The rhythms and tones of Kocoa, Junior Keys and Stevie Blu ushered in, yet another night celebrating beauty and creativity. We were reminded of the genius of artists who have inspired generations and were honoured to share in the original light of the artists in our midst. A cocktail of styles and forms quenched and healed, rested and revitalised, warmed and soothed.

Performances on the night from:

Elaine Joseph
Lyndon Johnson
Bluntation
Orlando Bolt
Kayo & Abs
Leah Longville
Collin Hills
Kelly Agbowu

Connections and re-connections ensued, during the break, as the audience converse the hues, scents and vibes of the venue, the diversity of artists, the family Spirit. Some were found realising concepts in the mind onto card at The Card-Making table.

In support of the charity Music4Children, with no price tags, the Karma Stall offered the opportunity to exercise one’s own discretion. Customers chose how much they wanted to give for their purchases, mostly made by widows and orphans in Nepal.

There’s no doubt, Croydon awaits Monday 9th August, for

Acoustically Speaking: The Special

Thank You's!

The EAN Team would like to express our gratitude to Aide for the amazing venue, with a shout-out, to John, who helped lug tables and chairs up stairs! Thanks to Gabby for keeping all involved fuelled up and replenished, throughout the night.

Scream Lounge, we salute you for your space, for your care, for your support!

To all the artists who performed, thank you.

Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine!

What a fantastic night! Acoustically Speaking once again has stepped up the bar and produced another glorious night of poetry and acoustic music at its finest! The talent on display was superb. Every act was unique and different and it was so lovely to see everyone’s originality and talent on display. I performed some poetry which was greatly received and it was great to be performing again and raise my own game. It has been a long time since I performed and the buzz I got before, during and after made me realise how much I had missed doing it! I will definitely be back on the 23rd May with the same enthusiasm and love for poetry to perform. Apart from the performers the other great thing about the night was the vibe, environment and the people of the audience. Great performances, great vibe, great people. That’s what it’s all about and as always Acoustically Speaking is brimming with all of these things . Roll on 23rd May. I can’t wait!!

Sunday 21st February 2010

This was our debut night at the Scream Lounge in Croydon. We turned up early to dress the space and were just mesmerised by the warmth and beauty that enveloped us as the lights went down and the candles flickered, illuminating the space. Those that entered this atmospheric haven audibly gasped as they parted the red curtains and smelled the rich aroma of scented candles. On each face you could see the look of wonder and expectancy... magical... it was like being snatched away into a twilight world where anything could and would happen. In the foyer of the first floor, the Calabash Crew were setting up their exotic grotto of beautiful carvings, artwork and books that further added to the sense of being transformed to another time and space, where life stood still and art was truly revered.

 

Let the Night Begin

The night’s proceedings began with Kocoa, Jnr Keys and Stevie Blu enticing the audience to “dare to dream” as they took them Flying High. The audience responded by closing their eyes and allowing themselves to be taken on a journey of discovery. They sat on a beach and felt the warmth of the sun on their cheeks It’s so wonderful to see such an enthusiastic and engaging audience who are happy to indulge in moments of fantasy, which ultimately could lead to a new reality for them. Kocoa then left Stevie Blu and Jnr Keys to further entertain the audience and Stevie Blu sang his way into their hearts.




Marcia Wollaston

This is a woman of substance, who has been through many transitions from singer, to beauty therapist, salon owner, the list goes on. Marcia, who has been attending the EAN’s Spirit of Writing Series, performed a beautiful spoken word dedication to her Mother, who had passed and showed us how the course is really helping her to express and perform her poetry in a new and profound way. [Find out more about Marcia]



 

Shanice Smith

Shanice Smith stepped up next and sang two beautiful songs. She sang her first song acapella, with such strength and exquisiteness that the audience were left holding their breath. She followed this with “Showers of Blessings” an original piece on which she also played guitar. Currently studying at The Brit School, this is young talent on another level. Check out this link to the video to see and hear exactly what we mean.[See Shanice’s profile]



Nadia Jones

Next up was Nadia Jones, another SOW Series student, who had waited eight years to perform her first piece... What a way to debut! Nadia drew the audience into her poetic world and they smiled and settled into their seats a little more. Nadia describes herself as “a free spirit and a supporter of all things creative in others”. Well Nadia the support was returned to you tenfold as the audience loved your pieces. I’m sure that this experience helped Nadia to see her calling as a performer of spoken word. [Find out more about Nadia]



Calabash

The first half of the evening’s proceedings was rounded up with Kocoa interviewing Ramano, founder of Calabash. A softly spoken but clearly passionate lover of all things artistic, Ramano talked about the arts and crafts that he had collected from Ghana and other African countries. You can find the Calabash stall in the new market, which was originally Beano’s, in Croydon, 7 Middle Street, but don’t worry there is going to be more information coming to you about this amazing, growing business.

