This week’s happy dance is from the legend Bob Marley. He is still inspiring us to get up stand up!
musicians
Friday Happy Dance – Janet Jackson
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Today’s Happy Dance is in response to the state of the world today. I have chosen to express my angst in a positive manner and thus have decided to share “State of the World” by Janet Jackson. The video is a Lyric video so the words can have more impact.
Indie Shine – Kiva
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In this edition of Indie Shine, a place for rebirthoflisa to ‘Shine’ the spotlight on indie artists, we welcome recording artist Kiva!
©Kiva used with permission
Bio:
Lakeisha Richardson better known as “Kiva” was born August 9, 1991 in Atlanta, Georgia. Her grandmother Barbara helped raise her in Atlanta while her mother attended college in Knoxville, TN. Kiva later located to Memphis, Tn with her mother when she was just 2 years old. She started to have a love for music when was 3. Her aunt would say she’d dance to Sade’s music with a full pamper. At age 8 Kiva began singing gospel music. She would sing Yolanda Adams and Cece Winans. Her musical influences include Sade, Aaliyah, Beyoncé, Tamia, Toni Braxton, KeKe Wyatt, and Whitney Houston. Kiva shares the same birthday as the late legendary Whitney Houston. She’s been blessed with several big opportunities singing to Larry Dodson of The Bar-Kays over the phone when she was 14 was one of them. In 2011 she competed in an online reality show competition called “OnTheSpot”. It was legendary music manager Johnny Wright’s competition to form the next world supergroup. She made the show’s top 20 and also sang to celebrity vocal coach Doc Holliday. He was very impressed with her vocals. The following year 2012 she released her first single, “make believe”. Kiva also had the opportunity to work with grammy nominated singer Toni Braxton’s brother Michael Braxton Jr. She is currently a independent artist with her new single titled “So Lonely”.
Q & A
What do you do and Why do you do it?
I’m an unsigned independent artist who releases music on my own with the help of whom ever I decide to work with. Whether it be another artist, a producer, or a songwriter. I make music because it’s my passion.
Tell us about your most recent work. My most recent work is a single that I released on July 25,2017 titled “So Lonely.” I got my inspiration from Janet Jackson’s “I get so lonely.”
Who inspires you?
My Dad inspires me. He’s also an Independent Artist and just seeing him go hard for his rapping/producing career motivate and inspire me to go even harder.
What do you consider your “Masterpiece” at this time?
My newest single, “So Lonely” of course.
What is your motto in life?
Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass but learning to dance in the rain.
Name your wildest dream. The one you can not imagine achieving, but would love for it to come true.
I would say winning the lotto hahaha.
What is your favorite quote?
When it is all said and done, what would you like to be remembered for?
The woman that worked very hard, never gave up on accomplishing her dream, and goals.
Tell us about your next project and when will it be available to the public?
Well, right now I’m currently promoting the music that I do have out. I can say that I also have a bangin’ slow jam single titled “Do You Right” that’s available on all digital store outlets.
Where can fans purchase your work?
My work is available on iTunes, Apple Music, Google Play, Spotify, Tidal, Deezer, Pandora, and more.
Social Media
©Kiva used with permission
Instagram @KivaRichardson
Twitter @KivaDahDiva
Facebook KivaRichardson
YouTube KivaRichardson
Melanade – Solange
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Welcome to another edition of Melanade, where we feature women of color who are doing great things! This month we are featuring the artistic genius
Solange Knowles!
Singer, songwriter, mother, actress and fashion icon… all of these describe the artist known as Solange Knowles. When your name means “Angel of the sun” you are destined for greatness. This woman has a very eclectic mind that is able to translate the weary ways of the world into a beautiful tapestry of melodies and words. Quickly becoming a voice of her generation, Solo had taken her talent to new heights with her latest project “A Seat at the Table”. She won a Grammy for Best R&B Performance for “Cranes in the Sky” from the same album.
It can’t be easy carving out your own niche in the music industry when your big sis is slaying, but Solange makes it look easy. It reminds me of Janet breaking into her own star, being the little sis of the King of Pop. And just like Janet, Solange’s talent in undeniable and cannot be contained.
