Philadelphia-----OCTOBER 24, 2008 ----

This October, Philadelphia audiences will be treated to a popular but underappreciated pairing--a $500 poetry slam fused with visual art and a soul concert from indie music artists. National promotion group, Below The Radar, and local Philly Brand Authentic/Kholi PR+, will welcome national recording artist, Ken J. Martin, to Rough Language V-- a poetry slam featuring 12 of the top poets from across the country and a $500 cash prize.
This event will take place Friday, October 24th, 2008 at the Bubble House in Philadelphia, PA. and will feature Soul Music by Atlanta native; guitarist, singer, songwriter, Ken J. Martin. It will also include three rounds of performance poetry judged by five celebrity guest judges. This will mark the fifth installment of the Rough Language Poetry Slam series. In the previous events, poets also competed for a $500 cash prize as well as a chance to compete for the $1000 prize in March 2009 in Atlanta and ultimately a chance to perform at the Akoben Music Festival in New Orleans.
"We knew because of our presence in the local community we would get a certain level of attendance, but we were really shocked by how diverse the audience was becoming," said Below the Radar founder and member of the two time National Poetry Slam Champ Team, Slam Charlotte, Bethsheba "Queen Sheba" Rem. "We felt this was the right time to push the envelope."
Sheba is not only a popular fixture on the nation's underground poetry scene, but highly loved and respected as a leader in the arts community by her peers. "She's extremely personable," said one audience member. "If she's performing or hosting, you feel like she's talking right to you. She makes everyone feel special. You leave the poetry slam feeling happy and motivated."
The Rough Language promoters, Carrie Y.T. Kholi and Beth(sheba) A. Rem are planning for this slam series on October 24th at the Bubble House but the wheels are already turning for, Dec 2008, which will feature Hidden Beach Recording Artist, Jaguar Wright and Atlanta's new young voices that give background to Kelis and many others, Ms. Eva Kennedy. Below the Radar and Kholi PR+ plan to team up again in Philadelphia in January 2009 (feature TBD) and in Atlanta March 2009 for the highly anticipated Women's History Month Show with the coveted $1,000 slam, featuring British Fenom Julie Dexter and other surprise guest artists!

About Below the Radar
Created in July 2007 by esteemed poet, writer and activist, Bethsheba 'Queen Sheba' Rem, Oya Xclusive is a one-stop booking agency and promotion/production company consisting of an all-star executive team consisting of A&R representatives, distribution and promotion representatives, grant writers, youth organizers, Web and graphic designers, word-shop facilitators, business and tour managers, photographers and audiovisual specialists. Below the Radar believes in supporting the growth of all artists and subcontracts artists for performances around the country within the booking segment, to include hosts, singers and emcees. Most recently Oya Xclusive has joined forces with poets in Europe to invest in exposure for both UK and American poets. For more information, please log on to:

www.myspace.com/thequeensheba
www.myspace.com/twistedtongueatl

Media Contacts:
Adah Pittman
Executive Assistant to Julius Irving
770.895.2692
adah.pitman@gmail.com
Carrie Y. T. Kholi
Oya Xclusive Int'l/Below The Radar Presents Rough Language
Executive Assistant to Queen Sheba
404.732.5592
carrie@roughlanguage.com

Walk into Cream & Sugar Coffee and Sweet Shop at 4004 Spruce Street and be prepared to use all your sensory functions. See the gourmet individual-sized desserts in the bakery case immediately as you enter the store, smell the fresh brewing coffee, taste the chocolates, feel how dense their giant chocolate chip bakery cookies truly are, and hear the music - together these characteristics along with a friendly, helpful staff create a delightfully warm, welcoming, and tasty sanctuary from the chaos of our everyday world. Everything in the store from the cannoli cream and strawberry cream cheese to the milkshakes and chocolate covered cheesecakes to the bagels and bread puddings are locally or store made. Cream & Sugar caters to the neighborhood resident and college student alike on every budget. Try their coffee and donut special at only $1.50 - a real steal, or if you can splurge, try a gourmet biscotti latte and rice pudding special for $6.00. The shop also offers gift baskets, party platters, and custom bakery cakes. You imagine it and the staff there will deliver! Have a question about a product or interested in placing an order, email the store at creamandsugarsweets@yahoo.com or simply stop on in. The store is open 7 days a week 7am-11pm, and open until 1am Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings. Bring in a copy of this online write-up between now and October 31st for 10% off your first purchase of any bakery item. Also, stop on in Halloween afternoon between 3-7pm and say trick-or-treat for a sweet treat!

