"Science has brought the world to the point where the end of AIDS – though not necessarily HIV – is in sight" according to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
And, she added, "It is science that will allow us to finish this job."
The job, she has famously said, is to create an "AIDS-free generation" – something that once seemed like a pipe dream and now, after more than 30 years, seems increasingly possible.
This statement was made just yesterday by my President - Ms. Hilary Clinton, in honor of World AIDS Day December 1, 2012.
In honor of today I am posting an amazing video that was and still is way ahead of it's time and is inclusive of everyone AIDS has touched.
Neneh Cherry's brilliant cover of "I've Got You Under My Skin" by Cole Porter off of the first of it's kind CD to benefit AIDS "Red Hot + Blue"
"No knowledge of the facts, kept in the dark, Scolds my soul and it hurts my heart, the young and elderly just running blind, Hurts so bad they denied their own kind, Papa turned around and said that ain't mine, It just made it hard for life on the line, and it's a shame to see a little child mature, Growing up knowing that there ain't no cure" Neneh Cherry "I've Got You Under My Skin" Red Hot + Blue
While busy in the studio recording his Spring of 2013 album follow-up to his hit "Memories of a Beautiful Disaster" JD was thinking of you...
Just in time for Christmas James has managed to give you guys a package to stuff your stockings, a cover of Elvis Presley's "Santa Claus is Back in Town", which happens to be the number one selling Christmas single of all time, thank you, Elvis has now left the building, bring on The Durbin!
"All the stockings were hung by the chimney's with care, in hopes that James Durbin soon would be there"...
Hey Durbinators, have a rock-n-roll Holiday, here's Jame's package complete with a red bow on top and sealed with a kiss for all of you.
You may be scratching your head what does the brilliant Robert Rodriguez/Quentin Tarantino double bill "Planet Terror" with an on fire Rose McGowan and "Death Proof" with a disturbing Kurt Russell have to do with Turkey Day?
Well even though "Grindhouse" does not refer to what they do with turkeys to make them a leg or a thigh, although it certainly could, there is a cooler than cool horror trailer spoof by renegade Director, Eli Roth that is shown during this awesome double feature and it is funny as Hell and sure to warm the cockles of your heart today titled appropriately enough "Thanksgiving". Pull it up on YouTube or watch it here and toast with a glass of wine.
Happy Thanksgiving! May you always suspect something is awry with your turkey and your relatives are twisted and insane "This year there will be no leftovers"...
With her career ascension on "The Voice" Christina Aquilera is back with the song "Your Body". Well who better to re-mix Ms. Thang than DJ's Doug & Derek Perry, best known as The Perry Twins. Check out the interview I did with Doug for Chorus and Verse:
http://www.chorusandverse.com/content.php?id=20110218A Anyway, to celebrate the release of their latest hot track The Twins are here with their Top 5 all time favorite re-mixes that they have done...."It's true what you heard, I'm a freak, I'm disturbed"
1.Christina Aguilera - Your Body (Perry Twins Remix)
2. Amy Weber - Let It Rain (Perry Twins Remix)
3. Beyonce - Best Thing I Never Had (Perry Twins Remix)
4. Lolene - Rich (Fake It Til You Make It) (Perry Twins Remix)
5. Jennifer Lopez - Louboutins (Perry Twins Remix)
Frenchie
Davis, the name brings many things to mind, after stealing the
national spotlight on the first season of NBC’s “The Voice” as
a Top Four Finalist, as well as season two of “American Idol” her
single “Love’s Got a Hold On Me” is currently a Billboard Dance
Hit Smash. She is
currently working on her debut LP “Just Frenchie” a collection
of original material written specifically for her. Having conquered
Broadway as a cast member of “Rent” and the Grammy nominated
revival of “Ain’t Misbehavin” Ms. Davis has it going on. With a
Christmas single due to drop and her recent “coming out” Frenchie
is a force of nature, not to mention a vocal powerhouse to be
reckoned with. Frenchie
truly desires only one thing: “I want to live my life to inspire
people to be brave and courageous, to believe in themselves and never
take no for an answer.”
MS: I was
playing “Love's Got a Hold On Me” right before you called, when I
was listening to it, not that you sound like her, but you remind me a
lot of Donna Summer.
FD: Oh my
gosh, that's a huge compliment, I love her!
MS: The
reason for the comparison is Donna was the only Disco I could stand
as vocals were the focus, not just the music and the beat.
FD:
Exactly! That's what I've been wanting to do with my upcoming album
and this single. Bring good strong vocals back to dance music. I grew
up listening to dance music, people like Jocelyn Brown and Martha
Wash, so the dance music I grew up with featured singers with big
voices.
MS: Not to
get too personal, but you sort of kind of, pseudo came out recently.
