Whats Buzzing in the Streets – Page 64

Eddie Griffin

Edward “Eddie” Griffin (born July 15, 1968) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for portraying Eddie Sherman on the sitcom Malcolm & Eddie and the title character in the 2002 comedy film Undercover Brother.

Griffin was born in Kansas City, Missouri, and was raised by his single mother, Doris Thomas, a phone company operator.[2] After attending high school in Kansas City, he enrolled as a biological engineering major at Kansas State University, but left after three months.

Griffin has starred in films such as The Meteor Man (1993), Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo (1999), Double Take (2001), Undercover Brother (2002), John Q (2002), Scary Movie 3 (2003), Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo (2005) and Norbit (2007). In 2007, he starred in Urban Justice, a thriller set in New Mexico. He also starred in the UPN television series Malcolm & Eddie (1996–2000).

Griffin was ranked at number 62 on Comedy Central’s list of the 100 Greatest Stand-ups of All Time. In 2011 Comedy Central released You Can Tell ‘Em I Said It on DVD. It was 82 minutes of unedited and uncensored content.

Griffin performed on two tracks from Dr. Dre’s 1999 album, 2001, and the intro track from The D.O.C.’s 1996 album Helter Skelter. He also has appeared on commercials for Miller Beer’s Man Laws. He is well known for his comedic routine of imitating Michael Jackson on crack cocaine. He also made an appearance on Chappelle’s Show in the skit “World Series of Dice” as Grits n’ Gravy.

Written by Dianne Washington

Gerald Levert

Gerald Edward Levert (July 13, 1966 – November 10, 2006) was an American soul singer, songwriter and producer. He sang with his brother, Sean Levert, and friend Marc Gordon of the trio LeVert. He was also a member of LSG, a supergroup comprising Keith Sweat, Johnny Gill, and himself. His father, Eddie Levert, is the lead singer of the 1970s soul group The O’Jays.

Gerald Levert was born to The O’Jays frontman Eddie Levert and his wife Martha in Philadelphia, PA on July 13, 1966. Levert grew up in Shaker Heights, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland. Due to his father’s career, Levert would travel with the band regularly. While in high school, Levert’s inclination towards music became apparent when he formed the trio LeVert, with his younger brother Sean Levert (deceased, March 30, 2008) and friend Marc Gordon in 1984. Four of the group’s seven albums went platinum. These include, I Get Hot in 1985, Bloodline in 1986, The Big Throwdown in 1987, and Just Coolin in 1988. Among the group’s singles were, “(Pop, Pop, Pop, Pop) Goes My Mind”, “Casanova” and “ABC-123”.

In 1991, Levert went solo with the albums, Private Line, which went to number one on the R&B charts. The following year, Gerald and his father, Eddie Levert, hit number one on the R&B charts with the single, Baby Hold On to Me. Levert recorded a string of albums throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, that contained the hit singles, “Thinkin’ About It” (Pop #12) which was released on September 1, 1998, “Taking Everything” (Pop #11), “Funny”, “Mr. Too Damn Good to You”, “U Got That Love”, and a remake of R. Kelly’s “I Believe I Can Fly”, along with gospel singer Yolanda Adams.

Levert also sang lead vocals in two songs on the 2002 film documentary “Standing in the Shadows of Motown” – the story of The Funk Brothers. Levert performed “Shotgun” and “Reach Out I’ll Be There”.

Levert released his tenth album,Voices, in 2005.

Levert wrote and produced songs for other artists such as Barry White, Stephanie Mills, Anita Baker, Eugene Wilde, Teddy Pendergrass, James Ingram, Freddie Jackson, Chuckii Booker, The Winans, Troop and The O’Jays. In the early 1990s, he also helped launch the careers of three Cleveland-area ensembles: The Rude Boys, Men at Large and 1 of the Girls. During the release of Groove On, Levert appeared in the group Black Men United for the hit single “U Will Know” for the film Jason’s Lyric, the movie’s soundtrack. who was participated in the group and joining with Keith Sweat and Johnny Gill as well. In 1997, Levert teamed up again with fellow singers Keith Sweat and Johnny Gill, to form the supergroup, LSG. The trio released the album Levert-Sweat-Gill the same year, selling over two million copies; it was followed by LSG2 in 2003. In 1999, Levert sang the chorus on the Chris Rock spoken-word comedy piece, “No Sex (In the Champagne Room)”. Levert performed a duet with Teena Marie on the latter’s 2004 album La Doña. Levert’s last collaborations included Jim Brickman on the song “My Angel”, for Brickman’s 2006 album entitled Escape and on the song “Real S***” from rapper Styles P’s album, Time Is Money. Levert was posthumously featured again on former groupmates Keith Sweat’s “Knew It All Along” and Johnny Gill from the singer’s Til the Morning album, which was released two days after the fifth anniversary of Levert’s death.

