Girls Trip!

by Petrice Douglas

THESE GIRLS ARE A TRIP! And the movie is FREAKING AWESOME!!!

Thank you Malcolm D. Lee and Will Packer for making my life with this movie. It is not only funny, but it flows so well. Not the regular kind of transitional flow, but one that makes you feel like you are a part of the movie.

The story chronicles friends who take a trip to New Orleans for the Essence Festival. Trying to leave their current issues behind and just have a fun-filled let it all go weekend like they did in their college days as the Flossy Posse, these girls definitely did what they set out to do. The bond and boldness is undeniable.

Black Girl Magic mixed with extraordinary talent sprinkled with several dashes of male sexiness is a movie that no woman should go without seeing. Believe me when I tell you that if you want a good laugh, then this is THE movie you need to see.

I hope a sequel is in the works, because we really need one.

Congratulations to all the cast for doing a super job!

 

Chris Brown – Welcome To My Life

Movie Review

by Petrice Douglas

Chris gives one of the most honest and humbling experiences you can give in this documentary. No holds barred. The way he tells his story is very well put together and done in such an artistic manner that it draws you in so close that you forget you are anywhere else but in Chris’ world. BRAVO! BRAVO! BRAVO!

My daughter is Chris’ no.1 fan in the world (no seriously, I’m not making this up), so we were at the theater 45 minutes early just in case something magical happened like an appearance from Chris. I sat there watching as the crowd of all ages and races took their seats. Counting how many “true” Team Breezy fans were wearing shirts with his picture or Black Pyramid, and seeing how many right answers were yelled out for the trivia questions flowing across the screen. When your child knows every single answer including the city Chris was born in, it might be time for an intervention. lol 

If you are not a fan of the “bad boy” Chris Brown, you need to see this movie to hear his side of the story and feel his pain and truth. This should help you understand how the battles he endured within and in the public eye shaped him into the “loving father and man” he has grown to be. The movie is about truth, taking responsibility for your actions, forgiveness, and love. I have never seen or heard something so real from an entertainer in my life. Director Andrew Sandler deserves all the recognition he can be awarded for the film.

For those who missed the one-day event, it’s now available for pre-order on iTunes.

Thank you Chris Brown for letting us in your life.

 

 

THE SUFFERS COME HOME

by Petrice Douglas

The Suffers at House of Blues in Houston – photo by JoBrea Neal

The beginning acts were too good for me not to give attention to in this review.Ishi – photo by JoBrea Neal

Let me start with Ishi who I had never heard of prior to the show. I knew that the music had to be something different by the looks of the band, and I was rightfully surprised. The lead vocalist looked like ZZ Top borrowed clothes from Willie Nelson who borrowed clothes from his Native American friend who borrowed a few accessories from George Clinton. As weird as it sounds, it was actually very intriguing and fit well with the performance. The style of music was just as blended with a bit of pop, disco, techno, and folk coming together to make one incredible sound. I have not heard it put together like this, and it seems like Ishi has scientifically mastered this form of art. A fusion of music that I REALLY like and want to hear more of it.

JMSN – photo by JoBrea Neal

Another opening talent that I am a new fan of is JMSN. This guy put out so much soul! The depth of his voice filled the house as he crooned out songs from his new album “It Is”. JMSN is as talented on the guitar as he is vocally, and hit us with a few moments of guitar solos. Bass player Taiki added some funk to the soul that kept the crowd funkyfied (funkyfied – new word that I made up to describe the feeling I was feeling at the time). Something else that was a first for me and very eye catching was the design of the drummer’s cymbal. It was cut into a long spiral shape and hung down to the floor. It was so unusual that I just wanted to jump on the stage and hit it one time. Give it up for the bad ass drummer with the bad ass cymbal!

WELCOME HOME TO THE SUFFERS! It was awesome having you home if only for one night.photo by JoBrea Neal

KAM! KAM! KAM! Did you have to kick it off with “Gwan”? THAT’S MY JAM!

You have to be hard of hearing or just plain old stupid if you do not feel the high power of music while listening to The Suffers. I am so fascinated with The Suffers from Kam’s vocal ability  and infectious tone to the band’s instrumentation skills. No instrument over shadows the other, and they have the perfect marriage of soul with a big band sound. Kam’s powerful voice commands attention with every word. Pulling from her soul, she ejects heartfelt emotions that are so free and uplifting. It was like I was watching my best friend performing on stage because she was real and personal when speaking and transitioning from song to song. Telling us how the group has been touring full time for the last two years with 400 plus performances in that time span, and that they no longer make excuses when it comes to creating new music. YES! I am here for that y’all. They then gave us a bonus of musical magic with their new song “I Think I Love You”……..oh yes I do.

The night continued to be one big happy soulful jam fest. We all enthusiastically took in every ounce of musical energy The Suffers cast upon us. At the end of their performance the love didn’t stop, and the band mingled and took pictures with fans and friends while The Waxaholics kept the music going.

