Chris Brown might as well give it up, trying to do any type of performance in the UK… They just don’t want him!  Via EurWeb, the singer has been denied a work visa for the second time in the United Kingdom.  Why he decided to embarrass himself by trying again just boggles my mind…

One day before the Michael Jackson tribute, Chris Brown has been forced to pull out after he was denied a work visa because of his criminal record.

The singer was set to honor the late King of Pop with a performance at the Oct. 8 star-studded Michael Forever concert in Wales, but he’s now axed his plans after being barred from entering the U.K. due to his 2009 assault conviction for attacking his then-girlfriend Rihanna.

The show has been plagued with problems in recent weeks – the Black Eyed Peas dropped out of the tribute on Thursday due to “unavoidable circumstances”, and Gene Simmons was removed from the bill following complaints from fans regarding previous comments the Kiss rocker had made regarding Jackson’s child abuse allegations.

Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green, Ne-Yo and Leona Lewis are still expected to perform as planned.

Just a few biased thoughts from myself on this one…  1.  Why is the tribute being held in the UK? 2.  He’s scheduled for a tour stop/performance in Charlotte, NC on the same day – so how was he supposed to do both?  Or was that set up after the fact… and 3. Cheryl Cole, who happens to be a white performer, beat up and racially abused a black woman, was convicted for it and then she is allowed into the USA?  How ironic is that?  lol..

Your own thoughts after the break… Read the rest of this entry

Well well well… Amber Rose has went to Africa, and has since recieved some backlash, lol.

It seems that Ms. Rose was invited to host the annual Vodaphone O20 Live music concert in the country of Ghana, and made some people very upset after commenting about Ghanaians either being extremely poor or extremely rich.  She also topped it off by posting photos of needy children and not showing at all any of the better nieghborhoods.  One reader of the ghanaian entertainment website Ghana Celebrities even wrote a letter about her disgust at the situation.  Now… Since my own boyfriend happens to be Ghanaian, I asked him about the situation briefly and we both agreed that as a touchy subject to begin with, Amber should’ve “stayed in her lane“ in regards to the comments.   This is a case of thinking before speaking, I believe.  Some things are just far too sensitive a subject and sometimes what you think is “good” really isnt.  And, as I have blogged before on race relations between africans and african americans on The Akata Diary - a situation like this doesn’t help AT ALL.

Here’s what the reader had to say via GC:

Did I hear Amber Rose say there are no middle class people in Ghana? And it is either people are extremely rich or extremely poor? I am a living testimony and a true proof that, she is totally uninformed about Ghanaians.

I am not extremely rich and neither am I extremely poor to be living in gutters or dirt as she puts it. I am a middle class Ghanaian and my family has always been middle class. There are several middle class Ghanaians out there living comfortably and not in dirt.

It is absurd enough to bring Amber Rose to Ghana to headline a concert as the only decent credibility this chick carries around is ‘ex-girlfriend of Kanye West’. I therefore expected that she should at least be coached if she is dumb enough not to know that we have middle class Ghanaians.

Not only did Amber Rose parade her ignorance as far as the economic strata of Ghanaians/Africans are concerned, Read the rest of this entry

London has been understandably shaken as rioters and looters destroy property, loot various businesses, and assault innocent bystanders.  The city has been turned upside down for a third day now, after UK youth reacted with violence to the unarmed shooting of a black male in the back of a cab, by police.

As of right now, there have been 525 people arrested and counting.  Over 100 unruly citizens have been charged.  There have been no reported deaths from assaults the last few days, yet reports of a person having to strip naked in the street and another having already been hurt, both robbed of their belongings among the rioting were hot topics as of last evening.

According to the Daily Mail, technology such as BlackBerry Messenger service  is thought to have played a key role in helping mobilise looters involved in the London Riots. Mike Butcher, digital adviser to Boris Johnson, mentioned that it’s ’unbelievable’ that the BBM service was still funtioning as of now. Twitter certainly helped with getting rioters organized as well.

Croydon pub landlord Alan McCabe told these choice words to BBC regarding particularily the fires raging in Croydon:

‘I have never seen such a disregard for human life. I hope they rot in hell.  ‘The grief they have caused people, the fear they have put in people’s hearts, decent people who have done nothing to anyone.’

I have an aunt and an ex-boyfriend that live in the area and although relationships are strained on one front and obsolete in the other, I hope that they and also my other friends and family are safe wherever they are. Read the rest of this entry

Umm... This is J Holiday. Got your tickets to see him yet?

You guys know what I’ve noticed lately? That if a black artist – primarily from the United States- loses their popularity at home, or they can’t make a huge hit or if they can’t easily get booked for big appearances and concerts, then they can all fall back on one thing:

That is, fly to Africa.

Don’t believe me? Just ask R&B singers Mario and J. Holiday, two washed up acts from the states who last had a hit in only “God knows how long”, that will be teaming up on the 30th of this month to perform at the Dome of the Accra International Conference Centre thanks to Courtesy 233 Connect. GhanaNewsLink referred to the two of them as “Two of the world’s best-selling R&B artistes”… I found this comment amusing when J Holiday’s last chart topper was “Bed” which debuted in 2007 and his last song to appear on the chart  at all was “Suffocate” on the week  22 of 2008.   So, I rightfully will consider this brother  a “one hit wonder” with only having released two albums in the first place.  Mario has done just a little bit better, having lastly had a song reach the charts on week 12 of 2010, yet his biggest chart topper and arguably last big hit was in 2004 for “Let Me Love You.”  Surprisingly, Mario was lastly in US headlines not for any new music but rather for a domestic violence dispute which landed him with a mugshot [click here to check out].

