Happy Birthday To "The Mogul" AKA "Diva"

Hey Everybody!

Last night I attended a birthday celebration for my bestest friend ever....Miss Gwen DeVoe (Formerly known as "DIVA") henceforth and forever more to be know as "The MOGUL". She had her "South Beach Denim & White" themed party at a lounge in lower Manhattan near Soho. My fiance & I arrived at around 9:30pm and found the party in full swing!!! I saw soooooooo many friends & home girls from back in the day...Laura, Vicki & Cassie...my running buddies from WAYYYYYY BACK WHEN!!! lol. There were so many beautiful women of all shapes, sizes, colors & nationalities....My big girls represented well.....Everyone was doing the "Denim & White" thing and we were all absolutely stunning!

The MOGUL herself was resplendent in denim & white and was holding it down on the dance floor voguing & posing along with the dancing maching...Linda Mann, by the time we got to her. Her husband Al was there chilling at bar and being a perfect host. It filled my heart with joy to see that she was having the time of her life! No worries at all. Everything was all good...as it should be.

Arriving shortly after me was my friend and personal designer...Miss Raymona of Just Raymona for NV New York. Miss Raymona has been making all of my clothes since my FAT Chance debut and she's AWESOME!!!! She's a tiny little thing....but she SO understands the unique curves of the plus sized woman. She designed the outfit that I wore that evening and I felt so very beautiful in it. I predict that she will do very well with her line.

Also in attendance were many plus industry notables: Mia Amber, Lisa Scott, Madeline Figueroa & her husband, photographer extraordinaire....Luke "Back then they didn't want me...now i'm hot they all on me" Jones!! Miss Eda Francois, T-Boogie, The DSE Models & Staff: Jeannie, Sheka, Kalyea, Rocky, Sharon Jones & her fiance' Stacy and I know I am forgetting a BUNCH of folks....So please forgive me!

At around 12 or so...It was time for the MOGUL to cut her cake....and for ME...

PLEASE REMEMBER: YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!!

THIS IS ALWAYS DANGEROUS THING TO DO AROUND DIVA!!!!! AHEM....Scuse' me...."THE MOGUL'S" idea of a Happy Damn Birthday is to SMASH CAKE IN EVERYONE'S FACES!!!!! it's very tricky trying to keep her from putting it all over your face. A few years ago this heifer had everyone on the aircraft carrier INTREPID...running like crazy trying to keep her from smushing them with birthday cake. I wound up going clear across the damn ship getting away from her but it worked!!!! I managed to get home that year unscathed. Better yet I have learned to not be too close to her while the Happy Birthday song is going on......Welll.......no such luck this year...she was like a panther scoping out her prey!!!!! Just laying in wait....till....

SHE CAUGHT ME RIGHT IN MY EYE AS SHE WAS BLOWING OUT HER DAMN CANDLES!!!!!

Did anyone else get cake in the face or was it just me?????

Anyway, although me & my honey missed the "House" set (damn!) I managed to get my dance on anyway before we departed. We had a blast and can't wait till the next event!

A BIG SHOUT OUT TO ANYONE THAT I MISSED!!! EVERYONE IN DSE, DANGEROUS CURVES...THE TOUR! and THE PLUS ACADEMY!!!

Rosie (Bklynbreddiva) You looked phenomenal!!! I saw you working your runway strut!! Keep it up mama!!!

Complacency is the delight and dict of the foolish and lazy, but movement forward leads to greatness and success.

Miss Sharon Quinn

Tropical Divas 2006, Richmond, Virginia

 
 
 
 


This past weekend I was invited down to Richmond, VA to participate in the Tropical Divas 2006 Fashion Event. The event is given annual by Theresa Flatts the CEO of Tropical Divas . I worked with Theresa last year when she invited me down to be a guest speaker at her Plus Model College event. They welcomed me with open arms and made sure that there was never a dull moment in my weekend! Needless to say I was delighted when she invited me back as a special guest model for her Tropical Divas Show.

