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"Prancing Elites Project" Season 2 Premieres on Oxygen at 8PM EST Tonight

By goodblacknews on January 19, 2016

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Oxygen Media’s empowering docu-series “The Prancing Elites Project” returns for a second season with an expanded hour-long format beginning tonight, Tuesday, January 19 at 8PM ET/PT.  If you haven’t had the pleasure of seeing the Prancing Elites in action – set your DVRs for an experience that will not disappoint.  The Elites are five African American, gay and gender non-conformists who are an award-winning J-Setting dance team from Mobile, AL – Adrian Clemons, Kentrell Collins, Kareem Davis, Jerel Maddox and Tim Smith. 

Prancing Elites

As a fan, I watched season 1 in its entirety – it’s funny and outrageous as well as tender and heart-warming, all in the face of very real prejudice and adversity – and I could not wait to see more.  “The Prancing Elites Project” was Oxygen’s highest-rated new series of 2015, and as a result, the Elites have begun to defy the odds and find success and acceptance in the South as well as other parts of the U.S.  And if the second season is as promising as its premiere (I saw an advance screening), Oxygen might as well dust off the green light for Season 3.

Good Black News had the chance to chat with the Elites about the second season and what it has in store (and like any good entertainers, they left us wanting more): 

Good Black News: Kentrell, this season we see you’re in a relationship and it’s teased that you still want to have children. You had fun with that last season – caring for the doll as the baby -but what steps this season are you taking towards fulfilling your dream of becoming a parent?
Kentrell: I can’t really say what steps I’ve taken [we have to watch!], but I actually still want to, because everybody in my family has kids except me now.
You also seem to focus a lot on trying to move the team to the next level.  What would be the ultimate fantasy goal for you as the team leader for the Prancing Elites?
Honestly… the sky is the limit. We could tour… we can act, we can sing… we can put on these big, lavish shows. But it all comes with hard work – nothing in this life comes easy and that’s one of the things that I’m always stressing. If we want to get to the next level we’ve got to constantly keep working… If we were ever to perform during Super Bowl halftime, that would be the best of the best.  And we would love to perform with Beyoncé, obviously…
Of course!
We’ve also talked about performing on big award shows like Grammys, the Oscars and entertaining there.
Tim, it’s teased this season that you’ll be dealing with issues around your identity. Can you talk about that if it doesn’t spoil anything?
Tim: I’m basically an easygoing person… whatever floats your boat, if I could sum it up.  I know what I want to be called, but my sisters just think you shouldn’t let a person call you something you’re not comfortable being called… so it’s about owning up about who I really want to be… and not letting a person walk over me and do what they want to do. It’s about having confidence.
Which ultimately is an issue we all can relate to… The show is mainly shot in your hometown of Mobile, Alabama. Are you celebrities there now?
Yeah. Because every time a person sees us, they always scream, “Oh my God, it’s y’all!” and they want to take a picture. I love it… I like that people like us.
Jerel, it sets up in the premiere that you have a deep interest in make-up artistry. Is it something you are interested in pursuing professionally?
Jerel:  I love the beauty that you can get from make up. I never feel like make-up makes someone beautiful – I only feel like make-up enhances a person’s beauty… I see myself possibly one day having my own make-up line and working for celebrities all around the world, and also making YouTube tutorials and things of that nature.  I love my hometown, but in order to pursue my passion which is make up… I would have to be in a bigger environment like New York, LA or Atlanta.
How do you stay dedicated to the team and balance your individual interests?
There’s a line – you just have to find the balance. I don’t even know how to explain it – you can’t spend more time on one to another.  You’ve got to find an equal balance.
Adrian, some of the highlights from the first episode are when you are mentoring the young women’s dance team, especially the moments with Amber, who is plus-sized. What do you hope to accomplish with those girls and that team?
Adrian: I wanted to mentor young women because a lot of them look up to the way I dance.  So I thought it would be nice if I could, you know, give some of my tips and some of my movements to them and share it with them.
Did you sense or know it would lead into helping them with deeper issues like self-esteem?
That was really unexpected. I didn’t know it was going to lead to that. But me working with them, I’m growing more and I’m finding out more about myself. I take myself more serious now, because I have my little ones that look up to me and I want to lead them toward the right path.
So you’ve become a role model… unexpectedly.
Most definitely apparent.
Did you growing up have any mentors in dance? Was there anybody to help you when you were trying to pursue your interest at a younger age?
No, not really, because when I first started doing it, I kind of kept it secret because I didn’t know how people around me would take it. So I kind of did it on my own behind closed doors. The older I got, then I didn’t care about what people think.
Are you still living with Tim and her boyfriend?
[Hesitates] Yes… I still live with Tim.
Hmm… interesting.  Okay, that’s fine, I’ll leave it there.  Kareem, it’s so great to see you smiling and so much happier this season after dealing with all you were dealing with last season [Kareem revealed he is HIV-positive].
Kareem: Thank you.
Are you still active in the HIV awareness campaign?
Yes, but it’s more education than anything else. Whenever I learn something, in an intimate setting I educate others.  I need to speak to my manager about making [more] appearances at events. It’s not happening now but it will eventually.
What can you tell me about the situation where you chose to coach your boyfriend on a competing dance team? I’m wondering what kind of internal conflict did you have over making that decision?
The main conflict was trying to regain the connection with the Prancing Elites. Because going through everything I went through [last season], I disconnected from a lot of different aspects of my life. But I’m no longer going through that and I’m coming back full circle and now we have all these issues as a group, so I’m having to focus on mentoring a team and reconnecting with the rest of the team that I’m on. In the beginning the balance was a bit shaky because there was so much going on with the Prancing Elites… and I hadn’t planned to be that intensely involved right then [with the competing team].  So… I didn’t go crazy but when I was asked to, but I thought I would probably go crazy. But you’ll see how everything works out throughout the different situations in the season.  I don’t think I gained any grey hair from it…
We can’t wait to watch.  In the meantime, anything coming up that people can know about?
Adrian: We’re still pretty.
We know that, Adrian.
Kentrell:  We’re doing Mardi Gras parades on February 1st and the 6th in Mobile, AL.
Prancing Elites: It’s a party!!!!!!
The Prancing Elites are also scheduled to do some international appearances in the coming months. For more information and dates, go to their Facebook page or their Twitter @PrancingElites.
For more of “The Prancing Elites Project,” fans can visit the official show site to see exclusive videos, dance footage, GIFs, photos, interactive polls, interviews and bios.  Viewers can also create and share memes after each episode. Check out the official Facebook page, and join the conversation on Twitter or Instagram using hashtag #PrancingElites.

