Entertainment

Rhiannon Giddens is a singer and multi-instrumentalist best known for her unparalleled mastery of the banjo. According to Rhiannon, in America, "in the first 100 years of its existence, the banjo was known as a plantation instrument, as a black instrument."

Fox News has fired Bill O'Reilly, one of its long term most popular hosts and money makers. In a statement by Fox News 's parent company, 21st Century Fox published today Wednesday, April 19, 2017, the network said:

He is well known for the hit rock 'n' roll songs "Mayebellene", "Roll Over", "Beethoven" and "Johnny B. Goode", that launched and continued to shape his career and expand the music genre he created.

On the night of the 89th Academy Awards, it was La La Land, first. Confusion ensued as presenters Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway found out they had read a wrong title, using the Best Actress envelope. Then, it was confirmed that MoonLight actually was the winner of the Best Picture Award. In the end, both movies scored big.

When Moonlight was announced, the entire audience erupted in cheers and congratulations. Barry Jenkins, Moonlight director, could not believe it. "Very clearly, even in my dreams this could not be true. But to hell with dreams! I am done with it, because this is true!"

Films produced or prominently casting or featuring African-Americans, like Moonlight, won prestigious awards:

• Moonlight, that had received eight Oscar nominations, won three awards: Best Picture, Adapted Screeplay by Barry Jenkins, and Actress in a Supporting Role by Mahershala Ali
• Fences won Actress in a Supporting Role by Viola Davis
• O.J. Made in America won Documentary Feature.

In the end, both Moolight and La La Land won big. La La Land won Best Director, Actress in a Leading Role by Emma Stone, Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, and Best Original Song.

The incident, now named after the TV personality Steve Harvey, who made a similar mistake during the Miss Universe Ceremonies in December 2015, mistakenly announcing Miss Colombia, Ariadna Gutierrez instead of the actual winner and Miss Phillipines,Pia Wurtzbach.

Reacting to the incident, Steve Harvey twitted: "Call me Warren Beatty. I can help you through this!#Oscars". Harvey took responsibility for the Miss Universe blunder, but Warren Beatty appeared to blame the cards for the Oscars gaffe.

Jimmy Kimmel, a talk show host had joked earlier abour the Oscars incident that "This is very unfortunate what happened. Personally I blame Stve Harvey for this."

Moonlight tells a story of a Black man through three phases of his life: as a young boy, a teenager and an adult. The movie touches on several issues, including racial identity, drug, sexual identity, bullying, and poverty. But in the end, it also touched reconciliation, forgiveness and acceptance.

Today, I watched the movie "I Am Not Your Negro" .  "I Am Not Your Negro"  is a documentary film by Raoul Peck, based on the unfinished manuscript "Remember This House" by Black American author and civil rights activist James Baldwin.

 Denzel Washington has won the SAG Award for outstanding performance by a male actor in a leading role on Sunday January 29, 2017. Denzel Washington won for his role in the movie  "Fences", in which he, and actress Viola Davis delivered an breath taking performance. Denzel beat out Manchester by the Sea's Casey Affleck, Hacksaw Ridge's Andrew Garfield, La La Land's Ryan Gosling and Captain Fantastic's Viggo Mortensen.

Today, I watched "Hidden Figures,"  the  biographical drama film based on the non-fiction book of Margot Lee Shetterly.  In the film star Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monáe as Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson, respectively, the black NASA employees who participated in calculating flight trajectories for Project Mercury in 1962. 

Katherine Globe Johnson, known as the  "Black Woman Who Advanced Human Rights and Humanity With A Slide Rule and a Pencil" (see AfroAmerica Network),  is the

The Birth of A Nation: A Movie I invite Everyone to Watch; An Experience About the Price of Freedom

Are you ready for an experience that will forever change  your perspective on how the United States of America, as a nation, was really born? Are you ready to change your perspective on the role played by Black slaves in liberating America from the shackles of human hatred and cruelty against each other, not as submissive beings but as leaders? Then get ready to learn from The Birth of a Nation.  

In Chicago, on 53rd & South Dorchester,  just in front of a Subway sandwich franchise, there is a rock. An unordinary rock. It is a simple rock with a metallic plaque installed in it.  The place itself is, at first sight, unmemorable. At the most, it is not the first romantic place that would come to mind. But it is a  place where President Barack Obama, then a simple Ivy League graduate lawyer Barack Obama,  sealed his conquest of his future wife Ivy League graduate lawyer, Michelle Robinson. 

On the stone, the inscription on plaque reads an excerpt from Barack Obama's memoir:

Meditate with Out Of Africa by Adya. Adya, established in 2006, is a Classic Pop crossover orchestra created by the Belgian musicians Adriaan van Landschoot and Phil Sterman and the conductor Edwig Abrath.

The voice that defined the sound of the '80s with songs like "Kiss" and "Purple Rain" is no more. Prince, the artist who defied the music industry in a fight for creative freedom, has died this Thursday, April 21, 2016 at age 57. Listen to Purple Rain, 1984 

Birth of A Nation: A Movie I invite Everyone to Watch; An Experience About the Price of Freedom

Are you ready for an experience that will forever change  your perspective on how the United States of America, as a nation, was really born? Are you ready to change your perspective on the role played by Black slaves in liberating America from the shackles of human hatred and cruelty against each other, not as submissive beings but as leaders? Then get ready for Birth of a Nation.