June 4, 2007

Cruisin' For A Cause

It's called a "party with a purpose" and annually syndicated radio personality Tom Joyner and his morning show cohorts (J. Anthony Brown, Sybil Wilkes, Myra J., Miss Dupree, Jacque Reid and yours truly) charter an entire Royal Caribbean cruise ship, call it Fantastic Voyage and raise lots of money for historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). This year, more than $1 million was raised by the 4,000 guests on the sold-out Freedom of the Seas, the newest and largest ship on the ocean.

Performers on this year's Fantastic Voyage included Charlie Wilson, New Edition, Maze featuring Frankie Beverly, Patti LaBelle, LL Cool J, Keith Sweat, Shirley Caesar, Silk, Chuck Brown, Mint Condition, Kelly Price, C.O.C.O. Brown & The Phat Cat Players, Tito Jackson, The O'Jays, Bell Biv DeVoe, Shirley Murdock, Mike Phillips, Michael Ward, Dr. Bobby Jones, Teddy Riley, The Laws Family, Steve "Silk" Hurley and newcomers Hot Sauce. Comics Katt Williams, Rickey Smiley, Earthquake, Damon Williams, Kym Whitley, Marvin Dixon, Bruce Bruce, Dexter Tucker and A.J. Jamal also performed.

'Sybil's Book Club' hosted several notable authors this year including Donda West ('Raising Kanye: Life Lessons from the Mother of a Hip-Hop Superstar'), Jeff Henderson ('Cooked: From the Streets to the Stove, from Cocaine to Foie Gras') and Lyah Leflore and Eddie Levert ('I Got Your Back: A Father and Son Keep it Real About Love, Fatherhood, Family, and Friendship'). Other notables who presented panel discussions or just sailed for the fun of it were Judge Glenda Hatchett, 'The Surreal Life' star Emmanuel Lewis, domestic goddess B. Smith, Judge Mablean Ephriam and 'Extra' correspondent A.J. Calloway.

First time cruisers on The Fantastic Voyage were both amazed by the size of the ship (imagine a Las Vegas-sized casino on water) and the amount of activities offered throughout the seven-day voyage. Guests really didn't have to get off the ship when it stopped in San Juan, Puerto Rico; Casa De Campo, Dominican Republic; and Royal Caribbean's private island, Coco Cay, Bahamas, if they didn't want to. Everything from learning to step with Chicago's 'King of Stepping' George Daniels to art auctions or even 'Sweatin' in the Spirit' with Joyner's wife, fitness guru Donna Richardson Joyner, is offered on the ship. Most live for the infamous water gun fight during the cruise's last port, and believe it or not, teams are divided by light skin versus dark skin. (It's a running bit from Joyner's show, and it's all done in fun!) This year the dark skin team won!

Cruise Superlatives:

Best Performance: Charlie Wilson did what only Charlie Wilson could do on The Fantastic Voyage: he captivated the 1,300-plus people jam-packed crowd in Studio B for almost three hours as he performed new songs from his sophomore solo set, 'Charlie, Last Name Wilson,' classic cuts from The Gap Band and any and everything else he felt like singing. Though Wilson is in his mid-60s-"Stop trying to figure out my age," he told the crowd-he performs with the energy and the fervor of twentysomething entertainers like Usher and Justin Timberlake. He has dancers, sports designer jeans with a blazer, wears cornrolls and talks with the swagger of someone half his age, like R. Kelly. This veteran entertainer offers a master's course in vocal delivery and being a showstopper in his must-see live show. Honorable Mention to New Edition, Shirley Caesar, The O'Jays and Patti LaBelle.

Best Sleeper Performance: (Tie) Tito Jackson captivated the ship with his live blues show. Though the butt of many comic's jokes throughout the years, the former Jackson 5 singer has found his niche in the blues and don't be surprised if he begins to really soar in that genre. Sometimes younger acts fail to connect with the Tom Joyner demographic on The Fantastic Voyage (just ask L.L. Cool J), but Anthony Hamilton's old soul and spirit-filled show resonated with the crowd and his show was near perfection. A first-time sailor on The Fantastic Voyage, Hamilton had so much fun he's already lobbying to come back next year.

Funniest Performance: While I enjoyed all but two of the comics on the ship this year, I have to say that If you don't know comedian, Damon Williams, you will real soon. The Chicago-based funnyman just destroyed the ship during his show with the hilarious Kym Whitley and Miami-based comic Marvin Dixon. As the mid-card performer (Whitley was first after Chris Tucker's brother Dexter opened), I couldn't understand why Williams did not headline the show after seeing his rock-solid routine that earned him nearly 30-minutes of non-stop laughter. Check out clips of the 41-year-old comic on YouTube to see why he's now one of my favorite male comics!

