*special eidtion* - shane alexander show

On a special edition of the Shane Alexander Show, we take a personal subject to my heart and mix it with some of my favorite tunes from all over the map. Funk, Soul, Dance, and Hip Hop. We’re Doing it up trying to get your help to support us in the Terry Fox Run next month. Music heals. Talking Heals. The Shane Alexander Show. Let’s Go….



Get the Show Here!!

kony 2012

kicking cancer.

I like stories about Toronto media. But most importantly, I love stories about people overcoming battles. Like Cancer. That's why I to post this. A very heartfelt last of a kicking cancer series CITY-TV has been doing with its very own. The beautiful and courageous Cynthia Mulligan. The pro announced today on the 6 o'clock newscast that she has beaten a year long battle with breast cancer. And we're proud of her. Check out the story and be proud that we have life. And our health.

Go Here to learn more about Breast Cancer and how you can get checked out.

bloggers for japan

Click Here for more Info.

kool herc poster

Did up this poster. If you would like one, drop me a line. All proceeds will be going towards helping Herc with his hospital bills.

kool herc needs your help

This weekend it made headlines that the Godfather of Hip Hop, Kool Herc, has run into some serious health problems and isn't able to pay his hospital bills. This is a very sad story that effects millions of Hip Hop fans around the world. Including me. Herc gave us Hip Hop. A culture we love so much and dedicated our life to. The least we can do is to give back. Every amount is a good amount. Whatever you can give, counts. Here are the details. Through PayPal, you can send it to Herc's sister at cindycampbell1@aol.com or send cheques to Kool Herc Productions by mailing to PO Box 20472 Huntington Station, NY 11746. If you live in Toronto, some promoters have come together along with some of the cities biggest Disk Jocks to do a show where all the money will go to Kool Herc. Find out more here.

won

While I was doing my previous post, I had just turned on BT and heard a trivia question.

Who is going to be here on June 30th?

I knew the answer. Katy Perry. Just read it on some gossip page that she just announced a North American Tour. Useless info, huh? I quickly got on my GMail account and typed in all the necessary info to BT's contest e-mail address. I had no idea what I would win. I just entered. Make the morning a bit fun, right?

Just received an e-mail from the show's producer. I Won. Won what? A $100 ticket for the Heart and Stroke Lottery. I have never been a big follower of the prize run, so at first read, I thought. Wow! A ticket. Cool. Then, I did some more reasearch. Realized how expensive these tickets were. What the prizes were. How I have 1-3 chances in winning. As I picked up the phone to tell the good news to the folks, I remembered why I won.

I'm sure Mark Dailey pulled some strings.


Thanks, Buddy. You made my day.

unpretty.

One thing I value in myself is that I have stayed grounded. No matter what, I've always remained a down-to-hearth person. Not like I really have a reason to be snobby, I'm just saying. I'm pretty cool. Because of my coolness, I've always had a good rational on choosing people I want to be acquainted with. Let's take this a step further. Let's narrow down the demo. Let's say I have always had a good sense on what type of girls I have liked. Over the years, they've come in all shapes. All sizes. All colors. All types of personalities. Over the years, I've been able to narrow down the bracket to a nice little niche on who I like on the personality tip. What they're like. What type of goals they have. Type of sense of humor they have. Their dreams. Aspirations, and such. Really. I don't care what type of goals, dreams, and aspirations they might have. As long as they have something. Someone who is not directed somehow is really stale, I find. Someone who doesn't dream, can't hang with me. I have dreams. Goals. Aspirations. I found that someone who doesn't share the same ideals in that sense, hold me back. People who want to progress forward have this un-spoken rush about them that they just seem to share off their inner glow. Their vibe. Now that's the real jackpot because that's where the true beauty is.

But hey. Girls personality, goals and dreams isn't what this article is about. Kinda dragged on there a bit.

Let's get back to the point.

