Events for the Week: November 24-30

Note: If I learn of more events, I’ll update this post throughout the week.

Wednesday, November 26

Pop Life (weekly event)
It’s the most popular social networking event on a Wednesday night. Starts after work but ends late. Music by select DJs. Presented by Creative Loafing and The Sol Kitchen. 6 p.m. Free. Apostrophe Lounge, 1440 S. Tryon St. (South End). www.thesolkitchen.com.

Thursday, November 27

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tone X Turkey Roast
Hosted by the comedian and Power 98 personality. 9 p.m. $10. NV Nightclub & Lounge, 20924 Torrence Chapel Road. www.nvlounge.net.

Touch One Thursdays (weekly event)
Come and enjoy a live band and spoken word by Charlotte’s slam poets. An after-party follows. Presented by Touch One Productions. 9 p.m. $10. Wine Up, 3306 N. Davidson St. www.wine-up.com.

Thanksgiving Night 08
Six Figure Entertainment gets the party going after you’ve broken bread for the day. Guaranteed to be lots of beautiful people. 10 p.m. $10 in advance. Loft 1523, 1523 Elizabeth Ave. www.sixfigureentertainment.com.

Friday, November 28

Friday Afterwork Rendezvous (weekly event)
End your workweek on a high note at this networking event, held at a different venue each week. Enjoy live music and drink and appetizer specials. Presented by Talk of the Town. To learn this week’s location, text “rendezvous” to 38714. 6-9 p.m. Free.

The Remix
For the second year in a row, Digital Divas is hosting a party the day after Thanksgiving at South End’s trendiest club. It’ll be filled with Charlotte’s movers and shakers. 10 p.m. $10 before 11 p.m. Sunset Club, 1820 South Blvd. www.digitaldivasevents.com.

Saturday, November 29

Epicentre Tree Lighting
The popular entertainment complex (home to Suite, Whiskey River, Howl at the Moon, PJ’s Coffee Lounge, and more) is holding its inaugural tree lighting ceremony. There will be holiday festivities and Santa himself will be on hand. 6 p.m. Free. Epicentre, 210 E. Trade St.

2K Sports Bounce Tour
Q-Tip will be performing with a live band. Opening act is the Cool Kids. 8 p.m. $27.50 and up. Amos’ Southend, 1423 S. Tryon St. www.2ksports.com/bouncetour or www.amossouthend.com.

Sunday, November 30

Ssshh: Sensual Seduction Sundays at Happy Hour (weekly event)
Enjoy an infusion of open-mic poetry and jazz over candlelight. After-party and dancing follows. Presented by Pink Diamond. 9 p.m. $10. Happy Hour Bar and Lounge, 3603 S. Tryon St. www.pinkdiamondpromo.com.

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USA Today Disses Jordan for Ditching Bobcats

I blogged a couple of weeks ago, giving Michael Jordan props for being more visible in Charlotte for the start of the Bobcats' season. I'm still willing to give the guy the benefit of the doubt on what seems to be his renewed commitment to the team. USA Today isn't so easy on him, though, in a story posted on its website last night, which I think is in this weekend's edition of the paper.

The writer interviewed head coach Larry Brown and team majority owner Bob Johnson for the story, titled "Where Jordan: Bobcats waiting for pieces to be assembled," and takes shots at Jordan for going to the big celebrity-filled grand opening party for the new resort in Dubai (pictures are all over the 'net of Dubai's over-the-top celebration).

Brown and Johnson talk openly about their desires and requests for Jordan to be more visible with the franchise. They almost sound desperate, begging even. But Brown makes a good point as to what Jordan means to his young team: "I just want Michael really, really, really involved. One, the players need to see him because of what he's about, what he accomplished."

The story goes on to chronicle the Bobcats' struggles on the court and with attendance at games. It also talks about possible player moves. Several media outlets have reported this week about the Bobcats actively pursuing trades, saying it might happen any day now if the Bobcats can strike the right deal with another team. Everyone from Matt Carroll to Adam Morrison to Gerald Wallace are rumored to be on the trading block.

"You know, there are six guys who might not be on our team in two, three weeks," Brown says in the story.

Click here to read the full story in USA Today.

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A New 'Uptown' for Charlotte

Last night I attended the launch party for the Charlotte edition of Uptown Magazine, held at Bentley's on 27. If you aren't familiar with Uptown, it's a lifestyle magazine that targets affluent African-Americans ages 25 to 44. It was founded in New York in 2004 and this year it launched editions in Washington, D.C.; Atlanta, and Chicago. Charlotte will become its fifth city in February.

