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Billboard‘s signature Power 100 event is returning this year to celebrate the industry’s most influential executives.
For the 2023 edition of the event, Billboard revealed on Monday (Jan. 23) that the event is presented by leading global wealth manager UBS. Featured awards include Executive of the Year, Label of the Year and the Clive Davis Award.
As previously announced, for the first time ever, Billboard introduced a peer-voted award to the Power 100 ranking. The new Power Players’ Choice Award will honor the executive whose peers believe has had the most impact across the music business over the past year, from recording and publishing to touring. Voting for the honor closed on Jan. 17.
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“We’re thrilled to be honoring music’s crème de la crème on our definitive industry power list, which we pared back this year to its original 100 coveted slots after several years publishing an expanded version,” Hannah Karp, Editorial Director of Billboard, said in a statement. “As the music industry continues to grow, earning recognition on Billboard’s Power 100 has become more competitive than ever, as has the race for our featured awards, which celebrate the crowning achievements of this incredibly elite and impactful group.”
The Power 100 event presented by UBS will take place at Goya Studios in Los Angeles on Feb. 1, 2023. Other sponsors include HarbourView and EMPIRE.
A signature Taylor Swift guitar, a pair of Eminem sneakers and an iconic stage outfit from a member of BTS are among the items going under the gavel next month at the MusiCares Charity Relief Auction. According to a Tuesday morning (Jan. 17) release announcing the sale from Julien’s Auctions, the Feb. 5 event will take place following that night’s 65th annual Grammy Awards.
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Among the items slated to benefit the organization that helps musicians with financial and medical needs, is a signed Epiphone acoustic guitar that appeared in the artwork for Swift’s 2020 pandemic album Evermore that features custom graphics from the album artwork; the instrument is expected to draw bids in the $5,000-$10,000 range. Also going on the block is a white pair of Nike Air Max gym shoes from Eminem featuring the word “Shady” scrawled on the side that are expected to fetch up to $3,000.
There will also be an outfit worn by BTS’ J-Hope during his debut solo album photo shoot for Jack in the Box, which includes a black jumpsuit, buckle belt, a black cotton t-shirt and black ribbed bunny ear beanie pegged to bring in between $2,000-$4,000; the ensemble was worn by J-Hope for the “concept photos” for the album track “MORE.”
Among the other items on the block: a signed Champ Medici and Dr. Bombay sound systems and skins with a special NFT from Clay Nation that includes a catered visit to Snoop Dogg’s “The Compound” recording studio from Snoop and his son, Cordell Broadus ($6,000-$8,000 estimate) and Harry Styles’ 2020 black Fender Player series Stratocaster electric guitar signed by the singer in gold marker and inscribed “Always love” beside a doodle of a heart ($2,000-$4,000 estimate).
You can also bid on a 2014 Gibson Les Paul electric guitar signed by all five members of Fleetwood Mac (Mick Fleetwood, Christine McVie, John McVie, Stevie Nicks, Lindsay Buckingham) when the group were honored as the MusiCares Person of the Year in 2018. There will also be a black Epiphone acoustic guitar with signatures from a number of artists who participated in the concert for 2015 MusiCares honoree Bob Dylan, including John Mellencamp, X’s John Doe, Tom Jones, Graham Nash, David Crosby, Aaron Neville, Bruce Springsteen, Alanis Morissette, Susan Tedeschi, Derek Trucks, Sheryl Crow, Bonnie Raitt, Norah Jones, Jack White and Jackson Browne (estimate $2,000-$4,000).
2021 MusiCares honoree, Joni Mitchell, will be represented by a signed 2021 Gibson Hummingbird acoustic guitar and signed copy of the 4-LP vinyl boxed set The Reprise Albums ($2,000-$4,000), as well as Mitchell’s signed print of her original oil painting of Jimi Hendrix ($10,000-$20,000).
Other items on the list include an original painting by former Van Halen singer David Lee Roth, “Dark Ocean” ($4,000-$6,000 estimate), a 2006 limited edition art print from Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood entitled “Rolling Stones, Bigger Bang” (estimate $1,000-$2,000) and stage and appearance wardrobe worn by Olivia Rodrigo, Katy Perry, Kylie Minogue and Brandi Carlile. The auction will also feature signed guitars from Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant, Guns N’ Roses’ Slash, Lenny Kravitz, The Eagles’ Don Felder, Sting, Aerosmith’s Joe Perry and signed handwritten lyrics from Shaggy (“It Wasn’t Me”) and items from the Beatles, Elton John, Depeche Mode, The Who, Selena Gomez, Jimmy Buffett, Ozzy Osbourne, Daft Punk and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.