The Interval

During the break, there were many conversations overheard, some talked about the diversity of the artists performing and about the warmth of the venue. You could hear the pleasing sounds of new friendship being formed and all around you could see that people shared something in common. Some expressed their joy at having found somewhere they could take pleasure in such an eclectic mix of artists. The audience also had the opportunity to mix and peruse the Calabash stall with all its amazingly beautiful carvings, books and artwork. Some people enjoyed the prospect of exercising their own discretion as they purchased items from the Karma Shop. No price tags, you decide what you are going to pay for an item. It’s all for the charity that we support Music4Children. The items on the stall are mostly made by the widows and orphans in Nepal or donated to the cause. Just over £20 was made, so that will be winging its way into the charities coffers.

Kayo

After the break, you could feel the audience’s expectancy. They knew without doubt that whichever artist was going to be up first, they were going to truly be entertained, and not only that, there would be no short measures. Well our first performer did not disappoint... but... hold on, he looks a little familiar? All is revealed when Kayo steps up to do his thing on the mic and the audience are informed that this is the son of Jnr Keys. A veritable chip off the old block who is as talented off stage as he is on. Some of the nights video footage was shot by Kayo, who is studying media at college and will be going off to university later this year to pursue his passion and his destiny. Kayo, who normally raps to tracks that he and his friends have produced, made his debut performance on the Acoustically Speaking stage, showing his versatility by turning his hand to spoken word and deftly exuded the confidence of a seasoned pro. [Check out Kayo’s profile]

Rob Warman

Next up was another newcomer to EAN, Rob Warman. Rob told Kocoa that he had moved from Portsmouth to Croydon... ‘for love’! That immediately won him over to our female audience who swooned as he sang and played guitar. You can read all about Rob on the website and also he has already secured his place again on 21 March, so if you missed out, there will another opportunity. [Check out Rob’s profile]

Rebekah Stewart

Now, here’s the thing! Spoken Word is such an amazing expression and everyone has their own style of writing and delivery. However, the audience were not prepared for our next artist. Rebekah Stewart, is a beautiful young lady who is so humble and unassuming, but when stepped onto the stage and began to perform her first piece, you could hear a pin drop. Where did these wise words about life and love come from. The audience had been warned by Kocoa to expect the unexpected and to have their tissues ready, but nevertheless nothing could have prepared them for her piece called ‘Raped’. A poignant piece that did not accuse, but told the story and spoke of hope and how to rise above the tragedy of such a barbaric act. A writer that we know is going to receive many a prize for her work in the future. Currently at university, Rebekah is studying philosophy. She was philosophical to the end and the audience raised the roof with thunderous applause. [Check out Rebekah’s profile]



 
Stevie Blu

A regular on the Acoustically Speaking stage, Stevie sat back on his stool, played his guitar and serenaded the audience with a Bob Marley classic, an original piece and ended with a little taste of his namesake, Stevie Wonder. Stevie’s voice is unexpected and held the audience mesmerised whilst they drank the emotion of his voice and his total love and passion for his art form. To rapturous applause, you got the feeling that the audience had just drunk a large glass of lemonade, with ice on one of the hottest days in July. [Find out more about Stevie Blu]



 
Rigel Klingman

Now if you had been looking around during the break you would have seen this lady avidly congratulating her students, Marcia Wollaston and Nadia Jones, on their performances. And if you had a seriously keen eye, you would have also seen that she had been crouched down on the floor throughout the performances with a very impressive looking camera in her hands. So, you’ve guessed it. She is multi-talented. Rigel has been studying the art of the spoken word for many years and is a writer of poems, a novelist, a photographer, an amazing cook [best American pancakes on the planet – well she is American so I guess that helps]. No, seriously though, Rigel has her fingers in many pies and keeps all the plates spinning at the same time. Rigel has been facilitating the first course in our Spirit of Writing [SOW] Series. It’s called the Performance of Spoken Word [check the website for more details]. Tonight, Rigel decided to put herself to the test and had quickly penned a brand new piece during the break. She then decided that she would like to perform her new poem to a piece of impromptu music that she called Jnr Keys up to play. I think as well as her students, the audience was definitely impressed. Loud applause and a job well done! [Check out Rigel’s profile]


 

Chalibrann

And... last, but not least Chalibrann, with charismatic front man Andrew. Another debut performance for us on the Acoustically Speaking stage. Andrew took the audience into the palm of his hand and really showed them his stage prowess. It was beautiful to watch, with his growling vocals and lithe movements on stage the audience was mesmerised. I loved to explain the interview that Kocoa had with Andrew before their set started, but we think we’ll leave that for the video footage. You can see Chalibrann’s performance of ‘Mary’ on the website. Chalibrann will be returning and we’ll let you know where else they will be performing as soon as they let us know.


