“You got big dreams, you want fame. Well fame costs, and right here is where you start paying… in sweat!”
Many of us eagerly waited to hear that line spoken every week by dance teacher Lydia Grant at the beginning of “Fame”. Grant was of course played by Houston, Texas-born Debbie Allen. A graduate
The Gap Band had a stone groove with this song. Although this isn’t the classic “Disco sound,” the notion of shaking booty at the disco can’t be denied once you hear that bassline. Shimmer and shine seems to be the common theme with the band’s apparel. It’s flashy, yet not overdone. Note the studded trim
Some people were born to sing. You feel it in their presence and even their speaking voice possesses a musical flourish to its tone. Dionne was born to sing. This long-time songwriter from Dallas, Texas proudly counts herself as an alumna of “Grammy High,” the Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and
The new era of Motown is creating quite the legacy, this time in the form of the jazzy Neo Soul singer Kem, whose recent release of his third album Intimacy follows the high quality of his previous releases. The disc is a far too rare breath of fresh air in a landscape where it seems
With all the negative press surrounding Fantasia Barrino nowadays, it’s hard to tell if her third studio album, Back To Me, will garner the attention it deserves. Barrino has obviously matured immensely since her sophomore offering, Fantasia (2006). When asked during interviews about the significance of her latest LP’s title, Fantasia disclosed that musically, she
There is a gap, a slight pause before Def Jam recording artist Ne-Yo answers the first of many interview questions, which apparently is a difficult one: what is his favorite Stevie Wonder album.
“Let me see…,” begins the 30-year old Soul Train Award-winning singer/songwriter, taking several seconds to find an answer. “You know, I can’t just
Gloria Gaynor defined herself as the quintessential Disco queen when she released “I Will Survive.” The triumphant tune about successfully leaving a no-good lover has been the recovery anthem for people for decades, now. The Soul Train gang looks as stylish as ever, our favorite disco ladies swirling in their long skirts with brothers in
Soul Train premiered on WCIU-TV on August 17, 1970 as a live show that aired on weekday afternoons. In October of 1971, Soul Train aired in national syndication with a co-sponsor that featured commercials portraying blackness in all it’s beauty–the Johnson Products Company.
The Johnson Product Company’s Ultra Sheen and Afro Sheen commercials were some of
Mike Phillips describes his ascent in the music industry as “almost like a jazz version of Lil’ Wayne,” noting his numerous guest spots before releasing his first album, and then that first album, 2002’s You Have Reached Mike Phillips, debuting at #3 on the Billboard contemporary jazz chart. Since then the Mount Vernon, NY, native
Flashback to backstage at the 2009 Soul Train Awards with Mr. Blue Eyed Soul, Robin Thicke. Asha the Intern really gets him to open up and share some of his favorite Soul Train memories, of not only watching the show on Saturday mornings but also, performing on the show. In this clip he’s very excited
