Reaching an incredible milestone, an amazing array of stars are convening for the 40th Stellar Gospel Music Awards taping Aug.16 at the historic Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville.
Under the show theme, “Our Music, Our Voice, Our Culture,” the event will be hosted by Stellar and Grammy Award-winning duo, BeBe & CeCe Winans with a line-up of performers including Donnie McClurkin, Dottie Peoples, Jekalyn Carr, Tramaine Hawkins, Tasha Cobbs Leonard, Major, Melvin Crispell III, Pastor Mike Jr., William Murphy, Jamal Roberts, Todd Dulaney, Tasha Page-Lockhart, and many more.
The 40th ceremony will include special guest presenters Lil Rel Howery, Dominique Perry, Dante Bowe, Isaac Carree, Trina Braxton and others to be announced.
Additionally, Central City Productions founder Don Jackson will receive the James Cleveland Lifetime Achievement Award. Jackson is the executive producer of the Stellar Awards and the founder of the all-new Stellar Network.
“The Greatest Night in Gospel Music,” the 40th annual Stellar Gospel Music Awards will premiere on the Stellar Network on Aug. 30, on BET Aug. 31; on Bounce TV Sept. 28; and in broadcast syndication Sept. 6-28.
ALL ABOARD: Gospel music fans are also getting an opportunity to set sail on the first ever Rise and Rhythm Cruise on the Norwegian Jewel Feb. 1-5, going from Tampa to Cozumel. The lineup of performers and speakers includes Kirk Franklin, David & Tamela Mann, Tye Tribbett, Kierra Sheard, Jonathan McReynolds, Lalah Hathaway, Kindred The Family Soul, Tamara Braxton, Egypt & Mike Sherrod, Tabatha Brown and more. Visit riseandrhythmcruise.com for details.
SCREEN STUFF: “BARBARA, Life Is Music,” the story of Barbara Morrison and her journey through music in her words and those of 60 of her closest colleagues, friends, and family members is screening 6 p.m., Aug. 9 at the Pan Pacific Recreation Center. Tickets for the Black LA film project fundraiser are available at Eventbrite.
TASTY QUIP: “I’m aware of the sort of Eurocentric standards of beauty that tend to predominate media. Light-skin oftentimes is seen as more beautiful than dark-skin, etc. and brown wants to be someone that sort of shows all of the beauty that is Blackness, right? Brown don’t discriminate, to be perfectly honest with you. I understand the power of representation and how often Black women seem to feel unseen by Black men, in particular. … I want them to know that SKB sees them and hopefully in the people that he chooses to be paired with onscreen or whatnot, there’s an appreciation for them and that they know that they are as beautiful as I know they are. Ooh.” – STERLING K. BROWN (“Paradise”) to Refinery 29 Unbothered
CLIPPETTES: Keyshia Cole’s The Way It Is 20th Anniversary Tour with Wale moves to Crypto.com Arena on Aug. 8 as Femi Kuti & The Positive Force are at The Fonda Theatre, Deon Cole at the Hollywood Improv, and Kenneth Crouch at The Sun Rose …
Blackstreet, Shai, Blaque, Truth Hurts, Tweet and more are at Pershing Square Aug. 9 with free tickets at divercityconcerts.com. Also that night, Gipsy Kings, featuring Nicolas Reyes, are at the Greek Theatre (as well as at the Grove of Anaheim on Aug. 13) …
New Orleans rapper and bounce queen Big Freedia is out this week with her first gospel album, “Pressing Onward,” drawing upon her beginnings in the church and dedication to the loss of her partner Devon Hurst in May …
Another free show at Pershing Square is set for Aug. 10 with Robin S, Crystal Waters, CeCe Peniston and Snap via divercityconcerts.com while Andy Grammer is at The Ford, comic Ron Funches at The Improv, and the pairing of original Harlettes singer Charlo Crossley with pianist Sunnie Paxson is presented at Catalina Jazz Club …
Eddie Murphy planned on slowing down before consenting to play George Clinton in a P-Funk biopic, lending his voice to Donkey for “Shrek 5” and a solo flick, and becoming “Inspector Clouseau in the next Pink Panther. “He has to be French, but he can also be Haitian,” he shared with “Today.” “I will tell you, he’s Black. He’s Black, for sure.” …
The Grammy Museum welcomes Leela James on Aug. 12 for an evening discussing her upcoming music, latest single, “Right on Time,” creative process, and more, with a special performance to follow. Meanwhile, Jorja Smith’s Falling or Flying Tour 2025 comes to the Hollywood Palladium …
Alabama Shakes play the Hollywood Bowl on Aug. 13, as Tedeschi Trucks Band are at The Greek, Naomi Sharon at the Grammy Museum, Craig Robinson at The Laugh Factory, and Legends!, featuring Arsenio Hall, Jay Leno, Jay Mohr and others are at The Improv …
Dayum! That just dropped Prime Video version of HG Wells’ “War of the Worlds” starring Ice Cube and Eva Longoria has earned a rare 0 on Rotten Tomatoes among the nation’s critics with audiences mostly rejecting it as well! …
Robert Glasper hits the keys for the grand opening velebration of the new Blue Note on Aug. 14, while cornetist Bobby Bradford’s “Stealin’ Home: A Tribute to Jackie Robinson” is mounted at the Hammer Museum and the musical “Some Like It Hot” opens at the Pantages Theatre.
