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Thursday, May 26, 2016
Monday, May 16, 2016
L.A. Loves Prince Tribute Photos by Shelah Moody and Denise Robertson
It
was a funky, purple party for one of the greatest artists of all
time.
How
do you celebrate a force that was aural and visual, who was singer,
songwriter, musician and dancer, who was preacher, pimp and
philanthropist?
On
May 6, the City of Los Angeles presented a star studded, free concert
at City Hall in honor of Prince Rogers Nelson, who was found dead in
an elevator at his Paisley Park home in Chanhassen, Minn. at age 57.
Another legend gone too soon. The multiple Grammy and Oscar winner
left behind generations of fans who will have to learn how to cope
with life after Prince. While the exact cause of Prince’s death is
being determined, Prince’s fans continue to celebrate his life and
party, in his honor, like it’s 2099.
When
Prince’s death was announced on April 21, CNN devoted an entire day
of coverage to remarkable life. Public buildings in cities across the
country, including Los Angeles San Francisco, New Orleans and
Minneapolis, Prince’s birthplace, lit up purple.
“Prince
loved L.A. and L.A. loves Prince,” said activist Najee Ali, one of
the organizers of “Prince Loves L.A.”
“This
was Prince’s second home. He spent a lot of time here; in fact, the
video for his hit song, “Diamonds and Pearls” was shot right
behind us, in City Hall. Prince was cremated so soon that L.A. fans
didn’t have a chance to have closure; to say goodbye. Prince
deserves a proper goodbye, so we decided to have a great, free
concert for all of the Prince fans.”
Downtown
Los Angeles was ablaze with color on the day of the celebration, and
the trees surrounding City Hall rained purple blossoms. As fans
queued outside City Hall, pop up vendors hawked bootlegged Prince
R.I.P. T-shirts, hats, commemorative buttons, ribbons, music and
other memorabilia from duffle bags. Seven-year-old Amari Evers, one
of Prince’s youngest fans and a “retired” Prince impersonator,
showed up in his purple/paisley best and his new haircut with the
Prince/love symbol shaved into it.
Amari Evers
One
fan known as Cody the Funky White Boy said he’s seen Prince perform
more than 100 times and had the rare opportunity to hang out with His
Royal Badness at Paisley Park. I asked Cody a burning question, what
did Prince smell like?
“He wore a floral scent; he smelled like flowers,” said Cody. “He
was the sweetest, funniest dude. One night, after a concert, he even
invited me to his house. I got to watch that night’s concert with
him, and he was critiquing himself, and cracking jokes. It was
amazing. We stayed up until 8:00 in the morning. ”
On
the steps of LA City Hall, civic leaders, spiritual leaders,
glitterati and artists who had worked with Prince over four decades
paid tribute to the Purple One.
“I
didn’t know Prince, but I met him,” said Ali. “He had a great
heart and a great spirit, and I know for a fact that Prince was not
just a musician, he was an activist. Prince believed that black lives
matter. That’s why he donated, that’s why he gave to a lot of
causes to support our community, but he gave quietly. Whether one
person or a million people show up today, the fact is, Prince is a
legacy that will be unequalled. His music will last forever. I’m
just grateful to see so many fans out today. We’re gonna have a big
party and have fun. I know that right now, Michael Jackson, Prince,
James Brown, Luther Vandross, Whitney Houston, Marvin Gaye, Tupac and
so many others are jammin’ in heaven right now.”
DJ R-TISTIC, revved up the crowd with Prince’s greatest hits such as “Let’s Go Crazy,” “1999,” “Raspberry Beret” “Sexy MF” and “Glamorous Life,” which Prince produced for his superstar protégée, percussionist Sheila E. Emcee Tammi Mac of Radio Free 102.3 KJLH FM showed the audience how to do the “Bird” dance, inspired by the eighties hit recorded by Prince protégées Morris Day and the Time. Even the sign language interpreters had fun interpreting songs like “I Feel for You” while dancing at the same time.