Julien’s will host an exhibition of the items from Feb. 1-Feb. 3 that is free to the public in Beverly Hills, Calif.; click here to see the items and enter an absentee bid.
A public memorial service for Lisa Marie Presley will be held next weekend at Graceland, the famed Memphis home of her father, Elvis Presley. The memorial for Lisa Marie Presley will be held on the front lawn of the mansion at 9 a.m. on Jan. 22, according to a representative of her daughter and actor Riley Keough. The general public is invited to attend, with details about the service available here.
Presley, 54, died Thursday, hours after being hospitalized for a medical emergency. It was previously announced that Presley will be buried at Graceland next to her son, Benjamin Keough, who died in 2020. Elvis and other members of the Presley family are also buried at Graceland.
A singer-songwriter herself, Lisa Marie did not live in Memphis, where she was born. But she made trips to the city for celebrations of her father’s birth anniversary and commemorations of his death, which stunned the world when he was found dead in Graceland at age 42 on Aug. 16, 1977.
Lisa Marie became the sole heir of the Elvis Presley Trust, which — along with Elvis Presley Enterprises — managed Graceland and other assets until she sold her majority interest in 2005. She retained ownership of the mansion itself, the 13 acres around it and items inside the home. A representative for Graceland told People magazine that following Lisa Marie’s death, the property, which is in a trust, will benefit her daughters, Riley, Harper and Finley.
She is survived by her mother, Priscilla Presley, and her three children. In lieu of flowers, the family is encouraging fans to make a donation to the Elvis Presley Charitable Foundation.
Janelle Monáe is set to receive the SeeHer Award at the 28th annual Critics Choice Awards, which will be held at Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles on Jan. 17.
Monáe, who received a past Critics Choice Awards nomination for best supporting actress in the Oscar-nominated 2017 film Hidden Figures, is also nominated this year for a best supporting actress for her performance in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery.
Her other acting credits include Lionsgate’s Antebellum, Focus Features’ Harriet, Disney’s Lady and the Tramp, Amazon’s Homecoming and A24’s Oscar-winning film Moonlight. In 2018, Monáe’s album Dirty Computer was also nominated for two Grammy Awards for album of the year and best music video.
According to the Critics Choice Association, the SeeHer Award honors a woman who advocates for gender equality, portrays characters with authenticity, defies stereotypes and pushes boundaries. Recently, Monáe was honored as the suicide prevention advocate of the year by The Trevor Project. She is also co-chair for the nonprofit When We All Vote and started her Fem the Future initiative.
Past SeeHer Award recipients include Viola Davis, Gal Gadot, Claire Foy, Kristen Bell, Zendaya and Halle Berry. Actor Jeff Bridges has also been tapped to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award at the upcoming awards ceremony.
The Critics Choice Awards will air live on The CW on Jan. 15 from 7-10 p.m. ET (delayed PT). The show will be hosted by Chelsea Handler, and executive produced by Bob Bain Productions and Berlin Entertainment. Find the 2023 Critics Choice Awards film nominations here and the TV nominations here.
This article originally appeared on The Hollywood Reporter.
“I’m going to be singing this whole time, so get ready,” one attendee laughingly declared to her neighboring seatmates at Stevie Wonder’s annual House Full of Toys Benefit Concert. But not to worry.
Wonder and his guests — including Gregory Porter, Trombone Shorty and Jody Watley — had everyone inside Los Angeles’ sold-out Microsoft Theater singing and dancing along to each and every note Saturday evening (Dec. 17). Just Wonder playing a few notes on his harmonica in the wings before walking onstage with the evening’s musical director/longtime friend Rickey Minor was enough to send the audience into a cheering frenzy even before the concert got underway.
House Full of Toys, presented through Wonder’s nonprofit We Are You Foundation, benefits children, people with disabilities and families in need with concertgoers donating an unwrapped toy. Now in its 24th year, the performer lineup featured Trombone Shorty who had attendees second-lining a la his native New Orleans when he joined Wonder onstage for an exuberant romp through “Sir Duke.” Prior to that, Jody Watley took fans on her own nostalgia tour, performing her 1989 R&B/pop hit “Real Love” before segueing into a classic from the traditional holiday special A Charlie Brown Christmas, “Christmas Time Is Here.”
