Mother's Day is fast approaching, do you know what you're going to get those special women in your life? Well this year Hallmark is making it easy with the release of these cards for just the occasion.

As part of its 50th anniversary celebration, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater will be developing 6 African American-based cards for Hallmark just in time for Mother's Day.

With the appeal of Ultimate Fighting on an unprecedented rise, BET has decided to strike while the iron's hot by introducing television audiences to its own hybrid reality show/fighting contest with 'Iron Ring' which airs Tuesdays at 11 p.m. ET/PT.

The show integrates celebrities from music to sports (from Ludacris to Floyd Mayweather) as they manage some of the top competitors in the industry.

The action is raw and often unpredictable as these men beat each other to a pulp as they vie for the ultimate $100,000 payday.

Recently, Blackvoices' own Denver C. Louis got a chance to talk to Nelly on a few topics ranging from his own squad, Team Nelly, to who's winning if the celebrity managers ever decided to step in the ring. Here's what he had to say:

Although not be a professionally trained chef, she sure knows food.

After her 2005 appearance on 'Emeril Live,' which she described as her greatest "foodie" moment ever, plans were in the works for her own show, 'Cooking for Real.'

Read on as Sunny explains her love for food, her favorite chef and what a "foodie" is to Blackvoices' very own Denver C. Louis.

Part 2...

What do you think of FOX news?

I watch FOX News religiously and I tell every black person if you really want to know how white people think, you need to watch FOX News because that's their spot to say how they really feel, even against each other. I think FOX News is doing what they are supposed to do.

What's your opinion of President Bush?

I love him. I love him to death and I would love to meet him. I think I'm one of those Republicans that maybe blindly agree with what he was trying to do. In the beginning of his Presidency he was not trying to engage the Middle East, he was trying to fix the economy. Yeah, it was a little overwhelming, which all Presidents go through. Look at the beginning of every Presidency, it's a little wobbly. But they get it together by the middle of the first term to go into reelection. On a level they were trying to stabilize the Middle East, so I can understand why Bush did what he did.

He was conservative, because he got off that stuff. Remember he was a party dude. He got off of it, we kind of related to him. A guy who was a C student. He promoted more black people into positions that Carter and Clinton. You had your first black Secretary of State under George Bush. Oh but some people say, Colin Powell is a token. Well I would love to have a token, with the background of Colin Powell, a leader. Yes he may have made a mistakes with 9/11, but everybody believed those reports were true. Everybody believed they had weapons because we sold them weapons when they were our friends. They had enough time when we were fooling around with the UN to destroy or hide weapons.

Look at it like this, here's a guy, that if you're talking about qualifications. He was governor of Texas, he lost an election. He learned his lesson by losing the Congressional election in Texas. His father was the head of the CIA. Here was a guy who learned how to position himself with humor, so people wouldn't be like, 'he's stupid' or 'he doesn't know what's going on'. But he got elected anyway. Then people say he stole an election, but what he did was let his people go in and watch the Democrats implode. Why? You just said you weren't going to count the black vote in Miami, but the law says you need to count all votes, if you're going to have a recount. All he did was out maneuver you, but you thought he was so stupid, you didn't see it coming.

If he's smart enough to have a Condoleeza Rice, and see we don't agree with Condoleeza because we don't agree with the administration. She's not the type of black person we support. Why not? Everybody goes to work, can't stand their boss, but have to do what they say. Not saying that she can't stand him but she's the Secretary of State, she speaks for the country and the administration. So I like George Bush because he's going to pan out to be a good President. Not one of our greatest, and he understands that too. But just think what would any other President have done if they had an attack like September 11th on their watch.

Now I'm sure you understand that you are going against the grain of the majority of the Americans who would denounce President Bush...

How do you know that?

As far as the media projects, and as far as polls are concerned ...

That's what I want you to say because if you notice something you'll hear a survey says ... Don't nobody believe that. Surveys are only as good as the people you're asking. If you ask a 1000 people a certain question a certain way, you'll get a certain response. If you ask somebody should pedophiles be allowed to live across from a playground and an ice cream shop, people would go NO! Ask somebody should someone who has committed a crime be allowed to live near to where their victims who have a say. Do they have that right as an American? What you gonna get? Yes! They have a right as an American to live wherever they live. They served their debt to society. I asked the same question, I just asked it in a different way. Everybody is talking about how they hate George Bush. Now you may not have liked his policies and for those of us who never liked him, that's your business. But I bet you're going to cash the checks he's about to send you.

What do you think about the Spitzer scandal and should his wife have stayed by his side?

