Fan Corner
Fan of the month - October
2006:Name: Crystal Scretching
My name is Crystal Scretching. I live in Bay St. Louis, MS. I am a student at the University of Southern Mississippi majoring in Advertising and minoring in Music. Well, to begin with, since the first time I heard her voice on the radio singing "Fallen", I have loved Alicia Keys!!! I said to myself, "Finally someone has broken the barrier! Mixing classical piano with Hip Hop & R&B." It was brilliant! But, I didnt just listen to the music. My senior year of high school I did my senior project on her (which I got an A on!) It was then that I really fell in love with her. I got to learn about Alicia Keys behind the music and her background. What she struggled with and how she stayed humble. I was soo inspired! I eagerly shared this in my project and learned one of her songs, "A Woman's Worth" on the piano. (Which was the first time I read music.) (That is my "Alicia Keys" get up in the second photo) Lol! But, that is not why I should be the fan of the month. I know that many girls have the same story of Alicia Keys's impact on them. However, I didn't know how much she would help and inspire me. On August 29, 2005 a tragedy happened that I'm sure you're aware of. Katrina hit my home town. I was at college at the time. My parents didn't listen to me and my brother and they stayed behind on the coast. The last time I spoke to my mom she had informed me that the place they were staying had flooded and they were out in the storm trying to get to higher ground. After that last conversation communication was gone! I had no idea of what was happening. I couldn't wait to hear from the radio and the news couldn't even reach into our area! I immediately drove down the highway the next day avoiding debris after debris behind some emergency vehicles. I got home late at night and could barely find my way in the pitch darkness. Getting to my house was hard for most roads couldn't be driven on, but I made it to see that my parents were okay. I also saw that most of my house ceilings had caved in. But, we had a lil room to house other people who had no home to go to. They urged me that I shouldn't be there. But, I didnt understand why they said so until the next day. I went outside to what I could only describe as an apocalyptic war zone. As I ventured out more, I saw sights that I thought I'd only see in horror films. People who I knew were out on the streets, some crying, some dying, some looting, some fighting! It was horrible! Then my house finally gave way where it wasn't even livable. My world came crashing down! I was born and raised in this town and memories just disappeared! Nothing was familiar at all! I couldn't even breathe! We had to move into my dads office which was further out from my town. Sleeping on the cold floor in that small office living out of our car, I just wanted to ball up and cry! I wanted to give up! I wanted God to take me then and there! Then, I sat in my mom's car crying and came across my old Alicia Keys CD, "Songs in A Minor", which I thought I lost. I put it in (cause there was no radio) and just listened. For that time period, I went into a daze. As I listened song after song, I began to feel like I was on a journey and Alicia was singing everything that I felt at the moment. I sang along to some songs and it released me. Then, I remembered that she too had it hard coming up and I felt as though she knew exactly how I felt. I began to stop crying and thought about others that had hard struggles. Even about those that were in the same situation as me. I had it good compared to some who had nothing over their heads. And there I was complaining and feeling sorry for myself. I had an epiphany. My attitude went from pitiful to hopeful. I realized that nothing was going to change for me if I didn't do SOMETHING about it. From that moment on, I took on the attitude that I would help out as much as I could. I washed clothes for electric company employees that commuted in and out from 8pm to 8am. Got some sleep and went into town helping those I could at the shelters and some of my family that moved into my granny's house. I know I wasnt the hero of the month and my contribution was extremely small compared to others. But I did SOMETHING! I didn't let my situation conquer me! And now that I think of it, that is exactly what Alicia did in her music career. She didn't let her situation and the negativity thrown at her stop her! And I love her for that! I just want to say thank you Alicia for being who you are and inspiring those like myself. It just goes to show that you never know what your music can do for others. And to let you know, our town has made many progress and we got a FEMA trailer! So, its all good! :)
Lots of Love!
Crystal Scretching
a.k.a
Angel#11
