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Comedy fans, including David Letterman, got a rare look at the unreleased documentary Dave Chappelle: Live in Real Life at the 23rd annual Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival on Aug. 8. The screening of the film, which chronicled the comic’s beloved cornfield comedy shows during the pandemic, was followed by an even rarer audience talkback. Initially titled Dave Chappelle: This Time This Place, the doc originally premiered at a packed Radio City Music Hall in 2021 during the first live Tribeca Festival since the Covid-19 lockdown. Fallout over trans jokes from his controversial Netflix special The Closer reportedly derailed distribution. In response, Chappelle did a special tour featuring both the doc and a comedy show. The documentary remains unavailable to the general public.

Chapelle’s appearance was part of his philanthropic effort to raise money for his D.C. high school, the Duke Ellington School of the Arts, the latest...

Spoiler Alert !!!Hints and full solutions for both New York Times word games ahead.

Jazz knowledge became the ultimate Friday flex today when August 8 decided to quiz me on bebop legends I should probably know but absolutely don’t. Today’s New York Times Games threw Strands and Connections at me with completely different energy: one demanding serious musical street cred, the other sneaking arcade history into wordplay categories.

The whole experience left me googling jazz nicknames while discovering that Ms. Pac-Man was apparently a 1982 sequel. Sometimes puzzle solving doubles as accidental education.

Want to tackle these yourself first? Check out our complete puzzle solving guide before scrolling to solutions. But if you’re ready for answers and jazz history lessons, here we go.

Nyt Strands Solution for August 8, 2025 (#523)

Today’s Strands theme “Kings of swing and bebop” focuses on legendary jazz musician nicknames, with Nyt’s testers rating it moderate difficulty.

Signature Theatre has a first look inside rehearsals for Play On!, released a preview of the cast rehearsing "Take The A Train." Play On! is a delightful musical based on Shakespeare’s comedy Twelfth Night and set to the syncopated soundtrack of Duke Ellington’s greatest hits. Performances run August 12 – October 5, 2025 in Signature’s Max Theatre. The production will be directed by Lili-Anne Brown, with choreography by Breon Arzell and music direction by Jermaine Hill. The musical is conceived by Sheldon Epps with a book by <a href="https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Cheryl-l-West/"...

Myrtle Beach may be known for its sandy beaches and family fun, but the town has played an important role in music throughout history. From its early days as a beach music hub to its modern-day draw as a hotspot for the best local talent and national touring acts, this city by the sea continues to uphold and expand its musical roots. A visit to this idyllic Atlantic gem wouldn’t be complete without a tour of some of its most iconic venues.

James Jackman

Start with one of the region’s most historic spots.

Are you ready for a lot of new Netflix news? We generally get that throughout the year, of course, but nothing is quite like the deluge of information we will receive during the annual Netflix Tudum Live event. Thankfully, that event is happening on Saturday, May 31.

The time of the event is, well...based on where you live. The show is held at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles, California. If you are going to the show, it begins at 5 pm Pt. If you live in New York, the start time is 8 pm Et.

The event will be hosted by actress and singer Sofia Carson. Ahead of the show, Netflix showed a snippet of her announcing five things to expect at Tudum. One of those is that she is going to host, but we already knew that.

What you need to know about Netflix Tudum 2025 - The Live Event

Carson...

After eight years of monsters inspired by our feelings, tons of talking inanimate objects, a library of original songs that could fill a double-album, and so many quotations from Guy Bilzerian’s law commercials, Big Mouth has officially come to an end. The widely praised Netflix animated sitcom recently premiered its eighth and final season, but the question remains: Can it finally win the Emmy for Best Animated Program?

Big Mouth comes from the minds of Nick Kroll and Andrew Goldberg alongside Mark Levin and Jennifer Flackett and centers on several kids in the Westchester suburbs of New York who are starting to hit puberty. The changes in their bodies are navigated and personified by a whole host of crazy characters that include hormone monsters, anxiety mosquitoes, shame wizards, and even the ghost of Duke Ellington. The show stars Kroll, John Mulaney, Jessi Klein, Jason Mantzoukas, Jenny Slate, Ayo Edebiri,...

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, is famous for the rhythm of the waves of the Atlantic lapping against its sandy shores, the laughter (and occasional screams) of riders at Family Kingdom Amusement Park, and the chatter of families on their annual beach getaways. But the true soundtrack of this seaside destination is its live music scene, which pulses through the town day and night. From oceanfront stages on the sand to some of America’s most beloved dive bars and everything in between, it’s easy to see why Myrtle Beach is music’s favorite beach.

