President Obama Shouts Out Jackie Bray, Charlotte, Siemens, and CPCC in 2012 State of the Union

If you watched last night’s State of the Union address by President Barack Obama, then you saw the great face time a local woman received. About 17 minutes into his hour-long speech, President Obama touted Jackie Bray’s success story. He told how Jackie, from Kings Mountain, was laid off from her job as a mechanic. But thanks to a partnership between Siemens' new gas turbine factory in Charlotte and Central Piedmont Community College, the company paid Jackie's tuition; then hired her full-time.

Jackie was seated next to First Lady Michelle Obama, and the national television cameras cut to her about a half-dozen times. She was clearly overwhelmed by the fact that the POTUS was saying her name repeatedly.

"I want every American looking for work to have the same opportunity as Jackie did," President Obama said. "Join me in a national commitment to train 2 million Americans with skills that will lead directly to a job. My administration has already lined up more companies that want to help. Model partnerships between businesses like Siemens and community colleges in places like Charlotte, and Orlando, and Louisville are up and running."

Below is a two-minute video clip of Jackie's face time. It's also great publicity for CPCC, which is already a thriving community college system, and for Siemens, which comes off looking like a great corporate citizen.

You can watch the full 2012 State of the Union address by clicking here.

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'Mummies of the World' Opens at Discovery Place

I went on a media tour of Mummies of the World this morning and it's far more intricate than the King Tut exhibit I remember going to see when I was a kid. Mummies of the World officially opens to the public at Discovery Place tomorrow, November 11 (11-11-11, how fitting for this tomb-esque exhibit) and runs through April 8, 2012. It's the Southern U.S. premiere for MOTW, which is the largest exhibition of real human and animal mummies ever assembled, with more than 150 specimens.

Discovery Place is a science museum, of course, and that's what's really at the heart of this traveling exhibit (Charlotte is one of only seven cities that will show it). It's fascinating to see how these mummies have been preserved for centuries and how scientists study them to learn about cultures, the environment, historical eras, and even diseases.

"The Tattooed Woman" is from Chile, believed to have lived before 1400. She's noted for her unusual tattoos--an oval with a dot inside on both breasts and her mouth.

Walking through the exhibit, you'll experience a range of emotions. One of the first pieces you'll encounter is the "Monkey Mummy." This howler monkey is from Argentina and is believed to have been naturally preserved in the warm, dry environment of the area. But what makes it stand out is that it's displayed with a feather skirt and feather wreath around its head and neck--a fancy monkey it is, that'll have you going "awwww." But as you proceed through MOTW, you'll encounter other pieces such as a South American mummy of a woman and her two children that'll leave you a little sad. These are, after all, the remains of people who once lived.

MOTW is a 12,000-square-foot exhibition so you'll journey through many sections, several of which are defined by the region where the mummies were discovered. I captured a short video, which you can see below, of a display in the European Mummies section. In the video is the Orlovits family, also known as the Vac Mummies, a husband, wife, and son group of mummies from the 18th century who were found in a long-forgotten church crypt in Vac, Hungary.

Admission to Mummies of the World is $24 for adults; $18 for children ages 2-13 (you might want to think carefully about letting small children see it); and, $20 for students with ID and seniors ages 60 and older. All tickets include full-day admission to Discovery Place. For more details, visit www.discoveryplace.org or www.mummiesoftheworld.com.

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Behind the Scenes of 'Master of the Mix' Season 2 Filming In Charlotte

Smirnoff brought its Master of the Mix crew to Charlotte last Monday for the filming of an episode of season two of the DJ competition/reality television show that airs on BET Centric.

UPDATE 8/17/11

I was happy to tell you a little about my experience from that night at RE:PUBLIC nightclub, and even shared some behind-the-scenes footage. But I've been contacted by an agency representing the show and have been asked to take down the blog post I'd written to ensure they "maintain the integrity of the show and an element of surprise before the November premiere." I certainly can respect that so I've obliged (and guess I should've actually read the confidentiality agreement I signed...doh!).

I think Master of the Mix season two will be worth your while to watch, especially if you love hip-hop, the art of DJing, and like watching competition. Perhaps I'll be able to share a little more insight closer to the show's premiere.

