Back in the early ‘80’s when other kids were hell bent on listening to Pat Benatar, Asia and Styx, I had discovered New Wave music. It didn’t matter how bizarre or weird it was, if it was anti-mainstream — I enjoyed it. From Missing Persons to The B-52’s, I loved all those quirky bands and their even quirkier videos. One of my faves was the vicious and oh-so delicious group Romeo Void – led by front woman Debora Iyall. Not only was she a phenomenal singer, she had a presence that I found mesmerizing. And keep in mind I was 12 years old.

From the nanosecond I stumbled across one of their videos on MTV (circa ’82), I was instantly hooked. Debora not only whooped like a soul sister – she snarled and growled her way through many a song. Thanks to the wonder that is Facebook, Debora and I connected whilst I was in Sacramento for a shoot. I got the chance to have dinner with her and her husband Patrick. Over Spanish food, we shot the breeze, chatted each other up and acted like old chums.

At one point she started singing “Say No” after I mentioned seeing the video recently. I nearly started hyperventilating. She’s now an art teacher and has a few new projects in the works. I’ve met a lot of people – but I was hopelessly star struck. See, when you meet someone that helped you get through those awkward teen angst years – you must give props. And I did. I “got” Romeo Void’s music … and it got me. For over 20 years, I’ve had one of their CDs in my car. Their music made growing up a little easier for this kid – and still does.

Sarah Rue is sassy. She borders on FIERCE … yes, with all caps. During our brief chat she made a lot of faces … some goofy, some animated and some like she suffered from a nervous tic. By the end of the interview, I found myself trying to one up her with a lot of winks, eye rolls and nyuk-nyuks. That’s how this picture came about. I said something acerbic and she started wagging her finger at me. And so I quickly chimed in. There we were … Sarah Rue and I … the two palest people in the universe … acting like out of control black women. I’ll give her this … her head-bobbing and hand flailing is perfection. But my “OH NO YOU DIH’INT!” is far, far superior. Plus, I clearly have more junk in the trunk. OH NO I DIH’INT!