Karyn White - Music

Karyn White - Music

By Rych McCain International/Nationally Syndicated Entertainment Columnist

Karyn White Enterprises TM

Karyn White

This Sultry Siren Of Soul Is Back!

Photos Courtesy of KWE

Karen White's new album Carpe Diem

     Making it to the top of the game in the music business and then hopping off of that mountain to fall completely off of the radar can be a nebulous position from which to make a comeback after an eighteen year absence. But when you are sultry songbird Karyn White; returning to the forefront of the music world is a very realistic prospect. 

White and her gold & platinum

   After all, white’s extensive background as a backup singer and songwriter for several hit artists; a Soul Train Award and two Grammy Awards nominee; as well as a solo career that spawned a double platinum self titled debut album (Karyn White) with the mega-smash hit “Superwoman” which became a classic anthem and a gold follow-up album “Ritual Of Love” which included another smash single “Romantic” that hit #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 Chart has established a lasting fan base which she can surely spring from. While out of the music biz, White firmly established herself as an interior design expert as well as a real estate professional and currently runs successful companies in both areas.

White's smash new single "Seize The Day"

     White has a new album “Carpe Diem” on her own KWE (Karyn White Enterprises) label distributed via Lightyear/EMI, which dropped this week featuring the hit single “Seize The Day.” She hasn’t lost a beat. Her vocal pipes are better than ever while her looks are still eye candy stunning. White’s biggest change without question is her mental maturity and the vast treasure of wisdom she has gained from lessons in all facets of her life experience. To sit down and seriously talk with White is an advance course in the music business, relationships and dealing with the head games that result. This lady tells it like it is and is quick to come clean about her flaws and mistakes. Her new music is a blend of that wisdom and the direction she is now going. White’s new album “Carpe Diem” has a mature edge with the correct mixture of R&B, Funk, hip-hop and smooth jazz. It the kind of music that grows on you, the more you listen to it.

White and former husband Terry Lewis

          While she was at the pentacle of her career in 1992, White married super record producer Terry Lewis of the famed Terry Lewis and Jimmy Jam production duo. They had a daughter the following year and were living fabulously in Minneapolis, Minnesota. To the outside world she had it all i.e., the mansion, the man, the fame, the platinum and gold. White and Lewis divorced seven years later in 1999. Having gone through the experience of being a power couple in the music biz, what is white’s opinion or advice on being married to someone in the same biz as you? She surprisingly responds, “It’s a blessing. First of all we represent only one percent who are doing it. It is really hard and it takes a lot of hard work and deduction. I think it takes one to know one so I believe for me it was strength. I wasn’t mature enough. Terry Lewis was an incredible husband, father, businessman, producer, writer, everything. I wasn’t mature enough to understand really what I had. It takes an understanding because your husband has to support what you do. A lot of men would probably be insecure saying I don’t want my woman away and not understand but Terry did. Yes, I would advise it”

White at home enjoying her poochie

    What did White learn most about herself during her time off? “God had me. Wow, I felt like I was in the wilderness because at a young age I was very faithful and I knew I had a calling. I knew I was very driven. I was very successful at being able to make my dreams become a reality through God opening doors and being in the right place at the right time and hard work. But my personality and my character and the pains of just growing up as a woman suffered. My mother really put focus on the fact of me being an entertainer but you have to be the whole woman. She was like Martha Stewart. She could cook and do all of that and I wish she would have given that to me but it was like she wanted me to kind of be like what she wasn’t. So the focus was on me being an entertainer since I was a little girl and this is what I wanted to do.”

White's book Carpe Diem

     White also has a new book of positive affirmations and thoughts also titled "Carpe Diem" which means "Seize The Day." She recently made an appearance on the TV One Network Show "Life After."

 For more information please visit:
www.KarynWhite.me
www.Twitter.com/Karyns_World
www.Facebook.com/KarynWhiteMusic
www.Youtube.com/user/KarynWhiteOfficial

 

© 2012 Rych McCain Media/Syndication tm 

(You DID Hear It From Me!) 

