What a great night. This was my first time out with the black card and it was the prototype card. If you are ever looking for a great time on Monday nights this is the place to be - Steel Panther (formerly known as Metal Skool, Metal Shop and Danger Kitty) is the longest running show on the sunset strip. It happens every Monday where they go on stage at midnight - usually local cover bands fighting for a record deal open for them. The best way to describe this show is a mixture of 80's Glam Metal combined with Girls Gone Wild. They do great cover's of 80's Glam metal complete with the outrageous outfits and big hair. Michael Starr, the lead singer, is actually a very talented singer who was the frontman for LA Guns - for 2 weeks. Another reason to go to this show is that fact that you will be rubbing elbows with Hollywood's elite. Each time I've gone there has been a notable celebrity that the band defames by forcing them to come on stage and drunkenly attempt to sing Journey or Gun's & Roses. Sometimes there are even real rock stars there who show their skills - or lack thereof on stage. Thank god for autotune. From the top of my head, I've watched Pink, Kelly Clarkson, Chad Kruger (Nickelback), Justin Hawkin (The Darkness), Tom Morello (Rage Against the Machine, Audioslave), Ryan Cabrera, Jani Lane (Warrant) and Lil' John showcase their skills on stage. The more embarassing performances were by Benji from Good Charlotte, Ben Roethlisberger, Jeremy Priven, Tony Romo and Dennis Haskins (Mr. Belvedere). It just so happened that tonight Tony Romo, Ryan Cabrera and Mr. Belvedere were there. Romo was fresh off his breakup from Jessica Simpson and seemed to be drinking his problems away. The lead singer called out Tony Romo but probably got a signal not to anymore over his headset and switched the topic to Matt Leinart.
Anyway, it was a great show. Very cramped and a few fights here and there. The highlight of the night was standing next to Lil Bow Wow who was in the VIP. Now, I'm no fan of his music but I've heard that infamous line on the radio "I ain't even gotta act hard, I'm under 21 with a black card". That combined with his youtube documentary of his Lambo (which is rumored to be rented) and Black card in an effort to front on Soulja Boy just made me want to show off my card. Well, I usually don't pay for anything with my black card cause it comes out of pocket and it has to be paid at the end of each month (it's not a credit card, it's a charge card). However, I could not resist flashing my card when the waitress walked by and asking for a monster. He noticed it too - and yes I bought a monster cause my fake ID was taken away the last time I was at this show (Hollywood bouncer's have a no bullshit policy - unless you have C cups or bigger). Anyway, the waitress politely said "No" which I was initially offended by. However, a few minutes later she returned with my monster and said "Happy Birthday". Strange but whatever and for the rest of the night I received free non-alcoholic drinks. She later explained they like to keep their elite clientele - hey it worked cause I come back every month.
All in all, it was a great night despite the fact they didn't cover any Bon Jovi song or Gun's & Roses. They did do a great rendition of Motley Crue's Kickstart My Heart though and they played an original song called Community Property that was awesome. Check it out below.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_xhi4H9fH4
Thursday, July 30, 2009
My Experience with the Centurion Card
How I got the Card:
I am by no means wealthy - not at all. I've actually overdrawn my checking account more times within the past two years than I've made deposits my entire life. My uncle is though and when I was a child we were close friends but my parents forbid me from speaking with him until I turned 18 and would be able to decide for myself. The reason for this was he was investigated for a hotel in New York that he owns that drug lords were operating out of back in 1994. Well I turned 18 two years ago but the subject of seeking him out never really crossed my mind. Then I met him at a wedding and I saw him pay for his drinks with the Centurion card. I was still rocking my BofA platinum plus Visa but I had been doing a pretty good job of building credit - paying in full every month. We talked about everything, I was convinced that my parents did not give him a fair chance and if you knew my parents you'd know how they are. Anyway, I manage a few CD's for him and he agreed to put me on his account as the secondary account holder for the Centurion card. Now, many people would say this is a waste of money to pay $1500 annually before you can spend a single dollar. My friends asked why I didn't just ask for that money instead of getting an "elite" card. Well in my family its an unspoken rule to not give money - its just a sign of respect. And it was between the card or a car - and I'm not one to milk someone for their money - I initially was interested in how he got it and in that conversation he saw my interest as an opportunity to make up for all my missed birthdays as a kid. From a more practical standpoint, paying $1500 for a card seemed to make sense to me considering my lifestyle and spending habits. I could upgrade to first class every time I fly (~10 times a year), free companion tickets for when I fly, upgrade to suites for hotels (so my friends and I all save money on our roadtrips), and get reservations whenever I wanted at restaurants - I just hate waiting. Well that's the story of how I got the card - now onto more interesting matters such as what the card has done.