TASTY QUIP: “I made sure I had a picture with the two of them because I grew up watching these women. They’re two living legends. I feel like I’ve started to accomplish things in my career as a director, but to sit there and get to direct these two women, and they trust me? It’ll definitely be a memory that I take with me for the rest of my life. They are still so present and still so good and, again, a delight to work with. There’s nothing better than when you meet your idols and they turn out to be good people, too.” – SALLI RICHARDSON-WHITFIELD to the Hollywood Reporter on directing Leslie Uggams with Phylicia Rashad for the Aug. 10 season finale of HBO’s “The Gilded Age”
TC ON TV: Aug. 8 – “Freaky Tales” (HBO Max NBA star Sleepy Floyd (Jay Ellis of “Insecure”), a female rap duo (with one half played by Dominique Thorne of “Ironheart”), neo-Nazis and a debt collector (Pedro Pascal) embark on a collision course in 1987 Oakland. This fun flick also features the last performance by the late Angus Cloud (“Euphoria“) and a major cameo you won’t see coming! “CBS Mornings” (CBS): Coach Dawn Staley “First Take” (ESPN): Stephen A. Smith, Molly Qerim and the gang broadcast live from the 2025 National Association of Black Journalists convention in Cleveland. “On Everything I Love” (AllBlk): Leo Sullivan wrote and directed this movie with Erica Peeples (“Haus of Vicioius) and Darrin Dewitt Henson (“The Family Business”) about a woman dealing with the aftermath of her son suffering a tragic accident. “Ready To Love” (OWN): The women dig deeper when they meet their connections’ best friends.
Aug. 9 – “Finding Faith” (Lifetime): A heartfelt inspirational thriller with an all-star ensemble led by Paula Patton with Keith David, Loretta Devine, Stephen Bishop, Nadine Velazquez and Demetrius Grosse.
Aug. 11 – “E60” (ESPN): Emmy-winning NFL analyst and Super Bowl champion Ryan Clark revisits his hometown in the docu-special “Above the Tide – 20 Years After Katrina.” “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” (ABC): Nicole Byer is guest host this week.
Aug. 12 – “Alien: Earth” (FX/FX on Hulu): Created for television and executive produced by Noah Hawley (“Fargo”), this series imagines the fearsome monsters along with some other nasty creatures arriving on this planet. “Chef Grudge Match” (Food/HBO Max): Boxing champion Laila Ali is hosting this single round, winner-take-all culinary battle where elite chefs come to settle long-standing disputes and bitter rivalries. “Late Night” (NBC): Zoë Kravitz
Aug. 13 – “Butterfly” (Prime Video): A spy-thriller series starring and executive produced by Daniel Dae Kim (“Lost,” “Hawaii Five-O”) that explores complex family dynamics within the treacherous world of global espionage. “Songs From The Hole” (Netflix): An incarcerated musician struggles for healing and peace in this documentary visual album composed behind bars. “Fixed” (Netflix): Idris Elba, Adam Devine and Michelle Buteau lend voice to this raunchy adult cartoon movie about a dog seeking a night out with his pack after discovering he’s going to be neutered in the morning. “Celebrity IOU” (HGTV): “Tyra Banks’ Next Top Remodel” closes the 10th season.
Aug. 14 – “Honest Renovations” (Roku): Best friends Jessica Alba and Lizzy Mathis are helping families renovate their homes to make them more functional for their everyday needs. “Celebrity Family Feud” (ABC): The Harlem Globetrotters vs. The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders” “Family Recipe Showdown” (Food): Guest judge Tina Knowles joins Octavia Spencer and Edgar “Dook” Chase for “Cast-Iron Secrets.” “The Kingdom” (ESPN): A six-episode docuseries on the Kansas City Chiefs exploring the franchise’s history while offering an exclusive chronicle of the team’s extraordinary 2024 season.
END QUOTE: “I now understand that life, and living it, is more about being present. I’m now aware that the not-so-happy memories lie in wait; but the hope and the joy also lie in wait.” – VIOLA DAVIS
As featured in the Los Angeles Wave and Independent, Tasty Clips is one of the leading entertainment columns in the nation, serving nearly one million weekly readers. Bill Vaughan may be reached at tastyclips@yahoo.com, via Twitter @tastyclips, or Instagram @tasty_clips.