Levert began his acting career as Charles Young, his first appearance on The Jamie Foxx Show for 2 episodes with “Just Don’t Do It”, that aired on November 5, 1998 and Jamie disapproves of his mother (Jo Marie Payton) because she decided to marry him in the episode. In January 2001, Gerald appears again in the series finale “Always and Forever” when Jamie (Jamie Foxx) and Fancy (Garcelle Beauvais) got married and sang the opening ceremony at the wedding and joined by fellow singers Gladys Knight and Marilyn McCoo (without her husband Billy Davis, Jr.). On November 10, 2003, three years prior to his death, Levert’s final acting role that aired during his lifetime was when he appeared in an episode of The Parkers, He played T’s father in the episode and comes for a visit to start a new band with T.

On November 10, 2006, Gerald Levert was found dead in his bed at his Cleveland, Ohio home when his cousin tried to wake him. Initial reports stated that Levert had died of an apparent heart attack. In February 2007, an autopsy report conducted by the Cuyahoga County coroner’s office concluded that Levert’s death was caused by a fatal combination of prescription narcotics and over-the-counter drugs. The drugs in his bloodstream included the narcotic pain relievers Vicodin, Percocet, and Darvocet, along with anxiety medication Xanax and two over-the-counter antihistamines. The autopsy also revealed that Levert had pneumonia. The official cause of death was acute intoxication, and the death was ruled accidental. Gerald Levert was only 40 years old.

Following the disclosure of Gerald Levert’s cause of death, a family spokesman stated that all the drugs found in Levert’s bloodstream were prescribed to the singer. Levert was taking the pain medication because of chronic pain from a lingering shoulder problem and surgery in 2005 to repair a severed Achilles tendon.[

Cover for Levert’s final album, In My Songs, released after his death. Shortly before his death, Levert completed work on what would be his final album, In My Songs. The album was released on February 13, 2007. In June 2007, a book Gerald was working to complete entitled, I Got Your Back: A Father and Son Keep it Real About Love, Fatherhood, Family, and Friendship, was released. The book was initially planned as a tie-in for a Levert album of the same name. I Got Your Back explores Gerald and Eddie’s father/son relationship, the necessity of male bonding, and importance of repairing fractured families. Levert was also working on a reality show in which he was losing weight along with 12 of his female fans, who were training with him at his palatial home.

Levert had three children: LeMicah, Camryn, and Carlysia. Carlysia, an aspiring singer, appeared on the MTV series My Super Sweet 16, with her father in 2005.

Missy Elliott

Melissa Arnette Elliott (born July 1, 1971), better known as Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott, is an American rapper, singer, dancer and record producer. Elliott embarked on her music career with all-female R&B group Sista in the early 1990s and later became a member of the Swing Mob collective along with childhood friend and longtime collaborator Timbaland, with whom she worked on projects for Aaliyah, 702, Total, and SWV. Following several collaborations and guest appearances, she launched her solo career in 1997 with her debut album Supa Dupa Fly, which spawned the hit singles “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)” and “Sock It 2 Me”. The album debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, the highest-charting debut for a female rapper at the time.

Written by Dianne Washington

Evelyn “Champagne” King

Evelyn “Champagne” King (born July 1, 1960) is an American singer. She is best known for her hit disco single “Shame”, which was released in 1977 during the height of disco’s popularity. King had other hits from the early through the mid–1980s including; “I’m in Love” (1981) and “Love Come Down” (1982). Evelyn Champagne King

Evelyn King was born in the Bronx, New York, and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her uncle Avon Long had played the part of Sportin’ Life in the first Broadway revival of Porgy and Bess and worked with Lena Horne at the Cotton Club. Her father sang back-up for groups at Harlem’s Apollo Theater. Her mother managed a group called Quality Red.

She was discovered as a young woman while working with her mother at Philadelphia International Records as an office cleaner. Producer Theodore T. Life overheard her singing in a washroom and began coaching her. She was eventually signed to a production deal with Life’s Galaxy Productions and a recording contract with RCA Records.

King released her debut album, Smooth Talk, in 1977. It included the song “Shame”, which is her only top ten on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #9; the song also reached #7 R&B and #8 on the dance chart. The record was eventually certified gold. Another single from that album, “I Don’t Know If It’s Right”, peaked at #23 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #7 R&B; it would become her second certified gold single. In 1981, the single “I’m in Love” was released from the same-titled album; it reached #1 on the R&B singles chart and dance chart in August of that year; it also peaked at #40 on the pop chart.

