Sunday September 5th, 2004
New CD's this past week:
- Jill Scott – Beautifully human: Words &
sounds vol. 2
- Percy Sledge – Shining through the rain
Music news stories this week:
Chaka Khan Blames Off-key VMA Performance On
Strained Vocal Chords
R&B singer Chaka Khan made a surprise
appearance at MTV's Video Music
Awards on Sunday night (August 29th), when she joined rapper Kanye West
for a performance of his hit, "Through The Wire," which samples Khan's
"Through The Fire." Khan is blaming strained vocal chords for her
noticeably off-key performance.
A statement released by her publicist, claims Khan had to cancel a
scheduled performance in Park City , Utah on Friday, August 27th, due to
strained vocal chords and that she was under doctors' orders not to
perform. However, she didn't want to back out of the high-profile
performance so she "received a cortisone shot just hours prior to her VMA
performance to honor her commitment to Kanye West."
The shot helped, but Khan still had difficulty performing on the live
broadcast. The singer is presently resting her voice by not speaking. Her
publicist added, "She's suppose to perform this weekend in the Bahamas ,
and as of now she is going to do it. She's resting her chords completely
this week."
Khan reportedly strained her vocal chords while working on her new,
as-of-yet untitled album, which is slated for release later this year on
Sanctuary Records.
Alicia Keys A Diva At Photo Shoot?
MSN.com reports that a source close to the newly-launched magazine Suede
says that Alicia Keys was "an unbelievable diva" at a recent photo shoot.
The source claims Alicia "showed up with her mother, who was also pretty
demanding, and found everything unacceptable."
Reps for Keys and for Suede say the story is absolutely not true.
A second source, one who is close to Keys, told MSN.com that "Alicia
didn't have a problem with the photographer, but she did have an issue
with the hair and makeup people." The source also noted that Keys is
usually very reasonable, but also is a professional who knows how these
things are done. The source went on to quip, "If they think Alicia Keys is
difficult, wait until they have to deal with Janet Jackson.
Bobby Brown In Talks With Bravo For His Own Reality
Show
R&B singer Bobby Brown is currently in
talks with Bravo for his own
reality show which is tentatively titled Being Bobby Brown. According to
the Hollywood Reporter, the show would focus on Brown's troubled life and
his attempts to resurrect his singing career. According to sources, the
sides are presently trying to hammer out how much Whitney Houston, the
singer's wife, would be involved with the show.
A spokesman for Houston said, "We are in negotiations, and it has not yet
be decided as to what, if any, Ms. Houston's participation would be."
Brown's production company, B2 Entertainment, has been compiling footage
since Brown was released from prison in April, while Houston was in rehab.
Brown, who has had his share of brushes with the law, is currently facing
misdemeanor battery charges for allegedly hitting Houston in the face
during an argument at their Atlanta home in December of 2003. The case is
scheduled to got to trial later this year.
Anita Baker Says Being Back In Studio
Energized Her
Vocalist Anita Baker returns from a
ten-year hiatus with the new album My
Everything on the Blue Note label on September 7th. And the singer says
that she was completely energized by the live studio experience and the
creative control she enjoyed with the label. Baker told Billboard, "I'm
energized. Blue Note's focus is creativity, which is ideal. I get to do
what I do. And I'm grateful that my fans have always gotten me."
Fans have indeed always gotten the throaty singer, putting her first
single from the set, "You Are My Everything," at the top of the urban
adult radio chart and in the top ten of the smooth jazz radio chart.
The 46-year-old singer says that she was raising her sons, and lost both
her parents in the years since her last album was released. But when she
realized her sons had gotten old enough to do their own thing, she got
"the itch" to perform again.
My Everything was recorded mostly live in the studio, and Baker co-wrote a
majority of the album's ten tracks, including her duet with Babyface,
called "Like You Used To Do."
"I don't know how to sing or record any other way than to throw my whole
self into it," she said. "Once I get my peeps in there, we just start
vibing. It's a true collaborative effort."