THE LEEK: Party With Big Pool Mistaken for Big Party With Pool

By P. Ordonia. September 4, 2009

Orinda, CA - Independent artist, Malaya Mai, misinterpreted a text from her rapper friend and fellow performer, who requested his name remain anonymous. "When he texted me that his manager was having a party at his place, with a big pool, to celebrate his birthday and that he wanted me to meet some people and perform, naturally I got hella excited and thought it would be a big party," said Malaya. That was not the case as Malaya and her rapper friends took the stage, or more accurately, the cement floor near the big pool outside, in the big backyard. "Just as soon as my rapper friend announced that we were about to perform, the manager's 6 or 7 friends that were in attendance disappeared into his house. What was left was 1 DJ, 2 rappers, 1 rapper's day job co-worker, 2 of my friends and me."

Despite the abysmal attendance, words shouted from Malaya's rapper friend as she took the stage were encouraging, "Perform like you're singing to a crowd of people!" And so she screamed into the "crowd", "Hellooooooo, Orinda!" And at the end of her debut performance of 1 Thing, Malaya made light of the situation by shouting into the mic, "Thank you! And good night!"

The small attendance was explained away with overheard laments of, "The venue was just too big for these small-time but very talented artists." "The manager is a manager, not a promoter. Duh!" "Where did the promoter disappear off to again?" "Wait! Was there even a promoter?" Some made it personal and theorized, "The manager must just have a small amount of genuine and real friends as opposed to those poser managers that befriend everybody. But are they really friends to any of them?! NO!" And one reminisced, "Kids these days. All they think about is staying inside the house and partying. What happened to good ole' fashioned outside pool parties with live rappers and singers?!"

Despite the low attendance, Malaya found positives in this private, not-really-a-party performance situation, "Big pools do not necessarily beget big parties."