I guess this has always been around me. It's not till I had a nephew and two nieces I have noticed parents with their kids. And how the the little ones are treated. In a matter of five days I've witnessed some sad states of parenting by seemingly well educated mothers. We usually call them the Soccer Mom. OK. So I scratch out the whole well educated part. Now I see why young girls are getting more and more screwed up as we evolve as a society. More teenage pregnancies, boob-jobs, drug use, alcoholism, eating disorders. How these women treat their young girls is disgusting and sad. It's insulting, abusive and unheard of. Well. At least I thought it was. I've realized how prominent it is. The saddest thing about this whole thing is that I'm talking about within a small radius of a suburban Canadian town in Northern Toronto this is going down. Some might say that it's more acceptable or expected up here because most of the time this is where the average stuck up Soccer Mom is dwelling. I guess it's one of those not in my town kinda realizations.

I know I don't know everything about girls. I know so much to know as soon as I admit I know girls answers, they change the questions. I also know that girls are pretty much a very insecure species. Especially in the awkward teenage years. They're too young to have a male super-hero to take them by the waist and protect them and insure them that things are OK and that they're the only girl in the world. They use the Hollywood boys to do that for them. Living through the girls in the videos and movies. However, they do look at their parents for that little extra word of motivation to keep their head up high enough the water so they don't drown in a long term insecurity pitfall. It's when the parents start to put down their kids and belittle them and tell to loose weight, get some type of surgery to alter the perfectly fine body part, be like fill-in-the-blank more is when they loose trust in human beings. It's because their super hero made them cry all night and made them hate themselves. If your hero hates you, why would you think others would like you? This ends up haunting the girls for the rest of their teenage years which floats into their early 20's when they're around drinks, drugs and the worst thing of all. Guys. As soon as the dude tells them a good word, they run to them and show them the affection they've been missing for all these years and before you know it. They're addicted to some type of drug, have a drinking problem and have attempted abortion twice. Maybe they're good and only have one of the above. Some girls can handle it. They meet some good person. Teacher, Boyfriend, Friend, Advisor. Shrink that actually like them for them and cure them for the hurtful words that they were told so many moons ago. However, needle taken. Damage done. On a pharmacological tip, it's hard to repair such damage already caused. Hard to get close to someone because they're afraid that these people will too - sooner or later - will rip them apart too and cause them to hate themselves for trying to love again.

Parents must realize how these little words they're saying will stay with their kids for years and will effect them. Remember Jackie's relationship with her Mom on Roseanne? Classic example. She ended up being the town slut and had to see a shrink while wanting her mother dead. Some girls will never confess on hating their parents and some will openly acknowledge their hatred and emotionally disown them. Either way, always turns out sad.

All this spun off by little statements. Things like why can't you get grades like her, or you could loose 20 more pounds or your breasts should be bigger.

And yeah. Another thing I know about girls. They're human too. Maybe more human than their human counterparts. When they hear something they remember it. I know that for sure. They never forget. Esepcially the bad things. When someone says something it'll haunt them and they'll do something to forget about it or try to fix it. Most of the time, they do negative things impacting their bodies. The more hurtful the word usually comes from the person who they love the most. It's time to spread positivity to girls and make them realize the goddess' they are while motivating them positively. Unpretty has become too much of a common slang around these parts. That has to stop. Now.

As I reflect back on what I’ve used and abused
And detect that I need some clues to get through
To those that accused me of never being true
I’ll lose if I play into this game and never know the rules
So how do I bring out the me nobody sees
The forest for the trees, how ’bout the woman behind the weave
The light from within this life is the only real remedy
Or find the reflection you see to be so damn unpretty
Unpretty - TLC

If you are one of these girls who think have been verbally or mentally abused, please feel free to check out To Write On Her Arms on where you can find help.

You can also call Kids Help Phone at 1-800-668-6868 to speak to someone.

would you like to help out the people in haiti?

Plan Canada has set up a page to make donations if you would like to help out . I just made a 10 dollar contribution. I would like to set out a challenge to see how many people can match my contribution or beat my contribution by the end of tonight. Stand up, people and Let's get Involved! Let's Go!

busking for change

Great article from National Post about a great cause.

Torontonians may recall that a couple of years ago, Raine Maida of Our Lady Peace busked all over Toronto for 12 hours to publicize his solo album and raise money for War Child. And he did raise money - $22,000 of it. So se followed it up again last year with another day of busking, and this morning, War Child Canada has made it an event inspired by his progress

"Busking For Change" will take place next Tuesday, September 29, with over fifty musicians taking to Toronto's streets to busk to raise money for war-affected children around the world.

