New year, same Biko vibe

New year, same Biko vibe. I already knew what it was gonna be when I made my way to the Grove to get down with James Biko for the New Year’s Eve edition of his AfroSexyCool set at Atomic By Jamo. He took us back to his DJ Needles days at 609, 2720 and everywhere else he had the tables on lock. He could make the folks dance like it was a 90s house party back then—and now. We’ve graduated from the “People don’t dance no more…all they do is this…” era to the present-day line dance obsession. But Biko had the folks freeform moving to the beat of the music – or their own beat in a few cases. It was a treat to step into 2026 getting my juke on! 

Starting 2026 with salsa and soul. Speaking of jukin,’ The crew behind the “Midnight in Havana” New Year’s Eve celebration at Live By Loews set the tone for me to have the urge to stay on the dancefloor all night long. As soon as The Boogaloo Crew hit the stage, it was a wrap for anyone who even tried to be a wallflower. It was Dirty Dancing: Northside Nights up in that ballroom! They had the nerve to have an instructor to teach us how to salsa. So if you see me at the Zodiac Lounge on some “Hips Don’t Lie” behavior, blame Elizabeth Donielle and Michael Manning. Oh, and don’t think I didn’t see you Kimberly Smoot channeling your inner Charo! I wasn’t the least mad about it! If I had known then what I know now, I would have showed you up by putting a pair of maracas in my purse and shaking them for dear life to the Latin rhythms that were being served all night long. 

A Niddy New Year. My boy Niddy once again proved himself to be undefeated with his New Year’s Eve celebrations. When I tell you the turn up is legendary every-doggone-year! To usher in 2026, he brought us The Midnight Lobby. The Pennywell Hotel was such a movie thanks to him that I wouldn’t have been surprised if Pennywise showed up trying to kick it. If he had, I would have made a mean pivot towards the nearest emergency exit. But I promise you that it was so lit that hardly anyone else would have noticed. Oh, and congratulations to Niddy and Tay on jumping the broom last month! They are one of my favorite couples in the city! 

RIP to a real one. When I tell y’all I was tore up when I heard that Thrill a.k.a. Frank-o aka Franchot O’Neal passed away over the weekend. What’s crazy is that we had just chopped it up right before Thanksgiving and he was talking about his upcoming retirement from The St. Louis Fire Department and how he was going to get back heavy into his party promoter bag. His last words to me were “Memphis in May is gonna go crazy this year.” Man, I remember how lit those all-class parties used to be at The Ambassador and heard stories about how the Memphis in May experience was all the way live. I’m so glad that I really took the time to talk with him, because I was running from one place to the next. I had no idea it would be our last conversation. I’m sending prayers and condolences to his family and his colleagues. 

A praise break for Big Boss Vette. After I heard about Thrill’s passing, I was like, “Come on 2026, don’t start with the 2025 behavior!” But then I saw that our girl Big Boss Vette was able to do her “Pretty Girls Walk” to ring the bell that indicated that she was cancer free. I was Monday years old when I learned she had cancer in the first place! She didn’t say what kind of cancer she had, but she was wearing a pink hat when she rang the bell. That caused me to draw my own conclusions, but one thing I’m not gonna do is make public assumptions when it comes to somebody’s health. I will say that I’m so thrilled that she can declare victory. I will also say that her rap game is strong, but if she wanted another side hustle, she might consider the CIA. That pretty face can keep a secret! I stalk her on social, and had no clue of what she was going through until she said so herself! 

Monday night with the Nupes. I hope y’all aren’t sick of me and all of my Divine Nine talk – but if they keep serving up a time, I’m gonna keep it up. And a time was exactly what was had on J5, aka the founder’s day for Kappa Alpha Psi. Now, I’ve gotten to the age where I’m super selective about whether or not I turn up on a weekday – especially the first weekday. But I’m glad I followed my first mind and popped out at the Kappa House to kick it with the Nupes on Monday. They brought out the folks and the strolls were non-stop. And some of my favorite Nupes were on deck to kick it. I can’t name everybody, but Jim Triplett and Jason Ware are among them. And I also saw one of my favorite Deltas of ALL TIME. Courtney Z. McCall, girl where have you been? I was so thrilled to see you pop out in these Black Greek streets that I had to call out your whole name and middle initial! I don’t know what crypt you’ve been in, but it must be filled with collagen, niacinamide, peptides and retinol! Because if your locs weren’t salt and pepper, I would have assumed by your face that it was 2015. 

Well done, Wiley. I won’t be long—because I will get raw emotional. But I had to flip my bust down in honor of one of my favorite colleagues as he closes out his career. By now I know most of y’all have heard that the one and only Wiley Price retired from the paper at the end of 2025. It’s only been a week and I miss him and that mustache already. I cannot overstate how hard he worked for us. And by us, I don’t only mean The St. Louis American. I mean the entire community. He spent the better part of 50 years serving our best interests through the lens of his camera. You deserve to kick your heels up, sir. We owe you a debt that we can never repay.