Trombone Shorty performs at the 24th House Full of Toys Benefit Concert on Dec. 17, 2022.
Lester Cohen for Wonder Productions Inc.
Meanwhile, Gregory Porter’s sonorous voiced blanketed the venue with “Take Me to the Alley,” the title track to his 2016 album. “That’s what we’re here for,” added Porter afterwards, referencing the hungry, homeless and others going through life struggles. “That’s why I had to sing that song.”
Rounding out the lineup of performers were Tina and Teddy Campbell, the John Paul McGee Trio with Amber Bullock, Kimberly Brewer and Wonder’s daughters Zaiah and Nyah. The pair danced together on a holiday song that Wonder recorded in the late ‘60s, “One Little Christmas Tree,” and returned later to sing along with their dad on the standard “The Christmas Song.” Lucky Daye was also scheduled to perform but canceled owing to not feeling well.
As always in years past for this holiday concert — and with no offense to the guest stars who have appeared — the night belonged to Wonder. The legend gave as good as he got from an already enthusiastic audience that became more ecstatic each time he sat down at the keyboards or piano and simply sang. Early in the show, Wonder boosted the festive spirit already resonating around the venue when he performed “What Christmas Means to Me,” singing to the original instrumental track recorded back in the ‘60s.
Shifting from a raucous sing-along to “I Wish,” one of his many classics, Wonder celebrated the 50th anniversary of his 1972 album Talking Book. Beginning with “You Are the Sunshine of My Life,” he then saluted his late ex-wife and co-writer Syreeta Wright (“Such a wonderful spirit”) with the moving “Blame It on the Sun” before closing the Book suite with an emotional turn on “You and I (We Can Conquer the World).”
Said a tearful Wonder after an ensuing standing ovation, “I love all of you so much. I give all praise to God for all the songs I’ve written or co-written. If you understand love, you can’t spend one second entertaining the spirit of hate … Let’s show the world how to love again.”
With the clock ticking down to after 11 p.m., Wonder gifted the audience with a mini-concert. The set list included “Do I Do,” “I Love You More” with the aforementioned Brewer, “As,” “Ribbon in the Sky,” “I Just Called to Say I Love You,” “Living for the City” and “Higher Ground.” Closing with another Talking Book selection, the crowd-pleaser “Superstition,” Wonder brought his children and the concert’s entire staff onstage.
Before walking offstage to “Another Star,” a smiling Wonder said, “I wanted to give you all everything I could give you … I love you; God bless you — and we are done!”
On Friday night (Dec. 16), lines formed outside of a relatively unmarked warehouse space in downtown Los Angeles for “Club Renaissance,” a two-night event in celebration of Renaissance, Beyoncé‘s seventh studio album. The album, released in July, is a kaleidoscopic exploration of genre, escapism and self-expression; on it, Beyoncé experiments with different shades of dance, house, disco, pop and R&B.
The party’s unspoken 1970s-era theme was interpreted by attendees for their outfits in a range of ways, much like the sonic versatility of the project itself. The event, presented by Amazon Music and Parkwood Entertainment, featured several musicians in attendance, including singers Syd, Victoria Monét and Lucky Daye.
The building was lined with graphic posters of a Renaissance promotional image, which several partygoers used as a backdrop for their photographs. And there was another wall ripe for photo opportunities, decorated with neon signs that bore song lyrics and titles from the album, like “Church Girl” and “Cozy.”
Guests chatted and sipped thematically named cocktails (“Cuff It” and “Alien Superstar,” also Renaissance titles) once doors were open, and approximately an hour after the event started at 9 p.m., the DJ began to play Renaissance top to bottom and in spatial audio. Attendees enjoyed it from the dance floor for the duration, creating the very Studio 54-esque dance party the project promises. (A group of engineers tucked along the periphery were controlling the sensory displays, which included strobe lights and fog elements.)
The glowing, holographic horse Beyoncé is seated on in the album’s cover art was prominently placed in the center of the room, enclosed in a glass box like a museum artifact. Throughout the night, the air was buzzing with the question of if Beyoncé herself would join the event, like she did in previous cities (ultimately, she did not).
Saturday’s event is expected to draw more of the singer’s fan base. Free tickets were released online to her subscribers earlier this week and sold out in under 20 minutes.
The first “Club Renaissance” was essentially the album’s official release party and was held in August at Times Square Edition hotel in New York. There was also a Parisian edition of the event in October during Paris Fashion Week.
This article originally appeared on The Hollywood Reporter.
