Damage- Interview

Hello Lovelies,

I have something very special and exciting for you today. You all know Damage, right? That awesome band that sang  "Love II Love"  that reached number 12 and "Forever" the number 6 hit? WELL, I happen to have an exclusive interview with them, because they're back baby;) 

And for those of you who haven't heard them before this could be an exhilarating new revelation for you into the world of Damage.

Here's the interview! 

When did you guys meet and decide to former band?

Noel - Most of us met in school and always had a talent and passion for performing and being on stage

Jade - myself, Rahsaan and Noel went to the same school and Andrez and I met as kids performing in a theatre show called

'Carmen Jones'

We all loved to sing and were inspired by groups like Boys II Men, Shai, Hi Five and Lo Key.

Rahsaan Decided to start a group and told me I was in it and we just started rehearsing every day and got better and

Better. That was in 1991 so we're amazing now!

Were you all interested in the same genre of music, or was there some compromising?

Ras - Thankfully we are all from the same West Indian British background all grow up together and really have the same thoughts and feelings about what good music was. We raved and partied to the same tunes so choosing the genre and a direction of music was pretty easy.

Jade - we've had our points later in our careers where you want to do something different and we've gone and done it but when you’re in a group it’s important to all be working of the same Hymn sheet.

In your opinion what was your first big success?

Andrez - There has been so many different milestones throughout our Damage career, I don't think we can pinpoint one big success fully. I guess making it into the national charts in many people's eyes would represent being successful.

Jade - Our first Hit was Love II Love. I remember being at our manager’s house with our parents all listening to the Radio 1 Chart show and going crazy when we got our chart position of 12 which was a massive achievement for us. We were so happy and I remember thinking to myself right we've made it boys. Then the next single was higher. Then the one after that was even higher.

As a band what is your biggest dream?

Noel - I guess one of the biggest dreams would be to succeed in the states and have worldwide recognition which I guess any artist will always be striving for.

Who are your inspirations/ idols?

Noel - I myself look up to quite a few artists not just for their musical ability but for the drive and motivation because it’s very easy these days to take knock backs as a sign it was not meant to be, but for few people who have that special focus on something that helps them and motivates them to make more of an effort.

Jade - My music Inspiration Prince. He is the ultimate artist. He writes amazing songs, produces incredible tracks, plays

Every instrument Sings like an angel and is the epitome of cool.

 Ras – As for me, I draw from my kids just from seeing how fearless they have to be when starting a new chapter in their lives. We should try to keep that level of fearlessness as we grow older!

Jade- does it help having a partner who is in the music industry?

Jade -I suppose it does help because you both understand what you are going through but it can be tough too if you are both on the road and away from each other for long periods at a time. History shows that it doesn't work but I think our relationship speaks for its self.

Do you think you will still be popular with the ladies?

Ras - I think in the early stages that would have been one of our main focus but as we are older and wiser now I don't think it really matters as long as you can get down with our music we are happy, of course it is nice to be wanted but as seasoned performers we want our music to speak volumes and not the size of our pecs.

Jade - I Hope so. Damage is all about the ladies….

What is the best gig you've ever played and why?

Andrez - There have been so many it’s hard to pinpoint one as being the best. I guess, for different reasons one of them would have to be one of our most recent gigs at the Jazz Café, just because we had been away for so long and the feedback from our fans and the audience was phenomenal it is nice to know we are still loved and appreciated.

All - Agreed

Who is your music aimed at?

Noel - Everyone who is into good music, be young or old, black or white everyone!

Ras - We've been very blessed because our music seems to appeal to all ages and genders. Ultimately we make love songs but, it’s not just women who are into Damage. We are all nice guys but we also have a hard but cool edge which I think men appreciate.

Why call yourselves "Damage"? 

Ras - When we were younger we had attitude and the name was a perfect fit but we could also be very sweet so were turning a negative into a positive.

What's next for you guys?

All - We are in the studio getting ready to drop something really heavy on the UK and the world. Get ready to catch it…

Fab,right? Well I can't wait to hear some new stuff from Damage, how about you guys?

Just another thank you to the guys for the great interview, and here's a little something that will leave you totally soothed.

Indian Weddings

Hiya Lovelies,

So as some of you may or may not know, I am a Hindu Indian, and being a Indian teenage girl has certain obligations. Such as attending all the wedding events your family has. And by family I do not mean immediate family, I mean, family that you may not have seen for 7years, but now one of their daughters/sons is getting married, who you might have not even met, but you must attend anyway. I decided to write about this now because I went to a wedding and a reception this weekend, and funnily enough I actually enjoyed myself.

I'm not complaining to be honest, because I do actually have fun at them sometimes. They're actually quite beautiful and magical. So here are some of the things Indian weddings entail.

Jayamaala

• The bride's parents welcome the bridegroom and his family at the door of the house. A red powder mark is applied to their forehead. Members from both families are formally introduced, marking the start of relationship between two families. The bride and the bridegroom then exchange flower garlands.

