I often forget that I have this blog, not just to pour out my thoughts into but to also document all of my adventures. I do and go so much that I need to remember to document it all. And also, write, even if I don't think it's good, continue to write, because when it all comes down to it, writing makes me happy.
Above is a picture I took over Labor Day weekend when I ventured to Philly for yet another solo adventure, the Made in America Music Festival. Two things I love, live music and me time. I had ordered a ticket for only Saturday but low and behold when I opened my mail Friday night they had sent me a ticket for both Saturday and Sunday. I'm not going to lie, I scream and cried happy tears and then had a little dance party releasing my inner Beyonce. Pretty sure Kanye was in my room at that time singing to me and imaginary friend Beyonce, "You a bad girl and your friends bad too. You got the swag sauce, you dripping Swagu."
Yes, I'm a bad girl.
(Watch out badgirlriri, I'm coming for you)
This festival is put on every year by the talented Jay-Z. I was blown away by the amount of talent I was able to witness in a short two days. Below I have posted several pictures and videos I shot throughout the first day of the festival. Enjoy.
PUBLIC ENEMYis a hip group consisting of Flavor Flav, DJ Lord,
Chuck D, Professor Griff, Khari Wynn and The S1W group.
And for a moment I thought I was back in Baltimore...
"The moments we have behind us, you won't be able to see again.
We're only responsible for what we live in right now."
-Flavor Flav
Guess whooooo
There was a skatepark in the middle of the festival.
Stopped to photography them for a bit.
Porter Robinsonis an electronic DJ from the United States.
I was able to get a lot of awesome shots of him performing.
Awesome show, he always gets the crowd pumped.
Guy in a wheelchair getting lifted from friends to get a better view of the stage.
Empire of the Sun is an electronic duo from Australia.
Most known for their hit "Walking on a Dream"
Phoenixis an alternative rock band from France. I didn't get any photos
because I was trying to save the battery on my Canon for BEYONCE.
was the headliner of the festival and she didn't bring the 'B' game, she brought her 'A.'
She is perfection at it's best - sexy, confident, talented, intelligent, etc.
By far the best performer I have ever seen, not just saying that because
I'm mildly obsessed with her. She indeed, "run the world."
This was her intro of the evening.
That sums up Day 1 of the Made in America Music Festival!
Can't wait for the Mrs. Carter World Tour to come to Washington D.C.
on December 18, 2013. Fellas if you want to surprise your lady with the
BEST Christmas present ever, here is your chance - who knows,
if you're lucky she may just turn into a 'naughty girl.'
Last night consisted of good friends, good pizza and good jams; what more could a girl ask for? There were plenty of awkward dance moves and, of course, everyone continuously tried to one up one another with who can bring back the best 90’s jam. In my opinion, I’m going to go ahead and say Dave Waller took the win with that one. That's why it’s 6:37pm and if I had to guess, I’d say I’ve listened to “Got You Where I Want You” by The Flys at least 175 times today.
It’s that time of the year, the best time of the year, when the crisp autumn air sweeps in and takes your breath away, leaves are bursting into magnificent colors, dancing their ways off of the trees and falling deeply in love with the ground. As I stop for a second, take a look around, I can’t help but realize how incredibly blessed I am to be able to take in all the serenity and beauty around me. With the constant sound of The Flys blasting through my headphones, I’m spinning in circles, I lose all control and if this moment mother nature is singing to me “Got you where I want you.” She knows I want to feel the way the wind blows. I want to color the world the way the leaves paint. I want to fall in love the way the leaves do. I want to feel Fall in my heart and leaves in my soul.
There are often times where I wish I could go back to the time and place I first heard a certain song-- this one especially. All day long I’ve been lost in a star gazing oblivion. The way this song makes me feel, is the kind of love I want to find: deep love, lost in the moment love. If I could only listen to one song for the rest of my life and it was this one, I’d die happy. It makes me feel alive, makes me feel like nothing else in this world matters besides the music flowing through my veins, this song indeed has me where it wants me. Will I ever come across that someone who makes me feel this vivacious? Someone who makes me want to play our soundtrack on repeat.
