Music Minute - BET's Best International Act (Africa) nominees video

The BET Awards will be held tonight in Los Angeles, California.  The show will be televised live from the Shrine Auditorium at 8pm EST.  While these award shows are exciting for the star power they pull, I am more excited about one category - Best International Act (Africa). If you are not familiar with the nominees in this category, fret not.  Here's your chance to catch a glimpse of the artists - their videos are below.  Press play!!!  
1. Camp Mulla (Kenya), 2. Ice Prince (Nigeria), 3. Lira (South Africa), 4. Mokobe (Mali), 
5 .Sarkodie (Ghana), 6. Wizkid (Nigeria)


Win or lose, to be nominated is great recognition and these artists who are obviously talented and should be very proud of themselves! Big ups Africa!!!

Movie Minute - Winnie Mandela Biopic Trailer Released

At last!  We get to catch a glimpse of the controversial biopic, Winnie. Starring Jennifer Hudson who plays Winnie Mandela and Terence Howard who plays Nelson Mandela.  The biopic chronicles the life of Winnie Mandela who is known for her anti-apartheid activism long after her ex-husband Mandela had been improsoned.

The casting choice created a lot of controversy.  Winnie Mandela threatened to sue the film makers because she had not been asked to consult on the film and because an American is playing her.  While I do agree that Winnie should have been consulted, I still feel that casting Jennifer Hudson to play her was not a bad choice either. 

Below is the trailer:



I'm not sold on these actors accents based on the trailer.  There have been American actors who have played African characters very convincingly;  Don Cheadle in Hotel Rwanda and Forest Whittaker in The Last King Of Scotland.  I couldn't imagine anyone else playing a better Idi Amin than Whittaker! He owned that role that led him to win an Academy Award for Best Actor.  Cheadle also earned an Oscar nomination for Best Actor for his role.
There will be some Oscar buzz for Jennifer Hudson & Terence Howard next year.

Will you be watching?

Movie Premier - Hands of Time by Van Vicker

I recently had the utmost pleasure when I got to sit down with one Africa's sexiest men alive!  He is actor, producer, director - Mr. Van Vicker who has been featured in multiple films in the Nollywood film industry.   He couldn't have been more gracious, smart & charming!


He was in town to promote and screen his latest film, The Hands of Time.  This was not my first time meeting him and I have featured him on this blog before.  See the story here.
Some incredible people enabled this meeting to take place and it is no small feat. I am very grateful that these people came through for me. Van & I talked about various topics and he gave some great advice.  Check out the footage here:


Here's addional footage from the actual film premier in Atlanta;

BET Awards Nominations - Best International Act

The BET Awards nominations were announced a few weeks ago - yes, I am indeed very late in posting this!
The usual categories were announced and the nominees were not much of a suprise to anyone!  Kanye West led the pack with seven nominations, Beyoncé followed with six and Jay-Z with five.

The most excting thing about this years nominations for me was this:

Best International Act: AfricaCamp Mulla (Kenya), Ice Prince (Nigeria), Lira (South Africa), Mokobe (Mali), Sarkodie (Ghana), Wizkid (Nigeria)

I was very excited to learn about Camp Mulla's nomination.  This is HUGE for them as this is the first time a Kenyan group/act has been nominated in this category.  The recognition is great for this hip hop group that has certainly worked hard to get to where they are now. 
This category is usually not televised unfortunately BUT I am very proud of all the nominees from Africa!!  The show will air live on BET on July 1st, from the Shine Auditorium and I will be keeping up with it.

Vote, vote, vote for your favorites!!

A list of the nominees can be found here. 

Product Placement: Coca Cola Africa

Coca Cola has done it yet again!! Unveiling yet another great commercial highlighting their signature product/drink for the African market.  As an African living abroad, my heart swells with pride & my patriotism just gets deeper for a continent that well represents me.  This commercial is beautifully done, very well written & couldn't have been done better given the current state of the world.  Enjoy!!

TV Minute - The 84th Annual Academy Awards

The biggest night in Tinseltown is easily the night when the Academy Awards are given out to honor the year's best in film.  This is the creme de la creme of award shows because it draws more than just film lovers.  It is a night filled with glitz & glamour.


Last Sunday, the Academy Awards were broadcast live from the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood.  This is one of my favorite events to witness on TV and it was with great anticipation & excitement that I took part in them albeit from my couch.  It is my dream that one day I will be present at the scene while it happens:)


Billy Crystal was tapped to host the show after the original host, Eddie Murphy dropped out in support of his friend Brett Ratner who was forced to step down. It would have been great to see Eddie play host because we are already familiar with Mr. Crystal's ability.  This was his ninth time hosting. While he did good, it just seemed familiar & slightly boring.  Chris Rock actually brought some much needed humor when it was his turn to present the Best Animated feature award.  



