Day 1: I'll Eat My Words Before All is Said and Done

Question: What do a calendar, a scale and an overweight corporate copywriter have to do with hip-hop and urban artistry?


Hi, I’m Crystal and I’m the creator of the Starving Artist Project.

30 Days. 3 Artists. 1 Dream.
"I'm a starving artist, wish that I could eat these rhymes..."

~Takeover, by UpRite Lions

All my life, I’ve been surrounded by talented, driven people. And one by one, I’ve watched them all have to make the choice between pursuing their dreams and making ends meet. Unfortunately, that choice has forced many of them to put their art on pause indefinitely.

Quite frankly I’m not ok with that. Nothing frustrates me more than wasted potential – especially when it’s not the artist who’s doing the wasting. So I decided to do something about it. I’m taking a stand in support of the art, music, messages and people I believe in.

For the next 30 days (Beginning May 2, 2009), I’m literally going to ‘starve’ right alongside 3 incredibly talented, insatiably ‘hungry’ local artists.

UpRite Lions / Poet: JOSEPHUS III / RUGGED-N-RAW

I won’t eat a single bite until each one of these performers finds a major outlet for their projects. That’s right, no solid foods whatsoever! Not even a sniff.


FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

1) “How do I know you won’t be sneaking Twinkies on the sly?”

Simple answer — THE PROOF IS IN THE PUDDING (no pun intended). I happen to be pretty fat at the moment. (5’4”, 208 lbs of jiggly brown dynamite to be exact). If I start giving up the good stuff, you’re going to be able to notice!

Plus, I’ll be posting daily play-by-plays complete with photos, weigh-ins and behind-the-scenes insight on my Blogspot & Myspace pages. Or, if you’re more of the instant gratification type, you can follow my Journey of Diminishing Jowls on Twitter .


2) “Crazy Internet girl, how do I know this isn’t some kind of publicity stunt?”

DUH — At it’s most basic level, the whole point of this project IS to raise publicity and awareness. I am a marketing coordinator after all! But it’s also about so much more than just the spotlight.

I watched my own father have to put aside a wealth of talent in the visual arts just so he could provide a more stable (if unfulfilling) foundation for the family he wanted to build. And now, I’m literally surrounded by amazing people who are grinding daily in fragile hopes of getting an opportunity to share their gifts with the world.

I think most of us have seen firsthand the toll it takes on someone’s soul when the proverbial ‘Dream’ gets deferred. I’m simply not willing to let those things continue to happen to hardworking creatives without so much as a word of acknowledgment.


3) Is this safe (we’re right back at ‘are you crazy’)?

You know the deal... my lawyers tell me that I’m required to drop the standard “do no try this at home” mumbo jumbo. But please rest assured that I have qualified medical professionals on-hand to make sure that I don’t place myself in any harm.

Plus – I’m not going to be totally without nutrients. For the 30 days of this campaign, I’ll be ingesting ONLY:


• 12 fl. Oz of V8 vegetable juice® daily (Can a sister get a sponsor?!)
• Citrucel Fiber Powder (To keep the insides on point!)
• 1 serving of Boost® old people drink (Every 2 days), and
• Tons of water

But that’s it – I’m still going to avoid any and all food products, and I’m still going to be hungry as all get out! It’s well worth it.


4) Sounds good, how can I help support (for free of course)!

We don’t need your money to support this cause – all we need are your ears and 2 or 3 clicks of your mouse.

If you believe in what we’re trying to get done here – simply pass us on! Add our vids to you favorites on Youtube, twitter-stalk us, cyberfriend us on Myspace, or do any other tech-techy thing you can think of to help us get the word out.

If you know any other artists who are passionately pursuing their craft, pass this along to them as well. We’d love for them to share their stories and lend their voices to our song of triumph!