Voice of the Bass…

After watching the tribute to Prince, I realized how much more I love acoustic music and how familiar I am with the style. And yet how unfamiliar some of my facebook and twitter friends are. So as you guessed it…I was inspired to inform by taking it to the blog…………The Beat of the day!!

Esperanza Spalding

There are many gifted singers in jazz today, and no shortage of accomplished acoustic bass players. But few jazz artists can be both.
Esperanza Spalding's album, Esperanza, blends her soaring vocals and her deep bass lines.

At 25, with her outsized afro and jangly earrings, Her musical journey began on the much smaller classical violin, but by the time she got to high school, she was bored musically — until she had a chance to encounter with an instrument much bigger than her the Double Bass.

On her album, Spalding sings in Spanish and Portuguese, and also vocalizes in a fast, non-lyric-based style, as if she were voicing the horn melodies. “overjoyed” is one of Rareblkpearl's top picks, she is all over youtube! Take a listen you will not be disappointed.

Blessed with uncanny instrumental chops, a multi-lingual voice that is part angel and part siren, and a natural beauty Esperanza Spalding might be the hope for the future of jazz and instrumental music

Keep ya ear to the streets...and you will find real music!

Stay Rare~

Beauty On The GO...15mins

You might think it would be tough to do but it’s not, getting out the door fast in the morning is a dream we all have at times. First thing you need to do is not so much worry about the day but about doing maintenance instead. By taking the time once a week or month depending on the treatment, will save you time in the morning. Start by having a facial once a month or apply a mask once a week I use a Honey Scrub( this week I will post Homemade Facial Scrubs ) .

By having a deep cleansing facial once a month or week will help your skin to look and feel better overall. This in turn will save you time by not having to apply foundations etc to give yourself that false glowing skin. With maintenance you will already have it!

Choose skincare products that are muli-taskers, moisturizers with SPF, creamy concealers in two shades that can be applied and blended quickly to give you that I’m woke look even if it was a late night. Apply a little gold, bronze or nude eye shadow around your tear duce’s as well. This will open up your eyes. Curling your eyelashes and applying just mascara will also help open up your eyes. Never leave the house without at least mascara and gloss; wearing your favorite lip gloss will also help save you time as well. You can also have your eyelashes dyed so you do have to apply mascara at all.

Having your eyebrows waxed will help. Having well-structured eyebrows makes you look well groomed even if you are wearing little to no makeup. Also having other parts of your body waxed such as your legs and armpits will save you time in the shower. It’s all about saving you time. Have a manicure done every two weeks gives your hands that well cared for look. If you are worried about chipping nail polish, wear light colors of nail polish during the work week when you don’t have the time to keep reapplying your nail polish. Light nail polish colors do not show their chips as badly as dark nail polish does. Save your really cool dark colors for the weekends when you have time to be sure there is no chips.

If possible lay out your wardrobe for the next day so it’s easy to find and get dressed. NO wasting your time looking for your shoes!

There are days when you have the time to apply everything and then there are days when time is of the essence, I hope these few beauty tips will help make your morning a little faster.

Stay Rare~

Don't forget to follow and share your comments!

I came and went, I ate and drank, I tasted the Taste

Yes, the Taste of Chicago is an annual 10-day festival of mostly deep-fried food from various Chicago restaurants, many of which are served on a stick, on the bone or in a small paper bowl with a crappy plastic fork. And everything can be served on a stick, from popcorn to cheesecake to fruit. And why not, it keeps your hands from getting ridiculously dirty and allows you to still hold a beer, 6 Dollar Bottle H20 or whatever your drink of choice maybe.

Whenever you go to the Taste, you can count on one of these things happening:

It will be ridiculously hot/humid outside. On cue, every year, the temp rises to 90 and sometimes HIGHER with humidity.

You eat only hot food in the hot sun on the hot pavement

You sweat through your clothes (sexy, I know)

Sunburn will appear on one or several parts of your body

Your personal self-esteem will be boosted

You find out how little clothing people can wear with or without crossing the decency line

Be happy that nutrition information is not available. Forget about the calories for a day!

Please remember to put on your SPF or you will be sacrificing your skin for Ribs, Corn on a stick, and Manny’s. Yes, the food is great but not worth the horrible sunburn. Be aware that shade is a rare commodity at the Taste.

If you can stand the Heat make your way out to The Taste this weekend and enjoy some great Chicago food, music and fun.

Stay Rare~

"cupcakes make you happy"

The hunt was on a few weeks ago for a CUPCAKE after calling all around the mission was dead. Ughhhhh left empty and feeling void a few weeks later a friend recommended Swirlz in Lakeview. After entertaining an out of town guest all week, I figured what better way to treat myself then with a nice velvet cupcake!! So I grabbed a friend to tag along and witness this greatness.


Wow! By far the best cupcakes I've ever had.

Cake is moist and airy.

Cream is light and flavorful.

Decoration is a work of art.

Found the staff to be super friendly and very knowledgeable about their inventory. Also learned they have gluten-free products - how cool is that?

(so hard to choose just one)

About $22 for a half-dozen cupcakes -- as they say, don't pinch pennies on your belly!

