is just the same?! Until we give up stupid notions That anyone's worth more, We ALL know what's in store: More of the same. Unless we teach our kids that they are No better and no worse, We'll maintain the racist curse With no one else to blame. Who are we? Let's reframe As if viewing Earth from space We're just multicolored folks-- The human race. Who are we, staking claims Based on pigment in our skin When the color of our blood Is just the same?! Chorus repeats Astra Kelly
Original Song: Heavy
Heavy, unsteady Waiting for voices to follow Heavy, unsteady Searching for words I can swallow The rain came to shatter, pouring down pain Drowning perceptions we had Waiting, unchanging I won't give in to the madness Chorus: Heavy, heavy I can't carry this weight Steady, steady now Lean into faith, til we break Through Thoughts come in like tremors Sirens signal the storm The rain came to shatter, reflections of me Pieces of the puzzle to place Heavy, yet ready Guide me into grace Chorus: Heavy, heavy I can't carry this weight Steady, steady now Lean into faith, til we break Through Bridge: Dreaming of finding home, safe from the storm Be weightless my soul, when fear lets me go Chorus: Heavy, heavy I will carry this weight Steady, steady now Lean into faith, we will break Through Lindsay White
Original Song: A Little Piece of Quiet
It's like the windows in my spirit and my soul have all been painted over It's like the locks in my heart were changed, and not by me and no one made me a key It's like I'll never know what could grow outside these gates What kinds of fates would await me It's like these poison clouds are shrouds upon my ears It gets harder and harder to hear I just, I just need A little piece of quiet Turn it down Shut it out Gimme more of that sweet silence âIt's like more people just keep dying all the time with bigger numbers come smaller headlines I make a fist, resist, but this twisted mind it binds my wrists I exist in fits Is this all there is If I killed this sound Would I drown or live Repeat Chorus Cathryn Beeks
Original Song: This Time
let's face it
we're not gonna change some people's minds they weren't raised right taught to kill and fight you know the kind and all I can hope for is their children will see the light look with your heart, kid You know what they're doing ain't right this time we are living in makes me wanna give in and die but this rage keeps me living injustice makes me wanna try I don't understand how some folks can turn a blind eye no more will I ignore I aint letting up this time It's now or never I ain't ever seen it this bad so many years of pretending what we had now everything's broken and every one is the glue If you won't join us I will fight harder than you let's face it we're not gonna change some people's minds they weren't raised right taught to kill and fight you know the kind and all I can hope for is that their children are not blind look with your heart, kid we'll make it better this time
Thank you, readers, for stopping by and lifting up our members by bearing witness to their work! Community members and prospective members, please check out our FAQ pages if you are interested in being a part of the Lady Brain fam!
This month was all about exploring vulnerability. Starting with a virtual workshop led by Dr. Lorri Sulpizio, attendees were challenged with finding and posting a visual or creative representation of their current state (see below for some examples).
After the completion of the workshop, we challenged members to continue tapping into their own artistic vulnerability and asked them to share what came up creatively as a result. The idea was not to create a masterpiece, but rather a simple and honest reflection of the moment we are in. Some members utilized the above photos as inspiration, others started from scratch. Below is their beautiful and honest art. Thank you, collective members for sharing yourselves with our greater community.
Cathryn Beeks
Cathryn Beeks is a musician, producer, and mixed media artist (not to mention founder of Listen Local Radio as well as host of the Lady Brain Podcast). She says, “It's amazing how perspective changes everything, how everything changes, including preconceived notions. What was once so distasteful has now become a comfort zone, a place to settle down and live a life full of simple pleasures."
Lizzie Wann
Lizzie Wann is a published poet and spoken word artist. The piece she submitted is called “Life's Work" - it combines inspiration from two of our initial visual prompts: the Danielle Coke quote as well as the Baskoro Lanjar Prasetyo work. She says, “Recognizing where I am personally in the midst of inequality and racial injustice, among other things, has been difficult yet ultimately motivating. Understanding the ebb and flow of energy needed to combat these struggles remains a constant lesson."
Life’s Work
morning fog matches my brain grasping for clarity as my eyes adjust sun struggles to break through revelations about the past explode my here and now disassemble awareness work begins to unlearn I gather blue smoke to synthesize renewed insight every day is a choice to act that is, to take action, not to pretend for colorless accolades it becomes a daily election to cast a vote toward justice to righteously fight for freedom this grim fog hovers but clear skies are beyond in joy, in celebration, in resistance Marie Haddad
Marie Haddad is a musician and mixed media artist. Below is her untitled photograph submission.
Astra Kelly
Astra Kelly is a musician, producer, artist, and spiritual practitioner. Her spoken word piece is called “The Right to Mourn."