Beginning in the 1920s and occurring almost annually since 1941, the White House Correspondents Association (the Whca) has held a fundraising dinner that brings together Republicans and Democrats for one evening, and features performers who traditionally lambaste both sides of the aisle. The dinner supports journalists and students, and has generally been the D.C. equivalent of the Met Gala or the Academy Awards. Many great comedians, musicians, and others have performed at the event, including Bob Hope, Frank Sinatra, Ed Sullivan, Milton Berle, James Cagney, Duke Ellington, Richard Pryor, George Carlin, Peter Sellers, Chevy Chase, Jay Leno, Conan O'Brien, Jon Stewart, Ray Romano, Aretha Franklin, Cedric the Entertainer, Ray Charles, Drew Carey, Seth Meyers, and more. Amber Ruffin was supposed to perform at the April 26 dinner this year. That won't be happening, apparently.

Ruffin is an Emmy- and Tony-nominated comedian and writer known for writing and performing for Late Night with Seth Meyers,...

Lady Gaga was recognized with the Innovator Award at the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards and delivered a powerful message.

During her acceptance speech, the “Abracadabra” singer thanked many people that made her the artist that she is today, including her two Italian-American grandmothers.

“They didn’t invent technology or art, they invented possibility, shaping the future with nothing more than their minds,” Gaga said, accepting her award. “Those women, my ancestors, they’re the greatest innovators that I’ve ever known.”

The singer also named a whole list of artists that have inspired her through the years including, David Bowie, Grace Jones, Carole King, Elton John, Lady Starlight, Madonna, Stevie Wonder, Duke Ellington, and Char.

Gaga also thanked her dear friend Tony Bennett “who taught me to embrace the classics but never be bound by them.”

Gaga could not forget about her fanbase known as the Little Monsters, saying, “Thank you...

The first of the 2025 NAACP Image Awards’ winners were presented in a virtual, non-televised ceremony on Tuesday night.

Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist, which scored nine nominations, won two awards on Tuesday — best supporting actress for Taraji P. Henson and best supporting actor for Samuel L. Jackson. Children’s show Gracie’s Corner also won two awards.

Other notable winners announced Tuesday include Jamie Foxx: What Had Happened Was, which won for outstanding variety (series or special); The Bear‘s Ayo Edebiri, who won for outstanding breakthrough creative (TV); The Supremes at Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat director Tina Mabry, who won for best directing in a TV movie or special; How to Die Alone‘s Tiffany Johnson, who won for best directing in a comedy series, with the award coming just two weeks after Hulu canceled the series following its first season; and Keke Palmer, who won for hosting Password.

Garth Hudson, the final surviving member of highly influential rock group The Band, has died at 87. Hudson’s wizardry with keyboards can be seen in Martin Scorsese’s legendary 1978 concert film and documentary about The Band, The Last Waltz.

Garth Hudson passed away at a nursing home near his longtime home in Woodstock, New York. His death was confirmed by a close friend and collaborator, Jan Haust, as per The New York Times. Garth Hudson was born on August 2, 1937, in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The son of musical parents, Hudson began playing piano at an early age. He was classically trained in music theory, harmony, counterpoint and piano. He studied Bach's chorales and "The Well-Tempered Clavier" at the University of Western Ontario, but found classical music somewhat inhibiting.

Hudson’s classical training, however, would come in handy when he took up with a group of fellow Canadian rockers, Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko,...

Garth Hudson, the final surviving member of highly influential rock group The Band, has died at 87. Hudson’s wizardry on keyboards can be seen in Martin Scorsese’s legendary 1978 concert film and documentary about The Band, The Last Waltz.

Garth Hudson passed away at a nursing home near his longtime home in Woodstock, New York. His death was confirmed by a close friend and collaborator, Jan Haust, as per The New York Times. Garth Hudson was born on August 2, 1937 in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The son of musical parents, Hudson began playing piano at an early age. He was classically trained in music theory, harmony, counterpoint and piano. He studied Bach's chorales and "The Well-Tempered Clavier" at the University of Western Ontario, but found classical music somewhat inhibiting.

Hudson’s classical training, however, would come in handy when he took up with a group of fellow Canadian rockers, Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko,...

Ravi Cabot-Conyers is playing Wim in the new Disney+ series Star Wars: Skeleton Crew and we caught up with the rising star to learn more about him!

The 13-year-old actor previously voiced the role of Antonio Madrigal in Disney’s Encanto and has been seen in TV shows like The Resident and Tell Me a Story.

Now, Ravi is leading the Lucasfilm project alongside Jude Law and the first two episodes are currently streaming.

Check out 10 Fun Facts about Ravi below:

“Bright shorts” was my nickname at basketball camp. Basketball is my obsession. I only started playing two years ago and am proud to have become a really strong shooting guard! My grandma gave me 2 pairs of Bucketsquad basketball shorts for my birthday and I wear them constantly! They are so comfortable, and I love how they stand out. Thus, the nickname! My favorite foods are cheese and pizza. But...

Heavy metal, as a genre, has become woefully misunderstood and underappreciated in recent years, as its dozens of subgenres have fragmented and evolved away from the intense-yet-accessible nature of its roots. What began as late-60s experiments with guitar distortion among blues-rock bands has now become one of the most diverse genres around, and yet many modern metal acts have lost sight of those roots, leaving classic metal on the brink of being just a reference in 80s movies.

