I’ve had a love/hate relationship with Ebro Darden since starting my struggle hour and a half commute to work in 2012. This was right around the time Ebro began making guest appearances on Hot 97’s morning show, then just the program director trying to save the show’s ratings.
I have always appreciated his fluid on-air personality and the respect he has in the industry, which makes for better interviews; it’s his lack of tact surrounding some highly-sensitive issues that’s left me feeling some type of way more than once (the U.O.E.N.O. Rick Ross controversy comes to mind).
In the video you see the good and the bad, as Hot 97 gives you a behind-the-scenes look at last year’s Summer Jam through the eyes of “the old man.”
I was hoping to learn something new about the concert production process, which didn’t really happen, but having watched the show via live stream, it was interesting to see what was really going on backstage with the artists. (You have to peep Mariah showing up in the middle of the song she is supposed to perform with a champagne glass in hand (7:42). -__-) Check it out!
>>If you are a real Danity Kane/MTB fan, you know you remember this scene.
When I was 14, I never missed an episode of Making the Band 3. My friends and I would sit together at lunch and analyze everything that happened with Danity Kane and Day 26, perform choreography, and yes, harmonizing badly (vis-a-vis the above).
Needless to say, when I watched the group crumble in the season finale, I took it personally.
I was definitely disappointed the whole group couldn’t work out their differences (and don’t get me started on Aundrea backing out just months after they announced their reunion), but I’ll take what I can get with the newly dubbed “DK3” — Dawn, Shannon and Aubrey. Who ever liked D. Woods anyway…
Nine years after MTBIII’s premiere, let me get to Danity Kane’s performance at Irving Plaza in NYC.
The sound was TERRIBLE. I don’t know if it was the sound engineer or the venue’s system, but good Lord. I couldn’t hear anything the girls were saying from the moment they stepped on the stage, and what’s more, I couldn’t really hear what they singing either. Major factor…
Lip-synching and backing track… why? Throughout the show, they used back tracking complete with ALL of the pre-recorded vocals. I can understand why some of the high-energy performances (perhaps) required lip-synching but it made it impossible to hear what was (meant to be) live and what wasn’t, to the point where I can’t make one single comment about how they sounded, vocally, because I have no clue.
The crowd was HYPE, and they had every right to be. Despite the sound issues, DK killed the performance. I just knew Dawn was going to come out and outshine everyybody, but all of the girls held their own. You can tell they are taking this seriously, and they’ve been working hard. I can’t imagine doing more than 5 minutes of their choreo, let alone doing it while carrying a baby.
With their latest releases “Lemonade” and “Rhythm of Love,” it would seem the girls are shifting their sound away from the R&B-influences of the past, but I hope they can find that hit single to get them back on top.
I would love to see what they could do on tour with a budget… slayyage.
I love black love, like and everything in between, so I appreciate First‘s intimate look at “the first date” for recently reconnected Robin and Charles.
The web series was the perfect addition to my Saturday night of RomComs, popcorn and hot toddies.
One of my favorite memories from my trip to San Francisco.
A key to understanding the differences between wines: tannins. Tannins are the textural elements that make wine taste dry. In most cases, there are a higher concentration of tannins in red wines than white wines.
You should drink most white wines within 1-2 years, the sooner the better. Red Wines are better with age,10-20 years. Why you ask? Back to tannins. Tannins allow wine to better with age.
You are told to “swirl” your glass of wine, particularly reds, but works for whites as well, to make it softer on your tannins and brings out the true aroma.
Most wines are named after the key grape variety used to make them and some regions are better at certain types of grape varieties than others. For instance, Napa Valley is known for their Cabernet Sauvignon made with the cabernet sauvigon grape grown in the region.
If you can’t see through the glass, it’s a good red wine.
Hopefully I didn’t just lie to yall… lol
BONUS:
From my friend to yours — time for a dinner party!
