L.A. NIK - FROM THE EMMY'S TO THE IVEY'S: MINNEAPOLIS TO LOS ANGELES AND BACK IN 48 HOURS

What a crazy weekend this has been!  I had the privilege of being involved in two awards events in my two home cities, that are defining events for both towns - Los Angeles & Minneapolis.

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Last week I got a phone call from a contact in Hollywood, inviting me to the 64th Primetime Emmys on ABC in Los Angeles.  So I made my way to MSP International and boarded the flight on Saturday afternoon just after refreshing my tuxedo options at Men's Warehouse in where else... Downtown Minneapolis on Nicollet Mall.

Upon arriving in L.A., Nancy and I headed out to Sunset Blvd. to enjoy the Hollywood hills and connect with some friends.  We checked in at the Andez hotel right next to the Comedy Store. The Andez hotel used to be the famous Riot Hyatt where all the crazy stuff went down back in the day. Rockers threw TVs out of the windows of this hotel and onto Sunset Boulevard, amongst other things.. The new hotel has been completely redone and is kinda swanky. Each room has these floor to ceiling- glass windows that look out onto Sunset Boulevard. If you don't pull your black-out blinds closed at night, it will be complete daylight in your room thanks to the huge led billboards on the strip. But despite that, its a really nice place.

Saturday evening there was a party for me at the Comedy Store on Sunset Blvd. in West Hollywood.  I used to live in a condo just above the Comedy store for about a decade  - I've met just about every person you can imagine there.  Mitzi Shore, has owned the Comedy Store since  about 1973 and runs it with her son Pauly.
  

The weather in L.A. this weekend was perfect - it was a warm summer night on the deck outside talking to friends and enjoying some entertainment. Two of them are pictured below.. long time friends and national comedians. Also, Bobby Lee from Mad TV performed that night and had a crazy set. Great times at the Comedy Store.

Andez Hotel Next Door to The Comedy Store 

Comedian Don Romero

Comedian Yoursie Thomas

After we finished at Comedy Store, we headed to Beso, Eva Langoria's restaurant.  The evening was filled with food, drinks and friends and as usual, we received top notch treatment. I really recommend you check out Beso when in the area; its a very cool concept and full of Hollywood regulars. From Beso, we were escorted to the Foundation Room at House of Blues and from there, to the Rainbow Bar & Grill, which holds a lot of history for me. Rainbow has housed every rocker over the years - we all hung out there. You name him and he's been to the Rainbow.

Just when I thought we couldn't possibly pack any more into this day.. the Sunday morning sunrise arrives.

"The 64th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards, honoring the best in primetime television programming from June 1, 2011 until May 31, 2012, were held on September 23, 2012 at the Nokia Theatre in Downtown Los Angeles, California. ABC televised the ceremony in the United States. Comedian and late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel hosted the Primetime Emmys for the first time" - he did a great job.  Nancy and I were sitting off far left of the stage. ~Wikipedia

The red carpet was blistering hot for late September. If you watched the Emmys on television, you know that is was 125 degrees that day.  We were pretty wrapped up talking to people and enjoying the chaos but I did manage to get a couple photos. For those of you that know me.. I can't sit in one spot too long, but I did enjoy the Emmys better than the Oscars.

I also got to spend some time with Tom Bergeron from Dancing with the Stars. Click his name if you want to know a little bit more about him. He won the Emmy for Outstanding Reality Host.

We had to skip the after party in Downtown Los Angeles and get to the airport for the 8th Annual Ivey Awards in Minneapolis where I was a red carpet host along side Todd Walker from Fox 9 news. Sun Country Airlines runs a  one way red-eye and they even offer cheeseburgers and pizza for dirt cheap!

