NASHVILLE, Tennessee (AP) — Stevie Wonder, Alicia Keys, Kings of Leon, and John Mayer have volunteered their time to attend the second Global Citizen Festival in New York’s Central Park, and organizers hope you will, too. Tickets are again free for the Sept. 28 event, but must be earned through acts meant to help end extreme poverty around the world.
The festival is designed to coincide with the UN General Assembly meeting and put pressure on world leaders to address the needs of the world’s poor. Fans can earn points toward tickets through simple tasks like sending letters to political leaders or reposting information through social media.
Hugh Evans, the 30-year-old chief executive officer of the Global Poverty Project, says the festival’s nonprofit partners pledged $1.3 billion in new fundraising commitments last year and nearly 70,000 people took more than 700,000 actions through the project’s website.
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BARRINGTON, Ill. (AP) — Pop star Rihanna is donating $5,000 to a suburban Chicago high school to cover the costs of her brief but tardy visit earlier this year. Barrington Unit District 220 tells The Daily Herald that the money was sent to offset expenses for security and signs for the musician’s March trip to Barrington High School. The rest of the cash will be allocated for students.
The singer traveled to Chicago’s northwestern suburbs after the school won her “Shine Bright Like a Diamond” video contest. Their five-minute, student-produced film highlighted the school’s volunteer and community service programs. But fans waited for more than four hours on the first day of the school’s spring break after Rihanna showed up late. While they waited, students got free tickets, CDs and signed merchandise.
The singer traveled to Chicago’s northwestern suburbs after the school won her “Shine Bright Like a Diamond” video contest. Their five-minute, student-produced film highlighted the school’s volunteer and community service programs. But fans waited for more than four hours on the first day of the school’s spring break after Rihanna showed up late. While they waited, students got free tickets, CDs and signed merchandise.
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press via thegrio.com
WE tv has greenlighted a new reality series starring the R&B girl group SWV as they attempt to reclaim the fame of their ’90s heyday. The cable channel ordered six one-hour episodes of the series, called SWV — Sisters With Voices, which will air in early 2014. The trio, consisting of Cheryl “Coko” Clemons, Leanne “Lelee” Lyons and Tamara “Taj” Johnson, announced the news while performing at the Essence Music Festival in New Orleans on Sunday. The New York City-based group, whose chart-topping hit songs include “Weak” and “Right Here/Human Nature,” broke up in 1998, amid internal fighting, to embark on separate solo careers. They reunited in 2005.
“The journey of SWV is the kind of real and personal comeback story our viewers love to see,” said Lauren Gellert, WE tv’s senior vp original production and development, in a statement Monday. “These dynamic women experienced enormous success together, then it all fell apart. United again, the stakes are higher than ever, and so — at times — is the drama and tension. We can’t wait to present this fresh, new series to WE tv viewers.” Sisters With Voices is produced by Entertainment One Television, with Tara Long, John Morayniss, Howie Long and Jennifer Long executive producing alongside Kate Farrell of WE tv.
article by Erin Carlson via hollywoodreporter.com
Chris Brown spent his Fourth of July holiday showing his more charitable side by giving back to students in the community. As part of his newly-launched Unity campaign, the singer donated over 1,000 pairs of Reebok sneakers to students at Crenshaw High School in L.A. on Saturday. The event, “WE US: Walk Everywhere in Unity’s Shoes,” drew special meaning for Brown as he reflected on many of his own childhood memories.
“I used to have to borrow my cousin’s clothes,” he told PEOPLE. “So being able to come from that poverty-stricken environment and then being able to get out of it is what I tried to [do]. … I just want to show the kids and have them have a better light of opportunities for them to do what they need to do.”
After Saturday’s charitable event, Brown wrote a tweet saying: “Thank you for allowing me to continue to inspire change in the world. Today was a great day forward! #UnityCampaign.” Brown launched his Unity Campaign after the release of his latest song, “They Don’t Know,” which features unreleased vocals from late singer Aaliyah and highlights his hopes to end violence.
