10/27/15 O&A NYC Music: The Staten Island Jazz Festival

By Walter Rutledge

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The 28th Annual Staten Island Jazz Festival presented by the Universal Temple of the Arts (UTA) is becoming one of the city’s “don’t miss” events. The festival took place on Saturday, October 17th in the Music Hall at Snug Harbor. Over the years the festival has built a loyal Staten Island base, but this year it attracted an enthusiastic diverse Tri-State audience of both jazz aficionados and newcomers. Continue reading

10/27/15 O&A NYC Song Of The Day: Drake- Hotline Bling

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At this point, there’s no denying Drake’s charmingly goofy, yet luxurious and minimalist dance moves in his new “Hotline Bling” music video. The clip dropped only days ago, but at this point, it’s pretty much legendary (or at least Internet-legendary), judging by the sheer volume of new memes we get out of it daily — and not to mention its influence on the fashion world. Continue reading

10/23/15 O&A NYC Song Of The Day: Black Violin – A Flat

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Black Violin’s new single A Flat off of their highly anticipated Sophomore album Classically Trained produced by Infamous. Video directed by @WileyAbbas shot in Brooklyn NYC. @BlackViolin. Continue reading

10/22/15 O&A NYC Throwback Thursday: The Stylistics- You Make Me Feel Brand New

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You Make Me Feel Brand New, the 1974 hit R&B ballad by Philadelphia soul group The Stylistics, was the fifth track from their album All Together. Thom Bell and Linda Creed co-wrote the song, which  sold over one million copies globally, earning the Stylistics a gold album.  Continue reading

10/16/15 O&A NYC With WaleStylez: Song Of The DayJ. Cole – Power Trip ft. Miguel

By Adewale Adekanbi Jr.

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Power Trip is a song by hip hop recording artist and record producer J. Cole, released February 14, 2013, as the lead single from his second studio album Born Sinner (2013). The song, produced by Cole himself, features Miguel, with whom he previously collaborated on All I Want Is You in 2010. The song samples No More by Hubert Laws. Continue reading

10/12/15 O&A NYC With WaleStylez- Song Of The Day: Brandy – Put It Down ft. Chris Brown

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Put It Down is a song by Brandy Norwood, featuring fellow R&B singer Chris Brown.  The accompanying music video features interactions with Brown, as well as scenes including Norwood dancing in front of both blue-lit industrial backdrops and artful Jackson Pollock-esque green screens. Filmed in Los Angeles, California and directed by Hype Williams, the clip was creatively moulded by Frank Gatson Jr., and choreographed by Jaquel Knight.  Continue reading

10/8/15 O&A NYC Throwback Thursday: The Supremes – Up The Ladder To The Roof

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The Supremes (Cindy Birdsong, Mary Wilson and Jean Terrell) on their last appearance on Ed Sullivan Show in 1970, singing their first single after Diana Ross’ departure, Up The Ladder To The Roof from their album Right On. A rare interview with Sullivan follows.  Continue reading

10/6/15 O&A NYC Song Of The Day: R. City – Locked Away ft. Adam Levine

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R. City’s Locked Away (featuring Adam Levine) reaches the top of the pop radio airplay chart. The single which has already reached #1 on the Billboard Pop Songs chart, this week becomes the leader on Mediabase’s corresponding pop radio airplay listing.“Locked Away means the world to us because the story is based on our parents. Our dad [was] locked up for five years and our mom [held things] down while he was gone, and still to this day. We’re just very happy that people are able to connect with it on different levels.”   Continue reading