Black Music Month: Celebs Name Favorite CD

By Darlene Donloe

June is Black Music Month and what better time to celebrate its rich history.

For centuries, Black musicians, singers, writers and producers have made incredible contributions to the music industry.

This is the month set aside to pay homage to all those individuals who, through their music, have made us smile, laugh, cry, dance, tap our feet, clap our hands and swivel our hips.

President Jimmy Carter officially designated the month of celebration on June 7, 1979. It was during a reception at The White House, which featured performances by Chuck Berry, Billy Eckstine, Little Richard and Andre Crouch.

On May 31, Obama declared the month of June 2016 “African-American Music Appreciation Month” in a presidential proclamation. Although June was first deemed “Black Music Month” by Jimmy Carter and campaigned for by songwriter and producer Kenneth Gamble back in 1979, as the nation’s first Black President, POTUS felt strongly that an official proclamation was more appropriate.

The proclamation calls Black music “among the most innovative and powerful art the world has ever known.” President Obama also calls upon “public officials, educators, and people of the United States to observe this month with appropriate activities and programs that raise awareness and foster appreciation of music that is composed, arranged, or performed by African Americans.”

In 2009, POTUS released the following statement.

“The legacy of African-American composers, singers, songwriters, and musicians is an indelible piece of our Nation's culture,” said President Obama. “Generations of African-Americans have carried forward the musical traditions of their forebears, blending old styles with innovative rhythms and sounds. They have enriched American music and captured the diversity of our nation. During African-American Music Appreciation Month, we honor this rich heritage. This legacy tells a story of ingenuity and faith. Amidst the injustice of slavery, African-Americans lifted their voices to the heavens through spirituals. This religious music united African-Americans and helped sustain them through one of the darkest periods in our nation's history. Years later, spirituals contributed to the advent of a new form of music: gospel. Both styles incorporated elements of African music and were rooted in faith.”

I caught up with some celebrities and asked them the following: Name an entire CD you can play without skipping a song.

Nick Cannon

NICK CANNON (America’s Got Talent) – There are several CDs. I’m a huge gospel fan, so definitely The Clark Sisters. Almost everything by Mariah Carey. I’m still her biggest fan in the world.  Jay Z’s Reasonable Doubt. Also stuff by Tupac and Biggie.

Maya Rudolph

MAYA RUDOLPH – Oh, man!  There are too many to even think about. Yes, anything by my mother  (Minnie Riperton)

BLAIR UNDERWOOD – Anything by Michael Jackson.

MARGARET AVERY – (Being Mary Jane) Anything by Aretha Franklin.  I exercise to her. She makes me keep tone. I have fond memories when I listen to her.

Eddie LeVert

EDDIE LEVERT (The O’Jays) - Songs in The Key of Life (Stevie Wonder) and not skip one song.  James Brown Live at the Apollo and not skip one song, Etta James, the one with At Last and not skip one song. There are more.

Jason George

JASON GEORGE – (Grey’s Anatomy) – Black Radio by Robert Glasper, Vol. 1 & 11

COREY HARDRICT (Destined) Usher – The 8701.

ROBERT BAILEY JR. (The Night Shift) Keane’s Hope and Fears; Michael Jackson’s Thriller and Off The Wall.

MARTIN SHORT – Blue by Joni Mitchell

RICHARD LAWSON – (Saints & Sinners)  What’s Going On (Marvin Gaye) or anything by Sly and the Family Stone

Eloise Laws

ELOISE LAWS – Anything by Nancy Wilson

MOYA ANGELA – Broadway actress (Dreamgirls) - Toni Braxton’s Secrets.

BARRY SHABAKA HENLEY – John Coletrane (Love Supreme), Miles Davis (Sketches of Spain) and anything from Louis Armstrong, Alice Coletrane, Chick Corea and Charles Mingus.

TAMMI MAC – (actress and KJLH radio personality) Off the Wall by Michael Jackson.

Kevin Hart's 'What Now?' In Theaters October 14

KEVIN HART: WHAT NOW? – In Theaters October 14

 #KevinHartWhatNow

In Universal Pictures’ Kevin Hart: What Now?, comedic rock-star Kevin Hart follows up his 2013 hit stand-up concert movie Let Me Explain, which grossed $32 million domestically and became the third-highest live stand-up comedy movie of all time.  Hart takes center stage in this groundbreaking, record-setting, sold-out performance of “What Now?”—filmed outdoors in front of 50,000 people at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field—marking the first time a comedian has ever performed to an at-capacity football stadium.

Watch the trailer below:

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Simmons' VIP Screening of Central Intelligence

Thursday, June 9, 2016 (Hollywood, CA) - Russell Simmons' media platform All Def Digital hosted their weekly comedy show w/ the addition of a private VIP screening for the upcoming Warner Bros. film Central Intelligence starring Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart at the TCL Chinese Theater on Wed., June 8.

The evening was hosted by comedian Tony Rock and welcomed celebrity guests Russell Simmons, Kenny Burns, Erica Mena, Miss California '16 Nadia Mejia, Lil'Rell, Affion Crockett, Keith Carlos and more. 

