Dawson's Ink

So, my birthday month, aka #AugustWillSon2010, has three sponsors: the site I write for (although not nearly enough) GROOVMNT.com, Crumbs Bake Shop and Blue Moon beer. It’s been a great month with great friends and great surprises. And lots and lots of Blue Moon.

At times this past weekend, I’ve felt I was full to the brim with that tasty beverage, and once I think I even dared myself to take another sip. Methinks September will yield a fast of non-beer proportions, along with a break from sweets as well. Add that to my no-red-meat regimen, and throw in a few bike rides, and I’m gonna be in tip-top shape. #notreallybutIcandream

I’ve enjoyed everything and everyone that has contributed to the celebratory days and nights. I apologize profusely to those who I didn’t call back or get in touch with or communicate with more readily. Blame it on the Blue Moon. And the days that turned into blurs. My heart was in the right place. Love you all.

And now, as I plot my detox, here’s something new that will hopefully become a regular feature here at ‘The Ink’ in order to help me document life on a weekly basis. Gonna call it Dawson’s Links, five things from the week that just ended that stood out to me.

Let’s get to em.
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5. Marina Vs. the ‘Beer Goggles’ guy. Love her. |MSNBC

4. My day job. |YT

3. All ‘Bailey’ Everything. |TVF

2. A Star Named Fave. |APNF

1. Lalah. |YT

Popularity: 7% [?]

Monday night, thanks to the wonderful and innovative folks from the GRAMMY offices, I was invited to attend their GRAMMY Artists Revealed series at the Hard Rock Cafe in Times Square. The featured artist was Melissa Etheridge, whose GRAMMY wins were for Best Rock Vocal Performance for the songs “Ain’t It Heavy” and “Come To My Window.”

Her story is well-chronicled: the ups, downs, defeats and successes, her publicized breakups and successful battle with breast cancer–all of which has shaped her as an individual and as an artist.

And there she stood at center stage, surrounded by her superfans, plowing through her expansive catalog (of which we just got a taste during the 60-minute show) while weaving in stories that brought them to life.

I’ll admit, I wasn’t as familiar with Ms. Etheridge as I could’ve been, but that was nothing a little research and YouTube couldn’t fix. So when I was asked to cover the event via Twitter (@dawsonink–check me out), giving folks that couldn’t be there a sense of what was taking place, I was ready.

Hopefully they’ll have me back, since I was clearly sleep-deprived and working off the immediate rush of one of those 5 Hour Energy shots (overrated, IMO). Myself and tag-team partner Liz (@calinative) were asked to use #GARMelissa as the hashtag for the night, which I did on every post.

Below is the night’s recap–140 characters at a time–of a night with GRAMMY winner Melissa Etheridge.

Enjoy.
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Covering the “Grammy Artists Revealed” event in midtown Tonight’s performer is Melissa Etheridge. First time seeing her live. Tonight’s hashtag will be #GARMelissa

It’s been a pleasure. Shout to @GRAMMYs for allowing me to provide the play-by-play. #lovedit #fadinglikeabadhaircut #delirious #bedtime #GARMelissa

Popularity: 9% [?]

And that’s the way the MADNESS ends–with EAST DIVISIONAL CHAMPION JILL SCOTT being crowned the champion of the month-long friendly competition celebrating Women’s History Month.

The funny thing is… it was never even close.

Nope. In all five rounds, not one of her competitors came close to Jilly from Philly. Starting with Round One, when she bested #8 Alice Smith 69-28, it was a run of excellence that was unmatched. In the semifinal round, Scott trampled #5 seed Amel Larrieux 52-11.

The East Finals, what many thought would be a steep challenge… wasn’t. #2 Mary J. Blige had no shot, going down to “The Real Thing” singer 36-15. Against SOUTH #2 Ledisi, Jill took a long walk and won 35-8.

And in the FINALS, over the past 24 hours, your votes said it all. Jill is the ‘Golden’ child, annihilating Erykah Badu 48-14.

Just an incredible showing. Congratulations to the Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter/actress, whose new movie Tyler Perry Presents Why Did I Get Married Too? opens nationwide tomorrow.

