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April 20 , 2006
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 Ann
Nesby not only is promoting her new CD, but a clothing
line as well. Donna Vinci’s Lisa Rene has requested
Ann Nesby to be a spokes model. Ann
has recently lost 130 pounds since she had gastric bypass
surgery last March and is looking
good considering she lost enough weight for an entire person.“ Confessions ,” the play came to town and my buddy Tommy Ford ( Martin ) is starring opposite Gerald Levert as the two men compete for the love of Natalie played by Kelly Price . The musical is set to tell what women do not know and what men will never admit. Tommy Ford actually does a great job in his portrayal for a bad guy named Malcolm that wants Natalie to marry him; however Gerald Levert’s character Rondell is a past love interest that could never really give Natalie what she really wanted. You will laugh and enjoy past hits of Kelly and Gerald while laughing and trying to figure out how it will all unfold. If it comes to your city you should take your family for what promises to be a nice evening on the town. |
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 Gabrielle
Union is much more than a pretty face. The actress
sat before Congress to speak about the issue in this country with
sexual assaults. Union shared that she
was the victim of rape at the age of 19; her testimony was part
of the 7th Annual National Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault
Legislative Action Days, sponsored by the National Alliance to End
Sexual Violence, the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence
and Lifetime Television. Union was on a
summer break while in college and working the late shift at a shoe
store in Pleasanton, California when a former employee with a gun
came in and forced her and a co-worker to the backroom, where she
was raped at gunpoint. The beautiful Gabrielle Union
says she was only able to get through the assault by spiritually
leaving her body. Union describes the event
in these words, “As he was raping me, I felt as though I was
floating over myself, thinking, This is not Happening, I am perfect,
I am a good person, I am a good student.” With kind
words Gabrielle Union was eventually able to get
him to
calm
down and put down the gun when she grabbed it and attempted to shoot
him. Union’s attacker snatched the
gun away from her and took off; he was later caught and brought
to justice. Currently serving a 33 year sentence Gabrielle
shared that he is up for parole in a year, but she will
be there to testify to make sure he stays in prison. Gabrielle
the world admires you for your strength, beauty, and ability
to speak out about such an attack. |
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 Drug
Dealers and Killers Strike Again …The remarriage
of Eminem and Kim could not even last for three
months. After they stood before God and man to exchange vows
for a second time on January 14, 2006, the rapper, born Marshall
Bruce Mathers III , filed for divorce on Wednesday, which
was confirmed by his publicist. Eminem’s first
marriage to Kim lasted for just over two years and ended in October
2001 with an ugly legal fight that included a custody battle over
their daughter, Hailie. During their time of separation Eminem
wrote several songs that viciously attacked Kim, which
was his high school sweetheart. The want to be gangster even
rapped about killing Kim in one song, but I guess he did not mean
it literally. The couple announced they had gotten back together
just before the New Year and they were remarried. No reason
was given for the split other then the two are going their separate
ways again. No point in doing it a second time if it did not
work before, what a waste of time money energy and space in my column
for writing about it. T.I. has attempted
to live up to his prophesy and title of his new album, “ King
.” Born Clifford Joseph Harris,
Jr., T.I . has proven that his album can travel where he
cannot in his personal life. “ King ,”
is number one on the charts, but his acting leaves a great deal
to be desired and with his recent ménage a trios proves he
is not royalty. |
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 A.J.
Calloway had a great deal
to say about BET and his leaving the network. The former host
seemed bitter and reminded me of Tavis Smiley
when the network showed him the door. BET is responsible for
our even knowing the name A.J. Calloway and his
semi-celebrity status. While speaking at South Carolina State
University as a part of the “ Black Student Today
,” panel, the former host of BET’s “
106 & Park ” said much of the
music videos counted down on the show contain destructive messages
to its young target audience. “I could not watch my
own show with my niece on my lap,” Calloway
admitted at the discussion, which focused on the impact of Hip Hop.
“Pick your five favorite songs. Write down every
word that is in your favorite songs. Read it back to yourself
and think about what that has put into your head.”
Calloway and Marie “Free”
Wright hosted “ 106 & Park ”
for five years before suddenly leaving last July, shared with the
students that his past experiences with racism growing up in New
Jersey left him with a vow to “never do anything against my
race…I felt like I was hurting us by doing what I was doing.”
I hear he has been hired by his almer mater, Howard University
to teach a course that explores the theoretical foundation of Hip
Hop. Just like a good Negro to bite the hand that fed him.
A.J. does not find it difficult to talk
about BET after they showed him the door or after he allegedly decided
to quit. What is the point of bad mouthing the network now?
After having attended Howard University for four years you
should have been well aware of the types of videos that would air
on the station. Now after five years of cashing their checks
you want to take such a moral stance. A.J.
