Comedian and talk show host Arsenio Hall. (Photo Credit: Google Images)
Gary Levin of USA Today is reporting that Arsenio Hall’s Late Night talk show has been cancelled. Levin writes:
“CBS Television Distribution, which had renewedArsenio Hall for a second season with much fanfare in February, changed its tune, and late Friday said the season that ended May 21 would be the only one for Hall, who had a five-year run with a more successful version of the show from 1989-94.
Though his revived show had a decent start early last September, it faded fast, averaging just 1 million viewers in a crowded late-night field, and several station owners made plans to move Hall to weaker time slots.
‘While there are many loyal fans of the show, the series did not grow its audience enough to continue,’ CBS said in a statement. The audience, in total and among young adults, was about the same as for Bethenny, Bethenny Frankel’s daytime show, cancelled earlier after one season. And Katie Couric’s show is also ending this year, despite a generally improved ratings for daytime TV.
‘We all knew it would be a challenge,’ Hall said in a statement released by CBS. ‘I’m gratified for the year we’ve had and proud of the show we created.'”
Iconic actor LeVar Burton. (Photo Credit: Google Images)
Kirthana Ramisetti of The Daily News is reporting that iconic actor LeVar Burton has reached his goal of raising $1 million to fund his project to bring ‘Reading Rainbow’ to schools across the country. Burton accomplished the goal in less than 24 hours by running a brilliant Kickstarter campaign. Ramisetti writes:
“The ‘Star Trek’ actor launched a Kickstarter fund-raiser Wednesday to bring his PBS children’s series online, stating he needed to raise $1 million to reach his goal. The show, which aired from 1983 to 2006, and was launched as an app in 2012. Burton’s new project was to bring ‘Reading Rainbow’s’ extensive digital library of books and videos to classrooms across the country for free.
‘We can genuinely change the world, one children’s book at a time,’ Burton said in a video announcing the project. ‘Reading Rainbow’ is back for every child, everywhere.’”
Grammy award-winning singer Lalah Hathaway. (Photo Credit: Christopher A. Daniel)
Lalah Hathaway is blessed to have both strong musical genes and a one-of-a-kind loyal following. The sultry tenor and eldest daughter of late Grammy award-winning singer/musician Donny Hathaway has released six critically acclaimed albums over a career now spanning 25 years.
Lalah’s soothing vocals venture into pop, R&B, gospel, rock and jazz. She has collaborated with a prism of musicians and performers but is deeply rooted in soul music. “I’m all over the map, but it’s made me a well-rounded artist…the artist I’m supposed to be,” she says. “I have a lot of different places I can go. It’s more important to have a good song than it is to be the songwriter. My voice is naturally low. The high part of my voice is not experienced, so I don’t abuse my instrument. I recognize who I am.”
Joking that her middle name is “Donny Hathaway’s daughter,” Lalah was this year’s guest performer at Clark Atlanta University’s (CAU) Jazz Under the Stars benefit concert. Her performance, including a surprise appearance by singer Anita Baker, was part of an effort to raise funds for CAU Guild, which supports the HBCU’s cultural and performing arts programming. “Music and art cannot be exaggerated,” says a relaxed Lalah, also a classically trained Berklee College of Music alumnae. “It improves cognitive learning skills, and it’s amazing that it’s not included the same way as arithmetic is in the curriculum. It’s as important as math and science. It just makes you a well-rounded person.”
The day prior to showtime, a warm Lalah gave a master class for some of CAU’s music students. The songstress with autumn-hued dreadlocks chose to sit facing the audience rather than use the podium. The radiant singer thrives in open discussions. “I want this to be more of a dialogue,” says Lalah as she takes the microphone from the stand. “My experience has been very unique. I’m a born musician and a life student of music.”
“The experience of being around so much music always lifts me up and reminds me that I’m going for that greatness,” says Lalah. “I stay inspired. I learn every time I’m with them. It’s just wonderful!” For the remainder of her time at the festival, a mesmerized Lalah had sacred chats with Sheila E., Terri Lyne Carrington, Esperanza Spalding and Dee Dee Bridgewaterabout being a female in the music industry.