The original waves of heavy metal as shown in documentaries like Dio: Dreamers Never Die were absolutely a product of their time, and while modern music production has now heavily shifted in favor of singles and EPs over full albums, classic metal has always been best when listened to cover-to-cover. So find a proper stereo, plug in some over-the-ear headphones, and let the gods of rock transport you back to the golden age of heavy metal.

Johan Grimonprez’s documentary Soundtrack to a Coup D’Etat reveals the curious link between Black Americans’ fight for civil rights and the assassination of Congo’s first democratically elected Black African prime minister

Half-way through Soundtrack to a Coup D’Etat, John Coltrane and Duke Ellington’s soulful version of In a Sentimental Mood is interrupted. Suddenly, we see and hear Malcolm X giving a speech at New York’s Harlem Square in 1960. It’s like being shaken from a delicious reverie and thrown into the ice bath of reality.

“You’ll never get Mississippi straightened out,” Malcolm X snaps at the Harlem crowds, “until you start realising the connection with the Congo.” The curious connection between Black Americans’ fight for civil rights and the second-largest country in Africa is the subject of Johan Grimonprez’s documentary.

What couldn’t Quincy Jones do?

He wrote, composed and arranged music for your favorite artists and even produced films and TV shows that launched some of your favorite actors. He not only changed careers — he changed lives.

Here we break down some of the biggest acts and projects Jones worked on, from Michael Jackson’s seminal Thriller album to “We Are the World” to winning 28 Grammys, an Emmy and a Tony.

Michael Jackson

Before he met Jones while working on The Wiz, Jackson had been known for the Jackson 5 and released four solo albums that had mild success. Then they made Off the Wall and the King of Pop fully arrived. Released in 1979 around the time Jackson turned 21, the album helped him transition from young singer to critically acclaimed, matured artist. The album’s disco, funk and R&b sound resonated on the charts, helped Jackson win his first...

It is impossible to overstate Quincy Jones' influence on music and the music business throughout the second half of the 20th century. There wasn't a genre that Jones, who passed away yesterday at the age of 91, couldn't master as a composer, producer, performer, or all three. He kicked off his career playing trumpet for vibraphone god Lionel Hampton, served as trumpeter and music director for Dizzy Gillespie, and produced effervescent pop hits like "It's My Party" for Lesley Gore while expanding his range compositionally via jazz LPs and, perhaps most importantly, film music -- a field where the African-American artist stood out among a sea of white men.

Curiously, there isn't as much serious scholarship on the work of Jones, which is rather astounding considering his seismic 1970s and '80s impact as a producer for Michael Jackson on two of the top-selling LPs of all time ("Off the Wall...

Quincy Jones is dead at 91. There has simply never been an American artist better in touch with the pulse of popular culture than this producer, arranger, and composer whose work spanned nearly 70 years, every genre imaginable, and crossed all media as well. Jones is best known for his work producing Frank Sinatra and Michael Jackson, or his lifelong friendship with Ray Charles, but his film scores, bouncing with energy and groove, helped inspire a rethink of what was possible with movie music. (Associated Press first reported his death.)

Multiracial but the very definition of a 20th-century Black artist, Jones was born on the South Side of Chicago on March 14, 1933. His paternal grandmother was an ex-slave; his paternal grandfather, from Wales. His maternal grandmother was born a slave on a Kentucky plantation, as well — through the institutionalized rape of slavery, she was a distant relation of Tennessee Williams and the poet Sidney Lanier,...

Quincy Jones, producer of several of the best-selling albums of all time, died at his home in Bel Air on Sunday as per his publicist. Though his work covered all genres, Jones will forever be best known for helping coronate the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, by helping craft Jackson’s infectious and highly lucrative sound across three classic albums: Off the Wall, Thriller, and Bad. In 1985, he produced the “We Are The World” session, arguably the apex of 1980s pop music.

Jones, who in 1968 became the first African-American nominated for a Best Original Song Academy Award with “The Eyes of Love,” received an astonishing 80 Grammy nominations and 28 Grammy Awards throughout his career. His wins were for arranging, producing, and performing, and he won the 1988 Album of the Year prize for Back on the Block, an R&b-pop-hip hop cross-generational collaboration including artists like Ray Charles, Chaka Khan, Ice-t, Kool Moe Dee,...

Quincy Jones, the legendary record producer, composer, and multi-instrumentalist whose contributions to contemporary music spanned over seven decades and multiple genres such as jazz, pop, and hip-hop, has died at the age of 91.

“Tonight, with full but broken hearts, we must share the news of our father and brother Quincy Jones’ passing,” Jones’ family said in a statement. “And although this is an incredible loss for our family, we celebrate the great life that he lived and know there will never be another like him.”

