#ft. hollis gibbs

[noelsovain]

noel had never been the type of person that would go out of his way to avoid someone, or at least, he'd never thought of himself as that kind of person. but lately, his actions had said otherwise. but he would chalk that up to nerves and general awkwardness of seeing someone you hadn't spoken to in years. and unfortunately - hollis fell into the category of those he was trying to avoid. for no reason other than noel didn't know what to say.

"hello hollis," he smiled, though it was very clearly forced. or at least, uncomfortable. "i'm good, how about you?"

LOCATION: absolutely anywhere! FOR: @noelsovain

It had been awhile. He could say that about most of his old classmates, but seeing them sting quite as badly. Of course, he'd already greeted Noel before recognition set in, and then he was stuck. If he'd realized who was standing in front of him, he would've walked the opposite direction instead of offering a greeting, or maybe just stood and stared, frozen in place — but it was too late for that now. Fuck. He didn't really think he'd come back. "Uh, I didn't realize..." Hollis attempted to explain, but that only seemed to make the situation more awkward, "I mean, how's it... uh, hey, how's it goin'?"

[danceoftheday]

Performed by: Yai Ariza, Deja Carter, Marie Ennis, Donovan Gibbs, Trevon Gibbs, Khaleya Graham, Payton Gray, Shamoria Hardgraves, Keegan Hill, Tianna Holly-Haynie, Sam Holmberg, Julio Jimenez, Laiyla Johnson, Dominique Laraine, Ivan Maric, Alexa Marie, Calei Marie, Joseph Pineapple, Natali Schervish, Nadia Sharif, Teej, and Olivia Wong

Number: “Best Friend”

Choreographer: Nicole Kirkland

Style: Hip Hop and Pole

From: “BEST FRIEND - Saweetie Ft. Doja Cat | Created by: Nicole Kirkland” (2021)

[tyleroakley-obsessed]

