Press "Enter" to skip to content

Posts published in “Entertainment”

Samsung Buys a Million Copies of Jay-Z's Album for Galaxy Smartphone Owners

By goodblacknews on June 20, 2013
Jay-Z Samsung

On July 4, Jay-Z’s new album “Magna Carta Holy Grail” will be released, but not through the usual online and physical music stores. It will be released to a million people who didn’t even know they had bought the album — that’s because Samsung has bought it for them.
One million Samsung Galaxy S3, S4 and Galaxy Note II owners will get the album 72 hours before it is available to everyone else. Starting on June 24 users will be able to download the “Magna Carta Holy Grail” app via the Android Google Play Store then on July 4 if you were among the million chosen the free album will appear in the app for your listening pleasure.

Samsung says that the million chosen will have to have already downloaded the app. The app will only be compatable on the select Galaxy S3, S4 and Note II phones and won’t work on other Android phones, says Samsung. The company hasn’t released numbers on how many of those three phone models have been sold, but in May it announced it had sold 10 million of its new Galaxy S4. For those who aren’t selected to get the full album, the app will also have an “unprecedented inside look into the album, personal stories and inspiration.”
Samsung has reportedly paid $5 for each album, totaling $5 million for the exclusive. It also means Jay-Z has sold a million copies before the public has heard a note of it.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B–ZARCwSIE&w=560&h=315]
But since the Samsung marketing deal was announced on Sunday night during the NBA Finals over 5 million people have heard a teaser of the album. A video which ran first during the basketball event and then was posted to Samsung’s YouTube channel, which shows Jay-Z collaborating with others in the studio, has made its way across the Facebook and Twitter. As of today, 10.5 million people had watched the above via YouTube.

OWN Offers Special Night of Programming this Sunday with 'Oprah's Next Chapter' and 'Dark Girls' Documentary

By goodblacknews on June 20, 2013

oprah and womenOprah Winfrey Network will present a night of compelling conversation on Sunday, June 23, beginning with Oprah’s Next Chapter (9-10 p.m. ET/PT) featuring Oprah’s in-depth conversation with some of Hollywood’s most powerful female African-American actresses including Alfre Woodard, Viola Davis, Phylicia Rashad and Gabrielle Union. In the discussion, the iconic actresses open up about the challenges, criticism and competition they face as African-American women in Hollywood. In the groundbreaking conversation, the women shed light on a topic that is not often discussed in the entertainment industry.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsESEoV7GoE&w=560&h=315]
Immediately following is the world television premiere of the groundbreaking documentary Dark Girls (10 p.m. – 12 a.m. ET/PT) from filmmakers Bill Duke and D. Channsin Berry. The film explores the prejudices that dark-skinned women face throughout the world. Women share their personal stories, touching on deeply ingrained beliefs and attitudes of society, while allowing generations to heal as they learn to love themselves for who they are. From filmmakers Bill Duke and D. Channsin Berry, Dark Girls made its world premiere at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival. The DVD will be released September 24, 2013.
Sounds like must-see TV to us here at GBN. Be sure to tune in or set your DVRS!
article by Lori Lakin Hutcherson

John Legend Sells 4th Scripted Series To Showtime

By goodblacknews on June 20, 2013

Today it was announced that John Legend and his Get Lifted Film Company have teamed up with the Showtime network for a half-hour comedy. The untitled project will take place in the world of high-profile music managers and will be penned by Austin Winsberg (Gossip Girl, Jake in Progress), who will also executive produce alongside Legend and Get Lifted Film.
Since making an exclusive deal last summer with Universal Cable Productions to develop TV series for cable and broadcast networks, Legend and his company have been busy.  It sold its first project to Fox in October – a comedy project, which will center on a guy in his early 20s who becomes the guardian to his own siblings, while having to manage his fledgling career as well as a social life, and is said to be loosely based on John Legend’s years growing up.Earlier this year, Legend sold a second project, a crime drama, to the USA network. Titled The Edge, it was described as a crime drama about “an idealistic Harvard Business School graduate named Jeff Cross who joins a progressive financial firm called Edgeton Global (aka The Edge), where he discovers the company’s dark secrets while becoming entangled in a high-stakes FBI investigation.”

Lionsgate’s Codeblack Films Picks Up Charles Murray's Romantic Drama ‘Things Never Said’

By goodblacknews on June 20, 2013


According to Deadline.com, two weeks before its stand-up pic Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain opens in theaters, Lionsgate’s Codeblack Films  has acquired U.S. rights to the romantic drama Things Never Said.

