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Usher, Missy Elliott Join the Essence Festival Lineup for July 2015

By goodblacknews on March 6, 2015

usher, missy elliott,
Usher and Missy Elliott were both added to the Essence Festival lineup. This comes after a first round of entertainers were chosen, according to the Singersroom.
Elliott and Usher are joining R&B/soul artists Mary J. Blige, Erykah Badu, Floetry, India.Arie, Elle Varner, Kelly Price, Tweet, Tank, Raheem DeVaughn and many more who have been confirmed for the 21st annual celebration.
Hip-hop artists Kendrick Lamar, Common, Slick Rick, Kool Moe Dee, Doug E. Fresh and Mystikal were also confirmed.
Comedian Kevin Hart is headlining the “Now Playing” Concert on the first night. The festival will be on July 2 – July 5 in New Orleans, La.
“On the heels of the ESSENCE Festival’s epic 20th anniversary celebration in 2014, we’re delighted to announce a selection of the best artists and biggest names in entertainment who will take the stage at the Superdome this summer,” Essence President Michelle Ebanks said in a press release.
“From first-time Festival performer Kendrick Lamar to return appearances from fan favorites like Kevin Hart, Common and Mary J. Blige, the ESSENCE Festival offers the definitive entertainment and cultural experience for our passionate ESSENCE community every Fourth of July weekend,” she added.
article via eurweb.com

Raheem DeVaughn Turns Domestic Violence Survivors Into "Queens For A Day"

Raheem DeVaughn Turns Domestic Violence Survivors Into "Queens For A Day"

By goodblacknews on March 6, 2015

"True Blood"'s Rutina Wesley Books Lead Role in ABC's Cop Drama Pilot "Broad Squad"

By goodblacknews on March 6, 2015
Rutina Wesley

This marks the second TV casting for Rutina Wesley during this pilot season – the first, although not for a pilot, was announced a month ago, when she joined the cast of NBC’s “Hannibal” as a pivotal character from Thomas Harris’ “Red Dragon” novel, for the next season. She’ll play Reba McClane, a blind woman who enters into a relationship with the psychotic Francis Dolarhyde (Richard Armitage), and helps soothe his murderous urges – at least at first. “Hannibal” will return to NBC this summer.
The “True Blood” actress has now landed a lead role in ABC’s cop drama pilot titled “Broad Squad,” which, inspired by real-life stories, follows the first 4 women to graduate from Boston’s Police Academy in 1978.
Wesley will play Joanne, a lesbian, described as strong, strict and reserved, who prefers to keep her personal life private, in large part because she’s gay. She’s also a hard worker – a character trait that’s influenced by the fact that she’s black and a woman, and believes that, given her skin color and gender, she will have to work 10 times as hard as her fellow squad members, in order to be recognized and move up the proverbial ladder.
Wesley joins a cast that also includes Charlotte Spencer and Cody Horn, who play 2 of the other “broads” in the “Squad.”
“Broad Squad” will be written by Bess Wohl (“CSI: NY”) which will be executive produced by Josh Schwartz, Stephanie Savage, Len Goldstein and Aaron Kaplan.  Coky Geirdroyc will direct the pilot.
Wesley will next be seen on the big screen, alongside Michael Ealy, Sanaa Lathan and Morris Chestnut in Sony/Screen Gems thriller titled “The Perfect Guy,” which follows a woman (Lathan) who meets an IT expert (Ealy), who seems to be the perfect guy. But after a sexually-charged courtship, she sees a violent side of him and dissolves the budding relationship. In a jealous rage and fueled by insane revenge, he disrupts her life.
article by Tambay A. Obenson via blogs.indiewire.com