 E-Mail: feedbackrych@sbcglobal.net 

 

Cruzmatik - Music

Cruzmatik - Music

By Rych McCain International/Nationally Syndicated Entertainment Columnist

Spin Rich Records TM

     Cruzmatik

Dynamite Duo Making Their Mark

Photos by Tim Cattera

Crusmatik (L)  JWillz  (R) FMZ

     Two life long friends came together to forge a musical duo that has created a fresh new sound and the music world has begun to take note. “Cruzmatik” is a new duo created by two music veterans. The first member is rapper/producer Reggie Stephens who also goes by the name Famouz or FMZ. Stephens is a former player for the NFL New York Giants and the Arena Football League’s Nashville Kats.

Reggie Stephens aka FMZ

 FMZ gained notoriety for being the first person to legally sample a Jon Bon Jovi song on a hip-hop track (“Bad Name,” and get clearance for David Bowies (“FAME “) from his debut album, Ghetto Passport).  In addition to Bon Jovi, FMZ has worked with the likes of E-40, Bun B, DJ Unk, and Rankin Scroo.

Jason Williams aka JWillz

     The second member is singer/songwriter Jason Williams aka JWillz. Williams was been the lead singer for the group Ribsy’s Nickel for 12 years.  Growing up in one of California's premiere surf towns (Santa Cruz), JWillz and Ribsy’s have been playing their catchy surf/reggae/rock music up and down the California coast for close to 12 years, sharing the stage with bands like Slightly Stoopid, Pepper, The Expendables, Fishbone, Travis Larson Band and The Chop Tops. After having done their separate things, the two friends decided to join forces and go into the studio. Their first single “Not Gone Wur Bout It,” was the result and it started to catch on big time via them performing it on live shows. The duo has a new album that will drop soon.

JWillz & FMZ  Cruzmatik

     So what is the concept of the cruzmatik sound? FMZ explains, “We’re going for the main stream market basically. As you get more into our music, we are all about positive energy and good vibes. We aren’t trying to bring no negativity to the situation. So that’s kind of like where we stand. Our whole thing is having fun. If you ever watch both of our videos it’s like having a good time and having fun with friends and family. So that’s the direction we’re going, on a positive note, that’s what we’re trying to do.”

         There is an abundance of negativity and self hate surrounding hip hop that is being marketed and pushed to our youth. Does Cruzmatik find a tug and pull with their audience because of this? JWillz responds, “Sometimes it is like that and the negativity does come from all angles when you’re doing this music. Even though we are a positive group it still affects us because there is a lot of negative out there that people try to bring you down or whatever. The main thing with me, FMZ and this group its always been like you can’t pay attention to it. When people try to get personal with you, you really can’t take it that personal. I don’t know a lot of people that are on Twitter. I don’t try to get caught up with it. I’m trying to stay in a positive way. If you really stay focused and don’t get caught up in all of this negative energy it’s not going to affect you and its  been working every since we started this group. Since we began in the bay area and our success started to grow more, a lot of people have been throwing that negative hate around and it doesn’t affect us. Why should it affect us? We know where we want to go so we block it out and that’s a good thing to do.”

FMZ    JWillz       Cruzmatik

  

   Cruzmatik has taken off like a wildfire without the usual methodology associated with promoting a group. What have been the key elements to their rapid rise? FMZ elaborates, “Everything that we’ve gained has been organic. We have no radio play, we’ve worked the social media like crazy and people see what we’re doing. We work with a charity called “Grind Out Hunger” where we help feed kids who don’t have any food. Everything that we do is positive. People are looking for something different to tell you the truth. They're looking for something different from the same old stuff that these artists have been doing. You see these videos and all you see is jewelry etc., and I don’t hate on that or dislike that. They do what they do but where the times are with the economy and everything that is going on, people want to be happy when they look at stuff. They don’t want to be looking at the same thing, going down that same road. So that’s how we look at it and I think that’s where the fan base and the support comes from especially in the bay area. Check out the Curzmatik videos:

  

http://www.vevo.com/artist/cruzmatik?source=lucenesearch  VEVO  

http://www.youtube.com/user/CruzmatikVEVO 

E-mail: cruzmatik@gmail.com; Facebook and Twitter 

 © 2012 Rych McCain Media/Syndication tm 

(You DID Hear It From Me!) 

