July 9, 2007

Home Again

The 13th Essence Music Festival returned to its home in New Orleans this past weekend. It was the first year that the annual 'Party with a Purpose' had been in New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina, but the festival, Essence Magazine and its Essence Cares program are committed to making sure that New Orleans is not forgotten and gets the attention it deserves. Many of the 400,000-plus attendees at this year's festival were returning to the city for the first time since Katrina, and the Big Easy welcomed us with open arms!

I was a guest of Chevrolet again this year. In addition to making great cars and being a sponsor of the Essence Music Festival, Chevrolet has partnered with Essence Cares, and through the Children's Defense Fund, has gotten involved in the Freedom Schools. For those who don't know, the Freedom Schools is a music enrichment program that uses music therapy to teach students. Chevrolet used their commercial time nightly during the concerts to show a video that emphasized the significance of the Freedom Schools and the impact the program has on students nationwide. For details visit www.Chevrolet.com.

Marrying serious issues like Chevrolet's initiative with the Freedom Schools and the other educational forums, political presentations and spiritual enlightening seminars is the true "purpose" of this annual party. That's why presidential hopefuls Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton both came to the festival to speak.

This year's Essence Music Festival main stage performers included Smokie Norful, Vanessa Bell Armstrong, Ciara, Ludacris (with special guest Bobby Valentino), The Isley Brothers and The O'Jays featuring Johnny Gill, Keith Sweat and the Levert reunion (Thursday); Robin Thicke, Steve Harvey, Chris Brown (with surprise guest Bow Wow) and Beyonce (Friday); and Kelly Rowland, Ne-Yo, Lionel Richie, Mary J. Blige and Maze featuring Frankie Beverly (Saturday). Throughout the three day gathering there were also super lounge concerts presented by various sponsors that featured performances by everyone from the likes of Ruben Studdard, Angie Stone, MC Lyte, Kenny Lattimore and Chante Moore, Common, Rahsaan Patterson, Mint Condition, Najee, Slum Village, Kindred, Rachelle Ferrell, Lyfe Jennings, Sunshine Anderson (with special guest Solange Knowles), Chuck D and Public Enemy and others.

While comedian Jonathan Slocumb hosted the main stage nightly -- this was his fourth consecutive year -- celebrities such as Hill Harper ('C.S.I. NY'), Shaun Robinson ('Access Hollywood'), comedian Joe Clair, actor Anthony Mackie ('She Hate Me'), singer PJ Morton, Iyanla Vanzant, actress Victoria Rowell ('The Young and the Restless'), TV personality Jeff Johnson, radio talents DeDe McGuire and Russ Parr, fashion maven Beverly Smith and actress Sheryl Lee Ralph('Moesha') were in the crowd enjoying the shows. Even members of the cast of the painful-to-watch Tyler Perry-series 'House of Payne' were on hand for the festival.

In between the concert performances I would run back to the media suite to see if anyone interesting had come back. (This year getting talent back to the media room was a bit of a challenge for whatever reason.)

The first night, while entering the media area I saw Toccara of 'America's Next Top Model' arguing with the security at the entrance way. Though the full-figured model, who also appeared on 'Celebrity Fit Club,' had media credentials, the security guard did not want to allow her entry until she pasted it on her dress. Since she was doing on-camera interviews for BET, Toccara explained that she could not put the sticker on her clothes. The guard actually grabbed her to push her out of the doorway when all hell broke loose. Her boyfriend, music executive Michael Keizer then jumped in and a full-on scuffle began. I ran over to separate the two, while gossip maven Flo Anthony ordered the security guard to take his hands off Toccara. The police and other security personnel came over and everything was smoothed over.

Other than that crazy occurrence with an overzealous security officer, and we all know how someone with a walkie talkie and a flashlight can get, the Essence Music Festival was a peaceful, positive production.

What I learned backstage: Sunshine Anderson is pregnant and is having a daughter named Alexia Sky in November. Anderson is pregnant by Christopher Alexander Terry, an offensive tackle for the Kansas City Chiefs, and the two are scheduled to get married in two weeks. (Watch Karu F. Daniels video of Anderson's interview here:)

Since his last album, 'Coming Home,' caused a career resurgence for him in the United States, Lionel Richie will release another R&B record next year. He shared that the upcoming album will feature production by Ne-Yo and R. Kelly. (See Richie perform his hit "Jesus is Love" here:)

Speaking of Ne-Yo, when Bridget Bland of MTV Radio Networks asked about him being linked to Karrine Steffans (he's featured in her forthcoming 'The Vixen Diaries' this Sept.) he said that that the positive side of the rumors is that it silenced those ridiculous gay rumors about him. (See Karu F. Daniels video of Ne-Yo's interview here:)

