In
100 years, music concerts without dramatic dancers will
enjoy the popularity
of water-flavored snow cones. Historians will be well advised to attribute
this circumstance
to SG1s, Santigold's fantasticdance duo
that irrevocably implanted its idiosyncratic take on classical dancing into pop music
as early as 2007.
Monica
Josette (l.) and Desiree Godsell are SG1s 2012 by Expedition
I:T:L:I:E@ realitybroker.org
But what's classical about robot ballet, sledgehammer swinging andmartial arts
cheerleading in
the first place?
Find out in Expedition I:T:L:I:E's super-size interview with
dancers-actresses-choreographers Monica Josette a.k.a. Moni-Jo and
Desiree
Godsell a.k.a. Des de la.
Interview and story: Ed Liftpirat and Kurt Koehler
You
will be redirected to YouTube to watch this video
2009.
It is a muggy summer night near the waterfront of Lake Zurich. Muffled
bass throbs fill the courtyard of graffiti-covered Rote Fabrik. Crowds
pour into an already packed music hall. With a heavy dose of
gut-busting electronic ragga, Terry Lynn confidently sets the pace for a much anticipated evening with pop activist Santigold.
But
then it's time to exercise thumb twiddling and fingernail biting. Just
as the audience goes vocal, there is movement on stage. A band settles
in. A gloomy bass floor is laid, and shrieking treble ensues. The stage
lights up, and there she is: the emerging empress of Collage Music.
Dressed in a catsuit reminiscent of alien mothership commander Diana's
uniform in V (1983), Santigold gets right down to business. The crowd
witnesses the comeback of clever and demanding expressionist pop music.
To
Santigold's left and right, two motionless, fierce-looking figures with
sunglasses have positioned themselves. They are wearing white blouses,
golden vests and baggy black trousers. Are they Santigold's bodyguards?
But
then a twitch runs through her companions, as if they've been fed with
electric current. Their fists go up in the air, and suddenly they break
out into violent robotic dance moves. With stoic faces, they emit
single yells and monotone phrases. Eery and spell-binding at once, they
defy all classical definitions of backup singers.
It is one of those rare performances that leave
you wondering what in the world you just witnessed. Your imagination
runs wild: These girls must have been assembled in a secret A.I. lab. They must have been sent back through
time. They have come to wipe away a decade of unmotivated ass-wiggling
and mindless baby-this-baby-that.
And
then it's over. A euphoric audience leaves the venue. A guy in a biker
jacket wants to know where to get season tickets for Santigold's
tour. And Santigold's mysterious "robot girls" are the uncontested
topic of the evening.
Three years
can feel like an eternity. In May 2012, the pop world is at last
rewarded with Santigold's new album, intriguingly named Master of My
Make-Believe. A new world tour is announced. Rumors are spreading that
the "marionette girls" will be onboard again. By now, it has filtered
down to Santigold's global fan base that the dance duo has a name.
They are SG1s.
And sure enough, they're back. Sun glasses and
straight faces, and yet barely recognizable. Somewhere along the way,
these characters must have tasted life. They now have costume changes on
stage. They go to work with corporate briefcases, lassos and other
dramatic props. They engage in umbrella
twirling, butt drumming and something that looks like sumo wrestling. They display emotions and
attitude – they fight for attention, they're silly, even frisky at
times. And when their boss takes a break, they seize the opportunity and
turn the stage into their playground.
Expedition
IsThereLifeInEurope decided it was high time the world got to know the
artists behind these fascinating characters. In August 2012, chief
explorers Ed Liftpirat and Kurt Koehler contacted
dancers-actresses-choreographers Desiree Godsell and Monica Josette
about an interview. The result is the 33-foot conversation below.
2012 by Expedition I:T:L:I:E@ realitybroker.org
It's on.
2012 by Expedition I:T:L:I:E@ realitybroker.org
The
following interview took place in a hotel lobby in Zurich,
Switzerland on August 27, 2012 and was complemented with follow-up
questions-and-answers from an online transatlantic chat between Des de la,
Moni-Jo
and Expedition I:T:L:I:E on February 4, 2013.
EXPEDITION:
Monica and Desiree, you both grew
up in Houston, Texas. Did you know each other
back then? Were you friends before SG1?
EXPEDITION: This school doesn't sound like your average American
high school.
MONICA: It's
not!
