STEVIE WONDER, LALAH HATHAWAY, FRANKIE BEVERLY AND MAZE APPEAR AT STAR-STUDDED HOLLYWOOD BASH TO CELEBRATE TRIBUTE CD UPCOMING RELEASE
Brantera Music Group and NuFace Entertainment Honors Frankie Beverly and Maze's 40-Year Musical Legacy; Standing-Room-Only Crowd Enjoyed Smash Performances by Musiq Soulchild and Joe
(HOLLWOOD - August 17, 2009 - BlackNews.com) - Brantera Music Group, Inc. and Nu Face Entertainment held the hottest ticket in town on Thursday, August 6, hosting a VIP CD release party at The Highland nightclub in Hollywood to celebrate the August 25th release of Silky Soul Music...An All-Star Tribute to Maze featuring Frankie Beverly. The CD salutes 40-years, 12 albums and countless concerts of the most inspiring, timeless music and lyrics in Rhythm and Blues.
This exclusive event -- hosted by Aundrae Russell of KJLH-FM -- gave a standing room only contingent of Maze's well-heeled West Coast fans a rare golden opportunity to experience the music from this 10-song CD before the rest of the world celebrates its release. They ushered in the weekend singing and dancing the night away to live performances from two of the tribute's stellar artists. New Yorker JOE, whose version of "Can't Get Over You" is the first radio single, and was included in his short set along with a medley of his own hits. Afterwards, Philly soul man Musiq performed the title track "Silky Soul," leading into a riveting hour set of hits in which he repeatedly shared the honor he felt taking part in this salute. A tight, all-female 7-piece band out of Atlanta played for both Musiq and JOE, adding visual and aural spice.
Prior to the concert festivities, Nu Face Entertainment CEO/Project manager/marketing director of the tribute CD, Rita Lee got the party started right by hand-picking key never-before-heard tracks for the DJ sneak preview from the top secret release, each receiving overwhelming audience response. An overhead screen projected a behind the scenes making of video for JOE's first single "Can't Get Over You," a track that has been eagerly embraced by Urban AC radio and its listeners. Producer, Frankie's son Anthony Beverly - who, along with his wife/business partner Heather Beverly, spearheaded the CD tribute - spoke about the honor and inspiration behind the CD's conceptualization. Anthony shared that his father was overdue for wider recognition while Heather insisted that they are shooting for a Grammy win with the project.
Singer/Songwriter Lalah Hathaway -- a surprise guest -- came out briefly to acknowledge the band's decades of unity and leadership in bringing lasting, positive messages to the airwaves. Then several members of Maze (original and present day) came forth, followed by man of the hour Frankie Beverly, the lead singer and lyricist of all the group's classic songs. An emotional Mr. Beverly thanked everyone in attendance, confessing he was "speechless" and "overwhelmed" by the spirit of love he'd been basking in all evening.
The biggest surprise of the evening was when the legendary Stevie Wonder appeared on stage -- a wonder in white -- singing the hook of "Joy and Pain" and giving his impassioned stamp of approval to all that Maze has done for the continuance of purposed Black Music. Wonder joined Frankie, son Anthony and continued to enjoy the sounds from the tribute CD that celebrates Maze's fourth decade of music making magic.
Silky Soul Music was helmed by red hot producer Rex Rideout and features performances by Mary J. Blige ("Before I Let Go"), Mint Condition (a super funky version of "Back in Stride"), KEM ("Golden Time of Day"), Ledisi ("Happy Feelin's"), Kevon Edmonds ("Never Let You Down"), Avant ("Joy and Pain"), Raheem DeVaughan ("We Are One"), and an incredible first-time collaboration by contemporary gospel stars The Clark Sisters, Kierra Sheard and J Moss on "I Wanna to Thank You" (produced by Donald Lawrence).
"It's been so promising to see the response from the public and taste makers regarding this tribute CD," says Rita Lee, the visionary for this special event. "They loved the JOE single and were floored by his performance, as well as, Musiq SoulChild. To have not only Frankie Beverly in attendance but also members of the band truly showed the solidarity that has made them legends. Lalah Hathaway and the great Stevie Wonder making the time to be there was the icing on the cake. We can't wait to deliver this album to the public on August 25. The whole experience has been priceless!"
Go to www.frankiebeverlytribute.com for more information.
Read more from BMORENEWS.COM
TGR: Guest Editorial: Heroes Will Emerge! By Armstrong Williams:
The continuing embarrassing situation became a desperate matter for Ms. Gallo in the Rhode Island public school system. The shameless teachers and administrators boasted an average salary of $72,000 - $78,000 a year in a town where the average salary was only $22,000.Thankfully, Ms. Gallo became fed up and demanded that student results become a priority for these hypocritical and selfish teachers and demanded six changes that she knew would turn around the unaccountability of that school. These changes included: Being subjected to new standards of professional evaluations, adding 25 minutes to the work day, meeting with other professionals weekly for planning sessions, eating lunch with students one day a week, a two-week training session in the summer, and tutoring, occasionally: All of which I am shocked were not a priority and demanded from these teachers in the first place. Read in Full >>
CMS or what?:
Recently, I've had several conversations with clients on the benefits of moving their web sites to a web content management system or CMS. I currently use Wordpress for my web site, but I have also used Joomla, Drupal, Expression Engine, and Simple Updates. For a list and description of some popular CMS software go to CMS Critic, this by no means lists every system, but it does a good overview of many systems. I am a big fan of open-source CMS, but as long as you use one, it will be a good step in the right direction. Read in Full >>
BMORENEWS.com presents The Wayne Curry Soiree on Thurs., March 18th:
To speak, please call 202.756.4865. Read in Full >>
TGR: Walk to Cure Diabetes by Lakrisha White:
My son, Jay, has been living with type 1 diabetes for a little over a year now. He's managing his diabetes with an insulin pump. Last fall he met with Senator Mikulski as part of JDRF's Promise to Remember Me Campaign. The campaign consists of coordinated meetings where children and teen diabetics are able to share their personal stories face-to-face with members of Congress so lawmakers can hear first hand about living with type 1 diabetes. The meetings ensure that research funding continues to be expanded and the needs of those with diabetes are included in legislation. Read in Full >>
TGR: Will Leronia Josey Make County History?:
Baltimore County Councilman Ken Oliver could have his hands full this election season - that is, if Ms. Josey decides to put her bid in for his seat. While Oliver is the first black to serve on the County Council, a loss to Josey would make her the first black woman to serve on the Baltimore County Council - a crew that consists mostly of white males. Move over, guys!
A black president; a possible black governor; seems only logical to me.
Read in Full >>