Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Mary J. Blige - Reminisce

I REMEMEMBER EXACTLY WHO I WAS,WHAT I WAS DOING, AND WHY I WAS DOING IT. THE YEAR IS 1992, MY SON WAS 2 YEARS OLD! I WAS GOING TO COLLEGE, AND I REALLY THOUGHT I HAD THE THING CALLED LIFE FIGURED OUT. ALL THIS AT 21 YEARS OLD.


MARY J. BLIGE...

A TRUE ICON.

I have always been a fan of Mary J. Blige. She represents true Strength, Triumph, and Transformation for and her many fans.

I get goosebumps watching her appear on Oprah, Tyra, and many other shows. We are the same age. I remember how raw, and hot! she was when she came out, I was living the typical hip hop life as a young lady in my early 20's (not that I am old). I was in College, with my 2 year old son Samuel on my back. Life was a hustle, I was working 2 jobs, catching th bus, and having drama with his daddy and his "other would be's. I have to admit, when I first heard her, I did not like her. However as I kept listening to her music I was like DAMNNN!! This chis is HOT!! I started trying to sing like her! (at home of course).
She became my TOP FEMALE RECORDING ARTIST OF ALL TIME. She reminded so much of the 70's music era I grew up listening to.

Bobby Womack
Al Green
Barry White
Brook Benton
Sister Sledge
Chic
Aretha Franklin
Marvin Gay
Curtis Mayfield
Rolls Royce

Heck even the BeeGees's & Andy Gibb was Hot!! The list goes on! anyhow, enjoy the interview!


MARY J. BLIGE: Men, Marriage, Motherhood and 'Mahogany'
Posted May 14th 2007 2:20PM by Karu F. DanielsFiled under: Entertainment Newswire
By Karu F. Daniels, AOL Black Voices

What is there not to love about Mary J. Blige?
For the past 15 years, we've watched her blossom from a hard-edged, street-savvy new-jill songstress to a critically-acclaimed, polished, much emulated cultural icon.
And 'Essence' magazine has been there every step of the way -- to help chronicle her remarkable journey.Talk about transformation.

The Yonkers, New York-bred Queen of Hip-Hop Soul is gracing the June edition of the best-selling black women's magazine. For her record ninth cover, the recently-married Grammy Award winner gets double exposure -- with two different magazine covers; one very beauty-oriented, the other with her new husband/manager Kendu Isaacs.

In a remarkable photo spread shot by Mark Liddell, the 36-year old Chevy spokeswoman channels the 1976 urban romantic classic 'Mahogany,' which starred Diana Ross and Billy Dee Williams. (Pick up the actual magazine(s) to see the Asian-inspired centerfold. Very fashion forward!!!)

Together with Isaacs, a former business associate of Queen Latifah who now is a partner of Mary Jane Productions, Blige looks the happiest she's ever been.
They were married Dec. 7, 2003.

And for the first time the royal couple sits down together and talk about their courtship and marriage and how breaking through Mary's pain brought them to love.
"I came from hatred," Blige shared with writer Kierna Mayo. "All my life I've been in a bunch of junk where men were jealous of me. They wanted my career, they wanted money from me-something."Though Isaacs was married (with three children) at the time of their initial meeting, he turned out to be her knight in shining armor. "I said, Damn, he's cute, and then I left it alone because I thought he and Latifah were a couple," she recollected. "I didn't know for sure what was going on, so I went to work. We all hung out later that night, and we got to know each other better."

Blige's doubts of a relationship with Isaacs caused her to question her role in the ending of his marriage. "I thought, 'I can't do this. I'm not a home wrecker,'" she revealed. "I was like, give me a gun and I'll just blow my brains out, because I'm at the point of...like I said...my spirit is dead. There was a lot of pain, so I ran straight into more self-destruction. I was thinking about the wife, I was thinking about the kids, and I was thinking, I just don't want to be responsible for that."

Isaacs clarified to 'Essence' that his first marriage was already dissolving before Blige was "fully on the scene;" He said that today he and his ex-wife have a good relationship.
The six-time Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter has had her fair share of romantic ups and downs throughout her life. She has mastered the art of connectivity with her massive fan base due to the fact that her music has been an emotional canvas.