DESIREE:
Did you see the movie Fame? It's
kind of like that, it's an arts
magnet high
school. You have to
audition to get in. There's like 600 kids in the whole
school that are focused and spend maybe three
hours a day in their
art discipline. It’s a really good school, it has turned out a
lot of amazing
artists. A lot of them we are still friends with.
Official SG1 logo
Follow SG1s on Twitter!
Source: facebook.com/SantigoldDancers
Catching up on
extracurricular activities 2012 by Expedition I:T:L:I:E @ realitybroker.org
EXPEDITION: Beyoncé Knowles went to HSPVA,
according to the school's website.
MONICA: So many
people, it's hard to go down the list.
EXPEDITION: Was there a football and a cheerleading team?
[Desiree laughs]
MONICA:
No! We have a joke – it's a T-shirt that says "Undefeated
since 1971"... because there's no team!
EXPEDITION: What were your favorite subjects in
school?
MONICA:
You mean outside the art area?
For me probably
history and science.
DESIREE: History
for me – by far.
EXPEDITION:
You went on to study dance at different universities. Did you go
separate ways in terms of
dance form as well?
MONICA:
We both were Modern Dance majors.
DESIREE:Maybe after college we took on
projects
that helped us branch out in different ways...
EXPEDITION:You
both became dancers for Santigold.
How did that happen?
MONICA:
A production manager that knew me from an Off-Broadway show casting
knew Santi's then-manager and recommended me as a possible fit. Later
Santi asked me if I knew another good dancer and I recommended Desiree.
DESIREE:
People from Houston are like a tribe in New York... And since Monica
and I
danced together in high school, it was only natural that she recommend
that I audition for Santi.
Monica
graduated from the University of Oklahoma (OU) and
Desiree graduated from the University
of the Arts in Philadelphia (UArts) 2013 by Expedition I:T:L:I:E@ realitybroker.org
The Agatha & Agnes
Gold era
Source: myspace.com/sg1s
EXPEDITION:
Who are Agatha and
Agnes Gold?
[Both laugh]
MONICA:
It's funny that you even know that!
Those were originally our character names. I'm not sure we stuck with
it...
DESIREE:
I think they got lost in space. But SG1s, that stuck
with us, that’s
who we are.
MONICA:
In terms of us being dancers as well as actresses, our personal
approach to our personal SG1 is slightly different anyway. Desiree is a
little more playful. And people are scared of me usually!
[laughs]
DESIREE:
So
when we came up with Agatha and Agnes, we were like: You know what, our
characters are
two people similar to the Odd Couple.
Of course we're a reflection of
Santi's vision and Santi's project, but then also, what we
bring to this role, these characters, that's truly who we are as
people.
Sometimes there is also a mysterious element – who are we
really? – because our characters don't have very much
facial
expression. But if you're really
engaged in the performance, you will see the difference between us.
EXPEDITION:
Which one of you was Agatha, and which one of you was Agnes?
MONICA:
Did we ever decide? I think I was Agatha.
DESIREE:
Yeah, I think I was Agnes.
EXPEDITION:
Is there a meaning to these names?
DESIREE: Agatha
and Agnes are names that no-one uses anymore. They are kind of for
older people, you know? So we were like: That sounds funny for it to be
two young,
serious-looking black girls dancing onstage.
Older people: St. Agatha and St. Agnes
So damn
gold! Santi White (middle) a.k.a. Santigold with Monica Josette and
Desiree
Godsell
Source: instagram.com/desiritadelarosa
EXPEDITION:
How did the unique SG1 characters come about? Who invented them?
DESIREE:
To
begin with: When we first came aboard Santi's project, we talked to
her, worked with her, and heard her vision. Santi is very much a part
of everything that she does. She curates her world, her space, and that
would also involve
what's happening on stage. She has very much taken on a directorial
approach.
But like we were saying, we bring our
personalities to SG1s. We've brought on our backgrounds, our dance
history and our interests to this project. That would be our musical
references, our social dance references, the kind of things that we
enjoy doing or the way we enjoyed dancing growing up, combined with
that of Santi's. So SG1s are a mashup,
an amalgamation of all those things.
DESIREE:
I
think it's because we have had a lot of dance training and a lot of
dance theory that a lot of the things we do areconceptual.
There is a meaning behind a
lot of the things we do.
MONICA: An intentat least.
