Will Smith, Jennifer Hudson, ‘The Harder They Fall’ Among Winners At AAFCA Awards – Will Smith of King Richard and Jennifer Hudson of Respect re among the winners of the 13th annual African American Film Critics Association Awards. Winners will be feted on March 2 in Los Angeles. The Harder They Fall matched King Richard‘s four wins including best film, best ensemble, best music and best director for Jeymes Samuel. – Read more at Deadline
Jennifer Hudson celebrates Martin Luther King day on The View
It was great catching up with the ladies of @TheView this morning ! Happy MLK Day to u all ! #MLK #MLKDay pic.twitter.com/KwmGfHy8z2
— Jennifer Hudson (@IAMJHUD) January 17, 2022
Wendy Moten to sing national anthem at Grizzlies MLK game – Monday’s Grizzlies game against the Chicago Bulls, will have a special tribute before tipoff. Memphis native Wendy Moten, who won second place on NBC’s “The Voice,” will sing the national anthem. She will also be a part of a special halftime performance featuring a tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. along with Grammy-nominated R&B artist Angie Stone and the Grammy-nominated Queen of Memphis Soul Carla Thomas. Tipoff for the annual game is at 2:30 p.m. – Read more at Action News 5
#MostRequestedLive Ask Anything Chat: Benson Boone – Up and coming singer/songwriter/pianist Benson Boone joins us for #MostRequestedLive to answer questions in the Ask Anything Chat tonight! You might recognize Benson Boone from TikTok, where he has amassed over two million followers, or even from his brief stint on “American Idol” last year, where he impressed the judges enough to win a golden ticket to Hollywood Week, but then abruptly decided to leave the show. – Read more at Kiss108FM
“The Voice” finalist talks about the fears, inspirations – The ultra-talented Holly Forbes, the local woman who was a top-10 finisher on The Voice, sat down with The Daily Independent and answered a few questions about growing up in the area, what it was like to compete on a national stage, and how grateful she is for the legion of fans that have supported her. Q: At this point, unless they have been living in a cave for six months, everyone knows who Holly Forbes is — or at least thinks they do. But who do you think Holly Forbes is? A: That’s a good question! (laughs). I am a mother and a musician, and a hard worker. I just like to make music and enjoy my family. I also worked in the field with autistic adults, so I’m really involved with that. And now that I’m not working in the field, I am looking for other ways to give back to that area. – Read more at Washington Times Herald
Fingers Crossed: Lauren Spencer-Smith on her TikTok mega hit – “It went crazy. I was getting message after message in such a short period of time,” she says. Lauren’s song is a classic heartbreak anthem with lyrics about “taking back the tears I’ve cried” and trying to fix an ex’s “daddy issues”. Apparently out of nowhere, and fuelled by TikTok, the track has now landed Lauren a top five single in the UK Official Singles Chart. “This is without a doubt, the wildest week of my life.” – Read more at BBC.com
Scarypoolparty: Singer-Songwriter’s Raw Talent Shines Through with New Gibson Generation Collection Acoustic Guitar – His approach is rooted in the confessional acoustic singer-songwriter mold, but encompasses everything from pop and rock to folk, prog, classical, experimental sounds and more. And it’s all shot through with an idiosyncratic guitar style that blends knotty and highly melodic single-note lines with non-standard tunings, unusual chord voicings and even percussive “thwaks” on the instrument, which propel the music forward with dizzying exhilaration. This style is on full display in the three original songs Scarypoolparty recorded for Rolling Stone – “Darkness,” “Poison,” and “10 Years.” As for why he chose these three in particular, Scarypoolparty says, “I feel like musically, these are the songs that helped me develop my style of playing the guitar.” And while Aranda also points out that two of these compositions – “Poison” and “10 Years” – were among the first he ever wrote on guitar, these new performances were helped along by a new addition to his artistry: the Gibson Generation G-200 acoustic guitar. – Read more at Rolling Stone