Writer/Director Charles Murray
Writer/Director Charles Murray

The film is written and directed by Charles Murray, who is making his feature debut after a decade in television (Criminal Minds, Castle, V, Third Watch). Shanola Hampton stars as an aspiring poet in a dangerous marriage who dreams of taking her work to New York. A surprise new love (Omari Hardwick) helps her find her artistic voice. Brian “Skinny B” Lewis produced the film, which is executive produced by Nicole Elliot, Steven LaBroi and Geofrey Hildrew. Codeblack Films, the Lionsgate unit that recently acquired Sundance drama The Inevitable Defeat Of Mister And Pete, will release Things Never Said this year.
article via Deadline.com with additions by Lori Lakin Hutcherson

Joan Smalls Gets Superhero-Chic For Barnaby Roper's 'Woman Of Steel' Short Film (VIDEO)

By goodblacknews on June 18, 2013

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJ1D8tOEB6Y&w=560&h=315]
According to the Huffington Post, Joan Smalls, the Puerto Rican beauty, is currently ranked the #1 model in the world and for good reason. She covers the top magazines, lands major fashion and beauty campaigns, hosts MTV’s “House of Style” and the list goes on. Recently, the 24-year-old got superhero-chic for director Barnaby Roper and Nowness.com’s short film “Woman of Steel.”

joan smallsThe minute-and-a-half long video is a dizzy display of Joan (literally) spinning and being all-around fierce in an array of designs by Rodarte, Altuzzara, Balmin and Anthony Vaccarello. Stylist Keegan Singh also adds a collection of big gold Eddie Borgo baubles for even more edge. “I tried to show a strong individual female character and Joan was the perfect person—she gives really strong poses,” Roper told Nowness.com.
article by Julee Wilson via huffingtonpost.com

Tracee Ellis Ross Launches 'Hair Love' Campaign In Response To Funny Hair Envy Meme (VIDEO)

By goodblacknews on June 18, 2013

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mf0eOhNCjg&w=560&h=315]
Hair envy is a serious matter. The intense emotion has made droves of women fry, dye and cut their hair to replicate fabulously coifed notables (see: FLOTUS and Kate Middleton) or that woman (or man) in your office who looks like they just stepped off the set of a hair commercial. We’ve even contemplated going green (and we’re not talking about recycling).
tracee ellis rossAnd with the natural hair movement well underway, many ladies are coveting curl patterns that aren’t their own. Isn’t that the opposite of embracing your natural hair? Actress and curly girl, Tracee Ellis Ross, is addressing this unfortunate trend by launching the “Hair Love” Campaign–a call to action for women to start loving their hair, as-is.
Prompted by an Instagram meme from AroundTheWayCurls showing a little girl crying with a caption reading, “That moment you realize you don’t have Tracee Ellis Ross’s hair,” the 40-year-old star created a video response to express her gratitude–but to also explain her views on the matter.
“I don’t want you to want my hair. The reason I don’t want you to want my hair is I’m of the school of love what you got. For me, the reason my hair was such a battle was because I was trying to make it something it wasn’t. I wanted the hair that somebody else had,” Tracee says in the video.
She goes on to say: “I love that you love my hair but I only love that you love my hair if it’s an inspiration for you to love your hair.”
What a fabulous sentiment. We love that Tracee’s speaking out about this and hope it encourages others to really start embracing their own hair.
article by Julee Wilson via huffingtonpost.com

Dave Chappelle Headlines New ‘Oddball’ Comedy Tour Launching This Summer

By goodblacknews on June 17, 2013
Comedian Dave Chappelle attends the DVD signing of 'Dave Chappelle's Block Party' on June 13, 2006 in Culver City, California. (Photo by Chad Buchanan/Getty Images)
Comedian Dave Chappelle attends the DVD signing of ‘Dave Chappelle’s Block Party’ on June 13, 2006 in Culver City, California. (Photo by Chad Buchanan/Getty Images)

Dave Chappelle is back in the spotlight and reclaiming his title as one of America’s favorite comedians. The stand-up legend is co-headlining Funny or Die Presents The Oddball Comedy and Curiosity Festival, a comedy tour launching late this summer. The comedy duo and music band Flight of the Conchords will join him in hosting and performing throughout the tour.
“The Oddball Comedy & Curiosity Festival w/ Dave Chappelle & Flight of the Conchords is going to destroy your funny bone this summer!” says a descriptor on the tour’s official site. The 5-weekend tour will kick off its first show in Austin, Texas on August 23rd and will appear in 12 other cities through Sept. 20.
Although Chappelle has performed stand-up across the country over the years, his recent series of gigs with comedian Chris Rock had many speculating his big return to the limelight. Now, the tour marks the funnyman’s high-profile return to the center stage since his abrupt departure from Comedy Central’s Chappelle’s Show in 2003.
Tickets go on sale Friday, June 21. 
article by Lilly Workneh via thegrio.com