Jones was one of the most celebrated icons in the music industry, garnering a record 80 Grammy nominations and 28 wins, including three Producer of the Year honors and two Album of the Year and Song of the Year awards each. His most recent win came in 2019 when Quincy, the semi-autobiographical documentary written and co-directed by his daughter Rashida Jones, took home Best Music Film.

As a producer and arranger,...

Quincy Jones, the musical giant who did it all as a record producer, film composer, multi-genre artist, entertainment executive and humanitarian, has died. He was 91.

Jones’ publicist, Arnold Robinson, said that he died Sunday night at his Bel-Air home surrounded by his family.

“Tonight, with full but broken hearts, we must share the news of our father and brother Quincy Jones’ passing,” his family said in a statement. “And although this is an incredible loss for our family, we celebrate the great life that he lived and know there will never be another like him.”

Jones received the Motion Picture Academy’s Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1995, the Grammy Legend Award in 1991 and 28 Grammys from an all-time best 80 nominations. He was to be presented with an honorary Oscar at the Governors Awards on Nov. 17.

Survivors include one of his seven children, actress Rashida Jones.

In a phenomenal career that spanned more than 60 years,...

In the 2014 film, Whiplash, a young man named Andrew is intent on becoming an amazing jazz drummer, leading to a number of intense musical performances that draw on real jazz music. Although Whiplash is often praised for its outstanding performances by Whiplash's talented cast, or its fast-paced directing by Damien Chazelle, what really stands out about this movie is its use of music. It is no wonder that the film won an Academy Award for Best Sound Mixing in 2015. Whiplash wouldn't be the fantastic movie that it is without the thoughtful use of jazz music.

Whiplash may be a movie about music, but it is far from being your typical movie musical. Instead, Whiplash uses specific jazz songs, sometimes over and over again, to emphasize the difficulty of the genre. Andrew is not joyfully playing this music, but is practically haunted by it. He plays so hard that he sweats and bleeds,...

Libby Titus, the singer-songwriter best known for her song “Love Has No Pride” and creating the New York Rock and Soul Revue with future husband Donald Fagen, died Sunday night at the age of 77.

“My beautiful wife, Libby Titus Fagen, passed on October 13th surrounded by family,” Fagen wrote on Steely Dan’s site. “Thanks for keeping us in your thoughts, and for respecting our privacy at this time.” A cause of death was not immediately available.

Titus released two solo albums — both titled Libby Titus — in 1968 and 1977. In between the two albums,...

Much has (and should be) written about the incredible job the cast of “Saturday Night” do in breathing new life into the comedy legends featured in the original “Saturday Night Live” lineup. It’s not perfect mimicry, of course, but it feels like what the best adaptations do: an interpretation that pulls us into the world of Studio 8H.

Another key component of the film mirrors what the cast is doing, both in how it was made and how it works inside the Jason Reitman film. The score, created live on set by composer Jon Batiste and the band he assembled for the film, embodies the clock ticking ever closer to showtime — the thing Batiste told IndieWire is the true villain of the story, however much Willem Dafoe’s NBC exec leers at the proceedings. But Batiste’s music also embodies the creativity of working in an intensely collaborative, almost improv-style,...

On Wednesday October 9 2024, UPtv broadcasts Euro Arts!

Hypnotic Brass Ensemble Season 1 Episode 42 Episode Summary

The upcoming episode of “Euro Arts,” titled “Hypnotic Brass Ensemble,” promises to be an exciting showcase of musical talent. This episode features a unique family band made up of seven brothers, all of whom are skilled in various musical instruments. Their passion for music shines through in every performance, making it a captivating experience for all.

The brothers travel across the United States, sharing their love for original jazz compositions. They also pay tribute to legendary composers, covering pieces from iconic figures like Duke Ellington, Bach, and Beethoven. This blend of original work and classic covers highlights their versatility and deep appreciation for different musical styles.

Viewers can expect to see the brothers’ dynamic performances, filled with energy and creativity. The episode will explore their journey as a family band, showcasing how they support each other and grow together through music.

On Wednesday, October 9, 2024, at 6:00 Am, UPtv presents an exciting episode of “Euro Arts” titled “Hypnotic Brass Ensemble.” This episode shines a spotlight on a remarkable family band made up of seven brothers, all of whom have been trained in various musical instruments. Together, they create a unique sound that blends jazz with their individual talents.

The Hypnotic Brass Ensemble is known for their dynamic performances, which take them across the United States. They entertain audiences with a mix of original jazz compositions and creative covers of classic pieces from legendary composers like Duke Ellington, Bach, and Beethoven. Their energetic style and rich musical heritage captivate audiences, showcasing the power of family and collaboration in music.

This episode offers viewers an inside look at the band’s journey and the stories behind their music. Fans of jazz and family-centered performances will find this episode especially inspiring. Tune in for an uplifting exploration of talent,...

