Originally published in March of 2018

Happy Mental Matters Monday All!

I do apologize for the late post! I was waiting for some very important pictures to be developed. Pictures of what you may ask? 

Pictures of one of my new favorite artists, Caleborate!

Caleborate is a phenomenal hip-hop artist, from California, but his art has spread to the East Coast.  With over 300,000+ monthly listeners on Spotify and double the streams on Soundcloud, Caleborate has proven that his music resonates with thousands of people. 

Caleborate is not your typical "rap" artist. His lyrics and music style elevate the very essence of hip-hop. Weaving wordplay, cutthroat delivery, and soul-infused beats, Caleborate is exactly who you should be listening to if you want to hear real, sincere, chakra-opening hip hop.  

It was the Summer of 2017 when Spotify first put Caleborate on my suggested artist list. I first listened to his album titled, "1993" (released in 2016) and I was hooked.  I listened to his other project "Hella Good" (released in 2015) and I couldn't believe Spotify didn't suggest him sooner. I felt disrespected.

In October of 2017, Caleborate released his "real person" project and in February 2018 began his "real person" tour.

I HAD to go.

I immediately thought, he probably won't come anywhere near N.C. so let me go ahead and buy an Atlanta ticket, but guess what y'all? -- HE WAS PERFORMING IN CHARLOTTE!

I bought my ticket IMMEDIATELY.

March 24, 2018

Concert day.

I was super excited and couldn't wait to shout the lyrics to Caleborate's "Bankrobber" and "Soul", which are two tracks from "real person" with over 3 Million streams in counting.

We listened to a playlist curated by Caleborate himself, by his DJ, DJ OG+KEL. Before Caleborate even hopped on stage the crowd was VIBING out! DJ OG-KEL’s mix had elements of new school music and their original music samples.

Caleborate came on stage and opened up with "Caught Up". Heads were bobbing all around the room. The show continued with heightened energy from both Caleborate and the crowd. The show was energetic, personal, and amazing.

After the show, I purchased some tour merch and Caleborate hung out and took pictures with everyone there. I went up to him with all intentions of asking him about mental health. His music is therapeutic for me to listen to, so it was only right that I ask him about what is therapeutic for him.  I went up to him, took some pictures with the disposable camera I had on me, and asked him if would he be willing to talk for a few minutes about mental health.  He was more than happy to, and here is our conversation:

ME: "OMG! The show was amazing! I can't thank you enough for coming all the to NC to share your gift with us."

CALEBORATE: "Man, thank you, thank you. It's still crazy to me that I'm even selling tickets in NC (laughs).

ME: "Well, I appreciate it very much."

CALEBORATE: "Thank you, thank you."

ME: "No problem man. So, what does Caleborate do to stay grounded and on top of your mental health as an artist, outside of music?"

CALEBORATE: "Aw man, looking at photography and good art. Photography is can be so beautiful. I can just stare at it and just,… you know…feel calm."

ME: "Cool! Any style photography?"

CALEBORATE: "Yeah man [any style]. Oh, and exercising! Exercising relieves so much stress man. It makes me feel good. If my insides are fucked up, everything else is."

ME: "Absolutely! Thank you so much! I'm going to be posting this article soon so be on the lookout. My social media handle is @sincerelyab on Insta if you want to check it out."

CALEBORATE: "Fo'sho, thank you for coming." (laughs)

ME: "No thank you!" (laughs)

After our conversation, I went to close out my bar tab and check my Instagram notifications. I saw I had a new follower. Caleborate had followed me! I was stoked! I was even more stoked for him to be so willing to share not only his music but tips on staying mentally afloat for my blog.

Everyone has different methods of coping with stress and anxiety.  We all must find what helps us and explore different methods until we find our thing. 

Check out CALEBORATE's music below: