Photo Credit: Dreamgirl Photography
Since the start of the Dreamworld, there’s been a constant theme of searching for my passion and ultimate happiness, while inspiring others and sharing success stories. It’s taken several years, but I’ve finally discovered that it is hard searching for myself and inspiring all of you at the same time. This explains my frequent breaks from blogging. At some point, I needed to take my own advice, right? Well, I did…and it worked! Continue reading
Normally, I want my birthdays to be filled with music, partying, drinking, and dancing. My 33rd birthday celebration was all of this, minus the crowded, stuffy club and a room full of strangers. After a long and stressful year, I wanted total relaxation and a room full of my best gals. Continue reading
Source: Notoriouss Clothing
19 year old T’yanna Wallace is making some big moves in the fashion world with the launch of Notoriouss Clothing. She’s reviving her late father’s, Brooklyn Mint, clothing line which hasn’t been a talking piece since the rapper’s death in 1997. T’yanna is currently a freshman at Penn State University with the hopes of focusing on fashion. Kudos to her!
Source: Notoriouss Clothing
I keep trying to tell everyone that my cousin has the best boutique(s) in Philly! He is known as the “jean guru” and I love every purchase that I have made. He’s been featured many times for being the “Best in Philly” and here is the latest article from Philly.com. Check out the article below by Michael Hinkelman and if you are in the Philly area, be sure to stop and shop at “Charlie’s Jeans”:
Source: Philly.com
SEBASTIAN McCALL, 39, of Northern Liberties, owns Charlie’s Jeans, on Market Street near 2nd in Old City. He also has a smaller store on Chestnut Street near 17th in Center City. In May 2010, McCall launched his own designer denim brand, which retails for $165 and up, and comes in a variety of cuts, sizes and colors.
Q: Tell me about your shop and your own denim brand.
A: We opened in Northern Liberties 15 years ago and moved to Old City. Denim is the best place to be, because you interact more with the customer. It’s a different challenge to make jeans fit properly. I wanted my own jean. I didn’t know where to begin, but I really knew the fit. One of my vendors allowed us to do a fit, and after that I got the bug.
Q: Tell me about that.A: We went to California, set up shop there and started manufacturing our own jeans.Q: Why California?
A: Every brand we carry is made there. If your seamstress is sick, you can find another. Our denim manufacturer is in North Carolina. We brought them in, sampled 100 fabrics, model after model. I wanted jeans that would satisfy all our customers.
Q: Who are your customers?
A: They’re probably 80 percent women, ages 22 to 55. They’re professionals, judges, lawyers, doctors, people in the pharmaceutical industry. Our customer comes from all over – New York, California, D.C. and Boston
Q: Why is your brand special?
A: We go from size 00 to 18. I wanted a brand that women could easily fit into. So if she says, “I want to feel sexy, slim, I want my jeans to fit perfectly and I want made-in-the-USA quality,” we have that.
Q: I hear you’re called the Jeans Whisperer.
A: I guess it comes with making shopping easy. I grew up in a hair salon and my mother always said, “It’s not how she looks when she walks in the door, watch the smile on her face as she leaves.”
Q: So how many pairs of your brand have you sold?
A: We’ve sold 16,000 pairs of Sebastian McCall jeans, and that doesn’t include 2013. That’s over $2 million in sales since I launched. About 75 percent of my jean sales are my own brand.
Source: hiphoppress.com
The great thing about the entertainment world is that it gives us a chance to watch young actors and actresses grow right before our very eyes. Back when television was filled with quality shows almost every night, the viewers had the luxury of seeing an array of skin color, mixed genders, comedy, drama, etc., but what about now? What happened to all of those roles? What happened to all of that diversity? Reagan Gomez seems to have an idea! Check Out My Interview With Reagan Gomez
I take the time to bring my readers exclusive interviews and stories about current celebrities, as well as, up-and-coming artists, designers, actors, etc. Well, my posts are 100% authentic and they are based around REAL people who are chasing their dreams down and shaping their own success! As an update, I want to let everyone know what a couple of my interviewees are up to because they are really taking off and seeing a lot of success, locally and nationwide. Check it out:
Almost a year ago I featured the fresh and new, Cultures Clothing, fashion line on my site. Back then, they were trying to get start-up money and taking all donations. Today, they are spreading their reach and selling their clothes like hot cakes. Recently, actor Mark Wahlberg gifted his right-hand man, Bo Cleary, with the Cultures Clothing “I Love Hip-Hop” tee-shirt. Guess what?! It was worn for Wahlberg’s red carpet premier of “Broken City” in Miami, FL. Take a look!