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Lil Wayne Skates Through Charlotte

Lil Wayne had a busy day, night, and early morning in Charlotte. He brought his "I Am Still Music Tour" to Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre Sunday, with guest acts Lloyd, Far East Movement, Keri Hilson, and Rick Ross. I was fortunate enough to attend the concert and, despite the heat, it was a great show. Weezy has built up a deep catalog so he kept the hits coming Sunday night, and had several members of his YMCMB team join him on stage including Birdman, Mack Maine, Jae Millz, Gudda Gudda, Cory Gunz, and Shanell (she sang vocals on several of his songs similar to his recent MTV Unplugged show).

After the concert, Lil Wayne and crew headed to his official after-party at 5th Element nightclub in Uptown. I didn't go but I hear it was a packed house. You would've thought after the party, Lil Wayne would've gone back to his hotel (he stayed at The Ritz-Carlton). Instead he made a trip to Soul Ride SkatePark in Concord at 3 a.m. He rented out the place for him and a few friends to ride their skateboards for a couple of hours. At 5:30 a.m., he posted this tweet: "Just left Soul Ride sk8park. Awesome sesh!! Props to little Adam Z. jr and his homies for shreddin with me!! Bedtime." Below are a couple of photos of Wayne's visit that Soul Ride posted on Facebook.

If you scroll down Lil Wayne's Twitter page (@LilTunechi), you'll see that it's becoming a routine of his to go skateboarding in cities before or after his concerts. In fact, a video posted a few days ago of him at Skatepark of Tampa has gone viral. You see Wayne do a few moves, but it's mostly funny scenes of his homey Marley busting his arse. See that video below.

And apparently, Lil Wayne was loving Charlotte so much he stayed a second night and didn't fly out until this afternoon (Tuesday). His tour had an off day yesterday, so I guess he took some time to relax at The Ritz. He also had a repeat of his previous late night/early morning by going skateboarding again at a nearby skatepark. Shortly before 5 a.m. today, he posted this status on Twitter: "Just left Boardroom sk8park...shredded! Punked out on drop'n in on the 7 and a quarter ramp but I did land a fakie ollie up a ramp! Bedtime!" He's referring to The Board Room SkatePark in the Lake Norman area in Cornelius. The Board Room has posted a short video of Wayne recapping his visit to the skatepark on Facebook (click here to see it), and this photo below:

Now, back to the concert. Here's a 10-minute video I captured at Sunday's concert of Lil Wayne's intro into his 90-minute set.

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'Cotton Fields to Skyscrapers' Keeps Telling Charlotte's Story

I always say that eight out of 10 people I meet in Charlotte aren't from here. I can't say that my 80 percent theory is scientific, but I'm sure you would agree that Charlotte has a lot of newcomers and transplants. I've lived here for almost six years now and because of the work I do I've gotten to know the city really well. But it's easy to get caught up in the present and future and not know much about a place's history. There's no better way to learn Charlotte's story than by visiting the Cotton Fields to Skyscrapers exhibit at Levine Museum of the New South. The award-winning exhibit that debuted in 2001 has just been renovated and updated to reflect the past decade.

Levine Museum tells the history of the New South, which is defined as the period from the end of the Civil War (1865) to today. Cotton Fields to Skyscrapers is its permanent exhibit, located on the first floor, so if you've ever visited the museum you've likely journeyed through it. It's a large exhibit that literally guides you through Charlotte's history from when cotton fields dominated the landscape in the late 1800s and early 1900s to how the economy changed that eventually led to the businesses that built the skyscrapers we see in Uptown today. Or as the museum folks say, it goes from "farm to factory to finance." And along the way, you experience cool artifacts and features such as equipment from a cotton mill, a replica of an old Belk department store, a lunch counter that tells the story of Civil Rights Movement-era sit-ins, the history of integrating schools, the plight of factory workers, how Duke Energy became the largest utility company in the country, and more.

Levine Museum has been celebrating its 20th anniversary since the beginning of the year, and things ramped up this week with an elaborate and festive gala, "Taste of Time," on Thursday that drew hundreds of people, including some of the city's most prominent figures. This week also saw the reopening of Cotton Fields to Skyscrapers, which underwent a three-month renovation. It now contains an additional 750 feet of gallery space, primarily comprised of the new end section, titled "Whirlwind of Growth, 1970s-2010s." In this section, which largely reflects the changes Charlotte has experienced since 2001, you see how the big banks got bigger--Bank of America and Wachovia--and how the latter was acquired by Wells Fargo. You also see how Charlotte has become one of the South's most diverse cities.