Obama Heads To Selma For 50th Anniversary Of Voting Rights March on Saturday

By goodblacknews on March 5, 2015

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Fifty years ago, several hundred peaceful protesters marched across the Edmund Pettus Bridge from Selma, Ala., to Montgomery to underscore the need for Black voting rights.
Demonstrators were brutalized and beaten by White police officers in what has become known as “Bloody Sunday.” This weekend, scores of civil rights leaders, clergy, elected officials, and peaceful demonstrators will converge on Selma to mark the 50th anniversary of the march that helped spark a movement.
U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) will be there just as he was on March 7, 1965, when he was hit on the head, left bloody and unconscious. He will be accompanied Saturday by President Barack Obama. A second march, organized by local leaders, is scheduled for Sunday.
The event comes at a time when voting rights are once again under attack in the U.S., especially after the Supreme Court gutted a key provision of the Voting Rights Act in 2013. It also comes at a time when protesters have launched an online petition to change the name of the historic bridge, which was named for Edmund Winston Pettus, a Confederate general and U.S. senator who lived in Selma after the Civil War.

“Fifty years ago this week, brave activists embarked upon the Selma to Montgomery March to bring attention to the fight for voting rights,” NAACP President and CEO Cornell William Brooks said.
“The Selma to Montgomery Jubilee is more than a commemorative occasion—ever present in our minds is that voting rights continue to be impinged,” Brooks continued. “And this new assault on voting rights is being ignored by the same lawmakers who are coming to Selma to celebrate the jubilee. Selma is now—and the NAACP will not rest until every American has unfettered access to the ballot box. I stand with NAACP state leadership in demanding that our most vulnerable voters be protected by the law—in every state.”

Lewis said in an interview last month with USA Today that he and U.S. Reps. Terri Sewell (D-Ala.) and Martha Roby (R-Ala) have assembled what will be the largest congressional delegation participating in the pilgrimage to Selma in its 17-year history. The delegation will participate in a series of civil rights-related events in Birmingham on March 6, Selma and Marion on March 7, and Montgomery on March 8, the report says.
“When President (Bill) Clinton came (in 2000) we had more than 20,000 people,” Lewis said, according to USA Today. “With President Obama, it could be many more. It’s going to be wonderful.”
article by Lynette Holloway via newsone.com

Mike Epps and Nia Long to Star in ABC Comedy Pilot "Uncle Buck"

By goodblacknews on March 5, 2015
mikeepps

Mike Epps has been cast in the title role in Uncle Buck, ABC‘s single-camera comedy pilot based on the classic John Hughes film starring John Candy. Also cast in the project, from Universal TV and Will Packer Prods., is Nia Long.

nialongLike the movie, the series adaptation, written by Steven Cragg and Brian Bradley, centers on Buck Russell (Epps), a childish man who learns how to be an adult by taking care of his brother Will’s kids in a very childish way. Long will play Will’s strong-willed and smart wife.
The new Uncle Buck TV remake (there was a short-lived 1990s Uncle Buck CBS series starring Kevin Meaney) had been conceived with Buck as African American, giving the format a new twist. Packer is known for producing hit feature comedy franchises with Black leads, like Ride Along and Think Like A Man. On ABC, Uncle Buck would be a suitable companion for another single-camera African American family comedy, Black-ish.
article by Nellie Andreeva via deadline.com