DJ R-TISTIC, revved up the crowd with Prince’s greatest hits such as “Let’s Go Crazy,” “1999,” “Raspberry Beret” “Sexy MF” and “Glamorous Life,” which Prince produced for his superstar protégée, percussionist Sheila E. Emcee Tammi Mac of Radio Free 102.3 KJLH FM showed the audience how to do the “Bird” dance, inspired by the eighties hit recorded by Prince protégées Morris Day and the Time. Even the sign language interpreters had fun interpreting songs like “I Feel for You” while dancing at the same time.
Michael
Bernard Beckwith, New Thought minister, author, and founder of the
Agape International Spiritual Center in Culver City, CA, blessed the
stage and called for a moment of silence for Prince.
“Let
us think, just for a moment about all of the sweet memories that
Prince gave us,” said Beckwith. “Think about the inspiration;
think about the creativity, the celebration of life. Think about the
philanthropy, the activism. Be aware that all of those spiritual
qualities never were born and will never die. They continue to unfold
in a great and mighty way. Prince was a man who left nothing on the
playing field, who gave us everything he had, who lifted us up into
the stratosphere of celebration so that we could ‘go crazy’ for
God.
Morris Hayes
Marva King , Maya and Nandy
Backed
by members of Prince’s New Power Generation Band, including
keyboardists Cassandra O’Neal and Morris Hayes, an incredible and
musically diverse line up of guests artists honored Prince in song.
Eric Benet performed Prince’s 1970s breakthrough song, “Wanna Be
Your Lover.” Rahsaan Patterson performed “Pop Life,” and
Deitrick Haddon performed “Raspberry Beret” and “I Would Die 4
U.” Faith Evans performed “I Feel for You” which became a hit
for Chaka Khan in the eighties. Afro-ed vocalist Marva King performed
“Kiss” accompanied by Prince twin dance sensations from
Australia, Maya and Nandy McClean. One of the best vocal performances
of the evening was delivered by singer/songwriter BJ the Chicago Kid,
who sang a fiery sensual falsetto version of Prince’s ballad, “Do
Me Baby.”
Cassandra O'Neal
Aloe Blacc
Singer/
activist Aloe Blacc received a 2015 Grammy nomination Best R&B
Album for “Lift Your Spirit,” and is perhaps best known for his
international hit, “The Man.” Wearing a purple velour jacket,
Blacc honored Prince with his version of “Diamonds and Pearls.”
“Prince
is such an important piece of the fabric of music,” said Blacc.
“Historically, he was one of the most brilliant musicians, one of
the most brilliant songwriters, one of the best entertainers you can
imagine. We will never forget what Prince has given us. Because of
what he was able to do and the footsteps he walked, doors opened for
artists like myself, who can now stand on stage and share with you
the music that I create. Prince is “The Man.”
As evening segued into night and after several white doves were released at City Hall to the tune of Prince’s “When Doves Cry,” the crowd’s excitement built in anticipation of a surprise guest. The crowd roared when another icon and creative force, Stevie Wonder, emerged on the stage, leading the band in an all rendition of Prince’s theme song, “Purple Rain.” Incidentally, Wonder is also the owner of one of the event’s sponsors, Radio Free 102.3 KJLH FM. Ironically, Wonder was called upon to sing at the funerals of Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston and Natalie Cole in the span of less than a decade. In an interview with Larry King, Prince cited Stevie Wonder as one of his greatest inspirations.
Wonder
thanked the city leaders, artists and fans for coming together to
celebrate the life of one of the greatest artists in history.
“What
a celebration, what an incredible life—the music, the legacy that
he gave us,” Wonder said from the stage. “I think the only thing
we can do, in the spirit of Prince, is to truly love one another and
come together. We can’t just talk about it; we’ve got to be about
it.”
Saturday, April 30, 2016
Streetwise Radio Exclusive: Up Close and Personal at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards Story and Photos By Shelah Moody
There were many magic moments as well as many surprises at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards, held in Los Angeles on Feb. 15. Once again, the Recording Academy put on a lavish production, honoring their peers for excellence in music.
Sunday, Feb. 14: Checking In:
Dr. Cherilyn Lee and Shelah Moody
My Grammy experience began on the Sunday before the awards ceremony , when my gal pal and “non-date” for the event, Dr. Cherilyn Lee and I picked up our tickets at the Staples Center.
Peter Moore and Jan Haust.