UPCOMING AT STUDIO 34...

6th Annual Bike Part Art Show
A Benefit to support Neighborhood Bike Works
Friday, September 12, 6 to 9 p.m.

Come to Studio 34 (4522 Baltimore Ave.) for a silent auction of bicycle-themed artworks to benefit the youth programs at West Philly's Neighborhood Bike Works. The benefit also includes a raffle, live entertainment, and refreshments. Over 100 artworks, including sculptures, furniture, jewelry, paintings, prints, t-shirts, greeting cards, and photographs, are contributed by artists, cycling enthusiasts, and more. Art not sold during the benefit will remain on sale at Studio 34 through Sept. 14. Benefit is sponsored by Victory Brewing Company and Laborers Local Union 57. For more information, contact artshow@neighborhoodbikeworks.org.

Philadelphia Live Arts Festival & Philly Fringe 2008

Music & Motion Dance Productions
CONTINENTS
A Global Voyage

Saturday, September 6th, 2008
Two performances at 2:00 & 7:30 PM

Hall of Flags at Houston Hall
University of Pennsylvania
3417 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA

VIDEO PREVIEW ON YouTube: CLICK HERE

Tickets: $10 online at www.music-and-motion.com
or through the Fringe Box Office

http://www.caitdavis.com/premiere.html

ART, MUSIC&FILM this Sat, August 23 8pm-11pm
Studio 34
4522 Baltimore Ave

Studio 34 presents a night of Art, Music & Film! Come enjoy an art extravaganza celebrating the premiere of the short film, "IN THIS PLACE," by Cait Davis. In her first film since graduating from college last year, Cait explores personal growth and development. See artwork by local artists: installation, short stories, paintings, pottery & more! Bands throughout the night. Support your local artist, yay!

August 23, 2008 8pm $5 suggested donation.
4522 Baltimore Ave West Philly!
www.studio34yoga.com
www.caitdavis.com

Dear Fellow West Phillyites,

If you have recently had a bad experience with the Oregon Avenue UPS Depot, please call central UPS Customer Service and complain. Give them the specifics. The phone number is 1-800 - PICK-UPS. I had a *horrible* experience today, worse than my usual horrible UPS experience.

I recently ordered a new futon mattress from the Internets. When I ordered it, there was a place for shipping instructions. I wrote that the door buzzer to my apartment building was broken and that the driver should call my cell phone when he arrived. I provided my cell phone number. Now, I know from experience that not all of the drivers carry cell phones, so I spent the entire day looking out the window every two minutes. Finally at 3pm I saw it! I ran downstairs to meet the driver, and...

He told me he left my 70-pound package *at the warehouse* because my apartment building buzzer was broken.

I called UPS central customer service. Central UPS says that the driver absolutely did not have the authority to leave a package behind. Of course they are going to call the Oregon Station depot. I told them that I have not gotten satisfactory response from the Oregon Avenue Depot in the past, and the response has been particularly rude and unhelpful when I have spoken to the manager. The man at central UPS said the only way that UPS could do anything about this was if people in Philadelphia who have had bad experiences with the local UPS called central customer service and complained.

Again, the number is 1-800-PICK-UPS.

Baltimore Ave mommy meet up is embarking on its second meeting. Please join us on June 28, 2008, at noon in Clark Park. This is yet another incentive for moms in the area to come to the park. Every Saturday Clark Park host a farmer's market and every month a fleamarket. So grab the kids, stock up on fresh produce, and stop by the mommy meet up. See you then.

ABOUT THE GROUP:
Meet mothers from the West Philadelphia and University City area who frequent or live nearby Baltimore Ave. With the avenues rich diversity and welcoming atmosphere, I find it fitting to create a mommy meet up here. I envision this group tailoring to moms who want to utilize Clark Park as an outside meeting place and a safe place for our children to play. This meet up is particularly for mothers who are interested in becoming educated consumers and long to green our lives and our children. Our future will depend on our relationship with the environment. Do we protect it and respect it? Now more than ever, global warming and climate change are receiving a lot of media attention and we are being taught different techniques to reduce our carbon emission but what does that mean for mothers. It doesn't have to be overwhelming and we can't expect to be able to do everything but every little bit helps. So, what can we, as mothers, do? And how does what we do now impact our children's future? I hope this organization will give you better insight into how the safety and health of our children are tied to the environment.