Networks Casting More Actors of Color This Pilot Season

By goodblacknews on March 5, 2015
More Minority Actors Showing Up on
ABC knew going in to the casting process for its drama pilot “Runner” that it was looking for a Latino leading man, as specified in the script. But the female lead role had no racial or ethnic specificity.
Paula Patton, an African-American actress, landed the role of a woman whose life is ripped apart when she learns her husband, played by Adam Rodriguez, is wrapped up in a Mexican gun-running cartel.
“Runner” is but one example this pilot season of a surge of minority actors landing starring roles in prospective new series. Industry insiders say there’s an undeniable openness to African-American, Latino and Asian thesps on the heels of the success ABC and Fox have had with shows led by diverse casts.
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TV executives have talked for years about the need for the airwaves to reflect the growing cultural diversity of America. But the 2014-15 television season has marked a turning point in the embrace of diversity as a business strategy. Fox has fielded the biggest network TV hit in years with “Empire,” a soap with a largely African-American cast. ABC has scored with Viola Davis leading “How to Get Away With Murder” and the family comedies “Blackish” and “Fresh Off the Boat.”
Such hits prove that broadcast TV in particular can no longer afford to ignore the value of discrete racial and ethnic groups. The role of  “How to Get Away With Murder’s” Annalise Keating was not specifically envisioned for an African-American actress, but the casting of Davis undoubtedly helped generate sampling among black viewers — a demographic group that has boosted the overall turnout for the show.
ABC’s success this season “proves the point that audiences are hungry for shows that are well done but also reflect the world around us,” said Channing Dungey, executive VP of drama development, movies and miniseries for ABC. “It’s not about just diversity, it’s about authenticity. Audiences are really excited to see more of themselves on the screen.”
“Runner” is an example of how this pilot season, minority actors are much more in demand than they have been in the recent past. And with “Black-ish” and “Fresh Off the Boat” drawing crossover demographics, there’s a greater appetite for shows with ethnically specific settings.
“It’s been interesting to see how much more competitive it is with diverse actors and actresses now,” said Dungey, who added that she is proud ABC helped lead the way, not just with “Murder” but with the blossoming of Kerry Washington and “Scandal” into the first successful drama in decades led by an African-American actress.
“The thing I really hope is that this isn’t a passing phase,” Dungey said. “I’m hoping this is a trend that will continue.”
article by Cynthia Littleton via Variety.com

Fox’s "Empire’" Delivers 8th Straight Week of Growth with 14.3 Million Viewers

By goodblacknews on March 5, 2015
Empire Fox
UPDATE: In updated Nielsen nationals released Thursday afternoon, Fox’s “Empire” was adjusted up to a 5.8 rating/17 share in adults 18-49 and 14.33 million viewers overall. That leaves it up 53% from its Jan. 7 premiere in 18-49 (5.8 vs. 3.8) and 45% higher in total viewers (14.33 million vs. 9.90 million).
Another week, another record high for Fox phenomenon “Empire,” which continued to show no signs of slowing down Wednesday, two weeks from its first-season finale.
“Empire” has now grown seven consecutive weeks in total viewership since its Jan. 7 premiere: 9.90 million (Jan. 7), 10.32 million (Jan. 14), 11.07 million (Jan. 21), 11.35 million (Jan. 28), 11.47 million (Feb. 4), 11.96 million (Feb. 18), 13.02 million (Feb. 18), 13.90 million and now to 14.3 million.
And in adults 18-49, it’s been up seven times in those eight weeks: 3.8/11, 4.0/12, 4.4/13, 4.3/13, 4.6/14, 4.8/15; 5.2/15; 5.4/15; and now 5.8/17.
Compared to its premiere, Wednesday night’s ninth episode was up 50% in 18-49 (5.7 vs. 3.8) and 43% in overall audience (14.2 million vs. 9.9 million).
With the exception of ABC’s “Modern Family,” no other Wednesday show could generate even half as many young adults as Fox’s “Empire.” And in adults 18-34 and women 18-34, “Empire” more than doubled every series (including “Modern Family”).
Last night’s 5.7 rating in 18-49 for “Empire” puts it ahead of the season premiere of CBS’ “The Big Bang Theory” as the season’s top-rated regularly scheduled broadcast. The last broadcast drama to do a higher same-night rating in its regular timeslot was ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” in October 2009.
article by Rick Kissell via Variety.com

