So its been a little over a month, and the reality of our grammy nod has finally settled in. The first couple of days, I was in a sort of trance. Like I was either dreaming or had finally snapped...the rigors of this business had driven me to delusion, and now I was imagining milestones :)
This feeling rose to the surface after I left South Africa -- where I was attending my friend Thabi's wedding -- and landed in Ethiopia. There, the people and press were so esctatic to learn that two Ethiopians had been nominated. "Where were you when you found out?" "Are you and Kenna friends?" "What did your mom say about your grammy nomination?"
My what?
A few days later, I was driving with a delegation of artists and non-profit professionals to Arba Minch, a beautiful rural area of southern Ethiopia, where 59 different indigenous tribes were gathering to perform at the Festival of a 1000 Stars. (A must see for any musician) Then suddenly, the driver of the other car in our group motions to us erradically, pull over, pull over!! Oh no, I'm thinking, the car is breaking down, and they are going to cram all 6 of us in this dusty SUV.
He runs to our truck and is talking so fast in Amharic I have no hope of understanding him. "They're talking about you on the radio." Tadesse translates. "They're talking about your grammy nomination." I looked over at the young driver -- staring at me, beaming with pride --and then at the 3 passengers of his car -- annoyed and wondering why we had stopped. And in that moment....I got it. It sunk in. What this was about, why this was such a blessing, and what I need to do now.
So it finally hit me:
this really IS happening...
to me.
and you know what????
I'm ready.
Congratulations!
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