I flew into Richmond early Friday morning and surprisingly I managed to get through check in relatively quickly (although they lost THREE!!!! DID YOU HEAR ME???? THREE!!! of my favorite MAC Lip Glosses (They ain't cheap ya'll!!!). Anyway, two lovely ladies (who's names I cannot remember...please forgive me but I thank you so very much for your hospitality!) drove me straight to the 92.1 radio station to do radio interviews about the show. Well, we got there a little early so I was the first to arrive and I decided to go back outside (I LOVE summer in the south...it smells WONDERFUL!!!) and make some phone calls as I stood outside enjoying the weather, my home girl and MFC 2006 finalist Tiffany Jones pulled up with her manager Ms. Jay in tow. The three of us stood outside and got caught up on each other's lives quickly then Miss Theresa arrived and we headed back upstairs to do the interviews. Now because my interview on KISS-FM went so well a few weeks ago...I was definitely amped up to do this one and it didn't disappoint at all....We were introduced to the wonderful K-Monta',(who was also a featured model in the show and the driving force behind securing this interview for us...thanks mama!) and Dee-Dee who's show we were doing live!. I took to DeeDee immediately because her personality and energy are infectious AND she reminds me SO much of my mother when I was a child....just the life of the party. The interviews were a hoot with folks calling in to talk to me and Tiffany and to find out more information about the show. I thought I would just about die when someone called in and asked

Is Mo'Nique gonna be at the show?

A-Duh??? I couldn't resist ya'll I just blurted into the mic

"GIRL!!! You KNOW Mo'Nique ain't coming to this show...STOP PLAYING!!!

lol...if I had a dollar for every time someone asks me a question like this about Mo', I could pay someone to do these blogs for me!!

Anyway, I found out during the interview that the Tropical Divas after party was being held in the same club AND in conjunction with Vivica A Fox's Birthday Party!!! YAY...I have wanted to meet her for a long time now. When I heard that I was AMPED to go out later!!! lol...

Well, we finished the interview with Miss DeeDee we headed across the hall to do another interview for a different show, this was with another bubbly DJ (Who's name is escaping me but I will find out and correct it here later..). It was pretty much the same MO as before but no less fun! I enjoyed myself immensely. Once we finished the interviews, K-Monta' took us on a brief tour and then gave us lots of goodies to take home! (Ya'll know how much I love presents!. Then I hitched a ride with Tiffany & Ms Jay back to our hotel so we could check in and relax before the Dress rehearsal for tomorrows show. (I know...ya'll are going..huh? Dress Rehearsal??? lol...don't act like you've never had to do one of these). Well of course just because it's me...there's a wait to check in and I decide to have a glass of wine at the bar at Don Shula's Steakhouse...which is in the hotel and it is absolutely beautiful...I was about to have something to eat (I Love the occasional quality piece of steak) when I was informed that I could check in.

I finished up my wine and head to my room to freshen up. We decided to meet back in the lobby later to get something to eat. Well this hotel was like going through a maze and my room was THE LAST ROOM, IN THE LAST SECTION, NEAR THE LAST STAIRCASE IN RICHMOND VIRGINIA!!! You could hide a body in that hotel and no one would find it for a few weeks.

I swear it took me like 20 minutes to find it and I needed a damn map to get back to the lobby!!! When I finally found it...you know I immediately turned off the air conditioning (hate it!) and I unpacked and laid out my clothes for rehearsal that evening. I met Tiff and Ms Jay in the lobby along with the photographer who was down from Ohio (I think?) to photograph the show. We decided to eat at TGIFridays and it was cool...we had mojitos and a few people recognized us and wanted to take pictures...you know I love that kinda stuff.

I don't know about anyone else but that Mojito made me a little loopy! We went back to the hotel returned to our rooms to change and headed back out to the rehearsal.

The show was being held in an art gallery and when we arrived the rehearsal was in full swing....lol...with a lot of chaos thrown in. It reminded me of my early days in modeling and it made me smile....okay...laugh! lol. The ladies were incredibly nervous and I did my best to try and put them at ease. We said our hellos and met the commentator for the evening...Miss Earl. An incredible creature with great personality and a heart of gold....I heard Miss Earl was something else back in the day ya'll!!! We watched the rehearsal for a while then Miss K-Monta' gave me a lift back home.

More to come ya'll....gotta run for now. 

Miss Full Figured New York 2007 Beauty Pageant

Greetings Ya'll!!

I wanted to post a few pics from the latest event that I attended. I was invited to be the guest host of the Question & Answer segment of The Miss Full Figured New York 2007 Pageant.

