Entertainment
How Lenny Kravitz captured the “human” experience after 6 years away from music
It’s only natural that Lenny Kravitz, one in all music’s most legendary artists and entering his fourth decade in music, has seen and done all of it, got the jersey and earned enough stripes to inform the remainder of the world how he’s doing. However, at the age of 59, the rock star still feels he has loads to learn.
“I’m still a student,” Kravitz tells ESSENCE just before releasing his second feel-good single, “Man”
(*6*) he explained. “Many seniors think they know everything. “This is how it is,” and think, “I’m older, so I’ll tell you how to do it.” He had the opposite approach. So he was a very good teacher who showed me the importance of remaining a disciple all the time.”
Ever the student of life and his surroundings, Kravitz took the global Covid-19 pandemic – a time that effectively calmed the world – as a chance to reflect on the energy that sustained him through all the storms in his life, ultimately transferring it to what became his twelfth .studio album, .
As he prepares to return to the highlight after the pandemic – his 2020 was cut short by worldwide quarantine protocols – Kravitz is feeling higher than ever. Few artists, no matter genre, can maintain a way of relevance over the a long time like a rocker can. Consistently at the forefront of favor, at all times on the big and small screens, and together with his music serving as a continuing soundtrack to the lives of Gen X, Millennial and Gen Z rock fans, Kravitz has develop into much more obsessed with creating with each passing yr.
“I am more inspired than ever. I’m hungrier than ever. I still have a great desire for this life, for creating music and art. I really feel like I’m warming up,” says the rocker in an interview with ESSENCE, preparing for the performance upcoming world tour. “I feel like everything I’ve done over the last 35 years has been a great education that I can use now to push myself into the future.”
This energy led the songbird to create his latest work on his own in his home in the Bahamas for 2 and a half years, writing, recording and operating instruments himself, with the help of his long-time collaborator and guitarist Craig Ross. The album’s release scheduled for May 24 and her worldwide tour starting in late June mark the end of the longest hiatus in Kravitz’s illustrious profession.
“It’s just because of life. It’s not like I left or anything,” he says of his extended absence. “This is my biggest break between two releases, but everything is happening as it should and everything is great.”
And while he could have easily done that, it isn’t like Kravitz just lounged in the Bahamian breeze and casually made music for six years. In addition to pouring his energy into his latest work, he starred in the 2022 Amazon Original film starring Jennifer Lopez, wrote and performed “Road to Freedom” for the 2023 Netflix Original biopic starring Colman Domingo, and basks in of their rightful ways, from a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame to a nomination for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
Yet while having fun with well-deserved recognition, Kravitz stays aware of the spaces into which he has yet to be welcomed. In an often misinterpreted statement that spread like wildfire November 2023 featurethe singer mentioned that he just isn’t “celebrated by people who run [Black] publications or organizations” despite being “a dream and an example of what a black artist can do.”
Although many on social media and in black journalistic circles initially thought he was being dismissive coverscoverage and praise he has received over the years from the Black press, Kravitz clarified that he was specifically referring to Black awards shows that had in some way consistently omitted his invitation as a Black artist working in the Black genre.
“My comment was intended to express my concern for Black artists being recognized for their work within what is currently called ‘non-traditional’ Black music, which it is not,” he wrote in an Instagram Stories post.
“I just wanted to sit at our table because I love our table,” Kravitz tells ESSENCE. “I come from this. I grew up among black pioneers who were in my mother’s friend group, and I am deeply rooted in our black culture.”
Bigger than personal invitations to the BET Awards, the mistake, in accordance with Kravitz, comes when our people have a look at genres like Rock & Roll and do not recognize it as the black music genre it has at all times been. As genres converge in an age of organic audiences and fame gained through independent uploads, and increased tinkering and musical experimentation by kids born in the ’90s, the singer sees hope for the future and more public light shed on a history that is usually neglected.
“Walls that were once difficult to climb are now just easier to climb to the other side, and I love that,” he says. “I love that Rock & Roll is part of the conversation and part of that connection because we have to own the things that we invented and pioneered.”