ENCORE PLEASE!

Kirko Bangz Day In Houston

by Petrice Douglas

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photos by JoBrea Neal

November 22, 2016 is officially Kirko Bangz Day in the City of Houston. Ashley Turner presented him with a proclamation during his “Back Flossin'” concert at Warehouse Live on Tuesday in front of a packed house. In true Kirko fashion not making the day all about himself, fans were treated to the concert for free with a canned food donation as part of a benefit effort with Houston community leaders. Notable local talent such as Tim Woods, DJ XO who is also Kirko’s DJ, Neekdaskittz, MC Beezy, Final Draft from Atlanta, and several others opened up the show.

Congratulations Kirko on your well deserved day!

Don’t Believe Me Just Bite

STOP THE PRESS RIGHT NOW! Somebody just said this burger is a vegan burger. Stop lying! Tell the truth and shame the devil.

Yep, it’s true. What you are looking at my friends is vegan deliciousness with double no-meat and all from the new love of my life Green Vegetarian Cuisine, 6720 Chimney Rock Rd., Houston, TX 77081. I went ahead and put the address and you can thank me later.

I’ve tried this restaurant three times. Once to try it out on DoorDash, once to see how the restaurant was personally, and once because the food was so freakin’ good the other two times that I had to go back again. Even people that are not vegan or vegetarian go for the fever from the flavor of what they have on the menu. The Cauliflower Hot Wings are soooo good. A tiny bit of crunch with a nice mild buffalo sauce. I’ve also had the Real Deal Enchiladas, and they ARE the real deal for real FOR REAL. I’m telling you that you will not know the not-meat is not “real” meat. I’ve tried other things on the menu, and I have not been disappointed at all. My family agrees with me that this is THE go to spot when we want to eat out and not have to worry about compromising our health for tasty food.

One word of caution – they are not open on Saturdays.

 

Straight Outta Breath…

because that’s what I was when I saw Todrick Hall’s Straight Outta Oz. Babbyyyyyy, if I tell you that it will take your breath away. EVERYTHING about it is exceptional from the visual, the music, the transitions from one song to another, the way the music coordinates with the visual, the creativity of it all. I have not been this excited about a creative work like this since Michael Jackson. Yes, I said it…..Michael Jackson. No shade Lemonade.

OVER 1 MILLION VIEWS ON YOUTUBE AND COUNTING!

Not only is Todrick doing it, but he will be doing it LIVE on tour starting July 7th. I know I will be in the house when he comes to Houston. Believe me when I tell you that you need to see Straight Outta Oz right now. Here is the link so you don’t have any excuses not to stop what your doing (Because I’m done with this post. Thanks for reading.) Straight Outta Oz

Best to Todrick!

Kevin Hart is the bearer of laughs in “The Wedding Ringer”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“The Wedding Ringer”
Director: Jeremy Garelick
Cast: Kevin Hart, Josh Gad, Kaley Cuoco

Rating: Me + 2 (that’s three stars on a four star scale for those who are confused)

I must start by saying that I was fortunate enough to attend the preview screening in the presence of Kevin Hart and Josh Gad live and in person in my city Houston, Texas. They were both there to introduce the film and sat down for a Q&A afterwards. So, I’m going to do my best not to be biased in this review. When celebrities take the time to show my city and the fans love, I really get excited.

Review
This is a comical bromance between Doug Harris (played by Josh Gad) and Jimmy Callahan (played by Kevin Hart) who are trying to pull off the wedding stunt of a lifetime.

Doug is desperately in need of a best man and groomsmen as he prepares to marry the hot chick (played by Kaley Cuoco). Jimmy Callahan is hired as the best man and talent scout for the groomsmen. Jimmy channels Bic Mitchum and pulls out all the stops to make this friendship as believable as possible, but the antics he uses to prove it are quite hilarious with a touch of kindness.

What I really liked about this film was the balance in characters. Kevin and Josh’s on screen connection was so organic that neither out shined the other, nor did any of the supporting characters seem unnecessary.

My favorite scene – Doug and Jimmy’s dance was so freakin’ funny!

My least favorite scene – The dog issue was a little over extended.

Viewing party recommendation – couples (straight/gay) who like to have fun, brothers, guy pals/buddies, females 23-43, college students

 

Review by Petrice Douglas
KH-TV.COM contributor

Tamar (Smack Lips) Braxton

Tamar and JoBrea of K.B.C.C. Radio

You may be wondering why I’m three days late putting up this review? Well, that ain’t yo bizness!

Here’s the business:

Yaass! Let’s start with that all the way turned up DJ Mister Rogers. He had the crowd going crazy no matter where you were from or when you were born. My new favorite deejay played requested music, gave shout outs, and mixed it all together just right while keeping up with Twitter requests.  I’m talkin’ from Al Green, Betty Wright, TPac, We Are Toonz, Biggie, Miley Cyrus, Drake, and Lorde. I honestly thought he was only going to mix a few minutes until an opening act came out, but it turned out he was the opening act. I was so happy, and if you were there you saw my happy dance.

