boston progress radio

with the exception of one month, for three years, every second friday has transformed a tiny bookstore into a magical haven of shared energy—stanzas, lyrics, melodies, rhymes, dances, visuals, fragmented thoughts, reciprocation and appreciation, have been transferred between bodies and spirits.

so i thought it would be fun to take a short look back, in order to look forward.

the bookstore, east meets west, opened october of 2004, with just a small table full of independent apia CD’s and chapbooks. only open on saturdays, the store served as a clubhouse of sorts for boston progress members to catch up, crack jokes, and build together. having an actual physical space available and seeing the potential of our space, it was only natural to program an open mic… but what shape it would take or how it would be actualized, no one really could tell. up to that point, only a few people have actually passed through the threshold of the store and wandered into our world.

in a boba tea spot in the back bay, at a monthly boston progress meeting, the open mic began to form an identity. after several suggestions (ginger-bred, mic-a-saurus rex), vinh the kid said after only a second of thought, east meets words, and the open mic had a name.

first open mic, we had the synchronous fortune of having not just one, but two members of 2 tongues, anida yoeu ali and marlon esguerra, in the northeast. it seems only fitting to have them be the first to bless the open mic as our first co-features. flash forward a year, we had regie cabico telling stories of mini-wooden-penises from men in barrels while humping a stool as a make-shift lover. in between and following, beautiful features from nyc, philly, the bay, LA, minnesota, toronto, chicago, jersee, and locals—all have graced the space.the list of open mic-er seem to be just as illustrious with local poets, musicians, freestylers, youth, passer-byers—all have come thru the space and shared…

to now. we don’t even have to worry about having folks come through… without fail, open mic nights become packed. and the unheated bookstore warms with body heat, which is the only thing that can keep you warm during the cold cold cold boston winters.

on a personal tip, the open mic has opened gates internally, like nothing has before. it’s not just learning the audience banter as a host, or getting over awkward insecurities as an open mic-er, or being brave enough to read from dusty journals as a feature, but i’ve learned that the more i can let go of… speak my mind and heart about, the more room i have to grow… i’ve learned to be open, unguarded—even if just for a few minutes—shed walls and free little pieces of my thoughts with the people. i’ve learned in a deep way the power of words… the unlocking of held breathes i usually choke back, releasing spiritual self into the physical world. even now, three years later, once a month, i still get nervous as i open my black book of secrets and with a shaky voice read out. but i’ve started to see many others, other unidentified poets and writers looking forward, raising their voice at the open mic. in the most obvious way, the open mic was a monthly session to meditate on the state of your union. where would i be if i didn’t have that space… i can’t even begin to assume.

looking back, we realize the open mics really wouldn’t be anything without everyone who supports–reads out on the list, listens in the metal chairs, claps their hands to the beat, yells words to rhyme about, and who shouts—ohhhhhh yeah. so it seems only right to have our three year anniversary feature be east meets words—a super mic of sorts. each and every participant—open mic-ers and audience alike—are the feature.

oh, the only month we did not hold the open mic at east meets west, was august 2005—when boston hosted the 3rd apia spoken word summit. but i guess even then, one can see the community and family showcase as open mics, so yeah, then for three years, boston progress has hosted an open mic, each month… and we’re still holding it down. solid.

Tags: Boston Progress, Commentary, Open Mic.

Back in my Asian American student conference attending days, I acquired this compilation CD of Asian American artists, Plugged In 2. Honestly, back when I got this CD, it wasn’t something I was really in to. I think this was mostly because I had horrible taste in music while I was in college. Horrible.

I loaded up the CD this past weekend, and it was funny to listen to each track again, nearly a decade later. I remember that the track I probably listened the most to was 5th Platoon’s “And We Do It Like This.” I remember being shocked to learn that one of the members of 5th Platoon was a woman. I don’t think I knew what turntablism was before I went to college, and I certainly never could have dreamed up 5th Platoon and Kuttin Kandi.

The other track that I can specifically remember listening to was “Letter to Our Unborn Children” by I Was Born With 2 Tongues. This was also probably my first exposure to spoken word, and spoken word performed by people that looked like me. It was almost strange to listen to these voices coming out of my speakers, without seeing the faces of the people performing.I was lucky enough to see both of these groups perform live (again, I owe a debt to all the multitudes of student conferences that I was part of). I think that’s where it all started to come together for me - to be able to experience this live, to think about the people behind the music, to come together over their words, to experience this with other people that I feel connected to. That’s when I started to feel connected to these tracks, these songs, this community.

I think music has the power to transport you. And as I listen to these tracks again, now, I can remember what it felt like to listen for the first time, to process over and over what it means to be plugged in, to be in the middle of searching for that place where you feel at home, where you fit in. And where you don’t.
Here’s the track listing of the cd:

Plugged In 2

1. Visions, The Pacifics
2. When U Think About Me, One Vo1ce
3. Hostile Takeover, The Mountain Brothers
4. I Wanna Be Your Man, Kai
5. Letter To Our Unborn Children, 2 Tongues
6. Comet, Mango Pirates
7. Self Sufficient, The Visionaries
8. Girl It’s You, Devotion
9. X-Games, The Wisemen
10. Fender Bender, Kid Koala
11. Balcony Beach, Lyrics Born
12. When I Get Close To You, Jocelyn Enriques
13. Snapshot, Mitsuo Downer Sounds

Does anyone have Plugged In 1?

Tags: Appreciation, CD, music.

This is for those who have been sleeping, or simply are too young to know.

Back in 2000, I was about ready to graduate from college with basically no job prospects or plan for what I was going to do for the rest of my life. Scary proposition. Then again, it wasn’t anything new. I had not been a high-achieving student – or person in general - since the 6th grade, when my teacher thought I was solving mathematical equations like an idiot savant. He was half right. I’m basically still doing math at a high 6th grade level.

The only thing I knew at the tender age of 21 was that I could play guitar better than almost every Asian kid on campus, which didn’t do much to make me a hit at the parties. I also was writing poetry furiously. You know how that theory goes about 1,000 monkeys banging on typewriters? I was writing at the speed of those hypothetical monkeys – and at that approximate skill level. I had mad opinions and feelings, but as far as style went, I was copying whoever else I had ever heard and kinda liked. When I wasn’t writing poetry, I was writing pre-emo emo songs with fake earnest lyrics like Counting Crows. Basically, I wanted to be some new millennium version of Richie Havens, except without the talent, urgency, or historical importance. Maybe I was trying to be Nickelback.

But it all changed that February when I ended up not making the trip out to Yale for ECAASU because of a snow storm. One of the performers I missed at that conference was the now-legendary I Was Born With 2 Tongues. Read more

Tags: Appreciation, Commentary.