The initial run of acts confirmed include: Chantal Kreviazuk, Ill Scarlett, Sass Jordan, Neverending White Lights, Shiloh, Down With Webster, Kevin Hearn and Thin Buckle, Liam Titcomb, USS, Arkells, Zack Werner, Brian Melo, Theo Tams, The Cliks, Hollerado, Stephen Stanley (Lowest of the Low), Jadea Kelly & Arif (Protest The Hero) Kevin Fox, Low Level Flight, Drew Wright (Fall & Divide), JT (Staggered Crossing) Richard Underhill, Crush Luther, The Apollo Effect, Magneta Lane, Dodger and more.

As a true fundraiser, the artsts each have a web page where you can pledge money to support their goals.

Of the goals, Chantal Kreviazuk's is the most lofty. She wants to build and run a youth centre in Darfur. And she's going to need a lot of loonies (and hopefully some corporate $1000 dollar bills to do it, as she's aiming for $30,000 by the end of Tuesday.

Kreviazuk: “The situation in Darfur is desperate, especially for young people. The centres are a place of normalcy amidst the horror. I know $30,000 is a lot in this economic climate but I have faith!”

love..

'Love Everyday' aims to increase awareness about poverty and under privileged people in our communities. Our message is that all of us are truly privileged with great people and opportunities in our lives, but so few of us are fully aware of them all. We hope to serve as a reminder that no matter who you are or where you are from, there are things you have in life that someone else doesn't have. Whether that be friends, family, or a warm place to sleep - Appreciate and love them all for all they’re worth. By helping people realize and appreciate all the things they have in life, we hopefully encourage them to share their gifts with those less fortunate. Through educating people on the issue of poverty, we help give a face and identity to those that most of society just gloss over or don't see at all. It’s our goal to show people that they possess the power to make a positive difference in their community and these peoples’ lives.

This is the idea that started the 'Love Everyday' line of shirts. It's not just about showing off clothes, it's about showing off a statement. We currently sell 'Love Everyday' shirts in store and also online. I do my best to demonstrate the 'Love Everyday' message by using all the proceeds from these shirts to help out people on the streets. Most of the money goes to their food, but also things like blankets and clothing. Sometimes all someone needs is someone to sit and listen to them as equals. That one shirt you buy can help provide meals, clothes, and hope for people in need. You can read more about all that right here on our web site, and see exactly where your contributions go.

You can order these shirts online through our apparel section. They are also available in 'Adrenaline Tattoos' 239 Queen Street West, Toronto, and 'Moog Audio - Slinky Music', 442 Queen Street West, Toronto.

beautiful city to support local artists

From TheCyberKrib

Anyone involved in the arts in Toronto should definitely take a look closely at this initiative as a means of creating significant support to local arts programming, based on a billboard fee toward the corporations who own these properties and utilize them to make major revenues.

If passed by Toronto City Council this program could create anywhere between 13-50 million dollars in funding for arts based initiatives across the GTA.

Here’s a summary of what the Beautiful City campaign is all about:

The Beautiful City Billboard Fee (BCBF) would see a charge paid by billboard advertisers through an annual license fee. Revenue would be dedicated to bylaw enforcement and art in the public sphere. A priority would be placed on funding marginalized communities and youth art and distributed through arms-length or peer jury processes. Specific objectives of the BCBF include:

* Urban beautification & employment for artists
* More funding for tracking & policing billboard advertisers
* Helping move Toronto towards a pedestrian focused aesthetic
* Promoting community ownership of public spaces
* Diversifying access to public communication

Please visit www.beautifulcity.ca for more information and to sign the online petition.

to write love on her arms..

For more go here.

MISSION STATEMENT:

To Write Love on Her Arms is a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide. TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, inspire and also to invest directly into treatment and recovery.

VISION:

The vision is that we actually believe these things…

You were created to love and be loved. You were meant to live life in relationship with other people, to know and be known. You need to know that your story is important and that you're part of a bigger story. You need to know that your life matters.

We live in a difficult world, a broken world. My friend Byron is very smart - he says that life is hard for most people most of the time. We believe that everyone can relate to pain, that all of us live with questions, and all of us get stuck in moments. You need to know that you're not alone in the places you feel stuck.

