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Hip-Hop Legends Eric B. & Rakim to Reunite for 2017 Tour, Album Reissues

By goodblacknews on October 24, 2016
Eric B. & Rakim will reunite for the first time in 24 years when the legendary hip-hop duo embark on a 2017 tour. (Waring Abbott/Michael Ochs Archives)
Eric B. & Rakim will reunite for the first time in 24 years when the legendary hip-hop duo embark on a 2017 tour, Eric B.’s representative, Louis “Uncle Louie” Gregory, confirmed to Rolling Stone Saturday. “Back by popular demand,” Eric B. adds.

In addition to the tour, Gregory says the duo will look to remaster all four of their albums alongside filming new videos for classic tracks like “I Ain’t No Joke” and “Paid in Full.” While there are currently no plans to record new material, Gregory says the legendary group is taking it one step at a time.
“All too often we embrace our icons only after it’s too late,” Gregory tells Rolling Stone. “By having such an important group come together now, it’s an opportunity for parents and their kids to go to a show together and see music that created the foundation for what many of today’s artists were built upon.”
The genesis of the reunion began in July when Eric B. attended Rakim’s headlining benefit set for the Universal Hip Hop Museum in Newark, New Jersey. It was the first time the duo was in the same place for years. “They just started talking and organically reconnecting over time and realizing that they needed to do this,” Gregory says.
The surprise announcement seeped out earlier this week when the verified Eric B. & Rakim Twitter teased, “It’s official. You heard it here first. We are back.”
On Saturday morning, the Twitter feed brought news of the reunion tour, with the duo tweeting “Preparations are under way for #EricBandRakim’s return. It’s been a long time…” and asking where the Eric B. & Rakim tour should “jump off”; New York, Las Vegas, London and Australia were the options provided.
Gregory said that the current plan is a worldwide tour to start next year. He admits it’s too early to ascertain venue sizes, but the duo are looking into playing select festivals as part of the tour.
Eric B. & Rakim recorded four classic albums together – including their influential 1987 LP Paid in Full and its 1988 follow-up Follow the Leader – before splitting up in 1993. Rakim, who inspired an entire generation of rappers, including Nas and Jay Z, embarked on a solo career without reconnecting with his former DJ and partner.
To read full article, go to: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/eric-b-rakim-to-reunite-for-2017-tour-album-reissues-w446291
Additional reporting by Jason Newman

Chaka Khan, Janet Jackson, Tupac Shakur and Chic Among 2017 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Nominees

By goodblacknews on October 18, 2016

(L-R) Chaka Khan, Tupac, Janet Jackson (Getty Images)
(L-R) Chaka Khan, Tupac, Janet Jackson (photo via eurweb.com)

article via eurweb.com
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced the nominees for its 2017 induction ceremony today.  This year’s nominees include Tupac Shakur, in his first year of eligibility, Chaka Khan, Janet Jackson, and 11-time nominee Chic.
Ballots to select the final 2017 inductees will be sent out to more than 800 artists, historians, and members of the music industry. The public will also get an opportunity to vote at rockhall.com. Public voting ends Dec. 5 at 11:59 p.m. ET.
To be considered for induction, an individual artist or band must have released its first single or album at least 25 years prior to the year of nomination.
In addition to Tupac, this year also marks the first year of eligibility for fellow 2017 nominees Pearl Jam, Bad Brains, Depeche Mode, Electric Light Orchestra, Jane’s Addiction, Joan Baez, Journey, and Steppenwolf.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 2017 inductees will be announced at an unspecified date in December. The induction ceremony will be held at the Barclay’s Center in New York City in April 2017.
Read the full list of this year’s nominees include:
Bad Brains
Chaka Khan
Chic
Depeche Mode
Electric Light Orchestra
J. Geils Band
Jane’s Addiction
Janet Jackson
Joan Baez
Joe Tex
Journey
Kraftwerk
MC5
Pearl Jam
Steppenwolf
The Cars
The Zombies
Tupac Shakur
Yes

Salt-N-Pepa and Chance The Rapper to Perform at 2016 Black Ball to Aid Alicia Keys’ Keep A Child Alive Charity

