The new trailer for the ensemble film “Valentine’s Day” has hit the web. This trailer features all of the stars of the film as they try to navigate through Valentine’s Day.

Let’s hope this ensemble film isn’t a flop like “She’s Just Not That Into You” was.

Directed by Garry Marhsall, “Valentine’s Day” stars Julia Roberts, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Alba, Jessica Biel, Jennifer Garner, Shirley MacLaine, Bradley Cooper, Ashton Kutcher, Topher Grace, Emma Roberts, Hector Elizondo, Bryce Robinson, Patrick Dempsey, Eric Dane, Carter Jenkins, Jamie Foxx and Queen Latifah.

“Valentine’s Day” opens in theatres February 12, 2010.

Check out the second trailer for Garry Marshall’s “Valentine’s Day”. You can also see the teaser trailer here.

For more information on the movie, visit the “Valentine’s Day” official website.

Two posters have been released for next years release of Valentine’s Day, I have to admit that I am very much looking forward to this movie because some of my favorite actors/actresses are in this, mainly Julia Roberts . But I am also happy to see Taylor Swift in this too, as I am such a big fan of her music.

Do you want to see this movie?

Christmas is coming so here is a film about Valentine’s Day. Genius!

It stars (deep breath) Jessica Alba, Kathy Bates, Jessica Biel, Bradley Cooper, Eric Dane, Patrick Dempsey, Hector Elizondo, Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner, Topher Grace, Anne Hathaway, Ashton Kutcher, Queen Latifah, Taylor Lautner, George Lopez, Shirley Maclaine, Emma Roberts, Julia Roberts and Taylor Swift.

The lives of ten people in Los Angeles intersect on Valentine’s Day.

Check out the official site.

Queen Latifah and Mary J. Blige are set to be commemorated by leading Black publication,  Essence Magazine. The publication will honor the pioneers in music along with actresses Zoe Saldana and Gabourey Sidibe during their third annual ‘ESSENCE Black Women in Hollywood Luncheon’.

The luncheon takes place March 4, 2010 at the Beverly Hills Hotel and will highlight their various accolades while in the spotlight.

The Queen will be honored with the magazine’s ‘Power Award’ for her role as an entertainment conglomerate with her roles in television, film and music.

Mary J. will be honored with the ‘Songstress of the Year’ award for her position as a music mogul and philanthropy through her FFAWN Foundation.

Zoe Zaldana will receive the ‘Star To Watch Award’ while Gabourey Sidibe will take home ‘Best Breakthough Performance for her role in Precious.

Good for these ladies, nice to see Essence paying homage to women who work hard.

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A few weeks ago the Economist ran a story on 20 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall. The cover had one of the iconic images from that year, a punk sitting a top the crumbling wall. For those of us who grew up during the cold war, the dismantling of the Berlin Wall was probably one of the most significant political events of our lives, at least until September 11, 2001. Looking back, 1989 was quite a year. The event in Germany prompted Eastern European countries like Czechoslovakia and Poland to undergo peaceful transitions out from under Soviet control. Earlier that year student demonstrators took over Tiananmen Square in Beijing in what led to, while not the political opening of China then by all accounts its economic opening. In 1989 the Exxon Valdez spilled 10 million gallons of crude oil on Prince WIlliam Sound, Alaska in what remains the worst environmental disaster to happen at sea. In other news, the U.S. invaded Panama and bailed out the Savings & Loan industry. An earthquake in San Francisco held up the World Series. At Hillsborough stadium in England, 96 people died at a football (soccer) match.

For me, one of the most significant events of 1989 took place on December 6th at Ecole Polytechnique in Montreal. On that day, a 25 year old man killed 14 women and injured many others, before turning a gun on himself in what became known as the Montreal Massacre. He claimed that he was “fighting feminism.” His suicide note supposedly mentioned women who had succeeded in non-traditional female work such as firefighters, police officers, and journalists. On that date I was in college only an hour and a half from Montreal. Many of us spent a lot of time there, so the shock waves from the event rippled to the dorms of University of Vermont. This week, as I look back on 1989 and the female artists who were shaping the next decades of music, I dedicate this post to the women who died senselessly at the hands of a madman on December 6, 1989.