The pageant was a lot of fun and I got to reconnect (as usual) with a lot of folks I have not seen since my early modeling days in New Jersey (lol). I loved all of the contestants I thought they were beautiful and had lots of energy...the big girls are no longer playing ya'll my sisters were REALLY representing!!!! I mean I saw outfits in the most vibrant colors and suits trimmed in Mink!!!

Backstage I ran into MFC contestant from season one...Miss Alicia Mitchell, Alicia debuted her new clothing line during one of the fashion segments from the show.

I also saw Designers, Lonie Cisco & Tyrone Chablis (Who made a fabulous dress from a bunch of cut-up t'shirts...coolest thing I have "seent" lol...in a while. Tyrone...I'mma need a dress like that in my life!!!!

I also saw Miss Andria Wallace-Stewart (did I get that right?), whom I go way back with from my early fashion show days AND she's a huge supporter of my music...she looked amazing in a sky blue & silver colored evening gown.

I noticed that Bigger & Better Thangs Entertainment were also in the house, looking good and getting their hustle on as always! Kudos to you all!!!

The Q&A segment was really interesting and the young women really showed that they could think quickly on their feet! I was really impressed...but what impressed me more was the fact that these sisters seemed geninuely comfortable in their own skins and I swear to you....YOU CANNOT BUY THAT!!!!

The standout to me was a sister who wasn't competing....she was in the fashion segment and she was 6'5" I swear!!!! I couldn't stop looking at her....As soon as someone helps this chick perfect her walk...she's gonna be the centerpiece of a LOT of shows....Trust me! she has a lot of presence.

The winner was named Troy Safi, and I have met her before...but I gotta admit....the crowd wasn't really happy with the judges selection....troy is no bigger than a size 14...and she's probably a little smaller. I heard the comments from the folks as they were leaving and they were not kind. I hope Troy has the good sense to ignore the rude and ignorant comments and keep it classy but keep it moving.

To the larger sized contestants, I applaud you for being gracious in defeat and embracing this sister with love. Please continue to do that...the winds of change are blowing your way....they really are!

People...it's time to start visualizing a beauty queen in a bigger package...the time is here!

Congratulations and Good luck to you girl!!!!

Shout out to Theresa Randolph for bringing me to her event...keep up the good work girl....it's not going unnoticed! Btw...the PINK dress was FABULOUS and you always look phenomenal mama!!!! (Jackie...i'm still waiting for my new dress chica!)

For those of you who are wondering what dress I am talking about....Years ago I did a show with Theresa and Jackie put me in black, Cream & brown checkerboard patterened dress



...I wouldn't take it off and I bought it as soon as the show was over!!!! it's still one of my favorite dresses!!!

It's a GREAT time to be a F.A.T. Girl Ya'll.

p.s. Jackie - Thanks for the glass of bubbly!!! I needed it!!! lol.

Flavor, Flavor, Flavor Man!!!

Alrrighty!!!! You just KNEW I had to write something right???? I have just gotten two fixes of my favorite reality show from last year....Flavor of Love!!! Now if you are only now tuning in....I was addicted to this show last year so I couldn't wait to see what they were gonna pull out of the hat this time around. And they (The Producers) didn't let me down in the least. I just want to know....did they scour EVERY GHETTO in America and every STRIP CLUB in America (and China)????? Cuz I swear, that's where every last one of these women came from??

Is is me or did they deliberately look for the most ignorant people they could find??? I was embarrased by MOST of the season opener but when "Somthin" had the little accident during eliminations...I was Appalled....it was bad enough that, that had to happen to her in the first place...but the fact that they left in in the final edit disgusted me. You know that child's parents & family are trying to bury themselves UNDER their house by now!!!

That girl could go on and win the entire competition (er....NOT!!!) but she's ALWAYS GONNA BE KNOWN AS THE GIRL WHO "DOO-DOO-ED" ON HERSELF ON NATIONAL TELEVISION. Her name will be "Doo-Doo" Brown to the world...henceforth and forever more...LMAO!!!

I don't know about you but I think that's gonna be hard for her to live with for a moment. As crazy as she appears to be....I felt bad for her. Lol...Flav can't even look at her....let alone kiss her without visualizing it. She's done. They are keeping her clearly for entertainment value....(They wanna see her squirm).

