SouthFlorida.com | City Link Magazine

Ingrid Bazin is getting calls from everybody. "They want to know, 'What's the cover? What's the dress code? Where can I find a plumber?' " she says. "They come to me for everything."

Bazin, known to many South Florida partygoers as Ingrid B., has become the go-to person for anyone looking for the hottest party spots in Miami, particularly during the chaotic Memorial Day weekend. For the past four years, Bazin has promoted hip-hop shows and spoken-word events through her promotions company, B Side Entertainment. She currently hosts Mello Mondays at The District and The Bohemia Room on Wednesdays at Power Studios, both of which feature local spoken-word artists showcasing their skills. She is also a die-hard supporter of under-the-radar hip-hop and R&B acts, often partnering with local clubs and concert promoters to draw attention to their shows. In short, if a hip-hop or poetry event is taking place in South Florida, chances are you'll see Bazin's curly Afro rising above the crowd.

In 1999, Bazin started an online forum called "U Can Catch Me at the Hot Spots" (Groups.yahoo.com/group/ingridbhotspots), on which she still posts information for the week's biggest parties and events. Today, roughly 6,000 people subscribe to her e-mail and text-message alerts, in which she heralds her own parties as well as big-time happenings such as the Miami/Bahamas Goombay Festival, Zo's Summer Groove and Miami Carnival.

Recently, she has helped promote concerts by well-known hip-hop acts The Roots, KRS-One and M1 of Dead Prez, as well as shows by more-obscure R&B singers Raheem DeVaughn, Mishal Moore and Vikter Duplaix. "I try to reach out to artists that aren't the mainstream," Bazin explains. "The whole concept is about the B-side of life. We don't want to be like the song on the radio that made you buy the record. We want to be the song on the B-side that made you keep the album."

Bazin's own events target young adults who enjoy hip-hop, poetry and networking with like-minded people. Since launching The Bohemia Room in 2002, Bazin, who isn't a poet herself, has partnered with spoken-word artist Alexander T. Proctor and The Miami Masters collective to host the event, which routinely features both regional and national poets.

"I think Ingrid B. is very instrumental in the poetry community down here," says Asia Samson, a Sunrise-based slam poet who often performs at Bazin's events. "It's very rare to see someone who's not a poet give so much. And she has the dopest Afro around."

Bazin exudes a flirtatious, sexy vibe at her parties, working the crowd with her big hair, big smile and big personality, all of which stand in stark contrast to a side of her personality many people never see. "I'm actually very shy," she admits. "I talk to whom I have to talk to because this is my job. Otherwise, I'm really pretty reserved. I just appear to be a nut."

The daughter of the Very Rev. J. Fritz Bazin, a prominent Episcopalian priest and activist in Miami's Haitian community, Bazin is used to being surrounded by people, especially since her house sits on the same property as her father's church. Born in Barbados, Bazin moved to Miami from New York when she was a teenager. She initially wanted to run a dance school, but after working with children at an after-school program, she quickly changed her mind.

"I went to Miami-Dade Community College forever and left there with about 100 credits and no degree," Bazin recalls. "Then, I went to Barry University and studied liberal studies, sociology, English and African-American studies."

After graduation, Bazin decided the classroom wasn't really where she wanted to be. She realized she didn't have the patience to work with kids or deal with school politics. "I got my degree, but I decided that I didn't have the desire to work with the bureaucracy of the school system," she explains. "And I prefer to work for myself, get up when I want to and not have to answer to anyone."

This attitude is reflected in the independent, open-minded nature of her events. Bazin prides herself on providing an outlet for artists, fans of poetry and music, and singles looking to meet someone new. The Bohemia Room often boasts a suggestive theme, such as Flirt, Passion or Cunnilinguistics, an erotic-poetry night held the third Wednesday of every month.

Bazin is generally mum when it comes to her own love life, however, dodging questions about her relationship status. "Well, maybe there is someone special that I have in mind," she offers. "And I'm going out to get a voodoo doll and make him act right."

If and when this mystery man finally comes around, he can always just give Bazin a call. Everyone else does.