'The Hitman's Bodyguard' Hits Theaters August 18

The world’s top protection agent [Ryan Reynolds] is called upon to guard the life of his mortal enemy, one of the world’s most notorious hitmen [Samuel L. Jackson]. The relentless bodyguard and manipulative assassin have been on the opposite end of the bullet for years and are thrown together for a wildly outrageous 24 hours. During their raucous and hilarious adventure from England to the Hague, they encounter high-speed car chases, outlandish boat escapades and a merciless Eastern European dictator [Gary Oldman] who is out for blood. Salma Hayek joins the mayhem as Jackson’s equally notorious wife. The film will be “hitting” your theatres on August 18. 

Lionsgate’s Summit Entertainment presents, Millennium Films presents, in association with Cristal Pictures and East Light Films, a Millennium Films and a CG Films production.

'The Fate of the Furious' Is Box Office Gold

By Darlene Donloe

The gang’s all here!  Just when you thought you had seen it all from this Furious high-octane crew – they show you their best just got even better!

The Fate of the Furious opens nationwide Friday, Apr. 14.

This time around Dom and Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) are married. Brian (played by the late Paul Walker) and Mia have retired and the rest of the crew has been exonerated. Just when they have all settled in – they get sucked back in.

In this latest installment Charlize Theron joins in the madness as a mysterious woman named Cypher who wants nothing less then world domination. She somehow gets Dom (Vin Diesel) to turn his back on family to join her in a rather sinister plot to obtain the nuclear codes.

And that’s the story.  But what follows is nothing short of mayhem with unbelievable stunts and incredibly loud car chases – for which the franchise is best known.  This time the car-nage is nothing short of Cecil B. Demille kind of biblical!!  One car scene has hundreds of Zombie-like cars being smashed in a mega spectacular pileup.

Vin Diesel and Charlize Theron

Helen Mirren adds more star power to the film playing the mother of Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham). Scott Eastwood plays the sidekick agent to Kurt Russell’s Mr. Nobody. But that real star of the film is a baby that is too adorable for words.  That’s all I’m going to say about that. If you want to know more, go see the film.

Here is what you have to know. The Fate of the Furious doesn’t take itself seriously. It’s good, old-fashioned fun. It delivers what its fans expect!  They want to see adrenalin filled, heart-pumping car races, incredible stunts and awesome fight scenes where the stars barely get bruised. 

In Fate you might feel a few bumps along the road. The plot is weak, really weak and over-the-top.  At times the film might even feel like it’s in cruise control, but for the most part, it offers up some full-throttle excitement. Lets face it, we love to see Dom, Hobbs, Letty, Roman, Tej and now Deckard Shaw dispense their own brand of justice by fighting, racing and doing the impossible.

Dwayne Johnson

The Fate of the Furious is a two and half hour thrill ride that puts the pedal to the metal.

The Fate of The Furious, and F. Gary Gray film, stars Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, Jason Statham, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Kurt Russell, Scott Eastwood and Charlize Theron.

On the DONLOE SCALE: D (don’t bother), O (oh, no), N (needs work), L (likeable), O (oh, yeah) and E (excellent), The Fate of the Furious (Universal) gets an O (oh, yeah).

Running time: 2 hours, 40m; RATED: PG-13 (for prolonged sequences of violence and destruction, suggestive content, and language.)

New Episodes Of 'Saints & Sinners' On April 9

ATLANTA (April 12, 2017) – The two premiere airings of the hit Bounce drama Saints & Sinners on Sunday, April 9, combined to reach 1.3 million unduplicated viewers.

Bounce debuts new episodes of Saints & Sinners Sunday nights at 9 p.m. ET, with a primetime play for the west coast at 12 Midnight ET/9 p.m. PT. 

The east coast premiere of Saints & Sinners #206 at 9 p.m. (ET) delivered 490,000 Households to become the highest-rated Bounce original series telecast ever and the most-watched episode in the show’s history. The telecast was also the best of the second season-to-date in delivering Persons 18-49 (259,000), P25-54 (320,000) and P2+ (605,000).