We all wake to the human condition. We wake to mystery and beauty but also to tragedy and loss. Millions of people live with problems of pain. Millions of homes are filled with questions – moments and seasons and cycles that come as thieves and aim to stay. We know that pain is very real. It is our privilege to suggest that hope is real, and that help is real.

You need to know that rescue is possible, that freedom is possible, that God is still in the business of redemption. We're seeing it happen. We're seeing lives change as people get the help they need. People sitting across from a counselor for the first time. People stepping into treatment. In desperate moments, people calling a suicide hotline. We know that the first step to recovery is the hardest to take. We want to say here that it's worth it, that your life is worth fighting for, that it's possible to change.

Beyond treatment, we believe that community is essential, that people need other people, that we were never meant to do life alone.

The vision is that community and hope and help would replace secrets and silence.

The vision is people putting down guns and blades and bottles.

The vision is that we can reduce the suicide rate in America and around the world.

The vision is that we would learn what it means to love our friends, and that we would love ourselves enough to get the help we need.

The vision is better endings. The vision is the restoration of broken families and broken relationships. The vision is people finding life, finding freedom, finding love. The vision is graduation, a Super Bowl, a wedding, a child, a sunrise. The vision is people becoming incredible parents, people breaking cycles, making change.

The vision is the possibility that your best days are ahead.

The vision is the possibility that we're more loved than we'll ever know.

The vision is hope, and hope is real.

You are not alone, and this is not the end of your story.

pay it backward day..

Got this e-mail from a pal of mine. She asked me to post this to spread this word - or well, to Pay it Backward, as it were...

Join us for our biggest challenge yet. On Saturday April 4 at 1:00PM, 500+ Do-Gooders from across Toronto will venture out to Second Cup to participate in the world's largest Pay It Backward event! The goal? To break the world record of acts of kindness.

How?
-------------------------------------------------
By getting 500+ people to buy a coffee for the person behind them in line, we want to show how a simple, collective, and selfless act of kindness can positively impact our community. We are taking a huge step forward as one Toronto to break the current world record of coffee-giving at 490 people.

Toronto is a big city, but let’s show the world that we have even bigger hearts. Bring your friends/family and connect with other Do-Gooders while your entertained with featured street performers, dancers, media, local bands and local 'celebrity' servers!

Second Cup will also donate 50% of ALL proceeds from the event to the Hospital for SickKids Foundation in Toronto!

Who?
-------------------------------------------------
Second Cup
SickKids Foundation
Team Flow 93.5
Freestyle Soccer
Q-Mack Entertainment
VROOM media
Yummy Mummy Club
& more!

Where?
-------------------------------------------------
Second Cup @ 307 Queen Street West and John Street
Across from Much Music, west of Osgoode TTC Station

Learn More
-------------------------------------------------
RSVP: On Facebook
Twitter Stream: http://twitter.com/doonegood
Event Details: http://www.dailychallenge.org/events/payitbackward/

do something doing something

Here's the most recent PSA from Do Something where they bring the brutal events of Chris Brown and Rihanna to light. The ad acts out directly from what was taken down by officers the night of the attack. I'm sure this will hit the cord of many young people.

girls action foundation

In 1995, POWER Camp was founded by three young women studying at the University of Ottawa. The trio had conducted research on school curricula and discovered serious gaps in how education systems address the realities faced by girls. To help fill this gap, POWER Camp Ottawa started as a community-based, grassroots summer camp for girls aged 11 to 18. A sister project, Filles d’Action, began serving the francophone community in 1998.

The success of these programs garnered so much interest across Canada that a national meeting was held in 2001 to bring together community organizations engaged in similar initiatives for girls. With the participants’ enthusiastic support, POWER Camp National was founded with the mandate to develop a network of girl-specific programs.

POWER Camp National’s local programs and national network continue to grow, due to high demand for girls’ programs from parents, community organizations and the public. The support and resources offered by the Fondation filles d’action - Girls Action Foundation have connected organizations and individuals to a national community, thereby inspiring new initiatives, collaborations and strengthening their capacity for action.