Studio Laguna Photography 

VIP Pre-Party & After Party Location
Studio Laguna Photography

This event keeps getting better every year and really is the premiere event in Minneapolis, showcasing the best in live theater from around the Twin Cites.  And you know what? The State Theater was louder and full of more energy than the Nokia Theater in Downtown Los Angeles.  One thing that can not go un-noticed is that Twin Cities people love their culture - they love their music, their performers, their arts and artists and their recognition for being so integrated in the arts community.  Minneapolis can hold its own and has a lot to offer when it comes to stage performance of any kind. I've said it a thousand times.. I live here because its all just so accessible and amazing.  If you're reading this blog and you don't come downtown... you're really missing out on what it means to be a Twin Cities resident.  Even our city council believes this is the life blood of our community. In the words of the Minneapolis Downtown Council ...

*** "We don't just support the arts. We live them."

****** "Rock on. Here, we know how to put on a show."

********** "Leave the lights on. This is a 24 hour town."

The Ivey Awards are run by Scott Mayer and Co., whom deserves an applause on his own for making this event possible at the level that it is presented.  Please do me a favor and go "LIKE" his fan page HERE. Mayer has managed to get tremendous sponsorship for this and other events throughout the year. The Ivey Awards had 29 key sponsors and they always manage to present them through a vivid, live performance utilizing the names of every sponsor creatively. As a sponsor you can't ask for more than that!  Every person in that theater probably remembers at least half of them. You can see their list of sponsors HERE.

A nice view from the front row at State Theater

It's always a good day when I run into Diana Pierce. 

In the end, I had a crazy weekend but I couldn't be more proud having been invited to the Emmys and then flying back to represent Minneapolis on the red carpet at the Iveys.  Life is a whirlwind and you should not spend it on the couch in front of the television.  The only thing I would change is to bring more people DOWNTOWN.

Runyan Canyon Park

The view from Andez Hotel


~L.A. Nik
Minneapolis   |   Los Angeles

http://Twitter.com/RockerLANik
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L.A. NIK DELIVERS ANTI-DRUG MESSAGE AT EAST SIDE NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES

I've been struggling to find an outlet to talk to kids about two topics that go hand-in-hand. Those topics are life's ambitions (and kids' perception of their idols) and drugs.  Its no secret that my life-style throughout the course of my career has led me down various paths. I've been at the absolute high points you could aspire to achieve - wealth, homes on the beach, a barn full of cars and motorcycles, a music career and more. However, I've also been in the gutter at the lowest possible point you'd NEVER imagine you could be. I've lived through it and it was not easy. 

Recently, I found East Side Neighborhood Services through a friend here in Minneapolis. This is an alternative high school in the North East community that has been here for 97 years!  The great part about this organization is that they are not just a high school.. If you visit their link above, you'll see that they have senior citizen programs, adult work programs, job search services, family and food support.  They invited me in yesterday (September 19th) over the lunch hour to speak to 60 kids about my life experiences. I gotta tell you.. I was nervous. These kids are from all different backgrounds and my feeling walking in, was that I am probably not the role model they're looking to speak to. My feelings upon leaving?  All smiles - boy was I wrong.

What a great experience I had yesterday and Im really looking forward to delivering this talk in other venues. From the standpoint of someone who has tried everything there is to try when it comes to drugs, my experiences and warnings are from the heart and making an impact on just one young person's life is very rewarding. Though my message covered drug use, the tone of the hour was embracing your identity and tackling your dreams right now, while you have the energy, freedom and guts to put yourself in front of people and accomplish goals. Be somebody.

I feel pretty good about some of the feedback that came immediately after leaving - text messages from some of the kids and a facebook thank you from the Youth Department Director for making an impact.

"Thank you L.A. Nik for your genuine words to our group of high school students today. It takes real heart to open up and share about your ups and downs with the intention of inspiring young people. Congrats on your upcoming red carpet event, but in our eyes today were on the red carpet. Your life story, your strength and desire to use your life as a tool to ignite young minds to think differently about themselves, who they surround themselves with and how today's decisions impact tomorrow is truly what life is about. Again, thank you" ~Jazmin Danielson

*************************************************************************

TEXT MESSAGE "Hi my name is xxxxxxx. I was one of the kids at Menlo Park Academy. You are a very good motivational speaker. I hope to be an author one day, do know anyone looking for an intern"?