Source: Facebook
Next up is the amazing Jim Hernandez!
Source: Jim Hernandez
Remember him? He’s the youth motivational speaker who hails from the Bronx, NY and was able to single handedly build his own empire. He tours the U.S. sharing his inspiration with everyone he comes into contact with and has become very successful at what he does. Recently, Jim has collaborated with Masters Channel, which is a UK based website channel delivering inspiring content from experts in the US, India, Australia, Brazil China and more. He will begin his web series videos, “The Chronicles of Jim Hernandez”, so be on the lookout for this rising start!
It pays to dream big, but more importantly it pays to go after what you want and work HARD to get it! Let’s go people, make some changes and who knows…maybe YOU will be the next rising star that I feature on my site!
A while back, I did an interview with up-and-coming movie director, Corey Grant. He’s still making his way through Hollywood and picking up talent along the way. He saw much success with the release of Dysfunctional Friends and is enjoying the success of his latest project, Bigfoot: The Lost Coast Tapes. Check out what Corey says about his current film and how you can show your support!
Just looking at the trailer, we can assume that this movie will be a thriller, suspense, “scary” film, but what is the basic plot/storyline that will make it stand out from other films within the same genre?
It’s about a disgraced television host who was hoaxed by a fictional UFO story on a previous show, and it killed his career. He stages his comeback when he finds out there is a Bigfoot hunter who supposedly has a body of Bigfoot. He believes it’s a hoax so he figures he can do a show, but this time do it about people who pull hoaxes, then he can bring his career back. So, of course, they travel up to Northern California to find this Bigfoot hunter, but when they get up there…(he can’t reveal too much, you have to see the film!). This is a POV film and it’s a thriller/horror film. However, we blended the styles of traditional movies and POV movies and came up with hybrid, then I put my touch on it.. Its a fun movie to watch, but can be very disturbing and entertaining at the same time!
This movie is strikingly different from Dysfunctional Friends, how did you come up with the concept?
My producing partner, Chevez Frazier, and I are good friends, along with two writers, Bryan O’cain and Brian Kelsey. We wanted to work with them and told them to give us 5 concepts; Bigfoot: The Lost Coast Tapes was one. It was a no brainer because I’m a fan of the Bigfoot legend! All over the world, each continent has their own form or name for this creature. We wanted to switch gears and do something completely different from Dysfunctional Friends and you can’t get any more different than this. I gave them notes and ideas and they gave us a wonderful script! We raised the money and here we are!
What do you say to the critic who compares “The Lost Coast Tapes” to the “Blair Witch Project”?
All found footage/POV movies are compared to The Blair Witch Project, as it was one of the first to use this style in a fictional movie. It was a trend-setting movie! However, other than its POV and in the forest, it’s completely different.. The story is stronger and the camera, acting and effects are on a much bigger scale than what they were doing at the time. I love Blair Witch [though];truly scary when first saw it.
When is the movie slated for release?
It opens in Los Angeles at the Lamele Theater in Beverly Hills on October 19th. On the 26th it opens in SanDiego, then moving on to San Francisco, Seattle, Portland and Austin… It’s also available right now on Premium VOD from your local cable or satellite provider. It will be out on Blu Ray the second week in November. The movie was released last month in JAPAN, GERMANY, SCANDANAVIA, NETHERLANDS, JAPAN and ALL over the UK and has been a big hit over there… It’s my first worldwide release!
You wasted no time getting right into production for this film so soon after the release of “Dysfunctional Friends”; how do you manage to keep sane with everything that’s going on?
Im driven…I have to make movies to live. I die when I’m not on set or writing a new script or preparing a new movie to shoot…I live for this. I’m the happiest when I’m on set.
What breakout actors should everyone be paying attention to in “The Lost Coast Tapes”?
Drew Rausch, our lead, gives a great performance as “Sean”. The ladies will love Rich Mac Donald as well and veteran, Frank Ashmore, gives a great performance as the Bigfoot Hunter “Drybeck”. I was in awe working with him! Great acting in this piece! Ashley Wood, our lone female, is also going to raise some eyebrows. She’s gonna be big real soon.
