BV Entertainment Newswire Jan. 6: Patti LaBelle, Dreamgirls, Saul Williams

‘Super’ Plans For LaBelle

Patti LaBelle is confirmed to perform at ‘The 2006 Super Bowl Gospel Celebration’ on Feb. 3 at Detroit’s Masonic Temple. Billed as ‘An Evening Of Inspiration’ and co-sponsored by Sam’s Club, Burger King, Motorola and ‘Ebony’ magazine, the show also features The Winans, Mary Mary, The Clark Sisters and Hezekiah Walker. The 61-year-old R&B diva, who appears on the multiple Grammy Award nominated ‘So Amazing: An All Star Tribute To Luther Vandross,’ is currently working on ‘Pass It On,’ a duets album helmed by former Motown Records president Jheryl Busby and featuring gospel superstars Donnie McClurkin and Yolanda Adams.

On another front, LaBelle –who was reportedly dropped from Island Def Jam Records by chairman Antonio “LA” Reid, unexpectedly, last fall —appears on the lead track (“What About Love”) for the soundtrack to the Oprah Winfrey-produced Broadway musical ‘The Color Purple.’ “Oprah can do NO wrong,” LaBelle shared with Black Voices last night. “I love the musicality of the play and the actresses portraying the characters are singing their faces off! When Oprah asked me to be a part of the soundtrack and said that my home girl Jill Scott would be singing with me, how could I say no? She truly has the Midas Touch and I’m honored and privileged to be a part of this project.” Additionally, ‘Living It Up with Patti LaBelle,’ her wildly popular television series has been green lighted for a third season on Cathy Hughes’s TV One network.

Hip Hop Super ‘Star’

Queen Latifah was honored with the 2,298th star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame on Jan. 4, making her the first rapper to achieve such a feat. “I think the reason I am here is to inspire African-American women who are rappers, full-figured women to know that they can do it, too," the 35-year-old Cover Girl spokesperson said at the unveiling. The Newark, NJ native started her career in the limelight as a politically conscience rapper signed to Tommy Boy Records in the late 1980s. Since then, she has starred in a string of films, including Academy Award caliber fare like ‘Chicago,’ and ‘Living Out Loud’, fronted two TV shows (‘Living Single’ and ‘Queen Latifah Show’) and recorded jazz and R&B-fused collections. The Grammy Award winner has also served as a spokesperson for Pizza Hut and Wal-Mart and has helmed her very own Flavor Unit entertainment/management firm. Latifah’s latest movie ‘Last Holiday,’ directed by Wayne Wang (‘Maid in Manhattan’) co-starring LL Cool J and Timothy Hutton, opens on Jan. 13. Latifah’s next project in the pike is ‘Stranger Than Fiction,’ starring Will Ferrell, Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson.

‘Dreamgirls’ In Motion

Production on the long-awaited movie adaptation of ‘Dreamgirls’ starts on Jan. 9 in Los Angeles, and news of additional cast members is surfacing. ‘Boston Public’ actress Sharon Leal, and theater veteran Hinton Battle joins Beyonce Knowles, Eddie Murphy, Jamie Foxx, Keith Robinson, Anika Noni Rose and Jennifer Hudson in the Bill Condon-directed project. Unofficial reports have surfaced that rappers Mos Def, Heavy D, singers Keith Sweat and Ralph Tresvant and actor Anthony Mackie have been cast, but a Dreamworks Pictures publicist could not confirm those additions at press time. However, Chuck Richardson, who reps Tresvant did reveal to Black Voices that there is an offer on the table for the New Edition lead singer to join the cast, that has yet to be solidified. Reps for Def and Heavy D also denied reports. ‘Dreamgirls’ is loosely based on the rise of Motown super-group The Supremes. The original Tony Award winning Broadway musical launched the careers of Sheryl Lee Ralph, Jennifer Holliday, Loretta Devine, Obba Babatunde, Phylicia Rashad and Vondie Curtis Hall.

‘Saul’ Good

Poet, actor and recording artist Saul Williams will release his fourth book, ‘The Dead Emcee Scrolls: The Lost Teachings of Hip-Hop’ on Feb. 1 via MTV/Pocket Books. The ‘Slam’ star is scheduled to perform at the 2006 International CES, the world's largest technology tradeshow, this weekend in Las Vegas. Heralded by the likes of Russell Simmons and Nas, Williams is recognized as “hip hop’s poet laureate.” Building on the tale of the author's "discovery" of an ancient scroll hidden beneath a graffiti masterpiece in an abandoned subway line, the book blends commentary on the cultural and personal impact of rap with Williams’s signature brand of poetry.