While it is a personal choice to remain in your marriage, I knew that if it had happened to me and I loved the guy, and I knew he had made a mistake and I knew there were mitigating circumstances, pressure at his job, insecurities that he never dealt with and such, I may be willing to forgive him. The issue is this guy is the chief enforcement officer for the state of New York. He was also an Attorney General, he was a lawyer. So he knew that he was breaking the law, engaging in illegal prostitution. So, to me, he needs to suffer the consequences. Now as far as his wife and his children, he should have thought before hand. Because he thought of that when he was using them to run for office and be Attorney General and then Governor. He thought of their image then and how the world perceived them. He should thought of the pain that they would go through being put out in the public eye.

What do you think of Patterson and more specifically him putting his dirty laundry out there before anyone even got to it. What do you make of that?

I think it's sad that everyone got to tell you every skeleton in their closet. That's like going to a job interview and while you doing the job interview you lay it all out. So that doesn't make any sense that that's the type of pressure we live under right now. That a mistake that we made in our past we have to bring it up now because the country has such a ravenous desire to know everything about you. Especially when they uplift you ... adulation, adulation, adulation ... and then they go, wait he can't be that good.



What are your feelings on Kwame Kilpatrick getting caught out there?

You know what, we have to go back to mentoring our young and putting people in their place. Just saying, 'brother don't do that.' Don't succumb to this. You see, Spitzer gets caught, and he resigns. Then he's going to write a book, and he's going to redeem himself because America loves redemption and rehabilitation. Then he's going to come back and he's going to speak either on behalf of legalizing prostitution or relaxing wire transfer laws. Something crazy is going to come out, and then they're going to make him the poster child of how you can be a great guy, stumble, and then come back.

A black man can't do that. Let me not say can't. It's very difficult. When did anyone go to Colin Powell and say, 'look brother, everyone believed that information was the same. So brother, we understand the mistake you made'. Nah, you don't see people saying that. You don't see him being invited to the NAACP awards or things like that. That brother was doing his job. Everybody thinks that he was speaking on behalf of himself. No, he was speaking on behalf of the country and the administration. So, with Kwame Kilpatrick ... one, his wife should stand by him if this is something that happened long ago based on however many text messages it was. Now, with regards to stepping down as mayor, I'm not necessarily sure he should step down. Now he broke the law of perjury, but if they could smooth it over with Bill Clinton, why is it an issue here?


Moving out of the political realm, a subject that has been in the news lately is the issue of Juanita Bynum and her marriage.

My opinion of Juanita Bynum is that I do have a concern when you are supposed to be a woman of God and a leader of the Church. When a guy is wrestling with you or fighting with you, or choking you outside of a airport hotel in Atlanta at 4 something in the morning or whatever time they were out there, is that where you should be as a woman? The unfortunate thing is that when you put yourself up above others, you're supposed to be this great religious leader, this great mind of great judgment. But you couldn't pick a man who would not put his hands on you? You couldn't pick a man who you would respect so you would not agitate him enough that he would put his hands on you?

Now I'm cleaning this up, because in my stage act I light her up because women got to understand a man will either beat you down mentally or beat you down physically. But something in you is attracted to that if this continues to happen over and over and over again. You may run into trouble when you start talking about being a woman of God and you proclaim yourself a leader of the Church... which I have a concern with because of the type of Church I was baptized in, the Church of Christ. We don't have women in the pulpit and authority over a man. And another thing is that you can't, all of a sudden jump in all the magazines, talking about you want to speak out against domestic violence. No, you should have been speaking out against domestic violence by the time you had a platform to do so. Not when it was happening to you, but when it was happening to others.

What do you think about her reuniting with her husband?

That's a difficult choice because when somebody becomes physically abusive and mentally abusive, I personally don't think I can tolerate that. I'm just speaking as myself. If we are fighting anywhere, maybe that's just a shortcoming of myself, but I don't think I would be able to change it once you hit me. I'm flinching everywhere; he could just be reaching for salt and I'm flinching. I'm scared he'll even call me, I'll think I'm in trouble. Plus how could I ever say anything about friends and how they are supposed to live their life if my man treats me a certain way? I can't say to my girlfriend, 'girl, I don't even know why you tolerate that.' She gonna tell me to check the dude I'm with, while I talk about her man. she would say, 'My man ain't never choked me at an airport at 4 in the morning.'

But another thing is the way that people think, when you mold people's minds spiritually and emotionally, you have a responsibility to that. So when you are supposed to be all of this, and you're still molding their minds, how are they supposed to look to you when they find out that your life is not the object of perfection that you say it used to be? Some people will question God even though they're not supposed to. You'll get your chance after chance after chance, but the guy on the street won't get those chances. The guy on the street that comes to Church day after day trying to get off that stuff or the girl in the street that can't stop sleeping with people because her self esteem is not strong enough; she don't get that pass over and over again. Her and the bishop need to go somewhere and sit down until they get their life together. That's what it takes to be the leader of the Church.