by Lori Lakin Hutcherson, GBN Editor-in-Chief
by Lori Lakin Hutcherson, GBN Editor-in-Chief

"Hamilton" Documentary to Air on PBS this Fall

By goodblacknews on January 19, 2016
Leslie Odom Jr. as Aaron Burr in the musical “Hamilton” at the Richard Rodgers Theater.
Leslie Odom Jr. as Aaron Burr in the musical “Hamilton” at the Richard Rodgers Theater. (Photo Credit: Sara Krulwich/The New York Times)

The hit musical “Hamilton” will be the subject of a documentary film scheduled to air on PBS this fall.

The public broadcasting network announced Monday that it would air “Hamilton’s America” as part of its Great Performances series this fall.

The documentary is being produced by RadicalMedia, which previously made a documentary about “In the Heights,” a musical composed by Lin-Manuel Miranda, who also created “Hamilton.” The film company has a long relationship with Mr. Miranda and with Jeffrey Seller, the lead producer of “Hamilton.” RadicalMedia also previously filmed Freestyle Love Supreme, a hip-hop-improv group with which Mr. Miranda performs, as well as the final Broadway performance of “Rent,” a musical that was co-produced by Mr. Seller.

The filmmakers started shooting the documentary in 2013, two years before the show arrived on Broadway, and have footage of visits by the creative team to historic sites associated with Alexander Hamilton, whose life is the basis of the musical. The film will also feature scenes from the show, and a look at the life of Hamilton, according to Dave Sirulnick, one of RadicalMedia’s executives.

The making of “Hamilton” has been heavily chronicled in print and on television, and Mr. Miranda is now wrapping up a book about the show, but Mr. Sirulnick said that in the documentary “the storytelling is going to be very fresh” and will offer a close-up view of the creative team at work.

article by Michael Paulson via nytimes.com

Idris Elba Delivers Speech to UK Parliament on Lack of Opportunities for Black British Talent (VIDEO)

By goodblacknews on January 19, 2016
Idris Elba
Idris Elba (Jessica Lea/DFID)

Just as #OscarsSoWhite has become a cause cé·lè·bre here in the USA primarily, across the pond, in the UK, the picture for actors and directors of color isn’t exactly rosy either. By now, I think we’re all familiar with the struggles of black talents in the UK, with the likes of Lenny Henry, Adrian Lester, Sophie Okonedo, David Oyelowo, and others vocalizing their frustrations with the lack of opportunity for black actors in the UK, and their having to go elsewhere (the USA specifically) to find work – a “trend” that many on this side of the pond frown upon, arguing that it effectively means that there’s even more competition for a limited number of opportunities.

