Baby flicks seem to always set things off, so here's one of lil' Kori with the big ears...
In the spring of 2019, I wrote a poem titled "A Boy Takes The Bus". It was my letter to the world detailing the mental, financial, and spiritual hardships that I was facing. "... downpour, outpour, another cold shower in my apartment, open pores / potpourri and Ms. Brooks' potatoes and onions fumes, wafting, wading like dreams deferred in search of open doors, they have no home...". Needless to say, I was deep into Gwendolyn Brooks, Langston Hughes, and LeRoi Jones. The truth of the matter is that the poem was about my desire to leave Memphis.
A couple months later brought my last assignment as a student at the University of Memphis. My assignment was to write and perform a brand new song for the jury committee. If you read my first blog, then you know that I'm very picky about who I perform with, and I didn't have anyone in my band that could play this one with me. I picked my unit like two days before the jury (I only had like a week to put it all together). I sat in my apartment and wrote "Take Me To A Place". So, spring of 2019 was all about going somewhere and waiting on God to tell me to step. Take Me To A Place became a staple on my setlist because it was written with gospel-style chords, but played in straight-ahead fashion. Any musician with something on their hearts can take to that song and pour it out. I eventually added a tag from the bridge of Order My Steps to really open up that portal to heaven during the solo section.
Back to the topic... those two pieces were really written with the frame of mind that I was going to take a leap of faith and move to Atlanta cold. No connections, no direction, just a couple family members and a dream. I reached out to some faculty members at different schools here just to see if they knew where the side work was. I sent long emails with my resume, and a copy of A Boy Takes The Bus, and a rough recording of Take Me To A Place.
Spelman considered me for a teaching position that was most definitely under qualified for, but it was a nice feeling being able to say that my writing was that impactful that someone felt I should teach it at a high level. I developed one great connection in that whole process. Dr. James Abbington of Emory University became the biggest single help outside of family. He gave me recommendations for my first teaching jobs in the city, and also gave me my first gig here.
I feel like a flick of me moving something fits the mood, so you go.
Now, the whole midnight train to Georgia thing... here's what happened... I didn't move in 2019. And I'm glad I didn't. I spent that summer teaching in residence at the Memphis Jazz Workshop, got a major teaching offer for an international school in St. Louis, led the band into our first festival performance, and led the inaugural spoken word workshop at Crosstown Arts for young men that had been placed on probation. That fall, I landed a job as the Music Director at a church, and I even continued as a cast member in a touring musical from earlier that year.
Winston-Salem, North Carolina... this was when my friends found out that I still got the moves from back in the day
When the pandemic hit in the spring of 2020, I was one of the musicians that lost everything. Gigs, teaching spots, drive, lady friends... (just kidding lol I don't ever lose all of those at once)
Unlike other musicians, I decided to take this time to take that leap. Rent had to get paid and sitting in Memphis waiting on a vaccine was going to lead to eviction. So I applied to jobs in Atlanta, Chicago, New Orleans, and DC. They all fell through because of the pandemic. New Orleans looked really, really good for a moment. I'm talking about bringing in some real bread, PLUS job security. Then, the pandemic got worse. I had my bags packed for NOLA when I got a phone interview from a church in Alpharetta. I went ahead and did the interview just in case, and I'm glad I did.
The world went on a real shut down and NOLA fell apart. I had no money, and the job here needed me to do an in-person interview ASAP. I needed to do it before things got really, really bad with the virus, so with my last few dollars (and a small loan of $100 from my pops), I took the midnight bus to Atlanta to interview that morning. The rest is history.
Me and my '98 Camry having a moment after it surprisingly got my cousin and I to Atlanta safely from Memphis
It's actually very fitting that I accepted a church job. In 2018, I wrote on a vision board that I'd move to Atlanta and become a big MD. That was the year that I was baptized, and that's when my jazz playing took off. I discovered how spiritual jazz really is because I was starting to really understand faith. I told you about 2019, and now you know that it was written that I would get here in 2020 and accept a position running the music for a large, and still growing, youth department. All of my experiences over the past couple of years tie into my job teaching kids that are basically younger siblings to me how to express themselves on stage through worship arts.
2020 was a wild ride, and I actually accomplished more than I believed was possible in a pandemic. We appeared on NPR for the first time (it's happened five more times since then), I released a book, established a private teaching studio, and got a couple MD calls. The biggest accomplishment, though, was being able to stand tall in the face of adversity as we lost my mother to a very short battle with cancer. So yeah, 2020 was a wild one.
Closing Thoughts?
If you made it to the end, peace and love. If not, oh well. That's probably how I'll close all of my blogs. Subscribe to the site, and leave me messages on what else I should talk about. I'm thinking of doing a random blog on hair next. Ya boy got that good stuff on the top of my head... we'll see. Much love.
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