Saints & Sinners helped Bounce finish #2 among all ad-supported cable in the Primetime delivery of African Americans across key AA demos on Sunday night (8-11 p.m.) including P18-49 and P25-54 as well as in AA Households and Total AA Viewers. Bounce beat BET, AMC, TNT, TBS, USA, OWN, TV1 and more than 90 other networks in these categories.

In general market, Bounce was a Top 30 network in Prime Sunday night in the key adult demos P18-49 (#28) and P25-54 (#25), ahead of over 70 other ad-supported cable networks including Fox News Channel, Comedy Central, truTV, Lifetime, BET and OWN among others.

Season two of Saints & Sinners brings viewers back to Cypress, Georgia, the sleepy southern town outside Atlanta which has been rocked by two stunning murders. As concealed secrets claw their way to the surface, new alliances are formed and deceit, jealousy and compromising sexual affairs threaten to shatter lives and demolish the heart of Greater Hope Baptist Church and the town forever. 

Saints & Sinners is produced in partnership with Swirl Film's Eric Tomosunas (Undershepard, 35 and Ticking). Click here to visit the Saints & Sinners press site.

Consumers can catch up on Saints & Sinners anytime on Brown Sugar, Bounce’s new subscription-video-on-demand service. Saints & Sinners season one is available in its entirety with exclusive season two episodes being added every Monday. Brown Sugarfeatures an extensive library of iconic black movies, all un-edited and commercial-free. It’s available for mobile phones and tablets in the Google Play Store and iTunes App Store and for computers at www.BrownSugar.com.  There is a free initial trial period for subscribers with a retail price of $3.99/month thereafter. Brown Sugar has just added Google Chromecast functionality, which allows video to play on televisions directly from mobile devices.

Celebs Come Out To See Michael Colyar's 'Momma'

(l-r) Michael Colyar, 94.7 The Wave’s Pat Prescott Morning Show Host, and Actress Victoria Rowell (The Young and the Restless) with Michael Coylar  Photo by: Ramon Ward, Jr

  

Los Angeles, CA — Michael Colyar’s opening weekend of “Michael Colyar’s Momma”, a dramatic one-man stage production was a smashing success! Colyar, a comedian, syndicated radio talk show host, actor, motivational speaker and humanitarian delivered to full houses his dramatic acting talents, coupled with his well known humorist side. Michael acted out his life story, while evoking both laughter and tears, as he took the audience through his life’s journey. 

The second weekend is sure to be an Easter holiday entertainment highlight. “Michael Colyar’s Momma”, performances will be held on Friday, April 14; Saturday, April 15 and Sunday, April 16; 8 p.m. Fri.-Sat, 7 p.m. Sun., at the ACME Comedy Theater, 135 N. La Brea Blvd, Hollywood, CA 90036.

Michael Colyar’s Momma, a 100 city nationwide tour presented by The Rayloc Group and a bunch of folks with money, kicks off in Los Angeles. The one-man stage production that chronicles the life of comedian Michael Colyar and highlights the importance of the love and support of his mother, as he travels through a life of highs and lows. From his days of making people laugh on Venice Beach to winning Star Search to numerous televisions shows and comedy gigs to his long term drug addiction to his successful spiritual recovery and all of the pain and laughter in between, Michael brings you a glimpse of his life and the awesome influence, his mother had on it. Michael’s life has taken him on a journey that he is now sharing with the world. This is not a comedy show, but a dramatic look at his life with laughter from his fans. 

For tickets: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2901841 or group tickets contact Lisa Tucker at (818) 259-1025 ~ michaelcolyarsmomma@gmail.com

Link to Michael Colyar Sizzle Reel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbZR9Yfj5lY