Now “Luther” star Idris Elba is also speaking out, although he’s taken his protest (if you will) all the way to the UK parliament, where he formally spoke to the members Monday, on the lack of diversity across British television, and its effects on talented black Brits like himself who are essentially forgotten. In his speech, he accuses the industry’s executives of not living in the real world. He argued that British television is at risk of not properly reflecting society, emphasizing that black actors in the UK are struggling to progress, especially when compared to black actors in the USA.
“People in the TV world often aren’t the same as people in the real world. And there’s an even bigger gap between people who make TV, and people who watch TV. I should know, I live in the TV world. And although there’s a lot of reality TV, TV hasn’t caught up with reality,” Elba said, adding: “Change is coming, but it’s taking its sweet time.”
Watch some of his speech below (to read the full speech, Channel 4 transcribed it in its entirety here):
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8VE8GdT-GE&w=560&h=315]
article by Tambay A. Benson via blogs.indiewire.com

Landmark Civil Rights Documentary "Eyes on the Prize, Parts I and II" Starts Re-airing Tonight at 9pmEST on WORLD Channel

Landmark Civil Rights Documentary "Eyes on the Prize, Parts I and II" Starts Re-airing Tonight at 9pmEST on WORLD Channel

By goodblacknews on January 17, 2016

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Public television’s WORLD Channel will present the complete Emmy-Award winning Eyes on the Prize I and II starting tonight, January 17, 2016. A 30-minute special feature, Eyes on the Prize: Then and Now, will launch the encore presentation of this historic two-part series and explore its impressive relevance today.

Eyes on the Prize, created by Executive Producer Henry Hampton, is a critically-acclaimed and in-depth documentary series on civil rights in America.  With the current national spotlight on issues of race and inequality—as well as the marking of the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, and the 60th anniversary of the Montgomery Bus Boycott—the time is right for this series about the nation’s civil rights history to be front and center as part of an essential dialogue.

America continues to struggle with the recurring crisis of race-related violence; Eyes on the Prize I and II can provide perspective for a new generation and be a touchstone for citizens who lived through the decades that the films depict. Journalist and writer Al Letson hosts new introductions to each episode.

“We are elated that this landmark series will once again be broadcast across the country, reaching millions of viewers—many of whom may never have seen the original airing. The series focuses on solutions to the conflicts that we face today.  Eyes on the Prize shows leadership, grass roots organization and personal sacrifice as the recipe that can create lasting change.  It is our hope the television programs together with our comprehensive outreach campaign will spark a national dialogue about this critical topic,” says Judi Hampton, president of Blackside, and sister of the late Henry Hampton (1940-1998).
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The WORLD Channel presentation, made possible with support from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the Ford Foundation, includes Eyes on the Prize: Then and Now, a new, original 30-minute special, which will lead into the premiere January 17 of Eyes on the Prize, setting the groundbreaking documentary series in the context of today.  Narrated by music artist Aloe Blacc, Eyes on the Prize: Then and Now features Eyes on the Prize filmmakers, present-day activists, human rights leaders, and scholars. The special revisits key historical moments and explores commonalities with current national events.

“The WORLD Channel is honored to be presenting this signature series,” says Chris Hastings, Executive Producer of the WORLD Channel. “It’s a history that must be understood.  With Eyes on the Prize: Then and Now, we ask questions and draw comparisons about the struggle to achieve equality today. As conflicts and challenges continue, Eyes on the Prize remains essential viewing for all Americans.”

As part of the initiative, WGBH Education is developing a digital resource collection supporting Eyes on the Prize and civil rights themes in history and social studies curricula, to help the civil rights movement come alive for students today. This collection will be available on PBS LearningMedia in January.

Based at WGBH Boston, the national public media producer, WORLD Channel delivers the best of public television’s original documentary films and news to US audiences through local public television stations, including America ReFramed, AfroPop, POV and Local, USA.  The special Eyes on the Prize presentation also will be made available to all public television stations for local broadcasts (check listings) after the WORLD premiere.

EYES ON THE PRIZE I and II

Almost three decades since its premiere, the groundbreaking series Eyes on the Prize I and II will return to PBS this January.  Eyes on the Prize I will premiere on The WORLD Channel six consecutive Sundays – January 17, 24, 31 and February 7, 14, 21 at 9:00 p.m. (EST). Eyes on the Prize II will air eight consecutive Sundays—February 28, March 6, 13, 20, 27, and April 3, 10, 17 at 9:00 p.m. (EST).