One of thee best documentaries to premiere at Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat a radically and rhythmically edited look at global politics. Directed by Johan Grimonprez, the film was picked up by Kino Lorber for a November 1 theatrical release starting at NYC’s Film Forum and now the first trailer has landed.

Here’s the synopsis: “United Nations, 1960: the Global South ignites a political earthquake, jazz musicians Abbey Lincoln and Max Roach crash the Security Council, Nikita Khrushchev bangs his shoe, and the U.S. State Department swings into action, sending jazz ambassador Louis Armstrong to the Congo to deflect attention from the CIA-backed coup. Director Johan Grimonprez explores a moment when jazz, colonialism, and espionage collided, constructing a riveting historical rollercoaster that illuminates the political machinations behind the 1961 assassination of Congolese independence leader Patrice Lumumba. The result is a revelatory documentary richly illustrated by eyewitness accounts,...

Sean Connery made his best movie outside the James Bond franchise when he paired up with Kevin Costner to take down Al Capone in Brian De Palmas Prohibition-era gangster thriller The Untouchables. Connery became the first actor to play Bond on the big screen when he starred in 1962s Dr. No. The character was already a literary icon, but Connery was responsible for making Ian Flemings gentleman spy a beloved staple of the silver screen. He played 007 in five more official Eon productions and one unofficial non-Eon production, 1983s Never Say Never Again.

While Bond is undoubtedly Connerys most iconic role, he had a very prolific career outside the Bond franchise, too. He worked in a wide range of genres under the direction of such renowned filmmakers as Alfred Hitchcock, Steven Spielberg, John Huston, and Sidney Lumet. From an Agatha Christie murder mystery to a submarine thriller from the director of Die Hard,...

Sérgio Mendes, the pianist who gifted the world with the most famous version of the Brazilian classic “Mas Que Nada,” died on Thursday. Born in 1941, Mendes was a 20-year-old musician when he first arrived in the U.S. to perform at a historic Carnegie Hall concert that brought many bossa nova legends to New York in 1962. Two years after the show, Mendes moved to Los Angeles and never left the U.S. He also never abandoned Brazilian music, becoming one of the most significant ambassadors of bossa nova and samba around the world.

The European Film Academy has unveiled its shortlist of 12 documentaries in the running for this year’s European Film Awards.

The 12 feature docs include recent winners in Sundance, Berlin, and Locarno and represent a cross-section of European filmmakers. Among the more high-profile titles on the list are Mati Diop’s Dahomey, which looks at the return of plundered African treasures to Benin as a way of examining the enduring impact of colonialism; Johan Grimonprez’s Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat, a world cinema jury award winner in Sundance, which sets the struggle for Congolese independence to a jazz soundtrack, examining how traces how the U.S. used music ambassadors like Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and Nina Simone to build goodwill with the Congo while carrying out operations to destabilize the region; and No Other Land, from directors Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Basel Adra, and Hamdan Ballal, an examination of...

Big Mouth season 8 is confirmed to release in 2025. The show is Netflix's longest-running scripted series. Big Mouth follows friends navigating growing up.

The release window for Big Mouth season 8 has been confirmed, setting the stage for Netflix's record-holding adult animated comedy to take its final bow. The series, which is created by Andrew Goldberg, Nick Kroll, Mark Levin, and Jennifer Flackett, focuses on a group of friends and their hormone monsters as they navigate growing up. It premiered in September 2017 and has aired over 70 episodes to date. And although its eighth and final season has been announced since April of last year, it's now inching closer.

TheWrap confirms that Big Mouth season 8 is set to debut in 2025, making history as Netflix's longest-running scripted series. Reflecting on the show's legacy at the recent Netflix: Animation presentation, Kroll mentioned BoJack Horseman and talked about the early years of Netflix's animation push...

Kino Lorber has picked up U.S. rights to Johan Grimonprez’s Sundance-winning documentary Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat, which traces how the U.S. used “Jazz Ambassadors” like Louis Armstrong, Nina Simone and Duke Ellington, to build goodwill during the Cold War all while orchestrating clandestine operations to destabilize the Congo.

Kino Lorber will partner with specialist streamer Kanopy on the U.S. release of the film. Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat marks Lorber’s second collaboration with Grimonprez following their 2010 release of his hybrid doc-drama Double Take, which stitches together clips from Alfred Hitchcock’s films and TV work, together with 50s news footage and commercials, to tell a fictional story of Cold War paranoia.

“Johan Grimonprez is a master of making political history feel newly alive and utterly fascinating, and he’s done it again with his latest film Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat,” said Richard Lorber,...

Jk Simmons still gets goosebumps thinking about Whiplash's ending, emphasizing its impact. Whiplash's finale showcases a blend of exhaustion and elation for the actors involved, as Miles Teller's character perseveres over his mentor's tests. The movie combines themes of ambition, perfectionism, and commitment to one's dreams with a memorable hero's journey.