By goodblacknews on September 28, 2016
Chance The Rapper Salt N Pepa KCA Ball
Chance The Rapper (l); Salt N Pepa (r) [Dave Mangel/Astrid Stawiarz via Getty Images]

article by Sidney Madden via xxlmag.com
Alicia Keys is making sure hip-hop is giving back in a big way. Chance The Rapper and Salt N Pepa will perform at Keys’ 13th annual Black Ball in NYC on Wednesday, Oct. 19. The annual black tie affair is put on by Keys’ charity Keep a Child Alive (KCA). It was announced earlier this month that A$AP Rocky would be performing along with rock star Patti Smith.
Star-studded events, humanitarian and otherwise, are nothing new to Chano or the ladies. The Chicago rapper just wrapped his Magnificent Coloring Day Festival in his hometown to celebrate the launch of his charity Social Works Inc. The 23-year-old mixtape star brought out big names like Kanye West, Lil Wayne, Young Thug, 2 Chainz, and Keys to celebrate the day. In fact, Chance has had a long history of helping his city through community efforts.
As for Salt-N-Pepa, the legendary crew has been reppin’ for hip-hop for more than 30 years now. Back in the 1980’s, the Queens duo, along with DJ Spinderella, were among the first rappers to promote safe sex, and were recently honored at VH1’s 2016 Hip Hop Honors.
The 2016 Black Ball will take place at Hammerstein Ballroom on Oct. 19 with a special tribute to legendary music mogul Clive Davis. As always, Alicia Keys will serve as the night’s host. Check out details about how to donate to KCA and attend the Ball here.
Read More: Chance The Rapper and Salt-N-Pepa to Perform at Alicia Keys’ 2016 Black Ball – XXL | http://www.xxlmag.com/news/2016/09/chance-the-rapper-salt-n-pepa-to-perform-alicia-keys-2016-black-ball/?trackback=tsmclip

Wiz Khalifa to Headline "Pencils of Promise" Benefit Concert for Children's Education in October

By goodblacknews on September 27, 2016

Hip-hop artist Wiz Khalifa (photo via
Hip-hop artist Wiz Khalifa (photo via hypebeast.com)

article via blackamericaweb.com
Pencils of Promise, a global education nonprofit, has tapped Grammy-nominated rapper Wiz Khalifa to headline its 2016 PoP Gala, joining fellow performers Nico & Vinz, reports Billboard.
Khalifa will close the event — set for Wednesday, Oct. 26, at Cipriani Wall Street — with a special performance in support of the millions of children around the globe who don’t have access to quality education.
“Kids should be able to chase their dream. Pencils of Promise is allowing them to do that,” Khalifa said in a press release announcing his involvement.
This year marks the sixth annual Pencils of Promise Gala to raise funds for children’s education in developing countries. Previous honorees and performers have included Justin Bieber, John Legend, Usher, Gary Vaynerchuk, Malala Yousafzai and Scooter Braun.
Honorary event chair Grace Raymond and creative director Luam Keflezgy are leading the effort to transform the annual event.
The 2016 gala will feature an awards portion, highlighting the partnership with footwear brand Stuart Weitzman, which has supported Pencils of Promise with their Shoes for Schools campaign, through which they funded the construction of three schools: one each in Ghana, Guatemala and Laos. The night will also recognize the Womble Family/Collis Foundation.
To read more, go to: http://blackamericaweb.com/2016/09/27/wiz-khalifa-to-headline-benefit-concert/

Official Prince Tribute and Lineup Set for October 13 in Minnesota (VIDEO)

By goodblacknews on September 17, 2016

Billed as Prince: The Official Prince Tribute — A Celebration of Life and Music, the event is organized by the late musician’s family and estate, and will take place Oct. 13 at St. Paul’s Xcel Energy Center in his hometown.


The lineup also includes Christina Aguilera, John Mayer, Tori Kelly, Luke James, Bilal, Mint Condition, Morris Day & the Time, Judith Hill and Liv Warfield, the New Power Generation featuring Morris Hayes plus members of 3RDEYEGIRL.
The concert is expected to bring in more than $1 million to Prince’s estate, according to The Star Tribune.