But let's move on:

Like Dat? Er...Mami??? What was up with THE BRA YOU MOST CERTAINLY NEEDED TO BE WEARING???? It's been a long time since I have seen boobies that big without "The Harness" and quite frankly ....I hope I don't have to see them again anytime soon. I don't know what she was thinking about???? Did someone TELL her to do that??? The subtitles that the used everytime she spoke to Flav, nearly took me out of here....that reminded me of the scene from "Airplane" where the two brother's were talking "Jive" and they used subtitles to translate....Hilarious!!!

Last season I realized that I knew one of the contestants: "Hottie" and I had worked together in Vegas for two weeks...this year it's "Nipplez", I met and hung out with her here in NYC. It was a pleasant surprise to see her on this go round but I swear...I don't remember that little speech impediment that the tongue ring is causing....you GO Girl!!!! I am rooting for you to go down to the wire!!! But you gotta a LOT of competition mama...cuz "Buckee" (These names are killing me ya'll) is fine as all get out and clearly seems to have Flav's attention. She has the booty I have always dreamed of having ya'll....lol!!!

BuckWild??? Are you kidding me??? That voice is driving me nuts and "Like Dat" was so right on this...."Rancho Cuchamonga" is NOT the friggin' Ghetto...it's very much a suburb but honestly...she's the funniest person on the show....I am really starting to like her although I don't think she's even remotely attractive....but her personality is what makes me keep watching her....she's gonna be there for a while....but I don't think she's the "woman of his dreams"...she strikes me as more of a "road dawg" type ya know? Not woman material at all. Did anyone ever see the miniseries..."The Last Don" with Danny Aiello & Jason Gedrick? She looks like "Rory Cochrane" from CSI...he played the sociopath Dante Santadio...the kid who wore the crazy jester hats!!

No one else really jumped out at me...besides crazy girl who started the fight over the bed...which come on producers....clearly looked like it was set up. She was a "Plant" That little white girl didn't stand a chance....but I am glad they got rid of home girl....she's the chick who would have set the mansion on fire!!!


Now onto Flav.....why do I want to smack the producers....you just KNOW suggested that he write out those name tags using phonetics and really bad spelling???? UGH!!!
he spelled BEAUTIFUL "Beatuful",

I don't care how much money he has now...THAT made me want to CRINGE....FOR REAL!!!!!

But I am saving the best for last....on the latest segment...three ladies win a date with Flav...and he takes them all on a romantic Gondola ride....which is cute but if Flav had said "GONZOLIER" ONE MORE FRIGGIN TIME???? ARRRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHH...WTF????)he was making the hairs on my neck stand up??? This was worse than "Habitational Park" commentary from last year!

Is it me or does it seem like "LIKE DAT" is trying really hard to maintain her "ghettoness" but there's some er...education slipping out every now and then...she ain't as "hood' as she pretends...i'm just saying.

BuckWild talking about removing her brand new Puma's before jumping in the water with Flav was hilarious!!!

I'm glad that "Wire" was eliminated, the "dark babies' comment was enough for me. And the chick with all the mouth that caused "Somthin" to go off, yeah...she needed to go too!

I'm betting that his surprise guest next week will be none other than Miss New York!!!

I'll hit ya'll back next week after I get my fix on Sunday!!!

My KISS-FM Wake-Up Club Experience

Last Thursday, I had the pleasure of hanging out with the KISS-FM Wake-Up Club (98.7 WRKS-FM)from 7:00am to 10:00am. The station invited the “Ladies of Mo’Nique’s F.A.T. Chance” to hang out and take some calls and it was actually a lot of fun…..in fact we (Tanisha, Joanne & myself) had so much fun that we hung out for the entire program.

Cool Slideshows

The folks from Newark, NJ called in and celebrated with the newest Miss F.A.T., Tanisha Malone from Newark of course! Jeff Foxx, Dr. Bob Slade and Talent are a trip without the luggage. I really did enjoy the show!!! The only drawback for me was that although the men did call in to speak to Tanisha, It annoyed me that all they seemed to want to talk about was the size of her ass!!!! (My BROTHERS!!!! Please???? Do you really think she isn’t aware of her booty by now???? I am sure she has had to listen to that shit her ENTIRE life!!!!) Surely someone on the planet wants to say something to her about something OTHER than her booty. I watched that child in the studio and I saw that it was making her a little uncomfortable.

