Has it really been 2 months since an update... MY BAD!

Been living a little bit though.

Sooooooo... where do I begin???

A couple of weeks ago, I planned on seeing a friend's daughter in a fashion show. I think she's 5 years old. I was all for it and could not wait to go a support.

The day of the show, I was leaving work a little late and opted to just show up at the end and bring the little model some flowers instead. You know, make her feel like the rockstar that she already is! :) The show started at 6, I'd get there by 7.

My friend told me the address, but I put the word east in front of the street name. She even corrected me the day of, but my mind was set on EAST... anyone who knows me knows that I stay "hopstoppin" it up cus I'm kind of directionless...

At 6:50pm, I'm in parkslope, BK when I shouldn't be. I don't know this yet. My friend's daughter was home-schooled the year before so by now I think that its perfectly fine that I am now ringing the doorbell of a brownstone and not a "school".

An elderly woman comes to the door and I immediately know that I made a mistake. I tell her where I am trying to go and what I was trying to do. The night before, I spent the night over a friends house who was styling me for my video shoot. I had a big garment bag, a bouquet of flowers, my computer case and maybe my green puma bag... Yeah, I was "bag lady" on this woman's stoop.

She explains to me that I should have gone to such-in-such (her home address without the "EAST" part). She explains that its actually a church with a school attached and that she attends the church. She tries to explain to me how to get there by train, but she notices the defeat in my eyes. She invites me in, and I say no and asked that she goes in to explain to me how to get to the train... it was cold. I was covered up. She explains a bit more, but then insists that I step in and have a seat. For a split second, I think to myself "please don't kill me"... lol the thought makes me giggle a bit as I'm sure she was thinking the same thing... but maybe not.

She asks me to sit and says something like "you must have a guardian angel". She hands me a bulletin from the church and says that perhaps its a good idea to call the place to see if the fashion show is still going on. In the meantime her son comes from upstairs to see whats going on. We explain what happened and that I'm lost and he seemed un-phased that a stranger was in the house just as the woman was. We exchange names... I don't remember his name at all. He offers me a water bottle.

Finally, as if to give up, the woman suggests that I take a car to the church instead of the train. She says I can get there in like 10 minutes as opposed to 30-45 minutes on the train. (where was I? was I that lost??). I ask how much it would be and they say about 8-9 dollars. I look in my pocket to see how much cash I have as I do not carry much. I pull out 9 dollars exactly. I pull it out with joy actually, as if to say "Thank God"... and the son pulls out a 5 as if to say, "nonsense young grasshopper, you'll need more just in case." They pretty much "make" me take the money. After a while it becomes hard to fight. I knew this was a blessing. I knew this was God. I knew she saw herself in me, and was helping herSelf.

She calls a car service for me and we wait a couple minutes. The son asked me what I did, I told him I was a singer and he immediately gets up, looking for a card of sorts. Says his cousin is a musician and loves soul music. Says that his cousin loves music in the vein of Erykah Badu. That made me smile really big as this man has never heard me sing before but already knew that I was Badu like.

My car is here. I stand up and express my gratitude and smile a lot and the woman has the nerve to give me a hug and kiss on the cheek... THE NERVE!!!

I missed the fashion show. My friend and her daughter had already left when I got there, but I'm not upset. I knew I was where I needed to be and everything happened as it should have that night. I needed this example. I needed to feel that I was divinely protected. At that very moment.

to be cont'd (and perhaps sooner then later).

Love Letter (part3 i think)

The Back Cover of My CD by Huntli Images

Dear Nakia,

If there is no ending and this is all a cycle… if you are truly evolving, if there is no destination, just different parts of your cycle, then what is happening in your life right now is only preparing you for the next part of your cycle. You are learning what it is to be balanced. Before you had a very narrow idea of “joy”… of “up” yet you are always moving up and it is really “All Joy” as you sang it. At times you feel like something is ending and that you should mourn. Though I will never tell you how to feel, (I’ve learned that the hard way), I will suggest that you not forget to celebrate.

Just as if a loved one has “passed away,” you are very well aware that they have only made their transition and their life has gone to the next part of their cycle. By no means am I saying that it isn’t sad, for you’ve created such a bond with them. Yet there is still a place to smile. Their life is going to continue, probably not as you know it, but they will continue on. And it is the same for you, Nakia. Your life, your cycle will continue, from this moment. Probably not as you know it, yet it will. Welcome your next part. You have authored an extraordinary book, yet keep writing.

_____ was a chapter. Probably a very important chapter, yet _____ is not the book.

Take as much time as you need. I have a feeling that these words serve you and speak to who you really are. Keep creating. Keep sharing. You are so beautiful.

