Black Women, Radio and Music Industry News
- , BMI Awards, BMI Film & TV Awards, Film & TV
- , Film & TV, Los Angeles
- 1st Wave, 2007thru2010, Radio and Music Industry News, Rickey Smiley Morning Show, Steve Harvey Morning Show
- 1st Wave, Business, Radio and Music Industry News, Rickey Smiley Morning Show
- 1st Wave, Most Shares, Radio DJ, Radio and Music Industry News, Rickey Smiley Morning Show
- 1st Wave, Radio and Music Industry News, Rickey Smiley Morning Show
Black Women, Radio and Music Industry News
Actress and gamer Aisha Tyler had to clarify her position after a quick interview with NPR that was not clear on her FB page. She stated:Okay this is the last I'll say on diversity in gaming for this round of slavering frothy machination. This is what I said in the long form version of my interview with NPR on the floor at E3, which unfortunately, because of time, was greatly truncated.There is not enough diversity in gaming, both onscreen and in game development. I do not dispute that. HOWEVER. It is changing. And the fact that TWD was the 2012 VGA Game of the Year, with a strong, complex black lead and an asian co-lead; that The Last of Us has a female co-lead who is revealed in the DLC to be a lesbian; that the co-lead in Gears of War was Latino; that there were multiple strong female characters in Bioshock: Infinite, a game that focused in an elegant way on issues of race and racism; that the last three AC games had leads who were, in order, black and female, Trinidadian, and Native American; that Tomb Raider, with a female lead, is one of the biggest-selling games of all time (despite the massive rack); that there are dozens of other examples I don't have time to Google — means we are making progress.We are nowhere near where we need to be. The dearth of gaming execs who are female or of color belies a bigger problem with our educational system. We need to do a better job of training kids in math and science. And for sure, game developers need to do a better job of recruiting and developing diverse talent. Gamers of every gender and ethnicity are demanding it, both inside games and out. As widely reported, half of all gamers are women. And black and Latino teens spend far more time gaming than their white counterparts. So gamers already have the numbers. They already mean something. But to sit on the sidelines and whine changes nothing.Gamers have to DEMAND change, both with their voices and their pocketbooks. There are plenty of games in which you can create your avatar, and I know hundreds of straight white guys who play as hot badass mohawked Asian lesbians when they are able to design their own characters (Skyrim, Fallout, Mass Effect, etc.). We are creating our own diversity. We ARE our own diversity. Gamers are not a monolith. And we are not perfect. But we know where our issues lie. One person's opinion does not define an industry. Not mine, not Anita Sarkeesian's, not any single game developer. We are not a monolith.The only thing we truly and fully share, is our love of games.Let's focus on what unites us instead of what divides us.Our love of gaming.Game on
Aisha Tyler Expresses Concern for more Diversity in Gaming
Actress and gamer Aisha Tyler had to clarify her position after a quick interview with NPR that was not clear on her FB page. She stated:Okay this is the last I'll say on diversity in gaming for this round of slavering frothy machination. This is what I said in the long form version of my interview with NPR on the floor at E3, which unfortunately, because of time, was greatly truncated.There is not enough diversity in gaming, both onscreen and in game development. I do not dispute that. HOWEVER. It is changing. And the fact that TWD was the 2012 VGA Game of the Year, with a strong, complex black lead and an asian co-lead; that The Last of Us has a female co-lead who is revealed in the DLC to be a lesbian; that the co-lead in Gears of War was Latino; that there were multiple strong female characters in Bioshock: Infinite, a game that focused in an elegant way on issues of race and racism; that the last three AC games had leads who were, in order, black and female, Trinidadian, and Native American; that Tomb Raider, with a female lead, is one of the biggest-selling games of all time (despite the massive rack); that there are dozens of other examples I don't have time to Google — means we are making progress.We are nowhere near where we need to be. The dearth of gaming execs who are female or of color belies a bigger problem with our educational system. We need to do a better job of training kids in math and science. And for sure, game developers need to do a better job of recruiting and developing diverse talent. Gamers of every gender and ethnicity are demanding it, both inside games and out. As widely reported, half of all gamers are women. And black and Latino teens spend far more time gaming than their white counterparts. So gamers already have the numbers. They already mean something. But to sit on the sidelines and whine changes nothing.Gamers have to DEMAND change, both with their voices and their pocketbooks. There are plenty of games in which you can create your avatar, and I know hundreds of straight white guys who play as hot badass mohawked Asian lesbians when they are able to design their own characters (Skyrim, Fallout, Mass Effect, etc.). We are creating our own diversity. We ARE our own diversity. Gamers are not a monolith. And we are not perfect. But we know where our issues lie. One person's opinion does not define an industry. Not mine, not Anita Sarkeesian's, not any single game developer. We are not a monolith.The only thing we truly and fully share, is our love of games.Let's focus on what unites us instead of what divides us.Our love of gaming.Game on
Black Women, Radio and Music Industry News
Are Reverend Jasper Williams Eulogy Points at Aretha Franklin Funeral Proven by Responses?
