Robert Calvin “Bobby” Bland (January 27, 1930 – June 23, 2013, né Brooks), also known as Bobby “Blue” Bland, was an American singer of blues and soul. He was an original member of the Beale Streeters, and was sometimes referred to as the “Lion of the Blues”. His storied career came to an end this weekend, when he passed away at the age of 83 due to complications from an ongoing illness.
Bland was also known as the “Sinatra of the Blues” because of his super-suave persona and his flawless 1961 album Two Steps From the Blues, which should be required listening for anyone who appreciates soul. Along with such artists as Sam Cooke, Ray Charles, and Junior Parker, Bland developed a sound that mixed gospel with the blues and R&B. His music was also influenced by Nat King Cole.
Bland was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1981, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992, and received theGrammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1997.
To learn more about his life and music, click here. To see him do his thing, click below:
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pn1lZP5uPXw&w=420&h=315]
article by Lori Lakin Hutcherson
Good Black News
[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
Whoopi Goldberg will star in and executive produce the film adaptation of Terry McMillan’s best-selling book, A Day Late and a Dollar Short. According to the Hollywood Reporter, the film is slated to begin shooting this summer and will air on Lifetime in 2014. Goldberg is no stranger to Lifetime—she was the executive producer for Strong Medicine from 2000 to 2006.
The project also reunites McMillan with Goldberg, who co-starred with Angela Bassett in McMillan’s How Stella Got Her Groove Back. The Oscar winner and View co-host will play Viola Price, a woman who realizes that her next asthma attack could claim her life, so she sets out to fix her broken family.
“Terry McMillan is one of America’s most beloved writers and A Day Late and a Dollar Short combines her signature emotional storytelling with the complex characters viewers identify with and love,” said Lifetime General Manager, Rob Sharenow. “We are thrilled to be working again with Whoopi Goldberg, who will be emptying her enormous talents both in front of and behind the camera.”
article by Derrick Bryson Taylor via essence.com
The project also reunites McMillan with Goldberg, who co-starred with Angela Bassett in McMillan’s How Stella Got Her Groove Back. The Oscar winner and View co-host will play Viola Price, a woman who realizes that her next asthma attack could claim her life, so she sets out to fix her broken family.
“Terry McMillan is one of America’s most beloved writers and A Day Late and a Dollar Short combines her signature emotional storytelling with the complex characters viewers identify with and love,” said Lifetime General Manager, Rob Sharenow. “We are thrilled to be working again with Whoopi Goldberg, who will be emptying her enormous talents both in front of and behind the camera.”
article by Derrick Bryson Taylor via essence.com
Visionary “Star Wars” filmmaker George Lucas wed Ariel Investments president Mellody Hobson before an intimate gathering at Skywalker Ranch, in Marin County, California, at 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 22.
This is the first marriage for Hobson, 44, who wore a white dress by Peter Soronen and changed skirts between the ceremony and the party. Lucas, 69, has been married once before, to film editor Marcia Griffin. They adopted a daughter together, and Lucas adopted two more children after they divorced, in 1983. Lucas’ son, Jett, was his best man, and his daughters, Katie and Amanda, served as bridesmaids.
In addition to serving as president of Ariel Investments, Hobson is chairman of Dreamworks Animation and a financial contributor with CBS.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Joe Biden is hailing Frederick Douglass for his work to bring about equal justice, leading a series of tributes at the unveiling of a statue of the 19th-century orator and writer.
Biden, along with Democratic Sen. Harry Reid and Democratic Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, used the U.S. Capitol ceremony to call for equal voting rights for citizens of the District of Columbia — an issue dear to Douglass’ heart. Biden said the people of the District “made the right choice” in selecting Douglass as their representative.
The 7-foot bronze likeness of Douglass joins sculpted statues of fellow blacks Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr. and Sojourner Truth in Emancipation Hall. Douglass was born a slave in 1818 in Talbot County, Md. and advised President Abraham Lincoln.
Related Article: Frederick Douglass Statue To Be Moved To The U.S. Capitol
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press via thegrio.com
RIVERDALE, Ga – Dr. Evelyn Wynn-Dixon, mayor of the City of Riverdale, has come a long way. Her story is a testimony to her ability to overcome the odds and persevere through difficult times. At her lowest point she was a homeless single mom raising four young kids and contemplated suicide by throwing herself off a bridge.