Hottest Commodity: Just about every man on the ship was trying to get at Jacque Reid. The former CNN anchor and 'BET Nightly News,' who now offers news and social commentaries daily on the 'Tom Joyner Morning Show,' has to be the sexiest woman in the news business and men were lining up and practically begging me and others affiliated with the show to hook them up with Reid. The TV and radio talent, a frontrunner for the gig on 'The View,' has a boyfriend who should have probably sailed with her to help keep all the male admirers at bay.

Overachiever Award: J. Anthony Brown proved that he's not just one of the funniest comics in the business, but he's one helluva entrepreneur as well. The Los Angeles-based comedian introduced the J. Anthony Brown Art Collection on the ship and his new J. Anthony Brown Hot Sauce was also a sponsor for the nightly buffet. If that wasn't enough, his J. Anthony Brown Clothing Collection was showcased in Donna Richardson Joyner's 'Girlfriend's Coffee Talk Fashion Show' and a documentary of him launching his clothing line aired exclusively on the ship's television channel.

Best Collaboration: (Tie) Charlie Wilson coerced Shirley Murdock to join him on the throwback slow jam "Computer Love" during the last night of his show. Murdock then performed her most famous hit, "As We Lay," with Wilson's band. Now a fulltime gospel singer, Murdock was quick to tell the crowd: "But remember, before you lay, you got to pray!" Dr. Bobby Jones has signed a new deal with the Zomba Gospel to release his new music and that of his Nashville Super Choir. While on the ship, Jones recorded a very dance-friendly track with hit-maker Teddy Riley, who set a mini-music studio in his suite on the ship.

Buzzworthy

Karrine Steffans, author of the bestselling book 'Confessions of a Video Vixen,' appeared on 'The Ed Lover Show' on New York City's Power 105.1 FM denying internet rumors about her seeing R&B star Ne-Yo. "I've met him a couple of times. He's a nice guy," she offered, before shooting down the dating claims. What Steffans didn't mention on air was that she was spotted last week outside The Roxy in West Hollywood canoodling with her ex-boyfriend Bill Maher. I wonder if they've rekindled their romance? Maybe we'll have to wait until her sophomore tome 'The Vixen Diaries' (Warner Books) comes out in September to find out.

Chingy has reconciled with Ludacris and his Disturbing Tha Peace organization. The St. Louis-bred rapper was a product of Disturbing Tha Peace, but after having platinum-plus success with his debut 'Jackpot,' Chingy accused Ludacris and the DTP camp of cheating him out of profits. During a recent appearance at an event for The Ludacris Foundation, Chingy told the columnist, William "Obnoxious" McCray III, that all is well with his former cohorts. "It's a beautiful thing," Chingy said of the truce. "What happened, happened. It was some bull-crap for real. We got past that and figured things out." Chingy is slated to appear on the first single off the next 'Ludacris presents Disturbing Tha Peace' project and is at work on his fourth solo effort.

R&B vets Full Force, who have been spending more time racking up platinum plaques for producing artists like Rihanna and The Black Eyed Peas, hope to have similar success with Akon's Caribbean-bred girl group Brick & Lace. The Full Force family unit-the sextet consists of brothers and cousins-became popular for being the resident nemesis in the 'House Party' movies opposite Kid-N-Play. The singing/production group is ready to hit the big screen again in a film called, 'Bouncers,' which is in pre-production stages.

Darryl "DMC" McDaniel's of Run-D.M.C. led demo rides for Harley-Davidson during Atlantic Beach Black Bike Week in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Also on-hand for Harley-Davidson activities was 'Ray' actor Clifton Powell, who kept the crowd in stitches by going into his character "Pinky" from the 'Friday' series. Rapper Young Joc performed for the thousands in attendance, who were able to win Harley-Davidson apparel including leather jackets and other riding accessories.

Tyler Perry is receiving an overwhelming response to his "Building Onto A House of Faith" sweepstake to promote the forthcoming debut of the show, 'House of Payne' on TBS. A church can win a $25,000 donation after writing a letter explaining why they need the monetary gift at www.tbs.com/stories/story/0,,110893,00.html. Voting on the five finalists begins June 8.

Carol H. Williams Advertising recently announced that the new GMC 'Boundaries' campaign for the 2007 Sierra Crew Cab and Sierra Denali features music by Lifesavas, the hip-hop collective that's a part of the Blackalicious crew.

Can't Say Names…

My mom called me after seeing a certain Hollywood funnyman on television. "Does (comic's name withheld) have a toupee," she asked? I replied: "Yes mom, what made you ask that?" My mom went on to remind me that before she began teaching cosmetology many years ago, she actually worked for a company that created and then applied men's toupees. "I can usually spot them since I've worked with them, especially the bad ones! His is definitely bad," she added.