From chillin' with the President, to completing an NYU Master's Thesis, to brokering Netflix deals and snagging a Grammys Board seat, this year has been a BIG MOVES year chez Lachi. And we ended it with a banger! We're out here truly making BIG WALK and talking BIG TALK infiltrating the pop narrative with Disability Culture. It's been an honor and a privilege serving, celebrating and making BIG NOISE!
I wish you and yours a safe, peaceful and restful holiday....cause next year, we 'bout to do it even BIGGER!
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Team LACHI Year in Review
We had a hard time narrowing this down, but here are Ten Top Lachi Highlights of 2022
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1. We Visit The White House
On Sept 28, POTUS held a celebration honoring 32 years of the Americans with Disabilities Act...and of course, I dressed in red, white and blue with matching glam cane,the president complimented my outfit.
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2. "Black Girl Cornrow" Release
We released our first Disability Culture track "Black Girl Cornrows", collaborating with EDM charting production duo Black Caviar, VH1's Drag Race winner Yvei Oddly, freestyle artist QuestionATL, with mastering by Emily Lazar's Grammy-winning team. Supported in part by the Pop Culture Collaborative. The Pop/EDM track embraces the art of Self-Description as self expression.
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3. Disability Pride Tour
From Dallas to Cleveland to St. Louis and everywhere in between, we put Disability Pride on the Pop Culture map with a Keynote Performance tour, topped off with show-stopping performances at Disability:IN and Disability Unite. Not only did we come out in the black, but each stop led to numerous opportunities and amazing relationships. Next year, we’re going international!
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4. Major Brand Appearances
From Keynote performances at Amazon, TD Bank, Lincoln Center and Billion Dollar Roundtable, to panels at Google, Target and SXSW to expert appearances at the UN, PBS, BBC and NPR, we gave the public what they didn’t know they wanted, an infiltration of the pop narrative with Disability Culture, inclusion and just the tiniest hint of sexy-as-hell.
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Yep, it was only THIS year we started the movement. RAMPD, the global network connecting the music industry to competitive music professionals with disabilities, got accessibility at the GRAMMYs, partnered with Netflix, made the NBC-sponsored 2Gether International pitch finals, and found coverage in NYTimes, Billboard, Hollywood Reporter and Forbes for our work.
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6. In a Mercedes ad with Alicia Keys
Need I say more? Through SheIsTheMusic, I worked with and met amazing women, including Alex Isley, Vron, Meesha, Paris, Trinity and of course Alicia Keys herself to create amazing music and party with Mercedes in downtown New York.
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7. Being Elected as GRAMMYs Board Governor
In June I was elected to GRAMMYs Board Governor at New York Chapter and soon after was appointed DEI Ambassador. Since then, I’ve since engaged the Recording Academy to amplify diversity initiatives at the chapter level and Disability culture initiatives at the national level, while still serving on the Songwriter & Composer, EDM Membership and Advocacy Committees.
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8.Completed Masters Thesis on Accessibility in the Recording Industry
Lachi completed a Master's study at the NYU Steinhardt School of Culture and Education assessing the accessibility of recording technology and the recording industry for blind or low vision recording professionals.
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9. Walked New York Fashion Week Runway
This year Fashion week leaned in on some much needed diversity, We were invited to iconic shows at #NYFW and graced our first official NYFW runway, taking the cane to the catwalk.
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10. Meeting up with Celeb Disability Leaders
I have made the coolest friends this year, and got to meet many of them in person from RJ Mittie, Tammy Duckworth, Judy Heumann, Imani Barbarin, Haben, Keely Wells, Andaea LaVant, Christine Ha, Wawa Snipe and so many more…
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11. Voicing Audio Description for Netflix’s Kanye Documentary
This gets an honorary mention ‘cause, what? I play a small part in one of the most epic controversies in modern history.
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Next year, let’s go BIGGER!
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mad love and respect,
-Lachi
She/Her Black Blind Cornrows
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