Thank you for allowing me to come through you.

Love always,

God As Nakia

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you

Vlogs are easy and hard at the same time lol... this was my 7th take... after a while I said, screw it, I know I'm loved and I just feeling sharing :)

from REMEMBER ME

QUESTION...

Click the picture

picture by saddi khali

Transition (lyrics)

Don't know if its the Virgo in me, Or the way that I was raised to be
That keeps me constantly stressin, And missing all the great things
in this life, its passing me by

So I've been tryin to find things that ground me, Show compassion to my friends and family
Learning how to love without condition, but I forget to love me
So easily, is it how I choose to be

Well, I've decided...
That I forgive me
Its my decision, and I've decided
to Live my life and not let life live me
I forgive me

Back straight, head up, don't look down now, show my beautiful face
I'm fine, it's cool, I just fell down, but down
I won't stay, I refuse to stay

My past is a piece of me, Don't want to be the girl I used to be
I think its time I leave her be, she wasn't serving me
So I release thee, lovingly

And I decided...
I've gotta leave, I love you girl but I've gotta leave
And I've decided, I love you little girl...
but there's a beautiful Woman, waiting for me (waiting to be me)

Deep inside I hear a voice say...
(I hear it, and it telling me I love you, and today I'm saying, "I love you too" [from album version]))

Today I'm focused on the love within me, and all the gifts I have to give
Today I hear the God within me, and I choose to live and I've decided to live

So I'm gonna live...

(from REMEMBER ME)

Time Traveling 1/5/10

I am in town (Detroit) for the Holidays and my father would like to show me around. Take me to see some family I hadn't seen in a while. My father, in this strange place, is uuuuhm a prominent choreographer who I will call Phil Z. Rones. While he walked me from place to place, we mentioned how it would be really nice if we could all get together and dance nude. He mentioned that the family is different nowadays and that it might be difficult this time around because they are not comfortable anymore. "They don't know the form" he said. I think the overall idea was to get them to dance nude, which in this strange world, was synonymous with "creating".

He dropped me off over a friends house and it is NYE. This friend had to go to school on the holiday. I stayed at his place while he did that. He lived in a basement apartment. I walked from room to room until I was in my childhood house and I saw Malkia, my sister is her room, with a baby on her lap. She was sitting on her bed and in front of a tv. She warned me that my friend was a cheater and that everyone that went to the particular school he went to, was a cheater. "Thats what the school was known for" she explained. But I wasn't bothered by it. Malkia was doing the babies hair as she tried to warn me.

My friend came home from school and we decide to "do it". The new year had begun. We went into the next room which resembled an unfinished garage. broken pieces of wood all around. 2X4s. The roof was similar, unfinished. We took off our clothes and we danced. "Doing it" meant dancing naked. We felt liberated. I don't think we touched at all. His frame was tall, and strong. I enjoyed it immensely.

And then I woke up... wrote it down and

I am on the 1 train and I am above ground. I am on the way to a talent contest where uuuuhm Derek Foberson is the judge. He is actually in the same car as me. I know this and am trying to spark up a conversation. He is not budging one bit. Then I look on the floor of the train and notice that I have a couple pair of panties on the there. One pair is red with gold stars on them and the other is a faded blue and kind of shiney. They were my panties and I tried to retrieve them, but I don't think I did in time. He saw them and I was so embarrassed.

And then I woke up again

Time Traveling 1.0 1/3/10 10pm-1am

I was talking to a friend of mine about a problem she was having. She has had this problem for a while now and I think it concerned a man. She came to me with her solution which was to wear a special jacket whenever talking to him. The jacket was a dark jacket with beads all over it and the collar was silver and also beaded. She was really excited about the idea. She would wear the jacket to protect herself when dealing with her man friend. Though the man friend wasn't physically abusive to her, she felt she needed protection.

I wanted to tell her that I thought it was a silly idea but the next thing I remember was driving a car and talking on the phone at the same time. I don't usually drive so I am kind of nervous. I am on the phone with "Billy". I am explaining a great idea I had to Billy and he seemed very interested and enthusiastic. It is day time, and it is well lit. The sky is beautiful. I am still nervous, I don't know if its because I am driving or if its because I am on the phone with Billy, which sometimes makes me nervous because I don't want to say the wrong thing to him. I come to a bridge and notice I huge hump like bump in the road. The hump is actually the bridge, and I have to drive up the hump to get to the other side. To concentrate i put the phone down and explain that I can't talk right now. I am driving over the bridge and I am going higher and higher. I think I am safe. The height reminds me of a roller coaster. I am in the clouds, on the bridge, driving upward and just as I get to the top, I drive down a corkscrew like road with no ending. The road has run out and I am headed towards water.