Memphis DJ Ashley Wimbush aka DJ Alpha Whiskey takes her talents to the lobby at Central Station this Friday night April 24 for an all-ladies soul music dance party—streaming live into your living room at 8:30 p.m. This is the second of four parties in the Memphis Music Hub DJ Series, which you can read more about here. See last week’s DJ Spanish Fly set in 360° Smell-O-Vision Magic here. This Friday night, I’ll share DJ Alpha Whiskey’s tunes via I Love Memphis accounts Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  Photo by Gabrielle Duffie. All-Ladies Memphis Soul Dance Party This Friday Night Holly: I really want to know your story! But first, real quick—What can Memphis music fans from around the world expect during your set on Friday? Ashley: I’m going to spin classics from amazing women like Aretha Franklin, Carla Thomas, Anita Ward…women who paved the way for a lot of us female artists. I want listeners to feel the music as if they are at a real concert or show. I have records that will make you sing and dance nonstop! Holly: What can you tell us about the all-women soul theme? What does that mean to you? Ashley: I am happy that Memphis honors and recognizes female artists. These beautiful women inspire(ed) a lot of female artists to sing and pursue musical careers. Their voices were powerful and you felt every word they sang! I am very honored to be able to spin their records on Friday night and let world hear the Women of Soul!   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Stax Museum (@staxmuseum) on Apr 1, 2020 at 9:27am PDT Why “Alpha Whiskey”? Holly: I know you’ve answered this question many times, but: where does your name come from? Ashley: My name is Ashley Wimbush and I am an Air Traffic Controller. We use the phonetic alphabet to communicate with one another and my initials are Alpha Whiskey. Alpha Whiskey also describes me as a person. I’m an Alpha female, who believes in empowering women to have confidence and faith. Whiskey gives you life if you drink responsibly and that’s what I do as a DJ. I bring energy and life to people through music. Music is a release. A Little Background Holly: Where are you from? How long have you lived in Memphis/how did you get here? Ashley: I was born and raised in Virginia. I’ve been here six years. Holly: How did you get started as DJ? Ashley: I’ve always wanted to be a DJ because I love music and dancing. In 2017 my boyfriend who is a Business and Marketing Consultant asked me if I wasn’t an ATCer what would I be doing and I told him DJing. He talked to me about the importance of having multiple streams of income and from there we started having long conversations about how I could start as a DJ. I purchased a DJ board and started practicing and getting feedback from friends. He saw how passionate I was and he connected me DJ KJ (@djkj1973) and  DJ Crystal Mercedes (@therunwaydj) here in Memphis and from there they gave me great tips and got me my 1st gig! After my first gig I started getting more opportunities, building my brand, and perfecting my craft.  Photo by Gabrielle Duffie. “Memphis has truly taught me what hustle, grit, and grind is.” Holly: How has Memphis music inspired your artistic career? Ashley: Memphis inspired my artistic career at a very young age. I grew up listening to Otis Redding, Johnnie Taylor, BB King,  Little Milton and Three 6 Mafia. I used to dance and embarrass my aunt whenever she played blues music in the car. I loved pretending to play the guitar (laughs). I would tell her I was going to be a guitar player one day. Learning how to play the guitar is still on my list of things to learn. Holly: How has Memphis as a city inspired your artistic career? Ashley: Memphis is such a great city. Sometimes, I almost forget that I wasn’t born here. There are so many talented artists in this city, and I am just happy that I am able to experience first hand. When I first got here I saw DJ Spaceage spinning at a bar near U of M and she had some great music playing. Then I heard Big Sue on the radio while driving and I loved her voice and mixes. I saw there were twin female DJs (DJ Tootz) doing great things and I had never seen that before, so when I met DJ Crystal Mercedes I knew there was already a great female DJ presence in Memphis I could reach out to for needed advice. Memphis has truly taught me what hustle, grit, and grind is, and I am so thankful.   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Central Station Hotel (@centralstationmemphis) on Jan 19, 2020 at 1:21pm PST Ashley’s Inspirations Holly: Favorite Memphis music artists (or overall genre) and why? Ashley: Three 6 Mafia (their energy and beats appealed to me at a very young age)  Aretha Franklin (greatest soul singer) , The Bar-Kay’s (one of my favorite bands, they have great music my favorite is “Holy Ghost”) . I love 90s hip hop. I was born in 88 and I loved the beats, lyrics, and vibes during that time. Holly: You have three jobs [air traffic controller, DJ, model]. How do you manage it? Ashley: 2019 was my first year of consistent DJing, ATC, and modeling. I am off on weekends from my ATC job so I am able to DJ during that time. However I’m working on a more structured routine that allows me to be more productive. Holly: During non-pandemic times, how can Memphians experience DJ Alpha Whiskey? Ashley: I DJ every Saturday at Sage Memphis (noon – 4 p.m.) for brunch. Every other Sunday at The WKND for After Brunch (5 p.m. – 9 p.m.). I rotate Saturday nights with two other local DJs at Tailors Union (9 p.m. – 1 a.m.) for Old School Saturdays. I also DJ Private events such as birthdays and corporate events, etc. DJing In A Pandemic Holly: How have you been coping personally and professional during the pandemic? Ashley: I have been working on improving my brand and quality of life. This time has allowed me to focus on organizing, disciplining myself, and innovating. Professionally, I partnered with Phillip Ashley Chocolates to host Themed Live Tasting events every Friday via Zoom. Also, The She DJs wanted to make sure we still could provide relief to the world during these tough times. So we started Ladies Love Day Parties Live Edition via our SheDJs Memphis Facebook Page and SheDJs901 IG Page. Every Saturday we have a line up of female DJs spinning every hour. Until this pandemic hit I never went Live because I wasn’t comfortable but now I’m more comfortable and I hope to go live more in the future. Photo by Gabrielle Duffie Ashley’s Recommendations Holly: Go-to food and drink orders after a DJ set? Ashley: Central Station makes a special cocktail for me . I told the bartender I love St. Germaine liquor and they took care of the rest. It was delicious! I ordered three. Everything at Sage is delicious. My favorite is the soul waffle. The bartenders are amazing there as well. I’m always looking forward to their brunch on Saturday. When I finish DJing at the Wknd on Sundays I grab myself and my boyfriend a Yardbird flatbread and the honey hot shrimp or chicken wings. Once we get home, it’s on! Holly: How can people keep up with your projects? Ashley: I have a website www.djalphawhiskey.com where I post free mixes and sell Alpha Whiskey products and events. You can also follow my Facebook Page and Instagram Page @DJ Alpha Whiskey . Just For Fun: Meet Ashley 1. What’s always in your bag? Business cards 2. Guilty pleasure? I love to cook too so I’m always at the grocery store ( almost every day) 3. Go to outfit? Leggings/comfy graphic tee/ comfy sneakers (Nike or Puma) 4. How do you drink your coffee? I stopped drinking coffee beginning of January for health reasons but I loved French Truck Coffee with French vanilla cream and sugar. 5. Favorite song(s) right now? Tom Misch and Yussef Dayes ft. Freddie Gibbs “Nightrider” Photo by @circleoflifephotos Follow DJ Alpha Whiskey / Listen Live Memphis Music Hub DJ Series Feat. DJ Alpha Whiskey Friday, April 24 at 8:30 p.m. Live on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Rebroadcast in 360 on Wednesday, April 29. Follow Ashley: website: www.djalphawhiskey.com Facebook Page Instagram Page Are you a home owner in Memphis, with a broken garage door? Call ASAP garage door today at 901-461-0385 or checkout https://ift.tt/1B5z3Pc

