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Posts published in “Music”

Sisters with Strings: Jasmin “Char” Charles and Margaux Whitney are Brooklyn-based Classical Duo Chargaux

By goodblacknews on August 7, 2014

Chargaux

If the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the words “classical music” is stuffy older folks politely clapping for elevator music, you may want to reconsider. Chargaux, a Brooklyn-based duo that play the violin and viola, are using classical string arrangements in bold, soulful ways, and incorporating stunning visuals to help you see their sounds. (Think neon-colored box braids moving furiously over a classical orchestration of a Beyoncé cover.) Chargaux produces sounds that would have kept you focused in your high school music class.

Jasmin “Char” Charles and Margaux Whitney met on a street in Boston and immediately connected over their love for music. Both classically trained, it wasn’t long before the two started jamming in New York City train stations, drawing diverse crowds of strap-hangers from across the world–and it took off from there. The beautiful chords at the end of Kendrick Lamar’s “B*tch, Don’t Kill My Vibe” is also Chargaux’s work. This year, they performed at Opening Ceremony’s fashion show and their latest EP, Broke and Baroque was released this month. EBONY chatted with the duo on their creative process, what it’s like to be Black classical musicians in the industry and why there is really no one quite like them.
EBONY:  What kind of stories do your music and visual art pieces tell? What kind of people do they speak to or do you hope they reach?
MARGAUX:  I love my generation despite our flaws, so I want our music to reach them. The Internet has made us a little impatient. Everyone wants what they want right away and likes what they like. Our art is a way of changing that, of giving people something they didn’t know they wanted, a new experience. On the other hand, I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t want to reach, well, basically everyone. If somebody’s grandma is jammin’ to my song, I’d be ecstatic. As girls from Detroit and Atlanta braving New York and experiencing some of the best and challenging moments in our lives thus far, I think the music tells a beautiful story. We want you to have fun and enjoy what you hear but also feel the passion and drive behind it.

Timbaland Hints New Missy Elliott Album May Drop Soon

By goodblacknews on August 3, 2014
Missy Elliott (Cindy Ord/BET/Getty Images for BET)
It’s been nearly a decade since Missy Elliott’s last solo album, 2005’s The Cookbook, but Timbaland says a new one may be on its way. “It’s coming,” the rapper’s longtime producer and songwriting partner tells Rolling Stone. “It’s on her. She got the first single, it’s just a matter of when she wants to do it. We got the hollow-tip bullet in the gun. We have the game-changer right there,” he says, making the sound of a gun firing.

Asked what that bullet sounds like, Timbaland remains vague: “It’s something you ain’t never heard Missy do. It sounds today, but the future.”
Despite their close relationship, the two artists work in an unusual way. “I’ve never watched her record, never in my whole career,” he continues. “I do it, she be like, ‘OK, I got it,’ and I leave the room. She kicks us out. That’s how she do it: She does everything herself.”
In 2012, Elliott released two new Timbaland-produced songs, “9th Inning” and “Triple Threat,” but in the following years her output has been limited to feature appearances. In 2013, she had verses on Little Mix’s “Without Me” and Fantasia’s “I Deserve It,” and earlier this year she and Sharaya J, an artist signed to her the Goldmind Inc., rapped over Faith Evans’ “I Deserve It.”
Timbaland, meanwhile, co-produced much of Justin Timberlake‘s The 20/20 Experience, Jay Z‘s Magna Carta… Holy Grail and Michael Jackson‘s posthumous Xscape. He tells us he’s at work on a solo album called Opera Noir he describes as his Purple Rain. “I have no features on it,” he says. “It’s all about truth and what’s going on around us.”
article by Nick Murray via rollingstone.com

LL Cool J and Russell Simmons Visit and Encourage Youth at Rikers Island

By goodblacknews on August 1, 2014

Russell Simmons, LLCoolJ
Russell Simmons; LL Cool J (Getty Images)

