Boyz II Men Release New Album

Celebrating over 25 years in show business, four-time GRAMMY® Award-winning R&B vocal group Boyz II Men return with their latest album Under the Streetlight (Sony Masterworks) available October 20.

A tribute to the classic, harmony-driven sound that inspired the iconic R&B trio, Under the Streetlight, features a personal selection of timeless songs chosen by founding member Nathan Morris, tenor Shawn Stockman and Wanya Morris, plus one original song – all with a Boyz II Men twist. The album is available now for preorder.

“Growing up and experiencing doo-wop music definitely influenced Boyz II Men’s sound,” said Nathan Morris of Boyz II Men. “Under the Streetlight has been a passion project that we’ve wanted to create for a while to bring us back to our roots and make the music that inspired us when we first started the group.”

On Under the Streetlight, Boyz II Men put their spin on classics such as “Why Do Fools Fall in Love,” (Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers), “Stay” (Maurice Williams & the Zodiacs) and “I Only Have Eyes for You” (The Flamingos) along with an original composition, “Ladies Man.”

The album also features three guest vocalists who join the trio: Multi-platinum R&B artist Brian McKnighton “I’ll Come Running Back To You,” “Tears On My Pillow,” and “A Sunday Kind Of Love”; Olivier Award Winner Amber Riley (Glee, London’s Dreamgirls) on “Anyone Who Knows What Love Is”; and ten-time Grammy® winners Take Six join the trio on “A Thousand Miles Away.”

Fresh off their sold-out tour with New Kids on the Block and Paula Abdul, fans can catch the best-selling R&B group sold Boyz II Men during their ongoing residency at the famed Mirage in Las Vegas and on their global tour.

For information on tour dates and to keep up with everything Boyz II Men, head to www.BoyzIIMen.comand follow them @BoyzIIMen on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

Boyz II Men – Under The Streetlight (Sony Masterworks)
Tracklisting:

  1. Why Do Fools Fall In Love
  2. A Thousand Miles Away (feat. Take 6)
  3. Stay
  4. I Only Have Eyes For You
  5. Up On The Roof
  6. I’ll Come Running Back To You (feat. Brian McKnight)
  7. Tears On My Pillow (feat. Brian McKnight)
  8. A Sunday Kind Of Love (feat. Brian McKnight)
  9. Anyone Who Knows What Love Is (feat. Amber Riley)
  10. Ladies Man

Find the album here – https://BoyzIIMen.lnk.to/UnderTheStreetlight

Steve Harvey World Group Taps IBM Cloud

IBM announced today that Steve Harvey World Group (SHWG), a media conglomerate led by entertainer, author, entrepreneur and humanitarian Steve Harvey, will launch a new digital experience, including a website and mobile app, built on the IBM Cloud.

This experience is expected to provide a deeper level of engagement for the hundreds of millions of fans who tune into the Steve Harvey television and radio shows, read his books and follow him on social media.

“The digital experience on IBM Cloud will expand the Steve Harvey brand beyond Harvey’s entertainment career to highlight his thought leadership, business expertise, commitment to partners and involvement in the community,” said Sunny Duncan, Chief Executive Staff Officer, SHWG. “The website and mobile app will enable SHWG to directly engage the Steve Harvey fan base with targeted content, such as behind the scenes clips and product announcements.”

Augusta Hitech, a software engineering firm and IBM Business Partner, is working with SHWG to develop the technology and launch the new digital experience on the IBM Cloud. The new fan experience is designed to leverage IBM Cloud’s infrastructure as a service, content delivery network and microservices, including API Connect, Analytics and Mobile Foundation, to create a central hub that aggregates Steve Harvey’s companies. This hub will provide business intelligence through data-driven insights to help identify new revenue opportunities and unique partnerships for SHWG.

“IBM Cloud is our first recommendation for clients looking for security, hybrid cloud infrastructure, and global scalability,” said Sean Caputo, vice president of product and strategy, Augusta Hitech. “The cloud platform allows us to deliver products to market faster due to its vast catalog of development tools and APIs, and the IBM Cloud infrastructure provides an enterprise-level architecture that delivers the velocity of data required for a digital fan experience. Due to the IBM Cloud’s simplicity and ease of use, we are able to rapidly deploy the Steve Harvey World Group’s digital strategy.”

This collaboration was spearheaded by SHWG’s new chief digital strategist, Amilya Antonetti.

“This new digital experience, coupled with smart engagement and a new centralized database, will give SHWG complete ownership of the digital experience so that we can enhance it in real time, which is key in today’s experience and expectation economies,” said Antonetti. “We will use data intelligence from the IBM Cloud to help guide our marketing and business decisions as we seek strong brand partnerships, grow each of our business initiatives and continue to enhance the fan experience.”

“IBM’s ability to deliver real-time data-driven insights can help drive deeper fan engagement by helping brands discover what fans want and deliver it in a way that builds loyalty,” said Peter Guglielmino, chief technology officer, IBM Media & Entertainment. “We’ve empowered our business partner Augusta with a global, scalable cloud platform that is designed for data, enabling them to rapidly develop a digital experience that will benefit both the Steve Harvey World Group and hundreds of millions of Steve Harvey fans.”