In a frantic attempt “to find a way out” Wynn-Dixon made her way to Pryor Street Bridge in Atlanta, overlooking I-75, and was prepared to jump. “I felt as if everything was gone and I’d ruined my life with one poor decision.”
She says her life spiraled out of control after she became pregnant during her first semester at Fort Valley State University. Dixon, a high school honors student, was forced to abandon her scholarship and drop out. Upon returning home, her mother passed away, leaving her with a six-month-old baby to care for.
Soon afterwards she got married, partly to avoid the stigma of being a single mom. She had three more children, but then the relationship fell apart, her husband walked out and subsequently Dixon was evicted with four infants, aged between 8 weeks and 6 years old.
A vision saved her life
Dixon, an Atlanta native, says she only snapped out of the overwhelming desire to give up when she saw a vision of her mom. “I was selfish but in the end I couldn’t do it.” It took many years to recover. But Dixon knew her only option was to educate herself out of welfare. She went back to school, earned an associate degree and later a Bachelor of Science. In her early forties, Dixon graduated with a Masters from the University of Georgia with her two sons.
Later she completed a PhD in public health and forged a successful career as a case worker at Atlanta’s Grady Hospital, specializing in neurology, before taking on a new challenge as director of a hospice. Still, it has been a difficult journey. When she first returned to higher education she made a six-mile trek from school to home because she was unable to afford public transportation.
“If one person can hear my story and think, ‘if she can do it, so can I,’ then I have done my job. I didn’t let my zip code make me. I made it for myself.” In 2007, at the age of 59, with no prior political experience, Dixon launched a campaign to become mayor of the City of Riverdale in Clayton County, Georgia.
A new chapter
“I never desired to be in politics, never ever.” But Dixon, a devout Christian, says a prophetic visionand the hand of fate opened doors for the start of a new chapter in her life. “I prayed for it to be a sweat-less victory and for God to order my steps,” says Dixon, who was already well-known in the Riverdale for her commitment as a community foot soldier. “The campaign cost less than $3000. We had a runoff and I won.” The highly-accessible ‘People’s Mayor’ says from the start her dream has been to “change the branding and imaging of the City of Riverdale.”
From Clutch Magazine: Nike is appealing to its consumer base of who wear mens clothing through its newest spokesperson, Brittney Griner. Griner, the 22 year-old number one draft pick for the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury, will model menswear for the brand.
ESPN reports: ”Griner’s deal is within this range; what makes it groundbreaking is the freedom. She will wear apparel branded as menswear, including the skateboarding line Nike SB, and she is allowed to pursue nontraditional marketing deals with outside companies.”
Wearing mens clothing is a natural fit for the 6’8″ basketball player, who is the first openly-gay athlete to sign with Nike. She says: “I used to do the whole baggy, hard-core, I’m-a-boy look. Then I went through a preppy phase. Now I have the athletic, bow-tie look. I found my style.”
ESPN writer Kate Fagan recognizes the significance of Nike and Griner’s decision, saying: “Androgynous models are coveted in high-end fashion, but the trend toward gender-neutral clothing has only just begun to reach the sports world, with NBA stars Russell Westbrook and Dwyane Wade blurring the lines in their tight jeans and fitted sweaters.”
Read the rest of this story at Clutch Magazine.
TV director Paris Barclay (Sons of Anarchy, Glee, House) has been elected president of the Directors Guild of America for a two-year term, succeeding Taylor Hackford (Ray, Officer and a Gentleman) . Barclay was selected at the DGA’s convention on Saturday at DGA headquarters in Los Angeles. He’s the first African-American to serve as DGA president.
“I got surprisingly emotional about it when I was giving my acceptance speech,” Barclay told Variety. Hackford announced earlier this year that he would not seek a third term in accordance with the DGA tradition of presidents only serving two terms. The well-liked Barclay has served eight years as First VP and six years as Third VP.
Barclay also told Variety that other DGA members such as Steven Soderbergh and former president Michael Apted have been urging him in recent years to consider becoming president. “As time went on, I began hearing that from more and more people,” he added.
Apted made the nomination Saturday and Soderberg seconded it.
Barclay asserted that he will maintain the tradition of the DGA president being a working director — in his case as the executive producer of the sixth season of “Sons of Anarchy.” Once that season’s shooting is completed, he plans to continue directing episodes of other series that interest him along with a feature film.