“There were times when, for instance, little black kids would stop me and ask, ‘Why are you making this white music?’ And then we would have to take a seat down and have an entire conversation about Chuck Berry and Little Richard and Fats Domino and Bo Diddley and Sister Rosetta Tharpe and so forth and so forth and so forth and make them understand where it got here from and that it’s black music.
“Everything is opening up,” he says about today’s music. “I like the way we speak about Beyoncé doing it now [for Country]. I mean, I remember my grandma telling me about country music once I was somewhat boy and telling me where it got here from. She told me, “These are all the songs and stuff I heard us singing in the fields,” and so forth. We need to grasp what we now have done and keep on with it.
“Music is for everybody. The music is colorless. That feeling. But let’s get the story.”
With his own music, Kravitz enriches the wealthy history of Rock & Roll with a message of affection, light and positivity. His latest project is an energizing expression of joy and radiating good vibes – a message that underlies Kravitz’s entire catalog.
“From now on, that’s what I’m doing,” Kravitz says of his album’s positive vibes. “I am here to strengthen love. I talk about it in different ways, but it’s my thing. I believe in love. It is the most powerful energy that exists and is the answer to everything if we only listen.”
“This music is… I’m just an antenna. I broadcast what I receive, so I don’t do it [even] doing this. It just comes through me and I accept what comes through me.”
His second single “Human” is an ideal example of this message. The song, placed at the very center of the album, reminds us methods to be ourselves on this impermanent life.
“When spring comes, it’s an anthem that you can just run out into the street and just start dancing. It just has that feeling,” Kravitz said. “It is a statement of celebrating this human experience that we have as spiritual beings and being authentic to who God created us to be.”
While that is definitely a sensible word to live by, Kravitz says it is also the secret to his longevity – physically, mentally and musically.
“Staying true to who I am, not following trends, just being myself and being authentic,” Kravitz says about his secret to constant success. With his sixtieth birthday looming on the horizon, coinciding with the release weekend of his latest album, the rocker is prepared for whatever comes next, and he hasn’t lost a step.
“I feel great where I am,” he says. “As human beings, we deal with age and what to do, at what age and when to stop, and so on. As for me, I’m here to say it doesn’t matter. You can be 30 years old and worn out and old, or you can be 80 years old and young and full of energy. It depends on you. I feel like I’m just getting started.”
As he prepares for fans to listen to his latest offering and as he prepares to hit the road and establish “communion with the people who bring your music to life,” Kravitz says he hopes that anyone who opens up and listens to his work will they’ll open their hearts to whatever personal message they get from it.
“Whatever it is, they get it [out of the music] – it’s not for me to say – but I hope they feel that spirit, love and positivity, that, as I say, they feel that feeling and just have fun with it,” Kravitz says about the message of his album. “We live in such a demanding world. We have to create our own fun. And for me this album was amazing. I don’t usually use this word, but it’s important that we have moments of fun and provide ourselves with relief and joy.”
Entertainment
Simone Biles torn apart after giving George Strait’s wife a ‘vulgar look’ while fans came to her defense
Did Olympic gymnast Simone Biles cut George Strait’s wife’s eyes on the Country Music Awards?
Some people think so after a viral video of Biles, 27, showing her frustration within the audience on the 58th annual CMA Awards on November 20.
In several clips circulating online, the 27-year-old gave Strait’s wife, Norma Strait, a “dirty look” on the annual awards show where her husband was honored with the John Paul II Lifetime Achievement Award. Willie Nelson.
“Does anyone know if there is a dispute between Simone Biles and George Strait’s wife?” – one in all the X users asked on the evening of this system.
X’s post included a clip of Biles looking nervous as Norma and other attendees danced in the gang on the Lifetime Achievement Award ceremony tribute performance.
The tribute to the “King of Country Music” featured country stars Lainey Wilson, Jamey Johnson, Miranda Lambert and Parker McCollum. Additionally, Chris Stapleton joined Strait on stage to walk through the “Honky Tonk Hall of Fame” to conclude the segment.
