Party Life It's My Birthday!!!!!- Toya

Hello 35! *WHEW* 34 was a rough one but praise God! I made it through,yall. I am so serious when I say that I have never been more excited about a birthday in my entire life. I am REALLY grown, for one. And two, I truly believe that God is about to open some doors to great things in my life. I look forward to sharing more adventures with you all. In the meantime, Bebe and Cece's "Celebrate New Life" has been in my head since last night. I pay attention to all songs that randomly pop into my head so I was happy to start jamming to this one this morning. You don't have to wait until New Year's. Leave all that past junk behind and start celebrating now!

"Oh my God, an ill reindeer!!!!"

Hello everyone!!!!! I (Toya) am so excited about Christmas and my 35th birthday this weekend. I feel like my new year is about to start. Also, I will be home with my family whom I miss so much.

This has been a great year for this blog as so many of you have reached out to us and let us know that you are out there. Thanks for sticking with us, encouraging us, and giving us your input. We sincerely appreciate all of you so much. Have a wonderful holiday and expect great things in 2010. 2009 has been rough but I truly believe it is a setup for bigger and better things. Merry Christmas!

Pastor John - Tia

I have to be honest: I did not love Battle Studies the first couple of times that I listened to it. I don't know why that surprised me, though. With the exception of Room For Squares, I haven't liked any of Pastor Mayer's cds the first time through. I have yet to figure out why that is. It always takes a couple of listens before I have that, "YOU BETTER PREACH" moment.

So on my 14 hour drive back to Atlanta on Wednesday I decided it was time to REALLY listen to Battle Studies. I had my "shata" moment at about hour 3. John is PREACHING!!! Y'all better listen. I love this album. It plays like a natural continuation of Continuum in my book. And I think it shows a lot of growth on his part.

Hands down Assassins is my favorite track. I easily listened to it 30 times between Maryland and Virginia.


Oh and can we talk about how he did songs from Battle Studies on the cruise...How did I miss that...? Oh wait....the Long Island Iced Tea in the cup shaped like a boat...yeah....that happened....

Christmas Video of the Day- TLC "Sleigh Ride"
Sorry we haven't posted in a while. I am trying my best to "work as unto the Lord" and I am STRUGGLING. It's 7 days until I go home for Christmas, 10 days until my 35th birthday and 15 days until we can kiss 2009 goodbye. I...can't...WAIT! In the meantime, enjoy T-Boz and 'em.- Toya

BGLU Birthdays:

Happy Birthday Raven Symone'!

Confession (Toya here): If my TV is on when I wake up on Saturday morning and That's So Raven is on, I all of the sudden get this burst of energy and feel like I need to be doing something. Anything! This girl is a media beast who has stayed true to herself whether she gets the accolades she deserves or not. For this we are proud and wish her the best birthday yet. Go Raven!

BGLU Approved: Sade - Soldier of Love

Sade dropped her new single "Soldier of Love" today from her upcoming long awaited album of the same name due in February. It doesn't take a genius in the game to know that when she drops that thing she is going to smash the competition because well, she's that bad of a chick. In the words of Jay-Z, y'all got less than 2 months to get y'all thing together. Good luck.

Ummmm...WHO IS THIS?!?!?!?!?!?!? - Tia

So one of my favorite people in the world is here visiting me in NYC. As we lay around playing on our respective laptops she turns to me and tells me that there is something that I have to watch. This is what she showed me:

Yeah..WHO IS THIS GIRL AND WHY AM I JUST NOW HEARING ABOUT HER?!??!?!?

As of right this second all I know about her is that her name is Jessie and she wrote Miley Cyrus' Party in the USA. That in and of itself seems so wrong. How could a girl with this voice write such a fluff pop song? What is going on in the world???!!!?? Why doesn't she have her own album? What is really occurring???

I'm going to keep digging and I'll get back to y'all when I know more.

