As the corona virus continues to spread across the United States, many Americans are choosing to celebrate July 4th by staying in and watching the various entertainment shows on TV.
One of the most anticipated programs on everyone’s watch-list is the Essence Music Festival. It is schedule to air tonight at 7:00 PM ET on essencestudios dot com. Viewers will be treated to performances by Usher, Patti LaBelle, Bruno Mars, BBD, Doug E. Fresh and many more popular entertainers.
Following the rise of Aretha Franklin’s career from a child singing in her father’s church’s choir to her international superstardom, RESPECT is the remarkable true story of the music icon’s journey to find her voice.
Cast members include: Jennifer Hudson, Forest Whitaker, Marlon Wayans, Audra McDonald, Marc Maron, Tituss Burgess, Saycon Sengbloh, Hailey Kilgore, Heather Headley, Skye Dakota Turner, Tate Donovan and Mary J. Blige.
RESPECT, which is directed by Liesl Tommy, will be in theaters in December, 2020.
The organizers of the annual Austin City Limits Music Festival have just announced that they are cancelling the 2020 staging of the event. See below a statement that was shared on July 1st.
Austin City Limits Music Festival will no longer take place in 2020. We would have loved to put on another memorable show this year, however, with the uncertainty surrounding the current situation in Texas, this decision is the only responsible solution. The health and safety of our fans, artists, partners, staff and the entire Austin community remains our highest priority.
We will return to Zilker Park on October 1-3 and October 8-10, 2021 to celebrate our 20th Anniversary. We encourage fans who have already purchased tickets to hold on to them to lock in access to next year’s festival at 2019 prices. Refunds will be made available for fans who purchased directly through the festival and cannot attend next year’s dates. All current ticket holders will receive an email from Front Gate Tickets shortly with information on both options.
ACL Fest has always been rooted in tradition, our common love of live music, and our community. This includes supporting Austin Parks Foundation for the past 15 years to improve parks and green spaces across the city. Take this time to maintain your personal health and wellness by visiting www dot austinparks dot org to learn how you can safely enjoy and support parks in our area, and please continue to follow the advice of local officials, look out for each other, and stay safe.
The second weekend of the Essence Festival Of Culture kicks off tomorrow, Thursday, July 2nd, with the ‘Wellness House’ segment. It will stream in real time via Essence Studios, Twitter and Facebook Live from 5:00 PM to 9:30 PM EST.
The focus will be on meditation, conversations, workouts and tutorials designed to boost your mental, physical, spiritual, emotional and financial well-being. Some of the confirmed guests are: Taraji P. Henson, India.Arie, Egypt Sherrod, Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, Koya Webb and many more.
Iconic soul artist Nina Simone once said that every musicians’ art should reflect the times they’re living in; John Legend‘s song and video, “Never Break,” does just that.
The track is featured on Legend‘s just released album titled “Bigger Love.” The significance of “Never Break” is that it speaks to the current situation in the United States of America, specifically to the fight for racial equality. The very powerful video shows us that though we as Africans have come along way in this struggle, we still have a very long way to go.
On June 5th, Gramps Morgan, a member of the popular reggae group Morgan Heritage, released a powerful record dubbed “People Like You.” The song, which celebrates people who make major sacrifices for those in need, was shared by several pop artists online.
A few days ago Gramps followed up with the actual music video. Keeping it very simple, it only shows him singing the song with help from the supporting vocalists. Click here to watch the video and remember to like, comment and share.
NPR Music has just published Alicia Keys‘ performance, which was taped in February of this year. As they are no longer doing live videos – due to the corona virus pandemic – they have decided to share unseen recordings.
Click here or on the image above to watch and remember to like, comment and share.
MARIA JACKSON 27 MAGAZINE 