A replica of the Bank of America Corporate Center stands tall in Cotton Fields to Skyscrapers.

The exhibit also now features many new interactive components with touchscreen technology. There's the "Remix History" feature, where you can play with digital graphics on flatscreens to manipulate historic photos (it reminds of how the folks at CNN slide things around on their big screens when telling the news). There's also "Picture Yourself in History," where you sit in front of a green screen and have your picture taken to place yourself into an historic moment. The computer allows you to email the photo to yourself so you can have a keepsake (look for these to pop up on people's Facebook pages).

But before you get to all of the cool new stuff at the end of the exhibit, you get to experience a new 10-minute intro film. Sitting in the theater at the entrance to the exhibit, you can watch a video that I guarantee will tell you some stuff about Charlotte you never knew. But you'll likely recognize the names of the voices narrating the film--former Bank of America chief Hugh McColl, NASCAR pioneer Humpy Wheeler, and radio personality Ramona Holloway.

On Tuesday I attended a media tour for the reopening of Cotton Fields to Skyscrapers. Below is a few minutes of video I captured that showcases the new section at the end. Levine Museum historian Tom Hanchett points out some of the new features; then I wander off a little on my own.

You should make sure to check it out for yourself, which you can do tomorrow (Sunday, May 1) during the museum's 20th Anniversary Community Celebration. The free event takes place 12-5 p.m. and you'll be treated to exhibit tours, music and dance performances, multimedia art, photography, family activities, and birthday cake. Levine Museum of the New South, 200 E. Seventh St., 704-333-1887, www.museumofthenewsouth.org.

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JCSU Breaks Ground on Mosaic Village

On Friday I attended Johnson C. Smith University's ground breaking ceremony for Mosaic Village, the university's ambitious project to help revitalize the northwest corridor along West Trade Street and Beatties Ford Road. Mosaic Village is planned as a mixed-use development that will include 300 student apartments, retail space, and a parking deck. It's being constructed at 1601 West Trade St., which is next to The Arts Factory, JCSU's first off-campus facility that opened last fall. The ground breaking for Mosaic Village was actually followed by an official ribbon cutting for The Ats Factory and attendees were given a tour. This was all part of JCSU's Founder's Week Celebration.

JCSU broke ground on Mosaic Village on Friday.

This project is the latest effort in JCSU President Dr. Ronald L. Carter's vision to lead his historically black university beyond its traditionally closed gates and to not only improve the community around it, but to also strengthen the school's connection to Charlotte as a whole. Carter says he'd like to see Mosaic Village opened in 14 months, but that won't come without challenges, including a $4 million funding gap that the university has asked the City of Charlotte to assist with.

Below is video I captured from Friday's ground breaking ceremony. There were a lot of people in attendance showing their support, including Mayor Anthony Foxx, City Councilman James Mitchell, Charlotte Center City Partners President Michael Smith, members of the Griffin family who own the land, and plenty of community and business leaders, alumni, and neighborhood residents. It's not often that you see such a variety of people coming together on this part of town.

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Stopping By 'Metalmorphosis' aka 'The Big Head' at Whitehall

Andrea and I were coming from south Charlotte yesterday after participating in a hike at McDowell Nature Preserve. Since we were passing through Steele Creek, I decided to stop at the Mac's Speed Shop location over there for lunch. After leaving Mac's (I had the Hand Pulled Pork BBQ Platter with mac 'n cheese and onion rings and the complimentary hush puppies), I decided to take her to nearby Whitehall Corporate Center off Arrowood Road to see "The Big Head." She, like many people living in and visiting Charlotte, didn't know anything about Metalmorphosis.

Constructed in 2007 by Czech Republic artist David Cerny for the opening of Whitehall Corporate Center, Metalmorphosis is a 25-foot tall, 14-ton stainless steel, motorized public art piece in the shape of a human head. Comprised of seven layers, it rotates every few minutes and periodically spews water from its mouth into a fountain at its base. It attracts people daily who come to take pictures in front of it, like we did, but still many Charlotteans don’t know it’s there.

Below is a quick video I captured of the head, showing it rotating near the end. You can also view it through a live web cam at www.metalmorphosis.tv.