Central Intelligence releases nationwide on Friday, June 1

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Russell Simmons and Tony Rock

Affion Crockett

Keith Carlos

Erica Mena

'Now You See Me 2' Reappears Tonight

By Darlene Donloe

The 2013 film, Now You See Me, was a brilliant, fun, flirty, innovative romp that made magic sexy again.

Fast forward and 2016’s Now You See Me 2, opening tonight, continues the magic, but doesn’t quite have the spark of its predecessor.  It’s intriguing and even pulls off an mind-blowing ending, but throughout it lacks the punch of the first.  But, don’t be disillusioned. The out of this world magicians still have a couple of tricks up their sleeves. It’s still loads of fun.

Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson and Dave Franco return as the sensational, mesmerizing and all around greatest illusionists known as the Four Horsemen, along with newcomer Lizzy Caplan, who has taken the place of Isla Fisher. Mark Ruffalo returns as an FBI agent. Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman come back with revenge on their minds.  This time around Daniel Radcliffe joins the fun as Caine’s sadistic son, while Sanaa Lathan joins as the Deputy Director of the FBI.  Jay Chou joins the story as the proprietor of a decades-old magic shop in Macau.

Cast of Now You See Me 2

It’s this stellar cast, not the story, that keeps this train on the track. The film is loaded with stars who could each hold a film on their own. If this one were to fail with this much star power behind it, the new drawing board would be eminent. 

Ok, so the story goes something like this. The Horsemen, minus their female partner, are still flying under the radar after pulling off their last magic trick, which just happened to be a HUGE swindle that left Michael Caine’s character minus millions upon millions of dollars.

Apparently they are all waiting instructions from the illusive The Eye.  The Horsemen come out of hiding in order to expose the dastardly deeds of some popular tech person’s smartphone. However, something goes awry. FBI agent Rhodes throws a wrench in the plans, which leaves The Horsemen scrambling to get away.   Not so fast! 

Arthur Tressler, Michael Caine’s character wants revenge and his money back, so he enlists the help of The Horsemen. Or rather, he gives them an offer they can’t refuse.  They must recover “the stick,” which allows someone to de-encrypt every computer in the world.

Jesse Eisenberg

Their adventure sends them to Macau, where things quickly get ugly and dicey.  They run into Chase McKinney, who is Merritt McKinney’s (Woody Harrelson) evil twin brother.  One thing leads to another and yada, yada, yada, chaos ensues.

The most fun in the movie, other than the ending, is a sequence that has The Horsemen smuggling a mini-circuit board out of a high security area by hiding it on the back of a playing card. It’s hilarious and implausible, but it’s big fun. They thrown the card, hide the card in their hands, up their sleeves and everywhere else. It’s a great scene!!!

Mark Ruffalo

Now You See Me 2, a Jon M. Chu film, stars Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco, Daniel Radcliffe, Lizzy Caplan, Jay Chou, Sanaa Lathan, Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman.

Rated PG-13: for violence and some language; Running time: 129 minutes

On the DONLOE SCALE: D (don’t bother), O (oh, no), N (needs work), L (likeable), O (OK) and E (excellent), Now You See Me 2 gets an OK.

A Tribe Called Quest To Be Honored June 23

NEW YORK, June 9, 2016 — The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) will host its 29th annual Rhythm & Soul Music Awards on Thursday, June 23, 2016 at The Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Los Angeles. A Tribe Called Quest, one of the most prolific hip-hop bands in the world, will receive the ASCAP Golden Note Award. The tribute will include posthumous recognition for Malik “Phife Dawg” Taylor, one of the founding members of Grammy-nominated alternative hip-hop group. The highly exclusive event will also honor the songwriters and publishers of the most performed ASCAP songs on the 2015 R&B, hip-hop, rap and gospel charts.

The ASCAP Golden Note Award is one of the top acknowledgments that ASCAP bestows upon songwriters, composers and artists who have achieved extremely high levels of success. Past recipients include: Ms. Lauryn Hill, Pharrell Williams, Dr. Dre, Alicia Keys, Sean “Diddy” Combs, Jeff Lynne, Reba McEntire, LL Cool J, Jermaine Dupri, Jay-Z, Lionel Richie, Stevie Wonder, Kenny Rogers, Quincy Jones, Elton John, Tom Petty and many more.

“A Tribe Called Quest broke musical boundaries no one knew existed and reached a level of success that only very rare talents accomplish,” said ASCAP President Paul Williams. “We are very proud to present this extremely talented and innovative group with the ASCAP Golden Note Award.”

Nicole George-Middleton, ASCAP SVP, Membership said: “A Tribe Called Quest influenced a generation with their fusion of hip-hop, jazz and socially-conscious lyrics. They continue to inspire decades later and are more than deserving of this special honor.”