While waiting in line, we struck up a friendly conversation with two casually dressed men, Peter Moore and Jan Haust. who, unbeknownst to us, were Grammy nominated engineers from Canada who’d arrived with legendary producer Steve Berkowitz. The next time we saw the trio, they were suited up, coiffed and accepting the Grammy for Best Historical Album “The Basement Tapes Complete: The Bootleg Series Vol 11: Bob Dylan and the Band” live on the Grammy stage.
Shannon Sanders
As I presented my identification and filled out the necessary paperwork to collect my Grammy tickets, I was told by the young man at the computer terminal that George Clinton, the high priest of funk, sat in the same chair I was sitting in to pick up his tickets the day before! As the Funkateer Number One would say, free your mind, and you ass will follow!”
During Grammy week, you will run into a lot of music industry movers and shakers; many who work behind the scenes to create the music As luck would have it, on our way out of the Staples Center, we ran into acclaimed producer Shannon Sanders, President of the Nashville chapter of the Recording Academy, who is known for his production work with India.Arie.
Monday, Feb. 15, 1 p.m., 58th Grammys Premiere Ceremony
Every year, my favorite part of the Grammy experience is the Premiere Ceremony, the non-televised, more intimate portion of the event where awards for jazz, R&B, reggae, classical, world music, regional roots and technical awards are presented off camera. This year, the Premiere Ceremony took place at the Microsoft Theatre, which is adjacent to the Staples Center.
A Salute to the Greats
The Ray Chew Orchestra opened the ceremony with a medley of hits by the music icons we lost at the beginning of the year, including Maurice White of Earth Wind and Fire (“Fantasy”), Natalie Cole (“This Will Be”) and David Bowie (“Let’s Dance”). Recording Academy chair John Poppo delivered the welcome, and I believe someone at one point, went over the house rules and the time limitations for winner acceptance speeches.
Anoushka Shankar
It was indeed a super cute moment when regal presenter Anoushka Shankar, nominee for Best World Music Album, announced the first award of the afternoon, which went to Taylor Swift for Best Pop Vocal Album –“1989.”
Jack Antonoff, one of the producers on “1989” accepted the award for Swift, who was in the middle of rehearsals for the televised ceremony. Onstage, he called the megastar on her cell phone to inform her that she had won. Here’s the gist of the dialogue that transpired.
Antonoff: “Taylor, this is Jack, I’m not doing a bit; we just won Best Pop Vocal Album!”
Swift (to her team): “We won Best Pop Vocal Album!”
Antonoff: “Like, I’m dead serious, I have the phone jammed into the mike; we won!”
Swift: “Is James Taylor there?”
Antonoff: (to the audience): “Is James Taylor here?”
Swift: “Can you tell James Taylor I love him?”
Audience: Laughter.
Swift: “Can somebody find James Taylor and tell him I love him?”
Audience: Laughter.
You see, not only was James Taylor also nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album, Tayor Swift is his namesake. How’s that for irony.
Side note: a big thank you to Swift and the Grammy production team for giving the audience small white bracelets that lit up during her performance of “Out of the Woods, turning the Staples Center into a sea of diamonds. Dear Taylor, if you reactivate my bracelet so I can wear it all day, I will stop following Yeezy on Twitter for an entire month!
It was a good year for women at the Grammys, of course Swift winning Album of the Year, Meghan Trainor winning Best New Artist and front woman Brittany Howard and Alabama Shakes winning Best Alternative Music Album (“Sound and Color”). Women also excelled in the jazz and instrumental categories.
Maria Schneider
Cecile McLorin Salvant
Hawaii native Keali’i Reichel, nominee for Best Regional Roots Album (“Kawaiokalena”) presented awards to Cecile McLorin Salvant, Best Jazz Vocal Performance--“For One to Love” and Maria Schneider Best Arrangement, Instruments and Vocal, "Sue (Or in a Season of Crime)" recorded by the Maria Schneider Orchestra and David Bowie and Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album "The Thompson Fields.”
Joey Alexander
Twelve year-old nominee Joey Alexander may have been too young to attend many of the Grammy parties, but the Indonesian jazz prodigy delivered a performance of Eddie Harris’ “Freedom Dance” on the grand piano with the grace and mastery of the elders.
