by Teria Rogers Special to the NNPA from theAfro-American Newspaper On a recent Thursday, evening at Ebenezer African Methodist Episcopal Church in Fort Washington, music minister Byron Cage counted down the tasks he needed to complete in preparation for an evening service. On this particular night, he readied for a special men’s worship service featuring Bishop Walter Scott Thomas and his men’s choir from ...

  GLOBAL MIXX HOSTED ITS 6TH ANNUAL MUSIC FORUM Global Mixx Music Forum 2012 – “The Business of Creation” featured panels, artist showcases, Master Classes and more with top industry professionals CHICAGO, IL (Aug 30) – After a 2-year hiatus, the 6th Annual Global Mixx Music Forum hosted the ‘Business of Creation’ on Sunday August 19th, 2012 at the Zhou B Art Center, the premier venue for international ...

Spirit has many ways of expressing itself. One of those channels of expression occurs through music; the melodic, harmonic, rhythmic voice of our soul, reflecting years of feelings and experiences. From early times it has been known as a healing force. We used it to record family histories and communicate between communities. Work songs were used to lessen the harsh conditions of a prison chain gang. Chants ...

Justin Combs, son of hip-hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, took to Twitter this week to defend his full scholarship to UCLA, which the school confirmed this week. Many in cyberspace are questioning whether the multimillionaire’s son should have accepted the $54,000 football scholarship, given the school’s economic troubles. But the 18-year-old said he earned the scholarship. “Regardless what the circumstances a ...

Two of BET’s Brightest Stars are Moving on to New Adventures. Terrence J and Rocsi, the popular hosts of 106 & Park for the past seven years, will be leaving the show. Stephen G. Hill, President of Music Programming & Specials for BET Networks, confirms the news in a statement: “Today, after seven exciting years, 106 & Park hosts Terrence J and Rocsi announced that they will be leaving the show. ...

Queen of Disco Donna Summer Dies by Bobbi Booker
 Special to the NNPA from the Philadelphia Tribune In this May 21, 2008 photo, Donna Summer performs during the finale of “American Idol” at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles. Summer, the Queen of Disco who ruled the dance floors with anthems like “Last Dance,” “Love to Love You Baby” and “Bad Girl,” has died. Her family announced her death in a statement Thur ...

By Kimberly Roberts Special to the NNPA from the Philadelphia Tribune Eddie Levert’s recently released “Eddie Levert: I Still Have It,” is his first solo album in a career that spans more than 50 years.—SUBMITTED PHOTO One of the defining voices of the Golden Age of R&B is the O’Jays’ Eddie Levert and the iconic soul singer recently released “Eddie Levert: I Still Have It,” his first solo album in a car ...

By Dwight Brown NNPA Film Critic   When we think of music icons that died tragically and way too early, Michael Jackson, John Lennon and, more recently, Whitney Houston, come to mind. But let’s not forget Bob Marley. He brought reggae music to the world, was a social activist and lived a controversial life that rivals any of the aforementioned. His legacy is on view in this thoroughly revealing documen ...