Atlanta under any other circumstances is my home, except when I'm on tour I have to morph into a visitor to avoid wanting to stay. This wasn't hard due to Atlanta's boom into a trendy metropolis that has become more alluring to visitors than its natives. Local landmarks like Club 112 (RIP), Magic City (newly renovated), Buckhead and Bankhead have transitioned into legendary urban myths that will forever serve as crunk's inspiration. It's really crazy that suddenly I've become a stranger in my house. There are so many new clubs and culinary creations marketed towards the grown and sexy that even with my self -proclaimed alias The President, I can't cover them all. The following is the DJ Mars' mini Atlanta tour guide - the remix!
Ladies Nu Phaze Studio, Atlanta Georgia - (404) 303-8033
Ladies, when a man notices how fly your hair is, you're doing something. Nu Phaze Studio, owned by Latrice Blocker located near perimeter mall is not only bringing sexy back but reinventing it! The hottest chicks in Atlanta are buzzing about this shop (especially the ones with weaves). It's it's where I send my girls - my mother and sister, of course!
FellasThe craziest sneakers in Atlanta are at:
Rare Footage, 493-C Flatshoals Ave •(404) 215-2188
Soul Monkey, 130 Cone Street Food
The M Bar - 465 Peters Street - (404) 523-1555 Launched in September 2006 by Mel Simms, Damien Gordon and Larry McMillan this glow in the dark hotspot located in the lofty Castlehill section of Atlanta has quickly become a reliable modernizer for a neighborhood that not long ago seemed baron. M, symbolic for Music, Martini's and Margaritas boasts of the most extensive martini line in the city. Known to be frequented by Atlanta locals T.I. and Jeezy, it delivers a diverse appetizer menu (the mini turkey burgers are off the chain) of traditional American cuisine at great prices. The infinite drink menu offers over 20 variations each of Martinis, Mojitos, and Margaritas including the house specialty drinks. Club
The Mark – 79 Poplar Street
Right now, this hosts my favorite Saturday night spot - it's called L.I.F.E promoted by the F.C.C., Atlbarz, and Dynasty. While in ATL I had meetings to listen to some new material from local artists that our DJ network, The World Famous Superfriends, was considering putting into rotation. Infamous for having broken hits for such artists as TI, Young Joc, and The Alliance, we pride ourselves on having our finger on the pulse of who got next. We decided to concede to the youth and run with a new group out of Atlanta, The Upfront Boiz, with their catchy single "The Fred Sanford" and a young rapper from Brooklyn named Spills.
BK's young rapper Spills, with the not-much-older Jeezy.
Up Front Boiz live for the A.
After Atlanta, the tour headed to Kansas City - where I met fans who drove three hours from Nebraska to see Ne-Yo - then moved on to Phoenix and Sacramento. Sacramento, CAWith these cities, because there is not a large black population, it was amazing to see how expansive Ne-Yo's fanbase is. In Sacramento, we played 107.9's End Fest - and for us R&B heads that love Ne-yo's music, it might seem a little unfamiliar to see him headline a concert featuring The Click, Gym Class Heroes and Hillary Duff. This mainstream pop-rock crowd was loyally reciting all of his lyrics.
Neyo signing autographs.
As previously recorded, sneakers are my addiction so just when I began to think that my collection is ready to go public I learned that "So Sick" is no longer one of Ne-Yo's broken-heart hits, but a description of his sneaker anthology. It's become a trademark during his performance to autograph a pair of Air Jordans and toss them into the crowd during the show finale. As I continue this course it is my mission to not only make my sneaker assembly tighter but pass on worthy information to my co-collectors.
Ne-Yo's sneaker collection.
Ne-Yo's kicks part deux.
I found the hottest sneaker store in Sacramento called FTC, which impressed me to the point that I am going to mail-order from them when I get off tour. Their specialty is skateboards, and skateboarding kicks by Nike SB, Vans, and DC Shoes.
With the hectic tour schedule, everybody including Ne-Yo still manages to do their day jobs. He recorded a song for Celine Dion and we completed a remix for his artist, Paula Campbell, for the song "Ain't Nobody Stupid" - written by Ne-Yo of course. The remix will sample the old hip hop classic "PSK" by Schooly D. The song is tested at the end of every show and the crowd is feeling it!
Speaking of show endings, we all agreed per Ne-Yo's suggestion to stop what we were doing at 8:30pm on Sunday to watch the Sopranos series finale. After joking the next day at sound check about how wack (unfortunately, not w-h-a-c-k) it was we agreed to step our game up double time and make sure that no matter what, WE end every show with a BANG!
Next stop LA!
del.icio.us
digg
Furl
Reddit
YahooMyWeb
Comments
1.
the carter says:
I love your music neyo.You inspire me with your voice and the words that comes out of your mouth or so sexy and deep just the way i like it.Continue to make good music please because ill always be a fan.
June 22, 2007 at 6:34 pm
2.
hozheri says:
i wuld like the weekly hi hop chart
June 18, 2007 at 7:58 am
3.
brittany says:
I most definitely enjoy reading these articles about whats going on on tour... for some reason its interesting to me... can't wait until you stop in detroit, michigan
June 17, 2007 at 1:44 am