The Right to Mourn
I feel robbed of my right to mourn. You’re talking about rights? to bear arms, to harm your brother, your father, your grandmother? My grandmother passed alone the day before my mother’s birthday who is battling cancer during a pandemic....navigating a whole other systemic blunder. How many lives lost on the side while dis-ease rages far and wide and those we love left vulnerable to die? How can you not see as you run naked through the streets with your fuck you flying, screaming I don’t care From there, we’ve fallen I feel robbed of my right to mourn. There have been no moments of honoring lives lost, our test of endurance or our resilience in bearing the cost of this madness. I want a voice that glides on fire as we stand ready to fight. Who shouts “we will rise up strong and give everything to the cause.” One who rallies our hearts to unite as an army of love. I long for one who speaks and the wind blows stronger as the spirits whisper of empowerment and materialize into our frame as we prepare to play the game risking everything for the ones we love and simply cannot lose. I feel robbed of my right to mourn. My chest tight with holding back, fear in my throat, afraid of the breakdown, feeling the weight of this reality and the impending rebirth of the humanity we’ve lost. I want to be close to you. I miss you. I want to grieve with you together as one so we can rebuild when the moment comes and the danger has passed Forgive those who cannot embrace the truth and who dwell upon the murky depths of illusion For now, we wait. Lindsay White
Lindsay White is a writer, musician, and organizer of Lady Brain Presents. She says, “I'm increasingly concerned, anxious, and depressed about what is happening in my own mind and heart, as well as what is happening in this country. We have always been terrible as a country and as a society at acknowledging the harm we do to ourselves and each other; instead we seek out distraction, we stoke division, we fuel fear. We'd rather have a spectacle than have a look in the mirror. I'm taking off social media for the next few months to tend to my wellbeing and try to do good in the world without feeling the pressure or guilt or shame or fear or anger that my online experiences seem to exacerbate. The below is one of the final pieces of prose I shared on my Facebook account. Hopefully if and when I do return, we'll be vaccinated and Trump-free."
The Worst of Us
He told us who he was back in 2016 and since 2016. We can’t seriously be clutching our pearls about the taxes. We can’t seriously be surprised about the bullying and lack of decorum. We can’t seriously be flabbergasted by the misogyny, the manipulative appeal to Christians, and the fanning of fear flames. We can’t seriously be shocked about the latest in a series of white supremacist dog whistles. What is this theatre we are sucked into, where he does what we know he will do, then we point at it hysterically and say “see!?” to all the other people who not only also knew he’d do it, but LOVE (overtly or covertly) that he did it? There’s got to be some other way. I hope voting this vile creature out of the highest office in the land looks like a sunrise, sounds like thunder, feels like trash day, smells like spring, and tastes like freedom. And I hope we remember that we should have all taken the responsibility to flick him off the national stage like a picnic ant back in 2016 when we had the chance to casually do it without hundreds of thousands of casualties. When we had a chance to empower a qualified womxn over an incompetent manchild. So the next time someone comes along who is a threat to all things that are good and safe and kind and just, we don’t make sport of letting them prove to us for four years what we already knew. Please, for the love of democracy and the safety of this country and its people, do not cast your ballot for Trump. He is the worst of us. He is the worst for us. He is the worst.
Thanks to all those members who attended our vulnerability workshop and who shared their creations! And thanks to YOU for attending this virtual exhibit on vulnerability! We will be taking the remainder of the year to focus on private member meetups and workshops, and will keep the community posted on future public community gatherings as soon as we get the green light to organize in-person events! In the meantime, please be sure to visit our Member profiles to see how you can support them during this hard time, and don't forget to check out our LB For Hire page if you'd like to employ a local creative womxn for your next project! Prospective members, find out more about joining the Lady Brain Collective here.
Thanks to all who participated in this year's (virtual) Lady Brain Film Festival. The pandemic threw a huge wrench into our event plans, but we are still so excited to support our members and recognize their awesome work. Not to mention, our selection committee was stacked full of incredible womxn filmmakers and artists who were kind enough to share their work and expertise. Click below to experience the festival from the comfort of your home!
Thanks to all who participated in June's Creative Process collaborative journal series - if you missed any of the entries, please click on the pictures below to read the work of members who contributed their writing, poems, music, etc. Don't forget to join us in July for Queer Voices, an interview series featuring some of Lady Brain Collective's LGBTQ+ members. Image description: Two rows of three photos each. Top row, left to right: Lisa Brackmann, Susan Lipson, Lizzie Wann. Bottom row, left to right: Lindsay White, Tori Roze, and Mary Hamer. Click on individual image to see full blog and full image description.
Thanks so much to everyone who tuned in to our Mother's Day brunch on Instagram Live yesterday! It was our first time live streaming from that platform, and we had a great time celebrating mothers/motherhood. Special thanks to our performers Thea! The Band, Mary Bee, Karina Frost, Gretchen DeVault and Lindsay White for putting on a great show!