“Those moments sweep away a multitude of bad gigs. I was a kid in a candy store,” says Lalah. “I particularly cherish those moments I get to spend with those girls. They are friends of mine. I don’t think of myself as a jazz singer, so I feel very lucky. It feeds me. You don’t get those opportunities a lot as a student.”
It also dawned on Lalah after her master class that she forgot to share her experiences touring with Prince. “There are very few people that I’m geeky about, and he’s one of ‘em,” she says. “It was a dream of my life growing up in the ‘80s to be able to look at him as a personality, an icon but first as a musician. To be able to open for him and to sing with him was surreal. It was crazy. Do you see how lucky I am?”
Lalah was joined midway through her talk by her two background vocalists. She addressed some of the challenges she faced in the music business. Following the release of her self-titled debut LP, Lalah was asked in an interview with iconic radio and video host Donnie Simpson about her favorite singers. The vocalist named mostly female jazz singers. Her label executives didn’t take her responses lightly.
They assembled a meeting to give her coaching on who she should name in future interviews and who she should like. Admitting that her initial goal was to be “a producer’s dream,” Lalah has since taken full control of her destiny. “The music industry is not designed for you to be successful,” says Lalah. “Music is designed to make you feel successful. There was always a push to get me to do something that wasn’t natural. It didn’t always feel good, but I realized the music industry was a separate entity from my passion, which is music.”
Lalah adds, “Soul music will never die. We have to keep pushing. It’s still our story, but it’s just very narrow. You gotta keep pushing on even if it won’t always be met with commercial success.” The performer suggested also that the young musicians take the initiative to find the strengths in their musical crafts. “Figure out the best places for you to go,” she says. “If you’re trying to learn your range, be gentle with it. Be on pitch. Have tone and good interpretation. You have to get on your path and stay on it because nobody can deter you.”
It took some convincing, but Lalah delivered an incredible impromptu performance singing and playing the Steinway piano. She admits she gets nervous because she doesn’t practice playing much. “Experienced as I am, I still learn something everyday,” says Lalah. “Understand what you want your instrument to do. I block myself from my blessings sometimes. Even though I try to teach people not to do it, we all do that. Sometimes you have to push in the direction you’re supposed to go in.”
Great things continue to happen to Lalah. Earlier this year, she was awarded her very first Grammy along with fusion band Snarky Puppy in the “Best R&B Performance” category for “Something.” She still hasn’t received her coveted trophy but remains extremely humbled by the accolade. “It’s the most surreal experience in the world,” says Lalah. “It’s an honor, but it’s just another thing. It was a great moment to get one for a song I recorded so long ago. A Grammy is a bonus on top of everything else I wanted to do.”
Lalah plans to record a live album featuring more of her playing piano. She hopes to also land collaborations with Pharrell, Timbaland and Sting. The performer also still manages to always find something new in her father’s compositions.
Since Donny Hathaway’s untimely passing in 1979, Lalah knows his music has greatly impacted generations of performers and listeners. There’s a lot Lalah can’t explain in words, but she scratches the surface when she explains how his legacy continues to influence her work. “It’s been an evolution understanding my daddy and understanding myself,” she says. “A lot of that has to do with that honest vulnerability and empathy that is missing everywhere in the world. I’m learning more of that as an adult.”
This post was written by Christopher A. Daniel, pop cultural critic and music editor for The Burton Wire. He is also a contributing writer for Urban Lux Magazine and Blues & Soul Magazine. Follow Christopher @Journalistorian on Twitter.
Model wears a G.Saints creation. (Photo Credit: Chetachi Egwu)
The average U.S. fashion designer makes an average annual salary of $73,750, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a standard of living above the U.S. average. Getting recognition, however, is difficult, as the industry uses a monolithic brush to paint who is important. For example, of the numerous designers featured in the global Spring 2014 Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, one of the most well known in the industry, only a handful, if that, were black.
Miami Fashion Week (MFW) is somewhat unique; it is dedicated to resort/pre-spring collections, and features many Latin American designers. While the overall event lacked a large presence of black designers, MFW made waves with the Jones Magazine African American Designer Showcase.
