Second Listen Sunday : A Kenny Lattimore Christmas
R&B crooner Kenny Lattimore had twenty years in the game when his first holiday CD A Kenny Lattimore Christmas, arrived in 2016. Lattimore has one of the natural voices; he can sing anything and sound good. The first time I saw Mr. Lattimore live, he sang opera and wowed the audience with his instrument. That said, I didn’t want this review to focus on his covers of “I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” “The Christmas Song,” and “O Holy Night because he sings them with ease. Instead, I want to focus on the original songs.
Slow Jam Saturday: Faith Evans, Merry Christmas Baby
Faith Evans was fresh off the success of her fourth gold-selling album, The First Lady, when her first-holiday album, A Faithful Christmas, hit stores. As is the norm with holiday releases, A Faithful Christmas is a collection of Christmas songs. It contains various traditional and modern Christmas songs, such as “White Christmas” and “Santa Baby.”
Strong performances can’t save Empire of Light
Oscar-winning actress Olivia Coleman teams with Academy Award-winning director Sam Mendes for his latest awards bait performance in Searchlight Pictures Empire of Light from Searchlight Pictures. As with his last film, the phenomenal 1917, Mendes also pens the script for Empire of Light.
Christmas Bloody Christmas earns a slot on the naughty list
Kris Kringle is another murderous rampage in the RLJE film release, Christmas Bloody Christmas, written and directed by Joe Begos. On the eve of Christmas, fiery record store owner Tori Tooms (Riley Dandy) wants to get drunk and have some fun. At Tori’s workplace, Robbie (Sam Delich) harbors an unrequited crush on Tori, and all he wants for Christmas is to break out of the friend zone so he can be with her.
Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio is an adult fairy tale
Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio takes place in Italy in the 1930s, during the Fascist era. The walls are lined with clergy, and the podestà is in charge of the town under the rule of the fascist hierarchy. The story is that Pinocchio was created by Geppetto, who had just lost a son and believed that this was a way to make up for it.
Second Listen Sunday: Musiq Soulchild, A PhillySoul Christmas
Musiq Soulchild was basking in the success of “If U Leave,” the second, fifth studio album OnMyRadio when he quietly released the Christmas EP, A Philly Soul Christmas, in the fall of 2008. Often in the realm of R&B, Christmas EPs can come across as a cash grab or label obligation.
Slow Jam Saturday: En Vogue, With My Honey
Legendary R&B quartet En Vogue had seen its share of up and downs when its first Christmas album, The Gift of Christmas, arrived in the fall of 2002. Five years prior, fans saw the departure of original member Dawn Robinson.
Will Smith and director Antione Fuqua avoid slave movie tropes in Emancipation
Following his much-deserved Oscar win for last year’s King Richard, Will Smith returns in Emancipation from Apple TV+. Action and thriller genre specialist Antoine Fuqua directs the film from a script by William N. Collage.
Violent Nights earns a spot on the nice list
Tommy Wirkola delivers a new fun film for our annual holiday viewing in Universal Pictures Violent Night. It’s another Christmas, and the Lightstone family is getting together. The family includes prodigal son Jason (Alex Hassell), his wife Linda (Alexis Lighter), and their daughter Trudy (Leah Brady).
Darby & The Dead is a harmless teen comedy
After utilizing his directorial talents in the world of episodic television for the past few years, Silas Howard returns to features in Hulu’s Darby and The Dead. Becca Greene pens the screenplay from a story by Winnoah Wims. Darby Harper (Riele Downs) is your typical high school-aged teenager with one notable difference.
Willow is a whimsical sequel
A beloved eighties fantasy film receives a sequel in a series format three decades later in Willow from Disney+. Based on George Lucas’ 1988 fantasy-adventure film Willow, the series picks up years after the Nelwyn sorcerer Willow (Warwick Davis) successfully rescued the infant empress Elora Danan from the clutches of the evil sorceress Queen Bavmorda of Nockmaar.
Second Listen Sunday: Donell Jones, Where I Wanna Be
Donell Jones had already made a name for himself, writing for the likes of Usher, Jade, and Madonna, when his debut album My Heart hit stores in the summer of 1996. Jones’s debut featured the hit singles “In The Hood,” “You Should Know,” and his cover of the timeless Stevie Wonder classic “Knocks Me Off My Feet.” Furthermore, two of the album tracks, the slow jams “No Interruptions” and “I Want You To Know,” are better songs than some folk’s entire discographies that entered the music game in the last twenty years.