Anyway!! Did I say that Talent is a CUTIE!!!???? OOOOOhhhhh……At 6’5”, Caramel-Colored, funny AND Intelligent to boot!!!! Boy!!! You know YOU Can Get A Slice!!!!!....lol. Talent was messing around with his latest toy…a Sony Cybershot camera (In the words of Will Smith in “Independence Day”…”I gotta get me one of these!!!”!) complete with photo docking bay. He took pictures in the studio and shared them with us all! I got to chat with him quite a bit during the breaks…but that damn Joanne Borgella was hogging up all of his time!!!!...lol…just kidding Jo!

Jeff Foxx was sooooo cute as well….he was CLEARLY enamored with Miss Tanisha…I thought I was gonna have to break out the tissues to wipe the drool from his mouth…lol. He thought the Original Runway Diva was Mad Sexy ya’ll!!!!

Dr Bob Slade, (Great Voice Ya’ll) was very nice and although he didn’t really say too much…with THAT voice….he doesn’t really have to…does he?

Reverend Al Sharpton, stopped by the studio and chatted with us for a few moments as well, this is the first time I have ever seen him up close & personal and he seems to be real cool. He let us know that he secured and excellent lawyer for Mo'Nique for her case against the Airline that threw her off her flight...and it's all good.
Did you all know that Reverend Al, was the presiding minister at Mo' & Sidney's Nuptials this past spring? I heard it was a 70's themed ceremony....that must have been fun!

I also met a brother named Mike, who made sure we had everything we needed. Mike is a little light skinned cutie…and I don’t want to insult him by calling him an intern but I am not sure what his title is….Linda M. That one was for YOU all the way….just like you like em….light and sweet…lol. I had to warn him though…cuz he kept flirting with me….I had to keep telling him…”I’m 45 not 25 boo, I will seriously HURT you!!! On the real…he was very, very nice to me and I want him to know it was very much appreciated.

Then to top it all off, as we were leaving I ran into my home girl…Miss Thing…Diana King!!! (Love her!!!) entering the studio to begin her show.

KISS-FM’s studio is in the same building and on the same floor as HOT-97, so on the way out we also met:

Miss Jones (Keeps it real and is a lot of fun…and pretty to boot!). I’m waiting for her to get back to the singing myself!!!
Fat Man Scoop! (Knew who I was….said he was a “fan” which is so friggin’ funny to me!!!)
Seriously though, it was a whole lot of fun and I cannot wait to get back and do it again! But next time New York City….ya gotta represent and CALL IN!!!!!

Thanks KISS-FM!!!!

The Runway Diva! LIVE on the KISS FM Wake Up Club!!

Greetings Family!

Please be sure to tune in to the KISS-FM Wake Up Club (98.7fm in the tri-state area I believe) this morning (Thursday, August 10, 2006) and check out the ladies from Mo'Nique's F.A.T. Chance:

Miss Sharon Quinn - The ORIGINAL Runway Diva (1st runner up season one & Den Mother going forward!)

Miss Tanisha Malone (Miss F.A.T. 2006)

And

Miss Joanne Borgella (Miss F.A.T. 2005)

Join us as we chat with Shaila & Talent of The Wake Up Club about our lives, our careers, and our F.A.T. Chance experiences!

Hope You Can Tune in!!!!

See & Hear The Runway Diva on Nation of Size!!!

Greetings Family!

My new showcase/video with new plus sized company "Nation of Size" is ready for viewing! Please take a moment from your busy schedules to check me out! You get to hear a some words of wisdom from "The Runway Diva" as well as interviews from a few of my close friends AND you get to hear me sing a few tunes as well!

I am not sure if you have to join their mailing list to view the video, I think you do though and it literally takes a few seconds and the best part is that they will NOT hit you with loads of spam after you sign up....YAY!!!!!

So please click here To See & Hear The Runway Diva! on Nation of Size and enjoy!

And please DO feel free to leave a comment on the Nation of Size site and let them know what you thought of my showcase.

Much Love As Always!