New York-based Jones Magazine targets a multicultural audience of women, positioning itself as the shopping guide “for women who know better.” The Jones enacted this mission, featuring three African American designers who specialize in resort/swimwear. Allusions by A. Lekay, one of the featured designers, revealed a collection of vibrant, high-waisted swimwear. Designed with curvy women in mind, the young Florida A & M alumna sought to create a line that camouflages trouble spots.
“It was started out of a little bit of frustration,” said Altrichia “A. Lekay” Cook, label founder. “While preparing for a trip to San Juan, Puerto Rico, I wasn’t able to find a swimsuit that was high enough to cover my abdominal imperfections, so I created my own.”
Color, functionality and fun describes the Wilbourn Sisters collection. Emanating from a family of seven designing and sewing sisters in Jackson, Tennessee, Carolyn and Janice Wilbourn’s collection exploded onto the runway with a burst of fiery spirit. The boldly patterned pieces could be worn in several ways, as the sisters demonstrated during their final runway walk.
“See, we give you more for your money,” Janice said of their collection, which now claims the Atlanta area as their hub. “You can wear them in more ways than one, that’s what makes it fun. These are versatile pieces, very versatile.”
Their collection’s versatility was apparent as a full-figured model donning a billowy striped top appeared on the runway, to thunderous applause.
A model wearing a Wilbourn Sisters creation. (Photo Credit: Chetachi Egwu)
A model wears an Allusions by A. Lekay fashion. (Photo Credit: Chetachi Egwu)
Model wears a G.Saints creation. (Photo Credit: Chetachi Egwu)
For a showcase of this magnitude, a team of experts were carefully selected. Chicago-based Chris Curse of ORS (formerly Organic Root Stimulator) was on hand to whip the models hair into coifs of perfection.
“It was amazing because actually got to work with cosmetology students. I was so proud because they were able to finish up the models when I got called away. I got to see my vision come to life” says Curse.
Miami-based Catwalk Pros was enlisted to assist in planning the show, selecting the visuals and securing the models.
“We had fifteen models in total, five girls from the model search with Cynthia Bailey, ” said Sandra Ward, company CEO and President. Incidentally, the show was hosted by Cynthia Bailey, former model, founder of the Bailey Agency School of Fashion and cast member of the Real Housewives of Atlanta.
Endless hours of preparation were worth it for Ward, as she was pleased with the final execution.
“I thought it was flawless,” she proclaimed. “I had goosebumps when I saw my girls walking down that runway. It was amazing to work with Jones Magazine.”
Attendees and event staff alike found the Jones showcase to be a breath of fresh air, citing it as long overdue in Miami. Miami Native Paulette Dozier, who works with the Wilbourn Sisters, sees this as key for the recognition of black designers.
“I think this is as excellent step for the Miami area because of the versatility of this town,” said Dozier.
Buyer and Designer Mr. Witherspoon agreed, having travelled to the show from New York to represent The Brownstone, an upscale women’s boutique in Harlem. He notes that since aspects of style began in African antiquity, a lack of black presence would be a travesty.
“The history of fashion stems from Egypt’s 1st, 2nd and 3rd dynasty, so it all really started in Africa. To have that element missing doesn’t make sense.”
Stylist and editor of Jones Magazine, Rose Mednard, felt that the show went exceptionally well, but knows that there are still miles to travel in terms of hearing the black voices in fashion amplified. However, Mednard did offer a bit of optimism.
“We are limited in our representation of designers and full-figured women, and I think that’s something that we want to stay on top of. But I do think that fashion is headed in a great direction. A lot of the new designers are coming up with new stuff, not just repeating the decades like many designers we have now do. I’m looking forward to the future of fashion.”
This post was written by Dr. Chetachi A. Egwu, Associate Professor of Humanities at Nova Southeastern University. Her scholarship focuses on Black Internet Usage and the African image in film, with an emphasis in documentary. The Howard University alumna is the owner of Conscious Thoughts Media. Dr. Egwu is a regular contributor to The Grio. Follow her on Twitter @Tachiada.