Jk Simmons has reflected on the ending of Whiplash 10 years after its release, revealing the movie's finale still gives him goosebumps to this day. The 2014 psychological drama focuses on Andrew Neiman (Miles Teller), a young jazz drummer that's forced to endure brutal teaching methods from instructor Terence Fletcher (Simmons). The movie has received praise for its performances, as well as its complex exploration of ambition and perfectionism.

Speaking with Empire Magazine, Simmons opened up about what it was like filming the ending of Whiplash, describing how he still gets goosebumps to this day thinking about it.

This coming weekend, the Saxophone Museum in Fiumicino will become a focal point for music enthusiasts as it hosts two days dedicated to celebrating the rich sounds of one of the most revered wind instruments, the saxophone. The events, scheduled for Saturday, May 4th, and Sunday, May 5th, aim to blend music, education, and jazz history in a dynamic showcase.

The weekend kicks off on Saturday at 6:30 Pm with a performance by the Jam Session band, an exceptional ensemble comprised of thirteen young musicians. This free concert is open to the public and stands as a homage to the power of music as a universal language, a cultural bridge, and a tool for social integration. Featuring a vibrant and energetic repertoire that includes some of the most celebrated pieces by Duke Ellington, Robert Johnson, Joan Tizol, Dizzy Gillespie, Walter Donaldson, Kansas J McCoy, and Herbie Hancock, the performance is...

Terry Carter, who portrayed Pvt. Sugie Sugarman on The Phil Silvers Show, the sidekick of Dennis Weaver’s character on McCloud and Colonel Tigh on the original version of Battlestar Galactica, has died. He was 95.

Carter died Tuesday at his home in Manhattan, his son, Miguel Carter DeCoste, told The New York Times.

Carter appeared three times on Broadway early in his career and produced and directed a documentary on jazz legend Duke Ellington for PBS’ American Masters series in 1988.

The Brooklyn native appeared on all four seasons (1955-59) of CBS’ The Phil Silvers Show (also known as Sgt. Bilko) as Pvt. Sugarman. He then played Sgt. Joe Broadhurst alongside Weaver’s Deputy Marshal Sam McCloud on NBC’s McCloud from 1970-77 and Tigh in the 1978 Battlestar Galactica movie and 1978-79 ABC series.

An only child, John Everett DeCoste was born in Brooklyn on Dec. 16, 1928. He graduated from Stuyvesant High...

Terry Carter, best known for his roles as Colonel Tigh in the original Battlestar Galactica, and as Sgt. Joe Broadhurst on TV series McCloud, died Tuesday at his home in New York City, his son confirmed to The New York Times. He was 95.

A native of Brooklyn, NY, Carter broke color barriers from the beginning of his decades-long career. Carter was one of the first Black actors as a regular on a TV sitcom series, in the role of Private Sugarman on The Phil Silvers Show. He appeared in 92 episodes on the show from 1955-1959. Nine years later, he was credited with becoming New England’s first Black TV anchor newscaster, for Wbz-tv Eyewitness News in Boston, as well as the station’s drama and movie critic, from 1965 to 1968.

His first major Hollywood role was as Detective Jaffie in the TV movie Company of Killers, but his most prominent television roles came in the 1970s,...

Michael Cuscuna, the three-time Grammy winner, Mosaic Records co-founder, historian and archivist who produced hundreds of jazz reissues and studio sessions during his career, has died. He was 75.

Cuscuna died Saturday of cancer at his home in Stamford, Connecticut, Grammy-winning recording artist Billy Vera, a longtime friend, announced.

Cuscuna produced the 1970 album Buddy & the Juniors, featuring Buddy Guy, Junior Wells and Junior Mance, for Vanguard Records, and 1972’s Give It Up, Bonnie Raitt’s lone gold album during her time at Warner Bros.

He produced reissues and studio sessions for Impulse, Atlantic, Arista, Muse, Elektra, Freedom, Novus and virtually the entire Blue Note catalog.

“Plainly stated, Blue Note Records would not exist as it does today without the passion & dedication of Michael Cuscuna,” execs from the label wrote on Instagram.

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Readers of Blues & Rhythm magazine know his work in the blues field,...

Andrew Bird has announced his latest album, Sunday Morning Put-On, due out May 24th via Loma Vista Recordings. Recorded alongside the artist’s Andrew Bird Trio project, today’s announcement comes accompanied by two songs from the record, “I Fall in Love Too Easily” and “I’ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face.”

Bird has billed Sunday Morning Put-On as a tribute to mid-century, small group jazz, with the tracklist featuring compositions by musicians like Cole Porter, Duke Ellington, Rodgers and Heart, and more. Drummer Ted Poor and bassist Alan Hampton join bird on the recordings, with additional contributions coming from Jeff Parker and Larry Goldings.

Get Andrew Bird Tickets Here

“Most Saturday nights [in my 20s], I’d stay up listening to a radio show called ‘Blues Before Sunrise’ on Wbez from 12:00 to 4:00 a.m,” the artist said of the album’s inspiration. “The DJ, Steve Cushing, played old, rare 78rpm records of blues,...