MEXICO CITY — For some fans, going to Bad Bunny’s Estadio Azteca show Friday night in Mexico City was a dream come true. But for others, it turned into a nightmare after they became victims of a scam, with Ticketmaster Mexico canceling their tickets at the entrance to the show saying they were fake and a throng of angry fans at the door demanding to go inside.
Dozens of people who had arrived hours and some days earlier — coming from different places in Mexico and the U.S. — were not able to get inside Bunny’s fist night in Mexico City, which also marks the end of his tour.
Valeria Carrillo, a young fan who came from the seaside town of Isla Mujeres and said she had paid over 9.000 Mexican pesos (some $455), was one of the unlucky ones. She stood in line since early in the morning to be one of the first to get inside the stadium. She couldn’t.
“I didn’t come all the way from Isla Mujeres to have this happen to me!” she told Billboard Español, in tears.
Some desperate fans climbed over the main gates of the stadium trying to get inside but were blocked by security.
In a press release posted Saturday, Ticketmaster Mexico admitted that “the issues with access were the result of an unprecedented number of fake tickets, which led to a not normal agglomeration of people and an intermittent operation of our system.
“The above generated confusion and complicated the entrance to the stadium, with the unfortunate consequence that people with legitimate tickets were denied access,” added the release.
Mexico’s Federal Attorney for the Mexican Consumer (PROFECO) said it had opened an investigation and asked those who had been affected to present their complaint on a website provided by the institution. By Friday evening, PROFECO said in the same release that only seven people had submitted complaints, but more were expected.
On its end, Ticketmaster said it would refund ticket-holders who hadn’t been able to get into the venue and would also provide additional compensation of “no less than 20% of the price paid for the ticket, in accordance with the terms of article 92 Bis of the Federal Law of Consumer Protection, which states that right when a service is deficient or is not rendered.”
Issues with tickets delayed the show for nearly 60 minutes. Originally scheduled for 9 p.m., it started at 10 p.m. But once the lights went out, it was party time. Benito Ocasio Martínez took the stage in front of 85,000 attendees, with a slew of special guests that included Bomba Estéreo for “Ojitos Lindos,” Chencho Corleone for “Me Porto Bonito,” Mora for “Una vez” and Jowell & Randy, with whom he sang “Safaera.” Bunny finally brought up his friend and fellow hitmaker Jhayco for “Tarot.”
One of the highlights of the evening came when the Puerto Rican star paid homage to the late Mexican music idol Juan Gabriel by sampling his hit “Querida,” and later, when performing “Yo No Me Visto Así,” which also references “Querida” and Juan Gabriel in its lyrics.
For Bunny’s second Mexico City show on Saturday, PROFECO had personnel at the entrance to the stadium beginning early in the afternoon, and there were reports on social media of fans with fake tickets being turned away.
There is nothing funny about Kanye West‘s repeated amplification of antisemitic tropes and hate speech over the past month. In a series of interviews and media appearances, the artist who now goes by Ye has made a series of comments denigrating the Jewish people, culminating last week with an appearance on conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ show in which Ye stated “I like Hitler.”
But if there is one person who has the unique ability to transform hate into hilarity, it is Sacha Baron Cohen. The acclaimed comedian — who is Jewish — appeared at this weekend’s Kennedy Center Honors in the guise of his belovedly profane, offensive-to-everyone dopey journalist character Borat Sagdiyev to pay tribute to honorees U2.
Kazakhstan’s least reliable source of news took the stage and expressed genuine confusion that President Biden is the current White House resident. “I know the president of U.S. and A is here. Where are you, Mr. Trump?” Borat asked according to a transcript of the appearance from The Guardian.
“You don’t look so good,” Borat said to Biden. “Where has your glorious big belly gone? And your pretty orange skin has become pale… But I see you have a new wife. Wawa-woooah! She is very erotic. I must look away before I get a Bono.”
But the sharpest barbs from the comedian whose work skewers hate and intolerance with even more absurdly hateful, intolerant punchlines that shine a sharp satiric light on xenophobic and homophobic hate speech went all-in on Ye in the wake of the rapper’s latest exile from Twitter for posting an image of a swastika last week.
“Before I proceed, I will say I am very upset about the antisemitism in US and A. It not fair,” Borat said. “Kazakhstan is No 1 Jew-crushing nation. Stop stealing our hobby. Stop the steal! Stop the steal! Your Kanye, he tried to move to Kazakhstan and even changed his name to Kazakhstan-Ye West. But we said: ‘No, he too antisemitic, even for us.’”