Robin Roberts Presents New Series about Medical Breakthroughs

By goodblacknews on March 5, 2015
(Image: Facebook)
(Image: Facebook)
If you’re a big Robin Roberts fan and can’t get enough of the radiant personality, you can now catch her in a brand new web series. The Good Morning America host’s company Rock’n Robin Productions is teaming up with WebMD to premiere WebMD’s Future of Health with Robin Roberts. Each episode of the new digital series tells stories of “cutting-edge medical breakthroughs, inspiring individuals working to improve people’s lives, and the people that are benefiting from their efforts.”
In an official statement, Dr. Steven Zatz, President at WebMD, said “We want to create experiences that engage, inspire and motivate people, and we believe that working with great storytellers like Robin Roberts, and producing powerful video content like Future of Health, will enable us to do just that.”
Roberts leads viewers on a fascinating journey through cutting-edge research labs, playgrounds, classrooms and people’s homes as they explore the wonders of medicine and science. The series gives a front seat to the following: innovative use of 3-D printing for prosthetics and organ transplantation, a new obesity treatment that offers a much-needed alternative to highly invasive gastric surgery, transformative new technology that restores vision to the blind, a highly experimental procedure enabling women without a womb to carry and deliver babies of their own, and advances in wireless medicine that turn smartphones into life-saving devices.
Roberts said, “What’s on the medical horizon is incredible, and I hope this is just the first of many series that we will work on together.”
You can catch the five-part digital video series here.
article by Essence Gant via blackenterprise.com

Justice Department Finds Pattern of Police Bias and Excessive Force in Ferguson

By goodblacknews on March 3, 2015
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Ferguson, Mo., police officers at a news conference in August. A Justice Department report will force Ferguson officials to either negotiate a settlement with the department or face being sued by it on charges of violating the Constitution. (WHITNEY CURTIS FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES)

WASHINGTON — Police officers in Ferguson, Mo., have routinely violated the constitutional rights of the city’s black residents, the Justice Department has concluded in a scathing report that accuses the officers of using excessive force and making unjustified traffic stops for years.

The Justice Department, which opened its investigation after a white Ferguson police officer shot and killed a black teenager last summer, says the discrimination was fueled in part by racial stereotypes held by city officials. Investigators say the officials made racist jokes about blacks on their city email accounts.

Ferguson is a largely black city with a government and a police force that are mostly white. After the shooting of the teenager, Michael Brown, the city erupted in angry, sometimes violent protests and looting. Since then, Ferguson has been at the center of a national debate over race and policing that has drawn in President Obama, Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. and the F.B.I. director, James B. Comey.

The report’s findings were summarized by a federal law enforcement official. The full report is expected to be released on Wednesday. A separate report is expected to clear the officer, Darren Wilson, of any civil rights violations in the shooting of Mr. Brown.

Ferguson officials now face the choice of either negotiating a settlement with the Justice Department or potentially being sued by it on charges of violating the Constitution.

In compiling the report, federal investigators conducted hundreds of interviews, reviewed 35,000 pages of police records and analyzed race data compiled for every police stop. They concluded that, over the past two years, African-Americans — who make up about two-thirds of the city’s population — accounted for 85 percent of traffic stops, 90 percent of citations, 93 percent of arrests and 88 percent of cases in which the police used force.

Black motorists were twice as likely as whites to be searched but were less likely to be found in possession of contraband such as drugs or guns.

The findings reinforce what the city’s African-American residents have been saying publicly for the past year: that years of discrimination and mistrust created the volatile environment that erupted after Mr. Brown’s shooting.

article by Matt Apuzzo via nytimes.com

Denzel Washington, Ethan Hawke and "Training Day" Director Antoine Fuqua Reteam on "Magnificent Seven"

By goodblacknews on March 2, 2015

Denzel Crushes "Fences"!It’s been over a decade since Denzel Washington, Ethan Hawke, and director Antoine Fuqua patrolled the mean streets of Los Angeles in “Training Day,” and it looks like that team is looking to head to the Wild West for their next collaboration.
Sources say the Oscar-nominated Hawke is in final negotiations to join Washington in MGM’s “Magnificent Seven” remake with Fuqua directing.
Chris Pratt and Haley Bennett are also on board to star.
The 1960 original, itself a remake of Akira Kurosawa’s “Seven Samurai,” starred Yul Brynner and Steve McQueen. It centered on seven gunslingers who protect an oppressed Mexican village from a group of outlaws.
The script was most recently reworked by John Lee Hancock, with “True Detective” creator Nic Pizzolatto writing the previous draft.
MGM is hoping the pairing of Hawke with Washington leads to the same success the two saw on crime drama “Training Day,” which overperformed at the box office and led to both men receiving Oscar nominations, with Washington eventually taking home the prize.
article by Justin Kroll via Variety.com