Story and Photos by Shelah Moody

I grew up in Las Vegas, NV, and spent my formative years there (from age 1 to 11). My father, a jazz pianist performed with the Ink Spots on the Vegas strip at hotels such as the Hacienda and the MGM Grand. Some of my fondest childhood memories come from living in a working class community in North Las Vegas. Returning to Las Vegas as an adult, I saw the desert resort from a different perspective, as a diverse entertainment capital and fashion capital of the U.S.

This summer I had the privilege of shaking the hand of superstar Justin Bieber at the Billboard Music Awards, greeting Stephen Marley on his tour bus after his performance at the Hard Rock Hotel, and partying poolside with the Mighty Diamonds at the Silverton Hotel and Casino.

On Sunday, May 22, the ABC-produced Billboard Music Awards returned to Las Vegas after a five year absence. The festivities were held at the legendary MGM Grand Hotel.

Highlights included global entertainer, singer, songwriter, producer, actress, and entrepreneur, philanthropist and fashion icon, Beyonce, receiving Billboard’s Millennium Award. Britney Spears made a surprise appearance with Rihanna (Top Female Artist). Cee Lo Green performed “Forget You,” while he and his piano were suspended in mid air and turned upside down in spectacular Vegas fashion. The ceremony was hosted by the engaging comedian Ken Jong, star of the wildly popular films “The Hangover” and “The Hangover 2.”

I reported from the press room at the MGM Grand when Justin Bieber (winner of six Billboard Music awards), Snoop Dogg, Pitbull, Taio Cruz (winner of Billboard’s Top 100 song and Top Pop Song for his club anthem, “Dynamite”), Taylor Swift (Top Country Artist and Top Billboard 200 Artist), and U2 (Top Touring Artist) popped in for interviews between segments.

At 17, Justin Bieber, the darling of the tween set, is an Usher protégée and pop phenom who incidentally, has his own line of memorabilia at Claire’s boutique and his own fragrance at Macy’s department stores.

Dressed in a sophisticated, Vegas inspired gold lame jacket, Bieber appeared humble as he discussed his achievements. Having toured the world, Bieber believes that music is a universal language that transcends race and culture.

“Sometimes, you always have to have a smile on your face, and that’s always hard, but it’s fun; I love what I do and I wouldn’t change it for the world; I wouldn’t go back,” said Bieber. “People think it’s super hard—the fame and everything, but it’s not that hard. It’s about surrounding yourself with good people and making sure that you always keep God first.”

A member of the press corps asked Bieber what we can expect from his next album.

“I really want to make good music, with instrumentation, stuff with meaning and significance,” said Bieber. “I really want to focus on myself and really get into what I’m feeling and I think that will come off in my next album. I want to do some more acting and I think that next summer will be the best time. I’m taking a month off right now because I just got off a world tour which was long and stressful. But I had a lot of fun and I’m really glad to be off and relax and spend time with family and friends. And then I’m going to start recording my next album.”

Long Beach born rapper turned actor Snoop Dogg addressed the press wearing dark shades, his trademark pigtails with knockers on the end and an outfit designed by Wan Wear of Las Vegas (www.wanwear.com). Snoop Dogg had a bit of fun with his friends Robin Leach (“Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous”) who also joined us in the press room.

“I want to know about the pigtails,” said Leach.

“I’ve been rocking these for about 18, 19 years,” said Snoop Dogg. “They are like dog ears. I like to keep it old school. Around my way, when I was a youngster, a lot of cats used to wear their hair like this and it was real fly to me, so I added the look to my ensemble and my stage persona.”

Snoop Dogg also praised Britney Spears for her comeback after a series of personal troubles.

“Britney looked good; she’s back on her thang, ain’t she? I’m proud of Britney… Nobody likes to give respect and appreciation to women when they go down and turn it back around….Britney came back looking good, sounding good and feeling good. Britney will always be a teen pop star…A lot of young girls look up to her. She shows a lot of young girls that you can mess up and come back.”

Asked who he would most like to collaborate with, Snoop Dogg had one answer—Sade, who will perform with John Legend at the MGM Grand Sept. 3. For information, visit www.mgmgrand.com.

Incidentally, Taylor Swift said she would most like to collaborate with Grammy winning singer/songwriter Bruno Mars.

For information on the Billboard Music Awards, go to www.billboard.com.

While in Vegas, I had the rare opportunity to meet entrepreneurs Charles and Kimberly Bailey Tureaud, co-publishers of Las Vegas Black Image Magazine.

Las Vegas Black Image Magazine aims to present a broad image of black life and entertainment in Las Vegas, as well as showcase the African American lifestyle as a broad and diverse entity that contributes to the wealth of the economy. Superstars such as Janet Jackson, Halle Berry, Gladys Knight, Stevie Wonder and President Barack Obama have graced the cover of Las Vegas Black Image.

Black Image is published monthly by the “Las Vegas Review-Journal” and the Tureauds’ company, Culturally Diverse Advertising, Media Relations and Events. For information, go to www.lasvegasblackimage.com.

