Hey everybody. I’m back!

I hope you had a great week. I’m writing this from NYC, as I sit in an Uber racing from LaGuardia airport to JFK. I accidentally went to the wrong airport for my return flight to Miami. I flew into LaGuardia, and when I checked in for my return flight, the American app confusingly displayed this:

Anyway, I thought that writing would help me pass the time in this stressful situation.

I had a great few days in New York, going to see The xx and Sampha in concert, checking out the Comme des Garçons exhibit at the Met, and, of course, eating. I’ll tell you all about that stuff next week.

But I also had a pretty cool time before I left for NYC. As you might remember from my last Report, American Crime Story was recently filming in my neighborhood. Well, Hollywood came back to the beach the very next weekend with the red carpet premiere of Baywatch.

I thought about going because it was open to the public and, well, Zac Efron.

But instead I went to the R&Bae party at Gramps in Wynwood.

It was a chill outdoor event. The people were cool, the margaritas got me nice, and the music bumped. I head-nodded to flashback joints like Ashanti’s “Only U,” Dru Hill’s “In My Bed (So So Def Mix),” and Janet Jackson’s “If (Kaytranada Remix).”

And in more South Beach news, I saw this as I came home from Wynwood.

The next day, I had the opportunity to see a concert by two of my all-time fave singers: Karen Clark-Sheard and daughter Kierra “KiKi” Sheard. Don’t ever let it be said that you can’t get anything good from Groupon.

Karen Clark-Sheard is a member of the legendary Clark Sisters, who Mariah Carey calls her “favorite gospel group.” (The Clark Sisters’ “Unsung” episode, btw, is a pearl-clutching, drama-filled must watch.) Kiki is also counted as “great” by Mimi.

In 2013, Karen sang “Anytime You Need A Friend” as part of a tribute, when Mariah received a B.M.I. Icon Award. Of course, Karen slayed the performance.

Afterward, Mariah tweeted this:

Seeing Karen and Kiki in concert was a spirit-lifting revelation. You can see some of my photos below. And here’s a playlist of 10 of my fave songs by Karen and Kiki, solo and together.

O.K. y’all, I’m at JFK. But this is my Uber bill.

I’m glad I made it to the airport, but this bill got me like…

Anyway, let me run see if I can catch this flight. I’ll let you know what happens and give you some “faves” I’ve been saving up in the next Report. Until then …

Be cool, be kind, be creative, be yourself. Love, Craig

CLOSING THOUGHT

P.S. If you know someone who might like this Report, please do me a favor by forwarding it to them and asking them to subscribe. Thanks!

CRAIG 101