Jon Batiste is giving high praise to Beyoncé, with whom he collaborated on a new country music album, Cowboy Carter.

Beyoncé dropped the 27-track album Friday, but she made history last month with the release of single “Texas Hold ‘Em,” which debuted at No. 1 on Billboard‘s Hot Country Songs chart. That made her the first Black woman to accomplish such a feat, according to Billboard.

Batiste, who was one of several collaborators on Cowboy Carter, praised the Grammy-winning singer for her role in breaking down barriers across music genres.

“This is the moment yall, where we dismantle the genre machine,” he posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday.

He added: “Quincy Jones told me, as he also wrote in his forward to my We Are album, ‘it’s up to you to de categorize American music!! ,’ which is what Duke Ellington told him. I really believe that is our generations role,...

Louis Armstrong arrived in the Congolese capital, Leopoldville (now known as Kinshasa), on October 28, 1960, armed with his trumpet and wiping sweat from his brow. His visit was part of a U.S. State Department-sponsored tour of Africa, an arrangement Armstrong felt ambivalent about. Still, the Congolese people gave Satchmo, as the American jazz trumpeter was known, a near royal welcome. Drummers and dancers carried him to his performance venue on a red chair, fashioned like a throne. Civilians cheered him on. Ten thousand people showed up to watch him play.

This was a momentous occasion, a storied event for the newly independent republic of the Congo. Four months before Armstrong came to play jazz, the country had freed itself from the colonial grip of Belgium to become one of the more than dozen postcolonial African nations formed in 1960. But the region was still plagued with problems, most of them stemming...

It was Mark Twain who said, “History doesn’t repeat itself but it often rhymes,” which is one way of approaching Belgian filmmaker and multimedia artist Johan Grimonprez’s sprawling, jazz-infused Soundtrack to a Coup d’État. The political essay revisits 1960, a turbulent year in global affairs: Patrice Lumumba rises to power in Congo just as the United States, through the CIA-backed Voice of America radio network, aims to soften America’s image aboard, sending jazz musicians Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Nina Simone, Dizzy Gillespie, Abbey Lincoln, and Max Roach to tour the world. The film positions the jazz musicians as a kind of political cabinet while Gillespie envisions his own run for the White House on TV talk shows back home. It proceeds with a rather kinetic, defiant tone in which the jazz, breaking news, citations, and quotes interrupt the historical footage a more standard documentary may have primarily focused on.

Dave Chappelle has won his fifth Grammy for best comedy album and second in a row for What’s in a Name, a 40-minute Netflix special taken from a speech at his former high school, the Duke Ellington School of the Arts, where he defended his controversial 2021 special The Closer, which won the comedy album prize at the 2023 Grammys, and expressed support for freedom of expression.

With his win at the 2024 Grammys, Chappelle beat fellow nominees Wanda Sykes (I’m an Entertainer), Sarah Silverman (Someone You Love), this year’s Grammys host Trevor Noah (I Wish You Would) and Chris Rock, whose Selective Outrage live Netflix special featured Rock speaking out publicly about being slapped onstage by Will Smith at the 2022 Oscars. Chappelle wasn’t in attendance to accept the award, which was handed out during the premiere ceremony, where the majority of this year’s Grammys are given out,...

Screen Rant interviewed Weruche Opia and Jayme Lawson about their work in Genius: MLK/X. The series highlights the prominent roles of their spouses, Coretta Scott King and Betty Shabazz, portrayed by Weruche Opia and Jayme Lawson. The actors discuss the responsibility of portraying real-world figures and the importance of honoring their legacies with respect and authenticity.

National Geographic continues its docu-drama anthology series Genius with Genius: MLK/X, which dives into the lives of two civil rights icons. This marks the first time the National Geographic series has focused on more than one person, but the stories of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X are intertwined in a way that showcases each man’s impact on the civil rights movement as a whole. Kelvin Harrison Jr. and Aaron Pierre star as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, respectively.

A major highlight of Genius: MLK...

What makes a great courtroom thriller? A mesmerizing and clever plot that draws viewers in immediately. Three-dimensional characters that keep you guessing if they are the guilty party and twists and turns that leave audiences gasping and gob smacked.

Justine Triet’s dazzling French thriller “Anatomy of a Fall” has all the qualities and then some that make it a classic of the genre. Since winning the Palme D’or last May, “Anatomy of a Fall” has continued its winning ways receiving several critics’ honors, as well as two Golden Globes, a Critics Choice honor and seven BAFTA nominations including best film, best director, screenplay and best actress for Sandra Huller’s powerhouse performance. One can’t forget that Messi, the border collie ,who plays the family pet Snoop, received the Palm Dog at Cannes.

Huller plays a bisexual woman with a troubled marriage and a young blind son. When...