Speculation about Biles’ possible disdain shown on the CMA Awards has turn into a topic of debate online, with fans and critics taking sides in the controversy.
“I watched it live and wondered the same thing, and then death looked up and down, she definitely hated!” answer on X platform he stated.
Original X poster he replied“As long as I’m not the only one who saw it.”
However, the legendary gymnast had her defenders. For example, user X sent“He’s probably just watching her reaction (honestly) without thinking about the cameras.”
“Nothing happened” – another person he argued. “George Strait’s wife doesn’t care about messy things like that. It looks like Simone could have a resting face. She wasn’t the one black person either. There are many Black people in country music, from singers to musicians.
George Strait, 72, makes a rare appearance with wife Norma on the 2024 CMA Awards #George #quarrel https://t.co/ua4Xcsjdsq pic.twitter.com/vYByc0Ub6k
— DHNDE (@dhndecom) November 21, 2024
Similar entry To read“I saw it and cringed, it’s just her face, but she should politely decline if she doesn’t like country music.”
Another fan he wrote“She probably saw the camera give attention to George Strait’s wife and just looked around curiously. I do not think she’s giving a mischievous have a look at all, she just looks like she’s noticed that the camera is specializing in the people next to her.
Despite questions on Biles’ on-screen response, the multiple-time world champion expressed her excitement to attend the 2024 CMA Awards on the day of the event.
Biles reposted photos from the evening on her Instagram Story. In one photo, shared by hairstylist Justin Revenge, the Olympic gold medalist showed off the short red dress she wore to the red carpet, in addition to the silver off-the-shoulder dress she wore to the CMA Gala.
The star of the Netflix docuseries “Simone Biles Rising” appeared at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville to present the Female Vocalist of the Year award to country singer Lainey Wilson.
Lainey Wilson won the Female Vocalist of the Year category, beating out fellow nominees Kelsea Ballerini, Ashley McBryde, Megan Moroney and Kacey Musgraves.
Biles herself had a successful 12 months as an athlete. The Texas native won 4 medals on the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, bringing her profession total to a record 11 victories for an American gymnast.
However, Vice President Kamala Harris couldn’t replicate Biles’ success because the Democratic presidential candidate in 2024. Harris lost to former President Donald Trump within the nationwide election.
Biles publicly called on current Democratic President Joe Biden to take a stand on behalf of American women before Republican MAGA leader Trump enters the White House on January 20, 2025.
“Mr. Biden, you need to stand up, straighten your back and shake some things up before you go… xoxo women of America,” the Olympian wrote on Twitter on November 6 in response to the election results.
Entertainment
What do you know about Cynthia Erivo?
With the discharge of Wicked fast approaching, it’s protected to say that Cynthia Erivo is on fire straight away.
The film adaptation of the Broadway musical (which is an adaptation of a best-selling novel based on one other novel) is about to open to over $175 million worldwide this weekend, and Erivo has just landed a significant deal.
Universal Pictures has struck a first-look cope with its production company Edith’s Daughter, Deadline reported.
“Having spent the last three years working with Donna Langley, Peter Cramer and the Universal team on Wicked, I have experienced first-hand the love and fearlessness with which they tell stories and uplift narrators,” said Erivo. “I am absolutely delighted to take the next step in our cooperation under our first-look agreement. This is not only a milestone for my production company, but also a testament to the power of storytelling and the importance of diverse voices in film. I can’t wait to bring our visions to life and share them with the world!”
However, some could also be just discovering the 37-year-old from Stockwell, London (where she was born right into a family of Nigerian immigrants) or may don’t know about her background and profession to this point. There’s quite a bit to like about the Emmy, Grammy and Tony winner – and much more to grasp beneath the surface. Below we have gathered some things you have to know about Erivo, including some very necessary ones.
He is a Broadway sensation
Before Erivo became a star of the silver screen, she made a reputation for herself on the stage. The actress’ breakthrough role was the role of Celie within the musical adaptation of “The Color Purple” on Broadway. From 2015 to 2017, she delivered critically acclaimed, groundbreaking performances, winning the 2016 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.