I’ll begin with one of the most significant albums for me in 1989, Kate Bush’s The Sensual World. While it didn’t produce any number one hits, it is a truly remarkable album from start to finish. The most well known song is probably “This Woman’s Work.” On this song, and most of the others on the album, Bush was writing and singing from another perspective. In the title track, “The Sensual World,” it’s a character stepping of the page of a James Joyce novel. In “This Woman’s Work,” she’s singing from a man’s perspective. Years later R&B signer Maxwell would have a hit with his cover of the song. His version is almost as amazing as this original. All the more poignant that a man would be willing to sing it. At the time, Bush’s album, and this song in particular, moved me in a way that allowed me to more fully appreciate being a woman.

In 1989 I was angry at just about everything and it came out in my musical tastes. The other album that spent a lot of time in my stereo that year was Nine Inch Nails’ Pretty Hate Machine, which was dark electronic angst at it’s best. The Sensual World became part of a process of softening and understanding for me. I became a feminist in college, but by the time I left I decided that I was comfortable being feminine as well. Bush’s influence on music today, may be difficult to trace. She has a unique voice and has taken on varying odd topics. Her influence can certainly be heard in artists like Tori Amos, Bjork and Goldfrapp among others. She deserves her own SWIK post and will eventually get one.

Another often overlooked album from 1989 was Sarah McLachlan’s debut, Touch. While I didn’t discover McLachlan until her third album, Fumbling Toward Ecstasy, it’s worth mentioning Touch here. The album launched her as a the predominate singer-songwriter of the 1990‘s and it’s worth a listen. While her music is noteworthy and influential, it was her establishment of Lilith Fair where she had significant industry impact. Until the Lilith Fair, concert promoters refused to feature two female musicians on tour together. At the time it was even difficult to get two major female acts on tour in the same year. While for some the Lilith Fair became a bit of a joke, tagged as some sort of hippie-chick fest, it actually broke down barriers and introduced many new artists. By 1997 it was the top grossing festival of the year and raised millions for women’s charities. McLachlan hasn’t done anything new since 2006, but her earlier albums have stood the test of time and there’s talk of plans to bring back Lilith Fair in 2010.

Moving to the radio, in 1989, the charts were full of Madonna’s Like A Prayer which came out in March 1989. Since I’ve covered Madonna (see post) there’s not much to add. She was certainly at the height of her career here. This album generated six hits. Her influence on music today is undeniable. Again, so much has been said that I don’t feel the need to add more. Of course, I love this album and it remains a standby for dance clubs and workout mixes.

Surprisingly it’s actually Janet Jackson’s Rhythm Nation from 1989 that remains the first and only album to generate SEVEN top 5 singles. Along with catchy love songs like “Love Will Never Do” and “Miss You Much,” the album included socially conscious songs like “Black Cat” and “Knowledge” and “Rhthym Nation.” I think that Jackson remains a highly underrated pop artist, particularly her music from this era. Her album previous to Rhythm Nation, Control, may have been one of the first to influence a musical genre that would be called ‘new jack swing,’ which fused R&B, rap, funk, and disco. Rhythm Nation mastered this, her signature sound. She recently released a greatest hits, so expect an entire post on Ms. Jackson in the near future.

Continuing with top 40 in 1989, Bonnie Raitt’s Nick Of Time produced several hits and won her three Grammy’s in 1990. At the time, I only gave the album a cursory listen. I liked it and pulled it out occasionally. But 20 years later, the lyrics seem more appropriate than ever, getting older and finding love in the nick of time rings true. The songs are smooth and full of warm vocals with her phenomenal bluesy guitar.

Raitt has a great story, deserving of her own SWIK icon post. In early 1980’s she was dropped by her record label, Warner Brothers, who she had been recording with for more than a decade. While previously she had critical success, she had never had a real ‘hit.’ Luckily she was picked up by Capital Records in 1987 and went on to record Nick Of Time. Her complete and utter turnaround when she was about 40 years old is inspiring. Among numerous other albums and collaborations, Raitt developed a signature guitar in 2000. The Bonnie Raitt signature Fender Strat is the only Fender guitar to honor woman. She designed it with women in mind, in an effort to encourage young girls to take up guitar. She continues to put out albums and tour.