 E-Mail: feedbackrych@sbcglobal.net 

 

Cicely Tyson - Film

 

Cicely Tyson - Film

By Rych McCain International/Nationally Syndicated Entertainment Columnist

Cicely Tyson

No Fanfare, Just Full Steam Ahead!

All Liongate Photos

     One would think that after a successful modeling and acting career that spans five decades; and being considered by many as an American artistic treasure and icon, she would be content to lay back and rest on her laurels and accomplishments but not so for the magnificent actress Cicely Tyson. 

   However, when you mention the word great in her presence she is quick to correct you saying “I’m not a great actress. I strive to be a good actress. That word “great” is bandied around entirely too much.” As mentioned above, there are many who would tend to disagree with her. After all this Harlem native is a “Best Lead Actress” Oscar® nominee for her role in the 1972 movie “Sounder” and was the first Black actress to win the “Outstanding Lead Actress in a TV Movie” Emmy® in 1974 for “The Autobiography Of Miss Jane Pittman” as well as other critically acclaimed roles. Tyson began her career as a model after being discovered by a fashion editor at Ebony Magazine and worked her way to the top in that field. Then she studied and made the transition to acting. Her body of work is not as extensive as it could have been due to her commitment to portray only strong, positive images of Black women.

Cicely Tyson as Nana Mama

     Tyson’s latest role is a prime example. She plays Nana Mama, the grandmother/mother figure in the Alex and Maria Cross household. Of course we are talking the new Tyler Perry action/thriller movie “Alex Cross.” Tyson really enjoyed working with Perry again. There is a scene where Perry grabs her from behind and lifts Tyson off of her feet. Was that something she was expecting from the script? She laughs, “No, No, I did not. I mean, as his mother, I certainly did not expect him to do that to me. But we do have a lot of very playful moments and he does that at a time when I’m getting at him to change my attitude towards him.” 

     What is Tyson’s take on her character Nana Mama? Turning serious, Tyson breaks it down, “Well first of all I think and what I hope the audience takes away is the fact that she is a mother. To me it’s the most important feature in her personality. And then add to that fact that if anything ever happened to her son, she would not only be grandmother but mother to his children. And so, I was torn between his love for the work that he chose and the fact that any day he could not come home to me nor his children. So that was extremely difficult for me."

Tyler Perry & Sayeed Shahidi

     The stress of being Nana Mama shows as the character is always cranky. Tyson agrees explaining, “Because she’s living on the edge. She’s living on a very threatening possibility she can loose him any day that he can walk out of that door and never come back. So she’s always on edge about that. He has consistently tried to kind of slough it off as I know what I’m doing, this is what I love doing and so on and so forth. But she knows the facts that his life is in absolute jeopardy. And as a result, so is mine and so are his children.”

Tyler Perry as Alex Cross

    Because this is Perry’s first action-hero film where he is strictly and actor and not the writer/director what butterfly did both have about working with each other under these circumstances? Tyson muses, “Oddly enough he (Perry) said to me time and time again, ‘I can’t believe I’m in a scene with Cicely Tyson.’ ‘I’m doing a scene with Cicely Tyson.’ He went to the director and said ‘I don’t know how to act; I’m doing a scene with Cicely Tyson.’ By the same token, I’m looking at him and I’m saying, ‘oh my God, I’m doing a scene with Tyler Perry.’ I’m really doing a dramatic scene with Tyler Perry.’ So we both actually had the same anxieties about working in this particular capacity with each other.

     Tyson has an incredible body of work. So when a new project comes her way, is there any pressure to except a certain level of project or does she take it for face value for what it is? Tyson says, “No I never take anything at face value. I have always maintained one way of selecting a role that I would play and it’s through reading the script. And if my skin tingles, I know it’s for me, if my stomach churns, I know it’s a pass. And that’s my way of deciding.

© 2012 Rych McCain Media/Syndication tm 

(You DID Hear It From Me!) 

 E-Mail: feedbackrych@sbcglobal.net