Enough is Enough! LA Artists Speak Out for Black History Month
*(Los Angeles, CA) Barbara Morrison Performing Arts Center, Miles Berman and Sistaah Gurlfriend Productions, Proudly present a Black History Month celebration with, “ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!” February 10th, 11th, 24th and 25th at 8:00 pm at the Barbara Morrison Performing Arts Center. Enough Is Enough is an amazing Collection of Short Pieces, written by Award Winning […]
Black British Singer Will Accept Trump Inauguration Invite ONLY If She Can Perform ‘Strange Fruit’
*Former “X Factor UK” contestant Rebecca Ferguson is the latest performer to take issue with being invited to sing at Donald Trump’s inauguration, but the black British singer has come up with a way to possibly protest his presidency to his face. Ferguson said in a statement on Monday that she had been asked to perform […]
Recording Academy to Honor Nina Simone, Shirley Caesar, Sly Stone, Ahmad Jamal
*In a long overdue move, the Recording Academy has announced it will honor legendary singer Nina Simone with a posthumous lifetime achievement award during its 2017 Special Merit Awards ceremony. Gospel great Shirley Caesar, jazz pianist Ahmad Jamal, experimental rockers the Velvet Underground, funk icon Sly Stone, country superstar Charley Pride, and seminal country singer […]
Jazz Vocalist Debbie Carter Celebrates Nina Simone in a One Night Performance …
*Jazz and Gospel vocalist Debbie Carter celebrates music icon Nina Simone in a one night performance of “Channeling Nina” at the Brooklyn School of Music on November 26. An interpreter of Simone’s music for over 20 years, Carter will make her debut appearance at the historic landmark artistic epicenter of Central Brooklyn. With the recent […]
Prince, Nina Simone, Ledisi, Wale Make President Obama’s Spotify Summer Playlists
*The White House has released President Obama’s two Spotify playlists for the summer — one for daytime and one for after dark. Been waiting to drop this: summer playlist, the encore. What’s everybody listening to? pic.twitter.com/mqh1YVrycj — President Obama (@POTUS) August 11, 2016 The president’s wide variety of musical tastes are on full display through […]
Zoe Saldana: ‘The Good Outweighed The Fear’ of Playing Nina Simone
*As the nation moved into its second day of mourning Prince, the feature film “Nina” quietly arrived in theaters on April 22, following months of controversy, scores of think pieces and a collective side-eye over the casting of Zoe Saldana as the fiercely complicated and prolific artist Nina Simone. Writer/director Cynthia Mort opts to focus solely […]
‘Nina’ Director Explains Reason for Casting Zoe Saldana as Singing Legend
*After enduring a slew of criticism leveled at Zoe Saldana for being too light-skinned to play Nina Simone in the upcoming biopic “Nina,” the film’s director is revealing her reasons behind the controversial casting. Reigniting previous comments on Saldana’s “amazingly courageous” performance in “Nina,” Cynthia Mort noted that the actress’ talent as an actress factored […]
One-Woman Tribute, ‘Ozara in the Key of Nina’, Comes to NYC in May.
On Sunday May 29, 2016 at 7:00 pm, Elevated Places Arts will present Ozara Odé, Soul/Jazz Vocalist, in a tribute to Nina Simone. After sold out presentations in Atlanta and in Ozara’s hometown of Milwaukee, Elevated Places Arts will deliver their fourth installment of Ozara in The Key of Nina, a One-Woman Show depicting the […]
Nina Simone Doc. Dir. Labels Singer’s Biopic ‘Ugly and Inaccurate’
*Criticism over the upcoming Nina Simone biopic continues to pour in as the director of a documentary based on the singer’s life points out how “ugly and inaccurate” the Zoe Saldana-starring “Nina” is. In an guest column on The Hollywood Reporter, Jeff Lieberman, who helmed “The Amazing Nina Simone,” slammed the biopic’s distributor, Robert Johnson […]
‘What Happened, Miss Simone?’ Producer Talks Nina’s Legacy & ‘Perplexing’ Casting of Biopic [EUR Exclusive]
*Directed by Liz Garbus, the documentary “What Happened, Miss Simone?“ is currently streaming on Netflix, and explores the artist’s powerful presence at her concerts, her civil rights activism and politics – and how all affected her relationships with her family, friends and collaborators, which were complicated and frequently difficult. The doc was nominated this year […]
Queen Latifah, Paula Patton Defend Zoe Saldana as Nina Simone
*During their red carpet premiere of their film “The Perfect Match,” Queen Latifah and Paula Patton were asked to weigh in on the controversial casting of Zoe Saldana as Nina Simone in the upcoming film “Nina.” The decision to cast Saldana has been slammed by folks who believe a darker-skinned African American should’ve been chosen, particularly […]
Nina Simone’s Daughter Defends Zoe Saldana, Her Brother…Not So Much
*Nina Simone’s only daughter, Lisa Simone Kelly, says she has no issue with Zoe Saldana portraying her mother in the upcoming biopic “Nina,” and she denies being behind that snarky tweet Simone’s estate sent to Zoe shortly after the new trailer for the film debuted last week. Perhaps Nina Simone’s brother, Sam Waymon, sent the […]
India.Arie Discusses Backlash Against Zoe Saldana as Nina Simone
*India.Arie has weighed in on the controversy surrounding the casting of Zoë Saldana as Nina Simone in the upcoming biographical film about her life. The 40-year-old, who portrayed Simone onscreen in a 2003 episode of “American Dreams,” has been vocal in her opposition to Saldana in the role. She saw an early version of “Nina” three […]
Zoe Saldana’s Controversial ‘Nina’ Film Gets Poster, Release Date
*After two years of lingering in limbo, the controversial Nina Simone film starring Zoe Saldana and David Oyelowo will be released in theaters, VOD and Digital HD on April 22, 2016. There is no trailer yet, but the first official post has been released and it has reignited the Twitterverse outrage over bi-racial Saldana being […]
Robert Johnson Defends Zoe Saldana After Nina Simone Estate’s Shade
*BET founder Robert L. Johnson, whose company RLJ Entertainment is distributing the Nina Simone biopic “Nina,” has released a statement defending Zoe Saldana after Simone’s estate tweeted their disapproval of her starring role. Below, the statement in its entirety: “Zoe Saldana delivers an exceptional and mesmerizing tribute to Nina Simone. She gave her heart and […]
