On The Streets

I was up in West Hollywood for a few hours tonight.
After parking my car, I started walking towards the hotel. On the way, I saw a couple of black guys hanging around on the sidewalk. There was something purposeful about these two guys.

As I walked closer to them, one of them approached me with a hand full of CD's - obviously home-made music CD's (by making copies of songs onto blank CD's from their computer).
I totally thought they were giving them away.
Alright! Free CD. I'll listen to 'em, and if I don't like it, down the trash it goes! is what I thought.

Turns out they were some music artists trying to promote their songs. And they're asking for donations if I feel like giving any.
Sure. Anything to help the local artists!
So I took the CD (neatly placed inside a paper CD sleave), gave them 5 bucks, and went on about my business - of getting to the hotel.

I was feelin' pretty damn good!
Most people would just walk away, don't even take their CD. But I stopped, picked up a CD from them, and gave them 5 bucks to help them out.
Damn! I'm such a nice guy. I'm helping the local artists... interacting with people whom I would NEVER run into, and I stepped out of my comfort-zone by walking up to them and talking with them briefly. Man!
Good job, Eric. **a little pat on the back**

Then it hit me HARD!
Came down on me with a surge of realization.
W.T.F. am I thinking?!??!?!
I didn't do it right.

Oh the self-righteous me. Patting myself on the back because I talked with some unknown black guys on the streets of West Hollywood. Feeling proud of myself because I gave them measly five bucks.

The right thing to do would've been to stand there with them. Talk with them.
The right thing to do would have been to ask them why they're standing out on the streets, handing out CD's. Asking them who they are. What are their names.
Asking them Why they write music, why they rap. What's their passion. What drives them.
THAT would've been the right thing to do.
Find out who they really are.

Then I remembered the stack of fliers I had in my car for a few months - the fliers to open-mic event that NewSong LA puts up every Friday night, I think.
It would've been cool to invite these guys to come out and perform, if they'd like to.
They may have enjoyed that. Who knows. Anything to get their music out & heard.

THAT would've been an awesome thing to do.

Too bad I threw away the fliers because they've been sittin' in my car for months, and not put into use to invite local artists to come out and perform.