Andrea Janus of CTV News is reporting that Turks and Caicos Premier Rufus Ewing is “not closing the door completely” on the idea of his nation becoming Canada’s 11th province. Mr. Ewing says the fate of the island nation will depend on whether or not the country’s citizens want the change. However, Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird was quick to dispel the possibility of the island nation becoming a part of Canada.
Janus writes:
“The premier who’s here isn’t asking to become the 11th province and we’re not in the business of annexing islands in the Caribbean to be part of Canada,” he (Baird) said. “So that’s not something that we’re exploring. We’re not looking at any sort of formal association with the islands.’
Ewing was scheduled to travel to Toronto later Monday to open a new tourism office in the city.
During a lively press conference on Parliament Hill Monday afternoon, Ewing was coy when answering repeated questions about whether his country could one day be Canada’s first province in the Caribbean.
‘Our first step toward any kind of relationship should be one whereby we can discuss and discover areas of mutual interest between both countries that both countries’ Parliaments and people are satisfied with, watch that relationship grow and nurture as we go through a period of courtship, and see where it takes us,’ Ewing said.
‘I cannot state beyond that right now.’”
Turks and Caicos has operated as a separate autonomous British Overseas Territory since 1973.
In August 2009, the United Kingdom suspended the Turks and Caicos Islands’ self-government after allegations of ministerial corruption. Home rule was restored in the islands after the November 2012 elections.
Oprah Winfrey, Antony Ressler, Magic Johnson and Steve Ballmer are engaged in a bidding war for the embattled L.A. Clippers. (Photo Credits: Google Images)
The bidding war has begun. Apparently, Donald Sterling’s estranged wife has been quite busy. She allegedly met with billionaire Antony Ressler last week at a Malibu restaurant. Then she met this week at her Malibu estate with ousted Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer. Both meetings came on the coattails of a public bid to buy the team from a group led by David Geffen — that includes both Oracle CEO Larry Ellison and Oprah Winfrey. Of course, diehard basketball fans are still hoping for a Magic Johnson-owned ball club. Being one of the most influential people of the ’80s, ’90s and beyond, many people find themselves drawn to his inspirational life, so to them having a bit of magic johnson contact or at least a club would be very much welcomed.
On its face that seems doubtful. For one: Shelly Sterling is apparently asking $1.4 billion for the team. Johnson’s net worth is roughly $500 million. Johnson could obviously put a group of investors together like Geffen, but why would he?
When the story originally surfaced, Sterling accused Johnson of setting him up to steal the Clippers away. At the time, Johnson laughed it off and said if he wanted to steal a team, it sure wouldn’t be the Clippers — meaning he would aim for the Lakers instead.
But the point is, the Clippers are drastically overvalued at $1.4 billion. A recent valuation by Forbes Magazine puts the Clippers worth at about $575 million.
That brings me back to my original point. Why? Johnson was a player, one of the best. He doesn’t need to buy a team to sit in the front row and have people recognize him. Whatever it is, ego, wanna-be-a- baller syndrome or the need to live vicariously through the athletic prowess of others that makes rich men buy athletic teams, I just don’t think Johnson’s got it. Since retiring, Johnson has amassed an impressive portfolio. He’s done so by making sound business decisions. And this just is not a sound business decision.
Of course Winfrey is also shrewd. But consider this, any one of the members of the Geffen-led investment group could easily buy the team outright yet they choose to make a group bid. That suggests, at least to me, that none of them are looking at it as strictly a business decision. In the case of Winfrey, for instance, it’s probably worth several million just to get Sterling, his pimps, his mistresses and his estranged wife with the visibly blotched cosmetic surgery the heck out of the NBA and to make sure another rich jerk doesn’t get control of the team. Geffen is old school LA, and I could see it being worth several million to just keep it in the family, not to mention LA.
But even a group of billionaires has its limits. And I wonder if Shelly Sterling’s bloated asking price is not a bit too much.