Thank you to everyone who participated in Dawson’s Ink Presents MARCH MADNESS. Thanks to my team: Fave of the Friday Favecast and GROOVMNT, who supplied the daily graphics and was a constant support system throughout the month; and Soul Afrodisiac, who probably got tired of me throwing songs at her to see what should stick for the match ups. LOL

WE DID IT!!!

This was fun. Happy Good Friday. Make it a GREAT one. And we promise to make this even bigger and better than ever next year.

PEACE TO YOU!!! AND CONGRATS TO JILL SCOTT, the inaugural winner of MARCH MADNESS! Check her out one more time.

“Golden” Jill Scott
Beautifully Human: Words and Sounds, Vol. 2
(2004, Hidden Beach Recordings)

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Boom. And we’re out.

Popularity: 23% [?]

Your votes have put together one of the greatest finales this side of “Cheers.” After four weeks of constant and spirited voting, after all the predictions and agony of choosing one great artist over another, after so many choices and decisions… it’s come to this. THE MARCH MADNESS BRAWL FOR IT ALL!

Thank you for all of your support during this inaugural event. Thank you for the votes and the commentary and the enthusiasm. Thank you for taking the time to get to know great new artists like Alice Smith, Maysa and the homies Maiysha and Yahzarah while going hard for veterans like Sade, Monica, MJB and Angie Stone.

Thank you for those who DIDN’T participate, and for the few who asked that they not be involved in the least. (That just told me you don’t–and maybe never will–appreciate good music. Heh.) Thank you for those who wouldn’t show support on their sites. Even without a hat tip, or re-tweet, or acknowledgment from you, we garnered over 4,000 votes during the month.

It was just a great month honoring some of the greatest artists of our generation. A month I will never forget. A month I hope to do better with next year. You guys are the greatest.

Now, you have 24 HOURS to VOTE for who you think is the best. 24 HOURS to stuff the ballot boxes and make sure your predictions are correct. 24 HOURS to crown the MARCH MADNESS CHAMPION.

It’s Jill Vs. Erykah. The battle of the “You Got Me” singers. Philly Vs. Dallas. You know their resumes by now. At this point, it’s who rocks your socks. Who floats your boat. Who moves you. Who you connect with.

Who you’ll vote for.

A great finale to a great tournament. The winner will be announced in this space tomorrow afternoon. Thank you!

ONE LAST VOTE! 24 HOURS! LET’S GO!!!
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Ranking: #1, EAST CHAMPION
Road to the Final Four: Defeated #8 Alice Smith; #5 Amel Larrieux; #2 Mary J. Blige; #2 Ledisi

“The Way (Live)” Jill Scott
Experience:: 826+
(2001, Hidden Beach Recordings)

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VS.

Ranking: #2, MID/WEST CHAMPION
Road to the Final Four: Defeated #7 Janelle Monae; #6 N’dambi; #1 Lalah Hathaway; #1 Sade

“Otherside Of The Game (Live)” Erykah Badu
Baduizm Live
(1997, Kedar/Epic Records)

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Popularity: 34% [?]

It’s DAY TWO of the MARCH MADNESS FINAL FOUR, with two great matchups taking place that will determine who will be crowned as the best female artist in the world.

Yesterday, Jill Scott and Ledisi showed up and showed out in one bracket (EAST Vs. SOUTH). Today we get what some would think could be the final: LISA STANSFIELD INTERNATIONAL DIVISION winner and #1 seed Sade Vs. ARETHA/ETTA MID/WEST DIVISION champion and #2 seed Erykah Badu. Throw into the mix that both young ladies have new music that’s front and center right now, and we have the potential for a battle royale.

You can still vote for yesterday’s matchup and see how you can have a chance at winning your favorite artist’s CD HERE. Right now, let’s get to the music, as the FINAL FOUR rolls on, with the final taking place this Thursday and a CHAMPION being unveiled on Friday.

