Gospel artist Deitrick Haddon recently tweeted that Jonnetta Patton, Usher’s mother, is helping to manage his career.

Usher famously fired his mom in 2007 and then considered bringing her back in 2008 once his album sales were low.  Deitrick Haddon’s new project “Church on the Moon” is garnering critical acclaim in secular and Gospel.  Check out his latest long-form video below.  

Gospel star James Fortune can be seen here next to his wife Cheryl Fortune, signing his new contract with Light Records.  Fortune moves from Black Smoke Records to a stacked Light Records roster that includes Shirley Caesar, Ricky Dilliard, J.J. Hairston and Youthful Praise, Jessica Reedy among others.

The three year deal, which was inked this week, includes the future recordings of James Fortune & FIYA as well as a number of other artists FIYA World Music is recording.  James Fortune will embark on running his own label FIYA World Music also in his new venture.  Under the terms of the agreement, Light Records will handle marketing and promotion while eOne will handle distribution.

Fortune & FIYA introduced themselves to the world with their debut CD, YOU SURVIVED in 2005. They amassed recognition in 2009, with the award winning song, “I Trust You,” from their sophomore release THE TRANSFORMATION.  

CLICK HERE to find out what Light Records CEO James Robinson thinks about his new roster signing.

Episode 1 of “Addicted to Food” recently aired on Oprah’s OWN network.  Previously we reported that DeJuaii Pace of the Anointed Pace Sisters had admitted to being a 45-year-old lesbian virgin.  In the video below DeJuaii opens up with the ladies in rehab about her attraction to women.  

Pace said that she’s “Not attracted to men, and she’s been denying it for years.”  “But being brought up in a family that’s very religious I’ve always just said if I’m going to die and go to hell for this than I just will not experience that (sex) at all.”  Pace says that this part of her life is eating at her and tourmenting her.  And she hasn’t said anything to her family members.  Pace goes on to say that this is the underlying problem to her eating problems.

You can watch the video of the episode 1 below, and around the 30:35 mark of the video DeJuaii Pace’s part is shown. 

Addicted to Food airs on Tuesdays at 10/9c on OWN.  

Chairman and CEO of the BET network, Debra Lee, is no stranger to receiving negative comments regarding programming on the network. For quite some time, BET was under scrutiny and accused of creating a lineup that wasn’t showing a positive image of the black community. Even BET’s co-founder Sheila Johnson, slammed the network last year, claiming that she was ashamed of what the network had become after she, and her husband Bob Johnson sold it off to Viacom.

Recently, Debra, who has been with the network for 26 years, spoke with FOX Business Network’s Gerri Willis and revealed that BET has made long strides in improving and getting more strict about what they allow to air. The shift in programming has caused them to deny videos from major money-making artists such as Kanye West, Rihanna, and Ciara.

On the Criticism of Degrading Women
“I think the criticism has gone away. The first thing I did, which was in the works anyway, was to create more original programming that shows different images of women. So our sitcoms have started doing that. We’ve got moredocumentaries. We’re going to get into the drama business. We’ve cut back on the amount of music videos, that’s how we grew up but now we’re in a positionwhere we can do other kinds programming.”

On Becoming More Selective With Programming
“We’ve gotten more strict on what we allow on air. We used to live by broadcast standards, but as the hip hop industry got a little more risqué we had actually had to bring that back some and say just because it can be on the air doesn’t mean it has to be on the air.”

On Declining to Air Certain Artist’s Music Videos
“As we worked on our brand and where I wanted to take the network, I started to say no to a lot of artists. I said no to Kanye [West] and to Ciara. Those are the ones that come to mind. I think Rihanna we’ve been working with. And that’s sort of amazed me a little bit, that I had to say no to women, but someone had to be the grownup in the room. I didn’t ask for that job but someone had to say no and looking at it from our young audience’s perspective.”

Whether you watch BET on the regular or not, there has been some noticeable improvements over the last few years. With the influx of female artists that the network has denied; it raises the question of whether or not, male artists are primarily at fault for misogynistic material and featuring half-naked women gyrating in their videos, or are the women who, in an attempt to exude sex appeal, are just as responsible for how black women are represented.

Click Here to Watch Video Interview of BET CEO Debra Lee

Gospel power house and member of ‘the Clark’s Sisters’ Dorinda Clark-Cole has launched a new jewelry line offering jewelry, earrings, pendants among other things.  She’s calling the collection “Dorinda Jewelry Selections.”  No word yet on her motivation behind the jewelry offerings.  The website mentions WKB International but does not speak on whether it’s her company or a design affiliate.  Anyway it’s pretty nice stuff!

The singer already has a clothing line called Terramina.  Clark says, “Terramina is upscale, polished, suitable for church-lady, first lady or every lady.”