Premiering out of Sundance’s World Cinema Documentary Competition, the impressionistic essay film “Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat” refracts the plot against Patrice Lumumba through a kaleidoscopic lens. Cutting between historical footage of the Un General Assembly and home movies shot in liberation-era Congo, weaving in a diverse set of perspectives, and setting the pace to a non-stop rhythm of bebop, rumba and classic jazz, director Johan Grimonprez evokes the euphoria of post-colonial possibility and the heartbreak of the dashed hopes and violent reprisals that would ensue.

“At first, I wanted to explore the colonial legacy of my own country,” says the Belgium-born Grimonprez. “I was already mesmerized by the story of Andrée Blouin, who was an independence leader, an advisor to [Ghana president] Kwame Nkrumah and chief of protocol for [first Congolese prime minister] Patrice Lumumba, but who was almost written out of history. And as a filmmaker, I like to explore those intimate stories within a wider,...

There’s an old, old joke about the prestigious New York City concert venue Carnegie Hall, which opened in 1891.

“How do you get to Carnegie Hall?”

“Practice, practice, practice.”

Over the past 130 years, such renowned composers as Antonin Dvorak, Richard Strauss, Samuel Barber, Aaron Copland, Philip Glass and Milton Babbitt debuted their works at the Carnegie.

The new Netflix documentary “American Symphony,” which has been Oscar shortlisted for best documentary, best original score and song, follows Academy and multiple Grammy Award-winning composer/musicians/singer Jon Batiste as he prepares to debut his first symphony at Carnegie Hall while his wife Suleika Jaouad battles a recurrence of leukemia. The heart-on-your-sleeve documentary ends with the triumphant premiere Sept. 22, 2022, that even a power outage on stage couldn’t top. Variety noted in its review: “It wasn’t just the story of America, and its collage-like charms and vices. This was also Batiste’s story,...

Maurice Hines, who tap danced his way to a Tony nomination during a long stage career and was a frequent TV guest, has died at the age of 80, according to reports from friends and family.

Hines began working in show business at age five. He made his Broadway debut in The Girl in the Pink Tights in 1954, and went on to appear in Eubie!, Sophisticated Ladies, Bring Back Birdie, and Uptown…It’s Hot!, the latter winning him a Tony nomination. He later was Nathan Detroit in a 2001 tour of Guys and Dolls, working with Debbie Allen, Leslie Uggams, and Richard Roundtree.

The capstone to his career was the show Maurice Hines: Tapping Through Life, a tribute to his family that was filled with anecdotes about working with Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Duke Ellington, and others.

He staged the Radio City Christmas Spectacular in 1990, becoming the first African American to direct at the famed venue.

Maurice Hines, the Broadway dancer, choreographer and actor who famously showcased his skills alongside his late younger brother, Gregory Hines, in a Nicholas Brothers-like act featured in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Cotton Club, has died. He was 80.

Hines died Friday of natural causes at the Actors Fund Home in Englewood, New Jersey, his cousin and rep, Richard Nurse, told The Hollywood Reporter. He lived there for a couple of years.

The elegant, Harlem-born Hines received a Tony Award nomination in 1986 for best actor in a musical for Uptown … It’s Hot and starred again on Broadway in 2006’s Hot Feet. He conceived, directed and choreographed both productions.

In his THR review of the 2019 documentary Maurice Hines: Bring Them Back, Frank Scheck wrote that the Hines brothers had a falling out and didn’t talk for 10 years “for reasons that Maurice refuses to discuss to this day. He provides no explanation in the film,...

Exclusive: Laura Karpman was drip-fed jazz notes when she was a baby. Her mother’s turn-table featured a playlist that included Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, Wes Montgomery and Thelonious Monk, the virtuoso pianist, whose music informs and underpins her own jazz-infused score for Cord Jefferson’s scorching American Fiction.

“So I remember in her painting studio, my mother had a record player and she would play everything,” Karpman recalls, and for good measure her mother would spin Beethoven’s violin concerto and a piece by Stravinsky.

Karpman lapped it all up, just as her mother had planned, because Mrs.Karpman had preordained “that I would be a composer when she was pregnant,” she tells me.

Her mother was a painter and sculptor “and she always, I think probably inappropriately, thought that music was the highest art. And so she wanted me to be an artist and she wanted me to be a musician.

After Lenny Kravitz watched an early cut of “Rustin,” it wasn’t difficult for him to determine whether or not he’s accept the challenge of writing and performing an original song for the new Netflix film. After watching the movie — which features a tour de force performance from Colman Domingo as the forgotten Black queer icon of the Civil Rights Movement, who was chief in organizing the historic March on Washington in 1963 — Kravitz told IndieWire, “The first thing I felt was, ‘My mother would want me to do this.’”

Speaking to IndieWire over Zoom, the Grammy-winning singer-songwriter admitted he had not heard of the film’s namesake, “which immediately showed me that there was a problem, because I grew up in a family that was very active in the Civil Rights Movement. My mother and her friends and all of those folks in the ’60s, they were in all that.