NEW YORK (AP) — A group of young people at a New York City jail complex got some words of encouragement on Thursday from hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons and actor/rapper LL Cool J.
The two visited Rikers Island to mark the launch of a national anti-violence program from Simmons’ RushCard, a prepaid debit card.  RushCard’s Keep the Peace initiative is giving grants to neighborhood organizations. One of those is LIFE Camp, a Queens organization that works with young people, including those at Rikers, to reduce violence.
Cool J told the audience that his rough upbringing could have had him where they are if things had worked out differently, and he encouraged them to believe in themselves.  “You can absolutely without a doubt do anything you put your mind to,” he said.
Simmons told them to focus on what’s inside them.  “It’s your spirit you’ve got to work on,” he said.
Deputy Warden Clement Glenn said partnering with programs like LIFE Camp is among the ways the Department of Correction tries to get young people to change their behavior.
“We’re trying to encourage them not to come back into the system, hoping they will integrate into society and become contributing members of their community,” he said.
article via thegrio.com

Michael Jackson's Indiana Hometown To Name School In His Honor

By goodblacknews on July 24, 2014

Michael Jackson
GARY, Ind. (AP) — Plans are in the works to name a school after Michael Jackson in the late pop star’s Indiana hometown.
The Gary Community School Board approved Tuesday a memorandum of understanding with Jackson’s mother, Katherine Jackson. The agreement that Jackson signed last month says the district “seeks to honor Michael Jackson and to inspire children to excel in the arts and education.”
District superintendent Cheryl Pruitt said she’s working with the Jackson family on which school to rename.
“A close relationship with the Jackson family to improve the quality of programs for the Gary Community School Corp. can mean tremendous gains for the school district and the city as a whole,” she told the Post-Tribune (http://bit.ly/1luhGfp ).
Michael Jackson spent the first 11 years of his life in Gary. His family moved to California after the Jackson 5 struck it big in 1969 with the release of their first album. Jackson, who died in 2009, last returned to Gary in 2003 and received an honorary diploma from Roosevelt High School near his childhood home.
Pruitt said renaming the school came up in a conversation with Katherine Jackson, who donated $10,000 during the Gary Promise scholarship event hosted by former NBA star Magic Johnson in April.
“She’s always wanted something left here,” Pruitt said.
The district has long struggled with high poverty levels, and the school board voted in June to close six of its 17 schools because of a $27 million deficit blamed in part on declining enrollment and the state’s property tax caps.
article via huffingtonpost.com

James Brown is Celebrated in "Get On Up", Opening this Friday

By goodblacknews on July 23, 2014
Chadwick Boseman as Brown in the new biopic “Get On Up.” (Credit: D Stevens/Universal Studios)

It’s just the kind of movie clip YouTube was made for. In the 1965 Frankie Avalon vehicle,“Ski Party,” James Brown and his backing vocal group, the Famous Flames, enter a ski lodge after rescuing a frozen reveler. Resplendent in a white-and-red sweater, tight black slacks, black pointy-toed shoes and a regal pompadour, Brown performs “I Got You (I Feel Good),” giving the lily-white crowd of clapping skiers a taste of the showmanship that had made him a star on the so-called “chitlin circuit” among blacks. Even in a movie as disposable as “Ski Party,” Brown turned a corny scene into genuine entertainment.

In the biopic “Get On Up,” opening Friday, the filmmakers recreate this moment, trying to see it from Brown’s point of view. While he glides through his steps, we see slow-motion shots of the listeners as if they were creatures from another, whiter planet, one Brown is reluctantly visiting in hopes of reaching a wider audience. In that scene, Brown dances off the set. In the new film, he does a split but doesn’t come up, apparently having ripped his pants. The new moment is slightly comic but undercuts Brown’s mastery.

Depicting James Brown on screen has always been a seductive proposition. As one of the greatest stage performers of the 20th century, he has inspired documentarians, playwrights, comedians and other artists who see the outlines of his greatness. But capturing the man inside, and the meaning of his life, is a tricky business.