In 1982, King released the album, Get Loose. It yielded a top twenty pop and #1 R&B hit with the single, “Love Come Down”. The song also peaked at #1 on the dance chart and reached the UK Singles Chart top ten, peaking at #7 for three weeks. The follow-up, “Betcha She Don’t Love You”, peaked at #2 on the R&B chart and #49 on the pop chart. From the mid- to late-1980s, King would continue to chart on the R&B chart, placing eight singles in the R&B top twenty, with three making it to the top ten.

On September 20, 2004, King’s “Shame” became one of the first records to be inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame at a ceremony held in New York’s Spirit club.

On August 14, 2007, King released her first studio album in 12 years, Open Book. It featured the single “The Dance”, which peaked at #12 on the Hot Dance Club Play Chart.

In 2011, King also collaborated with deep house producer Miguel Migs, on the track “Everybody”, which was included on his album Outside the Skyline. The single for “Everybody” was released on July 19, 2011.

Written by Dianne Washington

Fantasia

Fantasia Monique Taylor (née Barrino; born June 30, 1984), known professionally by her mononym Fantasia, is an American R&B singer, songwriter, and actress. She rose to fame as the winner of the third season of the reality television series American Idol in 2004. Following her victory, she released her debut single, “I Believe,” which debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Subsequently, she released her debut album, Free Yourself, which went on to be certified Platinum by the RIAA and earned Fantasia three Grammy nominations in 2006.

In 2006, she released her second album, Fantasia, which featured the single “When I See U” which topped the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for eight weeks. The album was certified Gold by the RIAA and received three Grammy nominations in 2008. She then played the part of Celie in the Broadway musical The Color Purple, for which she won a 2007 Theatre World Award. Her third studio album, Back to Me, was released worldwide on August 24, 2010 and features the single “Bittersweet,” which peaked in the top ten on the R&B chart. The single won her a Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. As of February 2012, Fantasia has sold 2,842,000 albums and 1,425,000 tracks in the United States. In 2012, VH-1 ranked her number 32 out of the 100 Greatest Women in Music.

Written by Dianne Washington

Long Live The Kane: The 30th Anniversary

June 20th, 2018. Ford Amphitheater. Coney Island. Brooklyn, NY. Mister Cee is on the stage and on the big screen spinning all of the classic hip hop and R&B joints of the 80’s and the 90’s. People are still walking in just in time before the show starts. Looking for their seats, buying food at the concession stands, buying shirts and other merchandise, it’s a hip hop celebration. At exactly 8:18pm, the man himself walks out dripped in all white with two beautiful women by his side and the crowd goes wild. Hit after hit, banger after banger, it’s an amazing show in dedication to the hip hop legend’s debut album that dropped 30 years ago. The Juice Crew, M.O.P., Doug E. Fresh, Ecstasy of Whodini, MC Lyte, the list goes on and on. They all come out to perform their hits as well. It’s another Yo! MTV Raps 30th anniversary show 2.0 and the crowd is still going wild. June 28th, 2018. The actual day that marks 30 years since Big Daddy Kane dropped his debut album, “Long Live The Kane.” The then twenty year old fresh from Brooklyn became friends with Biz Markie which started the infamous Juice Crew, a collective that was headed by Marley Marl. Kane signed with Cold Chillin’ Records in 1987 and released his debut single “Raw” which he showcased his pioneering fast rhyme style that then influenced a new lane of rappers like Jay-Z. The album displayed topics of love and Afrocentrism. With four singles, “Raw”, “Ain’t No Half Steppin’”, “Set It Off”, and “I’ll Take You There”, they were all commercially successful. “Long Live The Kane” is to be considered one of hip hop’s most influential albums of all time. Especially one from the Golden Era. Kane’s lyrical ability and flow, to his style and grace, and the references and samples used that came from this album are all an example of the impact of Kane. The perfect but timeless title for an album that fits. Even thirty years later. Long live the Kane.

Joe Jackson dies at 89

Joseph “Joe” Jackson, the patriarch who launched the musical Jackson family dynasty, died Wednesday at a Las Vegas hospital, a source close to the family tells the media. The source also said that he had been battling cancer for some time, with doctors telling the family that he had a limited amount of time left to live, and that the illness was untreatable. Jackson was the father of and at times manager to pop stars Michael and Janet Jackson, along with the sibling singing group, The Jackson 5. He also has a daughter Johvonnie Jackson. His Twitter account posted a cryptic tweet Sunday that said, “I have seen more sunsets than I have left to see. The sun rises when the time comes and whether you like it or not the sun sets when the time comes.”

Joe Jackson was 89 when he died.