Fondation filles d’action - Girls Action Foundation is a national charitable organization that inspires and supports the empowerment, leadership and healthy development of girls across Canada. Grounded in research and girls’ realities, our innovative programs address: violence prevention, community engagement, media literacy education, health promotion, anti-racism and healthy sexuality. Our programs combine creative expression, knowledge and skill building activities, mentorship, community action and fun. Through local girls' programs and the national network, Girls Action works to raise awareness and mobilize action towards the elimination of violence and discrimination.

At Girls Action we believe that every girl should have what she needs to participate fully in society. Our activities create opportunities for girls and young women to build their strength, discover their power and gain the confidence they need to bring their gifts to the world. Building a movement of active, engaged young women and organizations across Canada, we envision a new generation committed to creating a just and peaceful world.

are you a blogger?

Get an online badge and join a great cause. You can get more info at the website - Brighter Planet's 350 Challenge

war child heroes

From NY Times

Good causes can make for strange bedfellows, but as “Heroes” (Astralwerks) proves, it can also lead to smart alliances. This compilation benefit album — a batch of 16 smartly chosen covers — was organized by War Child, which provides aid to children in conflict-stricken regions. Its premise is shrewdly intergenerational: the songs are by legendary bands or artists, each of whom had a say in choosing their interpreters.

Paul McCartney, a longtime supporter of War Child, got the ball rolling, along with David Bowie. (Their proxies are Duffy, singing “Live and Let Die,” and TV on the Radio, acing the title track.) Other pairings followed, some wickedly on the mark: Franz Ferdinand muscling through Blondie’s “Call Me”; Beck in fabulist-cynic mode on Bob Dylan’s “Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat”; Hot Chip coolly handling “Transmission,” by Joy Division; Peaches bringing her own menace to Iggy Pop’s “Search and Destroy.”

A few other choices suggest the facilitating hands of Lisa Zbitnew and Ben Knowles, the music-industry insiders who coordinated the effort. (Does it really make sense otherwise to have the Kooks playing the Kinks? O.K., maybe.) All told, the success ratio is high, and even the odd misfire has its heart demonstrably in the right place.

Shemekia Copeland

For much of her roughly decade-long career Shemekia Copeland has unleashed her brass-girded singing voice on full-dress electric blues records. “Never Going Back” (Telarc) is something different, a partial study in twang produced by the guitarist Oliver Wood, of the roots-rocking Wood Brothers. It’s not a big departure for Ms. Copeland, but it does open up a new way to hear her, backed by musicians like Mr. Wood, the keyboardist John Medeski and the guitarist Marc Ribot.

The songs, half of them partly written by Mr. Wood, are different too. On “Broken World,” a gospel-tinged ballad, and “Never Going Back to Memphis,” a simmering stomp, Ms. Copeland reins in her power; on “Circumstances,” by her father, Johnny Copeland, she adopts a back-porch vibe. And on ”The Truth Is the Light” and “Big Brand New Religion,” she sounds deliciously at ease with her authority, as if she had nothing whatsoever to prove.

Zu

This bruisingly intense Italian trio — Luca T. Mai on baritone saxophone, Massimo Pupillo on electric bass and Jacopo Battaglia on drums — has been making records for the last decade. “Carboniferous” is its first for Ipecac, an American label run by the diabolical vocalist Mike Patton, who gurgles and growls on two of the album’s tracks. (King Buzzo of the Melvins, who works alongside Mr. Patton in the underground metal band Fantômas, pitches in on yet another track.)

With or without guests “Carboniferous” would confirm that Zu is a band given to spasmodic action but governed by a kind of golden mean, so that even its maniacal tangents seem to belong to a larger design. And it’s a band committed to the brutality of its sound, as a physical idea. The molten riffs and pummeling fills heard here in such abundance aren’t just tokens of style. They’re part of a persistent push for self-definition.

Sin Fang Bous

To the extent that Sindri Mar Sigfusson is known to American audiences, he’s known as the engine behind Seabear, an indie-folk band from Reykjavik. “Clangour” (Morr) is his new solo effort, released under the name Sin Fang Bous, and it reflects an enduring fondness for fanciful but meticulous detail. There’s actually nothing clangorous about the album, which shimmers with gentle flourishes both acoustic and electronic.