Sasha Baron Cohen caused a stir on the red carpet when he (dressed in character from his upcoming film, The Dictator) poured the fake ashes of Kim Jong II on Ryan Seacrest's Burberry suit during an interview! Many thought that Ryan was in on the supposed publicity stunt but he has denied it.  It was shocking and awkward but should we really be surprised by anything someone who wrote and played Borat does?
There was also lots of talk about the supposed nip slip from Jennifer Lopez! A blink & you miss it kinda moment that seemed to excite many! Perhaps the most talked about person from the award show was Angelina Jolie and her very prominent right leg that peered through her Valentino gown with a slit from here to well... there! This woman was built for the red carpet!! But her exaggerated poses to show off the slit was a bit much! She's already a sexy siren and does not need to accentuate what she already has.

There have been many great films in the past year that were nominated and the hotly contested award was the Best Picture that included ten films vying for the top prize. This was unusual as 5 films are nominated in that category traditionally.
The silent movie, The Artist, that has garnered critical acclaim won most of the top honors.  I am yet to see this movie but something tells me that Hollywood or the academy that votes for the winners are quite nostalgic of an era of film that seemed dead!  Silence does indeed speak volumes!! French actor, Jean DuJardin from The Artist, nabbed the top award for actor in a leading role beating out George Clooney (The Descendants) who was favored to win among others.  
Hugo, a movie directed by Martin Scorsese cleaned up the awards in the technical categories.
The Help was favored to win the Best Actress/Best Supporting Actress/Best Picture but did not fair as well as expected.  The incredible Meryl Streep took home the award for leading actress beating out Viola Davis among others. I do LOVE Meryl but was rooting for Viola and felt she was robbed. Octavia Spencer took home the supporting actress award as expected. She's such a gracious actress and it's wonderful to see how far she's come. 




Christopher Plummer took home the best supporting actor award for his role in the Beginners  At the age of 82, he's the oldest actor to ever win an Oscar.  Well deserved.  What a class act he is!




For a complete list of the winners click here.


Now let's talk fashion!! My favorite was Viola Davis who had the courage to wear her natural hair.  She should really do away with those wigs!  Her dress was custom made by Vera Wang and the color compliments her skin tone beautifully.  Glad she didn't over accessorize.

Michelle Williams, best actress nominee for her role in My Week With Marylyn, also wowed in her Louis Vuitton gown with a peplum overskirt.  Her pixie hair cut makes her look adorable!

George Clooney's main piece, Stacey Kiebler looked stunning in this Marchesa number. George didn't take home the hardware but he took her home so he didn't entirely lose:)

Milla Jovovich was stunning in her Elie Saab gown.

The Help actress Emma Stone was a vision in red wearing a Giambattista Valli gown. Emma hardly gets it wrong though many fashionistas claimed she committed the ultimate crime by wearing a similar style of gown with the oversized bow worn by Nicole Kidman a few years back.

Gwyneth Paltrow was perhaps the only actress to make a bold fashion statement.  She wore an all-white one shoulder gown complete with a cape by Tom Ford.  White seemed to be a popular color on the Oscars red carpet this year.

Jennifer Lopez underwhelmed me with this deep plunging neckline gown by Zuhair Murad. She's usually a knock-out but the sleeves ruined it for me on this gown... 

For more Oscar fashion, click here.

RIP Whitney Houston...

Today is a very sad day in the entertainment world!! The legendary Whitney Houston was given a homecoming ceremony at her home church in Newark, New Jersey, following her untimely death last weekend that sent shock waves around the world! Many including friends, family, mentors, co-workers came to pay their respects to the departed Whitney!!  ...and what an incredible send off it was! I have never been moved to this extent!!  I am all cried out! I don't remember being like this during Michael Jackson's funeral service yet I love MJ just as much.


Whitney Houston has given us decades of incredible music and film that will live on forever!  Her music was part and parcel of my formative years to date. There can never be a voice like hers - the golden voice as it was fondly referred to.  Today, I will focus on the positive contribution that she made to the world.  Her struggles though a part of her, seem so trivial right now! I chose to celebrate her life!

RIP Whitney Elizabeth Houston. I will always love you!  Rest with the angels. My prayers goes out to the family at this time of grief. 


