Doing that podcast interview with the DarkFyre guys a few weeks back reminded me of the interview I did with Juice Lee for a mostly anime blog I started and abandoned ages ago (five years ago, to be exact). I’m reposting it here in honor of Juice’s latest release, The Reverie, and because why the heck not? Enjoy!
Continue reading “Repost of Five-Year-Old Juice Lee Interview”
Midwest BSFA co-founder Ofeibea Loveless was interviewed last week on DarkFyre Entertainment’s Geekqualize episode 35. She and the DarKFyre guys (Juice Lee, Leago and Nyte) talk about steampunk, Midwest BSFA and a sundry of other topics. Give it a listen!
In addition to having fun and nerding out, we at the Midwest Black Speculative Fiction Alliance want to give back to our communities. As a result, half of the proceeds from next month’s Cocoa Cabaret will go to Never The Less, Inc. NTL’s mission is to provide services for girls ages 12-17 that promote character, confidence, self-sufficiency and sustainability. Find out more about the organization at www.neverthelessinc.com.
Mildred Fallen of Deeper Than Atlantis: Diggin’ in the Crates on Soul Public Radio and Napoleon Maddox of hip hop/jazz band IsWhat?! are ramping up for Black to the Future: Afrofuturistic Music next week! Check out a few of the topics that will be covered during the event as they relate to music.
Continue reading “Black to the Future: Afrofuturistic Music on Jan. 27”
Julius “Eclypse” Jenkins will perform at the Cocoa Cabaret on Feb. 6! Julius has been studying street-style dances for 15 years, and after earning his stripes in the underground battle scene, he created The Millennium Robots. His unique robot-style moves has allowed him to become a professional street style dancer. He’s opened for and performed with several national and international acts that include Lupe Fiasco, Black Thought of The Roots, Flux Pavilion and Rusko.
When he’s not performing he’s doing workshops and educating the local youth about hip-hop and street- style dancing. He’s also created an event called “Heroes Rise,” which hosts street-style dance battles to help raise awareness and pay homage to those in the community helping to keep the various street arts alive in Cincinnati.
As part of the latest Diverse Book Tours event, the Midwest BSFA blog is excerpting Thelonius Legend‘s middle grade tale Sins of the Father, in which three sisters discover that they have extraordinary powers that could kill them if they don’t find a cure for the side effects. Keeping their powers under wraps all while trying to survive middle school? Good luck, girls! Check it out!
Continue reading “Diverse Book Tours: Sins of the Father Excerpt”
Salathiel Palland, proprietress of Off the Beaten Path Books in Farmington, Mich., will be doing steampunk tarot readings at the Cocoa Cabaret next month! Off the Beaten Path is the Midwest’s only steampunk-themed bookstore, and Sal has created an environment where people can come together to express their love of steampunk, comics, sci-fi and other genres. If you’re on the steampunk convention circuit, you may have seen her at a number of cons, including World Steam Expo, the Steampunk Empire Symposium, Wild Wild West Con, and TeslaCon, to name a few. Stop by her table at the cabaret and let her amaze you! And you learn more about Sal’s wonderful store at her GoFundMe campaign page.
Check out a sneak preview of DJ Apryl Reign’s electroswing mix for the Midwest BSFA’s Cocoa Cabaret!
Cocoa Cabaret, Friday, Feb. 6, 8-11 p.m., The Greenwich. 2442 Gilbert Ave., Walnut Hills (Cincinnati, Ohio 45206). Admission: $5. Don’t forget to dress in steampunk/dieselpunk/Roaring ’20s attire! See the Facebook invite for more details!
Jacobee Rose Buchanan is on board to vend at the Cocoa Cabaret on Friday, Feb. 6!
After years of studying ballet, modern, jazz, Irish dance and musical theater in Ohio and later in New York, Jacobee turned her focus to visual art. Her work, often made from upcycled, repurposed, and reimagined materials, comes from a love of theater, dance, and literature, and a personal philosophy of using one’s style and surroundings to tell a unique story. Jacobee’s fashion sensibilities are broken into two distinct categories:
The Rose and Gear is romanticism viewed through the lens of the Industrial Revolution, resulting in fashion, décor, and art with a neo-Victorian/steampunk aesthetic. TRaG looks back to a time of great change and curiosity for inspiration.
The Rose and Thorn is retro-modern design with rough industrial finishes. Inspired by cyberpunk/dystopian fiction and film, TRaT looks at the dark side of technology and industry, yet still finds style and beauty amid the chaos.
Check out her designs on Facebook athttps://www.facebook.com/JacobeeRoseBuchananDesigns or on Instagram at http://instagram.com/jacobeerosemakesclothes/
Midwest Black Speculative Fiction Alliance 