Girls in the Game by Nikki Turner

Author:Nikki Turner [Turner, Nikki]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: tnd2, streetlit3, UFS2
ISBN: 9780307495686
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 2007-07-22T04:00:00+00:00

9. DID YOU THINK I

WAS BULLSHITTIN’?

August had finally arrived, and the streets of the Yo’ were boomin'. It was as if all of the players had added amps, speakers, and TVs to their rides. The strong sounds of bass were everywhere.

The brains behind the annual block party, Danny Levy, added something every year to keep people coming back. Even those who grew up on Kenmore and had moved away always came home for the event. Last year Danny added a car show and parade, and this year he was featuring homegrown artists like rappers No-Joke and Rufus Black and novelist Tysha. He had also booked Toledo native Lyfe Jennings.

Bossy, Aisha, and Terry were each in her own apartment preparing for the block party, all wearing T-shirts with the KAT69 insignia. Being the biggest sponsor this year gave them the perfect opportunity to get word out about the changes KAT69 was in the midst of implementing. By spring KAT69 hair and nail salon would become a full-service day spa offering child care for its clients. They had marketing items like flyers, ink pens, Frisbees, and beer mugs made up, all to be handed out free at the block party.

The women arrived on Kenmore and helped the staff of KAT69 work their table and hand out the marketing items. They held a raffle for free hair services valued at sixty dollars. There would be five lucky winners. Other participating merchants also held raffles to raise money for Danny's nonprofit organization. The money benefited residents of Kenmore Avenue who had hit hard times and the local Little League football and basketball teams, and also went to help beautify the street. The participating artists made donations, although Danny asked them to keep their profits from selling their CDs and books. He said their being there was payment enough.

When the time came for the free concert to begin, the crowd was hyped. First up, novelist Tysha read from her third book, Young-minded Hustler, to be released later in the fall. No-Joke went on next and blew the stage up. Rufus Black kept the crowd hyped, and Lyfe Jennings sang his soul out and laid it down.

Twan and Lajetia had brought the kids out to enjoy the clowns, petting zoo, and food vendors. Twan couldn't wait to get his hands on a homemade candy apple and get on one of the rides. Danny had thought of everything, right down to the mini-amusement park.

“I'm going to let the kids ride and have some fun,” Lajetia informed Twan.

“Cool, I'm going to buy the CDs from those acts that performed. Do you want that book?” asked Twan.

“Yeah, I do, and see if she'll autograph it for me. But try not to be gone too long.”

“No problem, just hold it down with the kids and I'll be right back.”

Knowing Bossy was somewhere in the crowd, Lajetia watched Twan disappear into the mix. As the kids went around in circles on the train ride, Lajetia stood looking back and forth between the kids and trying to keep an eye on Twan.

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