Moving to different genre and another seminal recording, in 1989 Queen Latifah released her debut album All Hail the Queen. Hip-hop and rap had not yet entered mainstream top 40 music yet, but All Hail The Queen made it onto the Billboard charts. Of course, only to be completely overwhelmed by 2 Live Crew’s As Nasty As They Wanna Be and the beginning of raunchy misogynist hip-hop that seemed to bring in white audiences (specifically men). In contrast De La Soul’s 3 Feet High and Rising was also released in 1989. It remains one of the greatest hip-hop albums of all time and is full of funky beats and generally positive messages. In 1989, I wasn’t listening to a lot of hip-hop, but Latifah’s album stood out. I discovered it at Strawberries Music (a record store, if you remember those) and would have to credit one of my co-workers, Reba, for introducing it to me. It became a staple on our after hours play list. Latifah’s song “Ladies First” with Monie Love, has become an anthem for women of all races and is one of her signature songs. Latifah went on to do TV, movies, and sing jazz. She recently went back to her roots and released a hip-hop album, but having been away for so long it seems to be missing some of her earlier power. She remains a female hip-hop pioneer, a major industry force and influence.

In an altogether different genre, The Creatures released their album Boomerang in 1989. You can read about this collaboration between Siouxise Sioux and her drummer Budgie in the SWIK post. This is another album that rarely came out of rotation in my stereo. The pulsing drums on “Standing There,” expressed all the anger that seems appropriate when you’re about 20 and as I’ve mentioned I was pretty angry in 1989.

Back on the charts, the B-52’s released Cosmic Thing in 1989. When I first heard them ten years earlier on their eponymous debut album, with “Rock Lobster” and “Dance This Mess Around,” I never would have guessed that they would produce an album with a chart topping hit. While I didn’t like the song “Love Shack”, I was pleased that they finally made it big. The song is undeniably catchy. The harmonies of Cindy Wilson and Kate Pierson add the catchy edge to the B-52’s new wave sound. Funplex, released in 2008, was the band’s first original album in 16 years. While they aren’t churning out the hits these days, they continue to influence new wave and alternative music today. They never disappoint and Cosmic Thing still sounds surprisingly good.

In 1989, Melissa Etheridge released her second album Brave and Crazy which helped to launch her career. I have a preference for her self-titled debut album, but Brave and Crazy was full of soulful rock sounds. She channels women who paved the way for her like Janis Joplin and Grace Slick in songs like “Angels” and “No Souvenirs.” A few years later she would have a mega hit with “Come To My Window” and a video that featured Juliette Lewis, from her album Yes I Am. I think her first two albums are her best. They are raw and feature mainly her guitar and vocals.

Brave and Crazy has a surprising amount of sexual power. The the songs seem to not only get under your skin but also to strike some place deeper. If she can be compared to anyone it would probably be Bruce Springsteen. I saw Etheridge in concert in 1989 and she was fantastic. Now a breast cancer survivor and gay rights activist, she hasn’t stopped. In 2006 she won an Academy Award for her song “ I Need to Wake Up” from Al Gore’s documentary An Inconvenient Truth. In 1989 she was a constant in my stereo, I only recently pulled out this album after a long hiatus. Although it brings back a few painful memories, her music still holds up.

Another singer songwriter that I was really into this year was Shawn Colvin, I’m not sure how I discovered her album Steady On but it remained in and out in my stereo for years. Colvin plays guitar as well, but comes from the lineage of Joni Mitchell and has more a folk sound. Years later she would have hits from her album A Few Small Repairs, but I prefer this first album. Songs like “Shotgun Down the Avalanche” and “Diamond in the Rough” get under your skin with their clarity and soulful guitar. I saw her in concert for about $5 in college and she didn’t disappoint. Her last album came out in 2006 and although I haven’t listened to much of her newer music, Steady On remains a constant in my listening rotation.

To wrap up, Cher and Tina Turner, already legends at this point, also released albums in 1989. Cher had a mega comeback hit with “If I Could Turn Back Time” from her album Heart of Stone. Turner charted with “The Best” from her album Foreign Affair. I think that I saw Turner in concert that year. She was incredible and probably 50 at the time. She released two more studio albums after Foreign Affair and continues to perform. Both of these SWIK Legends deserve their own posts and will get them eventually.