DESIREE:
Maybe the meaning is no meaning at all, but it's very thought
about, instead of it being just pure choreography for choreography's
sake. Now,
the name SG1,
that was kind of a play on words at first – from the
S1Ws
of Public
Enemy. It's a very big influence... EXPEDITION: The guys with
sunglasses...
MONICA: …that were
really military-style, yeah.
2012 by Expedition I:T:L:I:E@ realitybroker.org
Limited budget, maximum
style:
Santi's visions materialized
Source: facebook.com/SantigoldDancers
EXPEDITION: You said that
creating SG1s involved a lot of conceptual work. Does this mean there
is an actual script?
MONICA: Not
in a formal sense. We might write down ideas we have. As
Desiree said, Santi is a curator. It's her music, it's her vision, and
we are helping to interpret her vision through the dance. Santi has
ideas about what she wants to project in the songs, so when we get
together in a room, we all listen to it and figure out individually
what we think the song is, what we see.
DESIREE: We
have our notebooks, and then we're like: What did we see? What do wesee
happening during the song that we can create in a DIY kind of way? If
we had Lady Gaga
budgets, we'd be doing crazy off
the chain things! In that way we've had to be
really creative. When
you're given limits, you have to work within those limits, but
also try
to think outside of the box.
MONICA:
It
can be really painstaking sometimes. We've re-choreographed some of the
old
songs several times. You
gotta reach back into the pot every time and try to figure out
how
to reinvent
this thing we've done a hundred times.
Interview in
Zurich
2012 by Expedition I:T:L:I:E@ realitybroker.org
EXPEDITION:
As you already mentioned, if one looks past the uniforms and the
synchronized moves, your SG1s emerge as two quite distinct personalities...
MONICA: I
think it would be the same thing as if you asked two separate actresses
to play the same role. There would be quirks and things that
are
obviously different, because two people view the same thing through a
different
lens. Your own persona comes into play, it can't be avoided, you know
what I mean? Desiree is
very a playful, boisterous, amicable person. I'm a little more demure,
a little more one-on-one. I think that part is obvious.
EXPEDITION:So in a
way your characters reflect Monica and Desiree?
MONICA:
Not totally, but in a way.
Don't mess with Santigold.
Source: facebook.com/SantigoldDancers
EXPEDITION:
Why do you think people tend to be intimidated by SG1s? Television host
Stephen Colbert asked Santi in his
late night show whether you were
raised by wolves...
[Both laugh]
DESIREE:
You
know, I
think that when you don't automatically get an expression from people,
it's like: What's going on?! You just concoct all these things
in your head, like how they're mean. But we're really just
expressionless. We
have glasses, we're not making a lot of facial expressions,
and
I
think because of that people are like: Errr...
MONICA:
I think recently we've begun to make more facial expressions than
in the past. I feel like SG1 is ever evolving. It changes depending on
what it needs to be. It
has its foundation of
what it is, but then it's flexible, so to speak, the same way that
Santi's music is changing and growing.
EXPEDITION:
Yeah, in fact, this summer we once caught you smiling on stage...
[Both laugh]
DESIREE:
We were probably already laughing
backstage. Something probably went wrong!
MONICA:
Yeah, we
probably couldn't help but
laugh! And then sometimes we have things happening on
stage. Like if we turn around, the guys from the band will try
to
make us
laugh…
SG1s now smile,
occasionally.
Source:
twitter.com/MonicaJosette
2013 by Expedition I:T:L:I:E@ realitybroker.org
EXPEDITION:
You wear very unusual
costumes. Who designs them, and who makes them?
EXPEDITION:
So Santi even knits and sews for you..?
MONICA:
No, she has someone make the costumes after she designs them and picks
fabrics.
EXPEDITION:
Do you have a say in what you will wear, or is there a risk that you'll
end up having to go on stage wearing octopus costumes and hating
it?
DESIREE:
[laughs] That very well could happen!
Santi has a very focused vision about what she likes to see and hear.
Well, if we ever feel uncomfortable in something... then we wouldn't
have to wear it. But Santi's the director!
EXPEDITION:
If SG1s ever got kicked out of Santigold for misbehaving on stage or
refusing to wear any of Santi's designs,
where would they find a new purpose? We're talking on a fictional
level…
MONICA:
We'd find ourselves in what... Santi
prison..!
[Both
laugh]
DESIREE:
Santi hell!