Other US acts that have notably  lost their popularity in music are Ciara, Timberland, Lil Kim & Fat Joe, who all recently finished a mini tour through Johannesburg, Durban, Nelspruit, and Harare. Then, there’s also Fabulous who was recently in Ghana…  All of which are HUGE stars in Africa but have been having quite a bit of trouble staying on top recently in the states.  And let us all not forget Ja Rule, lol.

Lets face it, the music industry is rough and not forgiving in the United States.  Money is very hard to come by.  industry execs are always looking for the next big star.  Probably the smartest thing that these guys have figured out, is that when things get tough, they can always perform in Africa and get paid nicely for it.

I think before the end of the day, we will see an even bigger influx of these celebrities heading over to South Africa, Nigeria, and Ghana because they know they can.  Nothing wrong with that, is it? I wonder who is next… Perhaps Soulja Boy?

So I ask, How do you guys feel about these certain artists going overseas for appearances? Do you throw no shade and believe they would do it even if they were big acts as well? Or, is this just an opportunity to make some dough where they can? I will tell you now that I am not the least impressed or interested.  Tell me that someone has booked Beyonce’, Jay Z, Rihanna or Kanye into the Dome of the Accra International Conference Centre and then I might change my mind on my very biased opinion of they being nothing but desperate for money.  I’d even fly over to see it. Read the rest of this entry

Leila At Work

I recently got to throw some questions at one of my favorite Ghanaian filmmakers, Leila Djansi. Already known for such movies as Daughters of Eve, Legacy of Love, The Rub, and I Sing of a Well, the next and predicably her most successful film to date will be the upcoming drama “Ties That Bind” which stars american actress Kimberly Elise, Ghana’s Ama K Abebrese, Nigeria’s Omotola Ekeinde, and John Dumelo among others. The loss of a Child is what brings three very different women together in this next film – such a serious matter that I took it apon myself to ask Leila some questions that left me far too curious after viewing the trailer last week.

Check out the exclusive below!

Leila, how did you find the right balance between entertaining the audience, provoking them emotionally and intellectually in regards of this movie?

Well, I have noticed I do not necessarily obey the absolute law of escapism.. Or so my editor tells me. Its very challenging when you tell the kind of stories I tell or want to tell. Raw, gritty, truthful and relatable stories are not always entertaining. When we screened Sinking Sands at cannes, we had people running out of the theater or covering their eyes at some of the scenes because they were so intense. Some people found Sinking Sands to be a thrill and did not mind the violence, others said they had nightmares. It was extremely emotional, the kind of movie that take you there. Ties That Bind is the same, but its much lighter. We have lots of heroes. All three women are heroes and so you have them to root for and I think is where the entertainment comes in. they share a lot of laughter, joy and pain together. The beauty of that relationship is the entertainment.

Kimberly Elise, Ama K Abebrese and Omotola J. Ekeinde

I’ve noticed that women have always played a huge role in your work. What did you learn from working with this particular cast?

Wow. I had an amazing cast. I learned a lot, a whole lot. The biggest thing, Omotola said to me was about a subject of rape we dealt with. She was concerned about how we treated it and offered me a lot of insight. Ebbe Bassey was playing that character and so I asked her Ebbe, do you believe the characters reaction and she said yes. She explained to me why and by the time she was done, I went back to the script on set and we worked on her dialogue. On the day we shot that scene, the entire set, over 300 people broke into applause after her performance, those of who could cry cried. Read the rest of this entry

Kimberly Elise with 'Ties That Bind' Cast

One of my favorite African American actresses is breaking boundaries, soon to be featured in an Independent African Movie produced by Award Winning Ghanaian Film Maker Leila Djansi – entitled “Ties That Bind.”

The film, still in production, will be about “three women from different walks of life bound together by a similar pain; the loss of a child. In a destined meeting in a small village in Kroboland, the women journey together to redemption, love, life and forgiveness as they renovate a dilapidated clinic for the villagers.”

Kim will join a very talented cast of actors and actresses from both Ghana and Nigeria.  They include  Omotola Jolade Ekeinde, Ama K Abebrese, Ebbe Bassey, John Dumelo, David Dontoh,  and Prince David among others.

I have yet to watch anything of Leila Djansi’s but, word of mouth has it that all of her work is something worth seeing.  I personally cannot wait to see THIS movie.

Via AmeyahDebrah:

Hollywood actress and four-time NAACP Image Award winner, Kimberly Elise says she is excited to be working in Ghana, which is a different environment from what she is used to. She commented that she is excited about the production so far, adding that in the true spirit of independent film production, the crew for ‘Ties That Bind’ have worked with togetherness so far and she can’t wait to see the final outcome. Kimberly believes her character in the movie can help many women to find their voice in whatever situations they find themselves and help take them on a road to self discovery and empowerment. Comparing her character in ‘Ties That Bind’ to her acclaimed role in ‘Diary of a Mad Black Women’, she commented that both women are very different although both give a voice to women. In the latter, she was a woman struggling to break free but in the former she is a woman that encourages other women to find themselves and break free. Read the rest of this entry