Madhu-Parka

• The bridegroom is brought to a specially decorated altar called 'mandap' and offered a seat and a welcoming drink - a mixture of milk, ghee, yogurt, honey and sugar.

Gau Daan and Kanya Pratigrahan

• The symbolic exchange of gifts, particularly clothes and ornaments takes place. The groom's mother gives a necklace (mangala sootra) to the bride. Mangla sootra is the emblem of marital status for a Hindu woman. The bride's father declares that their daughter has accepted the bridegroom and requests them to accept her.

 Vivaha-homa

• A sacred fire is lit and the Priest recites the sacred mantras in Sanskrit. Oblations are offered to the fire whilst saying the prayers.

Paanigrahan

• This is the ceremony of vows. The husband, holding his wife's hand, says "I hold your hand in the spirit of Dharma, we are both husband and wife".

Shilarohan and Laaja Homa

• Shilarohan is climbing over a stone by the bride which symbolises her strength to overcome difficulties. Both gently walk around the sacred fire four times. The bride leads three times and the fourth time the groom leads.  The couple join their hands into which the bride's brothers pour some barley, which is offered to the fire. The husband marks the parting in his wife's hair with red powder for the first time. This is a distinctive mark of a married Hindu woman. Often why you see a lot of Indian women with 'bindi spots'

Sapta-Padi

•  The couple walk seven steps reciting a prayer at each step. These are the seven vows which are exchanged. The first for food, the second for strength, the third for prosperity, the fourth for wisdom, the fifth for progeny, the sixth for health and the seventh for friendship.A symbolic matrimonial knot is tied after this ceremony.

To some of you that may have been a load of un-interesting rubbish that you'll never need to know, but I hope some of you found it interesting. To be honest I could talk a whole load more about the actual cultrue of it all, like how one must greet an aunty (masi) at a wedding, and what one must wear, and behave like, because that's acutally stuff you have to learn before attending one of these, or you could end up looking like a right twat.

 I will finish off with some pictures of the wedding I went to this weekend. Which was actually one of the shorter ones, it was a lovely ceremony at the Hare Krishna temple in Watford, if any of you want to know about how the Hare Krishna's are different to hindu's, I'll put the link to their website at the bottom of the post.

Lord Krishna.

Me, what I wore to the wedding. 

Some paintings in the Mandir.

The reception venue.

Paintings at the Mandir.

Me, what I wore to the reception.

http://www.bhaktivedantamanor.co.uk/home/

One Direction - Last Night at the o2

Hello hello hello,

So guys, I WENT TO SEE ONE DIRECTION LAST NIGHT.

It was flipping amazing, all of it, every single second, and I wish I could relive it. 

So firstly lets give a mention to my best friend who got the tickets for her birthday, Megan. I love that girl. We got ready together before the concert on Friday and helped each other with hair and makeup, I have to admit when we got there I did feel a little over dressed. But I didn't mind since I was proudly wearing my 1D badges and temporary tattoos. 

Seeing the o2 for the first time was awesome, it was giant and inside there were two Starbucks, TWO! I thought I'd died and gone to heaven. Anyway everything was great because queueing up didn't take long at all since we got there pretty early. Then entering the arena was surreal. Firstly I was pretty proud that we'd actually gone through the right entrance and got to the right seats by ourselves, being the 'irresponsible' girls we are. 

The seats we had were fantastic( besides the guy in front of us who stank of  cheesy wotsits), we were a few rows up from the floor seats in the middle, so we had a great view of the stage. The support acts were awesome too. Camryn was cute and so energetic, maybe we'll be seeing more of her music here in the UK now. Ans 5 SOS rocked too, their beat was electric, it was so heavy I felt like I was having a heart attack (in a good way). Also when we went to the loo before 1D came on, one of the 'o2 angels' took a picture of us in this photo booth thingy wearing funny hats holding a 1D sign :D  I'm not gonna lie I didn't really get what she was doing, but I liked her wings so it was ok. Then we bought some glow sticks to wave in the air. 

And when 1D came on you can imagine the screaming. The arena went crazy for them. Each song they sang was followed by vigorous singing a
long and screams of love for them. When they sang 'Rock Me' and the lighting went crazy I felt so excited! That's easily my favourite song from their album, and the liver performance made me love it even more. That and 'Little Things' where probably the best performances of the night. Also, when they flew out to the audience on the little stage platform thing that was awesome, they were so close to us I thought my heart was going to stop! And I swear to god Louis waved at us<3 AHH *fan girl moment* Okay, I'm done.

I also loved when they finished off with 'What Makes You Beautiful' TUNE.

CUTE. Their big group hug on stage.

I think the best part was when they stopped in between to talk to the audience. I loved when Niall kept saying he needed a wee, when Liam called us all his friends, when they had a huge group hug on stage. And it was so funny just before the last song, Niall was talking and Louis interrupted him and shouted " NIALL, NIALL, SOMEONE IS TRYING TO LEAVE, STOP THEM." So Niall ranted about how there was always one who left before the last song, and told them to sit back down, haha.

Overall amazing evening. Probably one of the best nights of my life :)

Here's a little video of them answering some tweets they got asked last night.