A Tribe Called Quest -- the groundbreaking Queens-based hip-hop ensemble comprised of childhood friends Q-Tip, Phife Dawg, Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Jarobi White—released their debut album People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm on Jive/RCA Records on April 10, 1990.  The group took then-fashionable hip-hop clichés, whether Bacardi-and-party or menacing "gansta rap," and chucked them all out the window. ATCQ built their breaks around vintage funk and soul, smooth jazz and '70s rock, their rhymes were conversational and the group's level of social consciousness elevated by keenly turned phrases and a wicked sense-of-humor. Well-received among the hip-hop underground cognoscenti, People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm offered an avant-garde experimental vibe, literate inside jokes, freewheeling jazz and wry perspectives that stood apart from the hardcore rap and overt topical politics of other contemporary hip-hop records of the era.  The album launched three Top 10 Hot Rap Singles, tracks, with iconic music videos, that would solidify the group's reputation while inspiring and influencing up-and-coming generations of hip-hop artists: "I Left My Wallet In El Segundo," "Bonita Applebum," and "Can I Kick It?"  It was certified gold by the RIAA on January 17, 1996.

The 25th anniversary edition of People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm has been remastered from the original tapes by the group's longtime engineer Bob Power, and includes exclusive new remixes of key album tracks.

An undisputed foundation of contemporary hip-hop, People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm is one of the most consequential and enduring albums in the history of the genre. While the group would go on to create other hip-hop masterpieces (including three RIAA platinum releases: 1991's The Low End Theory, 1993's Midnight Marauders and 1996's #1 Billboard 200 and R&B chart-topping Beats, Rhymes and Life), it was their groundbreaking debut that established A Tribe Called Quest as a force to be reckoned with in the worlds of hip-hop and popular music.

Acknowledged by many of the biggest artists in hip-hop --among them Kanye West, Pharrell Williams, The Roots, will.i.am and others -- A Tribe Called Quest is widely considered a pioneering force and lasting influence on countless other artists, rappers and producers.

During the ASCAP ceremony, awards will also be given for the Publisher of the Year, Top R&B/Hip-Hop Song, Top Rap Song and Top Gospel Song. The evening will feature performances by several award-winning songwriters/performers, and will be attended by some of the top names in the music and entertainment industry.

The 2016 ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Music Awards are presented by REVOLT and sponsored by Seagram’s Gin.

About ASCAP

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) is a professional membership organization of songwriters, composers and music publishers of every kind of music. ASCAP's mission is to license and promote the music of its members and foreign affiliates, obtain fair compensation for the public performance of their works and to distribute the royalties that it collects based upon those performances. ASCAP members write the world's best-loved music and ASCAP has pioneered the efficient licensing of that music to hundreds of thousands of enterprises who use it to add value to their business - from bars, restaurants and retail, to radio, TV and cable, to Internet, mobile services and more. The ASCAP license offers an efficient solution for businesses to legally perform ASCAP music while respecting the right of songwriters and composers to be paid fairly. With 575,000 members representing more than 10 million copyrighted works, ASCAP is the worldwide leader in performance royalties, service and advocacy for songwriters and composers, and the only American performing rights organization (PRO) owned and governed by its writer and publisher members. Learn more and stay in touch at www.ascap.com, on Twitter and Instagram @ASCAP and on Facebook.

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Disney's 'MOANA' Hits Theaters November 23

The Disney animated film, MOANA, starring Dwayne Johnson and newcomer, Auli'i Cravalho, with original music by Tony Award winner, Lin-Manuel Miranda is coming to theaters November 23. 

Bounce TV To Air Muhammad Ali Memorial

ATLANTA (June 8, 2016) – Bounce TV will carry Muhammad Ali’s farewell procession through the streets of Louisville and his memorial service live, uninterrupted and commercial-free this Fri., June 10.

Bounce TV’s coverage will begin at 9 a.m. ET with the procession, which will take Ali on a final journey through his beloved hometown of Louisville, passing memorable landmarks in his life, including his childhood neighborhood and the Muhammad Ali Center.

Bounce TV will also air the memorial service scheduled for 2 p.m. ET, which will include eulogies by President Bill Clinton, Bryant Gumbel and Billy Crystal. 

Bounce TV will partner with its’ Louisville affiliate WAVE-TV, owned and operated by Raycom Media, for the special event, airing WAVE’s local hometown coverage and insight nationwide. 

Between the procession and the service, Bounce TV will present The Greatest, the 1977 motion picture in which Ali stars as himself. A dramatization of Ali’s life, The Greatest begins with Cassius Clay winning gold at the 1960 Olympic Games and then follows his stunning victory over Sonny Liston, his conversion to Islam and name change, Ali’s refusal of the military draft on religious grounds and subsequent nearly four-year long court battle to fight again. Ali wins the legal victory and then returns to the ring and takes part in what many consider some of the greatest boxing matches of all time. 

Bounce TV will also include several special tributes to the late icon and his tremendous impact on boxing throughout the telecast of Premier Boxing Champions – The Next Round Sunday night, June 12 starting at 9 p.m. ET.

Bounce TV is the fastest-growing African-American (AA) network on television and airs on the broadcast signals of local television stations and corresponding cable carriage. The network features a programming mix of original and off-network series, theatrical motion pictures, specials, live sports and more. Among the founders of Bounce TV are iconic American figures Martin Luther King, III and Ambassador Andrew Young.