Grammy Award and third season American Idol winner, Fantasia returns this fall with the release of Christmas After Midnight. Produced by Ron Fair, the 12-track album features covers of holiday favorites including “This Christmas,” “Silent Night,” “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas,” “Santa Claus Go Straight To The Ghetto,”and “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” which features vocals from CeeLo Green.
Christmas After Midnight will be available on music platform as of October 6th.
Maria Jackson Magazine’s objective is to highlight and share the stories of positive Black Creators and Contributors in the field of music, movies, poetry, business etc. In a world where negativity is constantly being celibrated and praised, we are striving to honor positivity in all its forms. We welcome like minded individuals to join forces with us as we use our voice, no matter how soft, to bring some good back into the society.
Sales
We are looking for part time sales reps to help to market all the features and benefits of MJ Magazine. The ideal candidate must have a broad understanding of Black music, culture and lifestyle and must be willing to commit time and effort to the job. We are seeking self-respecting, decent, hard working people to partner with. Experience in sales would be ideal, but it is not mandatory, as we are prepared to train the right candidate. If you think you would be a good fit for us, we invite you to submit your resume to info@mjent.net.
Hip-Hop Contributors / Writers
As the rap business continues to expand and garner unspeakable commercial success, we at MJ Magazine would like to ensure that the real hip-hop culture remains alive and vibrant. As such, we are seeking hip-hop writers and contributors to add positive content about the genre to our platform. We are looking to shed some light on already established conscious artists who may not be getting the attention they deserve because of all the noise. We are seeking self-respecting, decent, hard working people to partner with. If you think you would be a good fit for us, we invite you to submit your resume along with copies of your work to info@mjent.net
Soca Contributors / Writers
There seems to be a misconception about calypso and soca music. People tend to think that it is all about wining and grinding. Having had the experience to work with many artists over the past few years, we know for a fact that’s not the case. The issue is that the calypso/soca artists with a positive message are usually overshadowed by those competing for the public’s attention. That being said, we would like to change that. We are looking for soca writers and contributors who, like us, are eager to show the more conscious side of the genre. We are seeking self-respecting, decent, hard working people to partner with. If you think you would be a good fit for us, we invite you to submit your resume along with copies of your work to info@mjent.net
Estelle’s “Love Like Ours” featuring Tarrus Riley is the 1st single from the Grammy Award winning singer’s upcoming studio album. The full album will be released in Spring, 2018. The single, which was released earlier this year, has been getting very good rotation on radio as well as in clubs.
The official video for “Love Like Ours” shows two people that’s completely in love, and as such, carried the words of the song beautifully. It was directed by Denzel Williams.
In a few days, emerging artist jlawremone will be sharing his brand new video for the single, Temporary Love, which features Javon J. The song has been getting good club rotation in the tristate area since its release a few weeks ago.
Temporary Love is a catchy party song that deals with casual encounters, but unlike other songs with a similar theme, it’s done in a way that makes it seems irresistible and arguably ok. The track was produced by jlawremone (New York) and mixed and mastered by RedBoom (Jamaica).
Click here to stream and download Temporary Love from iTunes and remember to look out for the video
One of Jamaica’s most accomplished visual artist, Andy Ballentine, is now doing the official artwork for Lt. Stitchie’s soon to be released album. For those not familiar with Andy Ballentine, his trademark work – the careful representation of Jamaican fruits, vegetables and landscapes – as well as other portraits, can be found island wide in various resorts. His eye catching art hangs beautifully in tourist traps like Couples (Ocho Rios), which contracted him to produce 30 pieces for their resort in 2002, Swept Away (Negril), and internationally, in places like the office of the Ambassador of Iceland.
The two men met recently at an airport in Miami, Florida. Andy, a die-hearted fan of Lt. Stitchie, introduced himself once he spotted the governor. Stitchie, for his part, was equally impressed once he learned about Andy’s work and achievements. There was an instant connection which eventually led to Andy Ballentine working on the visuals for Lt. Stitchie’s album.
Lt. Stitchie and his team will not be showing the artwork to the public until the album is ready.
Reflecting Macka B’s world-wide fanbase ‘Health Is Wealth’ features tracks produced in Jamaica, Germany & Japan ‘longside recordings made in Macka’s Black Country heartland as well as the London studios of Mafia & Fluxy & Stingray.
The focus track for the album is “Wha Me Eat (remix)’ a vegan anthem given new life and fully supported by Macka B TV and his newly launched ‘Wha Me Eat’ health supplements and clothing line.
The album features the viral video hit, ‘Cucumba’ which has received Breakfast show support in the UK by Nick Grimshaw on BBC Radio One, in NYC by Ebro on Hot 97FM and LA by BigBoy on iHeart Real 92.3. This has resulted in guest spots on BBC Radio 4, BBC Radio 5, BBC World Service & BBC Radio London, plus UK national press in the Daily Mail Newspaper.
Cucumba has over 43 million views on facebook
Other standout tracks on the album are the fresh ganja anthem “Natural Herb’ over a South Rawkus cut of Sleng Teng, tributes to the reggae greats in the two cuts of ‘Legendary Reggae Icons’ over fresh do-overs of ‘My Conversation’ and ‘Here I Come’ plus a heartical re-lick of Ras Michael’s ‘None A Jah Jah Children’ in combination with Billboard hit-maker Maxi Priest.