In a classic Borat bit, Cohen then sang a brief parody of U2’s “Without or Without You,” with the lyrics switched up to “With or Without Jews,” as titters erupted in the crowd and he asked, “What’s the problem? They loved this at Mar-a-Lago. They chose Without Jews.”
West, who does not appear to be promoting any projects at the moment, has been on a month-long media tour of right-wing media outlets in which he has unashamedly denigrated the Jewish people while also praising the murderous Nazi regime. The disgraced MC whose once-massive music and fashion portfolio has gone into free-fall since he began spouting antisemitic and racist statements continued his bizarre hate tour on his Instagram feed on Sunday when he made what was couched as a joke about Twitter CEO Elon Musk’s ethnic heritage.
“Am I the only one who thinks Elon could be half-Chinese?,” West asked. “Have you ever seen his pics as a child?” Musk was born in South Africa to a Canadian mother and South African father and it was unclear what West was referring to in questioning the billionaire Space X/Tesla founder’s ethnicity.
Without mentioning Ye by name, President Biden issued a pointed statement on the dangers of antisemitism and the embrace of Nazis on Friday in the wake of West’s Hitler praise on Jones’ show. “I just want to make a few things clear: The Holocaust happened. Hitler was a demonic figure,” Biden tweeted in a statement. “And instead of giving it a platform, our political leaders should be calling out and rejecting antisemitism wherever it hides. Silence is complicity.”
The strongly worded statement from Biden starkly contrasted with the recent scene at Donald Trump’s private Mar-a-Lago resort, where the twice-impeached president hosted Ye as well as far right activist and white nationalist Nick Fuentes, who is also known for spewing antisemitic rhetoric. Also present at the lunch that Trump hosted on the high-visibility patio at his golf club was Ye’s apparent 2024 presidential campaign manager — who has reportedly since been fired — professional right-wing troll Milo Yiannopoulos, who has been blocked from most major social media platforms for his slurs against Islam and feminism, and his embrace of antisemitic figures.
West’s doubling and tripling-down on hate speech comes just months after the Anti-Defamation League — which tracks anti-Semitic behavior nationwide — reported a 34% rise in anti-Semitic incidents in 2021 (to 2,717), which averaged out to more than seven such incidents per day.
J. Cole announced the return of his Dreamville Music Festival on Wednesday (Nov. 2), revealing that the event will return in spring 2023. In fact, after a two-year pandemic layoff and a reboot this spring, Dreamville is expanding to two days next year, with all the action slated to unfold in Raleigh, North Carolina’s Dorothea Dix Park on April 1-2.
The first edition of Dreamville took place at Dix Park on April 6, 2019; it was postponed from Sept. of 2018 due to the impact of that year’s Hurricane Florence. The first year lineup for the music, food, art and culture fest featured Cole, Big Sean, Nelly, SZA, 21 Savage, 6LACK, Teyana Taylor, Davido, Saba and more.
The planned second go-round of Dreamville was scheduled for April 2020, but postponed, then cancelled, due to the then-rampant COVID-19 pandemic. It finally returned in April of this year with sets from Lil Baby, Kehlani, Wizkid, Wale, Rico Nasty, Moneybagg Yo and the entire Dreamville roster, including Ari Lennox, EarthGang and J.I.D., among others. The fest drew more than 80,000 fans in 2022 and, according to organizers, created more than $6.7 million in economic impact on the local Raleigh and Wake County communities.
“Dreamville Festival wants to keep growing and building off the success of the expanded two-day event last year. Our team is excited to reunite with our Dreamville family from around the world next spring,” said Dreamville Festival President Adam Roy in a statement. “Day ones, JID fans, Ari fans, music fans, everyone is welcome. Consider this your personal invite. Come through, you won’t want to miss Dreamville 2023.”
Cole will once again curate next year’s lineup — which has not yet been released — with organizers promising “incredible music performances featuring Cole’s own favorite musical artists and collaborators who are traveling worldwide to perform in his home state of North Carolina.” A special ticket pre-sale will soon be available for Dreamville fans tho sign-up for the official festival email or text newsletter here.
Check out the announcement below.
The feathers were swaying and sequins were glittering at last night’s star-studded Wearable Art Gala, a benefit celebrating the 5th anniversary of WACO Theater Center, founded by co-artistic directors Tina Knowles-Lawson and Richard Lawson. Inspired by the aesthetics and Black excellence of the Harlem Renaissance era, the benefit is designed to support the company’s artistic and youth mentorship programs through a fine art auction.
