Who Shot Rock & Roll

The pictures above are from the Brooklyn Museum. The museum had a really cool exhibit entitled "Who Shot Rock & Roll" that ended this past weekend, so a few of us ventured out to see the exhibit before they took it down. Although the exhibit was packed and had me feeling claustrophobic at times, it was definitely worth the time to experience these historical photographs. The pictures above include a statue outside the museum, and a bench/gate in the subway station. If you can guess who the groups are in both pictures above, you get serious props. Enjoy!

Knicks!

Hello Hello,

This past Sunday, myself and three other interns ventured out on a cloudy and bleak day in NYC to Madison Square Garden to support our New York Knicks. I knew I wanted to eventually experience the Madison Square Garden building, so when my friend Kevin mentioned going to a Knicks game at MSG, I instantly agreed, not to mention that the tickets cost only $8!
Now, although we sat in the nosebleed section of the stadium, the seats were not all that bad and we had a great view of the court. However, we had some real characters sitting around us. First off, a man no older than 30 was sitting a few rows in front of us, and despite the fact he was wearing a NY hat, he kept cheering for the mavericks! I wanted to walk up to him and say,
"Um, excuse me sir, but your rooting for the wrong team. Do you need me to explain how this whole basketball thing works."
Seeing him root for the opposite team was just to fun though.
Also, a man sitting one section over from us starting shouting "J-E-T-S Jets Jets Jets" midway through the 3rd quarter. I'm not sure if he had drank to much, forgot where he was and mistook MSG for the Meadowlands or was somehow related to the man wearing the NY hat and rooting for the Mavericks. Nonetheless, he created some great entertainment as we witnessed the beat down the mavericks gave us. Above, you see a picture of the halftime score, and then of the 3rd quarter score. I was going to take a picture of the 4th quarter score, but at that point, I was to embarrassed to be at MSG rooting for the Knicks.
All in all, it was a great experience.
O and did I mention John McEnroe was sitting court side at the game.

Just Another Day in NYC

"People of Earth"

I realize it has been a while since I last blogged, but life has been busy. Let me update you on the weeks happenings.
On our first Sunday here, Jan. 10, I along with 5,000 other brave New Yorkers embarked on the 9th annual "No Pants Subway Ride". This event is spearheaded through a New York based group called Improve Everywhere. Their slogan is simple, "To cause scenes of chaos and joy in public places."
This year, to accommodate the large amount of people, we met in 6 different locations throughout the 5 boroughs. We then all rode separate subway lines, eventually all meeting together in Union Square. My group met up at Prospect Park in Brooklyn. We estimated about 400-500 people at this specific location. After debriefing us, the group broke up into 10 different groups. Each group would get on a separate subway car, placing about 50 people per car. At each stop, more and more people would de-pants, then get off at that stop. So at the 1st stop, 2 people would get off, then 4 at the next stop, then 8 at the next stop and so on. When the next subway line came by, it would look as though more and more people with no pants were getting on the subway at each stop. Our final destination in Union Square was the most epic experience of my life. Imagine 5,000 people with no pants in the middle of Manhattan performing human pyramids, playing duck duck goose and dancing in the windows of the 3 story DSW, all while it is 25 degrees out. I will try to find pictures of myself with no pants on, but in the meantime, check out the pictures at Improve Everywhere. http://improveverywhere.com/

I had a very odd and humorous experience on the No Pants Subway ride. As my stop approached, i prepared mentally to take my pants off in front of numerous people. I figured that it would be best for everyone if I took my pants off standing up. At the time, i didn't realize this, but i was standing right next to the bench, where a middle aged man was sitting. When my stop approached, I pulled my pants down with confidence, and they hadn't even reached my ankles when i felt a tap on my shoulder. At this point, my life paused for what seemed like minutes. I thought to myself, O geez, here we go. As i lifted my head, my pants still at my ankles, the man looked at me and said,
"Excuse me sir, where did you get your side bag?"
I paused and thought to myself, are you serious? My pants are at my ankles and your asking me about my side bag? Nonetheless, i replied, "Macy's, I think."
By this point, i am putting my pants in my bag,
But the man goes on.
"Do you know what brand it is?"
I replied, "McKlein"
The man then thanked me and went about his day saying nothing of my pantless state. I guess New Yorkers are use to seeing absurd things.

After the Union Square party, a group of us went to the Belmont Lounge, coincidentally enough, and reminisced of the days events.

New Semester!