Don't forget to circle back to the blog next month for our June virtual community gathering called Creative Process. This collaborative journaling project will showcase the written work on several Lady Brain Members, serving as a time capsule of sorts to mark this moment and movement in time. Thanks to everyone who participated and shared a song for our virtual book club takeover of the San Diego Songwriters Club. We're still getting used to this whole online gathering business, and this was a hard pivot to make because we were so excited to be in a room with our friends book club talking about this book. But, it was still lovely to check out beautiful songs from members of both groups (particularly from one of our newest members Danielle Angeloni!) and we are so proud of LBC member and book club organizer Unison Colthurst for doing amazing things with the community she leads! We're looking forward to scheduling another book club takeover when the coast is clear for being in a room together!
Thanks to everyone who joined us for our first ever Community Quarantine livestream on Facebook! Featuring virtual sets by Julie Albright, Julia Sage, Astra Kelly, Rosy Dawn, Corina Rose, and Bonnie Nicholls, attendees were able to experience the concert-style lineup in real time and enjoy an array of musical styles from some of the most talented womxn in San Diego!
3/26/2020 0 Comments March Community QuarantinePlease join us on Sunday, March 29 for our first Community Quarantine concert! Here's how it works - each performer will be live streaming from their personal account, but we will also be sharing those feeds on the Lady Brain Presents Facebook Page, so no need to jump around from profile to profile if you don't wanna! We're looking forward to bringing a little music and community into your homes! The concert is free, but if you have the means to tip our artists and our organization, a little goes a long way!
Lady Brain Livestream - Community Quarantine Sunday, March 29 - 2pm Tune in: www.facebook.com/ladybrainpresents Lineup: 2pm Julie Albright http://venmo.com/Julie-Albright-8 2:20pm Julia Sage https://venmo.com/julia-h- paypal/venmo: gothmodel@hotmail.com 2:40pm Astra Kelly http://www.venmo.com/astra-kelly 3pm Rosy Dawn Selwitz https://venmo.com/Rosy-Selwitz 3:20pm Corina Rose https://www.gofundme.com/san-diego-creatives-relief-fund (This is a fundraiser hosted by Heather Yambrovich, a local music/art lover who is setting up outreach for local artists in need of assistance.) 3:40pm Bonnie Nicholls (not collecting tips) To contribute to Lady Brain Presents: https://www.ladybrainpresents.com/contribute.html |
Archives
May 2021
CategoriesAll Abby Dorsey Alexis Tia Alisandra Del Nero Allegra Duchaine Alyssa Douglas Amanda Lea Amy Day Anna Zinova Art Around Adams Astra Kelly Barbara Rutherford Bar Pink Becca Jay Belly Up Bonnie Nicholls Boss Ladies Brain Candy Busy Buckley Busy LBs Calamity Cardinal Moon Carissa Schroeder Catherine Barnes Cathryn Beeks Celeste Barbier Chloe Lou Chloe Lou And The Liddells Chris Avetta Christina Bernard Cici Artemisia Claudia Russel Community Gathering Corina Rose Creative Process Cristina Cooperr Danielle Angeloni Dawn Mitschele Dixie Maxwell Donna Larsen Emma Byrd Gaby Aparicio Ginger Cowgirl GoFundMe Golden Howl Gretchen DeVault Heather Marie Jacqueline Silva Jean Mann Jessica Lerner Jessie Lark Jill Badonsky Jules Stewart Julia Sage Julie Albright Karen Lindenberg Karina Frost Karina Frost Moreno Karyn Ann KC Deichler Kinnie Dye KishaLynn Elliott Lady Brain Fest Lady Brain Film Fest Lady Brain Lift Up Lady Brain Presents Laura Jane Willcock Laura Payne Lauren Leigh Lillian Lefranc Lindsay White Lisa Brackmann Lisa Sanders Live Music Lizabeth Yandel Lizzie Wann Lori Addis Lorri Sulpizio Marcia Claire Mariah Priddy Marie Haddad Marlo Smith Mary Bee Mary Hamer Mayzie Jean MC Flow Melanie Medina Meraki Cafe Michele Palmer Miki Vale Mona Tavakoli Naiomi New Music New Video Nisha Catron Paige Miller Patric Petrie Podunk Nowhere Press Queen Be Queen Mab Queer Voices Rachel Riba Ramona Ault Rebekkah Darling Ren Daversa Ren Diversa Reviews Rika Rai Rika-Rai Roni Lee Rosa's Cantina Rosy Dawn San Diego Music Awards Sandi King Shannon Oshea Sharisse Coulter Shayna Soulsong.life Stacey Barnett Steph Johnson Support Susan Lipson Sycamore Den Sydney Prather Talking The Talk Thea Tochihara The Banduvloons The Bold Vocal The Holding Company The Resizters The Riviera Supper Club The Spiritual Motels Tori Roze Tricia Lynn Trish Naval Unison Colthurst Veronica May Voxy Whitney Shay Women's March San Diego Workshops |
Support Lady Brain Collective
Any contributions or sponsorships are welcome and appreciated!