**I can't wait to see the remake of Sparkle that she recently finished shooting with Jordin Sparks. 

TV Minute - The Golden Globes Awards Recap

Last night, the 69th Annual Golden Globes awards were telecast live on NBC.  The Golden Globes are a celebration of the best in film and television and are nominated by the Hollywood Foreign Press.  The HFPA, which is made up of journalists representing international press outlets, remains a canny predictor in the acting categories for the Oscars.  


The unpredictable Ricky Gervais was tapped to host the show for the third time in a row.  Last time he hosted the show, it was riddled with controversy and many doubted he would be asked back as a host! He rubbed many A-listers the wrong way!  His comedic style is rather brash. No celebrity is safe when it comes to Ricky's delivery. He's not known to brown nose celebrities but simply attack the over priviledged bunch - sometimes deservedly so. Last night, he was true to form but seemed rather tame in my opinion.


The stars did come out in droves dressed in their best  duds.  The mood at these award show is usually rather casual and alcohol consumption is allowed.


There were many great films and TV shows nominated this year.  The Help was favored to win in all the categories they received a nod for but only got the Best Supporting Actress in a motion picture that went to Octavia Spencer.  She truly shined in her role on The Help.  Viola Davis who took the Screen Actors Guild Award just last week for Best Actress in a motion picture for the same movie was favored to win - but Merryl Streep took home the Golden Globe for her role as Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady.  She seemed very surprised to have won.  She always slays the competition in every category she's nominated in so no surprise there.


A list of winners is below;


Best Actor, Drama: George Clooney, "The Descendants"

Best Actress, Drama: Meryl Streep, "The Iron Lady"

Best Actor, Musical or Comedy: Jean Dujardin, “The Artist”

Best Director: Martin Scorsese, “Hugo.”

Best Actress, Musical or Comedy: Michelle Williams, “My Week With Marilyn.”

Best Supporting Actor: Christopher Plummer, “Beginners.”

Best Supporting Actress: Octavia Spencer, “The Help.”

Best Foreign Language Film: “A Separation.”

Best Animated Film: “The Adventures of Tintin.”

Best Screenplay: Woody Allen, “Midnight in Paris.”

Best Original Score: Ludovic Bource, “The Artist.”

Best Original Song: “Masterpiece” (music and lyrics by Madonna, Julie Frost, Jimmy Harry), “W.E.”

TELEVISION

Best Series, Drama: “Homeland,” Showtime.

Best Series, Musical or Comedy: “Modern Family,” ABC.

Best Actor, Drama: Kelsey Grammer, “Boss.”

Best Actress, Drama: Claire Danes, “Homeland.”

Best Actress, Musical or Comedy: Laura Dern, “Enlightened.”

Best Actor, Musical or Comedy: Matt LeBlanc, “Episodes.”

Best Miniseries or Movie: “Downton Abbey (Masterpiece),” PBS.

Best Actress, Miniseries or Movie: Kate Winslet, “Mildred Pierce.”

Best Actor, Miniseries or Movie: Idris Elba, “Luther.”

Best Supporting Actress, Series, Miniseries or Movie: Jessica Lange, “American Horror Story.”

Best Supporting Actor, Series, Miniseries or Movie: Peter Dinklage, “Game of Thrones.”

To see who rocked the carpet and who fizzled, 

click here

The Golden Globes Awards lead up to the prestigious Academy Awards that will be held later next month on February 26th at the Kodak Theatre.  The 84th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Tuesday, January 24, 2012, at 5:30 a.m.

New Year, new found wisdom

Happy New Year everyone!  I hope you haven't already broken the resolutions you so steadfastly made just three days ago!  I stopped making resolutions for that very reason! I never keep em'!  I'm lucky if I last 20 days in...  Instead of focussing on making resolutions, I have opted to have aspirations instead.  There is far less pressure this way. I did however find this piece of advice that I plan to live by;

Start focusing on the possibility of positive outcomes. – The mind must believe it CAN do something before it is capable of actually doing it.  The way to overcome negative thoughts and destructive emotions is to develop opposing, positive emotions that are stronger and more powerful.  Listen to your self-talk and replace negative thoughts with positive ones.  Regardless of how a situation seems, focus on what you DO WANT to happen, and then take the next positive step forward.  No, you can’t control everything that happens to you, but you can control how you react to things.  Everyone’s life has positive and negative aspects – whether or not you’re happy and successful in the long run depends greatly on which aspects you focus on.


No pressure right?  Just the power of positive thinking.  As you start yet another year filled with uncertainties, I wish you the very best of health, success and happiness in 2012!!