As always, how can fans show their support and/or get updates on any current/future projects you’re working on?
Follow me on Twitter @Corey_Grant and hit me on Facebook. For all the fans of Dysfunctional Friends, I’m gonna be revisiting that world and style with my new romantic comedy, The Next Ex, which will have an all-star cast. If you liked Dysfunctional Friends you will love this. My company, New Breed Entertainment, is co-producing it with Tri-Destined Studios and producer, ND Brown. They have a new movie out called, Note To Self, starring my boy, Christian Keyes and directed by Trey Haley. Great people and a great company to work with. More quality black films to come!
Lastly, which of your projects is your favorite…and why (putting you on the spot with this one lol)?
LOL…Hard question to answer… I would have to say Bigfoot: The Lost Coast Tapes because nobody expected this type of movie from me, let alone for it to be good. The fact that it is worldwide is major for a filmmaker of color and I want to be known as just a storyteller who isn’t boxed into any one genre..just good movies!
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Well, there you have it! Corey Grant is doing well and seeing so much success! He is bringing so much attention and positivity to black films; something that is still long overdue. Please be sure to support this young man and check out Dysfunctional Friends and Bigfoot: The Lost Coast Tapes! Here’s the trailer:
Source: Fine Arts America, Maria Martinez
Hello, Dreamworld! Welcome back for another segment of Become a Blogger Mondays! As you know, I like to share my experiences and advice about what I’ve learned within the blogging realm, thus far. By now, the new bloggers who began on this journey with me are not so new anymore! They have a little bit of experience under their belt and are trying to boost their brand, their reach and their content. I can’t stress enough how important expansion is for your site. A couple of weeks ago I discussed consistency in posting, but once you’ve developed your consistency, it’s time to take it to the next level. Here are some tips on how to SPREAD YOUR WINGS:
1. You don’t just want to tap into your regular following.
It’s extremely imperative that you are dipping into unique pools of visitors, followers, readers, etc. Gaining momentum is all about expanding past that group and making “new” people aware of what you have going on.
2. So how in the heck do you do this? Well, social media will be your new BFF!
Writers, journalists, artists, etc. all have a distinct advantage in 2012. We have the world at our finger tips. Use what resources you can…that’s what I call the “low hanging fruit!”. Don’t be afraid to post your links/articles on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, etc. As you know, word of mouth is POWERFUL!!! So a friend can pass along your site link to their friends and it creates a domino effect and before you know it, there are people you don’t even know reading your stuff.
3. It’s not just a virtual world…get back to the basics.
There’s something to be said about people who still have the ability to speak in-person and network. Sure, social sites are amazing, but be sure that you are still MEETING people and giving that good ol’ firm hand shake. What do I do? I go to events, I volunteer, I work with other bloggers, I sign up for media coverage at events…there’s so many things that you can do to physically be in someone’s presence. I must say, sometimes that can leave more of a lasting impression than just forwarding a link along.
4. Don’t be afraid!
It’s hard to just put yourself out there and share your mind with the world, but don’t let that stop you. Fight past the nerves and be open! What’s the worse that can happen? Someone doesn’t like what you write? So what! You write for you and followers are just a bonus. Be confident and don’t psyche yourself out.
I hope this has helped you on your blogging journey! Feel free to ask any questions and/or add your own tips! Thanks for visiting Danithedreamgirl!
I’m a couple of weeks late, so this is a belated celebration, but a year ago I decided to open up my world to all of you! So far, Danithedreamgirl has been an amazing accomplishment and I’m sooooo looking forward to what’s in store for me. You might be wondering what are some things that I’ve done with my site, and myself, in the past year …well, here you go!
-I’ve shared personal experiences with my readers!
-Started my own “how-to” segment with Become a Blogger Mondays
-I’ve conducted more than 16 interviews (which include celebrity interviews)
-I’ve built my contact list of celebs and publicists
-Had my site banner designed
-Took professional photos for promotions
-Built my traffic enough to generate revenue
-I’ve received 3 awards for my site!!!
-I started blogging for MuzikTalk.com
-Began photography services (with my new fancy camera)
-Have managed to help others and inspire them to follow/chase/run towards their dreams (the most important accomplishment)!!!
Although it has only been a year, it has been a gigantic step towards a great future! I look forward to the next time when I can give you another annual update. Thank you so much for your continued support…it means the world to me!
Danithedreamgirl 