About Michael Colyar

Known as ‘The King of Venice Beach’ from his humble beginnings, Michael went on to winning Star Search $100,000 Grand Prize Comedy Championship. His informative and highly entertaining brand of comedy opened the doors to hosting BET Live From LA to features in films including; House Party III, Norbit, The Last Laugh, The Princess & The Frog and “Martin” TV Show. His recent syndicated talk show on AURN’s “The Afternoon Rush” aired in 25 major markets that replaced the late Doug Banks Show, set the stage for his one-man show Michael Colyar’s Momma. For more information visit his website and social media:

http://therealmichaelcolyar.com

https://twitter.com/MichaelColyar

https://www.facebook.com/MichaelColyarFanPage/

https://instagram.com/michael_colyar

https://www.linkedin.com/in/MichaelColyar/

Blake Aaron's 'Color and Passion' Is 'Vivid'

Guitarist Blake Aaron has been featured multiple times on SiriusXM over the past week as part of Jazz Appreciation Month just as his vibrant new single, “VIVID,” is preparing to bloom brightly. The third single issued in advance of his upcoming “Color and Passion” album, Aaron wrote and produced the multihued bouquet of invigorating instrumental dance music, power pop horns and glossy R&B grooves that surround fragrant stems of fresh electric jazz guitar flourishes. On the way to radio stations now with an April 24 playlist add date, the perfectly-timed spring fling should happily satiate listeners until Blake’s sixth album streets this fall on Innervision Records.

Last Thursday, the national satellite radio broadcaster’s Watercolors aired a live concert performance by Aaron recorded at the SiriusXM studios in Washington, DC. On Sunday, the guitarist who hosted his own nationally syndicated radio show for seven years hung out on the “Dave Koz Lounge” with the affable sax sensation. This week, Aaron served as guest DJ on Tuesday and although he took command of the air waves, he didn’t sneak in the new single before the official add date.

“No, not yet,” he chuckled. “’VIVID’ is my feel good track of the spring/summer. With real Earth, Wind & Fire-style horns and tons of energetic, bright melodic hooks, I am proud to say that this is one of my most infectious grooves and most intense productions I've done to date. Vivid is how I try to live my life and it is how I try to teach my kids to live their lives. Be uniquely you - boldly and with passion. Be you - vividly.”     

   

Aaron’s last collection, 2015’s “Soul Stories,” spawned five Billboard Top 10 singles. “Color and Passion” aims to continue his run of chart success with a chromatic and intense fusion of sounds and styles – funk, R&B, soul, jazz, rock, blues and Latin music. While the first three singles - “Summer Ride,” “Godfather Brown” and “VIVID” - are upbeat and full of life, the disc will also include intimate ballads allowing Aaron to showcase his lyrically expressive guitar on downtempo numbers.     

Aaron recently plied his soulful fretwork on three songs for urban-jazz chart-topper Najee’s forthcoming set. The in-demand session player, sideman, producer and songwriter will celebrate his birthday with an April 29 concert at Southern California hotspot Spaghettini in Seal Beach where he will be joined by two-time Grammy winner Bill Champlin, a singer-songwriter and keyboardist who spent 28 years as a member of the legendary band Chicago. Aaron will hit the road Memorial Day Weekend for performances at the Jacksonville Jazz Festival in Florida (May 26), St. James Live! in Atlanta, GA on a bill shared with saxophonist Tom Braxtonand vocalist Kevin Whalum (May 27), and a headline date with Braxton at The King Center in Melbourne, FL (May 28).        

For additional information, please visit www.BlakeAaron.com. 

Soil & "Pimp" Returns With "Black Track"

Jazz won’t know what hit it. The artistic purveyors of a super intense, high-voltage brand of aggressive alternative jazz the band dubbed “Death Jazz,” Soil & “Pimp” Sessions returns to the U.S. marketplace on April 14 with the release of their tenth album, “Black Track,” which will be issued on the Red River Entertainment imprint with distribution via BFD/Sony RED. The six-piece Japanese outfit rips, roars and rages through twelve piping-hot new tunes they penned for the occasion that they produced featuring a unique mélange of screaming and careening jazz rhythms, club-banging hip-hop beats, retro neo soul grooves and rampaging punk rock & roll jams. 