She has played several iconic black characters
Aretha Franklin, Harriet Tubman and Recy Taylor are black American historical figures immortalized on screen by Erivo, who has played all of them in movies. Shortly after her Broadway run in 2017, Erivo played Taylor in “The Rape of Recy Taylor.” She then starred as Tubman within the 2019 film “Harriet.”
In 2021, Erivo played Franklin within the National Geographic anthology “Genius: Aretha”. While critics praised her performance, Franklin’s family had a special tackle the project, claiming she was never consulted and even felt “disrespected” by the production team.
He is a queer icon
Earlier this yr, Erivo received the Schrader Award from the Los Angeles LGBT Center as a self-proclaimed member for her talent and support of the queer community.
“Acknowledging that I am queer publicly – especially in the public eye – means taking a risk to claim my freedom,” she said in her speech through which she agreed to return out as queer later in life. “It seems we prefer to see the world in black and white rather than accept the difficult (but beautiful) complexities of our humanity.”
Although it has never been explicitly confirmed, Erivo has long been considered one half of a fairly powerful Black Hollywood power couple, as she is commonly seen at red carpet events alongside fellow industry heavyweight Lena Waithe.
He has a novel sense of fashion
From shaving her eyebrows to her signature long and ornamental nails, Erivo is understood for her daring sense of fashion. Her uniqueness was even incorporated into her makeup for “Wicked.” The makeup artist used stencils to attract eyebrows and add freckles. Meanwhile, a special shade of green face and body makeup was developed to make Erivo’s melaninated skin appear “clearly” on screen, and the shade was named “Cynthia Green,” the film’s makeup artist said People Magazine. It’s value noting that despite the hours-long application process required day by day for months of filming, she also said that Erivo “never, ever, ever complained.”
She doesn’t suffer fools
Social media was abuzz this week with response to actor/podcast host Dax Shepard’s invasive query about Erivo’s signature elaborate manicure, specifically how he moves through it while using the lavatory. When footage of her interview with Shepard hit the Internet, many individuals were quick to sentence its inappropriateness, asking her how she wipes herself while having very long, jeweled nails.
“My answer is that no one wipes their ass with just their fingers. You use wipes, right? And you wipe it off,” she replied calmly.
Erivo further expressed her annoyance with this query; the one she had exhibited before.
“I understand, it annoys me. Come on, guys,” she said. “I understand, but I’m a functioning adult and I’ve never walked around smelling like… you know.”
People participating within the discussion found this query rude, disgusting and invasive. It can also be, as Erivo identified, unoriginal. In response to this viral exchange, some have responded by demonstrating how they adapt these very human processes to long fingernails – and shockingly, it’s just about the identical process we have all been doing since potty training. It’s really not that complicated.
He has some questionable tweets in his search history
When it was announced in 2018 that Erivo would play Harriet Tubman within the biopic “Harriet,” the British actress’s seemingly problematic comments made years earlier about the language of Black Americans inevitably resurfaced. As previously reported by theGrio, this compounded existing questions about the choice to forged British-born Erivo because the historical African-American hero, given what some perceived as a disdain for African-American culture.
“As for the tweets, they were taken out of context, giving me no room to explain what they meant – and they weren’t actually mocking anyone,” she explained on the time: Complex reported. “It was not intended to be (offensive) at all. It was to celebrate a song I (wrote) when I was 16.”
Speaking further about the controversy during an event on the Toronto International Film Festival, she said: “I actually have never… never spoken negatively about people because I don’t desire to; I don’t desire this energy to be passed on to others.”
She continued: “I do not think it’s good for us in any respect; I do not think it serves any purpose apart from to bring negativity into my life and yours, and I just don’t desire that.
Perhaps he has some tension with the band in “The Color Purple.”
For unknown reasons, Erivo claims she was not invited to a special screening of the musical “The Color Purple” for family and friends, which was also attended by other members of her Broadway forged. It’s a bit strange that the Tony-winning revival star wasn’t on the guest list. When asked about her apparent rejection in the course of the interview and whether it reflected her initial considerations for Celie’s role within the film adaptation, Erivo suggested she couldn’t talk about it.