Produced by Blackside, Eyes on the Prize tells the definitive story of the Civil Rights era from the point of view of the ordinary men and women whose extraordinary actions launched a movement that changed the fabric of American life and embodied a struggle whose reverberations continue to be felt today.  This multi-part Academy Award nominated documentary is the winner of numerous Emmy Awards, a George Foster Peabody Award, an International Documentary Association Award, and a Television Critics Association Award.

Through contemporary interviews and historical footage, Eyes on the Prize I and II, traces the civil rights movement from the Montgomery bus boycott to the Voting Rights Act; from early acts of individual courage through the flowering of a mass movement and its eventual split into factions.  The late Julian Bond, political leader and civil rights activist, narrates.  Descriptions of each episode follow below:

HBO Drops Teaser for 'Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill' Starring Audra McDonald (VIDEO)

By goodblacknews on January 17, 2016
"Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill"
Audra McDonald as Billie Holiday in HBO’s “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill” (photo via blogs.indiewire.com)

Audra McDonald brings her acclaimed portrayal of Billie Holiday in the Broadway smash “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill” to HBO, with the exclusive presentation scheduled to debut Saturday, March 12, 2016.
Filmed before a live audience at Cafe Brasil in New Orleans, the special features McDonald in her history-making, tour de force performance as the jazz icon.
Originally written for off-Broadway by Lanie Roberston in 1987, the production tells Holiday’s life story through the songs that made her famous, including “God Bless the Child,” “What a Little Moonlight Can Do,” “Strange Fruit” and “Taint Nobody’s Biz-ness.”
McDonald made history and became Broadway’s most decorated performer when she won her sixth Tony Award, for “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill,” in 2014. In addition to setting the record for most competitive wins by an actor, she also became the first person to receive awards in all four acting categories. The show’s run at the Circle in the Square Theatre on Broadway was extended four times due to high demand.
“Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill” is directed by Lonny Price, who also directed the Broadway production, and produced by Allen Newman and Two Hands Entertainment. It was originally produced on Broadway by Jeffrey Richards, Jerry Frankel, Jessica Genick and Will Trice.
The special will also be available on HBO NOW and HBO GO.
The network has released a first teaser which is embedded below:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llZRcLoV5Ag&w=560&h=315]
article by Tambay A. Obenson via Shadow and Act

Tracy Morgan Teams with Jordan Peele on FX Comedy Pilot

By goodblacknews on January 16, 2016

Tracy Morgan Comedy Tour
Tracy Morgan (MICHAEL BUCKNER/VARIETY/REX SHUTTERSTOCK)

Tracy Morgan’s plan to star in an FX comedy series is back on track now that writer-actor Jordan Peele and John Carcieri have signed on to write a pilot for the former “30 Rock” star.
Morgan’s life was up-ended 18 months ago by a car crash that came two months after he signed a straight-to-series pact with FX Networks.
The new project will see Morgan playing a career criminal who struggles to reintegrate into society after serving a 15-year prison sentence.
Peele and Carcieri will write the pilot and executive produce with Eric Tannenbaum and Joel Zadak, an alum of Peele’s Comedy Central sketch series “Key and Peele.”
“What an unbeatable combination – Tracy Morgan and Jordan Peele – two exceptional comics joining forces with a great team of writers and producers to create and produce this pilot for FX Networks,” said Nick Grad, president of original programming for FX Networks and FX Prods. “We’ve been committed to Tracy from the start and are thrilled that Jordan, John, Eric and Joel are joining him in developing this new project.”
Morgan’s deal with the cable network in 2014 called for him to work with the “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” gang — Charlie Day, Glenn Howerton, and Rob McElhenney — on an unspecified concept for a comedy to air on FXX. It’s unclear whether the new pilot will be bound for FXX or the mothership FX.
Morgan suffered brain injuries and broken bones after his SUV was rear-ended on the New Jersey turnpike in June 2014. The crash killed another passenger in the car, Morgan’s longtime friend and fellow comedian James McNair.
The severity of his injuries forced the former “30 Rock” star to endure a long recuperation period. He began a slow return to the public eye last summer with emotional appearances on the Primetime Emmy Awards telecast and a hosting gig on “Saturday Night Live,” his alma mater.
Morgan at present is headlining a national comedy tour dubbed “Picking Up the Pieces” that is set to run through May. He also just wrapped work on the Weinstein Co.’s biopic “Richard Pryor: Is It Something I Said?,” in which he plays comedian Redd Foxx opposite Mike Epps in the title role.
Peele is coming off a five-season run on the much-praised sketch comedy “Key and Peele.” He was in the ensemble of the 2014 edition of FX’s “Fargo,” and he’s recently had recurring roles on CBS’ “Life in Pieces,” and Netflix’s “Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp,” among other projects.
article by Cynthia Littleton via Variety.com