Thank You’s
The EAN Team, would once again like to thank Aide for allowing us to use his place. We would like to give a massive shout out to John, who helped us get the upstairs Lounge area ready. Thank you Gabby who was worked off her feet behind the bar and also thank you to the rest of the Scream Lounge Crew for supporting the night. This is going to be a beautiful union. The Scream Lounge is the perfect venue to showcase artists. We congratulate you for all the care attention that has obviously gone into designing the space.

Special thanks again to Calabash, Ramano and Simone work 7 days a week and still found time to come and share their arts and crafts with us.

Thank you also to Bej, our Sound Engineer who made sure everyone sounded good [he would beg to differ, as he’s never happy with his work “always room for improvement” – perfectionist to the end].

Finally, a big Whoop Whoop to all the artists that performed. Thank you for making the evening so special.

That’s All Folks

We gladly welcome all comments  and encourage you to express your feelings about the night that in the words of... 'Shalamar'
was a "Night to Remember"

A wonderful night was had by all! Make sure that you don’t miss out on the next one 21 March, book your tickets on line and take advantage of the multi-buy ticket price.

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Well.... as the seasons change and the life cycles revolve, we too are on a journey of growth and change.
We've all heard the expression "as one door closes another one opens"... well this is quite literally what Acoustically Speaking has experienced.  With our former location at The Brief having its live music policy be taken away by its own senior management, it kinda left us in a sticky situation. So many of us creatives really liked its unique and cosy atmosphere and treaured the thought of the next visit.

"No more live music at The Brief" was the cry we heard... but wait I hear another voice in the distance..."Our doors are open to you.. come and share those uplifting nostalgic nights you create here". So our silver lining was shimmering brightly and just a stones throw from our former base.

So without further ado we proudly present to you ....Scream Lounge... a venue that really understands the need of our creative community.  Probably because they are themselves are a part of that community..musicians and artists alike.  Or maybe its because they have provided support to thousands of growing musicians over the last 18+ years.  Either way  the thought care and attention given to this venue Sreams louder than any mega watt state of the art PA system installed there.

With 3 amazing  performance areas we are guaranteed to meet all our performance desires (within reason).
 

This is why we want to invite one and all to our first night here.. you can see feel and experience our excitement for yourselves.
Acoustically Speaking - growing from strength to strength.

It's time to once again join the EAN and friends in this truly amazing experience. "Totally uplifting and inspiring nights." Sun 21st Feb 2010 6.00 pm Scream Lounge, 20 South End, Croydon, Surrey CR0 1DN (MAP) Get ready for another creatively interactive night of Acoustically Speaking. As we launch in to the season with a new found energy, come and experience the vibrant atmosphere created in our new location ....The Scream Lounge. Once you've been there you'll want to come back for so many reasons. Many acts to enjoy, New friends to meet and Great time to be had. Performers get in FREE

Until then we wish you all
Peace, Blessings & Creative Abundance
EAN Team

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Eclectic Arts Network [EAN] is an up & coming Hub for potential performance Artists, Writers Poets & Musicians. with an ethos to include, promote, facilitate and present the work of artistic groups and individuals. At EAN we are currently holding a once a month open mic performance night to create an opportunity for newcomers and unsigned acts/poets & artists to develop their skills in front of a live audience. The open mic night also allows individuals to not only debut their work for the first time but to also get up close & personal with a perspective audience. This approach also allows them to gain valuable performance experience and gain confidence in front of their peers. EAN believes that creating these types of opportunities is a positive and productive way of not only developing performance skills but also life skills that can be used more effectively for each person’s personal growth and development in the performing arts.

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At EAN we are also in the process of developing and creating one on one mentoring/role models and role play as well as developing creative writing and performance workshops and performance delivery sessions to further potentially help individuals to gain the best outcome from their gifts and talents. Although we are still in our infancy stage as a performance facility we still need you the artists to help us to help you by simply playing an open and positive role by engaging with us so that we can see where we can improve upon our existing practices and to best achieve the best results all around.

