WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU GUYS?

This update is LONG overdue, but I figured it was time to answer some questions about Green and what happened and what's going on and where we've been, et cetera. So let's pretend that you the public are asking these Sometimes Asked Questions (or SAQs, as we like to call them):

1. I went to the Palmer Room and you guys weren't there anymore. What happened?
Good question. After consulting with our lawyers, we now feel that we can answer this question without legal repercussions...

Quite simply, our contract was up. Or at least that's what we were told by the new management of the Palmer Room back in November of 2007. We tried to meet with the fella, but it quickly became apparent that he didn't think a spoken word open mic could or would draw the business that was needed at the Palmer. On a Monday. In Culver City.

Thank you to the 200 or so people who showed up for our last show on December 12, 2007...we closed the place down and made more money for them on a "free night" than I think they'll see on any Monday soon.

2. Hey. Ellroy. Why did you take you this long to say something?

Listen. When you leave a stressful relationship, are you running to speed dial that person? Do you perhaps drag out that voodoo doll for at least a few months after the fact until your feelings even out?

Okay, it wasn't really that bad, but as the self-appointed mouth of Green, I was really burned out after we closed up shop, and suffering from a bit of post-Green depression. This was a venture that Jedi, Joshua and I devoted a lot of our time and money to, out of love and respect for the art. To see it fold was devastating. I guess I wasn't ready to put that final nail in the coffin at the time, but I am now. We loved you, Green Version One.

3. So what the heck have you three been doing with yourselves with all this free time?

Sleeping? Well, Joshua has two very successful monthly shows he runs, Reflection and The Soul Circuit, at The Temple Bar and Fais Do-Do respectively, making him one of the hardest working promoters in the city. Jedi is spinning all over town. He can be seen at Pause, Sunday School, Funky Sole, and recently became a resident at The Root Down, which is kind of like being elected to the Supreme Court of deejays. Rob just finished his latest book of poems called You Senstive Bastard and is starting to tour some to promote it.

That's a pretty busy nutshell, I'd say...

4. Is Green going to come back?

We've talked about this amongst ourselves long and hard, and the answer is DEFINITELY POSSIBLY MAYBE. We will not compromise our vision of what we want our show to be, and we need to find a space that will share our vision. We want to be able to provide the same standard of hot poets, ridiculous musicians, and too-cool-for-school comedians that we had before--or even raise the ante. We may come back as a regular-ass show. We may have open mic. We may do a lot of things, but it won't happen until the right situation presents itself. If you know of a bar or restaurant that is looking for a punk rock hip hop spoken word circus to fill their Monday nights, let us know. We may take them up on it.

5. Why are you so married to Mondays?

Because A) it doesn't interfere with any of the other major poetry readings in the LA area that we're aware of, and B) we aleady paid for the domain name.

6. Are you looking forward to the Watchmen movie?

I can only speak for myself, but yes. Yes we are.

Any other major announcements can be found here or on our myspace site of the same name (myspace.com/greeneverymonday). Keep on keepin' on, Greenlings.

See you around,
Rob, Jedi, and Joshua.

LAST GREEN OF THE YEAR...WITH MINDY NETTIFEE!!!

LAST WEEK:
Alvin Lau came through and rocked the house with smart, sharp, kinetic poems that showcase why he's one of the hottest performers on the slam circuit today! Big ups, Alvin, and to newcomers Ben and Golan for delivering the poetic goods as first-timers to the Palmer stage!

THIS WEEK:
Well, it's that time of year, Greenies. It seems that this week will be the last Green of 2007, and honestly, with new ownership at the Palmer, it's possible it'll be the last Green for quite a while. We're hoping not to go on hiatus if we don't have to, but if we do, then this week will be our swan song. We'd love to see all of your sexy faces in the house--as the promoters are so fond of saying, "If there's one Green to go to all year, it's this one"...

And if it happens to be the last gasp of this 7 year itch of an open mic, then I couldn't ask for a better feature to close it up with.

She's witty. She's erudite. She's literary lightning in a 200 proof bottle. Ladies, gentlemen, and Green regulars...MINDY NETTIFEE!!!


Mindy Nettifee was born near corn fields and buried geodes in Des Moines, Iowa to a minister and trouble maker. She earned a BA from Chapman University. She currently writes from the foggy shores of Long Beach, California where she reads as a contact sport and is editor-in-chief of GetUnderground.com.

Mindy has competed, slam-mastered and performed in the poetry slam circuit poetic since 1999, and served on the advisory board of Tebot Bach's Five Penny Poets from 2000 to 2005. She has toured with her work internationally and been published in various journals. Her poem “Metal Detectors and Other Important Thresholds” was a nominee for the Pushcart Prize. Her newest collection of poetry Sleepyhead Assassins is out on Moon Tide Press.

PLUS: We're already getting confirmation of some special guests and friends fixin' to be in the house. Let's make this the party that it SHOULD be, y'all!

So TiVo your damn "Heroes" episode (because we all know Season 2 hasn't been on point anyway), put the kids to bed, empty your hollow leg, and slap on some lip gloss, because Green + Nettifee + booze = BEST MONDAY EVER.