Q

Full Figured & Fabulous 2006 Competition

 
 

This past weekend I was down in Baltimore, Maryland where I was judging the Miss Full Figured & Fabulous 2006 Competition, Produced by DeVoe Signature Events. The event was held at the Best Western Hotel in Baltimore and the hotel was completely booked out when I arrived. I checked in to my room, unpacked, ironed some things and jumped in the shower to be ready for my 4pm call time in the main ballroom.

I arrived at the Ballroom at 4pm and was greeted by a handsome young man, named Terronce Styyles...who was the Judges Liasion. He was quite charming and showed me into the Judges holding area and told me to help myself to some champagne & refreshments...lol....he didn't have to tell me twice...I hadn't eaten since I had arrived at noon and I was STARVING!!!! Shortly after my arrival another Judge arrived and as I greeted her she introduced herself as "Sarah", I though she looked vaguely familiar but I didn't think too much of it at the time. Now, Ya'll know I can't sit still for my than 5 minutes at any given time, so I was up and off exploring the main ballroom.

As I got outside of the holding area, one of my friends asked me if it was true that Sarah Dash of Labelle was one of the Judges...to which I said..."I Don't Think So" but my curiosity got the best of me and I immediately headed back inside and asked her point blank if she was Sarah Dash of Labelle and she smiled and said yes!....so what do I say next???? "How can I get to meet NONA?????" Lol...she was very good natured about my request and a lovely woman to boot, I sat and talked with her for quite a while and she told me that she was working on a gospel album. I hope that our paths will cross again....I would love to hear her sing.

In the middle of our conversation, the only male judge of the evening arrived. He was very polite and went around the room introducing himself. When I looked up at him, I realized although, I didn't know his name....I recognized his face immediately!!!! His name is GregAlan Williams and He was a primary character on one of my favorite police dramas ...The District with Lynn Thigpen & Craig T. Nelson. I love this show....after I lost my job, I was up every morning having my coffee and catching up on all the episodes!!!! He is the coolest, nicest, man and I enjoyed sitting on the panel with him....watching him genuinely enjoying himself!!! I hope to keep in contact with him because I would love to work with him one day.

The final judge came in the room right after GregAlan, and her name was Tangi Watts Davis, and she is a the owner of her own PR Company, Na arah Intl and is the Editor In Chief of Thik Magazine. She was wonderful to sit on the panel with as well, and she brought a couple of her fine male models to the event with her. I look forward to seeing more of this sista's work in the future.

After we had our refreshments and briefed on the rules of the competition, we were escorted to the main ballroom and seated at a table at the foot of the runway. CEO Gwen DeVoe hosted the competition which began with a video presentation of each contestant and the and then an introductory walk by each contestant.

I was really impressed with the amount of creativity that the ladies put into their presentations and the amount of confidence that they all had in themselves was a beautiful thing to watch! The Full Figured movement is virtually unstoppable at this point and I for one and excited to see what the future holds for us. The winner of Full Figured & Fabulous was a statuesque sister named Lisa. She stopped the show when she came out in the evening wear segment dressed as a beautiful Nubian Queen, complete with umbrella with mosquito netting! We were all floored at the simple brilliance of her outfit. On hand to surrender her crown was Miss Full Figured & Fabulous 2005, Miss Sheka Rolle.

During the intermission, Diva put together a small fashion segment for the show's shoe sponsor...Taceri Shoes, Specializing in sizes 10 to 14...I was a guest model in the segment and I got to share the runway with none other than my home girl and Baltimore's Other Favorite Daughter....Miss Tiffany Jones of MFC Season Two. I LOOOOOOOOOOOVVVEEEEE Tiffany! Her presence and her energy is absolutely amazing....she was there with her beautiful manager Ms. Jay and her friend Taz who sent me some beautiful photos as well.

The whole event was very nicely put together and very well run, Diva's staff, dressed in White were top notch and flawless as always! A special award was presented to Mr. Charles Coleman and he had his entire staff on hand when he accepted his award. It was very touching. The music was supplied by DJ Naj, one of a set of twin sisters and they kept the music pumping. As the evening wore down, Diva presented the judges with special presents in big red boxes with white bows on em'....very classy (And you KNOW how much I like getting presents!!!) ... but then...that IS Diva's signature....Class all the way!

Kudos to DSE for another successful event!