FD: It
wasn't something that I planned on doing, because far as I was
concerned everyone who needed to know, knew about my sexuality. My
friends, my family, my loved ones, the person I am sleeping with. At
the end of the day those are the only people whose business it is
really. It's interesting when someone uses the phrase coming out when
in actuality I had already been out. I do recognize the significant
difference between being open and honest with your loved ones and
allowing media scrutiny into your personal life. So, did I allow the
media into my personal life? “Yes” I was doing a media interview
and I answered a question honestly and that answer ended up being a
headline: “Frenchie Davis Comes Out”.
MS: Yeah, I
read about it on The Huffington Post just before you called, I think
it being out there helps other people.
FD: It was
important to just be honest and not give ambiguous answers in
interviews to me. I like to tell it like it is.
MS: You
still consider yourself bi-sexual and I know there is a lot of
animosity towards that in the Gay Community.
FD: One of
the things that made it so important to me to be who I am, is not
only to combat Homophobia in the straight community, but to also help
combat Bi phobia in the Gay Community. I have the same take on
Homophobia in the Black Community that I do on Bi phobia in the Gay
Community, I think it's apalling that a group of people that know
what it's like to be discriminated against can justify bigotry
towards another group of people. I get certain groups of people may
not understand it, but unless you are screwing me, you don't need to
fucking understand it.
MS: So, you
really didn't come out, you got real.
FD:
Exactly!
MS: Hows
your album “Just Frenchie” coming along?
FD:
Yes, I am “Just Frenchie” (laughs) I decided to name it that
because I have been on all these reality shows and people are
familiar with my voice, but they are hearing me sing other people's
songs. This will be the first time I am singing songs that haven't
been sung by anybody else, they are just me. It's going to be mostly
dance music I definitely
will throw on a few power ballads, but knowing me, there will
probably be numerous dance mixes for those power ballads. It's
exciting to be able to merge my love of soulful singing with my love
of dance music.
MS: You are
also releasing a Christmas single really soon.
FD: I want
the single to be perfect, I meet people all the time that say” “My
Mother loves you” we watched you on “The Voice”. So I am doing
this for all the Mom's out there that love me.
Valarie
Pettifordis
that rare breed, a triple threat. From the stages of Broadway to the
sound stages of Hollywood, she has charmed audiences with her
performances. A Fosse-trained dancer, Pettiford was Tony nominated
for her work in the musical revue, “Fosse”,
which paid homage to her mentor.
As
an actor, she is most recognized as Big Dee Dee Thorne on the hit
sitcom, “Half and Half”, and Aunt Geneva, whose rehearsal
dinner musical number in “Jumping the Broom” pretty
much stole the show from her Co-Stars.
Valarie
has released her second solo album, “Velvet Sky”, a collection of
original lullabies.. This new album, all of which were written
especially for her by two legendary writing teams – Ron
Abel (music)/Chuck Steffan (lyrics) and Michael
Orland (music)/Jamie Wooten (lyrics).
Here
to sing you a soothing lullaby as only she can is Ms. Valarie
Pettiford...!
VP:
Hey, it's Valarie Pettiford.
MS:
Hey, how are you?
VP:
I'm awesome how are you?
MS:
Great! I was giving “Velvet Sky” a listen before you called, it's
very nice, did your Mom sing you lullabies when you were a kid?
VP:
She did. She has a beautiful voice, it's so nice to see her now with
singing to her Great Grandchildren, she has always sang, and so does
my sister. Lullabies have always been a part of my life.
MS:
I always wondered if people really sang lullabies to their kids.
(laughs)
VP:
They do, they actually do. (laughs)
MS:
There was something I read that stated you thought your voice was
well suited to them, I agree with that.
VP:
Thank you, thank you. People always ask me: “Valarie what do you
usually sing”? Of course I do Jazz and Musical Theatre, but my
heart is in Rock-N-Roll. But I just don't have a Rock-N-Roll voice,
so I have thought about where my vocal sensibilities lie. I think
they do lie in this particular vein.
MS:
Interesting, because I wouldn't know by hearing you sing that you
didn't have a Rock-N-Roll voice. Because as we all know Pat Benatar
was trained as an opera singer and she has a Rock-N-Roll voice...so
someone listening to you would not necessarily know you didn't have
that type of voice.
VP:
You're right, I mean I could do it, but it's not the way I want to do
it. I would want to sound like Pat Benatar or Tina Turner, but I
don't.
MS:
Rumor has it you pretty much stole “Jumping The Broom”.
VP:
(laughs) Somebody said that, not me. My role was very delicious, it
was amazing to, I was surrounded by the best cast and had the best
director. It was a wonderful experience.
MS:
I heard you had an off color musical number in it.
VP:
I did. (laughs) The movie is about a wedding and I did a song during
the rehearsal dinner, that was inappropriate but, funny as Hell.
MS:
Since I haven't seen it, can you tell me what it was?
VP:
Well....the movie has been out for a while so it won't spoil it for
anyone. But sometimes I hate saying it, because it will spoil it for
people who have not seen the movie and still want to see it.