MONICA: ...a truth Tourette's
prison
where you’re locked in a cell and everyone keeps telling you the truth
about what's wrong with you.
DESIREE:
A truth prison with no air
conditioning..!
Monica, Desiree and Santi
Source: myspace.com/singdanceact
Sound- and twirlcheck Source:
twitter.com/MonicaJosette
EXPEDITION:
What a terrifying thought! - Now let's get technical. How do you
stay synchronized without looking at each other? Are you
counting? Is there a code involved that we are not
supposed to know about?
DESIREE:
No,
no, it's pretty much just dance and choreography. We know that at this
time in the music we're supposed to be doing this particular move. But
also, why it
just works so well is that me and
Monica have known each other for so long that we can kind of sense... I
know pretty much what she's gonna do.
And then we have
peripheral vision. That's a good thing about wearing the
glasses – in
case
something does go wrong and I'm like: Ok, if she didn't do that, then
let me not do this the next time. We have
such good rapport with each other. But
we choreograph it
so that we know
what's happening at all
times.
2012 by Expedition I:T:L:I:E@ realitybroker.org Using Internet Explorer? In order to watch the embedded video directly on this site, you must allow blocked content.
MONICA: Of course,
every now and then there will be improvisational moments, moments where
we have to adjust. And
like Desiree
said: Because we've known each
other for so long, it just kind of falls into place.
We'll just look at each
other and be like: Ready? Here we go! And it's cool, because we
don't have to talk about it necessarily.
EXPEDITION:
What makes a good dancer?
MONICA:
In general?
DESIREE: Or
a good dancer for this project? We can talk about the alternates
we've used, when we've auditioned them, what qualities we're looking
for for
someone to become an SG1.
EXPEDITION:
Excellent!
DESIREE:
We're looking for someone who picks up
style really fast...
MONICA:
...style and intent…
Donning the work gear Source: twitter.com/SG1dancers
DESIREE: ...and for someone who has a large dance
vocabulary.
MONICA:
And who is a bit of an actress. Because you kind of have to be, you
know?
DESIREE:
To communicate, that's another thing. We were talking
about how Santi is really big on curating her space, and
bringing us to help facilitate that. I think that
also goes for her getting out what she wants to communicate
through her clothing, through the
choreography, through her music – so she'll be
looking for someone who
can help bring that
message out.
EXPEDITION: Dancing and
acting - can it even be kept apart?
MONICA:
It's very similar. I always make a differentiation betweencommercial
and classical dancing, because in classical form you are an actress as
well.
Whether it's ballet or modern dance: when you're dancing
you're also telling a story. In commercial dance that is not
necessarily the case. You're sometimes just doing movement...
DESIREE:
…for movement's sake.
EXPEDITION:
Are your alternates always present when you rehearse?
DESIREE: No, they're not always present. They come in
after
we've already choreographed something and close to the time of
performance.
EXPEDITION: When are they called into action?
MONICA: When one of us is hurt or unavailable.
DESIREE: Basically
the show doesn't go on without me and Monica, I mean without SG1s.
They're really present in
the project. EXPEDITION:
Is dancing a hazardous profession?
MONICA: Very. It's hard on the body and there are lots of
outside factors that can affect you - slippery stages et cetera...
Indispensable g-force
training Source:
twitter.com/MonicaJosette
Busy stage in Luxembourg 2012 by Expedition I:T:L:I:E@ realitybroker.org
Monica entertaining a
felid in
Berlin
Source:
twitter.com/MonicaJosette
EXPEDITION:
Santigold
likes to invite fans to dance on stage, but she always warns them not
to get close to 'her ladies' unless they want to get hurt. Has it ever
occurred that you punched, kicked or "pompommed" a member of the
audience?
MONICA:
Desiree always does!
DESIREE:
[laughs] If they're in my way... EXPEDITION:
Some people claim that everyone
has a personal "power animal" that gives them mental strength. Do SG1s
have
power
animals?
DESIREE:
Run like the Cheetah Girl!
[Monica laughs]
EXPEDITION:
So not the wolves then?
DESIREE:
"Dances with the Wolves"…
MONICA: I
actually like wolves. And I really like cats – big cats
like lions, cheetahs, panthers, jaguars.
DESIREE: I
like the wolves too. I think Stephen Colbert just hit it on the
head!
MONICA: Yeah,
the wolves are great!