Growing up as the youngest girl in a family of eight children, Claudia Hoexter spent a lot of time figuring out how the world worked on her own. While her Dad was juggling three businesses, her Mom was trying to keep up with the needs of her growing family. And her older siblings were always steps ahead — with little time to pass on life’s lessons to their little sister.
“Whether it was riding a bike or balancing on a skateboard,” Claudia recalled, “I was out there on my own. If I was on a busy street and I wanted to get to the park on the other side, I had to figure out how. I think that’s what made me who I am today. Nothing scared me. I thought if I press this button, what’s the worst thing that’s going to happen? I can’t blow up the world? I was just never afraid of anything.”
It was an attitude that would serve her well, when at 19, she caught the eye of a modeling agent, who advised her to stop hiding behind her long hair and fly from her hometown of Chicago to Los Angeles to have professional head shots done. She was the youngest in her family to strike out on her own — and having been raised in a strict household, that photo session was the first time she’d ever dared to wear even a stitch of make-up.
“I went through high school as this plain Jane and there I was in Beverly Hills, all by myself, in a photo studio. From the first moment the make-up artist applied eye liner, I felt transformed. And the photographer must have noticed, because he started shooting while I was still in the chair.”
That moment would put Claudia on the path to making millions — but not as a model. Despite the early success that landed her campaigns for companies that ranged from Sears to Saks Fifth Avenue, the rising star decided she wanted a more secure line of work and built a career as an office manager.
But she never let go of her new found love for lotions and potions and make-up — nor the fearless attitude she grew up with — and that’s what would lead her to create a product that would end up on the shelves of the biggest retailer in the world.
“I was getting ready for work one morning,” Claudia remembered, “and I started screaming. My husband Daniel came running, thinking that I had gotten hurt. He literally slid into the bathroom, he got up there so fast. And I turned to him and said, ‘I’ve got it. I’ve got the idea. I think I’ve just invented something.’”
“He’d heard it before,” she laughed. “I’m always coming up with ideas. But this time his eyes got big. He works in advertising and he knows what sells. And he said, ‘Claudia, we need to go talk to someone.’”
Claudia had been trying to get the last bit of serum out of a glass bottle. She considered breaking it, but she was afraid there would be shards of glass all over the room. She thought if only there was a spoon that could fit into the expensive bottles in front of her — that could reach into the corners and crevices and get out every precious drop, she could save so much money.
“That was the moment it all came to me. I knew what it would look like. I even sketched it out on a piece of paper. And I knew I was going to call it the Beauty Spoon.”
“I’d always wanted to work for myself. I’d see the CEOs I worked for and think I can do what they’re doing. And I thought one of two things is going to happen — nothing or something. I had to press the button.”
So, Claudia started searching the internet, sometimes late into the night, bringing her smart phone to bed with her and studying under the glare of the tiny light. She was determined to find a way to bring her product to market in a big way. And she had her eyes set on Walmart.
“After all,” she said with a smile, “their tagline is “Save Money. Live Better.” And that’s exactly what I was trying to do!”
Her search led her to a graphic designer who took her quick sketch and turned it into a 3D image that she could bring to manufacturers. With that in hand, the determined inventor set out to find a Midwest manufacturer who could produce the kind of volume a retailer like Walmart would demand and a warehouse that already supplied the enormous chain of stores.
FX has given a 10-episode series order to a comedy starring Martin Lawrence and Kelsey Grammer. The series is produced by Lionsgate TV under distributor Debmar-Mercury’s “10/90″ deal format that calls for accelerated production of 100 episodes if the initial 10-episode test run fares well. The untitled comedy is about two lawyer friends brought together under unusual circumstances was created and is exec produced by sitcom veterans Bob Boyett (Family Matters, Full House, Perfect Strangers) and Robert Horn (Designing Women, Living Single).
Lawrence, Grammer, Brian Sher, Stella Bulochnikov, Michael Green and Sam Maydew also executive produce.
This deal brings Lawrence back to a regular sitcom gig for the first time since his eponymous Fox series ended after five seasons in 1997. Grammer is no stranger to sitcoms (Cheers, Frasier) but was most recently seen in the Starz drama Boss, which earned him a Golden Globe award.
article by Cynthia Littleton via variety.com