Soledad O’Brien Joining HBO’s ‘Real Sports’

By goodblacknews on June 14, 2013
Broadcast journalist Soledad O'Brien attends Chaka Khan's Birthday Party on March 26, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images)
Broadcast journalist Soledad O’Brien attends Chaka Khan’s Birthday Party on March 26, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images)

NEW YORK (AP) — Soledad O’Brien is joining her former “Today” show colleague Bryant Gumbel at HBO’s “Real Sports.” HBO said Wednesday that O’Brien will be a reporter on the monthly magazine show. Her first story, due later this month, is about war veterans who use martial arts to help them cope with post-traumatic stress disorder.

O’Brien most recently was a morning show host on CNN, but the news network has given the program an overhaul that will debut next week. HBO also agreed to a deal with O’Brien’s production company, Starfish Media Group. O’Brien played college rugby, but her experience covering sports is limited.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press

article via thegrio.com

Alvin Ailey at Lincoln Center, First Time in 13 Years

By goodblacknews on June 14, 2013
This publicity image released by Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater shows dancers performing in "Four Corners, choreographed by Ronald K. Brown, at Lincoln Center’s David H. Koch Theater in New York. (AP Photo/Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Paul Kolnik)
This publicity image released by Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater shows dancers performing in “Four Corners, choreographed by Ronald K. Brown, at Lincoln Center’s David H. Koch Theater in New York. (AP Photo/Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Paul Kolnik)
NEW YORK (AP) — When Robert Battle first arrived at New York’s Lincoln Center years ago, he was a dance student with a scholarship to Juilliard. On his first day, he walked up to the building he thought was the school. It turned out to be the Metropolitan Opera House.
This past week, Battle arrived at Lincoln Center in a far different capacity — as artistic director of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, one of the most-loved dance companies in the world. He was bringing the company to its first engagement at Lincoln Center — one of the premier dance addresses in the world — in 13 years.
“This time I’m pretty sure I’m in the right place,” Battle, always ready with a smile and a quip, told the opening-night audience Wednesday at the David H. Koch Theater. “I saw my name on the poster outside.”
Battle, appointed two years ago, has the tricky job of projecting the gravitas needed to follow his famous predecessor, Judith Jamison, who held the job for more than two decades and carved a place in dance history, and at the same time injecting fresh life into the company, via new works and ideas.

Ballerina Misty Copeland Becomes First African American to Perform Solo in New York for 20 Years

By goodblacknews on June 13, 2013

Star turn: Copeland stars in 'Le Corsaire,' a pirate-themed comedic ballet, at New York City's Metropolitan Opera June 4-8

The prestigious American Ballet Theatre’s first black soloist in twenty years took the stage last week, but that’s only the tip of the iceberg in the unlikely, groundbreaking life of ballerina Misty Copeland. The 30-year-old beauty starred in ‘Le Corsaire’ at the Metropolitan Opera House from June 4-8, but her star turn is just one of a string of firsts and a fascinating life story she brings along with her.

For starters, Copeland, a native of San Pedro, California, grew up in extreme poverty. She didn’t even know what ballet was when she was spotted by an instructor at her local Boys and Girls Club at 13. Which brings up another unlikely fact in Copeland’s life—she didn’t even begin training in ballet until her early teen years.

‘I had no introduction to the arts in any way definitely not the fine arts,’ Copeland told the New York Post of her childhood, part of which was spent living out of a motel room with her mother. ‘Survival was our Number 1 priority, not extracurriculars, or a career,’ she said. ‘These were not things we thought about.’ She was destined, however, to think a lot about those things. In fact, she would soon be thinking of nothing but.

Racy: Copeland danced atop Prince's piano as part of one of his signature sexy performances, this one in his 2010-2011 'Welcome 2 America' tour
Copeland danced atop Prince’s piano as part of one of his signature sexy performances, this one in his 2010-2011 ‘Welcome 2 America’ tour

A ballet instructor named Cynthia Bradley spotted Copeland’s potential and told her she was ‘You are the most gifted dancer I’ve ever seen, and this could be a path to have a career.’ And that’s what it became. But at 13, Copeland was at a major disadvantage. Whereas most ballerinas start at the age of 5, with money and eager parents backing them. Copeland was not so lucky.