One of my proudest moments was seeing a group I have literally come of age with and interviewed many times--Morgan Heritage--win the Grammy for Best Reggae Album, “Strictly Roots.”
Morgan Heritage
Morgan Heritage, who became known for fusing roots reggae with R&B and blues, have been consistently touring and recording since their first album, “Miracle,” was released in 1994. That was year I first saw them perform at Reggae on the River. Incidentally, Morgan Heritage was hot on the circuit last summer as part of the Marley family’s “Catch a Fire” tour and the Jamrock Reggae Cruise 2015. Lukes Morgan even toured as a sound engineer and manager of the up and coming band Raging Fyah.
The Ray Chew Orchestra played Bob Marley’s “One Love” as siblings Gramps, Peetah and Lukes Morgan, dressed in natty black suits, made their way to the podium to get their Grammy gold.
“Yeah, we comin’ from Jamaica, so we say, give thanks,” said Peetah. “First, we’d like to thank the Most High, Jah, for blessing us. We want to say thank you to Jamaica and thank you to our family in Brooklyn, New York where we were born and raised, and also Springfield, Massachusetts. We’d like to thank our fans in Africa, Europe—everywhere; reggae music is global, if you didn’t know, we’re gonna let you know. We want to thank everyone who participated on this album—our producers, songwriters, musicians, all of the guests— Eric Rachmany, Rebeloution, J. Boog, Jamere Morgan, Gil Sharone. Shaggy and Chronixx. We want to thank our parents, bless up, our sister, Una, big up yourself, Mr. Mojo, big up yourself, Jamaica, big up unu self. We want to thank VP Records, which have been our label over the years, Randy Chin, Christy Barber. We’d like to thank the Marley family—our friends, our brothers. In Jamaica, when we feel good, and this is making us feel good, we say irie mon, seen? Irie!”
“Yeah mon, we are happy to be here amongst the best in music, from songwriters to engineers to musicians,” said Gramps Morgan. “Big up to all of the nominees—Rocky Dawuni, Barrington Levy, Luciano, Jah Cure. This one’s for Jamaica. I live in the city of Nashville and I’m so proud to be amongst such great musicians. We love you!”
Rocky Dawuni, a superstar in his native Ghana, was proud to represent his country as a nominee for Best Reggae Album (“Branches of the Same Tree”). Like Morgan Heritage, Dawuni is one of the unsung heroes of the genre; this was his first nomination. For Dawuni, the symbolism of his nomination also points to the continuing rise of the African foundation of the global sound and represents the deeper roots of reggae in terms of its African origins and identity.
Dawuni described his Grammy experience from an artist’s perspective.
“The Grammy event was such an intense spectacle,” said Dawuni. “After we picked our nominee accreditations, we went through metal detectors and met with my publicist at the beginning of the red carpet. The publicist went ahead of us to schedule the slots with the global media that had lined up to pre-arrange the interviews, photo opportunities, etc. I then proceeded to meet and interview with outlets including from CNN, Reuters, Grammy.com, BBC and KTLA. From this point I was ushered to a grand photo session with photographers from outlets from all around the world. This whole process lasted for close to two hours. We were then ushered into the main hall of Microsoft Theatre where the pre-telecast was taking place and where most of the awards including ‘Best Reggae Album” were announced.’ When this ended we moved to the Staples Center where the televised portion of the awards took place. It was a fantastic evening checking out all the performances. Kendrick Lamar’s performance, in my opinion, was the highlight of the televised portion.”
African Funk diva Angelique Kidjo, who hails from Benin, won the Grammy for Best World Music Album for the second year in a row. “Sings” was recorded with the Orchestre Philharmonique Du Luxembourg.
Angelique Kidjo
The African funk Diva danced her way to the stage and began her speech with an a cappella African thank you song in her native language. Her conductor, Gast Waltzing had a vison that African music could also be classical music, Kidjo said.
Kidjo dedicated her Grammy to all of the African classical musicians in her country and the new, vibrant generation of artists from Benin who are continuing the tradition.
“Africa is on the rise, Africa is positive, Africa is joyful,” said Kidjo. “Let’s get together and be one for music; and say no to hate and violence, through music.”