CLICK HERE to check out the new assortment of jewelry.   Check out some good ole’ Dorinda Clark-Cole music below with her new single “He Knows.”

Okay so I don’t get much into reality TV.  I like to think my own life is interesting enough then to spend hours a week in someone else’s life.  But I did find this clip of Actress Lisa Raye’s reality show news-worthy from a Christian perspective.  Lisa Raye’s reality show “The Real McCoy” recently debut season 2 on TV-One.  

Personally, I think there is a misconception on what being a Christian is.  Lisa Raye mentioned not having sex was hard for her, drinking and dancing.  I agree sex can separate us from God’s will, but nothings wrong with dancing.  It’s what the dancing leads to that you have to control!  It’s the same way with our anger.  Wow and never knew she studied scientology.   

What do you’ll think about this and reality shows from a Christian perspective?  Good thing or bad thing?  Take a look at the previously aired promo. 

Kim Burrell has released artwork for her new CD “The Love Album.”  The newly installed Pastor has announced the release date to be May 17th.  You can pre-order the album now by clicking here.

Check out the new album Cover and some Kim Burrell music!  
 

 

The ladies of Trin-i-tee 5:7 released their new single called “Heaven Hear My Heart.”  The album will be on their forth-coming album scheduled for release this spring.  Listen below, what do you think?  Also, check out their new promo picture.

    Charles Patrick, a black man, a resident of Birmingham was downtown to buy his adopted son a Boy Scout uniform.  He had been searching for a parking space for a while and just as he went past one he saw a man about to pull out. Mr. Patrick stopped and waited for the man to pull out so that he could back into that space.  The man pulled out and immediately a white woman pulled into that very space.  Mr. Patrick got out of his car walked over to the woman’s car and the two had this interaction.

    “’Ma’am, I was waiting.  The man was pulling out and I was backing in.’ [Mr. Patrick] said the woman yelled back, ‘I’m getting this spot.  My husband is a police officer.’’…He doesn’t own the streets of Birmingham,’ [Mr. Patrick] recalled telling her.”

    Mr. Patrick returned to his car, drove off, found a parking space, conducted his business downtown and then went home.  That evening two policemen came to his house and arrested him. That evening, while in jail, two other policemen, both white, one of whom was the husband of the white woman in the car, came in and beat Mr. Patrick with their fists and when he fell to the floor kicked him over and over again.

    From there the story takes unexpected turns.  Birmingham, Alabama in the 1950s, a black man was beaten by the police.  No surprise.  But that black man goes to court to press charges and to tell of being beaten… huh?  There was court hearing and lots of news coverage because what was happening was unusual.

    At the hearing, the judge ruled to suspend the two police officers. Days later, city commissioners met to render judgment about what to do about all this and ruled to reinstate the two police officers.  That decision brought outraged response from the white community in the form of letters to the editor of the “white” newspapers. 

    What year you ask?  1954.  Where again?  Birmingham, Alabama.  Really, you wonder.

     That is what makes this story important.  The writer is the journalist daughter of Charles Patrick. Ms. Dorsey has tracked down every news article, editorial and letter to the editor written about this event in her father’s life and in the history of the civil rights movement. Yes, she is telling this story because it happened to her father, but also because what she found surprised her:

    “The editorials and letters I read in support of my father changed my views about Birmingham.  Growing up in Los Angeles… I had… adopted beliefs that white Americans in the South would forever harbor animus toward African Americans, that white citizens applauded and embraced violence against blacks, and that white citizens in the South would never change.  But after reading the letters written in response to my father’s case, I realized that Birmingham was a mixture of nobility and treachery like any other city.”

Click to Read Full Review on MakingGumbo.com 

Purchase the Book by clicking http://www.mignettepatrickdorsey.com/ 

Hello Fear, the brand new release from Kirk Franklin, celebrates its second week atop the Billboard Top Gospel Charts, selling over 46,000 units in its second week. The album also sits at #5 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Charts and #9 on the Billboard Top 200 Charts. Mary Mary‘s latest release Something Big debuts at the #2 position with over 42,000 units sold. The album also sits at #6 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Charts and #10 on the Billboard Top 200 Charts. The WOW Gospel 2011 compliation moves to the #3 spot, while Smokie Norful‘s latest How I Got Over…Songs That Carried Us debuts at #4. Church on the Moon from Deitrick Haddon rounds out the week’s top five albums. In other chart news, Love God. Love People: The London Sessions from Israel Houghton jumps twelve spots to #6. 

In the world of radio, “I Give Myself Away” from William McDowell returns to the top of the radio charts. “I Smile” from Kirk Franklin moves to the #2 spot while “Walking” from Mary Mary jumps to the #3 position. Vashawn Mitchell‘s “Nobody Greater” takes the #4 spot while “My Heart Says Yes” from Troy Sneed rounds out the week’s top five songs.