Jussie Smollett to Host 8th Season of "AfroPop" Television Series Premiering on MLK Day

By goodblacknews on January 16, 2016

 Jussie Smollett will host the eighth season of the public television show AfroPoP: The Ultimate Exchange. The star of the hit FOX TV show Empire will emcee the popular show about contemporary art, life and culture across the African Diaspora as it premieres on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Monday, January 18, at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on WORLD Channel.

New episodes premiere weekly through February 15. AfroPoP is produced by National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC) and co-presented by American Public Television (APT), which distributes the series to the full public television system in February 2016.

Smollett will also be seen in the new WGN thriller Underground in 2016. The acclaimed entertainer is also involved in numerous humanitarian pursuits, sitting on the boards of the Black AIDS Institute, Artists for a New South Africa and the RuJohn Foundation. 

Previous hosts of AfroPoP include Idris Elba, Anika Noni Rose, Wyatt Cenac, Gabourey Sidibe, Anthony Mackie and Yaya DaCosta.

“AfroPoP’s engaging, real-life tales add to the collection of rich Black stories that audiences are clamoring for and I wanted to be a part of bringing them to national attention,” said Smollett.

"Empire" Renewed by Fox for 3rd Season

By goodblacknews on January 15, 2016
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Cast and crew of Empire onstage at Fox’s Empire ATAS Academy Event at the Theatre at the Ace Hotel on March 12, 2015, in Los Angeles (ANGELA WEISS/GETTY IMAGES) 
Empire fans, rejoice! The hit Fox series has been renewed for a third season. Currently, countless fans are going through withdrawal because of the winter hiatus, so hopefully this news will put smiles on their faces.
Although the ratings of the second season declined, it seems as though the Fox network still has faith in the show. Of course, the renewal news comes on the heels of Taraji P. Henson’s win at the Golden Globes for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series—Drama.
Empire continues its second season on Wednesday, March 30, on Fox.
article by Yesha Callahan via theroot.com

Rutina Wesley Cast in Ava DuVernay’s new OWN Series "Queen Sugar"

By goodblacknews on January 15, 2016
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Retina Wesley (ETHAN MILLER/GETTY IMAGES)
It’s been almost two years since HBO’s True Blood aired its series finale, but Rutina Wesley is still a familiar face to many people, and now Wesley has been tapped to star in Ava DuVernay’s upcoming OWN series, Queen Sugar.
Adapted from the novel written by Natalie Baszile, Queen Sugar tells the story of Nova Bordelon (Wesley), a journalist-activist based in New Orleans, whose life is turned upside down when her sister returns to Louisiana from Los Angeles to help run the family’s sugarcane farm. DuVernay is writing and directing the series, and Oprah Winfrey will also make a few guest appearances.
Earlier this year, Winfrey and DuVernay discussed how the series came to be.
“I loved this book and immediately saw it as a series for OWN,” said Winfrey. “The story’s themes of reinventing your life, parenting alone, family connections and conflicts, and building new relationships are what I believe will connect our viewers to this show.”
“From the moment I was introduced to the book, I was captivated by the idea of a modern woman wrestling with identity, family, culture and the echoes of history,” DuVernay added. “To bring this kind of storytelling to life alongside Oprah for her network is wildly wonderful. I’m excited about what’s in store.”
article by Yesha Callahan via theroot.com

Viola Davis and Taraji P. Henson Cover Elle Magazine’s ‘Women in TV’ issue

By goodblacknews on January 13, 2016

(Elle Magazine)
Viola Davis and Taraji P. Henson are in Elle Magazine’s “Women in TV” issue, and they aren’t pulling any punches when it comes to talking about how media has warped our images of women, especially women of color.
Davis said that television and media has warped our perception of female sexuality, saying that TV “lies about women.”
“If you are anywhere above a size 2, you’re not having sex,” Davis said. “You don’t have sexual thoughts. You may not even have a vagina. And if you’re of a certain age, you’re off the table.”
Henson said that it is hard for black characters to be taken seriously, and that perception is something she has had to fight when she plays the character of Cookie Lyon on Empire.
“It was very important to me that she not be sassy and neck-rollin’ and eye-bulgin’ and attitude all the time,” said Henson. “Everything she does is coming from a place of fighting for her family. That’s why she’s not a caricature.”
article via thegrio.com