https://ilovememphisblog.com/2020/04/memphian-to-meet-ashley-wimbush-aka-dj-alpha-whiskey/

[sweetapparitions]

" it doesn't matter . i hate to say it , but at this point , we're all involved . " the two of them may not have been behind the wheel , but they were guilty , if only by association . hollis hadn't taken the keys , hadn't spoke out about discomfort . and now someone was dead . " so what do we do ? "

“ woah   ,   don't   look   at   me   ,   i   wasn't   the   one   driving   .   although   ,   we   fucked   up   letting   them   drive   anyway   ,   it   took   ‘em   about   three   years   to   pass   their   damn   test   so   i’m   not   surprised   they've   killed   a   dude   . ”

[sweetapparitions]

even beyond the survival instinct , hollis did want to stick together . it got lonely out here , and he would miss her . they may not know everything about each other ( clearly ) but he liked to think he knew enough to consider her a friend . these kind of situations , running for your life , they could bring strangers pretty close together . and honestly , having mary around gave him a purpose . someone to look out for . a reason to keep going . if it was just for himself , he didn't know how much motivation he would have . part of him would find it easier to just lie down and wait for the infected to sniff him out , but now , with mary esther around , there was more at stake . more to protect .

" uh , " was all he said at first , clearing his throat . he thought about his old friend , the guilt that ate him alive for not saving him that night , what was meant to be a fun end of the semester party gone wrong . not only had he kept the truth to himself when he died , he lied about what had happened , his own involvement . to the police , to his friend's family . it was for his younger brother who was also there , to save his name from being tied to the scene of the crime , but the secret still followed him around . and even now that his brother was long gone and his friend's death was the least of anyone's concerns , it still kept him awake at night . " i was involved in a pretty . . . shitty situation when i was younger , " he finally stated , " but it's nothing that will come back to haunt us now . "

like with everything in her life, mary esther had been too careless. she didn’t take anything as seriously as she should’ve. even with the threat of death over her head every single day while on the road, she still treated everything like it was a joke. it was all a joke to her. when she had been threatened with that death her whole life, it was hard to fear it anymore. as a child, the threat of death or danger was her father’s anger or her mother’s coldness, and the burning fires of hell. now that she had escaped her family, it was the infected that could kill her at any moment, humans were likely to do worse and make it hurt more. it felt as if she had stared into the eyes of death and laughed in its face every damn day. so what if her family was after her like a wanted fugitive and she could die at any moment? she had grown up in this kind of world, and she had to get her fun in where she could. life on the road was dangerous, but she was free.

