About Matching Birthdays

With a Business Administration degree and Music education, she studied Classical music, Negro Spirituals, the history of Jazz and Blues. She later discovered the Jazz birthday connections via matching birthdays. Prior to that in her formative years she met movers and shakers in Oakland California like Huey Newton and Bobby Seale, the founders of the Black Panther Party. She attended Merritt College which was founded by the Panthers. While attending law school she started working as a paralegal for The Law Offices of John Burris, a civil rights practice, representing many clients in the entertainment field as well. One of the clients was Tupac Shakur-rapper/songwriter. She vividly remembers Tupac visiting the office following a police incident in Oakland, and engaging in conversations with Tupac and his entourage, referred to as the "posse" at the time." The firm also represented Chris Webber-a professional athlete, Jerry Butler-singer/songwriter, Mark Curry-comedian, Oscar Grant, an Oakland citizen (see the movie “Fruitvale”-with Michael B. Jordan), the O.J. Simpson trial as well as representing Rodney G. King against the Los Angeles Police Department. All in all while working for the Law Office of John L. Burris she came into contact with numerous up and coming attorneys, and Ninth Circuit judges. She met Johnny Cochran, and the great Constance Baker Motley-African American civil rights activist, lawyer, judge who was the first African American woman ever to argue a case before the U.S. Supreme Court. Valerie started a small business offering attorney support services and desktop publishing products, and later a fitness instructor business and a substitute teacher K-12 in the bay area, and other cities.

She became an accomplished speaker in Toastmasters. She later turned her attention back to music, particularly Jazz. It was during this period that she made an extraordinary discovery, where 9 of her immediate relatives shared birthdays with legendary Jazz musicians. This revelation left her profoundly happy, inspired, prompting her to develop a one woman show called BCBD JAZZ and to bring people together around the idea of using birthdays as a source of happiness, connection, and inspiration. This entertainment company called Matching Birthdays was founded due to the impact of wonderful relationships, connections and inspirations.