From what I understand from talking to the editor-in-chief last night and from looking at the copy of the issue I picked up, the cover (Beyonce's on the cover of the new issue and Diddy was on the previous one) and feature stories are the same for the issue in each city, but it also includes local editorial content and advertisements about the people and places in each city edition (the city's name is printed vertically next to the Uptown mast on the cover). It's a fairly common practice for publications to print local editions of a national magazine as a way to compete both nationally and locally for subscriptions and ad sales. An example of this you may be familiar with is Skirt!, a monthly women's magazine that started in Charleston in 1994, but over the last five years has grown to about 20 cities including Charlotte, Atlanta, Boston, Jacksonville, and Houston (I used to work for Skirt!'s parent company and I actually assisted in the launch of Skirt! Charlotte a few years ago).

So, this new Charlotte edition of Uptown Magazine could find success. There isn't a lifestyle publication here that's adequately serving the African-American market. As someone who is passionate about media, and magazines in particular, I always say when there's a void someone will try to fill it. The founders of Uptown spoke last night about why they chose Charlotte as their next city to do business. They, like many people around the country, recognize that Charlotte is a city that's flourishing with progressive African-Americans and is continuing to grow. The founder said they're planning to take Uptown from four to six issues a year (from quarterly to bi-monthly) and increase its circulation to 200,000.

I look forward to the day when we don't have to have publications that specifically cater to certain ethnic groups, but as long as we, African-Americans, are flipping through pages of mainstream publications and not seeing enough of our faces, it's going to be necessary. One-third of Charlotte's population is African-American, but you wouldn't know it if you picked up some of our local magazines. I'm not pointing fingers in any direction; I'm just telling it like it is.

So now, the new Uptown's biggest challenge: there's already an Uptown Magazine in Charlotte. It's a monthly magazine that's been here for more than three years and is most known for its stories on uptown real estate and its annual "Sexiest" list. I'm sure there will be some confusion among readers and there will be some branding issues. What I hope doesn't happen is people distinguishing the two magazines by race. "Have you picked up the new issue of Uptown Magazine?," man asks. "Which one? The white one or the black one?" woman replies. The Uptown we're accustomed to here has very little coverage of African-Americans. The "Sexiest" issue not only didn't include any African-Americans in its feature on the city's sexiest people, but there also aren't any black faces on the contributors page (writers and photographers).

I'm not a black journalist who harps on race. I only write about it when it's an issue. Now we'll have two Uptown Magazines. And you'll have two issues to choose from.

Click on the links below for more on the two Uptowns:

• The Uptown that's been here.
• The Uptown that's coming.

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Anthony Hamilton's 'Playin It Cool' On Tour

Anthony Hamilton's Playin' It Cool Tour kicked off earlier this month. The Charlotte native is visiting 25 cities performing his hits along with new songs from his upcoming album, The Point of It All, now set to be released December 16. He'll be performing at Amos' Southend on Sunday, so you'll have the opportunity to see him live. And thanks to his new tour blog, you can follow him from city to city.

The blog features behind-the-scenes footage of Hamilton performing at different tour stops as well as him making guest appearances, doing interviews, shopping, cracking jokes, getting his haircut, and everything else you don't see on stage. Follow Hamilton by visiting www.playinitcooltour.blogspot.com. And if you'd like to receive text-message updates from him, call 704-746-9873.

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How Not to Celebrate Your 21st Birthday

Bizarre details emerged Monday in a robbery and kidnapping trial when UNC-Chapel Hill football players testified about how they were victimized last December. Three UNC players got together to celebrate one of the players' 21st birthday. They admitted to drinking a lot that day and night, but you won't believe what they say happened to them.

Here are a few selected paragraphs from the article in The News & Observer (Raleigh) that will have you going WTF?

• The three linemen, by their count, downed dozens of beers before leaving the Chapel Ridge Apartments in northern Chapel Hill shortly before midnight to continue the party downtown.
• First, the players, who all approach 300 pounds, went to Top of the Hill, a restaurant and bar, for at least one beer each and liquor shots.
• An hour later, according to their testimony, they went to the East End Martini Bar, where one player drifted away from the other two. That player met two women in the bar and persuaded them and a male friend of theirs to give him a ride home. The player testified that he blacked out during the ride.
• When he regained consciousness, he said, he was in a chair in his room with his arms bound and one of the women straddling him.
• The other player went down the hall to look for the teammate who preceded them. What he found was Lewis, naked, standing outside a bedroom with a kitchen paring knife in his hand.
• Police found two of the Tar Heel football players in their boxer shorts, bound with belts, shoelaces and sound system wires shortly before 4 a.m. on Dec. 17.

Click here to read the full account of what happened.

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