For more information: http://sahm.meetup.com/2904
sahm-2904@meetup.com

Think you have what it takes to be a renowned photographer? Always wanted to display your photos, but never had a place to do it? Maybe you’re not quite that ambitious, but you’ve got one killer pic that you’re sure could stand with the best of them?

“Phillyist Framed 2008” is giving local shutterbugs a shot at seeing their art in a gallery. Phillyist, the website about Philadelphia and everything that happens there, invites area residents to submit their photos by May 21. Thirty will be chosen for display at Studio 34: Yoga | Healing | Arts, a new healing and creative arts space in West Philadelphia.

“We’ve long been impressed by the photos our readers send in to our Photoist feature, so we’re looking to give them a chance to display their work in a formal gallery setting,” said Phillyist Framed curator and judge Matt Johnson, Phillyist’s photography and architecture writer.

Any resident of the greater Philadelphia area is welcome to enter up to three photos shot in the region. Entries should be posted to the Phillyist Framed group on Flickr.com, the photo-sharing website, before midnight on May 21. The winning photos will be selected by Johnson and Philadelphia photographers JJ Tiziou (jjtiziou.net) and Brad Maule (phillyskyline.com). Winners will be notified no later than May 30, and will be responsible for framing their work in accordance with Phillyist Framed guidelines. Full rules are posted at http://phillyist.com/2008/04/22/phillyist_framed_rules.php.

The exhibit will go up on June 27 and remain on display for a month at Studio 34: Yoga | Healing | Arts (4522 Baltimore Avenue in West Philly; just 15 minutes from City Hall on SEPTA’s No. 34 trolley line).

The public is invited to the opening reception on Friday, June 27, from 7–9 p.m. “Hang out with other Phillyist readers, celebrate our awesome contributors, and spy on gallery-goers as they gush over your work,” Johnson said.

Phillyist (http://phillyist.com), launched just in time for Live 8 in 2005, covers Philadelphia news and events, restaurants and bars, happenings and goings-on. It is the 13th website by Gothamist LLC, whose flagship blog, Gothamist (launched in 2002), covers New York City.

Studio 34: Yoga | Healing | Arts (http://studio34yoga.com), which opened in March, is a 5,000-square-foot healing and creative arts space in vibrant, diverse West Philadelphia. It offers yoga, Pilates, creative arts, and community programs; and rents space for events and healing providers.

# # #

Studio 34: Yoga | Healing | Arts, the West Philly yoga-and-creative arts studio, is opening for business with a week of free events that includes free yoga and Pilates classes from March 22-29; an opening reception for a 15-artist show on Friday, March 28; and a grand-opening party on Saturday, March 29.

In February, Studio 34 hosted the Artclash! Collective's Fun-a-Day 4 show. Now it's opening for real, and everyone's invited.

All Grand Opening Week events will take place at Studio 34: Yoga | Healing | Arts (4522 Baltimore Avenue, http://www.studio34yoga.com, 215.387.3434).

MARCH 22-29: FREE YOGA AND PILATES CLASSES. Studio 34 is proud to offer classes free of charge during its first week of business. Come see our new studio! Check http://www.studio34yoga.com for class schedule.

FRIDAY, MARCH 28, 7-10 p.m.: "FINDING BLUE" RECEPTION. What is blue? Is it the happiness of blue skies, the blues of sadness? When is blue not a color, but a journey? In "Finding Blue" by the Midwives Collective 15 artists explore hue and metaphor in oil, pencil, fiber, photographs, and other media. With individual works, room-sized installations, and a video projection, the show makes fine use of Studio 34's facilities. The reception will feature live music and refreshments, and select artworks will remain on display through April 23.

SATURDAY, MARCH 29, 7-11 p.m.: GRAND OPENING PARTY: We're throwing a party in our newly renovated, 5,000-square-foot space on Baltimore Avenue, and everyone's invited! Enjoy the music of the Citywide Specials and Philadelphia's own Jessi Teich. Snack on refreshments, savor the art of "Finding Blue," win a door prize — we'll be giving away 3 months of free yoga and much more!

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A new yoga-and-creative arts studio, Studio 34: Yoga | Healing | Arts will offer yoga and Pilates classes, healing services, community workshops, musical performances, creative arts events, support groups, and community meetings. Founded by three longtime neighborhood residents, Studio 34 serves as a wellness and community hub, offering an experience and service unique in the Philadelphia area. We have low-cost spaces for rent, including four wellness rooms, two studios (1,700 and 700 square feet), a conference room, and a community space with a stage.

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Studio 34: Yoga | Healing | Arts. 4522 Baltimore Avenue in West Philly. On the #34 trolley line. 215.387.3434. http://www.studio34yoga.com.





