THIS WEEK
We’ll drink to Meryl, Audra and Christine — and the whole darn Sondheim 90th birthday show. Your weekly American Girl+Pandemic story. If you need some quality Golden Retriever content (and really, who doesn’t.) From the dept of OMG OMG OMG. Mindy Kaling’s new Netflix show = nerdy awesomeness. Glorifying grocery store workers to soothe our conscience — a badass takedown. Anna Wintour, ill-prepared. Stuntwomen, very prepared. Tips for virtual sex, because we’re not prepared. How to help? Be curious. “We hugged with our eyes.” Cats and Kate McKinnon, Purrrfect together. Cocktail Hour has returned. Don’t miss this all-day star-studded fundraiser, 4/30, to benefit independent abortion providers. An instant boost of happy.
OBSESSED: Grooves on the Gram
Babyface and Teddy Riley battle it out. (Photo: Verzuz)
The night more than 100,000 people showed up for DJ D-Nice’s Club Quarantine on Instagram, I tuned in just as he cracked that big number. My friends had started tagging me on IG and texting me about it because they knew I would enjoy it. And as I am a veteran of the solo party in my house, D-Nice’s set on March 21 was right up my alley. I had been spending quarantine time working on that to-do list of things you kind of ignore because you’re too busy, and also on figuring out how to stay engaged with my very large family. That filled up most of my time and was actually getting on my nerves. The music was a welcome break. Club Quarantine is like my party for one, but with a nice connection to thousands of people. It doesn’t come with the sense of obligation you get with the Zoom happy hours.
I also tuned in for D-Nice’s Prince set a month later on April 21. It was a pre-party for the GRAMMYs Prince tribute. Of all the quarantine DJs, he’s my favorite because he seems to put a lot of thought into his sets, and he plays b-sides, not just the hits.
There’s very little music I don’t like, but what I gravitate to, over and over, is music that takes me down memory lane, from my golden years, my teen years — ’90s R&B and hip hop. I watched both the Teddy Riley and Babyface Verzuz battles on IG, where they pitted their producer catalogs against each other. I watched the Lil Jon vs. T-Pain battle too, and that was fun. But the Teddy Riley-Babyface one was really exciting because their catalogs are so large and span so many years of my life, not just when I was out in the clubs dancing. Four million people tuned into the second battle. But that first attempt was pure comedy because it wasn’t the Baby Boomer who had just beaten the coronavirus (Babyface) having technical difficulties. It was Teddy! He wasn’t representing Gen-X well at all. I was glad D-Nice just did his own Teddy Riley and Babyface set when their first attempt was jacked up. It was a fun night because everyone was kind of disappointed, but also laughing. I didn't even care that much about the music because I needed those laughs.
— Erica L.
TUENIGHT 10: Cat Greenleaf
Cat on Coney Island. (Photo provided by Cat Greenleaf)
Age: 48
Bio: Cat is the creator of Talk Stoop on NBC which she hosted from her Cobble Hill townhouse for nearly a decade. Now, at her present home in Coney Island, she and her family play on the beach & make upcycled furniture for their #ZeroWaste home staging and interiors biz, Greenleaf & Sons.
Beyond the Bio: “Presently, the world is loopy for everybody — over 40, under 40, or eternally 40 like me! But my life has been inside out for the past three years: working through depression, losing my job, facing financial upheaval, adjusting to a new family structure. And now I’m here, finally out of those weeds. Grateful and changed. Then COVID-19 came to town and the earth shook again.
Since our foundation had already fallen away, we’d already had to rebuild. And since I spent a long time in bed — a long time — I’m already back up on my feet. Our hearts are breaking daily along with everyone else’s, but we’re able to support our loved ones facing terrifying uncertainty today because we’ve so recently weathered our own.
So if you need an ear during this crazy time or any time, call me!”
What makes you a grown-ass lady? “It’s not something that makes me proud. I know I’m an adult because my kids are respectfully afraid of me. If they had any idea of what a novice I am, they’d be horrified that they listen to everything I say. Or anything. But for now, I’m horrified that I’m as old as I am in this position of incredible power and responsibility, and I really have no idea what I’m doing.”
Here’s her TueNight 10:
1. On the nightstand: The Diary of Anne Frank
2. Can't stop/won't stop: Rescuing furniture from the street, thrift stores, Craigslist
3. Jam of the minute: “True Fuschnick” by The Fu-Schnickens
4. Thing I miss: Ignorance
5. ’80s crush: Harry Belafonte
6. Current crush: Michael Rey
7. Latest fave find: Miss Jessie’s Multicultural Curls
8. Last thing you lost: My phone. And I’ll lose it 5 more times before this is over in two more sentences!
9. Best thing that happened recently: My oldest son saying all his dreams are coming true.
10. Looking forward to: My youngest son saying it, too.
STORY: I’m Willing to Dye for Normalcy
By Amy Barr
“My roots are an all-too visible reminder of these pandemic days ticking away – days that have turned into weeks and now months. On a subconscious level, I reckoned if I could fix those grays, I could stop this runaway clock that’s robbing us of the precious time we have…”
EVENT: Grown-Ass Lady Bedtime Stories
Join in the fun! Sign up here. Or go to the TueNight Facebook page at 8pm.
Wednesday, 4/29, 8pm: Amy Barr reads “I’m Willing to Dye for Normalcy”
Thursday, 4/30, 8pm: Wendi Aarons reads “Once Upon a Time There Was a Middle-Aged Princess…”
Stay safe and sane TueNighters!