*************************************************************************

TEXT MESSAGE "You strengthened my resolve to not get into drugs. Thank you"

A portion of the room 

Really had a great time talking to this group

I encourage you to tour East Side and see how you can help them out - financially or otherwise. To arrange an on-site tour, contact Mary Ostapenko-Anstett by calling 612-787-4033 or emailing manstett@esns.org.

Computer lab - we're listening to some music made by students and talking about the industry.

You can actually come out and support this school with me on October 13th from 1-4pm at the Historic Grain Belt building for the Nordeast Big River Brew Fest.  All proceeds go directly to the East Side Neighborhood Services programs and its their second annual run.

Register for the event HERE.

East Side Neighborhood Services has a big impact on the community around them and they're just off the beaten path.  I'd like you to go visit them and see how you can help and come to the fund raiser listed above to meet some people and branch out.

Tell em' L.A. Nik sent you.

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L.A. NIK - LIVE WITH JOHN HINES ON 830 WCCO: THE MAYOR OF MINNEAPOLIS AFTER DARK

I had the opportunity today to come onto WCCO radio, DOWNTOWN, Minneapolis with John Hines at 11:35am. Conveniently, WCCO Radio is on 7th Street and 2nd, so its just a walk down the street for me.

Listen to the Show HERE

The show was live on-air as we entered, and everyone was busy so not much time for talk, but I had a great time there discussing the streets of Minneapolis, crime and some other topics.  John invited me back on, while on-air so Im looking forward to that opportunity.  In case you're not familiar with this radio program you can check out CBS's main website with his page HERE.

You can subscribe to WCCO's morning show podcasts on iTunes HERE.

John's Facebook Page is HERE.

Twitter: @HinesWCCO

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L.A. NIK - CELEBRATE TWIN CITIES THEATER AT THE IVEY AWARDS !

It's that time of year again for the 8th Annual Ivey Awards at the Historic State Theater on Hennepin Avenue in downtown Minneapolis.

For those of you that do not know what the Ivey Awards are (or you don't come downtown..), they have two simple missions...

1. "to increase the awareness of Twin Cities professional theater and, 

2. to create a celebration for all people who love Twin Cities theater - those within the theater community and those in the audience". ~ www.iveyawards.com

You'll probably see Mayor Rybak hanging out at the pre-party again.  Follow him HERE

This is part of what makes Minneapolis such a great place to live - the art, theater and music communities are so large here that there is no lack of performers (amateur or professional) and the abundance of entertainment available nightly in every crack and corner that these two cities can stand.. is awesome. 

Infact if you knew just how much went on daily and how hard many individuals work just to keep live entertainment an option for when you do decide to come catch some, DOWNTOWN you'd be beside yourself. They work harder than you and I and are 100% passionate about what they do.

You'll find me hosting the red carpet when you arrive! Dress your best and make it fashion-forward, as we'll be judging the most creatively dressed gal and gal - and announcing them during the show.

You don't want to miss that!

Here's the official poster for 2012

As noted in the poster above.

Monday, September 24th at 7PM

You can buy your tickets HERE

You can "like" the Facebook fan page HERE to stay connected with updates and other theater events throughout the year. They've got a blog to.. HERE

You can get a little glimpse of the red carpet from the 7th annual Ivey Awards here.

The Ivey Awards are an annual event and they have some great sponsors. Best Buy, Target and Risdall Marketing Group just to name the big ones.  State Theater is also a supporter of Twin Cities theater which is operated by the Hennepin Theater Trust - an integral non-profit that keeps the performance art community alive and well in Minneapolis / St. Paul.  

The above mentioned companies are also sponsors of the Hennepin Theater Trust as well as some other great Minnesota names, such as Sun Country Airlines, Star Tribune, WCCO television, Dunn Bros Coffee, Phillips Prarie Vodka and more. 

This is the best chance to support your city, support the live theater community and support downtown Minneapolis. It really has so much to offer.

Get your tickets now! Come on out and support live theater and make sure to Tweet about it while your at it  #iveyawards #rockinthistown

~Tell em' L.A. Nik sent you

@RockerLANik