Angie Stone confessed that after her relationship with J Records soured a few years ago, she contemplated retiring from the music business. She was fed up with music industry politics. Now she's happy that she changed her mind and her new album, 'The Art of Love and War,' drops in September on the newly re-launched Stax Records. (See my video of Stone getting reunited her 'The Fighting Temptations' co-star, The Tambourine Lady backstage:)

I thought all of the shows that I saw were spectacular -- except for the revamped Levert, which apparently needs to go through Diddy's 'Making the Band' boot camp before performing another live show -- my favorite show was by Beyonce. Her concert performance, which seemed inspired by the Broadway show 'Chicago,' was simply captivating! (Watch Beyonce's performance of "Listen" from 'Dreamgirls' here:)

The Essence Music Festival returns to New Orleans next year.

Last Note

I traveled to Toronto, Ontario, Canada on June 30 for SWV's farewell performance during the Ice Cream Summer Fest at the Molson Amphitheater. The Sisters With Voices -- Coko, Taj and LeLee -- co-headlined the outdoor festival with New Edition, who was minus lead singer Ralph Tresvant who was under the weather and had missed shows that whole weekend. SWV performed many of their hit records, including "Anything," "Rain," "Use Your Heart" and "Weak," which closed out the energetic show. The trio got a roaring standing ovation from the Canadian crowd, whose chants of "SWV" echoed in the outdoors as the ladies took their final bow. The group received flowers and gifts from the organizers of the show and then went backstage to take photos with New Edition, who has already invited the girls to reunite for their 25th anniversary celebration next year.

(See SWV perform "Weak" in Toronto here:)

Also on the line-up for the Ice Cream Summer Fest were Donell Jones, Jagged Edge, Carl Thomas and K-Ci & JoJo. The ATL-based Jagged Edge almost didn't make the concert after being detained on their tour bus the border. Because group member Kyle Norman had been arrested in 1993 on drug charges, he was not allowed to enter the country, leaving twins Brian and Brandon Casey and group member Richard Wingo to perform as a trio. (Not sure why Wingo doesn't sing more leads on Jagged Edge albums because he really held his own during the Toronto show.) Though I have always believed that Jagged Edge could sing and has a great sound, their live show leaves a lot to be desired.

The biggest disappointment of the concert were Jodeci breakouts K-Ci and JoJo Hailey. The brother duo made their presence in Toronto known from the very beginning, having their driver take them to a liquor store straight from the airport and showing the effects of it during a live radio interview that afternoon. When the group arrived at the venue that evening for the show, JoJo fell out of the car and onto the ground when an attendant opened his car door. Two people had to carry him upstairs to their dressing room where he stayed until the group hit the stage mid-show.

The actual performance was scary to say the least. The ladies from SWV were practically in tears watching them from a monitor backstage, seeing how guys they once adored had succumbed to the pressures of fame and fortune. Watching a frail K-Ci get half naked and gyrate was nothing compared to hearing what is left of JoJo's voice and seeing the condition he is in. The latter was incoherent most of their set, slurring through songs, sounding as is he was having a stroke onstage and not nearly hitting signature notes. Coko was vocally mad that she'd left her Holy oil at the hotel, because she had decided she was going to pray with the guys before she left the venue. When the SWV went to K-Ci & JoJo's dressing room to pray, they discovered a bloodied JoJo being attended to by medical attendants who were stitching up his head. Apparently while taking photos at a photo booth with fans -- they even charged them $25 a picture -- JoJo collapsed and busted his head open in two places.

I pray that someone gets these guys some help and convinces them to go into a rehab facility soon! It's a situation that's gone from being laughable to plain sad.

BV Scene

New Edition singer Johnny Gill and deejay Biz Markie flying on my flight from Washington, DC to New Orleans on US Airways… Robin Thicke having dinner at Emeril's restaurant in New Orleans… Bobby Valentino in a blue and yellow Adidas jacket and pulling a Louis Vuitton carry-on bag and Missy Elliott sporting a fedora and walking with a male companion through Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport… Kelly Rowland and Elisabeth Withers-Mendes interviewing live on Sirius Satellite Radio in the lobby of The W Hotel on Poydras Street in New Orleans, while Stokely of Mint Condition, rapper Common, Ciara, Hill Harper and Ludacris were all spotted walking through the lobby at different times… Carvin Winans of The Winans in the audience at the Ice Cream Summer Fest in Toronto.

Can't Say Names…

This cable television actor, who was once thought to be one of Hollywood's next big stars, sure didn't win over any new fans with his antics at this year's Essence Music Festival. Said actor, a regular on the touring play circuit, was taking a photo with a female fan when someone asked: "What are you going to do with this picture?" Jokingly, the fan replied: "E-mail it to a 1,000 of my friends on the internet." The actor then stepped out of the shot and walked away, refusing to take the photo.