See you at the Palmer to flip off '07,
Slimalot and Jedinski.

ALVIN LAU: From Chi-town to GREEN!

LAST WEEK: Music was large and in charge at the Palmer, as we had a number of off-the-chain jazz musicians get down on the open mic, as well as some of our regular loudmouths...and SONYA RENEE took care of business during her feature, one eyelash off and keeping us captivated from start to finish...

THIS WEEK: We bring you for the first time at Green, one of the powerhouses of performance poetry, ALVIN LAU! Check the stats:

Alvin Lau is a Chicago native, son of Chinese immigrants, and writer of poetry and prose. An avid competitor in poetry slams, he is a two-time national youth champion, a unified grand slam champion of both the Green Mill and Mental Graffiti poetry slams, and two-time Midwest individual champion. He has ranked among the top seven poets in the country four times in as many years, a feat no other competitor has accomplished, and he is youngest poet to ever make individual finals in national competition. His work has featured in numerous literary journals including Red River Review and Rattle Magazine's Tribute to Slam, as well as multiple newspapers including the Chicago Tribune, Santa Cruz Sentinel, and Georgetown Voice. Recently, he was also featured on NPR, the Poetry Foundation online, and HBO's Def Poetry Jam. In 2007 he was named Amnesty International's Poet on Conscience and nominated for the Pushcart Prize in poetry. In addition to performing on three nationwide tours, he regularly hosts lectures and creative writing workshops at dozens of universities across the country including Sarah Lawrence College, Grinnell, the University of Chicago, and Yale. Favorites include redheads, tequila, and Kanye West.

So there ya have it! Support touring poets! Support your local scene! Support good friends, good food, and good drinks! GET THEE TO THE PALMER!!!

See you on Monday,
rob/slim and jedi.

BOOM! SONYA RENEE AT GREEN!

LAST WEEK: It was the Return of the Jedi, as our beloved deejay came back with a vengeance...AND: We had the Green feature debut of DAMNYO, who ripped through a hot set of poems and made us remember why we do this! Big ups!

THIS WEEK: One of our favorite poets to ever grace our stage is fixing to mess you up and love you down with a full set of her amazing words...straight from the Boom Crew, Green welcomes the hot-to-death SONYA RENEE!

SONYA'S BIO (AKA If You Don't Know...):


Everything has a spin, Right? News, radio, poetry: It is hard to find the reality in reality TV let alone our daily lives. But at the door of politics and pretense enters performance poet, actress, educator, activist and National Individual Poetry Slam Champion, Sonya Renee ready to do what she does best, REAL. Few artists are willing to be soul naked in front of complete strangers but Sonya Renee knows the healing that comes from the truth. Healing for herself and all who hear her. This desire to tell the truth, her truth, led her to her first open mic reading in April of 2003. Just sixteen months later Sonya was representing the United States as the number 1 ranked performance poet in the country. Three continents, two national tours and hundreds of stages later, Sonya Renee is still keeping it real all around the globe. Her work has appeared in several publications, translated into Dutch and German and has most recently appeared in the book Growing Up Girl: An Anthology of Voices from Marginalized Spaces. Her work has been used as curriculum at the University of Santa Barbara among other universities. Sonya Renee has shared stages with Oscar Award winner Whoopi Goldberg, Senator Hillary Clinton, Grammy Award Winner Peabo Bryson, Ani DiFranco , Tony Award winner Poetri and countless others. In the 2004, her honest, raw and very real poetry led to an invitation to perform at the National March for Womens Lives in the nations capital to an audience of over 1.6 million people marching for reproductive justice. Sonya Renees slam credits include 2004 National Individual Slam Champion, 3rd ranked 2005 International Slam Championship in Rotterdam, Netherlands, finalist in the 2006 Individual World Poetry Slam, Austin International Poetry Festival Slam Champion, first ever 2x Lake Eden Arts Festival National Slam Champion, 2004 Southern Fried Regional Slam Champion and many many more. Combining an M.S.A in Non-Profit Management, B.A in Sociology, and extensive experience in womens issues, HIV prevention, social justice and work with at-risk youth Sonya Renee has learned that poetry can change lives but only when we get real with ourselves. This understanding has allowed Sonya to write and perform with a candidness that reminds us that we are at our very core, the same. Black, White, Asian Latino, male, female, young, old, it doesnt matter. Sonya Renee will tell your story by telling hers; reminding us of the thread that tethers each of us together, humanity. Sometimes all that is left is to get Real. Sonya Renee . Is! www.SonyaReneeIS.com! Smile it is really contagious!

Tell your friends! Tell your enemies! TELL YOURSELVES TO GET TO THE PALMER!

See you on Monday,
R, J, and J.

GREEN Warmly Welcomes The Comedic Stylings Of NICK YOUSSEF!!!

Last Week: A huge round of thanks to the homie Paul Maybon for comin' through in a clutch and holdin' down the hosting duties in Slim and Joshua's absence! Props also go out to Tshaka Campbell, who realized a lifelong dream of his by finally delivering his first feature performance @ GREEN! Ah, it's the little victories....