I'm not judging them, I'm just saying you're supposed to be this great thing. You had your wedding on the religious channel, so you already set yourself apart! You set yourself apart from regular people, so your downfall was just as bad. And people like this stuff. You find out your pastor might be a drug addict, homosexual, womanizer, violent, alcoholic...people like that. If people looked at them as human beings trying to serve God, then I don't think we would have these situations. So I feel that way about anybody who takes on the responsibility of having to be a leader in the Church.


What's your opinion on a show like 'Flava of Love' and what do you think about Flav?

Flava Flav is the sweetest, kindest, most loving person I know. Yeah, you know don't believe the hype. When he was a part of Public Enemy and made you think about things, people didn't have a problem with him. In a country where everything and everyone can exist, why can't we have a person like Flava Flav. We can't be all righteous all the time, just like we can't be all thug all the time, and we can't be clowns all the time because that's just not how we live.

Flava Flav was a guy that when rap was at its foundation, he was a part of it. If you knew him, you would know that he's not necessarily all of that, that's just one aspect of his personality. I'm not defending it. But what I want people to understand is that sometimes when you come to this business, you don't get to come as the George Clooneys, or the Brad Pitts, or the Angelina Jolies, you come in as something else.

What attracted you to comedy?

Well, I was going into college and I wanted to be in the entertainment industry, but I also wanted to have an in education. I wanted to be married, and I wanted to be in the military. So what I wanted was that life that I saw other girls have, you know, the Doris Days, and the Debbie Reynolds. I wanted to come home from making my movie at the studio and then make my children a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. I wanted to make sure my husband had his pipe and slippers. I wanted all that. And I wanted to be smart enough to go in the entertainment business, and when it would be time to go on the other side of the camera, I could also produce, run the contracts with my lawyer, and do everything that I wanted to do because of my educational background. So that's what helped me get through school, my sense of humor.

That's when I met a Dr. Ether Smith, a Zeta out of Chicago, and she turned my on to Greek life. So I went on to pledge Zeta and I found out the intellectual aspect that existed within Greek letters and the idea of the ability they had to help the community. It was my family life, society, all my friends, white, black, Hispanic, Asian...everybody that I touched in my college life and my military life led me to where I am today.

How important is your faith in life?

It is the foundation of everything that I believe. It is the thing that allows me to have joy in living life. For example, I am running for the Presidency of Zeta Phi Beta Organization and people might say why would you do that with all the things you have on your plate? Well that answer is that I am grateful. One, that Zeta Phi Beta allowed me to function in the entertainment business and have some type of life that I could evolve into an even better woman and two that my faith in God says do something for someone other than yourself.

Well, it's been such a pleasure do you have any last remarks?

Hmm... I'm single and I'm looking!!! Print that!

Very few people truly say how they feel, and even less say it as unabashedly as comedienne Sheryl Underwood.

Known for her no-holds-barred stand-up routine, Sheryl covers everything from sex, to current events, to politics. And make no mistake, she's earned stripes with a number of high profile comedy competitions including: the Johnny Walker Red Comedy Contest, the Funniest Woman at the Improv, the Old English Comedy Crunch and BET Comic View's Funniest Female Comedian.

And she also holds a Bachelor's and two Masters Degrees.

Far from your average comic, she makes it known that she is a God-fearing, conservative black Republican. A complex threat indeed. She openly proclaims her love for President George Bush -- while still supporting Sen. Barack Obama as her presidential candidate.

Below is an interview you won't forget from Blackvoices' Denver C. Louis.

Interview Highlights

Bill Clinton
Tavis Smiley
Juanita Bynum
Flava Flav
Barack Obama
Michelle Obama
Rev. Jeremiah Wright
Geraldine Ferraro
Fox News
Elliott Spitzer
Kwame Kilpatrick
George W. Bush.

The problem with Textual Seduction...

Much of history is all about moments in time and in this politically charged era, where black America stands on the precipice of possibility; Detroit's hip-hop Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick is not doing anyone any favors.

The time has finally come for the lid to be blown off this case of 'textual healing,' (or text-gate if you're so inclined) and truth be told, it's not looking too good for the 38-year-old mayor of the country's most dangerous city. Today, the prosecutor, Kym Worthy, announced to a packed news conference that she is charging Kilpatrick with eight felonies and his former aide Christine Beatty with seven.

Looks like the AriZona beverage maker has decided to ditch the label on their Southern Style Sweet Tea after an e-mail chain letter interpreted the packaging as "racist."