I Wasn't Going to Say Anything But...by Toya

I think I need some help in understanding what stereotype black women are expected to live up to, better yet, reduce themselves to, nowadays because I am highly confused.

Let me start by saying that I have no gripe with Tiger Woods because well, I don't know that man at all. I have to say that I was indeed a little shocked to find out that he has been cheating on his wife because to me he still looks like a little boy who is just getting his adult teeth in. Basketball, baseball, and football players cheating? Oh all day long. Golfers? Really? Just like the temptation of infidelity is no respecter of sport, neither is the temptation to judge and stereotype...which brings me to my point.

I have heard and read numerous comments from Twitter, to the radio, to Facebook about what a "real sista" would've done and why he should have married one in the first place. From what I gather, a real sista would keep her mouth shut and stay for the money. At the same time, I have heard that Tiger Woods' wife is an idiot if she doesn't stay because before they married she was a model and a nanny so what else would she be good for?

Huh???

Sooooooo if a real sista would stay in an unhappy marriage and take the money and watch the kids doesn't that too now make her a nanny? High priced, but a nanny nonetheless? And that's not only acceptable but expected? Since when?!

I am a firm believer that you should marry who you love but when you do, you better love the one you're with. I don't care about race. Yet, it's 2009 and people are still saying that is what Tiger gets for marrying a white woman? And I am really confused because I thought a real sista would "Bust the Windows Out Your Car" like Jazmine Sullivan and that's why many black athletes marry white women because they are supposedly submissive and docile. When exactly did the stereotype of a real sista change? When Kanye West came out with "Golddigger"? Is this a reason why so many R&B songs today have men talking about all of the things that they can buy a woman because that's all that black women want? Comments such as "that's what he gets. He should've been with a sista in the first place" insinuate that if he would've "stuck with his own kind" (which Tiger told yall is Cablinasian so good luck with that) then he wouldn't have cheated. *side eye* Unless you were hiding under a rock on Saturn this summer, you know that's not true (I'm trying to be sensitive here but if you are confused, google Steve McNair). One could also say, "Ok maybe he would've cheated but at least a real sista would keep her mouth shut and not try to fight him in the street." Perhaps you have never heard of Brenda Richie either.

I hate stereotypes of black women especially when they are coming out of the mouths of and being perpetuated by black people. I hate the fact that this situation has turned into a discussion about interracial relationships. I really had a lot more to say about this until I read Russell Simmons blog (http://http//globalgrind.com/content/1190422/White-Woman-Will-Bust-Your-Sht-In-Just-Like/tent/1190422/White-Woman-Will-Bust-Your-Sht-In-Just-Like/) that pretty much said all that I wanted to say. Like to hear it? Here it go...

White Women Will Bust Your S*** Just Like...by Russell Simmons

As this Tiger Woods story grows, race is becoming and will become a bigger issue. For Tiger and Elin, race has nothing to do with it. But, for many, many onlookers, race is becoming the central theme for discussion. Proof that we are not in a post racial society is hearing a lot of people and a lot of gossip sites saying…”if Tiger was with a black girl” or “if Tiger was married to a Puerto Rican.” I don’t care who Tiger is married to. A woman, no matter what race, will smash your windshield if she finds out that you got girls all over the country. Whether they use a golf club, a football helmet, a baseball bat or a preacher’s wife using a heavy cross…you can say hello to the guys at auto body shop for me.

Not for a second do I think that Tiger and Elin are thinking about race. The pain is not a racial pain, but it is a human pain. A pain to reconcile or split. A pain to discuss why mommy and daddy are in the news. A pain to go out in public again. Hearing people say that “this white girl is gonna take him to the cleaners,” is absurd. This has nothing to do with the fact that Elin is white, this is all about lawyers, accountants, agents and business advisors. That little pocket change he is negotiating with his wife right now, $55m to stay for 2 years or $5m to leave, is offensive. Tiger’s lucky he’s not negotiating with Kimora Lee.

