THIS CHRISTMAS 🎄

 This Christmas is "hands down" one of my favorite Christmas movies. I found it truly heartwarming. This trailer does a good job of previewing the holiday with the absolute joy and magic of Christmas. Chris Brown warms up our hearts, spreading love and igniting the neighborhood Christmas lights with the wave of his hands.

Below is a list of other Christmas movies that me,my friends and family have enjoyed over the years. You and your family are sure to enjoy them this holiday season as well. 

The Best Man Holiday 

 The Preacher's Wife

 Black Nativity  

 

 

Random Blog Post Mash Up-BET Awards June 2025 Flashback 2025-Kirk Franklin, Glorilla, Chris Brown

 Kirk Franklin closes out a stellar BET Awards show in June with an exhilarating song and dance performance that included a sample of the gospel standard  "Silver and Gold" with a medley of his hits including "Melodies from Heaven" and "Stomp".

Chris Brown wins Viewer's  Choice Award for his latest song "Residuals" from Deluxe album 11:11. See blog link to earlier posting regarding his win here.

 One of the more controversial Awards for that night was the bestowal of the Dr. Bobby Jones Best Gospel/Inspirational Award on gritty rapper Glorilla for her song "Rain Down on Me".The track featured gospel artists Kirk Franklin, Maverick City Music, Kierra Sheard, and Chandler Moore. She called the win a "blessing" and said, "I owe it all to God".

The win sparked discussion and controversy, with some traditionalists questioning a secular artist winning a gospel award, while others saw it as a way for the message of the song to reach a wider audience. 

Fast forward to recent holiday season notes in terms of favorite Christmas songs. Glorilla was asked on a radio program what her favorite song was and she responded Chris Brown's which is a rendition of the Donny Hathaway classic "This Christmas". Chris sings that song in the popular Christmas movie, "This Christmas".He appears in the movie with co-stars Loretta Devine, Idris Alba,Regina Hall and others.

Speaking of Christmas favorites, click here for a special Christmas Playlist of Jazz songs that was prepared as a gift to my blog audience several years ago. Enjoy!

Cynthia Wilson, Blog Owner, Founder & Editor

Lets Give Them Something to Talk About-Kennedy Center Honors

 Bonnie Raitt is among the revered musicians who was  honored at the 47 th Annual Kennedy Center Honors Awards ceremony earlier this week in Washington, DC. 

Congratulations to Bonnie whom I had the chance to meet and chat with
years ago at a benefit concert for the Songbird Foundation. She is a long time humanitarian and activist who has contributed much of her time,energies and talent to raising both money and awareness for many important social causes over the decades including the Rhythm and Blues Foundation which was initiated to support r&b artists in need of financial and medical assistance. She celebrated her birthday recently. Check out this archived post on Facebook where she gave a rousing  introduction of friend and fellow blues musician Keb Mo.

I met her along with John Mayer her special guest at a benefit concert sponsored by Oxfam and the Guac Fund to raise awareness for fair trade with coffee farmers. Bonnie's a hero and warrior for social action using her gift of  music over the decades to raise awareness and money for social causes.

 

 

R&B Icon Chris Brown Celebrates Twenty Years With Breezy Bowl, Grammy Win, BET Viewer's Choice Award and 11:11 Deluxe Album Release

 Chris Brown has fought back fiercely and triumphed brilliantly through the storm of negative media attention and legal battles he has experienced in the past. He still has some legal hurdles ahead. However,the pinnacle of success he has achieved today is really nothing short of miraculous. From a small town in Viginia to a global superstar. Resiliency is definitely in his DNA and must be one of his superpowers.

This year Breezy Bowl XX his concert tour received critical acclaim.

"According to Billboard Boxscore, the Breezy Bowl XX earned $295.5 million and sold 1.98 million tickets over 49 shows. Of those totals, $47.8 million and 490,000 tickets are from the tour’s European leg, and the remaining $247.8 million and 1.5 million tickets are from North American shows.^[1] The tour received critical acclaim, with reviewers praising Brown’s dancing, vocals, stage production, aerial stunts, audience engagement, and overall performance energy, with several describing the tour as a demonstration of Brown's continued prominence in R&B and pop music.^[6]"

^{https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breezy_Bowl_XX?wprov=sfla1}

His deluxe album 11:11 was awarded a Grammy for Best R&b album in February. He gave thanks to god and graciously thanked his fans.

Residuals, his single from that album won the BET Viewer's Choice Award in June. Brown was not there to receive the award

Check out this video compilation of his best performances over the past 20 years:

Thousands Attend "No Kings" Protest Marches Across the Country and Globally

 No King's Washington, DC

No King's New York City

No Kings~Atlanta

No King's Atlanta  Georgia- Interview of Senator Raphael Warnock on site of protest.

No King's Detroit, Michigan

Protesters from all over the world marched and chanted slogans in unison in expressions of  discontent with the current administration's policies and their impact on the American people. I gathered some video footage from YouTube  to give you a view of some of the cities where the protests took place.

In a coordinated effort among community organizations, the ACLU and a host of civic and social organizations, protests were held in over 1,000 cities. More information forthcoming in our newsletters and podcast.