Las Vegas is also becoming a hub for reggae music. On Saturday, June 4, the legendary Jamaican harmony trio, the Mighty Diamonds performed at an irie poolside party at the Silverton Hotel. This was a chance for fans to connect up close and personal with the singers--Fitzroy “Bunny Simpson,” Donald “Tabby” Shaw and Lloyd “Judge” Ferguson as they sang their classics “Wise Son,” “Tamarind Farm,” “Pass the Kutchie” and “4000 Years.” The Silverton Hotel is also scheduled to host more reggae acts this summer, visit www.silvertoncasino.com.

On Friday June 10, Grammy winning reggae star Stephen Marley played poolside at the Hard Rock Hotel, in promotion of his new album “Revelation Part 1: The Roots of Life.” Marley’s all-star entourage included his son, Joe Marley, Mr. Cheeks, Spragga Benz, brother Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley, (a Grammy winner in his own right) and rising lover’s rock singer Christopher Ellis, son of the late reggae legend Alton Ellis. Stephen Marley is touring with a stellar Jamaican band including vocal powerhouse Erica Newell, drummer Squidly Cole, bassist Chris Meredith and keyboardist Bowie McLaughlin and DJ Geefus of Stone Love.

That night, Grammy winning dancehall DJ Lady Saw performed at Kinky Reggae Fridaze at Club Azul.

On Saturday, June 11, thousands of reggae fans braved the scorching Vegas heat at Reggae in the Desert, held at Clark County Amphitheater. Reggae in the Desert featured foundation reggae artists Don Carlos, Mykal Rose, Michael Black and Junior Reid. Velvet baritone Freddie McGregor, known for his hits “I Was Born a Winner,” “Big Ship,” and “Just Don’t Want to Be Lonely” headlined the show. McGregor’s new single “A House is Not a Home” will be released soon.”

“Reggae in the Desert” was nice; we had a lot of people there, we really enjoyed it,” said McGregor. “Vegas is a fun city. At night, the lights come on, and it’s just great.”

For info, go to www.reggaeinthedesert.com.

KENYA

Kenya is originally from New York, but she calls Oakland bay area her home now. Like most R & B/ Hip Hop artist Kenya started off singing in church and doing solo performances. Kenya was shy about sing outside of church,but she was asked to sing for school plays and shows. Different artists would approach her to sing background on their records.Read moore here.

The Big Man Passes

The Big Man Clarence Anicholas Clemons Jr. the tenor saxophone player in Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band passed away from complications of a stroke he had suffered on June 12, 2011.. More info at he Jazz Cafe Blog

Rihanna is in the news again with her controversial video Man Down. The beginning of the video has Rihanna shooting an unarmed man in cold blood.It does not show you why until the end. More at the Streetwise Big Hop Blog.

This video is amazing, Timothy Bloom captures the meaning of true love in this video. The way the words coming out of their mouths while they hold each other OMG!  More here at the Streetwise Radio Ultra Mix Blog.

Book Review: Janet Jackson’s True You: A Journey to Finding and Loving Yourself

By Shelah Moody

“I found God in myself and I loved her fiercely.”—Ntozake Shange, “for colored girls who have considered suicide when the rainbow is enuf.”

I first saw Janet Jackson up close and personal when I was 14.She was around the same age. Our paths crossed by chance in Honolulu, HI, when my best friend, Cheryl and I took our parents to see the Jacksons-- Michael, Marlon, Tito, Jackie and Randy-- the world’s most fabulous singing group—perform at the Neal Blaisdell Arena. (Soon after this tour, Michael Jackson’s fist solo album “Off the Wall ” would go on to sell millions and help propel him from teen pop sensation to iconic status).

Like many young black girls of my age group, I bonded with Janet Jackson through the summer Jackson family TV specials, her role as Penny, an abused child on Norman Lear’s sitcom “Good Times” and articles and tidbits I’d read about her in “Right On!” magazine (the black version of “Tiger Beat”). Other than Danielle “Dee” Spencer on “What’s Happening” and Kim “Tootie Fields” on “Facts of Life,” there weren’t that many young black girls with regular roles on network television.

Cheryl and I immediately spotted Janet near the backstage entrance. She was standing with her mother, Katherine and her sister, La Toya. .

Janet Jackson was the most glamorous person I’d ever seen. Her demeanor was very composed, quiet, very polite and also, very shy. She had cherubic cheeks the sweetest, wide sincere smile. Her smile was like Michael’s smile; like the sun. I was fascinated by her elaborate hair style; this was the first time I had seen micro-braids, each one decorated with a gold bead at the end. She wore a velour shirt with wide, bold stripes and around her neck, a tiny gold fan. To me, Janet was beautiful; she was perfection.

Cheryl, the articulate and loquacious one; automatically extended her hand to Janet and began to compliment her on her work on “Good Times,” using perfect diction, while I stood there, too shy to say anything. I snapped two pictures with my instant camera. You see, my 14-year-old mind asked: why would a huge star like JANET JACKSON want to talk to a “nobody” like me? I was a definitely a teen who could have used a few words of advice on loving herself.