In 1989 everyone was watching David Lynch’s hit Twin Peaks, well everyone except me. I was working and never seemed to be home the night it aired. I loved the music though. Julee Cruise’s 1989 album Floating Into The Night was written largely by Lynch composer Angelo Badalamenti, who wrote Twin Peaks’ opening song, “Laura’s Theme.” Many of Cruise’s songs ended up on the very dark, goth radio show that I did with my friend Christine.

These are just a few albums that stood out for me in 1989. There are plenty of others worth mentioning, but I would need to write a novel to cover all of them. Of course, the boys were certainly putting out some significant music as well, but we’re focused on the ladies here at SWIK. Looking back, I’m struck by the diversity of the music and the talent of these women. I think they have all, in their own way, influenced today’s artists.

To go back to where we started, the Montreal Massacre of 1989. While the shootings were clearly the result of a deranged man, it does make me take a moment to reflect. Violence against women remains rampant in 2009 and one of the most widespread violations of human rights, from the most prevalent forms such as domestic and sexual abuse to so-called honor killings and stonings. According to UNIFEM, globally six out of ten women experience physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. Unfortunately, it also remains ever prevalent in music as well. While looking back on 1989 allows us to celebrate how far we’ve come, it also remind us how far we have to go.

More Info
Learn more about violence against women or get involved at UNIFEM and the Say NO to Violence campaign re-launched last month.

More SWIK Releases from 1989
Indigo Girls – self titled
Enya – Oranocco Flow
Shakespear’s Sister – You’re History
Dusty Springfield – Nothin’s Been Proven
Debbie Gibson – Electric Youth
Jody Watly -Larger Than Life
Kristy MacColl -Kite
Soul II Soul -Club Classics
Neneh Cherry -Raw Like Sushi
Cyndi Lauper -A Night To remember
Stevie Nicks – The other Side of the Mirror
10,00 Maniacs -Blind Mans Zoo
Diana Ross -Workin’ Overtime
Gloria Estefan – Cuts Both Ways
Eurythmics – We Too Are One
Sugarcubes- Here Today, Tomorrow, Next Week
Linda Ronstadt- Cry Like a Rainstorm, Howl Like the Wind
Kylie Minogue- Enjoy Yourself
Technotroic- Pump up the Jam
Ofra Haza – Desert Wind
Red Lorry Yellow Lorry – Blow

What the boys were up to in 1989
The Pixies – Doolittle
The Cure – Distintiration
Elvis Costello – Spike
Fine Young Cannibals – The Raw and The Cooked
XTC – Oranges & Lemons
The Replacements- Don’t Tell A Soul
Lou Reed -New York
Neville Brothers – Yellow Moon
Beastie Boys- Paul’s Boutique
Red Hot Chili Peppers- Mothers Milk
The Cult – Sonic Temple
John Lee Hooker- The Healer
Mother Love Bone -Shine
Ministry – The Mind is A Terrible Thing to Taste
Green Day – 1,000 Hours
Stone Roses – Stone Roses
Peter Gabriel – Passion
Nirvana – Bleach
Prince – Batman
Stevie Ray Vaughn- In Step
Chris Isaak- Heart Shaped World
Don Henley – The End of Innocence
Love & Rockets- Love & Rockets
Jesus & Mary Chain- Automatic
Soundgarden- Louder Than Love
Lenny Kravitz- Let Love Rule

Here are all 20 songs from the Precious soundtrack with downloads and videos for them. The soundtrack to Precious ranges from gospel to soul, jazz to show tunes, with hip hop and Christmas music thrown in the mix. There’s Queen Latifah, Mary J. Blige and Labelle, crossed with Lenny Kravitz and The Platters, with a little bit of Da Brat and Bobby Brown to boot.

My favorite song from the movie is System by Labelle. Here they are live from the Beacon Theater earlier this year:

Talk about live. Here’s a little throw back to Queen Latifah before she started making movies:

And Mary J. Blige talking about her song “I Can See in Color” featured in the movie and why she wanted her music included in the movie:

The complete list of songs from Precious is below, with links to the downloads for 16 out of the 20. I could not find music from 227 online. I also couldn’t track down the Lenny Kravitz song. Enjoy!

