Hi SOUL Hi! Lovianhal!
How you? I’m glad you’re here. I’m here too! I love you.
“They used to tell me I was silly. Until I popped up on the TV. I always wanted to be a superstar. And knew that singing songs would get me this far. But I ain’t complaining, We all wanna be famous. So go ahead and say what you wanna say. You know what it’s like to be nameless. Want them to know what your name is. ‘Cause see when I was younger I would say: When I grow up, I wanna be famous, I wanna be a star, I wanna be in movies. When I grow up, I wanna see the world, Drive nice cars, I wanna have groupies. When I grow up, Be on TV, People know me, Be on magazines. When I grow up, Fresh and clean, Number one chick when I step out on the scene. Be careful what you wish for ’cause you just might get it. You just might get it...”
I don’t remember exactly when I first heard The Pussycat Dolls, “When I Grow Up” on the radio, but I do remember jamming to it as a sort of superhero anthem, whilst schlepping Aubrei to and fro to wherever we were headed. I’m clear that I wasn’t clear at the time why the song resonated with me so much. What it pulled at in my soul– much more than simply liking the beat and lyrics and such. Anthems feel different in the body. Anthems move things.
That said, I was a relatively young mother (Aubrei was one or two). I didn’t know at that time that my burgeoning, award-winning radio career would stall indefinitely and that whatever dreams I may have entertained of “fame” and “fortune” or at least a national radio career– would stall indefinitely too. Meanwhile, interestingly, this was around the time I had finished the first draft of The Stellar Trilogy, Book1: Among Us.
Now. Radio isn’t my origin story. Music is. I have said a half a thrillion times on TEMS that when I was growing up, I wanted to be Janet. And I proved my delusion at every talent show starting in middle school. My most “famous” performance was when I sang “Control”. I had the outfit and the hair and I sang the song like it was my own. I didn’t have an instrumental, so I just used a cassette tape (remember those?) and vibed with the mic on. Chyle. My song choice was earnest. The outcome of my choice was that for the foreseeable future, when I walked down any hall or went to any school event for yeeeears, if I was seen, the hallway rang with “Control!” In my young teenager mind, this was one of my more embarrassing experiences. I had no idea what I was actually being primed for.
College is where I really began to write and sing my own songs and meet people who would help me create music and begin a performance path. I noticed even then that the people who were most interested in working with me were men. In fact, throughout my music journey, most of the people I worked with were men. The studios I was invited to were owned by men. The willing collaborators and producers on songs were men. The gatekeepers of opportunities were men. The A&R, the scouts, the deciders, the record company execs, the whomever and for whatever in music–all men. So much so, most of my musician frens were men. And most often, I was the only woman in a room full of men in a studio where they passed around blunts and “yack” (I didn’t partake–they oft treated me either like lil sis or a fly on the wall) as we wrote songs for potential albums that ninety two times out out of ninety-three would never see the light of day. It was a labor of love. I was steadfast.
I didn’t necessarily want to be famous. I wanted my voice to be heard. I wanted people to sing my songs. I wanted my words to move people. I wanted to change the world. Particularly, the world of music. The songs I wrote reflected that. I was singing “girl power” anthems and genuine songs of love and change– well before “Black Girl Magic” was a thing. And yet, the men around me, because they were in “control”, didn’t always vibe with my point of view. To make a very long story (that is probably best left for my memoirs) shorter, once I discovered that what I really wanted and what the music business was about were not going to gel unless I sold a part of myself that wasn’t for sale– I took a different path. A few different paths. That eventually led me to radio. Which brings us back to where we began this lil StarsNote.
I will admit, having had many, many, many years to ponder my life trajectory, that I did not understand fame at the time. I didn’t know what it meant when I said I wanted to be Janet. I didn’t grow up in a famous family that had music oozing from every orifice of my body. I just knew that I could do all the things I saw Janet do. I had no clue what she had to sacrifice to get where I met her image and likeness.
In a lot of ways, at this big age, I still do not understand “the world’s” version of fame. We’ve grappled, contemplated and discussed different aspects of energy exchange on TEMS. And considering all of the famous glass houses that are actively experiencing what happens when high velocity stones hit them, now is as good a time as any to dig deeper into FAMOUS as a #shiftprompt.
Believe me you, when I asked about this month’s conversation, and FAMOUS came through, I was looking at spirit like–FORREALZ? But there is something here worth exploring. You know how we do on TEMS. Regardless of what we think a word means, the conversations we end up having is always much more. It’s a new month hunny, get ready to shift your perspective, explore your origin story and BE FAMOUS.
Anyway, we have mucho to discuss with tonight’s Starfolk University staff:
Dr.Phil Roundtree – Dean of Societal Mental Health Awareness and Engagement
Daoud Mohteghi (David Jones) – Dean of Christian Mysticism and Counseling
Meredith and Tavis– Deans of Indigenous Education Dept.
Jason Benefield– Dean of Peaceful Life Navigation
Michael Shawn – Dean of Humor and Social Etiquette
Of course, Jordan is in the WuWu Metaphysical Studio with me, so Join us tonight 7-10p on WURD! Bring a journal, pen and 3 frens…
#starfolku #starpeopleish #comegetfree
“Earthkeepers have always known that our perception of the world determines its very nature.”
―The Four Insights: Wisdom, Power and Grace of The Earthkeepers, Dr. Alberto Villoldo
You can listen live with this link and/or on the WURD App. We ARE Live on the FB Live OR Twitch too tonight!
Per usual, in EVERY single thing we do, the intention is transformation. And well moisturized legs.
Pssst! This month our #shiftprompt is:
The Art BEing FAMOUS
Acronym:
Fully
Abundant,
Mastering
Original
Untarnished
Sacredness
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