St. Lucia – Hidden Jewel of the Eastern Caribbean
It has been called the next “It” island of intrigue. It is where Jake proposed to Vienna on the 2010 “The Bachelor” finale. It is where George Foreman owns a home and where Oprah Winfrey is a regular visitor who claims this lush Caribbean Island is one of the …
Nona Hendryx…An Undying Voice in the Music Pt. I
Nona Hendryx…best known for her days with LaBelle and the Bluebelles and eventually with LaBelle has continued on her diverse journey in music and the arts. Her solo career yielded a Grammy Nomination for her album “The Heat,” which was released in 1985. Her biggest commercial success came in …
Nona Hendryx…An Undying Voice in the Music Pt. II
The story behind writing her children’s book, The Brownies, Hendryx explains, is, “I was inspired by my nieces and nephews. I was looking for Christmas presents. I wanted them to learn about themselves and their culture. I wanted them to learn rather than play with toys. I would go …
Rarified Ayers: Politics, Activism and Sunshine – Part I
Leonard Feather, the author of the encyclopedia of jazz, spoke to me and he said the first real American he ever met was Louis Armstrong. – Roy Ayers Growing up in Los Angeles, Roy Ayers marveled at the sounds of jazz masters Lionel Hampton, Billie Holliday, and Louis Armstrong. Today, …
Rarified Ayers: Politics, Activism and Sunshine – Part II
Many of the guys that influenced me have faded away. Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, and John Coltrane; these are some of the great musicians that have been on this planet…. They never said a lot verbally, but they said a lot musically. – Roy Ayers Without question, Roy Ayers continues …
Design Star! Danielle Colding Continues Her Rise to the Top
From residential and commercial interior design consultant of a private firm to Season 7’s “Design Star” winner to host of her own HGTV hit television series “Shop This Room” – Danielle Colding continues her rise to the top Self-professed interior designer, lover of fashion, collector of all things beautiful, …
Ledisi and Eric Benet Wow Fans at Country Club Hills Concert
The mesmerizing and talented singer, Eric Benet, who is on tour with Ledisi, started the show giving us a perfect vibe with perfect weather at the beautiful Country Club Hills–a large outside venue, where some of the fans were on the grass, in bleachers or in chairs. Benet’s presence …
Paulette McWilliams – Returns Home To Jazz
If you are a fan of the late Luther Vandross, then chances are you are familiar with the singing voice of Chicago native Paulette McWilliams. You’ve heard her singing many times because she was Luther’s back up singer for over 20 years. The famous laugh on “Having a Party” …
Gerald Clayton: No Place like Home pt. 1
We have all at one time or the other heard the cliché “home is where the heart is”. The commonly used phrase as poignant as it is trite is a genius assertion because it invites us to search our heart to find our “home” and its open ended nature demands …
Gerald Clayton: No Place like Home pt. 2
iRJ: In your bio it mentions “you dodged early pressures to become a prodigy”. How so? GC: I mean, I think the word prodigy is a silly word. I think I dodged early pressures to put myself out there as an artist. There were a few occasions where people …
Jill Scott:The Poet of North Philly
To Jill Scott, artistry equals defiance. For her May taping of VH1 Storytellers, rather than using the sing-a-song-then-tell-the-back story-repeat 10x format that’s been in place for 17 seasons, she, as the show’s executive producer Bill Flannigan told the audience, did “something never done before.” The Grammy winning singer/poet turned …