“Each year we find a theme that connects us historically with our past,” Richard Lawson told THR. “[We explore] the evolution of African culture in the western world.” Previous themes have included The Lion King and Black Panther‘s Wakanda. But this year, 50,000 square feet of the Barker Hanger at Santa Monica Air Center were transformed into a full-blown Harlem experience. Guests arrived in vintage automobiles and 40-foot-tall backlit backdrops were designed to look like a set in Harlem featuring notable arts institutions like the Savoy Ballroom, Apollo Theater and the Cotton Club.
“As Black people, we do things differently … everything is with flair,” Tina Knowles-Lawson said. “We are fashion. That’s such a big part of the gala and we wanted to create something where art can occur. We want everything to be art.”
Last night’s gala was hosted by Keke Palmer and was a musical affair with a live band on the red carpet, a traditional New Orleans “second line” parade and performances from people including Daytime Emmy Award winner Obba Babatundé. Other notable guests included Tyler Perry, singers Chloe and Halle Bailey, Vivica A. Fox, Lela Rochon, Marsai Martin (who donned an intricate, styrofoam floral headpiece), Lori Harvey, and Magic and Cookie Johnson.
Every member of Destiny’s Child was in attendance — Kelly Rowland stunned in a statement-making red gown, Beyoncé arrived in support of her mother with husband Jay-Z and daughter Blue Ivy — and Michelle Williams spoke to THR about the importance of arts mentorship for the youth. “Ms. Tina has been mentoring since I met her in the year 2000. This is what she does,” Williams shared. “Also, this is her favorite era, so when I saw this was the [theme], I knew this was going to be exciting.”
The genesis of WACO began as two separate efforts Knowles-Lawson and Lawson were pursuing individually, but ultimately married themselves to each other when the two came together as a couple in real life.
“I grew up with a mentor that I met when I was 14 and she changed the trajectory of my life by exposing me to the arts and to life in general, so I always wanted to have a community center where kids could come and meet with visual artists and performing artists and just have a place to hang out,” Knowles-Lawson said. “Also, when my kids were little there were two community centers in Houston that I used to take them to, where they really honed their skills and their performing confidence. So I know that it really changes kids’ lives when they have a place like that.”
Simultaneously, Lawson had built an acting school and theater, so “we just decided to join forces and open WACO,” Knowles-Lawson said.
“We both had the same intention in slightly different ways so it was just a natural thing for us to put this together because we were both operating in the space of being of service and developing and supporting and mentoring people,” Lawson said. “WACO is a theater where we have performing arts and have a mentorship program of 100 kids which is growing every year.”
Last night, guests understood the thematic assignment. ESPN correspondent Angela Rye channeled Dominique La Rue (played by Jasmine Guy) in Eddie Murphy’s Harlem Nights, wearing a red, floor-length dress. Rye, who is also the CEO of IMPACT Strategies — a political advocacy, social impact and racial equity firm based in Washington, D.C. — said that the arts can magnify political advocacy efforts in “remarkable ways.”
“Sometimes the only [mediums] that we have to really be able to tell our stories and to advocate in ways that people don’t see as violent is through art and through media,” she told THR. “We can confront issues that sometimes folks are too uncomfortable to touch through those forms.”
Issa Rae, whose multi-faceted Hoorae Media company develops content across the film, television, music and management industries, says that “building our institutions is what separates the now from what was.”
“When I think about previous renaissances, there were specific outlets we [participated in] that weren’t ours. So it was easy for them to wipe us out or say ‘that’s enough of that,’ but I think the more we own our institutions and platforms, the more we can own our voices and the more longevity we’ll have.”
Due to the proliferation of Black images and ownership in entertainment and media today, the Black community in Hollywood and Los Angeles, more broadly, is arguably in the midst of an artistic renaissance. One that echoes Harlem’s a century ago. “I think at that time it was so especially revolutionary because it was a conscious effort to celebrate our art,” Rae says. “We’re constantly looking toward the past to inform the present. It’s just important for us to champion ourselves.”
To that end, Angela Bassett was honored with last night’s Film & TV Icon Award. “I am completely and utterly humbled,” the award-winning actress told THR. “Because what you endeavor to do is to work hard … so to be able to do that and then to be appreciated and supported at this moment for your body of work is very exciting.”
This article originally appeared on The Hollywood Reporter.