you should have never taken the job if you felt the videos where
inappropriate. What he should have told the student was why
he was a hypocrite for five years and how he could not sleep at
night from making money promoting negative images of African Americans
in music videos. Whatever Mr. Calloway I
am waiting for you to tell the real reason you left BET or where
you asked to get up and get out. |
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 According
To My “Street Committee” …A Centennial
Celebration of the Azusa Street Revival, all over the city of Los
Angeles were activities celebrating the birth of the Pentecostal
movement. Bishop Charles Blake , First Assistant
to the presiding Prelate of the Church Of God In Christ, served
as chairman of the awesome event. It was amazing to see people
of all ages, ethnicities, and backgrounds come together to celebrate
an amazing revival and the closet account to the Upper Room experience
in the Holy Bible . It is amazing
that such a power move of God happen at a small home that was transformed
into a church for the meeting that grew so great people gathered
outside in the street. Bishop Blake and
Bishop Bobby Henderson delivered two of the best
sermons I heard all week. Unfortunately Bishop Gilbert
Earl Patterson , Presiding Prelate of the Church Of God
In Christ, chose not to participate in the event celebrating when
is origination’s founder Bishop Charles Harrison Mason
was baptized with the Holy Ghost, which is one of the
principal emphasis in the Pentecostal movement. According
to inside sources Bishop Patterson was greatly
bitter that he was not requested to preach, however during the planning
it was not sure if he would be able to speak or if he would be alive
for that matter do to a blood vessel bursting in his head. It
said that Bishop Patterson was bitter that a special
allowance was not made to accommodate him so he remained persona
non grada. |
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 Tonya
Blount is working on her gospel debut. The former
Bad Boy Entertainment recoding artist that you will recall in “
Sister Act ” is working on her long
awaited project. Blount’s career
was halted due to her delivering her first child during the time
she was to promote her first album. It was often said that
the record company took a lost on the deal and later dropped Tonya
. The singer came to the Lord and married a pastor
Greg O’Quinn and currently is the praise and worship leader
at the Sanctuary at Kingdom Square in Capitol Heights, Maryland.
Yolanda Adams’ former manager Shiba
Haley has recently signed Tonya Blount
to a management deal since she has so much time on her hands due
to Yolanda dropping her like a bad habit.
Donald Lawrence hosted an intimate dinner for
industry professionals at B. Smith’s Restaurant in Washington,
D.C. The event was to celebrate the success of his two-CD
release, “ Finale Act 1 ”
and “ Finale Act 2 .” |
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 Bow
Wow cannot pull major venues
alone this summer. I hear the young rapper will tour this
summer, but it will be no where close to the level of his Scream
Tour this past year. Bow Wow will travel
with artist that do not have as great of a draw such as; Ray-J
, T-Pain , and B5 . As
a result he will not perform in stadium venues, but will only appear
in mid-size venues and the tour will focus on the southern region.
Word has it that Ciara was never really
going with Bow Wow . To explain it best,
Ciara’s publicist will never confirm the
two had a relationship. Allegedly, it was always talk that
he would distract the young singer from focusing on her career.
However, it is a great deal of hype surrounding the breakup
of the industry’s little Jay-Z and Beyonce
couple due to Bow Wow apparently living
with a stripper in a Los Angeles penthouse. Additionally,
I was told that Ciara gave back what was thought
to have been an engagement ring to Bow Wow .
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 Former
track and field star Carl Lewis held a fundraiser
for his Carl Lewis Foundation at his home on top
of the hill in Pacific Palisades, California. Vivica
A. Fox hosted the event that was attended by Venessa
Bell Calloway ( Biker Boyz’ ),
Kym Whitley , playwright David Talbert
and wife Lin , singer Norwood
Young , and others. Carl is gearing
up for this camp and festival for youth on October 21, 2006.
 John
Salley got fired from The Beat’s 100.3 and “
Free ,” formerly of BET’s “ 106
& Park ” is now the host and on the radio
3:00pm to 7:00 pm, Monday through Friday. I feel kind of sorry
for John he seems to have a difficult time holding
down a gig these days and television defiantly did not work for
him as a talk show host.  It
has been brought to my attention that the all too common Jamie
Fox was attacked by a gang of men that joined forces to
spray the actor/singer with champagne. Allegedly this happened
when Jamie was in London at the VIP room in London’s
Mo Vida. The story goes that the 38 year old and his entourage
were showered with bubbly. I am told that Jamie
had five ladies with him and when they men were finished they all
were soaking wet. |
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 Russell
Simmons is said to now have
been spotted with “ America’s Next Top Model
” winner Naima Mora at a recent
party for Complex magazine. Seems the man does not know what
he wants to do now that he is free of his wife Kamoria .
Each week it is something new about who each of them and who
they are seeing. What we do know is they are no longer seeing
each other.  This
is not a rumor. A former producer has slapped Maury
Povich with a $100 million dollar sexual harassment lawsuit.
Allegedly the trashy talk show host forced her to watch pornography
movies and showed his body to her. Well, I guess all of his
filthy guests have had a deleterious effect on the host. Instead
of him changing them he apparently is just as low as they are. In
other talk show host that are full of bull crap news. Rush
Limbaugh has been arrested for his addition to prescription
medication. The right wing conservative that is hard on everyone
that is not rich and Republican is nothing more then a low down
racist dope addict. |
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Seems
that I am the only person in America that does not watch “
American Idol ,” and I do not
care who’s granddaughter appears on the show. I have yet
to view if Paris lives up to her family’s
singing legacy. is the granddaughter of Ann Nesby
, the former lead vocalist of the Sounds Of Blackness
, is a contestant on the show and holding her own.
Nesby , much smaller soul singer could not promote
her new gospel CD “ In The Spirit ,”
for being bombarded with questions about Paris .
The veteran singer handled it with grace and shared that
she is very proud of her grandchild and encourages her to give
it all she has each time she takes the stage. Ann Nesby
stood in line for over three hours with Paris
before she sang the first time and has been supporting
her the entire time. Nesby has been nominated
multiple times for Grammy and Stellar Awards and her voice can
be heard on albums ranging form Bishop T.D. Jakes
to Jadakiss . “I tell Paris
to take the Bitter with the sweet! Keep doing
your best, and every time you step out on stage you give them
everything you got. Because when you give everything that
you have, as least you can be satisfied with what you 
I
hear that Eddie Murphy has been seen out on
the town with Karrien Steffans , who Ja-Rule
penned the name “ Superhead ,”
might be with the comedian. However, a source close to the
comedian says that he and Johnny Gill have been
close for years and the rumors were true about Johnny
living with Eddie . Make you
wonder if Karrien might just be a cover. 