• He Is the Joy – Donna Allen
• Come Into My House – Queen Latifah
• 227 End Credits (No Place Like Home) From the Television Series 227 – Marla Gibbs
• I Can See In Color – Mary J. Blige
• Was That All It Was – Jean Carn [scene: dancing in leotard in front of the TV]
• Just a Closer Walk With Thee – Mahalia Jackson
• Did You Ever See a Dream Walking - Sunny Gale
• No. 7 Librera Me – Leonard Bernstein
• Do It – Lenny Kravitz
• System – Labelle
• Teacher of Love – Ray Barretto
• Somethin’s Comin’ My Way – Grace Hightower
• Soul Holidays – Sounds of Blackness
• My Good Lovin – Da Brat and Lil Mo
• We Wish You a Merry Christmas – The Platters
• Love Is the Message – MFSB
• Humpin’ Around – Bobby Brown
• It Took a Long Time – Labelle
• Now That I Know Who I Am – Nona Hendryx
• Columbia Pictures Television Logo Music from the Television Series 227 – Timothy Thompson

Original music for Precious – Mario Grigorov

Song from the commercial for Precious – Happy by Leona Lewis

Why is it that in order for women of color to “make it” they must first go blond and mimic the eurocentric standard of beauty? The latest victim or willing participant (you cannot rape the willing) is Nicki Minaj. Nicki is the “it” girl reencarnation of Lil’ Kim’s uber sex appeal for marketing purposes. She is a rapper, not emcee (there is a difference) with an annoying voice, banging body and lyrical context with no content. In other words she only raps about how sexy she is and how much money she got. Sooooooo! Excuse me, I digress. The issue at hand is the image that is repeated over and over by women of color to so called fit in or get in “the industry.” The video below is behind-the-scenes look at Nicki Minaj’s photo shoot for Right On Magazine. (Notice how she looks like Lady GaGa in one of the outfits)

Queen Latifah was at Macy’s in Herald Square to launch her new fragrance “Queen” yesterday.  We must say that Queen Latifah has stepped her game up tremendously.  Queen you look great!  How many of you are going to treat yourself to a bottle of Queen? 

More Queen looking great when you

Queen Latifah attended Rosie O’Donnell’s Broadway Extravaganza at the Palace Theatre in NYC last night.  Rosie looks like she was ready to let the carpet munchin’ begin.  Queen looked good especially standing next the big krispy kreme killer.

More photos for your eyes when you

Cronología esencial de la conocida como Golden Era del rap, tan añorada en estos two thousand and…

1990

• 2 pac participa como bailarín para Digital Underground.

• Se estrena en la emisora de radio WKCR de New York el “Strecht & Bobbito show”, programa dedicado a la música hip hop donde se hacían sonar demo-tapes (cintas de demostración) y freestyles (improvisaciones) en directo de rappers noveles que por aquel entonces no contaban con sello discográfico como Big L, Notorious B.I.G., Wu Tang Clan, Fugees o Fat Joe, todos ellos artistas reconocidos en la posteridad.

• Luther Campbell (2 Live Crew) y un propietario de una tienda de discos de Florida son arrestados por el polémico álbum de 2 Live Crew, “As Nasty as They Wanna Be” (Tan asquerosos como ellos quieran ser).

1991

• El álbum de N.W.A. “Niggaz 4 Life” vende alrededor de 954.000 copias en su primera semana, un trabajo que marcaría la ruta de muchos álbumes de rap hardcore en la posteridad.

• Cypress Hill lanza su primer disco e inician una campaña para legalizar el cáñamo.

• Notorious B.I.G. aparece en la sección “Unsigned hypes” (una sección de promoción para jóvenes sin sello descográfico) de la revista Source.

• Busta Rhymes aparece en el clásico de A Tribe Called Quest, “Scenario”.

1992

• Dr. Dre lanza “The Chronic”.

• Los Rock Steady DJ’s (DJ Qbert, DJ Apollo y Mix Master Mike) ganan el título mundial de la DMC (Disco Mix Club).

1993

• “The Chronic” alcanza el disco multiplatino.

• Wu Tang Clan lanza su álbum debut “Enter the Wu Tang (36 Chambers)” que se convertiría en disco de platino.