The show was a sell out and had been sold out as early as April of this year. I cannot count how many disappointed people I saw at the ticket booth begging for a ticket. So a note to Tamar’s staff to book a larger venue the next time she comes to the H, cause we be in there (smack lips).

Now for all the Tamartians (smack lips), I don’t really need to tell you that she did her thang! Tamar opened with “She Did That” and was gettin’ down with the get down along with her dancers. Her set list was combined with relationship advice. If you are single, beware of the scallywags and those cool talkers who can talk the drawers off Jesus (smack lips). My heart smiled as she displayed her undeniable love for Vince and how he makes her feel like the “Prettiest Girl” in the world while video clips of the happy couple and others played in the background. The fun part of the night was when seven fans from the audience got a chance to get their shine on and sing “Love and War” on stage with Tamar to close the show. Not to crush anyone’s dream, but some of them may want to start dreaming about taking voice lessons (smack lips).

Set design – Rotating background stage that doubled as a video screen.

Band’s look – No band, but dancers. Two guys and two girls that were well in sync and never out shined each other. The guys did a nice “make me want to scream while I ask the Lord to forgive me for these ungodly thoughts” dance.

Sound – Sound system was a little choppy and off, but Tamar did not let it hold her back. Her vocals were powerful and passionate.

Side note – Tamar is real with the fans, and gave hugs to everyone that attended her sound check and meet and greet. She took time with them to let them know how much she appreciates their support and never rushed anyone along.

(Smack lips) I just had to do that one more time! True Tamartians understand, so you betta get in on this.

Hey DJ, Rewind That!

Yep, that is what I said when I heard the new single “Rewind” by Rascal Flatts while sitting in the conference room at The New 93Q for their up close and personal.

The Q Morning Zoo’s Tim Tuttle, Kevin Kline, and Erica Rico hosted the event with some Q&A for the group to get things started. That’s when I realized these guys are as comical as they are talented. I found out that Gary’s wife thinks he’s a speed demon, Jay is guilty of texting while eating, and Joe could have hugged me a little tighter cause he is grown-man sexy.

One listener got her birthday wish by having the guys sing “My Wish”. They gave us a quick sample of what a medley of their songs could sound like at a concert. I was like, “YEAH!” (in my Lil Jon voice) until I found out they were only joking about doing a concert full of medleys. All shucks, they had me going. They took a pause from playing live so that we could hear the new single on CD. At first I thought that was kind of strange, but a couple of seconds into the song I totally understood. We would not have been able to fully appreciate the instrumentation of the song if they would have played it live with only two guitars. The song started out with a simple groove as Gary’s magical voice wooed us. About 30 seconds later, I was in a trance. My ears were trying to grasp every riff and strum from the guitars, the cadenced madness of the drums, and the harmonic voices from the guys that exploded into a melodic change. This happened more than once throughout the song, and to say I was impressed would be an understatement. Rascal Flatts has done it again y’all!

I asked the station’s Music Director when we would start hearing “Rewind” on air, and guess what? I heard it today! This is the reason The New 93Q is known as the best country station and recipient of the 2013 Marconi Award. Now I can really say, “YEAH!” in my best Lil Jon voice.

Electric Lady Electrofies The House of Blues

photo by Marc Baptise

Janelle Monae had the house all the way turned up, electrified, and funktified all at the same time. Leaving no doubt in the minds of anyone who thought this small sized beauty couldn’t hold her own. Though she came in peace, her music caused some rhythmic (and not so rhythmic from the looks of the guy dancing next to me) convulsions.

Set design – all black and white.

Band’s look – Musicians dressed in white lab jackets while her background vocalists dawned black and white striped 60’s styled tops with black legging.

Music/Sound/Sight – All the instruments were well blended. I did take issue with the lighting during some of the songs because they seemed like they were out of place from time to time, but that’s just me. Hell, those kind of things really don’t matter when the rest of your body is movin’ and groovin’. I will say that the electric guitar player was so freakin’ awesome that I wondered from time to time if he was that purple paisley man…….you know who I’m talking about. He put the jaaaaaaaaam in jaaaaaamin’ (that was not a typo!). Janelle’s vocals were powerful yet sweet and majestic. She stopped to diffuse a situation that was happening in front of the stage, and asked the parties involved to hug. They did, and the party kept on going. GIRL POWER ROCKS!!!

She did all of my favorites Cold War, Electric Lady, Tightrope, Dance Apocalyptic, Q.U.E.E.N, and more. I’m sorry for not listing her set, but I was jammin’ so don’t judge me.

Opening Act – Roman GianArthur. Another new force in the industry. He started out with a song that was a blend of Prince and James Brown, sprinkled in a cover of “Bag Lady”, and hit us with a seductive bassy tune called “I-69”.  The only downfall was him ending with a cover song. I would suggest ending with “I-69”; however, I honestly can’t wait to hear more from this guy.