My boyfriend and I traveled to Cleveland for my cousin's wedding. I wore a dress by Jason Wu, with a one shoulder double sleeve, a full skirt and it features a pretty floral print on cotton. Jason Wu designs have been worn by clients such as Ivana Trump and Michelle Obama, and his designs are often seen on the red carpet worn by models and actresses such as January Jones, Diane Kruger, Joey King, Rebel Wilson, Amber Valletta, Kate Bosworth and others.
Most places were still closed due to coronavirus and the blm riots that took place downtown. Luckily for us the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was open and just required face masks and a temperature check for entry. The also had mobile only ticket ordering to decrease contact. My boyfriend and I spent a good afternoon there checking out the museum. I was on camera duty for the day and took all of the photos below.
A towering glass pyramid, it is seven stories, with a few stories underground and features fifty five thousand square feet of display space. The photos I took are only a small sampling of all the Hall of Fame has to offer. Designed by architect I. M. Pei, it stands like an ancient pyramid paying homage to the rock gods of today through the past century.
The Hall of Fame features some healthy food selections such as roasted veggies like squash, chick peas and brussels sprouts with pita bread. They also have some classic dishes such as a Philly cheesesteak.
CBGB was a rock and roll club in New York City from the '70's to the early 2000's. This is the real awning from the club. The full name of CBGB & OMFUG stands for "Country, Bluegrass, Blues and Other Music for Uplifting Gormandizers." Although a gormandizer is usually a "ravenous eater of food," in this context it meant of music. Although the initials stand for Country, Bluegrass and Blues it became known for punk rock and other such alternative sounds. Artists who performed there such as the Ramones, Blondie and the Talking Heads have their own memorabilia featured in the Hall of Fame.
The museum takes you through the history of rock and roll and shows its early influences in the blues, jazz and bluegrass. It also showed some of the controversy surrounding the rise of rock and roll as the "devil's music" by some extreme conservatives. Many tried to censor the sounds of rock and roll but as we all known know their efforts came to an unfruitful end.
Madonna was definitely an influence of mine growing up, especially her Ray of Light album and when I was a kid my friends and I did a lip sync video to some of her songs. There used to be a place in Downtown Disney, now called Disney Springs, where you could get your own custom music videos done and for one of my kid birthday parties my friends and I had a great time there.
Green Day's American Idiot album is definitely one of my all time favorites and I used to play it non stop in high school. The lyrics really spoke to me on a personal level and songs like Wake Me Up When September Ends helped me get through the culture shock of a few years in public school.
Sheryl Crow is another favorite of mine with songs like Soak Up the Sun, If It Makes You Happy and All I Wanna Do. My mom and I would sing these songs in the car and hearing them again brings back those happy memories.
London Calling was one of my favorite songs in high school and I would play the song on repeat. I believe I had a poster of The Clash in my dorm room next to my poster of An American in Paris.
My aunt is a singer and dancer and her longest gig was touring with Mary Wilson of the Supremes. She also performed with other artists such as Smokey Robinson, Janet Jackson and David Bowie. I remember as a kid I went to go see my aunt perform with Mary Wilson and they pulled me up on stage with them for a bit. It was very cool to see an exhibit for the Supremes as it is a bit of personal history. The Supremes made music history with songs like Stop In The Name of Love, You Keep Me Hangin' On, Reflections, I Hear A Symphony, and Baby Love.
Blondie is a favorite musical artist and style inspiration with famous songs like Heart of Glass, Call Me, The Tide is High, and Hanging on the Telephone. I was always a fan of her bad girl with class attitude and mod style.
The Beatles are of course a classic and spread a lot of positive change in the world through their music. I remember one of my ballerina classmates of mine was obsessed with John Lennon and his message and seeing his glasses reminded me of those times. The Beatles have so many well known songs such as Across the Universe, Come Together, Here Comes the Sun and Yellow Submarine, and some lesser known favorites like Strawberry Fields Forever.
Lady Gaga is a favorite of mine and definitely a style inspiration. I was happy to see she had a section in the Hall of Fame, as she has definitely become a 21st century icon. She has some iconic songs such as Poker Face, Paparazzi, Alejandro and Just Dance.
Halestorm, Sia and Janelle Monae are some of my other favorite divas of the 21st century.
Flying during coronavirus was similar to before the pandemic except everyone had on a face mask. The flight to Cleveland went very smoothly but the flight back had social distancing and I did not get to sit next to my boyfriend on the way back, which of course was not as good. The airplane had some kind of extra air ventilation system at the ceiling of the cabin that mistily filtered the air. I had not been on an airplane in almost ten years so I was a little nervous to fly.
Since so many places were closed, either entirely or just early in the evening, my boyfriend and I ended up Door-dashing some Chuck E. Cheese pizza. It was kind of funny to get it as take out, and the stuffed cheese crust was surprisingly good. Overall my boyfriend and I had a good time visiting, even though he wishes there was more dancing and less social distancing.