Despite every little thing, he’s capable of admit his mistake
Erivo can have had mixed emotions previously as a result of questionable comments or her unwavering passion for her craft, but she is ultimately capable of admit when she was incorrect. In the lead-up to Wicked’s premiere, fan-made art got here to light that edited the film’s poster to look more like the unique Broadway Playbill, obscuring Erivo’s direct gaze with the brim of her witch hat. The actress was initially very offended, but later admitted that she can have overreacted.
“I think for me it was a human moment…” she later explained. “I probably should have called my friends, but I’m fine.”
After all, she is an expert
Say what you want, but Cynthia Erivo is robust and talented. He can also be a one that is alleged to place the nice of the team ahead of his personal glory. During a recent appearance on “Cutting room floor” podcast, she described her technique of coming into harmony together with her “Wicked” co-star Ariana Grande and the way the 2 worked together to create a unified sound fairly than resorting to diva-like behavior in an try and outshine one another.
For example, although she and Grande have very different voices, Erivo noted that what they’ve in common is way more necessary.
“I think what connects us is the way we hear music, so we can hear each other,” she explained. “And the beauty of singing with someone who can also hear is that you follow each other back and forth. We can find ways to make our textures and sounds make sense, and that’s really hard with humans.”
Erivo added: “It also signifies that you found someone completely selfless because they care about working with you, and being an element of that’s essentially the most amazing thing. When you find someone who’s committed to creating sound together, (there may be) no ego.
Entertainment
Snoop Dogg Takes Over ‘Amazon Music Live’ in Season 3 Finale – Essence
Snoop Dogg attends the Los Angeles Premiere of “Gladiator II” held on the TCL Chinese Theater on November 18, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo: Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
When Snoop Dogg takes the stage at Amazon Music Live on November 29, it is the moment hip-hop fans have been waiting for. The West Coast legend ends Season 3 with a performance that guarantees to be nothing in need of legendary.
Airing after Black Friday Football at 7pm EST on Prime Video and Twitchthe show will showcase his expansive musical journey, combining chart toppers with deep cuts that defined a complete generation.
Sponsored by the brand new 2025 Nissan Kicks, fans can expect an exclusive first hearken to songs from his upcoming album ‘Missionary’, which might be released next month. The announcement comes at a critical point in Snoop’s profession and marks the following evolution of an artist who moves seamlessly between music, acting and entrepreneurship.
Amazon Music Live has change into a powerhouse of musical innovation, and Snoop’s final performance epitomizes what it’s all about. Throughout Season 3, the series featured standout moments from artists resembling Jelly Roll, who brought together country and rock stars for an epic performance, and Big Sean, who paid tribute to historically black colleges and universities together with his breathtaking tribute .
For those that wish to have fun in advance and luxuriate in the final word Snoop experience, Amazon Music has REDISCOVER Snoop Dogg playlist it’s the proper foundation. It’s a musical time capsule chronicling his journey from the Long Beach underground scene to world-famous superstardom. Each track tells the story of an artist who not only survived in the music industry, but fundamentally modified it.
With 16 Grammy nominations to his name, Snoop continues to prove that he’s greater than only a rapper – he’s a real entertainment icon. His influence extends far beyond music, touching on film, television, cannabis culture and entrepreneurship. The Black Friday performance might be the following chapter in a profession defined by constant reinvention.
The performance isn’t only about music – it’s also a presentation of, amongst others, recent nissan kicks 2025. As an official sponsor of Amazon Music Live, the compact crossover was integrated throughout the season, giving fans a glimpse of its modern style and advanced technologies through pre-show and in-person experiences on the show.
For those in the Los Angeles area, a limited variety of tickets can be found from DICE. But for everybody else, Prime Video and Twitch will bring the magic of Doggfather right to your screen. It’s a probability to see a living legend in top form, delivering a performance that guarantees to be as unpredictable and electrifying as Snoop himself.
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