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May 17, 2002

PORTLAND GOES GA-GA FOR THE DIVA -- Spider Mocassin is GOD. Yes, it's true. We here at Starrwatcher Online are going to start a new religion based on the amazing presence of musician/activist/DJ Spider cos' he's so dang cool. Some of you older folks will remember back in the heady days of the 1960's, fans of Eric Clapton proclaimed him God awhile back. Well....we think it's high time that Spider receives that title. The reason? He produced two well-attended shows, secured a great write-up for Arigon in the "Williamette Weekly" and landed both himself and Arigon a gig at this year's JAMMIN' FOR SALMON. We'll have more details about JAMMIN' FOR SALMON as details become available -- but it's going to be one hot show in August. Arigon is grateful for all of the attention -- and thanks all the fans and supporters who came out to the shows. The Snake and Weasel gig was packed -- and was even broadcast live on the internet! The Laughing Horse Bookstore was charmingly intimate. Should you find yourself in the Portland area, look out for Spider's live appearances -- and those of Trevino Brings Plenty and Luke Warm Water. Portland ROCKS! Goofy Arigon photo courtesy of Mary Sue Gulzow and her amazing digital camera.

NATIVE AMERICAN BLUES FESTIVAL THIS SATURDAY AT THE SOBOBA CASINO -- It's going to be a fabulous day in Southern California featuring some of the coolest Indian musicians on the scene. Arigon Starr, Nicholas Peters and Tyler Grant will rock your world around 2:00 PM on the stage of Soboba Casino. The fabulous folks at the Native American Music Association are putting on this show -- and you can expect the production values to be top notch. We'll see you there -- and be sure to come over and say HI! BACKFLIP will be "pow-wow" priced at $10.00 -- a bargain for those of you saving for that new tattoo or summer vacation. AAAAAY!

May 15, 2002

PACIFIC NORTHWEST WELCOMES THE DIVA! -- Arigon Starr is now in the midst of a promotional tour of the Pacific Northwest. So far, she's been in Seattle and the Yakama Indian Nation in Central Washington State. "Those folks at Yakama are the BEST," says Arigon. Sean Goudy and Sly Sahme of radio station KYNR 1490 AM rolled out the red carpet. She performed live on the airwaves at the Tribal School, for a group of Legends Casino employees and at Heritage College. She met lots of great folks up there, including Bill Yallup, who has appeared on the TV show "Northern Exposure," members of the very famous Sohappy Family and the current Yakama Tribal Chairman. "If y'all ever get a chance to go up there -- do it! They are really friendly folks," said Arigon.

Arigon will be appearing TONIGHT at the Snake and Weasel in Portland, Oregon with fellow singer Spider Mocassin and poets Luke Warm Water and Trevino Brings Plenty. You can also catch Spider and Arigon at the Laughing Horse Book Store tomorrow night. More information is on the Live Dates Calendar. Be sure to tune into KBOO FM tomorrow afternoon between 1:30-3:30 PM to hear what's new in the world of the Diva.

THE BUSINESS OF SHERMAN AND HIS FANCYDANCING -- You might not believe this story (especially because Arigon didn't take any photos), but Sherman Alexie took to the streets of "The Avenue" near the University of Washington in Seattle last Friday night (May 10th)."' Thanks for coming -- would you like a cookie?' he asked. His next question was -- WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?," laughed Arigon. The occasion was the Seattle opening of his latest film, "The Business of Fancydancing." Arigon reports that the film was sold out that night --- and there was quite an ovation after the film finished. "I loved it," she gushed. "Sherman has definitely got his finger on the pulse. Real cutting edge filmmaking." It's playing at the Varsity Theater in Seattle now -- and will be shown in other areas, including Portland, Oregon and at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival. More information can be found at at Sherman's website, FallsApart.com. "Go see it -- you'll dig it!"

May 3, 2002

BACKFLIP IS HERE!! -- As in the days of old, when the Record Transport Truck would roll into Tower Records or The Wherehouse, BACKFLIP arrived last Tuesday (April 30) in Los Angeles. Dedicated fans already know that there are sixteen wonderful new Arigon Starr songs; that country band BR549 is on the record; and that Nicholas Peters, Jeff Ruiz and Ben Moore are back for more musical inspiration. What the dedicated don't know is -- is that Arigon is also a fine artist who was once a freelancer with the Disney Stores. "Yep, I used to draw Winnie the Pooh, 101 Dalmations and The Lion King characters for those fancy embrodiered t-shirts they sold at the Disney Stores." Only a few of Arigon's designs went into production -- and her mom is probably the only person who "knowingly" went into the Disney Stores and bought one of her t-shirt designs. "It was a lot of fun doing that. In fact, that work helped me pay for my first record." Arigon is now taking her artistic talents towards her own project. She painted the cover of BACKFLIP, in addition to all of the illustrations inside. "I always make my friends laugh with the sketches I do of people on the road. I like to take my sketchbook to Pow-Wows and draw people. That's where those faces come from. Don't laugh at these Indians -- they might be your cousins! AAAY!"

NEW ORLEANS JAZZ FESTIVAL WELCOMED THE DIVA! -- Armed with only an acoustic guitar, new songs and two great musicians, Arigon took on the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival on Saturday, April 27th. The Festival attracts hundreds of thousands of music lovers over two weekends at the New Orleans Fairgrounds. For those of you wondering -- YES -- it was hot and sticky. YES -- they had crawfish, catfish and Gator Pie. There were even other music performers on other stages around the fairgrounds. "The scope of the music was intense. I don't know how anyone could possibly see or hear it all," sighed the Diva. Nicholas Peters (on congas & vocals) and Tyler Grant (on bass and vocals) braved the heat and fried food for one memorable trip. "People were so nice to us. Echohawk and Annette (the folks who booked Arigon to play), took great care of us -- and we got to meet some longtime fans -- including Gene Bates." Arigon's friends from San Diego, Janet and Pam Holmberg, served as unofficial tour guides through the French Quarter and the Garden District. "The girls have been to New Orleans before and it was great to have them leading us all around. Believe me, we needed the help!"

Arigon, Janet Miner (Wacky Productions CEO and the band's manager), Janet, Pam, Nick and Tyler took in as much as they could. Arigon enjoyed watching one of her musical heroes, James Burton, take the stage with one of New Orleans local artists. "That man ROCKS. He's played with all of the greats -- from Elvis to Ricky Nelson to Gram Parsons. He's got a way with that Telecaster guitar he plays." The group also took in Lenny Kravitz and poor Indie.Arie, who was struggling to be heard over Lenny's oversized sound system. Sunday brought more music, including Dr. John and Wynton Marsalis. "There was so much happeninng all at once. You could turn a corner and hear a 50 voice gospel choir, then see a group of marching Mardi Gras Indians, then look over there and hear a Zydeco/Cajun band heating it all up. Unreal!" Arigon even took a turn with the Muscogee Nation Dancers during a "social" Stomp Dance.

Arigon was happy to see Robert Mirabal and Native flutist Tommy Wildcat. Also seen lurking were Valerie Red Horse and her super-duper husband Curt Mohl. "In addition to all the music, they were also spotlighting Native heritage with films like Smoke Signals' and Naturally Native. They also had panels on stereotypes and various aspects of Native culture. It was an honor to be a part of it all."

If you're in the area -- you can go down this weekend and check out Bill Miller!