That’s why my money’s on the dark horse in this battle of the billionaires…Steve Ballmer, net worth $15.2 billion. Ballmer, after 13 years of running Microsoft (33 in a leadership role), was recently shown the door. He found himself standing flat-footed when he should have been teetering on the verge of innovation. Now he’s got a whole lot of nothing to do with a boatload of money to do it with. He represents a city that has been mourning the loss of the Sonics for nearly a decade and has already made an aggressive, though unsuccessful, attempt to woo the Sacramento Kings. And if I might add, he’s got something to prove. With contemporaries like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and Paul Allen (who incidentally owns the Portland Trailblazers), it must have really stung to get ousted from a company you helped create. Ballmer may be the only billionaire suitor with enough skin in the game to stomach the $1.4 billion price tag.
What does that say for the league? Or the players? Nothing, other than it’s business as usual.
One rich white guy will replace another. The fact that the outgoing white guy is an insufferable bigot is irrelevant. He and his wife will make a profit of more than a billion as they are shown the door (Sterling bought The Clippers for $12.5 million in 1981), which is pretty much on par with the $936 million (can you say golden parachute?) Ballmer made in stock, which soared the day he announced his “retirement.” But hey, bringing an NBA team back to his hometown? That is guaranteed to buy Ballmer , a hero’s welcome back in Seattle.
Devona Walker is the politics editor for The Burton Wire. Follow her on Twitter @DevonaWalker.
Legendary poet Maya Angelou dies at 86. (Photo credit: Google Images)
The blogosphere is lit up with tributes to legendary poet, novelist and actress Maya Angelou who died at her home in Winston-Salem. Angelou’s work and professions spanned many decades. She was San Francisco’s first female cable car operator and went on to become a singer, dancer and actress winning awards and accolades along the way. CNN‘s Faith Karimi reports:
“Angelou was born April 4, 1928, in St. Louis, Missouri. She grew up between St. Louis and the then-racially-segregated town of Stamps, Arkansas. The famous poet got into writing after a childhood tragedy that stunned her into silence for years. When she was 7, her mother’s boyfriend raped her. He was later beaten to death by a mob after she testified against him. ‘My 7-and-a-half-year-old logic deduced that my voice had killed him, so I stopped speaking for almost six years,’ she said. From the silence, a louder voice was born.”
“An actress, singer and dancer in the 1950s and 1960s, she broke through as an author in 1970 with “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” which became standard (and occasionally censored) reading, and was the first of a multipart autobiography that continued through the decades. In 1993, she was a sensation reading her cautiously hopeful “On the Pulse of the Morning” at former President Bill Clinton’s first inauguration. Her confident performance openly delighted Clinton and made the poem a best-seller, if not a critical favorite. For former President George W. Bush, she read another poem, “Amazing Peace,” at the 2005 Christmas tree lighting ceremony at the White House.”
In 2010, President Barack Obama awarded Angelou The Medal of Freedom. Dr. Angelou spoke six different languages and worked as a newspaper editor in Egypt and Ghana. Famous friends included Malcolm X, Oprah Winfrey, Amiri Baraka, James Baldwin, Hilary Clinton, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King. She received over 30 honorary degrees in her lifetime and taught at Wake Forest University in North Carolina. She was also a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.
With all of her accomplishments, she is best remembered for her poem “Phenomenal Woman.” The Burton Wire will leave you with Dr. Angelou’s poem ‘Phenomenal Woman,’ in remembrance of a phenomenal woman. She was 86.
Phenomenal Woman
Pretty women wonder where my secret lies. I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size But when I start to tell them, They think I’m telling lies. I say, It’s in the reach of my arms, The span of my hips, The stride of my step, The curl of my lips. I’m a woman Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, That’s me.
I walk into a room Just as cool as you please, And to a man, The fellows stand or Fall down on their knees. Then they swarm around me, A hive of honey bees. I say, It’s the fire in my eyes, And the flash of my teeth, The swing in my waist, And the joy in my feet. I’m a woman Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, That’s me.
Men themselves have wondered What they see in me. They try so much But they can’t touch My inner mystery. When I try to show them, They say they still can’t see. I say, It’s in the arch of my back, The sun of my smile, The ride of my breasts, The grace of my style. I’m a woman Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, That’s me.