Now, the New York-based soft drink maker plans to roll out a new label, seen on the right.

Issuing this statement on their Web site, AriZona Beverage Co. said, "The
dialogue helped us to understand the problem and move forward to correct it."







Read the rest of the previous post ...

Looks like the AriZona beverage maker has decided to ditch the label on their Southern Style Sweet Tea after an e-mail chain letter interpreted the packaging as "racist."

Now the New York-based soft drink maker plans to roll out a new label, seen on the right.

Issuing this statement on their Web site, AriZona Beverage Co. said, "The
dialogue helped us to understand the problem and move forward to correct it."

One of the original Kings of Comedy, Cedric the Entertainer has parlayed his comedy into a substantial television and cinematic resume.

Having first hit the television scene as Steve Harvey's right hand man on his show, Cedric the Entertainer has managed to stay in the limelight with a project every year.

Known for his smooth yet funny persona, his latest character in the Malcolm Lee-helmed film 'Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins', Clyde, is a car salesman who's used to winning.

Recently Black Voices' very own Denver C. Louis got a chance to speak to the rotund funnyman about his new role, his upcoming TV project and his obsession with reality television.

Born with beauty and brains to boot, well-established actress Joy Bryant has been making a name for herself on the Hollywood scene for some time now.

The Bronx native attended Yale on a full academic scholarship, until she was discovered by a modeling agency and pursued a career as a fashion model in Paris.

Although she began acting in 2001, her big breakthrough role came in 2002 where she played Derek Luke's supportive love interest in the Denzel Washington-helmed tear-jerking drama 'Antwone Fisher'.

The Cover Girl cosmetics spokesmodel's latest role in the film 'Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins' has her playing Martin Lawrence's high-maintenance and highly competitive girlfriend.

Here's what the burgeoning actress had to say when she spoke with Black Voices' very own Denver C. Louis on everything from trying not to be too funny to endorsing Senator Barack Obama.

In a season where movies about black families are all the buzz in Hollywood, along comes the film 'Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins,' which arrives in theaters Feb. 8.

Loaded with a talented ensemble cast, the film takes a funny look at remembering your past and the people that help you attain success... your family.

Comedic veteran, Martin Lawrence plays the lead character, Dr. R.J. Stevens, a successful motivational speaker who has left behind his humble beginnings in the south and when he returns, he has to deal with the family that has always known who he is.

And what a cast of colorful characters he has to deal with.

As previously noted on It's All Reel, the Malcolm Lee-directed movie stars James Earl Jones, Margaret Avery, Mo'Nique, Cedric the Entertainer, Joy Bryant, Mike Epps, and Nicole Ari Parker.

The popular comic actor, who has had success with a string of box-office hits such as the Bad Boys and Big Mama's House franchises, sat down down and talked up his latest movie project with Black Voices' very own Denver C. Louis during a promotion tour of the film in Beverly Hills.

Find out what he said about 'Roscoe,' the importance of family, some of his TV projects and more below.

When it comes to food, few couples are more familiar around the kitchen than Patrick and Gina Neely.

This Memphis couple are co-owners of Neelys Bar-B-Q, one of the most successful restaurants in the South.

Simply known as The Neelys, they have a long tradition of cooking on both sides of their family and integrate a variety of different and unique recipes in their menus.

These high school sweethearts share a remarkable chemistry in and out the kitchen which has translated into numerous television appearances.

So when approached only last year with an idea for a cooking show, it only made sense to the attractive husband and wife.

On their show, 'Down Home with the Neelys' -- which premiered Feb. 2 on the Food Network -- the energetic duo plan to share many of their most delicious family recipes for viewing pleasure.

But they won't be alone as they will often feature different members of their large clan in what can be aptly titled a family affair. In a show full of family and laughter, the Neelys will make you feel right at home.

Black Voices very own Denver C. Louis caught up to the lovebirds on the eve of their big TV debut.

Excerpts are below.

Amongst the heated presidential race and with most celebrity endorsements coming a dime a dozen now, it's becoming more difficult to keep tabs on the very latest (and ultimately irrelevant) celebrity endorsements, outside of the "Oprah Effect."

Recently, yet another former Laker great has endorsed a presidential candidate, but this time it is Kareem Abdul-Jabbar voicing his endorsement of Senator Barack Obama.

In what may rank as the dumbest and most irresponsible move of a young 2008, Golfweek Magazine came out firing on all cylinders of stupid by releasing its latest magazine with a lone noose on the cover, blowing in the wind.

In a time when America just can't seem to put a lid on its unrelenting racial issues, Golfweek thought they had the solution, breathing new life into the widely publicized noose cases that died out over the holidays.