And the Count Down Begins!!

2 WEEKS

14 DAYS

336 HOURS

20,160 MINUTES

Ok I think you get it! But yes, we are down to the wire! Which can explain why it has been almost a month since my last blog! I have to apologize for my CP update but we've been working super hard these past few weeks! I mean between rehearsals, production meetings, recording music, and just LIFE, time has seriously been flying by! Continue reading and you'll see what I'm talking about it...

As you can see, we had our first PHOTO SHOOT(hence the photo above) To check out all the photos just go here..

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=161001&id=155319060944&ref=mf

Photos were done collectively by my good friend/actor Mr. Damon Hastings and Mr. Kola

More pictures will be coming soon so stay tuned!!

We also completed our first song fittingly titled, "and an angel came down" recorded by Arielle Rae & Steven Grier! Written by myself, Damon, Arielle and Steven! The track is the business!!! I'm thinking WHEN(not if) the play takes off and becomes a hot success we can go back into the studio and record a soundtrack!! It always was a dream of mine to yell 'DJ CLUE CLUE CLUE' on the track lol or something of that sort! Whatever the case, stay tuned for that track because BELIEVE ME WHEN I SAY IT IS HOT!!

I am also proud to announce that we recently partnered with a great company called My Place Donation. A company dedicated to keeping our earth more safe and green! You can donate any old/new/broken/used cell phones or ipods and have the proceeds of these electronics donated to the non profit organization or charity of your choice

The man in charge of this great company is my fellow SDSU alumni/friend Mr. Andrew Ly! He was ever so gracious enough to let Don't Even Tripp be a part of this campaign for keeping our earth green! So if you have any old cell phones or ipods you're looking to dispose of please click here http://bit.ly/tripp_mpd and you can have the proceeds go towards Don't Even Tripp and our production!! =)


Besides recording music, donating ipods, taking pictures, rehearsing and etc(lol) we also have been planning for our media sneak peak! Which will be held this Saturday at the Youth Uprising center in Oakland! If you haven't already heard we are donating half of our proceeds to this wonderful organization.




In return, Youth Uprising has been ever so generous enough to let us use their venue to host our event! Arielle has been in charge of contacting different media outlets and theatre groups throughout the Bay Area. She put together a very nice press kit explaining all about the production company and the play! So this Saturday we'll be showcasing our talents to a select group of people in hopes that they'll go back out into the community to help promote our cause and what we're doing!

I also did a little promoting myself at the Golden State Slam this past Tuesday, which went very well! The very witty bomb dot com host Mr. Ner City offered to raffle off a few of our tickets so if you're too cheap to buy a ticket(lol) you can come through to the golden state slam on April 20th @ 8pm to hear some hot poetry and to purchase a raffle ticket!

Click the link below to find our more info. about the Golden State Slam...

http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=1064240518&ref=ts

With that being said, let me end this blog on an uplifting note by sharing with you guys the poem that I recited this past Tuesday at the Golden State Slam! I told the audience if they like my poems, then they'll like my play! :-P but all jokes set aside, I just truly believe in going after what's in your heart and that applies to all areas in life! Don't be afraid to stand up for what you believe in and what you are passionate about! If you have anything in life that you are passionate about, i beg of you to pleaseeeeeee go after it and bring it to life!


.......

When I was college
and decide to follow my dreams
to pursue a degree
that would allow me to bring
my fictional work to the big screen...

A lot of people laughed at me
They thought it was a silly
crazy, random far off dream.

"A film major?!" They would say.
"So what does that mean,
you get to watch movies all day?

Oblivious to the fact
that being a film major expanded my mind
built my ambition to an all time high

Allowed me to multi-task
Between 3 jobs,
hustled enough to study abroad.

Working on 2 to 4 film projects all at one time
and being involved in different organizations
on campus gave me
a hard working
YES I CAN state of mind

It built my drive
Re-affirmed my confidence
and gave me opportunities
to pay my dues.
My time at SDSU
gave me experience and provided me with proof
that this,
was what i I was destined to do.

Which was write.

Take my complex stories,
that I created
and make sure
that they got brought to life.

So no!
I would have to say.
Being a film major isn’t about watching films all day!

It’s about perfecting yourself at your art,
mastering your craft
and cultivating those dreams!

So when you step back into the real world
you know how to make sure
those dreams become your reality.

And I know I do not stand alone.
Because I am speaking out to all those
ambitious individuals who
know their purpose
and are driven by their heart and their souls

This is for the people
who don’t see things
for how they are
but instead
for they how they could be.

This for the people
who were never
content with doing the same!

This is for the people
who were already making change
way before Obama came into play!

This is for the people who were told
that it couldn’t,that it shouldn’t and hell,
that it probably wouldn't
But in the end,
IT DID!

Only because they knew it
would happen from the start!

This is for the people
who never let anyone or anything
stop them from bringing fourth the vision
that was place into their hearts.

This is for the people
who don’ just reach for the stars,
they get aggressive and grab them!

This is for the people
Who inhale inspiring ideas that set off in their mind
only to exhale with a quick reaction that will make it come to life!


This is for the people
Whose religion is hard work and discipline

This is for the people
who are living on a strict diet
of pure ambition.

This is for the
The writer,

This is for the
The poet

This is for the
The teacher

This is for the
The singer

This is for the
The musician

This is for
The film major
The art major
The theatre major

The
I JUST WANT TO BE HAPPY AND DO SOMETHING WITH MY LIFE MAJOR

This is for the arts
This is for the artist

Which means this poem is for you
This poem is for me

Because in my opinion
to be an ambitious artist is basically
being someone who shows love and passion
towards something outside of their own natural being.

And I think Erykah Badu put it the best
"for love is life, and life is love"
so if you're not loving life,
then you are not living!
And if you're not living for someone or something
than you are just merely existing

So find your passion!
Do what is right and seek what is true!
So when you look back on your life years from now
hopefully you'll get to reflect on the happiness
you not only brought to yourself
but also to others around


-A.J. Tripp
4/7/10