I fall into the water. It is just my body. There is no car. I fall head on and hit the water. I try to protect my eyes while under the water because I wear contacts. But somehow my eyes are open and I see very clearly. While under the water, I notice it is well lit. Its not dark or murky at all. I notice 2 sets of legs walking and then I begin to try to stand up in the water, which is no longer deep.

They are 2 boys, kind of short and chubby, light brown skin with ceasar hair cuts. They looked black but they seem a bit ambiguous. I hear them say something about Yoga and it reminded me of dancing. When I asked them about dance class they seemed as though they didn't understand my words. Then I asked them where was their "Yoga Maker", and they pointed me in a direction. I was on a beach. A beach with many inhabitants. Everyone was wearing dark dirty looking clothing. Shorts and t-shirts with the arms cut off. Dark blue, burgundy, brown. I asked 3 people before I was directed to a big house. They told me to go upstairs and ask, which I did.

I went up the staircase, sat down with someone and said I was looking for the Yoga maker, in which they replied: "You mean dancer?" I explained to them my story

and then i woke up

AFROMANTIC (acoustic)

Hear/Purchase the song here: http://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/nakia-henry/id303433612

I know, I'm slackin

detox ended well, i now know that its in the mind more than anything. Im looking forward to the next one. I am currently living in the stone ages and don't have access to the internet until im in a library so its hard for me to communicate with my internet friends :(... but thats temporary... the only constant is love and im living it. I want to share some lyrics with you all though. If you're just joining me, I have a beautiful album available digitally, titled REMEMBER ME. The lyrics I wanna share comes from a song entitled AFROMANTIC. This was the only co-write lyrically on the album and I am very proud of what came to be. If you dig what you've read, you can check the song on the myspace page, and/or you can buy the album. These days, when I'm feeling something hard enough, you don't have to upsale me. I'll buy it immediately. If I instantly connect to it, I want nothing but the best for you. So take a read, maybe we're similar.

Afromantic
(c) Nakia Henry and Tosin Adeyinka

You arouse me
So astounding
Divine creature you
You’re all around me

What I say to you
I say bout me
Your strength goes on forever
Why not be strong together

This ain’t no love song
Not setting the mood
I’m just calling it like it is
I’m reminding you of who you are

You and me
Me and you
It’s an illusion baby
I know the truth

Oh lets plant this seed to the earth and let this flower grow
Grow to the sun, more than and never less then before
Oh expanding growth, six kids fifty four years
Oh be one, be one, be one

What I say to you, I say to me cuz we are one and its afromantic

Just the thought of you
Just the sight of you
I’m in love with you
I guess I’m inside you too

You lived inside my mind
Bout time to real-ize
No more concepts baby
My soul wants to apply

If the world's a mirror
Let’s look into it
Look at the light
And we’ll remind the world of who we are

Just look closely baby
We’re amazing
We are beautiful
We are royalty

Oh lets plant this seed to the earth and let this flower grow
Grow to the sun, more than and never less then before
Oh expanding growth, six kids fifty four years
Oh be one, be one, be one

This is not true.... YET!!!

Just got back to the hotel. Biggest crowd ever. What an experience. Played at the Tamale Sports Stadium in Northern Ghana. I was invited to play for Rocky Dawuni’s Independence Splash 2010. Yeah, who knew I had an audiene here, but I do, and they love me, and I love them. To be quite honest I'm not sure that they knew of me before last month, but it doesn't matter, the show was amazing, and they know me now lol

Last month, I had come here to perform in little cafes with my band and to do some volunteer work in the elementary schools. That was my plan, but after a week or so, my audience got bigger and bigger and everyone wanted to know more about the girl from United States who sang the "grateful song" (its what they call it lol). "Her voice resonates with Healing Power" they keep saying. Meanwhile I would do storytelling at the elementary schools during the day. Spreading the same message as I do in the songs: We are one, all of us make up GOD. So before I knew it, I had an audience of parents, friends, artists, lovers, teachers, nurses... all because of their children.