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UniverSoul Circus Is a Non-Stop Party

UniverSoul Circus rolled into Charlotte this week and held its opening night Tuesday. Even though the three cities I've lived in over the last 10 years have all had the big-top show set up shop there, including repeated visits to Charlotte, this was my first time going. I've always heard good things about the Atlanta-based circus that was created in 1994 to spotlight African-American performers. But I was never too drawn to going to any of the shows since I don't have kids. The circus is for families, I thought. Well, I was thoroughly entertained at UniverSoul Circus.

A near-capacity crowd filled the tent on Freedom Drive for the 7:30 opening night show. There were plenty of parents there with their bunches of kids in tow. And there was also a surprising number of adults there without kids.

It was immediately apparent that music and dance would be a big part of the entertainment. It opened with African music with dancers strutting to every beat of the drum. Acrobatics also abounded, making you wonder how it's physically possible for people to be stacked on each other's shoulders. As the show really got going, hip-hop music became the staple--speakers pumping bass like a rap concert. Ringmaster Shuckey Duckey, who I'd mostly known as a comedian, orchestrated the evening.

Because I don't want to give too much away to people reading this who might be planning to go this week--there are a lot of surprises and breathtaking feats--I'll just touch on a few highlights. Since it was opening night, we probably got extra treats such as Charlotte's professional sports mascots--Sir Purr (Carolina Panthers), Rufus Lynx (Charlotte Bobcats), and Homer (Charlotte Knights)--being a part of the show. Panthers linebacker Thomas Davis came riding in on an elephant and Power 98's No Limit Larry was part of a high-flying slam dunk performance group.

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Fashion's Big 'Night Out' at NC Music Factory, Butter

Thursday night I attended what is likely one of the largest fashion shows Charlotte has ever seen. To kick off Fashion’s Night Out, a global shopping initiative, Butter NC and Effie Loukas (owner of Lotus boutiques) hosted a fashion show in the courtyard at NC Music Factory. The fashion show featured 16 boutiques, 17 salons, and dozens of models.

I’ve been to several fashion shows in Charlotte and because there's usually fewer than a handful of boutiques/labels featured, the actual runway portion of the fashion show typically only lasts a few minutes. But because of the large number of boutiques participating in Thursday’s show, models strutted back and forth for more than 30 minutes, creating a thorough showcase of what local boutiques have to offer.

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GPT Video: Lotus Fashion Show at Butter

I attended the Lotus in Wonderland Spring Fashion Show Thursday night at Butter NC. About 30 ladies modeled Alice in Wonderland-inspired clothing, hair, and makeup in front of a large crowd. The show was put on by Lotus, the Charlotte boutique that has four locations around the city. Below is a five-minute video I captured of the scene.

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Art, Music, Wine, and Magic at South End Gallery Crawl

Andrea and I went to the First Friday South End Gallery Crawl yesterday. This, in my opinion, is the best gallery crawl in the city. And with the weather being perfect, it was a great turnout.

There were 11 galleries participating, many of them serving wine and light refreshments as patrons perused the spaces. Charlotte Art League sort of serves as the home base for the gallery crawl, so it's usually a good idea to start your trek there. Plus, they feature live music.

(See video of a magic trick after the jump.)

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GPT Video: En Vogue Is Still in Vogue

Here's a snippet of En Vogue's performance I caught before Saturday's CIAA Championship games at Time Warner Cable Arena. The members of the popular 1990s R&B group sound as good as they did when they were dropping songs like "Hold On" and "Giving Him Something He Can Feel." And now each in their 40s, they look good enough to give some of these young women a run for their money (I remember thinking that when Alicia Keys brought them on stage during the 2008 BET Awards).

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GPT Video: Crowd Outside of EpiCentre During CIAA

A couple of friends and I were taking in the Saturday festivities that were going on in Charlotte surrounding the CIAA Basketball Tournament. The crowds on the light rail (which we rode from South End) and throughout the streets of Uptown were huge as were expected. After hitting up a day party, I headed to the arena while my friends went to the EpiCentre. When I went to later meet them at the EpiCentre around 6 p.m., I captured this video of the crowd from my vantage point on the walkway over Trade Street. The crowd on the College Street side was even bigger.

The EpiCentre--which is an entertainment complex that has more than 20 restaurants, bars, and nightclubs, plus a bowling alley, movie theater, and hotel--was so packed that security would no longer let people enter the complex. Many of the venues inside--Mez, Suite, Whisky River, Enso, and others--were being rented out by promoters to host CIAA-inspired day parties.

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