Music
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30 Days of Musical Blackness With VSB, Day 13: Lysette Titi, 'Young, Sad and Blue'
For years, I knew very little about Lysette. For instance, I had no idea her actual artist name (at the time) was Lysette Titi. I didn’t know she was from the D.C. area. I had no idea she was, at one point, a lead singer for legendary D.C. go-go band Backyard Band. All I knew…
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All Hail the Queen: Mary J. Blige to Receive Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2019 BET Awards
For the past three decades, Mary J. Blige has provided us with everlasting life through song like no artist before her. And to celebrate her various contributions to the entertainment industry, she’ll be honored with BET’s Lifetime Achievement Award later this month at the 19th annual BET Awards. According to BET, the 2019 BET Awards…
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30 Days of Musical Blackness With VSB, Day 12: Luther Vandross, 'So Amazing'
I don’t know what you can say about a song already called “So Amazing” that literally lives up to its title, even though the “amazing” being referenced is love. I mean, it really is so amazing to be loved, even following people to the moon and the sky above. Not much has to be said…
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Spread Love, It’s the Christopher Wallace Way: Brooklyn Block Renamed for Notorious B.I.G.
On any other day, the storm that lingered over Brooklyn, N.Y., may have been looked on as ominous or foreboding. It certainly would’ve deterred anyone from standing in it longer than they absolutely had to. But on Monday, on one block bordering the Clinton Hill and Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhoods, it was an affirmation. “Biggie is crying…
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30 Days of Musical Blackness With VSB, Day 11: Fresh Start Worship, ‘Mention’
I listen to a lot of music, from hip-hop to country to rock ’n roll to even Celtic (seriously, some of that harp work jams … on the one), but when I need to hear something that digs into my soul, I go straight for gospel, and more specifically, praise and worship. Some of this…
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DJ Khaled Is Said to Be Planning to Make a Run on Billboard’s Pockets Over No. 1 Spot Spat
Apparently, when DJ Khaled intones, “We the best!” he means it, and anyone saying otherwise may be in for a fight—a legal fight, that is. According to Page Six, the Miami-based deejay is set to sue Billboard over its recent decision to deny him the No. 1 spot on its Billboard 200 albums chart for…
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30 Days of Musical Blackness With VSB, Day 10: Geto Boys, 'My Mind's Playing Tricks On Me' x Isaac Hayes, 'Hung Up On My Baby'
Like many of us, I spent various moments yesterday reading mixed reporting on the status of Bushwick Bill, member of pioneering Houston rap group, Geto Boys. A few weeks ago, we were all met with news that Bill, born Richard Shaw, had been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. When the news came last night…
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30 Days of Musical Blackness With VSB, Day 9: Ray J, 'One Wish'
I hear you looking at me right now like, “How did Ray J end up ‘round here?” And to that I say, despite the fact that I have stated very plainly that I’m a fan of one Willie Ray Norwood, I didn’t put Ray J on this list, I put “One Wish” on this list…
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30 Days of Musical Blackness With VSB, Day 8: Teni, 'Party Next Door'
One thing I’ve made it a point to do more in the past few years is dig heavier into current music coming from Africa. So many artists are breaking through (i.e., Davido, etc.) but there is just SO SO much dope music coming from West Africa—Nigeria in particular. Fela Kuti is one of my top…
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Raphael Saadiq Is About to Make Your Summer Better With the August Release of His New Album, Jimmy Lee
Raphael Saadiq, the most underappreciated R&B artist of all time, is about to bring forth the sound and light with his Aug. 23 release, Jimmy Lee. It will be his first solo release in eight years, following up his 2011 release, Stone Rollin’. This album comes fresh off the heels of his amazing performance at…