Now you understand Just why my head’s not bowed. I don’t shout or jump about Or have to talk real loud. When you see me passing, It ought to make you proud. I say, It’s in the click of my heels, The bend of my hair, The palm of my hand, The need for my care. ‘Cause I’m a woman Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, That’s me. —Maya Angelou
Egyptian women wait in line to vote in presidential election. (Photo credit: http://insideislam.wisc.edu)
Aljazeera is reporting that Egypt’s presidential election has entered a second and final day, with former army chief Abdel Fatah el-Sisi expected to emerge as the country’s next president. At many polling stations female voters turned out in much higher numbers than men, the Associated Press reported. el-Sisi, who was the country’s defense minister, quit his position as the head of Egypt’s armed forces in order to run for the presidency.
The author writes:
“The vote, which began on Monday, pits Sisi against the left-wing candidate Hamdeen Sabahi, a former legislator and long-term Nasserist who came third in the 2012 election.
Sisi, who quit the army in March to run for president, led a coup that removed the nation’s first democratically elected president, Mohamed Morsi, last July.
Sabahi’s office complained early on Monday that police and soldiers were refusing his representatives access to polling stations.
Members of the Muslim Brotherhood (Morsi’s party) and many of the pro-democracy youths who participated in the 2011 uprising against former president Hosni Mubarak are boycotting the election.
Nigerian Air Marshal Alex Badeh claims to know the whereabouts of the missing schoolgirls. (Photo Credit: Naji.com)
Dana Ford ofCNN is reporting that a top Nigerian military official says he knows the whereabouts of the abducted schoolgirls who were kidnapped in Chibok in April but it is too dangerous to rescue them. Ford reports that Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh says the nation’s military will not use force to try to rescue them, a state news report said Monday. His comments were made to News Agency of Nigeria, a state-run news service.
Ford writes that Badeh said:
“‘We want our girls back. I can tell you that our military can and will do it, but where they are held, can we go there with force?” asked Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh.
‘Nobody should say Nigerian military does not know what it is doing; we can’t kill our girls in the name of trying to get them back.’
Badeh continued:
“‘The good news for the parents of the girls is that we know where they are, but we cannot tell you.
‘We cannot come and tell you the military secret, just leave us alone, we are working to get the girls back,’ he reportedly said.”
In response to the news, Pentagon spokesman Adm. John Kirby told CNN U.S. officials were not able to confirm the report.
Poet, novelist and filmmaker Sam Greenlee has died. (Photo Credit: Google Images)
Matt Schudel of The Washington Post is reporting that poet, novelist and filmmaker Sam Greenlee has died. Greenlee, who once served as a Foreign Service officer, wrote the cult classic 1969 novel The Spook Who Sat by the Door. Subsequently Greenlee and iconic actor/director Ivan Dixon collaborated on a film of the same name which became an underground hit. The film was a major cultural symbol during the black nationalist movement and was banned by the FBI in 1973 because of fear that the film might incite riots. The film was banned from distribution for more than 30 years, but found new fame in the last decade. In 2011, a documentary that examined the fate of Mr. Greenlee’s film, Infiltrating Hollywood: The Rise and Fall of ‘The Spook Who Sat by the Door was released.
In the novel, the main character of Dan Freeman, is the first black American to become a member of the CIA. He appears to be an upwardly mobile, educated black man who toes the line and avoids trouble at all costs. In reality, Freeman uses what he learns in the CIA to teach a Chicago street gang to become a rebel group and wage war against the U.S. government. The crew known as the Cobras, uses the master’s tools to dismantle the master’s house starting a revolution that will change society as they know it.
The film was funded independently, mostly by black Americans, and featured a soundtrack composed by jazz legend Herbie Hancock.
Schudel writes:
“Samuel Elder Greenlee Jr. was born July 13, 1930, in Chicago. He received a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin at Madison in 1952, served as an Army officer and studied international relations at the University of Chicago before joining USIA. Mr. Greenlee published a second novel, “Baghdad Blues,” in 1976, drawn from his experiences in Iraq during the late 1950s.”
Greenlee, who was married and divorced from Nienke Greenlee. He is survived by a daughter from a longtime relationship with Maxine McCrey, Natiki Montano of New York; and a granddaughter. He was 83.