Well, its COOOOOLD here in NYC! We are very excited to meet this new group of students, it's going to be a great semester! We will miss our fall 2009 Belmont Easters, but are anxious to meet the new spring 2010 students on Wednesday.

Stay tuned for lots more blogging and fun NYC adventures!
Beka

Meeting Cool People and Doing Cool Things

I have been wanting to blog for a while! I've been waiting on the photo here of me with my coworker and Jordin Sparks! Cherry Lane just signed to publish all of Jordin sparks writing. I have to admit that although I don't listen to her music that much Jordin Sparks was an amazing young woman. She was so sweet and down to earth.
Cherry lane has had a lot of activity recently besides Jordin. We had a small acoustic show by Jeremy of Days Difference and we had meetings with Keke Palmer of Akeelah and the Bee!
A few weeks ago I had the opportunity, thanks to a really cool friend! He invited me to the SNL after party!! It was a great night even though later we found out that it was the after after party and most of the famous people are already in bed asleep. We did hear that the members of Dave Matthew's band were walking amongst us, which was cool I suppose! Haha
Last Wednesday for class we went to go see Wicked on Broadway, which is one of my favorite shows! It was incredible as always! After the show we schlepped through the rain to the Rockefeller Center to see the big tree all lit for the first time this year. It was very pretty! Things are winding up here so fast... It is amazing, I feel like I just got here! NY has been an incredible experience.

I recall Central Park in fall.

So I just realized that I have not posted something on here in quite a while - time just got away from me! You know what they say, time flies when you're having fun. Everything has been pretty standard since the last time I wrote, interning and classing, going out in the city and just living in NYC. My best friend was here this past weekend for a little visit and to celebrate her 23rd birthday. It was awesome! We went to a show for one of the band's represented by Stunt Co. Wild Light and it was stellar. They put on a great show and the guys are super nice, so it made for a perfect b-day celebration. We hung out in Central Park on Sunday, which I have discovered is my favorite place to be in the fall. It is gorgeous, I could sit there all day and take pics of the autumn colors everywhere.

I am STOKED for this week because my family is making the 10 hour drive to spend Thanksgiving with me. This year is a bit different because "my family" includes my parents and their best friends, Steve and Carla, and their two sons Chris and Matt. I am so happy for everyone to be here and to spend the holiday together! The other great part of this week is my 22nd birthday on Saturday!! I am sure it will be fantastic since I will be journeying out to Long Island with my boss to see one of my all-time fave bands, Brand New. I cannot wait, especially since this is their hometown show AND it's at the massive Nassau Coliseum. So, I will be sharing my birthday with a bunch of hardcore LI kids belting their lungs out to their hometown heroes. I honestly can't think of a better way to turn 22.

Only 2 and a half more weeks! WHAT?! Where has time gone? I want to stay.

Quick Update

Wow, it's been awhile since I have updated you all on my life.

The past few weeks have been pretty exciting. A few weeks ago, I was able to attend one of the Rock n Roll 25th Anniversary concerts at MSG for free! The show lasted about five hours and was packed with amazing performances. Some of the performers included Aretha Franklin, Jerry Lee Lewis, Annie Lennox, Lenny Kravitz, Sting, ZZ Top, Ozzy Osbourne (my personal favorite of the night), Patti Smith, Bruce Springsteen, Metallica, the Black Eyed Peas, Mick Jagger, and U2! A great experience for sure.

On Monday night, Amy and I went to see Luke Bryan at the Bowery Ballroom. Nashville came to NYC and we couldn't have been happier! He put on a great show. We've missed the south and country music. While we were there, we met some new friends who graduated from Vandy last year and now live in the city. Small world.

My internship at AMO couldn't be better. I'm sad that I don't have many days left. This was the perfect internship for me. I have learned so much and have gotten to know so many people. I feel like I am a part of the company. They always involve me in everything as much as possible. I have also gotten to attend all of our artists shows when they come to town. I've helped prepare for these shows all semester and it's fun to be able to see the final product. On top of all that, I have been able to help with some special events for our artists. I love special events and event planning so I enjoyed every minute of it. Two of our artists have a show tonight, so I am going on a field trip to CAKE BOSS with one of the girls from the office to pick up cake (obviously) for the evening. I'm not going to lie, I'm excited about the little adventure to New Jersey.

My mission this weekend is to go out and experience more of NYC! I'll hopefully hit up the Brooklyn Flea Market as well (this is the last weekend for it).

Until next time...

Shannon

P.S. I have located the Chick-Fil-A in NYC for all of you who are missing it!