[caption id="attachment_201171" align="alignnone" width="2000"]
Rev. Jasper Williams Jr. gives eulogy at Aretha Franklin's funeral at Greater Grace Temple on August 31, 2018 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Angela Weiss / AFP) (Photo credit ANGELA WEISS/AFP/Getty Images)[/caption]
Rev. Jasper Williams Jr. gives eulogy at Aretha Franklin's funeral at Greater Grace Temple on August 31, 2018 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Angela Weiss / AFP) (Photo credit ANGELA WEISS/AFP/Getty Images)[/caption]There are several things the Black community does not like to discuss ...
I watched Reverend Jasper Williams Eulogy at Aretha Franklin's funeral (see video below). Williams' states Aretha asked him to do her Eulogy as he did her father, The Rev CL Franklin, 30 years prior. The Franklin family is said to be insulted by Williams' subject matter during the Eulogy and deemed his speech inappropriate considering the late Aretha Franklin was a single mother of four sons.The community, black sons of single black mothers nor anyone else can answer for how Black single mothers, who have already raised their sons, feel about the situation. We have to ask them if they would have preferred to have a husband or a man in the house?Williams states that black women are not qualified to raise a black boy into a man. Many have done so but his point was that they need help, and black fathers are supposed to help, he explained during a press conference post the Eulogy.People were also offended at his take on Black Lives Matter which he ventured is hypocritical when, as he stated, it's OK for us to kill a hundred of us but not OK when a white policeman kills one of us.Why Don't We Like to Have this Conversation?
One can't help but wonder how many black people are silently standing in the wings applauding the Reverend for speaking out on a subject that we as a community prefer to avoid at all costs. Why ... is the greater mystery. Perhaps it makes us take a long, hard look at our own shortcomings or perhaps it would be easier to blame the system for our actions and there is accountability on all ends but it's a major problem nonetheless and we are not free from contributing to the situation.How can we be insulted by the truth one might add. In addition, while Aretha was a single mother of four sons, what is the likelihood that had she been given an opportunity to be married and have a father for those sons, like the many other black women who fall in the 70% bracket of being single mothers, would she or any black mother have preferred to have a husband? There is no debate, no sides, and no stances because the question belongs to them, not us. We can't answer FOR them.Is being a single black mother a choice, community circumstances or a badge of honor? Aretha stated through MANY, MANY, MANY of her interviews that she loved being married and she respected the institution and that she would get married again. Williams' refuses to apologize. Should he or should we?
Black Women, Radio and Music Industry News
Rev Run and Justine Simmons Headline AT&T ‘Be The Glow’ Experience at ESSENCE Festival in New Orleans
AT&T* celebrates Black Music Month by bringing one of the biggest names in hip hop music to the largest festival for black music in the nation—ESSENCE Festival. Hip hop legend, TV star and digital inspiration guru Joseph "Rev Run" and his wife Justine Simmons will be at the 4-day "party with a purpose." It takes place in New Orleans June 29-July 2, 2017.
Rev Run and Justine will take AT&T's stage at ESSENCE Festival for a fireside chat with actress Holly Robinson Peete. They'll talk about how they stay inspired while entertaining millions through music and their TV shows. They'll speak at 11 a.m. CT on Sunday, July 2 at the AT&T Be the Glow experience pavilion at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center.
The AT&T Be the Glow experience is all about Entertainment Your Way™. Attendees can check out the latest DIRECTV NOW and mobile technology and meet a lineup of celebrities and influencers. Be the Glow highlights the intersection of black culture, socially conscious art and music, and technology.
"Our lives have always been about entertainment our way, and that means we do it with positivity," said Rev Run. "Justine and I try to inspire others by showing through everything we do, that love and family always wins. AT&T Inspired Mobility helps us to do that."
It's all part of the AT&T Inspired Mobility conversation about how people connect inspiring content and communities on mobile devices. Inspired Mobility research found that black women lead the way in this activity. It also found people are tapping into digital music and entertainment for inspiration.
Free AT&T mobile charging stations will be on site to keep attendees' devices charged and ready for a busy weekend.
AT&T is proud to be a major sponsor of the ESSENCE Music Festival.