The SHWG website on IBM Cloud will launch September 5, with a mobile app to follow shortly after.

RADIO ONE ANNOUNCES TWO PROMOTIONS

Radio One announces two promotions from within its Programming Department. Bill Black, the current Operations Manager for Cleveland and Cincinnati picks up Columbus, giving him Ohio regional programming oversight of the urban powerhouse markets.  And Theodore ‘Big Bink’ moves to Indianapolis as Operations Manager.

Proving it is not only the largest urban multi-platform company targeting Black Americans and urban enthusiasts, but it has some of the brightest and most experienced programmers in the game, Radio One doesn’t have to go far to find talent.

Bill Black will be adding to his role as Operations Manager the Columbus cluster: Power 107.5 FM, Magic 95.5 FM, Joy 107.1 FM, and Boom 106.3 FM. Bill’s vast experience and understanding of the market will help propel the Ohio region. Bill has had a stellar career in broadcasting. Beyond his Midwest experience, he has worked at five radio stations in the southeast region including WXVI, WZHT, WXFE, WHXT, and WHTA, where he helped to launch the careers of a notable artist like T.I., Gucci Mane, Jeezy, 2Chainz, Ludacris and more.

Eddie Harrell, Regional Vice President of Radio One’s Ohio region says, “I’ve had the pleasure of working with Bill and have found him to be the total package.  He’s a creative mind with strong leadership skills, industry knowledge and passion for music, entertainment, and community.  I’m excited to expand his role to Columbus and now work with him on our powerhouse three-city region.”

Theodore ‘Big Bink’ Turner is moving from Radio One Columbus to Indianapolis as Operations Manager for 106.7 FM WTLC, AM 1310  The Light, Hot 96.3 FM and Boom 102.9 FM. DJ Big Bink has had a growing career in broadcasting for over 15 years. A graduate of Langston University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Broadcast Journalism, Big Bink was known as “the” college DJ and showed early signs for this love of music and skillful mixing. Before joining Radio One Columbus, where he served as the market Operation Manager and Power 107.5 FM afternoon personality, DJ Big Bink worked at Radio One Dallas as the midday host and Music Director for The Beat 97.9 FM. Over the years, Big Bink has done countless remixes with national recording artists including Tyrese, E-40, Baby Bash, Slim Thug, Lyfe Jennings and more.

Regional Vice President Deon Levingston includes, “We searched across the country to find the right person for our OM position and I’m happy we found someone in our company with the perfect background and fit to lead our stations to the next level. Bink has proven himself in two Radio One markets to be a great programmer and talent. I’m excited about what he’ll do here in Indy!”

Godfrey to Host Show on SiriusXM

SiriusXM announced today that comedian and actor Godfrey will host a daily show exclusively on Urban View, SiriusXM’s destination for diverse urban programming.  Broadcasting live from New York City, The Power Hour will launch Monday, July 31.

The Power Hour will broadcast daily, 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm ET, on SiriusXM’s Urban View channel 126 and will be available On Demand and through the SiriusXM app. The call-in show will feature dynamic, and often provocative conversations, on politics, pop culture, and social issues in Godfrey’s relaxed, comedic style.  Godfrey will tackle the issues of the day – from race to rap and everything in between – and feature interviews with authors, rappers, politicians and more.

“I can’t wait to get behind the mic and have honest, open conversations with SiriusXM listeners and guests about what’s really on our minds,” said Godfrey.  “I’m not interested in being politically correct; I’m interested in moving towards a place where we can be real and have transparent discussions that entertain and move us all forward.”

“Godfrey is a true, indefatigable talent and we are thrilled to announce the launch of The Power Houron Urban View,” said Karen Hunter, Urban View host and Programming Consultant, SiriusXM.  “Godfrey’s humor and ability to approach the difficult issues most people shy away from with ease is sure to make The Power Hour a listener favorite.”

A staple on the comedy circuit, Godfrey has been a headliner at comedy clubs in America and around the world.  He has also appeared in television ads and over 15 television shows, specials for Comedy Central and Showtime, and has been featured in films including Original Gangstas, Zoolander, Soul Plane, and Johnson Family Vacation.

Born to Nigerian parents, Godfrey was born in Lincoln, Nebraska, but grew up in Chicago and attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where he majored in Psychology, played football, and discovered his love for comedy. After graduation, Godfrey decided to pursue a career in stand-up comedy getting his start at Bernie Mac’s club, The Cotton Club. Godfrey is an actively touring comedian with multiple projects in the works.

SiriusXM’s Urban View is the radio home of diverse urban programming reflecting the complexity of the African American community.

SiriusXM recently announced that its 200+ channels – including SiriusXM Urban View – are now also available for streaming to SiriusXM subscribers nationwide with Amazon Alexa. Go to www.SiriusXM.com/AmazonAlexa to learn more.

For more information on SiriusXM, please visit www.siriusxm.com.