His sixth studio album, X, is expected to hit stores on July 16th.
article by Lilly Workneh via thegrio.com
TV One today announced that the network saw its highest monthly primetime ratings of the year in June among Adults 25-54 and households. The ratings success was supported by the new original docu-series Fatal Attraction, as well as the second season of popular reality series R&B Divas Atlanta, which concluded on June 19. Furthermore, a strong showing of R&B Divas Atlanta Reunion: Part 1 special which premiered on June 26 helped end the month on a high note.
“TV One’s greatly-anticipated original programming line-up in the month of June proved strong among our key audience,” remarked Alfred Liggins, President and CEO, TV One. “We’re confident that the positive ratings will carry over into the month of July when we premiere R&B Divas Atlanta Reunion: Part 2 and R&B Divas LA on July 10, as well as the second season of The Rickey Smiley Show on July 26.“
Among TV One’s core audience Adults 25-54, the network posted a 34 percent year-over-year increase (106,000 vs. 79,000). The network was also up among overall households by 21 percent (142,000 vs. 117,000). Additionally, TV One posted double-digit year-over-year increases among Adults 25-54 and households in June.
The R&B Divas Atlanta Reunion: Part 1 special that aired on June 26 at 10 pm posted a .67 rating among Adults 25-54, delivering 414,000 Adults 25-54. The episode also posted a .91 household rating, delivering 522,000 homes. TV One was the number one ad-supported cable network among Black Adults 25-54 in the 10 pm time-slot on Wednesday, June 26. Since the May 1 premiere of R&B Divas Atlanta season two, the network has been a top three ad-supported cable network among its core demo of Black Adults 25-54 on Wednesdays at 10 pm (nine consecutive weeks).
Said Keith Bowen, Chief Revenue Officer, TV One, “As TV One’s ratings continue to show positive growth, our cross-platforms brand solutions and integrations become even more valuable to advertisers looking to reach Black adult viewers.“
article by Tambay A. Obenson via ShadowAndAct
There is a particular sound to the R&B and hip-hop music coming out of Los Angeles right now, an approach stylistically distinctive from the current rhythms emanating from New York, Atlanta or Chicago. Despite predictions that the Internet would render moot such differences, a regionalism that in the past birthed and defined subgenres including cool jazz, surf rock, hard-core punk and gangsta rap is forging a new music that’s uniquely of this town.
Those wondering whether it’s still possible for a distinct sound to blossom in a region, far enough away from the tyranny of commercial strains, to create a surprising new time stamp, can look not only to Los Angeles but also to this weekend’s BET Festival at L.A. Live.
The festival couldn’t land at a better time. The roster for Saturday night’s Staples Center show includes the two most promising male voices to come out of Southern California in a few years: San Pedro-born Miguel and Compton-raised Kendrick Lamar, both of whom released excellent and commercially successful albums in 2012.
They’ll perform alongside rising Compton rapper Schoolboy Q (who, along with Lamar, Jay Rock and Ab-Soul, comprise the Black Hippy collective) and headliner Snoop Dogg, purveyor of the so-called G-funk sound. That particular vibe came to define the early ’90s work of Dr. Dre and N.W.A, Death Row Records and the artist formerly known as Snoop Doggy Dogg, born in South L.A. a quarter century ago. (North Carolina-raised J. Cole is also on the bill.)
The festival couldn’t land at a better time. The roster for Saturday night’s Staples Center show includes the two most promising male voices to come out of Southern California in a few years: San Pedro-born Miguel and Compton-raised Kendrick Lamar, both of whom released excellent and commercially successful albums in 2012.
They’ll perform alongside rising Compton rapper Schoolboy Q (who, along with Lamar, Jay Rock and Ab-Soul, comprise the Black Hippy collective) and headliner Snoop Dogg, purveyor of the so-called G-funk sound. That particular vibe came to define the early ’90s work of Dr. Dre and N.W.A, Death Row Records and the artist formerly known as Snoop Doggy Dogg, born in South L.A. a quarter century ago. (North Carolina-raised J. Cole is also on the bill.)