Join the Inspired Mobility conversation online by using the hashtag #InspiredMobility when you post to social media about the Simmons chat at ESSENCE Festival. You can also add #BeTheGlow to stay tapped into all of the AT&T activities throughout the event.
For a full list of events and performances, check out the full schedule or download the free ESSENCE mobile app in the app store
Black Women, Radio and Music Industry News
ESSENCE Festival Concert Series Sells Out All Three Nights for the First Time EverExtraordinary Turnout Underscores ESSENCE’s Engagement of Black Women around Community, Culture and ContentThe 2018 ESSENCE Festival® presented by Coca-Cola® attracted more than 510,0000 attendees to New Orleans this Fourth of July weekend, marking one of the largest gatherings in the event’s 24-year history. For the first time ever, all three nights of the ESSENCE Festival concert series at the Louisiana Superdome sold out. The extraordinary turnout underscores ESSENCE’s engagement of Black women around community, culture and content – which was brought to life in innovative ways at the annual celebration.“This extraordinary gathering of nearly half a million attendees--on the eve of the ESSENCE Festival’s 25th anniversary--speaks to the unmatched convening power of our culture,” said Michelle Ebanks, President, Essence Communications. “As one of the country’s largest curated live experiences, the ESSENCE Festival engages Black women globally—through a truly unique celebration of culture, connection to community and access to content that inspires and empowers.”The annual 4-day Festival, which took place July 5-8, features entertainment, empowerment, and cultural experiences during the day and a state-of-the-art concert series with the world’s best performers each night to comprise a one-of-a-kind curated content experience:
OVER HALF A MILLION ATTENDEES CONVENE FOR THE 2018 ESSENCE FESTIVAL Sponsored by Coca-Cola
ESSENCE Festival Concert Series Sells Out All Three Nights for the First Time EverExtraordinary Turnout Underscores ESSENCE’s Engagement of Black Women around Community, Culture and ContentThe 2018 ESSENCE Festival® presented by Coca-Cola® attracted more than 510,0000 attendees to New Orleans this Fourth of July weekend, marking one of the largest gatherings in the event’s 24-year history. For the first time ever, all three nights of the ESSENCE Festival concert series at the Louisiana Superdome sold out. The extraordinary turnout underscores ESSENCE’s engagement of Black women around community, culture and content – which was brought to life in innovative ways at the annual celebration.“This extraordinary gathering of nearly half a million attendees--on the eve of the ESSENCE Festival’s 25th anniversary--speaks to the unmatched convening power of our culture,” said Michelle Ebanks, President, Essence Communications. “As one of the country’s largest curated live experiences, the ESSENCE Festival engages Black women globally—through a truly unique celebration of culture, connection to community and access to content that inspires and empowers.”The annual 4-day Festival, which took place July 5-8, features entertainment, empowerment, and cultural experiences during the day and a state-of-the-art concert series with the world’s best performers each night to comprise a one-of-a-kind curated content experience:- Over 100 performing artists across the Superdome and the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. Many of the biggest names in the entertainment industry including Janet Jackson, Mary J. Blige, Queen Latifah, Snoop Dogg, The Roots, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Miguel and others performed at the event’s nighttime concerts and dozens of others across ESSENCE’s Center Stage and 10th Anniversary All-Star Gospel Tribute honoring Dottie Peoples.
- More than 100 influencers, leaders, creators and celebrities participated in the Festival’s daytime experience – rebranded as ‘Conference & Expos’ with programming across eight tracks spanning Beauty & Style to Business & Entrepreneurship. Powerhouse speakers included Lena Waithe, Lester Holt and New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell as well as favorites Rev. Al Sharpton, Congresswoman Maxine Waters and Iyanla Vanzant, among others.
- First-time, simultaneous live streams of the daytime experience on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube; an ESSENCE Snapchat Live special and millions of #EssenceFest social media posts generating trending status on Twitter.
- Expanded consumer Expos such as the ‘Beauty Carnival” and ‘Entertainment All-Access’ drew crowds of thousands each day to the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. Elevated VIP events and programs for attendees included the launch of the ‘ESSENCE House’ at the Ace Hotel, as well as the debut of the ‘E-Suite’ with exclusive access to career and business programming.
- Community give-back and volunteerism at the Festival’s traditional ‘Day of Service’ focused on the theme “Adopt-a-Neighborhood – Central City” to encompass youth center beautification projects, as well as empowerment and entrepreneurship workshops for women & girls. ESSSENCE ‘Day of Service’ also presented the inaugural Excellence Awards honoring local change-agents in the community.