Life in NYC
Jun 4, 03:54 PM
Before I get started, I wanted to mention that I will be going to check out Mr. Peter Eldridge at the Living Room tonight at 8PM. He is a tremendous singer and songwriter and if you have a chance I suggest checking him out. Also, Keren Ann is singing tonight and my friend Avishai plays trumpet with her so hopefully I can go check a bit of that out as well. Their chemistry together is beautiful and I can listen to them play for hours.
Last night I went to the funeral for Take. It was so sad and moving and I was emotionally exhausted by the end. I didn’t even really know Take all that well so I can hardly imagine the grief and pain that my friends and colleauges around me were feeling. I was also moved by the outpouring of love and support that came from our community (please read Matana Roberts’ blog on the same subject here — Matana and I have actually spoken about this topic in the past)
New York is a crazy place to be…crazy good and crazy hard. It sometimes feels like everyone is out here for themselves and there is little to no sense of community. A night like last night reminds me about how important it is for us to support each other in whatever ways possible. I know that I am often tired after my own daily hustle and can not imagine going out (financially or otherwise) to support my fellow musicians but it is so important. I think that being able to feel like there is a network of people out there who are behind and around you is important and reassuring. I know that I often feel like the community of jazz singers in NYC can feel a bit cold and unsupportive. Not everyone, don’t get me wrong. But there is sometimes this feeling that I’m out there alone and it just doesn’t seem right. But last night, seeing old friends and feeling the energy and love in the room gave me a renewed sense of community. It was very inspiring and made me hopeful.
I am newly determined to check out as many shows as I can and support as many friends as possible; to just check in with people, make music with as many people as possible. Love has great strength.
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