This MONDAY, November 5th: When President Bush declared nations Iraq, Iran, and North Korea the "axis of evil" a few years back, little could he have realized that in 2007, that phrase would become the name of a comedy tour featuring Arab-Americans performing some of the sharpest political satire going.

But that's exactly what's happened, as the Axis of Evil Comedy Tour - featuring Ahmed Ahmed, Maz Jobrani, Aaron Kader, and our feature this week, NICK YOUSSEF, among others - is currently slaying fans with laughter nationwide. Obliterating the stereotypes of Middle Easterners that Bush and Fox News have worked so hard to promote - as humorless souls raging with anti-American sentiment - the comics are hitting stages all across America and they won't be silenced or marginalized.



Nick Youssef, one of the cornerstones of the AOE Tour, is a 25-year-old local rising star who brings quick-witted sarcasm, potent political edge, and a deceptively innocent look to his weekly sets at the Comedy Store. Performing since he was 18, Youssef has learned to hone his youthful angst into a powerful voice, with nods to Richard Pryor, Sam Kinison, Bill Hicks, and even the prog-rock band Tool.

With a list of influences like that, he should fit right in with our usual ragtag group of open mic regulars we've grown accustomed to over here at at GREEN Central (That's YOU!!)!!

As always, come with an open mind and a sense of humor. We'll take care of the rest.

See ya at the Palmer (9pm sharp!).

Jedi, Joshua, and Ratpack Rob.

TSHAKA GETS HIS GREEN ON!!!

LAST WEEK: We had the one-two punch of OVEOUS MAXIMUS repping NY and rocking poems about family, and the mighty mighty BESSKEPP, who brought the Dim Lights family in the place and showed us once again why he's got the deepest pockets in SoCal when it comes to heartfelt bodyrockin' verse...!

THIS WEEK:

We are thrilled to have a cat who's got global love, from New York to San Francisco, from Jamaica to our fair city...he's can spit all hard-hitting slam style AND wrap you in layers of metaphor. He's a powerhouse. He is TSHAKA! And here's a snippet from his bio:

Tshaka Menelik Imhotep Campbell is his Full Name, you could say his government name. However, he likes to be known as simply a “TarMan Celebrating his Natural Kink”. Originally from London England and of Jamaican decent, Tshaka has been writing poetry in excess of 10 years but only recently decided to step out of the world in his head and share with the masses.

“Imagery is what Poetry is about for me,” he says. “I feel the need to paint a picture for the listener, reader or audience and take them on a journey … Have them experience the place or situation that I am spitting about. I want them to go home and write afterwards, kiss their Momma, or hug their baby, kick their roommate, slap their landlord or whatever…As long as it invokes emotion action/reaction afterwards.”

See? The man can't even write a damn bio without getting deep and lyrical! This is gonna be a helluva feature...

Do.
Not.
Sleep.

See you at the Palmer,
Jedi, Joshua, and Robert Ross.

BESSKEPP HOLDS IT DOWN THIS WEEK AT GREEN!

LAST WEEK: We had the Denver Dynamo PAULIE LIPMAN in the building, dropping science both serious and silly, talking about nerdism, tattoos, his heritage, and tons more...(check out Paulie at Mic and Dim Lights Thursday, October 18th as well)...!

THIS WEEK: Speaking of A Mic and Dim Lights, AKA one of the biggest open mics in Southern California, we are extra hyped to have back the host of that venue and one of our favorite poets ever, BESSKEPP! This is a cat who's done it all, from the page to the stage and back again. Raised on a diet of Langston Hughes and Public Enemy, his poems mix the personal with the political with an urgency that only a true teacher can provide. His bio:

HBO Def Poet, author, and a member of two national slam teams, Besskepp merges originality and heritage with performance and at countless colleges, cafes, arenas, festivals, and coffeehouses. Twice named Teacher of the Year, he was featured by the Los Angeles Times for his academic innovation that incorporates Hip Hop and Poetry into the classroom. By mixing classical structure with an urban flavor, Besskepp creates poetry that deconstructs the complex issues facing youth today through non-elitist language. Other accomplishments include an appearance on BETs The Way You Do It, as well as being featured on Fox Television for his performance at the 2004 Hip Hop Theater Festival. In 2005, Besskepp's Hip Hop Theater Play, Homeless Beatboxer was twice featured at the REDCAT Theater at Disney Hall. His weekly poetry reading (A MIc & Dim Lights) www.myspace.com/amdl is arguably the largest in California, and rated among the top five in the nation. In 2003, his much anticipated CD release Bluze Langwij, was described by Rock and Rap Confidential as the most musical mixture of spoken word with the instrumental truth. His poetry addresses pertinent issues as equal rights, single-parent households, education, homelessness and the influences of Hip Hop on our society.

We're hoping he brings some of the Dim Lights Alumni to rock the mic as well, but even if he's solo with no mic and no lights, he will still rock your face off!

and NEXT WEEK: The cross-contintental vocab-drenched verses of TSHAKA CAMPBELL!

See you at the Palmer,
Slim, Jedi, and Joshua.