Ready? Set… GO!
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Ranking: #1, INTERNATIONAL DIVISION CHAMPION
Of Note: Soldier of Love is the sixth studio album for Sade. The disc was released on February 9, 2010 and debuted at #1 on the US Billboard 200 charts upon its release.

“The Moon And The Sky” Sade
Soldier of Love
(2010, RCA/Epic Records)

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VS.

Ranking: #2, MID/WEST CHAMPION
Of Note: New Amerykah Part 2: Return of the Ankh is the fifth studio album for Erykah Badu. The album drops today (March 30, 2010). Producers include J Dilla, Madlib, James Poyser, Karieem Riggins and Ahmir “?uestlove” Thompson.

“Window Seat” Erykah Badu
New Amerykah Part 2: Return of the Ankh
(2010, Universal Motown)

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Popularity: 33% [?]

It’s FINAL FOUR WEEK here at Dawson’s Ink, where the winners of the four divisions face off in a battle to claim the top spot in the tournament. The winners of the four regions are as follows:

Congrats to all of them on their hard-fought and well-earned victories. Now comes the fun part. This week will be spent determining the #1 R&B female artist in the world. First up will be the EAST Vs. SOUTH today, with Jill Scott and Ledisi and their powerhouse vocals going note for note.

And tomorrow, we focus on the MID/WEST Vs. INTERNATIONAL matchup, with Erykah Badu and Sade going at it in a free-for-all.

Your votes will determine who will be in the FINALS on Thursday, with the ultimate winner being crowned on FRIDAY, APRIL 2nd.

If it gets any better than this, I don’t want to know about it. MARCH MADNESS has been a blast, and it’s all because of your votes. So, to say thank you, we’ll be running FOUR separate contests–on Facebook, Twitter, Dawson’s Ink and via email–that could bring you your favorite CD from one of the FINAL FOUR artists!

Here’s how it’ll work:

Facebook: If you’re part of the “DAWSON’S INK PRESENTS MARCH MADNESS” event page, all you have to do is send a message (to the inbox, not on the page itself) with your prediction of who’s going to win the entire tournament. (Hint: You’ve got four choices. One of ‘em has to be right. Heh.) We will then draw randomly from those correct responses, and that winner will receive the CD of their choice from that artist’s discography (read: major albums only. We’re not scouring the earth looking for rare versions of anything. At all).

Twitter: If you follow @dawsonink on Twitter, all you need to do is direct message me with your prediction, and again, a random drawing of the correct predictions will score you the same, a CD of your choice from the winning artist (see above for disclaimer).

E-mail: Send me your predictions at will@dawsonink.com and a random drawing of the correct predictions will be conducted, with the winner receiving a CD of your choice from the winning artist (see “Facebook” rules for disclaimer).

Dawsonink.com: We have something very special in store for this one. Yes, someone who frequents the site will also be randomly selected to win a CD of their choice. Those details will be explained as the week moves on.

Please note that you only have a chance of winning once, so select your method of submission carefully.

So there it is: FOUR WAYS TO WIN during FINAL FOUR WEEK! Just to say THANK YOU for making MARCH MADNESS an overwhelming success!

Listen to the tracks, VOTE (!!!) and get your predictions in! Today, East Vs. South. Tomorrow, Mid/West Vs. International. Thursday, the FINALS. Friday, a WINNER. It’s how we do for Women’s History Month here at Dawson’s Ink.

LET’S GO!
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Ranking: #1, EAST DIVISION CHAMPION
Of Note: Jill will be starring in the new film Tyler Perry Presents Why Did I Get Married Too this coming Friday, April 2nd. Will she also be crowned March Madness winner on that day? Time will tell.

“The Way” Jill Scott
Who Is Jill Scott? Words and Sounds, Vol. 1
(2000, Hidden Beach Recordings)

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VS.

Ranking: #2, SOUTH DIVISION CHAMPION
Of Note: Ledisi strongly dislikes photos being taken during her performances. Will she allow photographs if she wins March Madness? I’m guessing yes. You know, if she was actually going to take any. Heh.

“Think Of You” Ledisi
Lost and Found
(2007, Verve Forecast Records)

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Popularity: 26% [?]