Future-wise, Blige contemplates motherhood -- as Isaacs' three children are very much present in their lives. "God's got to be done with me, the low moments and all the insecurities of the past," she confided about the possibilities. "Your kid is around you 24/7. When you have stepchildren, they come around and then they go home. My child is going to be watching me go up and down on the days that I go down. I don't want my child to feel what I felt when I was coming up, what it was like for my mother to hurt all the time. So I have a fear-it's probably one of my biggest fears-a fear of my child suffering, you know, with that energy."

On the professional front, Blige, who recently starred in the CBS series 'Ghost Whisperer'-- has been attached to a Nina Simone biopic project. According to Bridget Bland of 'MTV Radio Networks,' Blige will star in an upcoming episode of HBO's red-hot Hollywood series 'Entourage.'
The June issue of 'Essence' -- with that scandalous Andrea Kelly story in it -- arrived on newsstands, nationally, May 14.

ROCK ON MARY I SO LOVE YOU!!

Saturday, May 12, 2007


TEENS WORRY ABOUT ENDING UP ALONE ACCORDING TO STATISTICS.

ALSO I AM PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE THAT MORE AND MORE TEENS HAVE BROKEN BARRIERS IN TERMS OF RACE AND RELATIONSHIPS, THAT THEIR PARENTS STILL STRUGGLE WITH.

READ ON...

Youths fear decay of family
Posted by: "freeteensusa" freeteens@aol.com freeteensusa
Fri May 11, 2007 1:30 pm (PST)
Youths fear decay of family By Cheryl Wetzstein. THE WASHINGTON TIMES April 27, 2007 Family breakdown tops the list of concerns for young people when discussing their futures, while getting married and having children are overwhelmingly popular life goals, according to a survey. The findings were released this week by New America Media, in cooperation with the University of California Office of the President and Bendixen & Associates research company.

Young people have a "fear of winding up alone," said Sandy Close,executive director of New America Media, an association for 700ethnic news organizations that was founded in 1996 by the Pacific News Service. Members of the new generation, who spend much of their time on cell phones and text messaging, and "who we think of really as the connected generation is, in a way, most afraid of winding up without intimate connections," she said. There is a "deep yearning for traditional structures and values."

Another hallmark of this generation is its embrace of across-cultural "global society," said Ms. Close. Fifty-three percent of white youths and Asian youths say most of their friends are of a different race/ethnicity, while a smaller 41 percent of blacks andHispanics say the same. Sixty-five percent of those ages 16 to 22said they had dated someone of a different race, and 87 percent said they would be willing to marry someone of a different race. "So this is a generation that has worked through, in their own experience,problems their parents are still wrestling with," Ms. Close said.

The survey asked the 601 youths, 80 percent of whom were born in California, 7 percent elsewhere in the United States and 12 percent outside the United States, to identify "the most pressing issue facing your generation in the world today." Twenty-four percent chose "family breakdown" as their biggest concern, followed by violence in local communities (22 percent),poverty (17 percent) and global warming (14 percent). War and government issues ranked low on the list; drugs,"environmental issues in general," "economic issues" and "racism/discrimination" barely registered. Nearly 90 percent of the youths, who were all interviewed by cellphone, said it was very likely or somewhat likely that they would "be married or have a life partner at some time" in their lives.

The same overwhelming majority also thought it was very or somewhat likely that they would have children. The survey also showed a surprising interest in religion and spirituality: Seventy-three percent said those things were very or somewhat important, and a second question about religious expression found that only 3 percent of youths had no religious expression in their lives. The faithfulness of youths contrasts with other poll data that rank California as having the "highest percentage agnostic' adults in the United States," New America Media said. The poll's margin of error is four percentage points. Source:

(http://washingtontimes.com/national/20070427-121505-3193r.htm)

Tuesday, May 01, 2007


"DRESS FOR SUCCESS WITH SWEETGYRL"

AS YOU ARE AWARE SWEETGYRL INC IS A PROGRAM FOR TEEN GYRLS. WE PROMOTE HEALTHY LIFESTYLE, DRESS FOR SUCCESS, WHY HATE THE OTHER GYRL, MATH & SCIENCE CAREERS, AND WHY HATE THE OTHER GYRL. TODAY MANY GYRLS DO NOT HAVE THE TRAINING OR UNDERSTANDING OF THE IMPORTANCE OF HOW TO "NOT" DRESS FOR WORK OR INTERVIEWS.

