A whole lot of writing

I have had to dedicate almost the entire week to writing: press release for the bloggers/ online magazines, the exhibition proposal and, well, this blog post. Luckily I had already sent a few emails and dms to people (Jamal Edwards, London Live, Charlie Sloth etc) in hope to hear their opinions, so I’d already researched for and had parts of the proposal written down in a structured way. Still, writing for potential sponsors is a long nerve-wrecking process which saw me spend hours at a time in front of the monitor. But even though my fingers are begging for help and my brain seems unable to process any more information, this responsibility I have given myself for the project is keeping me going. I cannot afford to let go of work, I love it and I want ‘A People’s Art’ to happen and be a success so badly!

I now have two people helping me: my best friend Kelly and one of the photographer’s friends Dwyte. Hands down, Kelly is the most hard-working person I have ever met and is a genius at research. I am beyond joy to work with her. She is now mostly in charge of @ForwardAEnt twitter account (thanks to her, we got our 100^th follower yesterday!). 

Dwyte and I are getting to know each other and he’s proved invaluable in providing information and contacts I would otherwise lack – from obtaining budget info and finding a video editor to having a whole list of useful blog sites to send the press release to. He also shares his visions and ideas re: ‘A People’s Art’ which I try to incorporate into my own and hopefully improve the project so it reaches its full potential. Perfect!

So far so good then, although I have still not been able to get hold of a photographer from the Only Connect charity, despite having spoken to them 5 times. I will keep calling until I get any results, at the very least they might refer me to a similar organisation that could be of help.

I also must fix ForwardA’s email address, which right now is so unfriendly to use it makes me feel like I’m stuck in the 90s. It’s a huge problem because Kelly and Dwyte aren’t able to use their own accounts. So I’m on it!

It dawns more and more on me that the wheels have finally been set in motion. And although it’s all still early days, it’s already a proud moment. I am finally building what I didn’t believe I could.

Speaking of things “I didn’t believe I could”, we all have people we tend to look up to and aspire to be like. I have them too. The multi-platinum Hip-Hop producer Sahpreem A King (http://sahpreemking.com) is a name I added to that list a year ago after I read his book Surviving The Game: How To Succeed In The Music Business, which was given to me as a present and played a major role in my transformation as a professional and as a person by giving first-hand insight into the music industry and teaching me how to stay focused. I followed Sahpreem on Twitter, he followed me back, I thanked him for his work and he looked at my website. He generously found the time to actually speak to me via Skype and give me advice on the project. He wrote books that transformed me and a few months later I'm speaking to him, all thanks to what I’m doing! How cool is that!?

So now I have another promise to keep: send the invitation all the way to Florida and have Sahpreem visit ‘A People’s Art’ on the opening night. It’s an honour!

Who would YOU be honored to speak to? 

The importance and struggle of keeping a promise

I guess everybody has encountered situations in which promises were made but not delivered. Remember how frustrated and upset that made you feel? Yet when things get difficult and we consider quitting, we ourselves become the very people that cause pain and frustration to others, and to ourselves. So let's not.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qKC6vPUD54
Marina ~ the voice and the typing fingers behind ForwardA

The blog's structure

It would make most sense if the posts were in chronological order and although I want do my best to follow this, it might not be entirely realistic. As it has already been a year of my dabbling in the world of Hip-Hop, and even though no ‘major’ achievements are there, I choose to think that everything I have done up to now is part of the process and should at least be acknowledged.

         Another issue with chronology, is that sometimes thoughts and ideas come rather randomly but they might well be worth sharing. I think it’s important I do that, whether by writing or talking, whichever I find more effective at the time. My aim is to show, right then, at that moment, what is happening and what thought processes are involved.

And last but not least, in the future I’d like to fit in the questions you might sometimes have for me – please ask away! – anything you want to hear more of or anything that you think might help you – I will do my best to answer and adjust the blog accordingly.

I’ve already started to make full use of @ForwardAEnt twitter for little statements, observations and updates that don’t require a whole post.

Just like any idea, this blog will take time to settle and take shape so please bare with me and I will do everything I can to report my showbiz triumphs and struggles.

(I wrote this on a plane flight so as not to waste time)

Marina ~ the voice and the typing fingers behind ForwardA.