SG1s and the band From
left to right: Ray Brady, Desiree Godsell, Ian Longwell,
Monica
Josette, Aku
Orraca-Teteh
Source: instagram.com/desiritadelarosa
EXPEDITION:
How do you prepare
for a show, physically and mentally?
DESIREE:
Mentally? Actually, I don't get nervous before
shows.
MONICA:
I think it's been so long now that we've really embodied the characters
to
the extent that I don’t even think about it anymore. As soon as the
glasses go on…
DESIREE:
…it's like second nature. If anything, we might stretch a
little
bit, depending on where we are; get the body going a little bit.
MONICA:
There's no ritual! [laughs]
DESIREE:
Well, we do have one band-come-together thing that we do before every
show.
Desiree's
fingernails are
from Texas, too. Source: instagram.com/desiritadelarosa
EXPEDITION:
Tell us a bit about
Desiree and Monica. What do you eat for
breakfast?
MONICA: Oatmeal!
DESIREE: I'm
terrible with breakfast. I know I need to
eat it, but I'm hardly in one place at a time to be able to buy
groceries.
EXPEDITION: Do you
watch TV – movies, sports?
DESIREE:
Well, I'm from Texas. I like football.
MONICA:
Me too!
DESIREE:
We just finished watching the Game
of
Thrones series on HBO, which was awesome.
MONICA:
We love Game of Thrones! We
want to be
in it!
[Both chuckle]
EXPEDITION:
What roles would you want to play in Game of Thrones?
DESIREE: We were
also watching Breaking
Bad. But we two, we have guilty
pleasures... and that’s reality television. Two of the main ones are:
Love
And
Hip Hop Atlanta...
[Monica laughs]
DESIREE: ...it's likeratchet
TV - it's terrible!
MONICA:Yeah, it's pretty bad!
DESIREE:
And
then: Here
Comes Honey Boo Boo. It's a
breakout star from
this show called
Toddlers
And Tiaras, where these moms make their children
dress up for
pageants when they're like six years old. And they spray-tan them,
put fake eyelashes on...
MONICA:
...make-up,
wigs...
DESIREE: So
the breakout star from that, she's really "country",
she's got her own show: Here Comes Honey
Boo Boo. It's crazy!
EXPEDITION:Do
you have a favorite cartoon character?
DESIREE: My favorite song in the set that we don't do too
often is So
Damn
Gold. Or the dance encores we do. EXPEDITION:
Do you speak any languages besides English?
DESIREE: I wish! That is something I envy Europeans for.
They speak multiple languages. I'm like: English and Spanishhhh… argh!
MONICA: Same here. We are from Texas, where it's the most
common language to learn in school.
DESIREE: It's like French for you guys.
MONICA: I actually minored in Spanish in college. So
yeah, safely we can both say we can communicate in Spanish.
EXPEDITION:
Have you played any
other characters besides SG1s?
DESIREE: [laughs]
I feel like on a daily basis I'm playing different characters in real
life. I mean, and then Monica and I watch our share of reality TV, and
we impersonate those guys all day! Yeah, those are real characters!
[laughs]
EXPEDITION: Who do you impersonate from Here Comes Honey Boo Boo?
MONICA: Honey Boo Boo and her Mama! DESIREE: Mama's so good!
MONICA: I
have played many roles in various shows. Too many to name but I have
played Glinda
the Good Witch in the Wizand Velma
Kelly
from the
musical Chicago.
And then, I have like twelve personalities, so I'm
constantly changing roles!
DESIREE: What's fun about Santi and the show we've helped
to create is that it's theatrical. Not like the average musical
performance.
Santigold and SG1s
Source: facebook.com/SG1dancers
EXPEDITION: Would Santi agree to
SG1s going off and doing their own piece, say, a musical called Houston?
MONICA: I'm not sure.
DESIREE: I think she would be interested in seeing the
life that could come out of that.
EXPEDITION:
Touring the world must be demanding. How do you recreate in between
shows?
DESIREE:
We rest! Now
we were out for two weeks. We go home for two days, and then we go back
out again. In
September we'll have more time to relax. But life as an artist
means you continually need to have gigs to maintain a living, so it's
on to the
next thing. Monica has shows with her other band coming up, and I'll be
filmingashow.
So we're always trying to fill up the schedule to
the point where you don't go over.