Solange Knowles Writes Insightful, Personal Essay on Racial Discrimination

Solange Knowles Writes Insightful, Personal Essay on Racial Discrimination

By goodblacknews on September 12, 2016
Solange Knowles
Solange Knowles (photo via solangemusic.com)

article by Lesa Lakin
by Lesa Lakin, Lifestyle Editor

Today I woke up to a Facebook post that my roommate from college shared on her feed. Her response to that tauntingly generic Facebook encouragement— “What’s on your mind?” seemed a little more perturbed, urgent and determined than usual: “This is a must read! #blacklivesmatter #takeaknee and if u don’t like my hashtags feel free to unfollow me.”  Whoa… okay, she had my attention. I found my glasses and I was in. The share was an essay by Solange Knowles about her recent experience with racial discrimination at a Kraftwerk concert.
The essay is entitled “And Do You Belong? I Do…”,  and the title is a pretty good indication of what follows. Here we go, I thought… I am about to read about how someone had caused Beyoncé’s sister to feel some type of way. I knew it would be a truthful expression of Solange having to deal with some, well… ignorant mess. I’ve certainly been there. This was going to be a level of discrimination probably more than the norm though, because why else make such an effort to share?
Solange’s essay is thought-provoking and definitely worth the read. She is insightful and honest about her past experiences with racial discrimination, as well as her recent encounter while trying to dance and enjoy music with her family.
Though the content of the post is not surprising – again, so many of us have been there – the trash throwing did surprise me. (Yes, someone throws trash at Solange and her family.) Really?? It was taken there??? But instead of responding in the moment in a way that likely would have brought negative attention to her and her family, I have to applaud Solange for instead turning to Twitter, then laying it out there again in writing, as well as covering the anticipated naysayers with intelligent responses.
Here is her essay in its entirety:
http://saintheron.com/featured/and-do-you-belong-i-do/
In light of GBN’s own essay on personal discrimination:
https://goodblacknews.org/2016/07/14/editorial-what-i-said-when-my- white-friend-asked-for-my-black-opinion-on-white-privilege/
We are reminded by her action that knowledge is power, well-chosen words are power, and speaking up in protest is power. I think it’s important that she bravely lays it out there for the world to hear.
Thank you, Solange.
Hip-Hop Legend Snoop Dogg to Headline Working Californians’ 5th Annual Labor Day Music Festival

Hip-Hop Legend Snoop Dogg to Headline Working Californians’ 5th Annual Labor Day Music Festival

By goodblacknews on September 4, 2016

unnamed

Lesa Lakin, GBN Lifestyle
Lesa Lakin, GBN Lifestyle

This Labor Day (September 5, 2016) Working Californians will hold Los Angeles’ fifth annual Labor Day Music Festival featuring hip-hop legend Snoop Dogg, GRAMMY award-winning American Chicano Rock Band Los Lonely Boys; Latin- Jazz musician Poncho Sanchez; The New Orleans All-Star Band featuring Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Inductee Dr. John, James Andrews, Herlin Riley and Detroit Brooks; The Dennis Jones Band; The Victor Orlando Orchestra and Fun-Ja-La, and Cuban Funk.
More than 50 Southern California labor organizations will gather on Mondayto celebrate and commemorate both the history and future of Labor Day at Working Californians’ Labor Day Music Festival. This annual event not only benefits working men, women and their families, but also recognizes labor victories made this past year throughout Los Angeles and Southern California.
Concert performances will benefit Working Californians’ non-profit, which fosters social innovation and invests in improving low-income communities in Southern California.
2016 Labor Day Music Festival Featuring: Snoop Dogg
LA Memorial Coliseum’s Exposition Park
3911 S Figueroa Street
Los Angeles, CA
Monday Sep 5, 2016
Doors: 11:00 AM (ends at 8:30 PM)
$20 & $299
For tickets and more information: http://www.workingcalifornians.org/splash/

Alicia Keys' Powerful No-Makeup Movement Wins Over "The Today Show" Co-Host Tamron Hall