The block party begins with “Introduction” during which the band’s rapid-fire horns warm up a vintage jazz-funk groove while Soil & “Pimp” Sessions’ agitator and spirit Shacho sets the stage for what’s to come. Shortly after Midorin’s drums kick in on “By Your Side,” guest rapper Bambu spits smitten rhymes about a club-crawling, nocturnal adventure with a woman, a joint seduced by a smooth and sultry chorus sung by Nia Andrews, another guest artist. The scalding “BLACK MILK” takes the record on a distinctive hard bop swing as pianist Josei occupies center stage amidst the furious-paced jazz number that affords ample room for the entire band to show off their astute chops – from Motoharu’s soprano sax and Tabu Zombie’s trumpet to Akita Goldman’s upright bass. Japanese vocalist Nagaoka Ryosuke guests on “Connected,” a playful, horn-powered amalgam of pop, jazz and rock sprightliness. Soil & “Pimp” Sessions dims the lights to reimagine Herbie Hancock’s classic “Cantaloupe Island,” which they slow down and venture into the dark-hued abyss of an atmospheric jazz exploration. The festivities crank back up fiesta style on the showstopper “Papaya Pai Pai,” part Cab Calloway big band bash, part Latin samba and part cartoonish anime. Precision horns chisel the crazy-legged “88 9^th Avenue” that takes sinewy twists and unexpected turns through melodic lanes. Vocalist Xavier Boyer of French indie pop band Tahiti 80 adds international flavor by guesting on the acid jazz-electronic voyage “In2 My Soul.” “One For Carmen” adds a touch of class to the collection, bobbing and weaving along a sweet and tender melody that hovers gracefully atop Midorin’s feverish pounding. “SOILOGIC” is trademark Soil & “Pimp” Sessions, a raucous ride that slashes and burns at a merciless, take-no-prisoners straight-ahead jazz tempo. Although a sassy soprano sax plays the role of protagonist on “Simoom,” it is a hyperkinetic, horn-ignited jazz-funk dancefloor filler. The contemplative “Mellow Black” is backdropped by probing piano, cascading drums and elastic basslines that plumb murky depths. “SEKAI” closes the date with a full-throttle, whirlwind, smash-and-grab chase that recalls mod punk rock.

Emerging from the Tokyo club scene, Soil & “Pimp” Sessions made their recording debut in 2006 with “Pimp Master.” Renowned British DJ Gilles Peterson is credited with turning UK hipsters onto the band through his BBC Radio 1 program, leading to the collection of a BBC Worldwide Award (John Peel Play More Jazz Award) and a television appearance on BBC’s trendsetting “Later…with Jools Holland.” Popularity in the United Kingdom and Europe soared after a round of buzz-building performances at high-profile festivals including the Glastonbury Festival, Montreux Jazz Festival, North Sea Jazz Festival, Roskilde Festival and many others around the world. Soil & “Pimp” Sessions’ first American release came with 2008’s “Planet Pimp.” For additional information, please visit http://bit.ly/2nc5Mip.

“Black Track” contains the following songs:

“Introduction”

“By Your Side” featuring Bambu & Nia Andrews

“BLACK MILK”

“Connected” featuring Nagaoka Ryosuke

“Cantaloupe Island”

“Papaya Pai Pai”

“88 9^th Avenue”

“In2 My Soul” featuring Xavier Boyer

“One For Carmen”

“SOILOGIC”

“Simoom”

“Mellow Black”

“SEKAI”

'All Eyez On Me' Hits Theaters On June 16

TRAILER:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRgua3A3XOE

Directed by: Benny Boom

Starring:  Kat Graham, Lauren Cohan, Hill Harper, Jamal Woolard, Danai Gurira and Demetrius Shipp Jr. as Tupac Shakur

Produced by: L.T. Hutton, David Robinson and James G. Robinson

Synopsis:  ALL EYEZ ON ME tells the true and untold story of prolific rapper, actor, poet and activist Tupac Shakur. The film follows Shakur from his early days in New York City to his evolution into being one of the world’s most recognized and influential voices before his untimely death at the age of 25. Against all odds, Shakur’s raw talent, powerful lyrics and revolutionary mind-set propelled him into becoming a cultural icon whose legacy continues to grow long after his passing. 

Release Date: June 16, 2017