Curator and art afficiando Souleo has put together a multi-destination art exhibition called “Motown to Def Jam” in collaboration with ArtCrawl Harlem in New York City.
The meticulously planned, four-gallery, 49-artist exhibition takes visitors from the early days of Chess Records in the mid 20th century, all the way through to the contemporary offerings of rap and R&B label Def Jam in a series of visionary visual works. Also referenced in the show are the legendary Stax and Philadelphia International labels that helped pave the way in bringing new African-American sounds to the mainstream.
For pieces in the show, participating artists created or contributed works that described their interpretations of specific songs from singers and rappers at these record labels. Each piece, inspired by a beloved song, or songwriter, from black and American pop music history, brings black music history to life in a new way.
“A lot of people don’t know that June is African-American Music Appreciation Month,” said Souleo. “I wanted to share our struggles and triumphs and the unique ways that we express ourselves. For example, instead of the usual pop hits from Motown, I wanted to use more of the later socio-political music that came out of Motown.”
A lively Black Music Month kickoff
Souleo kicked off the five-weeks exhibit with gallery tours and a series of parties. An exhibition this grand required not one, but four different galleries, and these ancillary events connected them all.
The guides for a special preview tour were celebrity columnist and author Flo Anthony, pop culture critic Patrick Riley, historian John T. Reddick and renaissance media man Walter Rutledge. “I chose these people as the tour guides because they are the experts and they have been in the same room with some of these musical artists. They can give those extra tidbits that you would not get anywhere else,” said Souleo.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PyV4iMKxjl8&w=560&h=315]
R&B super band Earth, Wind & Fire is releasing its first album in eight years on Sept. 10 and dropped the record’s lead single onto the web on Monday.
“My Promise,” which leads the promotional effort behind “Now, Then & Forever,” the band’s twentieth studio album, features Philip Bailey, Verdine White, Maurice White and Ralph Johnson, as well as contributions from one of the group’s founding producers, Larry Dunn and Bailey’s son, Philip Bailey Jr. The single was written by the band and Academy Award nominee and Grammy Winner Siedah Garrett.article by Kia Makarechi via huffingtonpost.com
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.”
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.”
Justin Beiber used to be the king of YouTube, but a new queen has taken over. Rihanna recently passed Bieber in total video views, with 3.784 billion views across her 77 videos, outclassing Biebers 79 clips.
Those numbers are from the singers’ respective official VEVO pages on YouTube, Billboard notes. Rihanna also edges out Bieber in YouTube subscribers (8.73 million to 3.7 million) and Facebook likes (72.3 million to 54.3 million).
Where Bieber continues to reign supreme, however, is Twitter. The teen idol has over 40 million followers, putting him ahead of even Lady Gaga, who was in the lead on the social networking platform for some time.
What can account for Rihanna’s global dominance? For one, the singer appeals to a wider demographic of listeners, including urban audiences and an older fan base than Bieber has been able to tap into. Bieber’s latest efforts, particularly 2012’s “Believe,” see the 19-year-old doing his best to acquire older fans without alienating his teen and young adult base, but the jury’s still out on just how successful these efforts have been.
Those numbers are from the singers’ respective official VEVO pages on YouTube, Billboard notes. Rihanna also edges out Bieber in YouTube subscribers (8.73 million to 3.7 million) and Facebook likes (72.3 million to 54.3 million).
Where Bieber continues to reign supreme, however, is Twitter. The teen idol has over 40 million followers, putting him ahead of even Lady Gaga, who was in the lead on the social networking platform for some time.
What can account for Rihanna’s global dominance? For one, the singer appeals to a wider demographic of listeners, including urban audiences and an older fan base than Bieber has been able to tap into. Bieber’s latest efforts, particularly 2012’s “Believe,” see the 19-year-old doing his best to acquire older fans without alienating his teen and young adult base, but the jury’s still out on just how successful these efforts have been.