Sunday April 6th, 2003
New CD's this past week:
None to report
Short news stories this week:
Toni Braxton Gives Birth To Another Boy
Toni Braxton and her husband, Keri Lewis,
welcomed their second son,
Diezel Ky Braxton Lewis, on Sunday (March 30th). The boy was born in an
Atlanta hospital, and both he and his mom are doing fine, according to
Braxton's publicist.
Lewis and Braxton had their first son, Denim, in December of 2001.
In related news, Braxton recently parted ways with Arista Records. The
singer is currently in negotiations with Blackground Records.
R. Kelly Reissues 'A Soldier's Heart'
Superstar singer-songwriter R. Kelly, who
is currently facing
pornography charges in Illinois and Florida, has rereleased his song, "A
Soldier's Heart." A CD single of the track will go on sale on April 23rd
and the proceeds will go to support the families of soldiers through
Kelly's I Believe I Can Fly Foundation.
"A Soldier's Heart" was written, produced, and arranged by R. Kelly.
The
song--which describes the bravery, courage, and patriotism of our
servicemen and women--was originally released in April of 2002 in
support of the troops who were fighting the war on terrorism abroad as
part of Operation Enduring Freedom.
Kelly shared that he would like to visit the troops and to perform the
song, "The old statement 'music can calm the savage beast' is true in so
many ways. It can also soothe pain, bring calm, and uplift, and that's
what I'm trying to do through my music this time."
India.Arie Explains Her New Look
Grammy winner India.Arie shocked many of
her fans in February when she
cut off her dreadlocks. The singer recently explained to AP that her
hair is a spiritual conduit, "I believe hair is a spiritual conduit. I'd
been growing this hair for many years. I'm 27 now--not that that's old,
but a lot of growth went on for me between 23 and 27."
Arie explained that it wasn't an emotional process, "I wasn't crying. I
had to detach myself from whether or not (I'd like it). The only reason
I kept it for so long was for vanity."
Brian McKnight Admits He's No 'Perfect Man'
Brian McKnight is back on the music scene
with his brand-new album, U
Turn. The newly divorced singer is back on the dating scene as well. As
he told VH1 recently, women often get the wrong idea about him through
his music.
"It's a problem because women think that just because I write this
stuff, I'm the perfect man," said McKnight. "Of course, I'm not. I
just
write about it. I can't tell you how many times I've heard, 'Well,
you're nothing like your music...'"
While McKnight may be a ladies man now, he confessed that it wasn't
always that way for him. He told the music network, "From the first
grade through the eighth grade, my mother dressed me in Hushpuppies and
bow tie, assuring the fact that no woman would ever talk to me. When I
got into high school and started getting good at sports, the girls
started liking me. By 11th grade I was the man."
McKnight's "Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda" sits at Number 30 this week on
R&R's Adult Contemporary Chart.
Soul legend Edwin Starr dies aged 61
Soul legend Edwin Starr died wednesday
April 2nd at the age of 61, his
manager, Lilian Kyle, confirmed.
The US-born star - known for his enduring hits War and Contact - is
thought to have died of a heart attack.
Starr had lived for many years in the UK and died at his home near
Nottingham.
Leading tributes last night, 70s rock star Suzi Quatro, who has known
Starr since she was a teenager in Detroit, said: "He was the best. There
was nobody better on stage and he was the nicest man you could ever wish
to meet. We had been very close friends for many years and I'm just
stunned by the news."
The singer, who was born Charles Hatcher in Nashville, Tennessee, formed
his first group, The Future Tones, in 1957. His biggest success came
with his outspoken single War, a US number one in 1970 and number three
in the UK.
Luther Vandross To Release Fifteenth Album In June
Superstar Luther Vandross will release his
fifteenth album, Dance With
My Father, on June 17th. The set features guest appearances by Beyonce
Knowles, Queen Latifah, Busta Rhymes, Foxy Brown, and Stevie Wonder.
Vandross, who wrote 10 of the songs on the new set, explained the
writing process in a statement, "I have been re-examining the way I
write: I don't want to say anything that was just nifty. I put down some
thoughts that I've been having for a while in the songs on this
album...."
Vandross also explained the concept behind the title song, "Recording
that song was very emotional for me and, yes, it is based on my own
experience. I called my mother when I first started writing 'Dance With
My Father' to let her know about it, and as soon as we had a first draft
of it, I got it to her and she has played it literally every day since."
Vandross continued, "It captures a particular place and suspends you in
mid-air...it's my mother and my father dancing to some Baby Washington
song with me right there...and the memory of that moment has hovered
around me throughout my life ever since."
Ginuwine Says He Took A Chance With 'Hell Yeah'
R&B singer Ginuwine is enjoying the
success of his hit single, "Hell
Yeah" featuring Baby. The R. Kelly-produced song is currently Number 13
on the urban Radio And Records National Airplay chart.
Ginuwine said that he felt he had to take the risk in releasing "Hell
Yeah" as the first single from his new album, The Senior, although fans
might have wanted a ballad: "You got to take chances in this industry.
You got to be a leader--you can't be a follower. So I came in this
industry being a leader, and I want to leave being a leader."
The Senior, which comes out April 8th, features guest appearances by
Sole, Tweet, Blu Cantrell, Baby, Snoop Dogg, Method Man, Missy Elliott,
and newcomer Jose.