Travel in peace Joe Jackson

The Apollo

This date celebrates the opening of The Apollo Theater in 1933.

Located at 253 West 125th Street in central Harlem, New York City, The Apollo Theater was the most important venue in Black show business from the 1930s through the 1970s, when waning popularity caused it financial problems. The theater itself began its life in 1913 as Hurtig and Seamon’s Music Hall, a venue frequented by white vaudeville acts that entertained predominantly white crowds until the 1930s. Sidney Cohen purchased the theater in 1933 and renamed it the Apollo, replacing the vaudeville fare with black entertainment.

The Apollo’s first show in 1934, Jazz a la Carte, featured Benny Carter’s big-band and helped to solidify the theater’s new role as the City’s primary African American performance venue, overshadowing the Lincoln and Lafayette theaters. With live broadcasts that featured the Duke Ellington and Count Basie orchestras, the Apollo became a mecca for jazz bands in the 1930s and 1940s. By the 1950s, the Apollo Theater was the nation’s top stage for established black artists and the Apollo’s famous Amateur Night, in which unknown performers had their talent assessed by the notoriously raucous Harlem audience, had become a springboard for numerous careers.

Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, and Pearl Bailey, for example, were all early Amateur Night winners, and later acts like the Jackson 5 and Stevie Wonder also enjoyed their first major exposure at the Apollo. As musical styles changed, the theater evolved with the times, booking rhythm and blues, gospel, funk, soul and hip-hop acts, and hosting landmark performances by artists like James Brown. During the 1970s the Apollo steadily lost money, forcing its closure in 1977. Its declaration as a national historic landmark in 1983 secured the building’s survival, but efforts to make it a viable performance house throughout the 1980s failed.

The theater was taken on by a nonprofit organization in 1991, which intended to make the theater a significant part of Harlem’s 125th street renewal.

Written by Dianne Washington

Don’t Be Cruel: The 30th Anniversary

Continuing on the subject of New Edition’s 30th anniversary of “Heart Break”, Bobby Brown, who at the time was no longer a part of the group, released his sophomore breakout album the same day. “Don’t Be Cruel” was not only a mega hit for Bobby, but the album was stamped as one of the staples for the New Jack Swing movement at the time in R&B music. Also stamped as one of the greatest albums in R&B history, Bobby was on top of the world. Winning awards, killing stages, music videos, and doing interviews, it was a great time in R&B music to witness something that big. To be a huge success outside of your group while they’re also getting bigger with a new member, it’s hard to ignore the slight competition that was going on and placed on the fellas by the industry. This was all just a master plan to see who would flop and who wouldn’t. Pure R&B brilliance. “Don’t Be Cruel” was done by the man himself, Teddy Riley. The man who at the time was with Guy and their album was just out weeks ago. The album also gave birth to and open doors for future R&B acts like Usher, Omarion, and Chris Brown. 30 years of pure greatness and it’s still untouched. An album that signifies a revolution in a young man’s rise to the top. Reminding the world also that it’s his way, it’s his prerogative and that’s the way he just wanna live. Not giving a care about what others say but unapologetically just being Bobby Brown, the original bad boy of R&B.

Heart Break: The 30th Anniversary

The group that we all were used to in the beginning were the bubblegum pop little boys from Boston, Massachusetts. They were from the ghetto but the music never reflected that. Their first four albums were all teeny boppish/R&B music until one member was replaced and they were much older. With a new member in the group and a new sound and image, the masterpiece was their fifth album. On June 20th, 1988, New Edition released their highly anticipated fifth album “Heart Break.” With an already steady and heavy fanbase, the fellas really came back more mature and polished with a sound to reflect that and it was far away from what their fans were used to. With Johnny Gill on board now, it was bound to be a smash, a hit. The fellas could do absolutely no wrong this time around. Between 1988 and 1990, the album had six singles and it went double platinum by RIAA. The masters behind the sound of the album were none other than the super producer team Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. The same guys who were responsible for giving Janet Jackson “Control” and helping Janet become a breakout superstar. The team had the magic touch to give the same energy to New Edition. On this album, Johnny does most of the lead vocals besides Ralph, another thing that fans weren’t used to. The group was not only a success with this album but now their careers were much bigger and headed down a different direction. Crazy enough, the same day this album dropped, Bobby Brown also releases his breakout sophomore album called “Don’t Be Cruel.” A master plan to garner the success and attention the same time as your group to see whether or not who would flop. In the end, this was a memorable day for New Edition fans. A memorable day in R&B history. It’s just like when A Tribe Called Quest dropped “Midnight Marauders” the same day Wu-Tang Clan’s debut album “Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)” but for R&B.