In West Philadelphia I was born & raised, on the playground, that's where I spent most of my days. Chillin' out, maxin', relaxin', all cool, & I was shooting some BBall outside of the school...
HEYOOOO SNC Land! I'm originally from LA (no, not the cool one on the West Coast, but rather LA as in "Lower Arkansas." Don't hate. I first heard about Straight No Chaser a few years back while singing in an a cappella group in High School. Yes, you read that correctly. No, I won't sign your cast. I was re-introduced to the group when Randy posted their reunion concert footage on Youtube.
Follow me on Twitter www.twitter.com/tinagaston87 I'm tons of fun, can't you tell?
Side note: Make sure you listen to SNC FanChat, the 1st & only podcast dedicated to Straight No Chaser! It's completely fan-run by Shaina Eng, Dave White, Kathy Mendoza & myself. Tune in for exclusive news, contests, interviews, & inside scoop on the group! They say I'm the comedic relief; they're probably right.
Country
I'm considered African American, but I'm not from Africa...that I know of. I must be going through an identity crisis. So I'll default to USA.
Birth Name
Well it depends; are you running background checks?
Nickname
Teeny Tiny Tina Surprise. Or Tina Bina. Or Token Black Girl.
Birthday
It usually falls on a Wednesday. My birth DATE is January 31, 1987. Truth is, I was born at a very young age.
Birth Sign
The best sign of birth I can think of is probably a baby crying after being born. Isn't that what you asked?
Eyes
2; How many do you have?
Currently Living In
A van down by the river. The good news is it has a CD player so I can listen to all the SNC music I want. The bad news is the exhaust pipe is faulty.
Hometown
LA (not the cool one on the West Coast, but rather Lower Arkansas)
Relationship Status
Currently in an open relationship with Little Debbie, Betty Crocker, and Hamburger Helper.
Trademark
Comic relief and prankster, snorting when I laugh. Coining memorable catch phrases during SNC FanChat podcast episodes. It's highly accidental I assure you.
Hobbies
Counting sheep, creating my own theme music (which is THE BOMB DOT COM if I do say so myself), being an aunt, meeting new people, singing, listening to music, dancing in the rain (nevermind scratch that), pulling pranks, mentoring children (scratch that too), watching airplanes take off & land, creating things from scratch except anything involving food, & harmonizing - without the harmonica. Oh & pulling pranks. Thanks to Walt, I now have my own theme song which I will perform for you all as soon as I remember how it starts.
Favorite SNC College Memory
Seeing as how I didn't go to college with the guys I'm going to have to skip this question, unless it's absolutely necessary to fill it in. In the event that it is, MY favorite college memory was the time I traveled to Des Moines, Iowa & ordered a Root Beer at a local restaurant, unaware that there's no such thing as non-alcoholic root beer in Iowa. Go figure. 8 Root Beers later, I then proceeded to serenade everyone in the restaurant with a steamy rendition of Ebony & Ivory, which to this day I still do not know the words to. I am currently investigating the validity of this story. Updates to follow. **UPDATE on aforementioned story: The following statement is true; the previous statement is false. This story is in fact true.**
Musical Influences
Kidz Bop (seriously, those kids are GOOD!), my family, Mariah Carey, J Collins, Earth Wind & Fire, Robin Thicke, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Kirk Franklin, Rachael Lampa, BeBe & CeCe Winans, Michael McDonald, & Take 6. Oh & DJ Lantz Rock from Yo Gabba Gabba. And Dylan from Making the Band...because he spits hot fire.
Favorite Songs to Perform Live
Uh....that would have to be all of them that are performed live. I mean seriously; who has favorite songs to perform dead?
Favorite Place You've Traveled
DUDE! The webcrew edited the question mark in the middle of you've! POINT! Wait, what were we talking about?
Oh, favorite place I've traveled is to Wonderland. Ah yes, I go there every night after a long day of work. Alice isn't the only chick who can dream up places. Booyah Grandma...booyah.
Favorite Things in General
My niece, Mila aka Tiny Chaser, Straight No Chaser (of course), winning arguments, starting arguments, pulling pranks, and having fun, providing oral commentary for every-day situations, anything involving firecrackers and fire, blowing up Twitter with my @SNCtbugs (and Facebook for that matter).
What Magazines/Periodicals do you read consistently?
Does this include the ones in the waiting room at the doctor's office? If so, Modern Man. That's the only one my doctor carries. **UPDATE: He now carries Modern Woodsman as well.** Add that to the list.
Name Your Top 5 Favorite Foods
Anything that was once alive but is now dead and slathered with barbeque sauce, and/or anything smothered in butter or cheese...or chocolate. Or all three, but not at the same time. That's just gross.
Name Your Top 5 Favorite Books
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish (Dr. Seuss), I Can Potty Too (Morgan), Do You Like Me: Yes No Maybe (Franklin), anything Stan & Jan Berenstein (Don't tell me you don't know who the Berenstein Bears are) and The Stinky Cheese Man, and Other Fairly Stupid Tales. (Can you tell I have a 2-year-old niece?)
Name Your Top 5 Favorite Movies
The Hangover, The River Within, The Sandlot, Tombstone, North and South
Name Your Top 5 Favorite Bands/Artists
Straight No Chaser, Take 6, Robin Thicke, My Mama, Mariah Carey
Name Your Top 5 Favorite Songs
Outstanding (SNC), This Is How We Do It (SNC), Under the Bridge (SNC), Cause' I Love You (Lenny Williams), I Was Made To Love Her (Stevie Wonder)