Deep? Yes. Occasionally something comes over me, I mentally throw my laptop into the ocean and my thoughts are a dell, rolling in the deep. (If you didn't laugh, reread the last sentence until you do. Don't worry, we're all a little blonde at times.) When it gets to that point I have to stop, slap myself around a little and remember life really is not that serious. When something affects my heart, which it rarely does, I suddenly turn into the next Taylor Swift, overanalyzing all aspects of life and writing about it. What can I say? I'm an artist. It's part of what we do.
"Thank you for the tragedy. I need it for my art." -Kurt Cobain
This is quite true, it’s the only time I don’t suffer from the repetitive actions of starting to put words on paper, stopping, trying again, crumbling up, throwing away, writing again, something well known as, writer’s block.
“i think everything in life is art.
what you do. how you dress.
the way you love someone,
and how you talk. your smile
and your personality. what you
believe in, and all your dreams.
the way you drink your drinks.
how you decorate your home.
or party. the way you write your grocery list. the
food you make. how your
handwriting looks. and the way you
feel.
Life is art.”
It may sound crazy, but I often think we as artists are made to feel these vast emotions more deeply than the average person. We can effortlessly take these responses that we base purely off of emotion and turn them into great accomplishments. Before we know it, our creative power takes off faster than the speed of light.
I’m often told that when I enter a room, I bring with me this gleam of light that wasn’t there before. The last time this was said was about a month ago. I came across this woman who left a huge impact on my life, I swear she was me in about 10years. She told me I light up a room when I walk in. The way I talk, my body language, my smile, I simply explained to her I think I was just born on an extremely sunny day. I mean come on, I know it rains a lot in Florida but on September 22, 1985, I’m going to say Miami didn’t even see one sprinkle - I was born walking on sunshine. We shared stories, she told me how she spent most of her 20’s traveling, living in several different cities, how she always loved like she had never been hurt, how she experienced everything she wanted in life before marrying her husband (who turned out to be a man she’s been friends with since high school) and how she is now married, madly in love, has three amazing children and the career of her dreams. She gave me hope and inspiration that I’m following the right path and doing what’s meant for me. She asked me about my life and what has inspired me to become the person I am today. I laughed, and repeated the word “inspiration” in my head a few times and then out loud, like what was I about to spell it out for her too? Is this a spelling bee? Anyway, I then told her that like most, my parents have inspired me to become the person I am today. I have taken their mistakes and made it my main goal in life not to repeat them. I have taken the good in them and soaked it into my bones. I have taken their recipe for disaster, tweaked it in the right places and turned it into a recipe for success. I shared with her a bit more, but I won’t on here because that’s what my book is one day for. Before we parted ways she said something along the lines of “By being brought into this world by a Colombian Drug Lord and an Escort, dealing with years of sexual and mental abuse, to come out more than okay, with this sparkle of light, as someone who inspires hope into others, and has such an impact on the world around you, you pretty much have to be a strong individual, not letting the hardships in life get the best of you. To learn that lesson at such a young age, it is inevitable that you were indeed born on a bright shiny day."
I once read...
“Life is not a recipe. Recipes are just descriptions of one person’s moment in time. They’re not rules. People think they are. They look as if they are. They say, ‘Do this, not this. Add that, not this.’ But really, recipes are just suggestions that got written down. As you cook up your own life, never let anyone else’s recipe for success intimidate you or get your way. Know your own truth, and live by it.”
Those that really know me, know that I hate excuses and people that do not own up to their own actions. I’m a firm believer that this life is what we make of it, the more we give the more we get, the more we love the more we learn how to truly feel. I like to think my life recipe as a picnic- something refreshing, beautiful, sweet, sunny, adventurous, elegant, fun, delicious, and always with a half full glass of wine. Your family's recipe will not cook up your future. It’s your kitchen, create something magnificent and delicious. Never forget that every day is a new day, and if you didn’t like the way your recipe turned out yesterday, try again. You probably just didn’t use enough Old Bay.
XOXO,
Lizzie
"Let's make this happen, girl You gotta show the world that something good can work And it can work for you And you know that it will"