• Cypress Hill presenta su segundo disco, “Black Sunday”.

• Mobb Deep saca su disco début “Juvenile Hell”.

• DJ Qbert y Mix Master Mike (The Dream Team) ganan de nuevo el título mundial de la DMC, esta vez sin DJ Apollo.

• A Tribe Called Quest firma su tercer disco con “Midnight Marauders” con un Quién es Quién de la escena de por aquel entonces plasmado en la portada del LP.

1994

• La primera referencia de Nas, “Illmatic” , es calificada como uno de los mejores álbumes de Hip-Hop de la historia.

• Common presenta “Resurrection” y es aclamado como uno de los mejores liricistas de todos los tiempos.

• Warren G, hermanastro de Dr. Dre, consigue vender 4 millones de copias de su disco début “Regulate: The G Funk Era”.

• Tupac es asaltado y recibe cinco disparos en el vestíbulo de Quad Recording Studios en Manhattan, New York. Después de su recuperación acusaría a Puff Daddy, Notorious B.I.G. y Andre Harrell (mitad del dúo Dr. Jeckyll & Mr. Hyde) del ataque que sufrió.

• Notorious B.I.G. debuta con su LP “Ready to die” que se convertiría en disco multiplatino.

1995

• Queen Latifah gana un Grammy en la categoría “Best rap solo performance” por el tema “Unity”.

• Tupac firma por Death Row Records después de que Suge Knight pagase una fianza por él de 1,4 millones de dólares para sacarlo de la cárcel por una condena por supuestos abusos sexuales, Tupac siempre se declaró inocente.

• Eazy E muere de sida a los 31 años.

• Notorious B.I.G., apodado ya por aquel entonces por algunos como “King of New York”, es nombrado “Lyricist of the year” por la revista Source. Su single “One More Chance” fue directo al top de las listas.

1996

• “The Score”, una mezcla de letras conscientes y comprometidas con pinceladas de reggae, se convierte en el disco mas exitoso de The Fuggees. Debuta en el número uno y gana dos Grammys, aportando un respiro de aire distinto a la escena del Hip Hop.

• Los premios MOBO (Music Of Black Origin) celebrados en Reino Unido otorgan a The Fugees dos trofeos.

• Snoop Dogg y su guardaespaldas McKinley Lee son acusados de asesinar a Philip Woldemariam, un inmigrante etíope de 20 años de edad, tiroteado en agosto de 1993.

• Jay-Z lanza su después alabado debut, “Reasonable Doubt” (Duda razonable).

• Bone Thugs N Harmony en un tiempo récord pone en lo más alto su hit “Tha Crossroads”.

• El 7 de septiembre Tupac es tiroteado en Las Vegas después de asistir a una pelea de Mike Tyson. El día 13 de septiembre fallece a las 4:03 a.m.

1997

• Notorious B.I.G. es asesinado a golpe de bala el 9 de marzo en Los Ángeles a la salida de una fiesta que daba la revista Vibe en el Peterson Automotive Museum después de la gala de los premios Soul Train.

• Missy Elliott (Melissa Arnette Elliott) redefine el panorama con su primer álbum “Supa Dupa Fly”. Posteriormente se convertiría en líder de ventas como artista de rap femenino.

• Roc-A-Fella (disquera de Jay-Z) vende la mitad de sus acciones a Island Def Jam por millón y medio de dólares.

• Juice, MC de Chicago derrota a Eminem en la Scribble Jam, el mayor escaparate de Hip Hop underground en los Estados Unidos por aquel entonces.

• Interescope Records vende sus intereses en Death Row (disquera de Suge Knight, que contaba con Snoop Dog o Tupac entre otros).

1998

• Dr. Dre ficha a Eminem para su sello Aftermath después de escuchar un freestyle de este último en una emisora de radio de Los Ángeles.
• El debut en solitario de Lauryn Hill “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” es nominado diez veces a los premios Grammy y gana cinco de ellos incluidos Álbum del año y Mejor nuevo artista.

• Shyne (Jamal Barrow) firma un contrato discográfico con Bad Boy Entertainment, discográfica de P. Diddy.

