Month: November 2017

Tyler Perry & Jamie Foxx on Becoming a Hollywood High Roller and Holly-Hood High Achiever

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The end of year awards season is about to jump-off and it seems GQ Magazine got things rolling. They named Colin Kaepernick their Citizen of the Year. He’s been a trailblazer for social justice issues. There’s also Blake Shelton being named Sexiest Man Alive by People Magazine. Fans are spreading the love.

Tyler Perry and Jamie Foxx might find themselves on a different list. They’d at least get honorable mentions in discussions around Funniest Man Alive. A few other names might depend on the ‘type of funny’ category. Perry & Foxx certainly have cred as Hollywood high roller & Hollyhood high achiever.

They’ve been in the public eye for a while but for Perry the road to Tinsel-town wasn’t always a song and dance. He describes his story as one of always believing that Higher is Waiting. This mindset helped him in getting through the dark times, appreciating the good times and celebrating those high times.

It was more about chasing the dream than chasing the fame. This balancing act started with a showbiz project that kinda got them in the game. Some will remember Foxx from his In Living Color days. But for Perry it’s been a journey that got started with his urban-styled stage plays.

Some teary-eyed times are usually when talking about special people in their lives. For Foxx it was a grandmother who took care of him after adoption. With Perry there were folks who helped him connect his faith to hopes for a brighter future. They’re grateful for the advice and support they got along the way.

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Their road to success was first nurtured by close family members or friends. But it seems there’re moments in life that are set aside on our journeys where people show up as strangers. Sometimes their presence is about getting to the next point. Other times it’s about getting the point in life’s journey.

It’s like when I first read the book of a famous media personality. It describes his journey of going from average kid to getting a Star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame. Two particular factors mentioned in the book related to certain aspects in my own journey. It’s the kind of thing that’s used as a bookmark of life.

Well if not as a bookmark then there’re those situations that are more like milestones. We appreciate milestone markers on a long road trip. One reason for those markers is letting us know where we are on the highway stretch. But another is to let us know how far we’ve travelled since the starting point.

Foxx and Perry are making the most of the journey by turning their bookmarks into a grander sense of purpose. They’re also turning milestones into ways for helping others get to the next point. That’s the balancing act they try to manage in chasing the dream without getting distracted by chasing the fame.

So let’s get back to the idea of Funniest Man Alive. In terms of being among the super funny, it probably takes having a certain punch to the flow of funny. Then the punch-line will be more than just scripted. Well in chasing the dream it takes having a certain punch to the flow of whatever makes us razzle dazzle.

Tip: In chasing the dream it takes having a certain punch to the flow of whatever makes us razzle & dazzle.

Talkback: Who’d be on your short list of Funniest Man Alive?

Tracks: Empire Cast ft Terrence Howard – Dream On With You – https://youtu.be/XNkmI8nnMVY

Joyful Noise Soundtrack – Higher – https://youtu.be/VShyvXuJBQ0

Lebron James as Rapper, Ice Cube as Baller: The Genius Behind Their Rise to Fame

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The NBA season is a few weeks in and looks like the fellas are still working out the kinks. The Golden State Warriors lost their first game on the night they got their championship rings. The Cleveland Cavaliers lost more than three games in a row and fans are wondering what’s going on in the ‘Land.

Well maybe getting ready for Halloween had them a little distracted. James went to his annual costume party dressed-up as the Pennywise clown from the movie ‘It’. Steph Curry rode in to his on a bicycle like another kind of clown himself. James was also seen on Carpool Karaoke with Ice Cube tagging along.

The costumes of James and Curry stood out as the best. But it’s James as rapper and Ice Cube as baller that helps us see what can make our job performance standout. We see them light-up with their unique strengths and take-off with their creative flow. In a sense that’s the genius behind their rise to fame.

Sometimes sport commentators do the game recap. As they review a big play the video graphics will show how the play unfolded. There’re times the player and the path in the graphics will light-up as things take shape. That’s how James and Cube light-up the scene the way video graphics are smart and cool.

The whole Halloween thing might be scary to some. But it’s a fun way for people to show-off their alter-ego in personality. James could easily go as a rapper. He’s always sharing Instagram clips of his rap-alongs. Cube could easily go as a baller since he’s the co-founder of the 3-on-3 basketball league.

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There’s something else about how they make performance stand-out. They get to show-off their alter-ego in passion. Plus, they’ll bring gametime effort as a balance between how they light-up their strengths on the work-side and flex their flow on the play-side. That’s why we cheer because their genius got game.

As a blogger I’m always using my unique strengths to drop some lines. I realize in writing that a part of getting through comes from being heard without necessarily being seen. I also have a love for how music can bring creative flow to the script. It’s the same reason why movie trailers use music in their promos.

Some of what makes James light-up is hitting the big shots. What makes Cube light-up is spitting slick rhymes. But it’s in how their ‘genius got game’ that’s helped them rise to a higher level of fame. They’ve taken what they know from their main thing and turned it into movies, merchandise and pulling strings.

Chris Paul from the Houston Rockets tells his story of unique strengths, creative flow and being traded from the LA Clippers. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to uproot his family. His main concern was, in one sense, around ‘happy wife happy life.’ He also didn’t know how his son felt about leaving his friends.

He took his son on signing-day when he was introduced to the media and fans. The moment he walked out and heard the cheers, it caused him and his son to light-up. The look on his son’s face said it all. So whether as po’ folks or ‘just folks,’ great performance is about how we stand-out and light-up the place.

Tip: Your performance stands-out in how you shake-off the doubts and light-up the place so that your genius got game.

Talkback: What makes the performance of James, Curry or Cube stand-out?

Tracks: Mary J. Blige – Doubt – https://youtu.be/NUE5r4Mzf80

Nappy Roots ft Anthony Hamilton – Po’ Folks – https://youtu.be/QbN6VkleO48