Brown at the Roseland Ballroom in New York in 2004.CreditFrank Micelotta/Getty Images

There was a fluidity to his identity that was reflected in his many stage nicknames: Mr. Dynamite, the hardest working man in show business, Soul Brother No. 1, the Godfather of Soul and the Original Disco Man, as he variously billed himself. All enduring pop stars have the ability to shift with the culture, but Brown’s moves — from staunch integrationist to proto-black nationalist and back, from civil rights role model to wife beater, from disciplined bandleader to drug addict — suggest an inner turmoil that belied his outer confidence. Shortly after his death, I helped edit a collection of articles that spanned Brown’s long career, and in reading the pieces was struck by how many journalists saw the contours of the man but struggled to truly penetrate his psyche. With a feature film about to arrive and a coming documentary, it’s time to take stock of this imposing figure.
Brown, who died on Christmas Day 2006, began his career in the ’50s under the spell of Little Richard and ended it as a major influence on current singer-dancers like Usher and Chris Brown. Michael Jackson and Prince, of course, were acolytes. Reared on gospel, blues and jazz, Brown was a dominant force in the soul ’60s, created funk, inspired disco and laid hip-hop’s foundation with his beats.

As important as Brown was on vinyl, his stage show and personality are legendary: Tilting a mike stand far forward and, before it hit the stage, pulling it back via the cord. Dropping into and rising out of splits. Feigning exhaustion and donning a regal cape before returning to sing again. Executing every new dance from the ’60s to the ’80s with deft steps and body control made Brown a dominant figure during an explosive era for pop music.

J Dilla Recording Equipment Headed to the Smithsonian

By goodblacknews on July 20, 2014
J Dilla Recording Equipment Headed to the Smithsonian

J Dilla was only 32 years old when he died in 2006, but in his too-short life, the prolific producer worked with hip-hop icons including Busta Rhymes, Erykah Badu, The Roots, De la Soul, Common, and A Tribe Called Quest, even earning a Grammy nomination for his work with Tribe. And now, another honor for the late Detroit beatmaker: His recording equipment will be featured in the Smithsonian.
At the ninth DC Loves Dilla tribute concert on Thursday night, Dilla’s mom, Maureen Yancey, announced onstage that she would donate her son’s custom Minamoog Voyager — one of the last synthesizers Bob Moog built for someone before he died in 2005 — and his MPC to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture.
“I feel it’s necessary to raise the level of art appreciation in the hip-hop sector and honor my son James Dewitt Yancey, one of the most influential individuals in the history of hip-hop,” Dilla’s mom said in a Smithsonian press release announcing the donation.
Below, watch Yancey announce the donation at the benefit concert, which raises money to battle lupus, a disease that might have played a part in Dilla’s early death.

article by Katie Atkinson via billboard.com

Beyoncé Exhibit to Debut at Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum

By goodblacknews on July 18, 2014
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In this Thursday, July 17, 2014 photo, from left, outfits from Beyonce’s 2013 Super Bowl performance, 2011″Sweet Dreams,” 2003 “Single Ladies” and 2003 “Dangerously in Love” are displayed in a new exhibit at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. The Rock Hall announced Friday, July 18, 2014, that outfits from Beyonce’s Super Bowl performance and music videos will debut Tuesday in the Ahmet Ertegun Main Exhibit Hall in its Legends of Rock section next to iconic pieces from Michael Jackson, David Bowie and Bruce Springsteen. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan)

NEW YORK (AP) – A fashion exhibit centered on Beyoncé will debut at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in a section previously featuring only Hall of Famers.  The Rock Hall announced today that outfits from Beyoncé’s Super Bowl performance and music videos will debut Tuesday in the Ahmet Ertegun Main Exhibit Hall in its Legends of Rock section, next to iconic pieces from Michael Jackson, David Bowie and Bruce Springsteen.
The 32-year-old Beyoncé would be eligible for induction into the Rock Hall as a member of Destiny’s Child in 2022 and as a solo artist in 2027.  The exhibit in Cleveland, Ohio, will feature Beyonce’s ubiquitous black leotard from her “Single Ladies” music video, as well as her body suit, skirt and jacket from her Super Bowl performance last year in New Orleans.
Rock Hall curator Meredith Rutledge-Borger said they have been trying to court Beyonce “for a really long time.”  “When we looked at the depth of the amount of stuff that she was willing to send, we just thought, ‘The only way we can really showcase these items is to put them in the Legends of Rock area in the museum,’ which really is the spot that we have to pay tribute to legends of rock, which Beyonce has proven herself to be,” she said in an interview.
Lee Anne Callahan-Longo, the general manager of Beyonce’s production house, Parkwood Entertainment, said the singer was honored and humbled by the opportunity to have her personal items in the museum.