THE
PERFECT WORKOUT SONG
Moni-Jo
recommends: Kanye West - The
New Workout Plan
Des de la recommends: Lil
Wayne - Tha Block Is
Hot
You will be redirected to
YouTube to watch these videos
EXPEDITION:
Let's talk about what you do when you're not on stage with Santigold.
Desiree, your dancing career also includes professional
Salsa.
We imagine that being a Salsa dancer must be quite
different from being an SG1.
DESIREE:
It's a huge difference!
MONICA: Night
and day.
DESIREE: The Salsa
world, the Latin dance world in
general, is miles away from what I am doing right now – in terms of how
I'm dancing, in terms of how I prepare for the shows.
There's these weekends where you teach, you learn, you perform,
and you social dance with people.
MONICA:
You're also a dance producer...
DESIREE: Yes, I have a mixed media dance concert series I co-produce with my good
friend Cornelia McPherson called The Pearl. We concentrate on audience
development and present all forms of dance. And every show has a musical
component.
Desiree Godsell and Alex Morel Source: instagram.com/desiritadelarosa
EXPEDITION: So
obviously you are a full-time dancer...
DESIREE: The
fact is, at the end of the day, dance is maybe the least appreciated,
most underpaid art form that there is. I always say this: If you told
the
average person to name five famous dancers that aren’t singers or
actors, it's really hard for them.
On top of
that, if you were to compare the top five grossing artists of all time
in their field... Damien
Hirst
is making millions of dollars; Brad
Pitt
is making millions of dollars as an actor; paintings
sell for millions of dollars. People are making millions of dollars in
all their art fields. Except dancers. So it can be really hard. I
guess the thing is that when you go to see dance, you don't really
take it home with you.
EXPEDITION: What
you do in the
Santigold show involves
both dancing and acting, and people do apprehend your performance as
kind of a show within the show. Do you feel that you get the
recognition you deserve when you're on tour with Santigold?
DESIREE:
That’s
another good point on how it's different from the Salsa world. In the
Salsa world I am Desiree and I get direct recognition. But for this,
our recognition might go under the radar sometimes. Not to say under
the radar – everybody loves the
show, and everybody knows that we are a big part of the show. But it's
still Santi's show. So the appreciation might not be so direct, but
I think that we do get recognition.
MONICA:
And it's growing.
DESIREE: What
we
are doing now
is kind of an "indie" tour, right? Not every
average person will know Santigold. But occasionally we do crazy "pop
world" things. So
we'll open for Rihanna,
and everybody will be like: "Oh, you do
that!"
It's crazy.
THE PERFECT
DOWN IN A HOLE
SONG
Monica
recommends:
Anything by Michael Jackson Michael
Jackson -
Man In
The Mirror You
will be redirected to YouTube to watch this video
Moni-Jo is also a singer. Source: iammonijo.wordpress.com
EXPEDITION:
Monica, what do you
do when you're not touring with Santigold?
MONICA:
When I'm not touring, I'm working on my own project, which I've
redefined completely. It's called the Lola Project. I am obviously a
dancer, and a
singer, and an actress, so all those things come into play when I'm
creating my world.
I
perform in another band, a
show band called Jessie's
Girls. They
perform all over the U.S., and
sometimes they go overseas. There's me and four other female singers on
stage. It's kind of a part time thing, you
know what I mean? It's not really who I am.
I have an agent, so I also audition for TV film and commercial things.
But right
now I'm really trying to hone
in
and focus on the Lola Project, to get it in a place where
I can present it to the world.
I'm writing a one-woman show, so it's all of the
things that
are me pulled into one. That’s why I called it the Lola Project, because it's not just the music, it's not just
an EP, it's not just a song...
The Lola Project is really
gonna embody
me as a dancer that is a singer. Before, I felt
like I was making music
that was... good music, but it didn't really show who I am culturally,
as a dancer. It didn’t
embody everything. And that's what I want to focus on right now.
I'm
also a teacher. I have a pedagogy degree, so I teach dance sometimes.
All of those things are under the umbrella of the Lola Project now.
EXPEDITION:
When you were in
Berlin with Santigold this
summer, you
attended a DAW [digital audio workstation] course with the guys from the band. Are you planning on
going into seclusion with your laptop and an audio interface once the
tour is over..?
MONICA:
Um, no, not me, I was just interested in what the boys' world
is like on tour.
EXPEDITION: What about you, Desiree,
are you
interested in home recording?