That last line almost killed me. So are we loud, unreasonable, manipulative hens or golddiggers whose silence can be bought? What's really good?

BGLU Approved: MAC Cosmetics New(ish) Studio Sculpt Concealer by Toya

35. I will be 35, Lord willing, in 21 days. And even though I still get asked what college I go to around here, I can see myself getting older, particularly around my eyes. I have this fear that on December 26 I will sit straight up, look in the mirror and scream at the horror of looking my age. This fear is nonsense because all I have to do is look at my hot mom who will be 60 next year and thank God I have been blessed with great genes. My grandmother who recently passed was a fox all the way up to the age of 83. Even though I have been blessed with great genes, I don't want to take them for granted. Allow me to take an excerpt from the Book of John (Mayer) and say that I need to "protect my situation."

I have been a fan of MAC Cosmetics for about 4 or 5 years now. Around that time I was DJing in an all girl hip hop group and we would take a lot of pictures. Now I have loved Prescriptives Cosmetics (RIP) since I was about 16 years old. However, I noticed that when we would all take pictures, their complexions looked flawless and mine looked lifeless. Prescriptives is great for everyday wear but in pics, uh uh. Reluctant at first, I switched to MAC. I wasn't so reluctant when I found out that their foundation and other products were significantly cheaper.

Fast forward 4-5 years later. I am growing up and my "au natural" (that takes me 15 minutes to look natural) has grown a little bland to me. I've moved from Lip Glass to lipsticks and have gotten a bit bolder with my eye shadows. But no matter how you paint a canvas, if it has lines and wrinkles in it, it's going to look jacked up. Enter my new best friend: Jeffrey at the MAC counter. 

I went to the MAC counter today because me and Studio Fix powder needed to break up. It never seems to last throughout the day. I started to wear this foundation powder in a compact because I am often running late. Applying liquid foundation in the car is an accident waiting to happen, literally. I walked in and a new face which I later found out is named Jeffrey, asked me if I needed some help. I told him I needed my regular Studio Fix concealer and, any oily skinned girl's staple, MAC Blot Powder. I then turned and noticed a new item in the concealer display. "What's this?" I asked. Jeffrey went onto explain to me that it was Studio Sculpt Concealer that had a gel base. I heard angels.

My problem with my concealer has been that I am dry around the eyes and oily almost everywhere else. My concealer would crease under my eyes, fade, and then needed to be reapplied when I went out later on at night. Jeffrey went onto describe why that may be happening and proceeded to apply the concealer on me. With the concealer being gel based, it added more moisture which made my eye area look less dry. It is great!!!! I used to be in cosmetics so I am pretty snarky when it comes to cosmetic reps. You can't get too much pass me. Jeffrey knows his stuff though.

Me: "Okay, I have been using Studio Fix Powder but it doesn't stay on the whole day. It fades and then I have to use Select Sheer Powder but I also use blot powder and I'm still oily."

Jeffrey: "Well, Studio Fix Powder is dry. It has no emollient. What is happening is that combined with the blot powder that zaps oil and moisture, your skin is lacking moisture. To compensate, the skin produces more oil.

Me: "PREACH JEFFREY!"

Jeffrey: *awkward pause* "So...you may want to go with our Studio Tech."

The combination of Studio Tech and the Studio Finish Concealer looks beautiful, I must say. I haven't had to reapply for hours and my skin has a healthy glow whereas before I favored a more matte look. Finding a good makeup artist is like finding a good gynecologist or a good hairdresser. Jeffrey can't get rid of me now. Don't let me find him on Facebook. Kidding...unless he transfers to another MAC store and then I may have to do some research. 

If you have oily skin I recommend that you don't do like me and get scared at the word "emollient". It doesn't necessarily mean oil. My skin looks healthier and far from cakey. As always, I would suggest applying both the concealer and the foundation with a foundation brush for a smooth finish instead of with a sponge. You save a lot of product that way and won't have to purchase as often. The best way to blend concealer is to pat with your ring finger for it applies with the lightest pressure which is important around the eyes. A sponge is great to blend foundation after applying with the brush.

