TODAY WAS GRACE JONES'S BIRTHDAY!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO GRACE JONES~

Grace Jones (born May 19, 1948) is a Jamaican singer, model and actress.

Jones started out as a model and became a muse to Andy Warhol, who photographed her extensively.

During that era she regularly went to the New York City nightclub Studio 54. Jones secured a record deal with Island Records in 1977, which resulted in a string of dance-club hits. 

In the late 1970s, Jones adapted the emerging New Wave music style and adopted a severe, androgynous look, with square-cut hair and angular,padded clothes, created in partnership with stylist Jean-Paul Goude. 

She would also exemplify the so-called "flat top" hairstyle in many of her concerts in the 1970s, which would become popular among black men in the 1980s. Her first album cover to feature this hairstyle was 1980's Warm Leatherette. Her strong visual presence was an advantage for her music videos and concert tours. In her concert performances, she adopted various personas and wore outlandish costumes, particularly during her years with Goude. One such performance was at the Paradise Garage in 1985, for which she collaborated with visual artist Keith Haring for her costume. Haring painted her body in tribal patterns and fitted her with wire armour.

 The muralist also painted her body for the video to "I'm Not Perfect (But I'm Perfect for You)" and the 1986 vampire film Vamp. Grace Jones's striking appearance, height (5'10½" or 1.79 m), and manner influenced the cross-dressing movement of the 1980s. To this day, she is known for her unique look at least as much as she is for her music  and has been an inspiration for numerous other artists, including Annie Lennox, Lady Gaga and Rihanna.

Jones is a contralto. Although her image became equally as notable as her voice, she is a highly stylised vocalist. She sings in two modes: in her monotone speak-sing as in songs such as "Private Life", "Walking in the Rain" and "The Apple Stretching" and in an almost-soprano mode in songs such as "La Vie en rose" and "Slave to the Rhythm". Her voice spans two and a half octaves

RANDOM THOUGHTS FOR THE DAY

THIS IS WHAT'S ON MY MIND AT THIS MOMENT. AT THIS TIME... NOW~
MAY. 19TH. 2012~7:35AM

EACA ALLEY- HOLLYWOOD

The EaCa Alley has been open for a couple months now (on the north side of Selma, between Cahuenga and Cosmo) and it's pretty hopping for such a young pedestrian alley. (It was once just a locked up trash dump before the city took it on in 2008.) Just in the past few weeks, the alley's gotten some new landscaping work by Troy Silva of Urban Nature, and last weekend it debuted the Cahuenga Corridor Street Market for artists to sell their wares during the adjacent Hollywood Farmers' Market (the market will operate every Sunday from 10 am to 7 pm). Phase I of the alley has focused on the southern portion--St. Felix, Kitchen 24, and Velvet Margarita have set up outdoor dining areas already. The northern part of the alley is still in the works, but we're told that Outpost, Fuku Burger, and Ecco will all be using the space.

David Gajda, president of the East Cahuenga Corridor Alley Association, tells us that when all the work is done, they hope the alley will be "a year round garden showcase for plants, lighting, sculptures and outdoor furnishings." Right now, the EaCa Alley gates are open from 11:30 am to 2 am; eventually, they'll start opening at 9 am.

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