My people, I’ve been having suuuuuuuuuch an amazing and fulfilling time since getting back to NYC and committing myself to remaining much more unplugged than I was throughout the winter! Still trying to figure out how to fit personal journals into this equation. Perhaps a site redesign? Most people have spring cleaning tendencies, I just feel like revamping all my websites instead. Nerd.

This past weekend we made our NYC debut. On Saturday we hit the magical Brooklyn Peace Fair, and followed it up on Sunday headlining at the Bowery Poetry Club for Sulu Series. I’ve been so juiced about this show!!!!! Besides it being the funnest time I’ve ever had onstage, the nonstop series of recording, rehearsals, and cramming of ourselves into cars/planes to present this craziness to the world has made us closer than ever. And good thing, because living, working, and playing with the same people doesn’t always result in something so lucky. Oops, am I talking too soon? Probably, because I actually hate these mofos. Check out pix from the weekend.

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Photo by Jane Chu

The time has come, my people…we’ve put down our bag in NY, the sun is starting to poke its shiny rays out, and we are preparing to unveil USBUiLLD to the Big Apple!  We’re playing two shows this weekend…one at Brooklyn College Saturday afternoon, and the other at the Bowery Poetry Club Sunday night.  Come play with us!  Show info after the jump.

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Tomorrow we hit the final spring installment of our USBUiLLD tour, and what better way to do so than by finally visiting the northern neighbor whose stages we never graced until we moved our asses all the way to the east!  Yes, we are on that Oregon trail.  Me hopes we don’t end up having to hunt squirrels for food, though we may have to resort to that if this economy doesn’t pick up.  BUT ENOUGH OF THAT!  Come play with us.

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On Saturday we were so very blessed to rock at Occidental College’s Spring Fest, a campus-wide event that was topped off with performances by Mayer Hawthorn and Nas.  As most of our friends in LA said, “You mean the Nas?” And yes, twas Nas.  The gentleman above who looks like a mix between Dahlak and Phonte is none other than D’s big brother, Andre Brathwaite.  And like the rest of us, he is sporting a bright green wristband gives us all backstage access to everything except for Nas’ dressing room (a.k.a. the entire men’s basketball locker room?????  is your posse really that big, Esco??) which happens to contain that building section’s only restroom.  And so when I went outside to relieve myself of the 5 glasses of Jameson that Nico poured me, I found myself locked out of the building while “Hate Me Now” was being performed.  And I thought to myself, Yes, Life, you can hate me now. But to answer your question, no, we didn’t get to kick it like Kelis.  In fact, I was standing next to dude for like 5 minutes and thought he was a student organizer until he ran onstage and started rapping.

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Ah, the wonderful pressures of the morning, such as Dari’s canceled flight and not being sure whether or not he’ll be able to catch a standby early enough for soundcheck!  All shall be well though, and although this show is (unfortunately) a private Occidental event, please do send us well wishes and good vibes to Nico for finally getting over his food poisoning enough to get debouched with his brother.  Poof.

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Photos by Jane Chu

On Friday we had an amaaaaaazing show at Chicago’s Columbia College, which I also like to refer to as Xavier’s School for the Gifted.  I stepped into the pre-show meet-n-greet late (because I was getting poor food-poisoned Nico some kombucha…he hates kombucha) and found myself in a debate about Yo Gabba Gabba.  Nice.  The student body is completely comprised of artists, and as everyone in the room introduced themselves as filmmakers, illustrators, musicians, dancers, and sound engineers, I realized that, as anyone who we had mentioned Columbia to had said, this was going to be a great show.  I must admit, when Nico gave the fateful call half an hour before the show that the little viruses in his stomach had mutated into the worst migraine ever and he couldn’t move his legs, I panicked (first for his life, of course…………….and then for the show).  Even still, we managed to assign/improv his parts and the show was fantaaaastique!

The extravaganza took place at Columbia’s Stage Two, and was set off by a plethora of talented Columbia students, as well as members of MCYP (Multi-Cultural Youth Project).  The lovely Jane Chu took some very fresh pictures.  Enjoy, and see y’all in LA on Saturday!

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We’re trekking on, people!!  Apparently Nico got food poisoning last night.  While he teeters on a small Southwest flight from NY to Chicago, let’s pray that he and his fellow passengers don’t have to feel the wrath of his digested tour food.  Kombucha’s a quick fixer, but the man is stubborn against hippie food.  Ah well.

Meanwhile, I’m here in the Windy City guzzling Guinnesses and eliminating Chicago hot dogs (in my belly).  We at iLL-Lit like to stay on equal levels.  Come to our show at Columbia College tonight, it’s going to be UUUUUUUber fun!

PS: Is this not my faaaaavorite iLL-Lit show ticket ever??????

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The good people at Denison University love us and we love them back!  Bringing us back for the 3rd year in a row, we’re uber excited to bring them our new USBUiLLD show!  If you’re around, you know the dealie.  Chicago, you’re next!

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All right all right peoples!  We’re trekking over to Florida via Atlanta right now, swoop of Ada from the airport, and head immediately to soundcheck.  Come through, my Floridians!  Can’t wait to see you all tanned and lovely.

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Awwww yeah, you know what this Mobile Chapel parked in the middle of a rest stop in Pennsylvania means…TOUR SEASON HAS ARRIVED (!!!!) meaning that your favorite iLL-Literates are once again pummeling themselves through the odds and ends of our great nation.  This time around it’s called the USBUiLLD Tour, to be exactamundo.  Today’s episode had us waking up at 3am to make our 12-hour drive from Brooklyn to the land of the Bobcats.  Oh North Carolina, how I’d put you on my head and spin you like a helicopter.  So with our half hour downtime in the hotel before heading to Davidson for sound check, here are some (sleepy) moments of our day thus far:

Like I said, cats were very tired.  I ordered a Belgian waffle thinking that it was going to be a Swedish pancake.  That’s what I get for generalizing Europeans and breakfast pastries.  Justice has been served.  Anywayzzzzz…we have a show tonight, guys!!!! If you’re in the area, come on through.  If you can’t, just sit back and imagine Cirque du Soleil, mixed with a monster truck rally, mixed with the Million Man March, mixed with the joy you had the first time you tasted a pastry puff…and that’s pretty much what these Caroliners will be getting tonight.  Yeah.

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