Ladies, do you have any fab makeup finds that you are absolutely crazy about? Do tell...

Oh, To Be That Microphone Stand...

Maxwell continued his crusade to be a permanent stumbling block in my (Toya) life when he performed his hit "Bad Habits" on The Jay Leno Show last night . For those that missed it and would like to hear it, here it go. *flatlined at 3:34*

Happy Birthday Tyra!

Yeah, yeah yeah we know. It's Jay-Z's birthday but this is BGLU so we want to celebrate a sista who has hopefully paved the way for Tia and I to have our own show some day. LOL! Today is Tyra Banks 36th birthday and we wish her many more prosperous ones to come. So everybody, get your "smize" on today.

One day we will get tired of putting this picture up year after year but until then...

A Mayer Christmas to all and to all a good night.- BGLU

BGLU Music News by Toya

Melanie Fiona and The Foreign Exchange Gain Grammy Nominations

Congrats go to Melanie Fiona for snagging a Grammy nod for her hit “It Kills Me” in the Best Female R&B Vocal Performance category and to The Foreign Exchange for a nomination for their song “Daykeeper” in the “Best Urban/Alternative Performance.” category. I absolutely loved both of their albums this year and wish them the best. As for the rest of the Grammy nominees…well, I don’t really care that much for the Grammys. This is the same award show that gave Sir Mix-a-Lot an award for “Baby Got Back”. However, that sure won’t keep us from having a rundown afterwards as always. The 52^nd Annual Grammy Awards air Sunday, Jan. 31, 2010.

What I'm listening to - Tia

Music holds a place in my heart and life that I don't think I will ever fully be able to understand. Regardless of what I'm going through I am never far from an iPod, cd or laptop full of music. That being said, my current album on repeat is Six Strings and a Drum Machine by Britten.


Thanks to the likes of Justin Timberlake, Robin Thicke and if we're being honest (and accurate) Mike McDonald, we no longer think twice about white boys singing soul music. The problem with their familiarity is that when another one of them comes along we may have a tendency to try to compare the current one to the last one. If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then comparison is its red-headed step brother.

Because the playing field seems to be filling up like training camp after draft day, new singers have to up their game in order to not get lost in the shuffle. Enter:Britten. New to the scene but not to the game, Britten brings a voice that makes you remember what singing is all about. Without gimmicks, heavy autotuning or any of the tricks of the trade that his less talented counterparts are relegated to, Britten melodically welcomes you into his world, his heart, his pain.

Equal parts singer and songwriter Britten tells his story through melody and verse. Real One effortlessly pulls you in with him on his search for that one we all hope is out there. As he sings, "Everyday's another day closer to you" you can't help but believe it's true. Get Gone plays like an anthem for fighting the Ms/Mr Right Now syndrome. I'm sure most of us have battled that, "But he's/she's good enough for right now" moment knowing that danger is just around that corner that we're about to take too quickly. And after the games have been played and love has been found, Stick To Your Guns makes us realize that now the fight really begins. It won't always be easy or fun but this love that you've found is worth the fight if it's real.

Amazing arraignments, a showcase of genuine guitar skills (yes, an artist who plays instruments...GASP!!!) and one of the dopest falsettos I've heard in a long time, Six Strings is a perfect introduction from the new kid on the block. Britten shows us his heart and his skill in just six songs (and one fly outro.) The passion that emanates from every track makes you wonder what he could have done with a full album. And because you'll find yourself hitting repeat constantly, you'll stick around to see what else this guy is gonna do.

Britten is currently on tour with Tony Lucca and Josh Hoge. Check out tour dates here. The EP is scheduled to be released on iTunes, Rhapsody, Amazon and Lala December 15.