Philadelphia will be the first stop on a U.S./Canadian speaking tour by factory workers and labor organizers from the "free trade" zone of Valle Hermoso, Mexico. Seeking to expose the brutal truth about the deteriorating state of workers rights on the Mexican border, the speakers will give a free presentation to the public on Thursday, March 6th, 7:00 PM at Studio 34 (located at 4522 Baltimore Ave in West Philadelphia/University City). The event will be preceded by an 11:00 AM protest at a Hyundai dealership on 754 Baltimore Pike, Springfield. (Hyundai orders auto equipment from Key Safety Systems.)

The tour, organized by the Mexico-based Coalition for Justice in the Maquiladoras, and hosted by the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW--an independent labor union), will take place from March 4th-18th. Other planned stops include Detroit, Toronto, and Los Angeles, with the focal point being a protest at Key Safety Systems headquarters in Sterling Heights, Michigan. Key Safety Systems is a leading global producer of airbags and other auto safety systems, which has sent its production to maquiladoras (factories) such as Valle Hermoso, Mexico, just south of Texas, in search of cheap workers and the unfettered right to exploit. Two Mexican workers organizing at KSS's Valle Hermoso plant, Perla Cruz and Israel Monroy, will speak on the human costs of NAFTA-style free trade. CJM coordinator Martha Ojeda will also be present.
Cruz and Monroy will speak of the low wages, environmental pollution, discrimination and labor and human rights abuses that now characterize Mexico's northern border. Cruz was fired Feb. 14 as part of KSS's efforts to crush workers' efforts to build an independent union to redress these conditions. According to Ojeda, "Key Safety System has concealed unsafe conditions, detained, harassed and intimidated workers, and fired workers for organizing, while announcing 1,200 job openings".
Background information is available at:
http://www.coalitionforjustice.info/CJM_Website/New_Sites/CJM_WebPage/Home_Page.html

What: The 4th Annual Fun-a-Day Show, hosted by The Artclash! Collective
When: Saturday, Feb. 16, 2008. 7 to 11 p.m.
Where: Studio 34 Yoga | Healing | Arts, 4522 Baltimore Avenue in West Philadelphia [locator map] (on the No. 34 Green Line trolley)

Anyone interested in writing should be delighted to hear about a talk coming up in Philadelphia January 27. Rachel Simon, author of the bestselling memoir "Riding the Bus with My Sister" will be delivering the talk 2 PM, Sunday January 27 at Drexel University’s Anthony J. Drexel Picture Gallery on the third floor of the main building at 3141 Chestnut Street. The talk will be about "Constructing a Writing Life." If you can make it to the talk, you're in for a treat. Not only is she a great writer, and a professional speaker. She's also a passionate teacher of writing. If you want to see what I mean, check out Rachel Simon's website , which is loaded with tips for writers, including a free downloadable copy of her book "The Writer's Survival Guide."

The talk at Drexel is the first in a series of free talks organized by the Philadelphia Writers Conference board member, Sean Toner. Check out the Philadelphia Writers Conference website for more information about the free Drexel talks. Also check out the website for information about the annual writer's conference on June 6, 7 and 8.

Jerry Waxler
Memory Writers Network

I've been wanting to go to one of the WXPN Free at Noon concerts, but having a day job has gotten in the way. Mark has been to a bunch including last week's Toots show which I wanted to go to, but I didn't make it. When I saw that Nellie McKay was the performer, I had to go.

Kate and I saw her in concert at the TLA about 3 years ago right around the 2004 election. She was already a fan, I was a quick convert. Over on the WXPN blog, they have the set list. I've only listened to her fist album so all the songs were new to me, except for one or two, which was cool. Her joyful style is still the same. She was doing some funny moves during "Zombie" which had the absolutely packed house laughing along.

The Kelly Writers House presents a conversation with rock journalist Alan Light with an introduction by Anthony DeCurtis.

Thursday, 9/27 at 6PM
3805 Locust Walk
This event is free & open to the public

ALAN LIGHT is the author of "The Skills to Pay the Bills: The Story of the Beastie Boys." He is the former editor in chief of Vibe, Spin, and Tracks magazines, and a former senior writer for Rolling Stone. He currently writes for the New York Times, Spin and other publications, and he was the founding editor of Tracks Magazine. He is also the editor of the New York Times bestseller "Tupac Shakur" and "The Vibe History of Hip Hop."

About "The Skills to Pay the Bills: The Story of the Beastie Boys":