As the man who is often the one to kick start the proceedings and to demonstrate that once we take centre stage this is the opportunity for us as artists to make it our very own home from home as this is where we engage our audience. There may be nerves or tension but there is also confidence and delivery and being no stranger to the stage I have always worked with these emotions to communicate the best of intentions. Working! Rapping! Strumming & Spitting Spoken Word has allowed me to find my voice and expression and has also allowed me to connect to people who I would otherwise probably never get to meet, and so I say if you feel that all of the above is applicable to you then please don’t delay and checkout EAN and all that we’ve got going on in 2010 to find out who you really are!

On Saturday night we chilled out to another superb evening at the Eclectic Arts Network’s,  Acoustically Speaking Event. We were treated to affirmations, the spoken word, songs and ballads. Professor Norrin, (as I call him) is by far the most engaging and animated rap artist I have ever met. I have never heard anyone create such incredible sounds with words. It left me speechless! Lynieve and Kocoa sung "Here I Am", whilst Kocoa played guitar,  then they performed a gutsy number thrilling us with their trumpet and base impressions, which reminded me of Ella Fitzgerald. Team, thank you once again for a memorable evening.

Mrs Joseph

This is the year of opportunity, advancement and creative freedom in your expression. So with all that in mind we at EAN are making it easier for you to delve into your creative genius.

The Christmas rush caught us slightly off guard and with one of our key admin team, Jon, leaving to go to college to study, the workload piled up, but we are returning rested and ready to advance into 2010 as we wave farewell to 2009 with some amazing memories.

Looking Back
Firstly, we would like to give Jon a massive shout out and say, “thank you for all your hard work when you were with us and also to let you know how proud we are of you.” Jon took a massive leap of faith and gave up paid employment to go and study full-time, in order to fulfil his dreams and goals for life. We are really looking forward to sharing all his successes with you.

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We would also like to thank all of the Acoustically Speaking Performers of 2009. Thank you for making each event so special, so unique and so memorable.

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The last Acoustically Speaking of 2009 oh what a night 28 November, the rain fell from the heavens, deluge came to mind, but that didn’t stop those who came out to watch the performances or those performers on the Acoustically Speaking stage at The Brief in Croydon.

Mr Norrin Radd opened up the evening with vibe and rhyme and put everyone at ease.  And as he introduced the acts the night held many surprises, with riveting performances by Rebekah Stewart. Now Rebekah is a young lady who is going to make great waves in the poetry world as, at only 19 she is able to captivate an audience and bring them to tears with her poignant, thought-provoking manipulation of words, which culminate into poems of artistic mastery. On stage also was Tony TSR, a seasoned pro who knows how to entertain a crowd. Some of the EAN Team members met Tony a couple of years ago at the Streatham Festival, so look out for and support the various live music festivals around London this summer. And it’s always so beautiful when an artist returns, so it was with great pleasure that we welcomed Afrix onto Acoustically Speaking Stage. But hold on... the last time we saw Afrix he was sporting a huge afro. He explained that although the afro had gone, it was still an afro style and his style of music was still Hendrix hence, ‘Afrix’... [get it?] It’s all good, explanation now over, he played amazingly as always, wowing the audience and taking a well deserved bow at the end of his performance. For those of you that weren’t able to make it, you missed the interjection of some Egyptian style belly dancing which boasted a male belly dancer by the name of Sunny, very interesting.

What you have to realise is that people travel to be at the Acoustically Speaking nights and just to prove the point, Sterling & Alex travelled all the way from Reading to perform... Sterling, who normally raps, brought his girlfriend to tears as he sang songs from the heart. It was quite a touching moment. Stevie Blu also moved the audience, as he played guitar and sang [that man can truly sing, his voice touches the soul]. Whilst Elaine Joseph deftly delivered to the audience animated poetry to make them ponder and reflect a while. Skillosophi were our Headline Act and when ‘Skills’ stepped onto the stage with Clint playing percussion they produced a big fat smile on everyone’s face. We don’t know what it is about the Skillosophi music but it reaches places within you that make you come alive and feel refreshed. The night ended with an impromptu jam session where Leah Longville was able to step onto the stage after a long absence from performing and just flow with the boys. A beautiful night had by all... Thank you everyone that came and share time and space with us.