I was blown away by not only the selection and presentation of the cupcakes but also the service. It was like Nordstroms service but to the next level. Pam, who was the manager on duty Sunday, was just above and beyond nice to us, patient while we made our decisions and nice enough to let me take some pictures inside. She even gave us an additional cupcake to try because their vanilla flavor is known to be so good - and her recommendation was right-on.
Bottom Line if you’re in the Lakeview area check em out! If you’re not in the area trust Rareblkpearl the drive is worth the treat.
Stay Rare~

"ya voice is like water; ya voice is like rain"

Hey peeps….this week is all about the BEAT. But not just any Beat more of the rare jewels that are out there just waiting to hit main stream. Let me know what you think or if you have any other hidden artist worthy of hitting the Beat Side ..Thx!

What Sounds Good Wednesday:
Conya Doss (Neo- Soul)

If anyone is familiar with Rareblkpearl vast eclectic musical taste; it should come as NO surprise that I absolutely adore, admire, and live for the artistry and musical stylings of the neo-soul artist; Conya Doss.

Conya Doss has a voice that flows like the water of a calm steady flowing stream. You can expect nothing less than beauty from this Cleveland, Ohio native whenever you press play.

The musical talents that rest in the Cleveland, OH area are quite often underrated, down-played and plain overlooked. In light of this fact, Conya Doss built her fan base the "hard-way", by releasing a series of independent projects. Conya Doss has a very strong and soulful voice with a slight huskiness to it. The kind of voice that whether she’s singing at church or at a club, you know she can bring it.

Her album releases include; "A Poem About Ms Doss", "
Just Because", "Love Rain Down" and her most recent installment; "Still...".

If you enjoy music that touches the soul, stirs the unsteady heart, and speaks the words of the lovers mind; I suggest you purchase her ENTIRE discography NOW.

Some of my favorite songs from her include; "Coffee", "Zoning In My Dome", "Feelin' You", "Just Because", "Missing You", "Here We Go Again", "Those Wur De Dayz", "Beautiful Thing", "The One", "Let Me Love You", "Something 2nite" and my ALL time favorite; "What I'd Do".

You can check out Conya's website; http://www.conyadoss.com/ to find out how to book Miss Doss and other information is also available on the site. Quiet as kept, Conya does have a YouTube page; http://youtube.com/user/conyad and a Twitter; http://twitter.com/conyad
Stay Rare~

Adventures of Rareblkpearl

Oh the Joy's of the CTA.......CHICAGO TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY.

Rareblkpearl is not above public transportation at all. Last summer I tried riding the bus/train for a month but after all the up/down and turn arounds she gave up the fight. Growing up in a smaller city public transpo was not needed so clearly CTA was very overwhelming for Rareblkpearl. It only took 2weeks to surrender the monthly bus pass and go back to
"fill her up" status.

On what she likes the call the adventures of CTA, Rareblkpearl compiled a pet peeve list.

Here ya go!

Cuddlers - If you really cannot stand to be physically separated, I recommend going back to bed. Then you won't tickle her gag reflex .

Loud talkers - This includes personal conversations and people on cell phones. One woman was speaking so loud on her cell phone that Rareblkpearl could hear her over the iPod, which was IN my ears. Indoor voices!

Mistaking the bus for home - It drives me insane when people feel the need to stretch out the morning newspaper on a packed bus. I also enjoy stretching out with the newspaper...at my home. I don't need half of the Times' Business section stretched over me, thanks!

Excessive PDA - Much like cuddling, I don't need to watch you lock lips and feel each other up. I have Cinemax for that :)

Space hogs - I am guilty of this too, but it's an unspoken rule that when the bus fills up, you move your bag from the seat next to you so others can sit down. Yes, it's not as much fun, but it's necessary. People who don't do that are RUDE!

Bumper cars - Eek, another thing I'm guilty of, but I really try to avoid this. This includes having people collide into you with their oversize purses or bags. If I had a nickel for every time I was hit in the shoulder or head by a purse, I could pay off my student loans.

Personal space issue - I don't really have an issue with this, but after having some guy caress my butt on a packed bus once, I get very nervous when I'm packed in. Especially if the person sandwiched next to or behind me hasn't showered or reeks of cigarettes,last nights drinks and B.O. That is the worst!

Well those are the top things that irritate Rareblkpearl.
What are your public transportation pet peeves? Or do you have any great CTA/public transportation stories to share?
Feel free to let Rareblkpearl know how glad you are that you don't have to take public transportation because you have a car!

Stay Rare~

Hon, What's for dinner?

Rareblkpearl knows that she is a creature of habit. She likes things the way she likes them, and sees no reason to deviate from the program as established. The same is true when she dines out. Though a menu may be expansive, when Rareblkpearl finds a dish she likes--she sticks with it. Faithfully. Without fail. In fact, she'll pay you $20 if you can ever catch her ordering something other than what she is use too. Keeping this info in mind I was knocked off my path with the DELISH PF Chang’s Lettuce Wraps!!!!!!!!!

Rareblkpearl had heard numerous of times by her fabulous friends that they were every muthaluvin thing and more…. After countless attempts of heading to PF, I finally grabbed a fabulous friend and had what I call “heaven on earth” experience..who knew???? I guess everyone but Rareblkpearl!!!

Chicken Lettuce Wraps – The lettuce is always so cool & crisp...and Rareblkpearl loves to have the waiter/waitress make the sauce extra spicy. Such a wonderful&delightful treat they are. If you have never dined at PF Chang's/if you have it's a great place to try/return to.

Needless to say, this was a lesson learned.. tho, Rareblkpearl still is a creature of habit I will crawl out and be full out for PF Chang's.

Stay Rare~