DESIREE: Not at the moment! [laughs] I recently started a quilting company with my boyfriend called Hill &Velez.
And I'm currently working on some painting/collage works for a gallery
show I'm in with Tanwi Nandini Islam. But the next projects I'm trying
to tackle are Final Cut Pro and mastering Photoshop.
2013 by Kurt Koehler @ realitybroker.org
THE
PERFECT ANGER
MANAGEMENT SONG
Des de la recommends:
Ludacris
feat. Lil Flip
-
Screwed Up
Moni-Jo recommends: Pistol Annies - Hell On
Heels You
will be redirected to YouTube to watch these videos
EXPEDITION: Quilts and collages! - Monica, what will the product
of the Lola Project be? What should our psyched readers be
looking out for?
MONICA:
A
lot of different things. It could be art installations, there could be
collaborations. Maybe I'd be someone Desiree would choose to do a
collabo with.
DESIREE:
Absolutely, Monica, that is in the works!
MONICA:
So yeah, it's coming, and it's coming very very soon! I don't want to
say too much about it because I want it to speak for itself.
EXPEDITION:
We're intrigued! Here's
a question
Expedition IsThereLifeInEurope feels compelled to ask, for obvious
reasons: Have you
found any traces of life in Europe?
DESIREE:
Traces of life in Europe... what does that mean? There are loads of
traces of life! Of
course it's
always nice to be able to go home when you're on tour. But when you are
away, spending months of your year in Europe, it's nice to find places
or
moments where you're like: Aah, this feels really good. A couple of
highlights: when we were at the Montreux
Jazz Festival and we went to
this Olympic pool that was right on the lake. Then later that day a
friend took
us to his house in the Alps.
MONICA:
Yeah, that was amazing!
DESIREE:
We were trampolining with
mountains! It was crazy! It was really, really nice. Also,
going to the beach is always nice. We just came back from Ibiza. I
mean, it's kind of sketchy. But Europe has
beautiful
places. Some not so beautiful... but yeah!
MONICA: I
think you can find life everywhere. You have to define what that
means for you. I think that inside of any moment you can find something
that specifically speaks to you. EXPEDITION: Could you imagine
living in Europe?
DESIREE:
It's been a thought.
But then life gets in the way of that. Could we still pursue what we're
doing in our careers in Europe? I would love to move to the south of
France, the south of Spain, the south of Italy... [both laugh] – the
south,
i.e.: where the sun is. But maybe those places are just for a vacation
house.
I
thought about moving to Berlin. It is really cheap, and loads
of artists are flocking there. It seems to be a place where people can
really create and explore. But it's cold and dark and rainy, so I don’t
know if that's for me. But yeah, I think it's what you make it. I
feel comfortable in a lot of the places that I go. That's just me as a
person, so it's easy for me to find things that can fill me with
that energy, or with… life.
THE
PERFECT LULLABY
Moni-Jo
recommends: Cesária
Évora - Besame
mucho
Des
de la
recommends: Anything
by Sade Sade
- By Your Side
You
will be redirected to YouTube to watch these videos
Young
Ms. Godsell
Source: instagram.com/desiritadelarosa
EXPEDITION:
Can you tell us a bit about life in Houston? What are the Houstonites
like?
DESIREE AND MONICA:Houstonians!
EXPEDITION:
Our apologies...
DESIREE: First
of all, Texas is a whole beast
itself, like another world. It once was its own country. I think that
because we're in the South, Houston does have a charm to it.
MONICA:
It's a big international port city. There are many different
communities living in
Houston. And then, Houston is really big on the fine arts: You want
opera, ballet, straight theater? You can get it all day long in
Houston.
When
we were growing up – I don’t know the school system now – even in
primary school you got art in lots of formats. So lots of us played
instruments as well as did other things.
Houston was really great for me. I can't speak for any
other city, but I got so much arts education inside the parameters of
my academic
school studies.
EXPEDITION: Do you play any music
instruments?
DESIREE:
No, I'm like: [claps her hands]
MONICA:
I played the flute for a really long time. I played several
instruments, but in terms of mastering an instrument, it was the
flute. I played in Band and outside of Band, and for
competitions. I finally gave it up when I
had to choose in high school. You couldn't have a double art
area. So I went with the dance instead of the music.
EXPEDITION: Judging from what you
were saying, it's
not a coincidence that a lot of artists come from Houston...