if hollis decided he no longer wanted anything to do with her now, mary esther would be bummed. bummed, but she’d get over it eventually. she could be cunning—her whole family regularly remarked on how sneaky she could be, how immodest—and she could fight off infected well enough, so she’d be okay for a while. at least until she found someone else to put up with her. it was just that hollis was so nice. even now, knowing that mary had been keeping a pretty big secret, he was still being nice to her. it was also nice to hear that he didn’t judge her just because her family was crazy. “no, no, you’re totally right. honestly is, like, the best policy or whatever.” she realized she sounded insincere, so she tried to give him a reassuring smile. “i really can’t think of anything else to tell you. i mean, i’m certainly no innocent daisy, but i don’t have many secrets. not any more important than that.” mary esther was a liar, but more small white lies, “how about you? anything that i need to know?”

[sweetapparitions]

it wasn't what he was expecting when he paired up with her . though , to be fair , he hadn't really expected anything . it was way too hard to know people's motives . even his own family had surprised him in their selfishness . but maybe hollis was just too kind - hearted , always had been . it was a miracle he had made it this long . and it was a pretty safe assumption that had he been alone , he wouldn't have . " well , " was all he said at first , sucking a breath in through his teeth . leaving her wasn't an option . he would have preferred she'd said something , first , but he could understand why she hadn't . everyone had their secrets . it was better that hers was this , rather than trying to lure him to his own early demise and rob him of . . . what little he had left . it would be easy to feel offended , frustrated , but after his initial shock , he found his heart was taking a more empathetic approach .

" you can't help what your family does , " he stated , releasing the rest of his disappointment with a sigh . he knew that well enough . " no , i'm not going to abandon you . but , uh , i think we should probably be upfront moving forward . the last thing we need is another surprise ambush . " not that knowing would have prepared him much , but at least they would be on the same level , knowing just how many threats they had to keep an eye on . if they were going to be working together , they needed to be honest . for both of their sakes . and maybe that meant he should get some things off of his chest , too . " is there . . . anything else i should know ? feels like a good time to lay it all out there . "

for / @sweetapparitions (spun the wheel and got a the last of us plot) participants / mary esther & the muse of your choice! story / mary esther grew up in a quasi-cult in rural kansas. she left her family last year and has since been on the run from the bounty hunters that have tried endlessly to bring her back home kicking and screaming. your muse was unaware of that fact until her brother confronted her, but mary easily got away and now she's trying to convince your muse to keep traveling together. setting / likely somewhere on the west coast

mary esther visibly gritted her teeth, shrugging. “eh, yeah, sorry. i meant to tell you that i’m on the run from my family, but i didn’t want you to think i’m, like, some cult-y weirdo just because that’s what they are.” the mctavish farm in kansas had turned into a sort of evangelical survivor base at the start, then devolved into a full blown cult. mary esther didn’t even really understand why they were trying to track her down. they hated her. blamed her. called her a jezebel, a witch, a harlot. she was immodest and caused men to be tempted when she hadn’t even tried—not at first. the more she was called a whore, though, the more she felt like rising up to the title. it might’ve been partially her own fault, but they had started it, damn it! she wouldn’t be made a martyr for them, a witch to burn at the stake, so she left in the middle of the night. mary esther would rather chance it out there with mushroom heads than live another second under her family’s roof.

she had just mistakenly thought they’d be happy to get rid of her and leave her be. instead, they sent men after her and mary esther had spent the last year dodging them and the infected. when she picked up a companion, she hadn’t told them the truth because she was worried they might be an undercover spy or might try to turn her over. she had kept her secret rather well until she got a little too careless one night and one of her brothers caught up to them. oopsie. “they’re not, like, cannibals or anything. they’re just really into breeding and worship and just being super boring.” mary sighed and pouted at them, head hanging downward, “you’re not gonna leave me now, are you? i swear we can get away from them real easy! just trust me.”