Mega producer Jimmy Jam, who reunited in 2015 with his partner Terry Lewis to produce Janet Jackson’s number one album “Unbreakable” presented the awards in the R&B category. The Weeknd, who also a 2015 Oscar nominee for the Fifty Shades of Gray” sountrack, earned two Grammys for Best R&B Performance, “Earned It” and Best Urban Contemporary Album, “Beauty Behind The Madness.”
Members of D’Angelo’s Vanguard accepted the Grammy for Best R&B Album, “Black Messiah.”
Kendra Foster
Singer and co-writer Kendra Foster accepted the award for Best R&B Song, “Really Love,” from “Black Messiah.” As a nod to Beyonce’s Super Bowl 50 performance of “Formation,” a tribute to the 50th anniversary of the Black Panthers, Foster raised her fist in solidarity with struggling communities during her acceptance speech. See link: https://youtu.be/Z1OJS8GAMs4.
Lalah Hathaway
It was a proud and tearful moment for Lalah Hathaway, who won the award for Best Traditional R&B performance for “Little Ghetto Boy,” originally recorded by her father, R&B great Donny Hathaway.
“Thank you, my father, for leaving a song for me to give to the next generation,” said Hathaway. “I’m so honored to be in the traditional rhythm and blues category; because I’ll stand for soul music all day. Thank you to all the people I was nominated with—Faith Evans, Jasmine Sullivan, Charlie Wilson, Tyreese. I love all of y’all. We’re all out here trying to say the same thing; that rhythm and blues is alive and well.”
The 58th Annual Grammy Awards Telecast—Staples Center
By 5 p.m. the Recording Academy’s biggest night, had officially kicked off. Trombone Shorty and his band led a second line through the audience as a tribute to New Orleans’ acclaimed pianist/composer Allen Toussaint, who made his transition in 2015.
Adele
Alas, no major event is pulled off without a bit of controversy and a bit of sadness. Adele’s highly anticipated return was marred by a technical malfunction but she sang through it like a champion.
As a tribute to Earth, Wind and Fire’s Lifetime Achievement Grammy and Maurice White’s passing, Stevie wonder and Pentatonix performed “That's the Way of the World,” with Wonder, a longtime activist, sneaking in the phrase “Black Lives Matter.” Lady Gaga performed the most creative tribute to David Bowie to the extent of emulating his hair and wardrobe as well as his grand, androgynist persona.
Blues great B.B. King was memorialized with an an all-star jam featuring Bonnie Rait and Chris Chris Stapleton.
Natalie Cole
However, any of her peers and family members found it shameful that there was no televised musical tribute to Natalie Cole, who had received nine Grammys and 21 Grammy nominations in the categories of R&B, pop and jazz. Cole died of congestive heart failure on Dec. 31, 2015 at 65. Cole had overcome many tragedies and obstacles including drug addiction, hepatitis C, and a kidney transplant. Cole was active within the Recording Academy, several charitable organizations and was even honored as the MusiCares Foundation’s Person of the Year in 1993.
We hope that Natalie Cole will receive her due during the 59th Grammy Awards Ceremony.
At the 58th Grammys San Francisco Nominee Celebration in January two of Cole’s peers, producer and Grammy trustee Larry Batiste and trombonist Wayne Wallace, 2015 Grammy nominee for Best Latin Jazz Album, commented on Cole’s legacy.
“I worked with Natalie a couple of times; I was in her backing band,” said Wallace. “It’s a loss; I’m sorry that it happened. The gentleman that helped me buy my first house was Natalie Cole’s road manager; he told me some stories about her trials and tribulations. I can’t imagine what it would be like to be the child of an icon like Nat “King” Cole.”
“It’s hard to come up with a famous father, (Nat “King” Cole), like she did, but what I love about Natalie is that she really showed that she had her own talent,” said Batiste. “I know that her gift came from God first and then through the veins of her father. What I also love about Natalie is that she was able to start with R&B and move over to jazz, and her last album, (“Natalie Cole en Espanol”), was a Latin album. I remember being so surprised at the Latin Grammys when she had three nominations. When you look at Natalie Cole, you see (her father’s) legacy, and then you realize she represented music in all genres. She was so global and I love her. She’s an inspiration.”