American Express Centurion
- Well when I got the card, I was surprised to see it looked a lot different than the cards I saw online. I had done a lot of reading in anticipation for the arrival of the card. It came Fedex in a rectangular white carton. As I opened the heavy welcome kit, I saw a black and GOLD card with a special handwritten note attached. I had been chosen as one of Amex's clients for a prototype card that they wanted to test. As I picked the card up, I saw that everything was laser engraved. This card was not as low key as the true centurion card, it is much heavier, shinier and better looking. Unfortunately, it said the card would only be active for a month then they would change my account number and send me the original card. The welcome kit came with a personal letter from the CEO of American Express Ken Chenault (Interesting Fact: He is one of the richest black men in the world). It also came with a nice bound booklet detailing all the information about the card and papers for Hertz Gold Club as well as card registration. I will put these pictures up eventually.
How to Get a Centurion Card:
It's no longer as exclusive as people like to think - atleast as cardholders think. The only requirement is to spend $250,000 annually on an American Express Platinum card. After doing that, simply call up customer service and they will approve you for the Centurion card. With that phone call comes a $5000 initiation fee and $2500 annual fee. In other countries, the requirements are different - much lower actually. The reason for the large amount of cards out there is the low $250,000 requirement - most businesses go through this in one month on infrastructure management alone. Personally, I think it is much more significant to have a personal centurion card than the business one - every CEO has one nowadays but to have one with your name on it really means much more.
More details to come later. Any questions?
I am by no means wealthy - not at all. I've actually overdrawn my checking account more times within the past two years than I've made deposits my entire life. My uncle is though and when I was a child we were close friends but my parents forbid me from speaking with him until I turned 18 and would be able to decide for myself. The reason for this was he was investigated for a hotel in New York that he owns that drug lords were operating out of back in 1994. Well I turned 18 two years ago but the subject of seeking him out never really crossed my mind. Then I met him at a wedding and I saw him pay for his drinks with the Centurion card. I was still rocking my BofA platinum plus Visa but I had been doing a pretty good job of building credit - paying in full every month. We talked about everything, I was convinced that my parents did not give him a fair chance and if you knew my parents you'd know how they are. Anyway, I manage a few CD's for him and he agreed to put me on his account as the secondary account holder for the Centurion card. Now, many people would say this is a waste of money to pay $1500 annually before you can spend a single dollar. My friends asked why I didn't just ask for that money instead of getting an "elite" card. Well in my family its an unspoken rule to not give money - its just a sign of respect. And it was between the card or a car - and I'm not one to milk someone for their money - I initially was interested in how he got it and in that conversation he saw my interest as an opportunity to make up for all my missed birthdays as a kid. From a more practical standpoint, paying $1500 for a card seemed to make sense to me considering my lifestyle and spending habits. I could upgrade to first class every time I fly (~10 times a year), free companion tickets for when I fly, upgrade to suites for hotels (so my friends and I all save money on our roadtrips), and get reservations whenever I wanted at restaurants - I just hate waiting. Well that's the story of how I got the card - now onto more interesting matters such as what the card has done.
American Express Centurion
- Well when I got the card, I was surprised to see it looked a lot different than the cards I saw online. I had done a lot of reading in anticipation for the arrival of the card. It came Fedex in a rectangular white carton. As I opened the heavy welcome kit, I saw a black and GOLD card with a special handwritten note attached. I had been chosen as one of Amex's clients for a prototype card that they wanted to test. As I picked the card up, I saw that everything was laser engraved. This card was not as low key as the true centurion card, it is much heavier, shinier and better looking. Unfortunately, it said the card would only be active for a month then they would change my account number and send me the original card. The welcome kit came with a personal letter from the CEO of American Express Ken Chenault (Interesting Fact: He is one of the richest black men in the world). It also came with a nice bound booklet detailing all the information about the card and papers for Hertz Gold Club as well as card registration. I will put these pictures up eventually.
How to Get a Centurion Card:
It's no longer as exclusive as people like to think - atleast as cardholders think. The only requirement is to spend $250,000 annually on an American Express Platinum card. After doing that, simply call up customer service and they will approve you for the Centurion card. With that phone call comes a $5000 initiation fee and $2500 annual fee. In other countries, the requirements are different - much lower actually. The reason for the large amount of cards out there is the low $250,000 requirement - most businesses go through this in one month on infrastructure management alone. Personally, I think it is much more significant to have a personal centurion card than the business one - every CEO has one nowadays but to have one with your name on it really means much more.
More details to come later. Any questions?
Welcome to My Blog!
So as of today, its been about a month since I first got my black card. This is the American Express Centurion card that Kanye refers to as the "African American Express". I decided to start a blog so I could chronicle my adventures using the card. There is a lot of talk about the card but no one really knows the exact details or benefits of the card other than American Express. Heck there isn't even a website you can apply for it or read about it on. So welcome to my blog and I hope to provide you with all relevant information to the card as well as personal experiences and whatever witty remarks I can come up with.
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