In her new book “True You” A Journey to Finding and Loving Yourself,” (Hunter Publishing/Gallery Books), a New York Times number one bestseller, Ms. Jackson indeed comes off as sincere, caring, sensitive and real.

“True You,” written with celebrity biographer David Ritz, deals with Ms. Jackson’s struggle with her body image, thinking distortions, and the pressure she faced being in the limelight, coming from a family of beautiful, talented siblings and feeling controlled by two strict parents who set high standards. Though she was privileged, famous and beloved around the world, Ms. Jackson was constantly questioning herself and comparing herself to others, feeling “not as pretty as” or “not as smart as” her siblings and her peers.

Ms. Jackson was raised with a strong work ethic and a desire to achieve perfection, which would eventually lead her to become an icon in her own right in the fields of music, dance and film. Her recent role as the Lady in Red in Tyler Perry’s adaptation of Ntozake Shange’s play “for colored girls who have considered suicide when the rainbow is enuf,” earned her a 2010 NAACP Image Award nomination.

In the first chapters of “True You,” Ms. Jackson eloquently relates her struggles- her childhood obsession with food, her eating binges, her battles with low self esteem and depression and negative body image, partially brought on by teasing from her siblings and by the influx of Eurocentric standards of beauty that all women are exposed to on a daily basis.

For instance, the doll Ms. Jackson wanted most as a child was Malibu Barbie.

"She had hair down to her waist and a one piece aqua bathing suit,” Ms. Jackson writes. “Naturally, she wore sunglasses and carried a yellow towel and a bottle of suntan lotion. There was a pop up beach tent for Barbie's naps, in addition to a dream house complete with an elevator and swimming pool. I wanted the whole package; I wanted it badly. If there were any black dolls of that kind, they didn't have their own commercials or beach houses like Malibu Barbie did."

Eventually, Ms. Jackson’s mother bought her a Malibu Barbie and all of her accessories, as a reward for landing the role of Penny on “Good Times.”

Ironically, now Ms. Jackson IS a Barbie, Mattel has created a Janet Jackson doll, dressed in a replica of the Swarovski crystal studded gown that she wore on “American Idol” that retails for $1,050. See link: http://www.essence.com/entertainment/hot_topics/janet_jackson_barbie_doll.php

In “True You,” Ms. Jackson reveals the painful secrets of her life; the first time her father, Joe Jackson, hit (disciplined) her, losing her virginity at age 16, becoming a co-dependent to her drug addled husband at 18 and having a ballet teacher strike her because she could not tuck her buttocks in. (Because of this incident, Jackson shied away from ballet). As a young woman, Ms. Jackson was made to feel self-conscious about her weight and ashamed of the natural curves many women would die for. On the set of “Good Times,” the blossoming Janet had to have her breasts bound so she would look more like a little girl on the series.

“True You” is dedicated to Michael Jackson, with whom Ms. Jackson shared many wonderful times and many secrets. Because the details are too painful perhaps, she does not go into detail about the events surrounding the death of her beloved brother on June 25, 2009.

By writing “True You,” Ms. Jackson aimed to empower young women and men. She shares anecdotes and stories from her friends and letters from her fans, whose lives have been changes by her platinum selling and Grammy winning albums such as “Control,” “Rhythm Nation” and “Velvet Rope.” (If you want to hear a true expression of rage and pain, listen to Ms. Jackson’s cathartic track “What About,” from “Velvet Rope.”

In “True You,” Ms. Jackson tells of having an epiphany after a friend asked her to look closely in the mirror and name the parts of her body that she loved. She looked deeply into the mirror for a long time and even cried. She finally discovered that she loved the small of her back, where she later had a tattoo of one of her favorite images emblazoned.

Through a disciplined regime of a balanced diet and exercise as well as a commitment to spiritual, emotional and mental self care, Jackson was well on her way to overcoming depression and unhealthy habits and yes, loving herself.

“As a child of God, I am loved, I am valued, and I am capable of achieving balance in my life,” Ms. Jackson writes. “I know that the mistakes I’ve made in the past; they’re gone, forgiven, and no longer the cause for guilt or shame. I’m looking forward, not behind.”

At the end of the “True You,” nutritionist David Allen reveals the disciplined diet and exercise plan her designed for Ms. Jackson, and Chef Andre includes some of her favorite healthy and kid friendly recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, entrees, snacks and desserts.

In 2008, I had the privilege of interviewing celebrities on the red carpet at a large scale media event at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles, where Ms. Jackson was being honored. I was surrounded by beautiful, professional people, such as Tom Ford, Zoe Saldana, Rufus Wainwright, and I, too, felt beautiful. I watched Ms. Jackson work her way through the press corps to the end of the red carpet, where I was standing. She was radiant in a chic white Ralph Lauren suit and diamond stud earrings, her hair pulled back into a soft ponytail. She was still the most glamorous person I’d ever seen. She was beautiful. I inhaled, exhaled, got my recorder and microphone ready and poised myself to ask her a question.