MONICA:
What is interesting is
that Houston really
cultivates a lot of artists, but if you aren't necessarily an opera
singer, or just
a ballet dancer, or just
a straight theater person, once
you come out of the schooling situation, there's nothing else for you
to do. So then lots of us leave. There is this huge migration
to New York
and other places. So
Houston cultivates its great artists,
but it can't
support them.
EXPEDITION:
That is exactly what happened to you, isn't it? Desiree, you now live
in
Brooklyn...
DESIREE: Right.
EXPEDITION:
...and Monica, you now live in Atlanta.
MONICA: Atlanta now, but I lived
in New York for six years.
Young Ms. Josette (front),
with her sister Felicia Source:
twitter.com/MonicaJosette
Minnie Mice
Source:
twitter.com/MonicaJosette
EXPEDITION:
Now for something
completely different: What makes you laugh?
MONICA:
Desiree!
DESIREE: Yeah, Monica makes me laugh! I think I laugh at
awkward things, or silly things. I laugh at… anything really.
MONICA:
Desiree is quite emotive. And she's full of expression when she thinks
something is funny. Sometimes she lays out on the floor instantaneously!
DESIREE:
I think it's when people are really
themselves to the core.
MONICA:
Desiree laughs at me all the time.
EXPEDITION:
Do you do a lot of funny stuff, Monica?
MONICA:
I don't know! Apparently...
DESIREE:
When
situations are just a little bit awkward, it's hilarious to me!But, um, what else
do we laugh at? Here comes Honey Boo Boo!
EXPEDITION:
How does it feel to
go separate ways after having toured the world together for such a long
time?
MONICA:
I'm never separate from Desiree! [laughs] She is my sister.
EXPEDITION:
Meaning you guys are on the phone all the time? You're not exactly
neighbors...
MONICA:
[laughs] Not all the time, but frequently, and we have known each other
now for more than ten years so we don't have to talk every day.
DESIREE:
Yes, Monica is my sister. I can't get rid of her even if I wanted to!
[laughs] ∎
Source:
twitter.com/MonicaJosette
THE
PERFECT LONGING TO BE SOMEWHERE ELSE SONG
Moni-Jo:
"Anything
down home blues genre"
Mance Lipscomb
- Texas
Blues You will be redirected to
YouTube to watch this video
Des de
la: "When
I hear anything Zydeco, I wanna go home"
Sesame
Street - It's Zydeco You will be redirected to
YouTube to watch this video
2012
by Expedition I:T:L:I:E@ realitybroker.org
And then it was 2013
Since
their return to the U.S. in September 2012, Monica Josette and Desiree Godsell have
not had much time to watch reality TV. Here are just some of the things
they've been up to.
SG1
Dancers without glasses! Premiered
January 14, 2013 on Youtube: Santigold
- Girls
You will be redirected to
Youtube to watch this video
Monica Josette
Monica's Lola Project
became a source of inspiration for a brand-new collaboration with
fellow performers Africa
Miranda and Megan Tiffani.
Monica has since channeled her creativity into writing and directing a
three-woman live show combining theater, music and dance. The trio hit
the stage in Atlanta on January 16, 2013 as
The
Lipstick Junkies featuring Black Caviar and the Ray of Sunshine,
backed by the Good Times Brass Band.
The Lipstick
Lounge cabaret will feature a new theme every month. Don't miss
the next show, The Emerald Evolution, on March 14, 2013, and look forward to new shows
in May, June..!
The
Lipstick Junkies
Source: .facebook.com/SantigoldDancers
Excerpts from the
premiere! You
will be redirected to Youtube to watch this video
Desiree taped
an episode for MTV
MADE. This is
already her second appearance
in the popular show, in which she
coaches girls that want to learn how to dance Salsa.
In late September 2012, Lee Fields And The
Expressions released the official music
video of the track Faithful
Man, in which Desiree plays the lead character.
Lee Fields
And The Expressions
- Faithful Man You
will be redirected to Youtube to watch this video
When
Desiree is not performing Salsa with dance partner Alex Morel
or with her dance collectives, she is busy quilting and producing her
dance concert for The Pearl
series in downtown Brooklyn.Don't miss
the next performance on April 6, 2013,
and watch out for more to
come!
The Pearl dance concert
series! You
will be redirected to the homepage of The Pearl to watch this video