Macka B is a true global messenger for reggae music utilising social media for his ‘Medical Mondays’ & ‘Wha Me Eat Wednesdays’ as well as taking his live show across five continents to perform sell out shows in Jamaica, Hawaii, Japan, China, Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Germany, France, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Poland, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, South Africa, Senegal, Sierra Leone, New Zealand, Australia.
TOUR DATES:
07 Oct 17 – SHEFFIELD, Yellow Arch Studios
08 Oct 17 – FALMOUTH REGGAE FESTIVAL, Events Square, Discovery Quay Falmouth, Cornwall
12 Oct 17 – GLASGOW, The Classic Grand
14 Oct 17 – CHELMSFORD, Bassment
16 Oct 17 – BRISTOL, The Fleece
20 Oct 17 – WHITSTABLE, Dukes
21 Oct 17 – CHELTENHAM, Frog & Fiddle
04 Nov 17 – BANGOR, Neuadd Owen
10 Nov 17 – NORWICH, Norwich Arts Centre
11 Nov 17 – LEAMINGTON SPA, Zephyr Lounge
17 Nov 17 – LEICESTER, 2Funky Music Cafe
18 Nov 17 – LONDON, The Garage
27 Nov 17 – BRIGHTON, Komedia
The musical career of Glenroy Washington, singer, songwriter and drummer, personifies the cliché; ”The race is not for the swift, but for those who can endure.” The triumph of Glen Washington’s endurance has been 25 years in the making.
Like most successful artists, Washington evolved from humble beginnings. Born in the parish of Clarendon, Jamaica he is currently one of the most in demand artist in reggae music; this has come after many years of recording and waiting in the wings. In 1997, he released his debut album ‘Brother To Brother’ and, to date, has released 10 albums. Fans and critics alike say there is not one bad song in his catalog.
Washington began his musical career in the early seventies as the lead singer for the group “Names And Faces.” He later became the lead singer in a band called “35 Incorporated” and learned to play the drums under the guidance of, then drummer, Joseph Hill. When Hill left the band, Washington filled the slot, and became a singing drummer.
There are positive lessons of encouragement and motivation to learn from Washington’s experiences. His musical career is reminiscent of Boris Gardener, singer, bass player and bandleader who after 25 years in the music industry recorded the golden “I Wanna Wake Up With You.” In the same vein, it was thirty years after recording the classic “Black Magic Woman” that Santana went on to sweep the 2000 Grammy awards for the gigantic hit “Maria Maria”.
Similarly, Washington made his first hit record “Rockers Not Crackers” in 1978 for the Joe Gibbs Record label; but he did not grace the charts again until the release of the hit “Kindness For Weakness” in 1998.
Most music industry insiders would say that after 20 years in the business, it’s unlikely that an artist would release his biggest hit, but it has been proven again and again how speculative this business is.
Over the years, Washington has recorded sporadically as a solo singer and extensively as a studio drummer and, has laid tracks for various artists. Simultaneously, Washington was a full-time drummer (sometimes singer) in several different bands, such as: The Avengers, The Titans, and Happiness Unlimited. With Happiness Unlimited he migrated to the USA to work with Stevie Wonder. The other Bands he played with are Calabash and Bands that backed Artists such as Leroy Sibbles, Shinehead, Junior Reid, Gregory Isaacs, Sister Carol and the Meditations.
After a short hiatus from performing; in 1997, Washington once again pursued his solo singing career by doing some recording sessions for Studio One’s, famed Producer – Clement Dodd. It was dejavu all over again with the release of Washington’s awesome debut album “Brother to Brother”.
It seems the Studio One sound was launching another Artist career. However, it was a year later while recording for Producers Lloyd Campbell & Jason Sterling, that Washington hit with the classic album “Next To You.” It was marketed by VP Records and featured the hit song “Kindness for Weakness”, all tracks on this album are considered single material.
From the resurgence of Glen Washington’s singing career, his smooth, raspy, bass voice has often been likened to that of Beres Hammond. Washington says, “Beres is one of my favorite entertainers, so I regard it as a compliment to be compared with him.” With the release of over forty singles and eleven albums in four years, Washington has established himself as not only a singer but, also as a gifted songwriter who penned his own songs.
Other albums released by Washington are “Can’t You See” produced by Jah Life Records; “Think About It” for Philip Smart; “Number One Girl” produced by Lloyd Campbell & Jason Sterling, “Solitary Red Rose” for Ruff Stuff; “Can’t Keep A Good Man Down” for Don One; “Wondering Stranger” for Coxone Dodd, “ Reggae Max” for Jet Star, “Free Up The Vibes” for Stingray and “Your Love” Lloyd Campbell & Jason Sterling.
Washington said, “As a drummer backing other artists, I have toured the world, playing in countries like Japan, North, South and Central America, all over Europe and all the Caribbean Islands. Now I am repeating those trips as the featured artist, and it’s a great feeling to see thousands of fans coming out for my performances.”
Submitted.