THIS ARTICLE WILL SHED LIGHT ON SOME OF THE DO'S & DON T'S.

10 Crimes of Work Fashion
Laura Morsch, CareerBuilder.com writer

Fair or not, appearance matters in the workplace. Just ask Desiree Goodwin. The Harvard assistant librarian sued the university in 2005, claiming she was rejected for jobs or passed over for promotions 16 times because her supervisors viewed her as just as "pretty girl" who "wore sexy outfits," according to media reports.

When it comes to professional perception, clothes make a difference. According to a survey by Office Team, an administrative staffing firm, 80 percent of workers say a person's work wardrobe affects his or her professional image.

This means that dressing appropriately is a must if you want to be taken seriously at work. But knowing what's acceptable attire isn't easy in today's workplace. Business-casual dress codes vary widely between companies, and even between departments. The following items, however, are almost never acceptable to wear to work:

1. The crime: Poor-fitting clothing
Too-tight clothing is never flattering and usually too revealing, but too-baggy clothes make you look sloppy and unprofessional. Pant length also matters -- if you're showing too much sock or leg, expect to be teased all day about an upcoming flood.

Redemption: Find a good tailor. It's a rare person who actually looks good in clothes directly off the rack. Buy an item to fit the fullest parts of your body, and the tailor can nip in the rest.

2. The crime: Too much perfume or cologne
You never want your co-workers or clients to smell you before they see you, and a colleague could be severely allergic to your favorite scent.

Redemption: Apply perfume or cologne with an extremely light hand. If you spritz too much, put some rubbing alcohol on a cotton ball and dab off the excess.

3. The crime: Shorts or too-short skirts
Showing too much leg is never a good professional move -- for women or men. Revealing a little leg makes men appear overly casual or sloppy, and makes women look more sexy than serious.

Redemption: Men should stick with long pants, and women should wear shorts or skirts that hit within an inch-and-a-half of the knee.

4. The crime: Out-of-control hair
Whether it's frizzy coifs or bushy beards, wild hair just doesn't look professional.

Redemption: Women should invest in a good haircut and some styling products that can reduce poufiness and make hair easier to manage. Men should keep their facial hair well-trimmed, or better yet, go clean-shaven.

5. The crime: Dirty, ripped or torn jeans
Even on casual Fridays, ripped jeans look too dirty and messy for the workplace.

Redemption: When you do choose to wear jeans to work, make sure they are well-fitting and in extremely good condition.

6. The crime: Cleavage
There are very few legitimate jobs where showing off your chest is a good career move.

Redemption: Cover up. Whenever possible, avoid wearing anything low-cut to the office. If you can't part with your V-neck shirts, simply buy a few camisole shirts to wear underneath them.

7. The crime: Tank tops
Showing too much skin in the office is never a good idea, and tank tops are especially inappropriate for men.

Redemption: If it's hot outside and you're going out with friends after work, simply keep a cardigan at your desk to cover up. That way, you'll stay comfortable in frigid air conditioning and look professional when your boss stops by.

8. The crime: Noisy jewelry
An armload of bangles or long, dangling earrings are perfect choices for a bar, but downright distracting in the office.

Redemption: Keep your office jewelry simple. A small pendant, stud earrings and a delicate bracelet look much more professional than trendy pieces. Save your flashier jewelry for happy hour.

9. The crime: Gym attire
Even in the most casual workplaces, yoga pants, shorts, T-shirts and running shoes make you look sloppy and apathetic.

Redemption: At the very least, wear nice jeans and professional-looking shoes. If you're going to the gym or catching a flight after work, change into your comfortable clothes in the bathroom on the way out.

10. The crime: Extremely high heels
Extremely high heels are too sexy for the workplace -- not to mention impractical. Few things would be more embarrassing than wobbling or tripping over your extreme footwear in front of the boss.

Redemption: The highest heels you should wear to the office are 2 to 3 inches. That way, you'll actually be able to walk in them, and they'll be comfortable enough to wear all day. You might feel shorter, but you'll no longer fear grates or sidewalk cracks.


Copyright 2006 CareerBuilder.com.