Like so many singer-songwriters enthralled by Brian Wilson, Mr. Sigfusson often multiplies his voice, or thickens it with reverb. His obvious whimsy softens certain lyrical indulgences. “I will be the lumberjack and you will be the tree,” he sings in “Clangour and Flutes,” and it works even though it’s hard to picture him lifting an axe.

Dr. Lonnie Smith

The Hammond B-3 organist Dr. Lonnie Smith is a reliable captain of soul, and when he has the right sidemen, he can make almost any groove feel deep and inevitable. On “Rise Up!” (Palmetto) he digs in with a regular partner, the guitarist Peter Bernstein, and a pair of New Orleans sons, the alto saxophonist Donald Harrison and the drummer Herlin Riley. (The same group will appear at the Jazz Standard from March 4 to 8.)

Along with a handful of simple but effective originals, the album features songs made famous by the Stylistics, the Beatles and Eurythmics, as well as the B-3 organ hero Larry Young. Through it all Dr. Smith sounds particularly inspired both by Mr. Riley, who enlivens the beat with cowbells and tambourines, and by Mr. Harrison, who combines sweetness, precision and bite. An emblematic group effort comes on “Tyrone,” the tune by Mr. Young: it’s a post-bop waltz reborn as a second-line strut.

mood disorders society of canada

The Mood Disorders Society of Canada (MDSC) has evolved to become one of Canada’s best-connected mental health NGOs with a demonstrated track record for forging and maintaining meaningful and sustained partnerships with the public, private and non-profit sectors throughout Canada.
Vision

The Mood Disorders Society of Canada has grown out of the vision and drive of a number of mental health consumer leaders from across Canada who in 1995 saw the need for a broad-based structure to bring consumers of mental health services together and who believe that consumers have a key role to play with regard to education and advocacy at the national level.

It was formally launched and incorporated in 2001 with the overall objective of providing people with mood disorders with a strong, cohesive voice at the national level to improve access to treatment, inform research, and shape program development and government policies with the goal of improving the quality of life for people affected by mood disorders.

The MDSC’s overall objective is to provide people with mood disorders with a strong, cohesive voice at the national level by:

* Raising the awareness of mood disorders as treatable medical disorders and working to eliminate the barriers to full community participation and reducing discrimination and stigma among the public, treatment and service providers, and governments.
* Building a national clearinghouse of information and resources related to mood disorders issues.
Advocating for the creation of adequate and accessible, stigma free programs for those Canadians living with or suffering from a mental illness.
*

Ensuring that the voices of consumers and family members are accurately understood and communicated on issues of national importance by building on existing networks and alliances.

Mission

Collaboration is an MDSC operational principle. The Society fulfills its mandate through an active partnership approach that engages like-minded organizations in the public, private and voluntary sectors. The MDSC is engaged on an ongoing basis in a wide range of projects and initiatives designed to support the inclusion of persons with disabling mental illnesses in Canadian society and has taken a lead proactive role in public policy and program development in many capacities on the national stage.

Donate Here.

lennon appears in new olpc tv spot

From Rolling Stone

With permission from his widow, Yoko Ono, a digital John Lennon stars in a new commercial for One Laptop Per Child (OLPC), a charity attempting to grant Internet access to children in developing countries. The clip features Lennon’s voice seemingly digitally sewn together. “Imagine if every child, no matter where in the world they were, could access a universe of knowledge,” the virtual Lennon says. “They would have a chance to learn, to dream, to achieve anything they want. I tried to do it through my music, but now you can do it in a very different way.”

Multi-colored pixels bombard the screen until they form an image of Lennon, who speaks into the camera: “You can give a child a laptop and more than imagine, you can change the world.” Even 28 years after his death, the ad is still pretty haunting. This isn’t the first time a celebrity has been integrated digitally for commercial means: Fred Astaire danced with a vacuum cleaner during a Super Bowl ad, and Elvis Presley and Muppets mastermind Jim Henson have also posthumously appeared in commercials. OLPC was founded in 2005 by Nicholas Negroponte and hopes to provide children in poor countries with durable, solar-powered laptops that cost a mere $200. The program is one Ono obviously believes in, as she has been very hesitant to lend Lennon’s image to ads in the past.