For a 30 year old, Solange has accomplished many goals that people twice her age have yet to do. Becoming a mother as a teen, she started her responsible years early, but she has handled her life amazingly. Not only does she write the amazing songs on her own albums, she is an accomplished writer for other artists as well. According to an interview with NecoleBitchie.com, she has written quite a few songs with Mariah Carey in mind and would love to have her sing her creations.
She’s had an undeniable influence on our culture from fashion, to being a proud black woman dawning her natural hair, and artistic movement. Don’t believe me? Listen to what intellectual Kimberly Foster has to say about her.
If you are not up on Solange, I urge you to get to know her. You’ll thank me later.
Friday Happy Dance – Keyshia Cole
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This week’s happy dance is from Keyshia Cole featuring Remy Ma and French Montana called ‘You’. Just in time for Women’s History Month, this video is a nod to A Thin Line Between Love and Hate. Men, please think twice before playing your lady. Like they say, Hell has no fury like a woman scorned.
Friday Happy Dance – Bob Marley
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This week’s Happy Dance is a throwback from Bob Marley that is just as relevant now as it was during his reign. “You can fool some people sometimes, but you can’t fool all the people all of the time.” – Bob Marley
Too Old to Sing? Macy Gray’s Latest Struggle
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40 is supposed to be the new 20, at least that is what I’ve been hearing the past couple of years in the media. Everywhere you turn there is a stunning photo of a celebrity lady over 40 who is owning her sexuality, looks like a dream, and leaving all the guys & some girls drooling. Why then, I wonder, did a music executive recently tell one of the dopest singers around that she was too old and nobody wanted to listen to her music because she is over 40?
This weekend I ran across an ad on one of my social media pages requesting funds for a project by Macy Gray. When I clicked on the ad at pledgemusic.com I found a full blown campaign to raise money for Gray’s latest album The Way. This album was originally released on iTunes on October 7, 2014;You’ve probably heard her lead single “Stoned” on an array of TV shows, but the album hasn’t had that much other promotion behind it. The album is classic Macy so I wondered why it didn’t have more of a presence. Now that I have watched the video on her pledge site I know. Apparently, an unnamed music executive informed Gray she was too old to have a successful album and they were not willing to back her. She found another company, Cobalt Music, to partner with her as an independent artist, but she was then responsible for all of the promotion. As a result, she is going to her fans to obtain funding for promotion of her project that she calls her best work. The raspy voice songstress thinks her “Dope Ass” record deserves to blow up, and I couldn’t agree more. In a world of manufactured puppets, Gray is a rare bird of creativity in the music industry. She oozes uniqueness and follows her own path. This is the kind of artist we need to support!
In case you’ve never heard of pledgemusic.com, it is sort of like GoFundMe for musicians. There are several options in her campaign to assist Gray with her project. Here are a few of the options:
• For a mere $10 you will receive a digital download of a “DELUX” version of The Way.
• $25 will get you a signed copy of The Way
• For $99 Gray will hand write the lyrics of your favorite Macy song and she will sign it
• Have you ever wanted a Grammy winner to record your voice mail? Well, pledge $350 and you can have it along with a lyric sheet and signed CD.
• Is your dream to be an executive producer for a major artist, well donate $5000 and your dream will come true.
• How about an acoustic house party for only $15,000?
There are several other fun and fabulous options for you to choose from. It looks like people really want to be a part of her videos because all of the options to be featured in her next video are gone! It is in my nature to help others; however I usually do not promote this kind of project on my blog. For Macy Gray I am making an exception. I believe in what she is doing and I think it almost criminal to tell a woman, who is in her prime, she is no longer relevant because she is older and wiser. Maybe what they really mean is she is too hip to the game. They can no longer pull the wool over her eyes, therefore they are not willing to sign her. So far her campaign is doing well. She is 58% toward her goal with 29 days left. The wealthy fantasy version of me would love to have a custom concert for the bargain price of $40,000, but I think the real struggling artist me will have to settle for a t-shirt.
Lisa W. Tetting 