By goodblacknews on September 3, 2016
Alicia Keys and Tamron Hall wear no make-up on “The Today Show” (photo via today.com)
article by KC Orcutt via bet.com
Alicia Keys continues to speak her truth, sticking to her word that her days of feeling forced to wear make-up due to cultural pressures are long gone.
Most recently, the Grammy-award winning singer stopped by The Today Show and not too long after they all got to talking, co-host Tamron Hall was next to support the movement to rock a natural face by wiping off her make-up while on national television.
Keys has been experiencing backlash recently for her decision to attend this year’s VMAs without make-up, with her supporting husband Swizz Beatz taking to social media to defend his wife’s choices.
With her movement continuing to gain momentum, along with Hall, co-hosts Billy Bush and Al Roker also joined in on the fun, with all agreeing to wipe their faces clean while broadcasting across the U.S. Keys also gushed at Hall’s fresh face, complimenting the co-host exclaiming, “You’re so beautiful, look at you!”
During the on-air conversation, Keys reminded everyone that her choices have nothing to do with her hating make-up, nor does she have anything against those who choose to wear make-up. For Keys, she no longer wants to feel forced to wear make-up and it’s as simple as that.
In the essay she penned earlier this summer explaining her decision to walk away from her make-up brushes, the singer wrote, “I don’t want to cover up anymore. Not my face, not my mind, not my soul, not my thoughts, not my dreams, not my struggles, not my emotional growth. Nothing.”
To check out some footage of Keys’ recent appearance on The Today Show, click here.

How Beyoncé’s "Lemonade" Helped Bring Julie Dash's Groundbreaking Film "Daughters of the Dust" Back to Theaters

By goodblacknews on August 23, 2016

"Daughters of the Dust" directed by Julie Dash (poster via Cohen Media Group)
Poster for re-release of “Daughters of the Dust” directed by Julie Dash (via Cohen Media Group)

article by Yohana Desta via vanityfair.com
In 1991, Julie Dash’s sumptuous film “Daughters of the Dust” broke ground as the first movie directed by a black woman to get a wide theatrical release.  Since then, the gorgeous tone poem about a Gullah family in 1902 has continued to gather accolades. It was added to the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress in 2004, and recently served as a heavy inspiration for Beyoncé’s visual album Lemonade.
Now, the film is being re-introduced to the mainstream in a splashy new way—the Cohen Media Group has created a rich 2K restoration that will be screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, then released in theaters again this November. (Watch the exclusive new trailer above to see the film restored in all its fresh, new glory, and scroll down to see the glossy new poster.)
Dash calls the new release “exciting.”“I never imagined it would be released again,” she says.  For the record, Dash is also a huge fan of Lemonade—and says that the visual album actually helped Daughters on the road to restoration. Read on to see her thoughts about Beyoncé, Hollywood, and whether she’d ever make a sequel to her classic film.
Vanity Fair: Were you paying attention at all to Lemonade, to the Beyoncé film?
Julie Dash: Yes. My phone blew up the night Lemonade came on and my Web site shut down . . . someone called me and said Daughters of the Dust is trending on Twitter. And I said, “No, it must be something else,” and they said, “No, it’s trending!” And I looked and it was, and it was so funny. It just tickled me to death. So I finally got a chance to see Lemonade and I was just very pleased. Lemonade is just—it breaks new ground. It’s a masterpiece.It’s a tone poem, a visual tone poem with various stories going on—vignettes. It’s just all visual, and it’s like yes.
To read full interview and see the “Daughters of the Dust” trailer, go to: How Beyoncé’s Lemonade Helped Bring a Groundbreaking Film Back to Thea | Vanity Fair

Phife Dawg of A Tribe Called Quest to Have Section of Linden Blvd. in Queens Named in His Honor

By goodblacknews on August 1, 2016

Phife Dawg (photo via billboard.com)
Phife Dawg (photo via billboard.com)

article by Bruce Goodwin II via theurbandaily.com
Phife Dawg of A Tribe Called Quest passed away this past March due to complications from diabetes. And now, after a series of powerful memorials, Phife’s getting a street named after him in his old Queens neighborhood.
OkayPlayer got confirmation from Phife’s manager that New York Mayor Bill de Blasio will sign a bill to co-name a portion of Linden Boulevard at 192nd Street in St. Albans “Malik ‘Phife Dawg’ Taylor Way.”
The signing is set to take place on Wednesday, August 3 at 10 a.m. inside City Hall.
The intersection of 192nd Street and Linden Blvd. is a huge nod to the group’s beginnings as Phife mentioned the location in tracks like “Steve Biko” and “Check the Rhime.” Alongside Q-Tip, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, and Jarobi, the group was formed in that neighborhood in 1985.
To read more, go to: http://theurbandaily.com/2016/08/01/phife-street-own-street-named-after-him/