For a complete list of 2015 winners, go to www.grammy.com. Here the Grammy winners and nominees on www.streetwisesd.com/radio.
Monday, February 22, 2016
Worldtown Soundsystem
Music makes the world go round. Could you imagine a world without music? There would be a world with very depressed people. When you hear music that makes you happy.I think it can effect your soul There is one kind of music in my opinion that can be a little hard to listen to. That is house music especially if it’s not done right. It can become repetitious. That is not the case for Worldtown Soundsystem. This Philadelphia based multicultural house music band with members from Jamaica, Nigeria, Brazil, Alabama, Vermont and Philadelphia. Have come together to bring a funky, jazzy, tribal sound that is house music at its best. They make you want to get up and move. Last November Worldtown Soundsystem’s debut single “Testify” was released on iTunes and Spotify. I really like the beat of the drums and percussion on this song. They have another song called "The Boutique" that is just as good. Every one of the artist, singers, instrumentalists, dancers, are a great talent individually but came together to give us Worldtown Soundsystem. Check out there video “Testify” on the Streetwise Radio Facebook page and the link down below.
LM
http://www.world.town/soundsystem/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7RtelIJPjg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GiWuij1c3Y
Monday, February 1, 2016
The End of Live365 and the Rebirth of the Newer and Better Streetwise Radio
RIP
Hey! All you Streetwise
Radio listeners we are newer and better, we will be streaming live on
demand music on our own server. The reason for this is Live365 is no
longer on Internet radio, as of January 31, 2016. Streetwise Radio
was with Live365 for seven years. In those seven years we had over a
million and a half listeners, all over the world. Countries like of
course the U.S.A., Czech Republic, Canada, United Kingdom, France,
Netherlands, Australia, Jamaica and Kuwait to name a few. Thank you
Live365 for the years R.I.P.
The idea for Streetwise Radio came
about from DJ Michael Ealey’s brother Roger. He had an Internet
radio station call Subsonic Temple. Michael decided to name his
station Streetwise Radio after his Courier Service. Streetwise
Special Delivery. In the beginning our listener ship was a few. It
started to grow with the tweets and the blogs on the artist we play. Playing underrated artist was a boom to the stations appeal.Now with the new player and server from Cirrus of Securenet, you will be able to jump from song
to song or with just a click in on demand mode or solid stream mode like traditional Internet radio. Your old favorite
shows will be coming back with the similar schedule soon. Press the menu
button and you will be able to chat with other listeners, get the
news, weather, entertainment, traffic, sports, flight tracker and
games. Coming soon will be live video streaming from concerts and
artist interviews. If you have a mobile device with Android operating
system, or iPhone a smart phone app is being built. Our host server Cirrus will be helping with ads and sponsors, We would like to thank them for there help. So please be patient while we are under new
construction. You can continue to listen to Streetwise Radio on the
Ultra Mix on Demand.
Monday, January 11, 2016
Pete Belasco
There is one
thing that I love. That is a song with a good groove, beautiful
lyrics and a singer that can sing. Well Pete Belasco is one of those
singers. He has a lush seductive sound. He reminds me of a
combination of Marvin Gaye and Curtis Mayfield. He has been around
since 1997 and I can’t believe I’ve never heard of him. Since his
debut album Get It Together in 1997 he has put out two more albums
Deeper in 2004 and Lights On in 2012. With each of his albums, he has
stayed true to himself with that classic, sexy R&B groove while
staying current. His song writing is amazing. He writes with feeling
and sensuality. Pete Belasco is one talented singer/songwriter, piano
player and saxophonist that is a true musician. Pete comes at us with
deep passion rich tone and sumptuous melodic lines. Most of Pete's
songs require listening ears for the message. That is alright because
listening to good music makes you feel great. I hope Pete will always
take his time putting out amazing music. He will have a fan for life.
If you never heard of Pete Belasco tune into Streetwise Radio and
listen to songs like “I Ain't Doin It”, “My Eyes” and
“Deeper”. You can also tune into Pandora, iTunes, Streetwise Ultra Mix.
By LM
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