GBN Video of the Week – John Legend's "You & I (Nobody in the World)" [VIDEO]

By goodblacknews on July 14, 2014

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pi3bc9lS3rg&w=560&h=315]

Lesa Lakin, GBN Lifestyle Editor
Lesa Lakin, GBN Lifestyle Editor

At GBN, we love positive messages… and boy is this a lovely one. cover_jlegend04The video for nine-time Grammy Award winner John Legend‘s latest release “You & I (Nobody in the World)” is without question our video of the week, and definitely worth your time. Thanks, Mr. Legend!

8th Grade Metal Band From Brooklyn Lands Sony Record Deal

By goodblacknews on July 14, 2014
071214UnlockingTheTruth1.jpg

Unlocking the Truth, a heavy metal band comprised of three 8th-graders from Brooklyn, has been signed to a two-album recording contract with Sony. The deal comes with a $60,000 up-front advance and an option for four additional LPs.
The band, made up of guitarist Malcolm Brickhouse, 13, bassist Alec Atkins, 13, and drummer Jarad Dawkins, 12, was founded in 2007 and has been riding the lightning to metal fame thanks to a steady run of heavy-beyond-their-years busking in Times Square and Washington Square Park.  Now the Daily News reports that the boys have finalized a deal with Sony that could net them as much as $1.7 million over a possible six albums.
“What started out as play dates went to Times Square and now this. It’s been one great thing after another,” Dawkins’s mother, Tabatha, told the News. The boys competed in the Apollo Theater’s amateur night (under the name Tears of Blood, no less) and have unleashed their middle-school riffage at venues like Webster Hall and the Coachella music festival. Unlocking the Truth is currently touring the country as a part of the Vans Warped Tour and recently took time off from pre-algebra class to open for Gun N Roses in Las Vegas.
Having scored the deal as minors, the 8th graders’ Sony contract had to be approved and filed in Manhattan Supreme Court. The deal is remarkable on account of more than just the band’s age, band manager Alan Sacks affirmed. “Sacks says the boys have a chance of becoming the new face of rock because they are unique — black artists excelling in heavy metal, a genre typically dominated by white musicians,” the Post writes.
Watch Brickhouse, Atkins, and Dawkins shred Times Square below:

article via gothamist.com

Jay Z and Beyoncé "On the Run" Tour Is Headed to HBO

By goodblacknews on July 13, 2014
"On The Run Tour: Beyonce And Jay-Z" - Opening Night In Miami Gardens
Jay Z and Beyonce perform during opening night of the “On The Run Tour: Beyonce And Jay-Z” at Sun Life Stadium on June 25, 2014 in Miami Gardens, Florida.Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty Images

Missed Bey and Jay in concert? Not to worry, you can watch them on HBO.  Beyoncé and Jay Z will perform over 40 songs for their first HBO concert event, the premium cable network announced Thursday. HBO will tape the pair’s September 12 and 13 performances in Paris, the only international stop on their “On the Run” Tour.
The event builds on the power couple’s extensive partnership with HBO. The 17-time Grammy winner is currently appearing on HBO in Beyoncé: X10, a ten-episode miniseries featuring 2-minute clips from concert performances every sunday night. In February 2013, HBO aired the Beyoncé documentary, Life Is But a Dream. Jay Z’s Picasso Baby: A Performance Art Film also premiered on the cable network in August 2013.