And now.... Look out for the next instalment and update of Saturday 16th January 2010

EAN Admin Team
Supporting Creativity

Acoustically Speaking



A Friday evening after a long day; what you need is a large glass of something, maybe something alcoholic. Knowing that access to a glass of beer was possible, only made the option even more alluring for me. Acoustically Speaking was the name of the show; The Brief in Croydon, the venue. You walk through the social but calmly occupied pub, and step up to the performance area, only separated off by wooden doors. Each time they open, you expect performance sounds to come rushing through the air. But the event had not started, and only small chatter seeps through the open door. I sit down at a small table; the feel is of a smoking pub, but there are no smokers, and no smoke, only that calming, old fashioned atmosphere. A feeling of warmth and history ebbs from the walls of this place, out the back of a pub that is so easily walked past on George Street, that most don’t know of its existence.

But I was not there for the atmosphere created by previous occasions, but for that which was to come, the music of that night, the Acoustically Speaking night. My first time, I didn’t know what to expect, as the musicians started to arrive. I was sitting not too far from the stage, occasionally looking over my shoulder, sipping my drink, and eating the occasional dry roasted peanut. I was ready to embrace music.

Getting us in to the flow, Kocoa Brown addressed the audience from the small stage. There were now a quite a few pairs of eyes looking up at the performers, all in expectation. The music that came from that stage was moving. Kocoa has this incredible ability to throw her voice, and soften it and instrumentalise it, and make the audience move, tap, nod and hum. Each performer on stage, the base player, the guitarists, the other vocalists; each of them have the ability to be up there on their own and wow the crowd. The performance wrapped each member of the audience in warmth and everyone was engaged, switched on and tuned in.

Even though I recognised some of the songs from a previous performance, each one was presented in a different way; each one a new piece of creativity for us to enjoy. The performers swapped positions; new people came on and off the stage, and the gentle rhythm of feet and quiet conversation kept the beat of the music going through to the next performance. Two guest performers created something different. The first played a mandolin with a raw acoustic voice overlay. Nice, fresh, different music for an eclectic performance. The second played a guitar and was joined by a violinist, performing gentle chilled but soulful music, which warmed the audience. What a treat. It couldn’t get better. At least that was, until some singers stepped on the stage and again moved us with their voices. The event went on till late, later than was needed to check.

A night bus back and I was humming songs all the way. A freak on a bus, but hey, I knew what all those other people had just missed; shame for them. Make sure you get down to The Brief on George Street for about 8pm. Louis

For information on the next Acoustically Speaking Event click here.

Saturday 19th September was a truly special night that was blessed with some extraordinary performances. There was a little something for everyone. We were treated to a beautiful mix of poetry, acoustic music, storytelling and audience participation like EAN has never seen before.

Most of all your presence was much appreciated and you all helped to create the ambience for the evening. For me personally, as your host, it was like watching flowers blooming before my very eyes. Every performance was delivered with such love and passion, so much so that every audience member was held captivated in that space and time.

It was good to see people laugh and engage in conversation with people they had never met before and feel some unspoken bond. Thank you all for being such an encouraging audience.

For all those who were performing for the first time or the first time in a long time, I salute you. Look out for the Blog that I will be writing about the night. You can then send that to your friends that weren't able to make it, to encourage them to come and see you next performance.

There is definitely a creative shift and those who dare to try are richly rewarded.

We look forward to seeing you perform with us again.

Kocoa x
Peace Blessings & Creative Abundance

What an action packed day! From 10am when those individuals who had signed up and attended the 1st ever CR0 Music Conference to the evening performances that happened at the Community Music Skills building in London Road, the day was jam-packed with relevant information for the budding and experienced performers and clearly a success.

Those who attended the conference were given just the right amount of information to kick-start or to boost their efforts on the road to pursuing their chosen art form. All the speakers were experts in their own fields and were so well informed about their subject matter. Those that attended were able to network and get direct assistance with their particular situation. We at the EAN are really looking forward to seeing this event extended next year when it will be bigger and last even longer...

In the evening EAN artistes performed in an intimate setting at CMS and our Acoustically Speaking Event was also filmed for future promotion and exposure for all those performing.

Look out over the coming weeks for more information and clips from interviews and performances... This was grassroots entertainment at its best!

For more information about the event and the event organisers just drop us an email and will pass the details on. A word to the wise.... Book your place for next year’s CR0 Music Conference this is valuable information for nothing more than your time....

In the meantime, continue to pursue your creativity, capture your dreams and turn them into reality.

EAN ADMIN TEAM
Peace Blessings & Creative Abundance