1999

• Respaldado por Dr. Dre, Eminem vende 4 millones de copias de su debut, “The Slim Shady LP”.

• The Neptunes (Chad Hugo y Pharrell Williams) controlan las ondas con varios hits para la radio como “Got Your Money” de Ol’ Dirty Bastard o “Oh No” de Noreaga.

• Big L (Lamont Coleman) es asesinado el 15 de febrero cerca de su casa, en Harlem, New York.

• Dr Dre pone en el candelero de nuevo a la costa oeste estadounidense con su LP “2001”.

Over on Fat Positive Feminism, Ali has done a fabulous post on a few of her favourite fat positive things.  I liked the idea so much, I thought I might do it myself.

So here are some fat positive things that I class as my favourites.

Queen Latifah

The name Queen really fits this lady.  She’s so regal, so elegant, yet so real and down to earth.  Not only can she sing, act, dance, carry comedy and looks fantastic in anything, she’s also an awesome role model for young women.

Leonard Nimoy’s Full Body Project

Fat women as they are, natural, beautiful and with dignity.  And yes, the photographs are taken by Leonard “Mr Spock” Nimoy!

Big Girl, You are Beautiful by Mika

This isn’t the correct version of the music video, but the correct version can’t be embedded.  But you get the idea.  A positive portrayal of fat women!

We Love Colors

An online shop that REALLY does cater to the plus sized market.  Their tights are well made, fit well and go to a very large size.  And the colours… oh the colours!

The Corrinna Chapman books by Kerry Greenwood

Corinna Chapman is a fat woman.  She’s also sexy, successful, loved by friends and her gorgeous, gorgeous boyfriend, funny, smart, talented and kind.  The first book, Earthly Delights opened up a whole new world of fiction for me, fiction where fat women aren’t the lazy, loser friends of the heroines.

The Fat Nutritionist

This lady is AWESOME.  Not only is she a fabulous fat activist, but she’s also changing attitudes within her profession on nutrition and diet, as well as exercise.  Plus she’s a very lovely person too.

Beth Ditto

I am a latecomer to the love of La Ditto.  At first I didn’t really dig her, I just thought she was someone that fatties glommed onto simply because she was “not thin”.  But then I saw this interview with her, and my opinion of her radically changed.  I’ve since got into her music with The Gossip, and I get her so much more.  Cool lady.

Elizabeth Patch’s More to Love

Pretty, feminine art depicting beautiful women with full, fat bodies, living their lives with positivity.

Evans Clothing

Not only do they cater to the plus sized market at a reasonable price, AND ship internationally, but they get some very cool ladies on board to promote, design and model their clothing.  Beth Ditto has a range.  Crystal Renn is a regular model.  Chaka Khan is the face (and bodacious bod) of their latest line.  These are clothes I like to see and want to wear.

So, now I throw it over to you.  What are some of your favourite things that are fat positive?  Clothes, celebrities, art, literature, music, you name it – share it in the comments.

The cast of "Nine"; image courtesy of newsinfilm.com

I saw Precious today and want to talk about it length, but need to process what I saw. I’d also like to get to Push, Sapphire’s book on which the movie was based at some point before the end of the year. For now, I’ll say this. I didn’t love it but I did like it, thought Gabourey Sidibe and Mo’Nique were great, was heartened that my matinee screening had a good and diverse turnout, and think you should see it. But you may want to see it with someone and encourage your local theater to have a safe space where people can go if the movie becomes too intense or touches on frought emotions or horrible memories.

For the time being, I thought I’d mention the preview of a coming attraction. Nine, Rob Marshall’s screen adaptation of Arthur Kopit, Mario Fratti, and Maury Yeston’s musical (itself an adaptation of Federico Fellini’s 8 1/2), comes out next week. You can view the trailer here.

So, I know very little about this musical. I only recently discovered the origins of its source material, which I haven’t seen (though, based on my less-than-enthusiastic viewings of La Dolce Vita and I Vitelloni don’t hold high hopes for it, unless Fellini allowed for self-deprication in his autobiographical film the way that Bob Fosse did in All That Jazz, a movie of a similar mold that I love). Beyond that, I knew Raul Julia starred in its Broadway debut back in 1982, the original production won many Tonys, and once heard someone sing “Unusual Way” at a family friend’s wedding, which is a really cryptic song choice for such a ceremony.