here's a a blurb about the independence day splash: "Independence Splash [2010] was organized by Dawuni’s Africa Live! NGO and assisted by the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly, with support from UNICEF and the European Union. The concert drew dignitaries including the Head of the European Union Delegation in Ghana - Filiberto Ceriani Sebregondi, UNICEF Ghana Country Representative - Dr. Yasmin Ali Haque, Northern Regional Minister - Honorable Alhaji Mustapha Ali Idris, Tamale Metropolitan Chief - Mohammed Amin Anta and IPA Director Dr. Sulley Gariba, amongst many others." http://www.ghanamusic.com/2008/03/13/rocky-dawunis-independence-splash-2008-draws-crowds-and-impacts-awareness-in-ghanas-northern-region/

Last year, I helped out with their US debut in LA at Afro Funfe', and that was craazzy, peep: http://edition.ghanamusic.com/news/events-news/323-rocky-dawuni-independence-splash-2009-a-smash

So this year, they decided to bring me out here, and at first I was kinda nervous, I knew I would receive love, but I never imagines this kind. There was a moment when I had the crowd shouting "DON'T BE AFRAID TO LET GO NAKIA" and everyone was together chanting me on as I danced all over the stage un-afraid, almost ran into one of my drummers (sorry Farai lol) but he was dancing wild too, we had a blast. And then later on, while I sang "Transition" for a split second I can see that everyone in that stadium was engaged and invested in the moment. You could hear a pin drop if you payed close attention. and as soon as I ended with "I choose to liiiiiiiive" their was silence fo about 5 seconds, (the longest 5 seconds of my life by the way) and before knew it, the crowd stood to their feet and cheered. Like for real... no slow clap intro, they cheered. I saw people crying, but mostly I saw people just nodding their heads and clapping like they just saw their daughter in a dance recital, they were so proud of their daughter Nakia. aaaahhhhh it was so. beautiful. Its gonna be a whie before I can get some sleep from just thinking about it. So I'm just up, wired... chatting with you :)

sooooo....

I don't think that I blogged about my release, prolly because its been a wild rollercoster ride with lots of downs and ups and downs. But its up now, and the album entitled REMEMBER ME is available for digital download on ITUNES, CDBABY, RHAPSODY, AMAZON, and a slew of other sites, so check me out!!!!!

www.cdbaby.com/cd/nakiahenry

write a review... or write me at friendsofnakiahenry at gmail dot com. tell me what you think, cuz I'm pretty darn proud of myself. Sales are goin strong and I am very very grateful for all parties involved, especially Fernando "Royal" Singleton. SHOUT OUT!!!!

Ok, back to the business of changing Nakia's life. I started this year with the release of my album, and since then, I am focused on goin even harder. The goal is to become the best performance artist I can be. Would love to travel this year as well... So I'm setting a lot in motion. Lately I have been overwhelmed with my day to day grind, and have decided that i need to make a few drastic changes. I can only hope for the smoothest transition. But once I make the transition, no matter how dramatic the outcome or process, it will be extremely be necessary and will only add positivity and awakening in my life. I am on my way to being the person that I am suppose to be, and doing the things i am suppose to do, and having the things that i am suppose to have, for it is my birth-right. My life has shifted and my soul has been speaking to me, whispering sweet messages in my ear for a while now, and recently it started screaming. and I can no longer ignore it. I am not a person who works to pay bills on time, and I have been "trying" to be that person for a while. I am much more than that. "That person" does not make me happy, especially with my soul screaming at me, constantly reminding me of the joy that I'm suppose to have, the light that I'm suppose to be. I can go on and on, and I know that I am not being specific, but who ever is reading this should know that the struggle that i am goin through is about to get interesting...
I will close this entry with a message that I wrote on my mysace page... love and light to you all...

****

I have been getting messages from people who are going through a rough time in regards to the economy, and people asking if I could help out in any way. Families across the board are always in my prayers, and people who are going through a rough time are always in my prayers, ALWAYS. But my prayers mean nothing if you don't believe you'll over come this yourself. Now is the time to exercise your faith. Now is the time to believe like you have never believed before. Sometimes it takes rough times like this for you to demonstrate just how strong you are. I don't write these songs for nothin... If you knew me, you would know that I am the one who should be singing these songs... well, at least who should be singing them first. And now that I do, (more frequently then you know) I am stronger. I remember what cloth I'm cut from. I remember how strong i really am, and how strong I have always been.


SO I SAY TO YOU: BELIEVE. Believe you can make it through, it maybe be rough now, but thats ok, cuz its temporary, whats goin on now, is not your life. YOUR LIFE IS A LIFE FILLED WITH LOVE, PROSPERITY, JOY, ABUNDANCE, STRENGTH, POWER, AND LAUGHTER. and more accurately: your life is filled with WHAT YOU WANT TO FILL IT WITH...

so do yourself and favor and remember who you really are... and of course
REMEMBER ME
~Nakia