The Radical Tré Xavier

My mother has often teased me calling me a "radical". And believe it or not, I take it as a compliment.

While the term "radical" usually refers to one or more people who use extreme and often physically harmful tactics to incite change, my mother is stating how aggressive I am in my verbal attacks to incite change. It's something you've seen here often, and I have been that aggressive since I was a child. Perfect example - how many grade school children would verbally retaliate against a bully by saying,"You act the way you do, because your mother didn't raise you right." And when I would say that, I meant it wholeheartedly, and nearly 30 years later, I don't regret it, because it was true then, and it still hold true of kids today.

The truth, God-given human rights, and equality have always been my motivators to take the stands that I have, do, and will take in my life, and although I am capable of physically defending myself (because I'm actually quite stronger that the perception my size would create), words have always been my weapon of choice even before I became self-aware of my writing abilities. And I have no qualms about the fact that it has made me not one of management or administration's favorite employees on my day job at "KKLLP". Because at least they know with me - to watch their step. If I played bobble-head doll like most, they wouldn't think twice about raking me over the coals.

Splash here in NY which is a bar with a bunch of tables and stools that get removed around 10 PM, so it can then become a club. I've been there when this change takes place, and seen when just a single-digit number of people hit the dancefloor. I told a co-worker from my day job about this, and how when I get on it, after about 5 minutes, a whole bunch of people get on the dancefloor as well, and they start from around me and spread out from there. This happens no matter where I am on the dancefloor - the center, far right, far left, front or back. My co-worker told me based on what he's seen of me at each year's office Christmas party, that I give off an energy that everyone wants to be around, which is great. The problem is so many of those people seems to be citizens of Rhythmless Nation, as opposed to citizens of Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation.

What does this have to do with my writing?

Because the way that energy comes off in my dancing is the same way I want it to come off in my writing, thereby affecting my readers. Especially when I dealing with an issue, like racism. I want the passion I have to change this to be infectious, because if it is then more people will take a stand to make that change happen. Some like a couple of people who commented on the story Gay Porn Times did on my post about Asians in gay porn, see what I do as simple complaining. Well, it is not complaining when so many others feel the same, and no one is making any noise. Then it's called "getting the ball rolling". It's called "inciting needed change". And since I'm not a studio head, that's the best I can do at this juncture. At least I'm not seeing that there's a problem, and making myself into a jellyfish by just ignoring the problem, and not speaking on it.

This has always been my way. From poetry writing as a child, to singing and songwriting in my adult years. In fact, as a singer and songwriter, my goal was to write music that would change the world from becoming the overload of self-loathing, and lack of loving your fellow man that it is today. I sent out demo tapes with message music, and record labels wouldn't hear of it. You see, they'll take a message album from an established artist, but a new artist who plans to build their career on songs with a message, record companies heavily promote only 1 song, making them 1-hit wonders.

So with that game plan, what do we now have?

Homophobic hip-hop rappers raking in millions, teaching our next generation how to be shallow individuals "all about the bling", and disrespectful to women by calling them "bitches" as a general term. I saw the industry going in this direction which is why I stopped pursuing it. While I matured enough to realize that I couldn't change the world, I knew what I had to say had the chance of inspiring much need change in just 1 person. And that 1 person might become someone who creates a domino effect of good will, instead of the ghetto trash thinking our young people are heavily influenced by now.

If what I do is seen as radical behavior, do I have any intentions of changing it?

NOT AT ALL, because the world needs louder voices for the right, so we can overpower the ones that are wrong and winning the battle. So if you feel passionate about a wrong-doing, if you can't voice it, write it down, or get on your keyboard and type it. Let modern technology work to the greater good's advantage as it has for the greater evil's. Hence the reason I came up with the saying on this blog's page:
In 1839, Edward Bulwer-Lytton coined the phrase, “The pen is mightier than the sword”. Well now, thanks to the computer age, the pen has an ally. And it’s called - “the keyboard.”

I'm not trying to blow my own horn, but I'm proud of who I've become, making the noise that I make. Because I'm a peaceful person, and the only one who sees me as a threat or troublemaker - are the ones guilty as sin.