As for the film adaptation, I know the players. Rob Marshall directed Chicago and is at the helm here. Daniel Day Lewis plays Guido Contini, a tortured director. The women who populate his life are considerable — Marion Cotillard plays his wife, Penélope Cruz his mistress, Nicole Kidman his muse, Stacey Ferguson (aka Duchess Fergie Ferg) a whore he once knew, and Kate Hudson a fashion writer whose character has a song that was written for the movie. Oh, and Judi Dench is Contini’s costume designer and confidant.

So, I totally suspect a two-hour version of Julio Iglesias’s “To All The Girls I’ve Loved Before” with generous dashes of love for the authorial presence of male film directors. Also, I think this trailer gives you virtually no insight into what this story is about.

That said, I totally want to see this movie because:

1) I’m always interested in film musicals, whether they are good, bad, screen adaptations of stage musicals, or screen adaptations of stage musicals of feature films. Yes, this means I saw Hairspray and didn’t hate it as much as many of my movie geek friends did. But those matters should be saved for another post. 

2) Unlike many people who hated Chicago (several of whom I suspect feel Marty or Roman got robbed out of a Best Picture Oscar for Gangs of New York or The Pianist), I actually enjoyed it. I felt the adaptation stayed true to the source material, deftly staged sequences that are actually going on in the protagonist’s mind, and felt like Catherine Zeta Jones, Queen Latifah, and John C. Reilly were great. I even enjoyed Renée Zellweger and Richard Gere, actors whom I otherwise would rather not watch in a movie. My only real complaint (which Jon Stewart shares), was that Bebe Neuwirth, who won a Tony for her portrayal of Velma Kelly was replaced by Zeta Jones. Otherwise, bring it.

3) Daniel Day Lewis can sing? The same guy who apparently prepared for There Will Be Blood by recording his character’s voice using early 20th century phonographic technology? I am there.

d) I’m fascinated by the presence of female pop stars in contemporary film musicals. As the golden age of film musicals has long since passed, it seems like the ones that do make it to the screen need a familiar face and voice, and they are almost always women with celebrated recording careers. Just as I wondered what Madonna brought to Evita, Queen Latifah brought to Chicago, and Beyoncé and Jennifer Hudson brought to Dreamgirls, so too am I curious what Fergie is going to bring to Nine. While detractors might snigger that it’s fitting for the woman who sang “My Humps” and “London Bridge” to play a whore, I’ll counter that she’s the only singer we hear in the trailer. Yes, that’s her singing “Be Italian.”

e) In the movie, I’m interested in seeing a whore play a teacher to our genius director protagonist man. In real life, I advocate the decriminalization of prostitution and would like sex workers to get worker rights and benefits.

f) While I worry that these women are going to be portrayed as long-suffering, one-dimensional objects of Condini’s affection, I want to see a movie that boasts so many actresses. Especially actresses I enjoy, like Cruz, Dench, and Cotillard, who I thought was wonderful in her Oscar-winning turn in La Vie en rose, an the otherwise so-so biopic on Édith Piaf. I’m also really interested in the series of noir-inspired ads she’s doing with La Vie en rose director Olivier Dahan for Dior.

I haven’t seen this many women in an ensemble since I saw Cruz in Pedro Almodóvar’s Volver (note: Cruz is also starring in Almodóvar’s Broken Embraces and I can’t wait for it to start playing in Austin). 

As an aside, the gossip enthusiast in me is also curious about Cruz and Kidman starring in a movie together. Ever since Tom Cruise split with Nicole Kidman and dated Cruz, I always wonder what their interactions are like every time they show up on a magazine cover together. It’s a catty curiosity, but a curiosity nonetheless. I wonder how they would be portrayed in a movie about Tom Cruise’s life, but want very much for this movie not to be made.

Vogue cover girls Nicole Kidman, Marion Cotillard, Penélope Cruz, and Kate Hudson; image courtesy of latimesblogs.latimes.com

Nicole Kidman and Penélope Cruz bookending Vanity Fair's 2001 Hollywood Issue cover; image courtesy of abc.net.au

Whether this movie is good or not remains to be seen. That said, I’ll see you at the multiplex.