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February 17-23, 2016
michiganchronicle.com
SPOTLIGHT
Reflections By Steve Holsey
Excitement Every now and then there are performances that mesmerize me, and I find myself watching them again and again. The latest are the amazing performances of Bruno Mars and Beyoncé during the Super Bowl 50 halftime show. To say the least, they were hot! The performances were flawless and the excitement was exhilarating. Beyoncé is clearly the best live female performer in the business today. No one else even comes close. And I had no idea that Bruno Mars was such a great dancer. His moves are slick, smooth and creative. Mars performed his 2015 hit “Uptown
Beyoncé and Bruno Mars. Funk” and Beyoncé did her new hit, “Formation,” that is nearly as unusual as the much-talked-about video. Then they performed together, joined by Chris Martin of Coldplay. Yours truly has no interest in sports, but the halftime shows are often outstanding. In fact, I think I am going watch Beyoncé and Bruno Mars yet again…right now. Beyoncé is called “Queen B” for a lot of very good reasons. WILL SMITH is one of the most easygoing, likable entertainers in the business, but he is never one to shy away from saying what he really feels on any given subject, such as when he made it more than clear publicly that he was fed up with the negative things being said about him by Wendy Williams when she had a syndicated radio show. Most recently, sparked by there being no African AmerWill Smith icans nominated for 2016 Academy Awards, he said the following: “I’m recognizing a pattern of the narrowing of the imagery, of tolerance in America. My concern is that Hollywood is becoming a part of this regressive trend. I’m seeing Hollywood slipping and making a social and political slide reflective of what’s happening in our country. “Hollywood is supposed to be the most diverse, most inclusive, all of the voices of so many different types of people and so many different stories.” RICKEY MINOR, whose achievements include serving as musical director for such major events as the Grammy Awards and the NAACP Image Awards, and being the bandleader on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” from 2010 to 2014, has good advice for people going into show business, or any business for that matter. “Having the vision to see yourself living your dreams is essential, but that’s just the start,” he said. “You’ve got a lot of work to do. Your dream will stay just that and never Rickey Minor get off the ground if you don’t follow up with planning and action. “Today we live in an age of instant gratification. We want it fast. We want it super-sized. We want it now. The saying ‘patience is a virtue’ did not come out of thin air. The same can be said for that other unpopular truth, ‘no pain, no gain.’ “No matter what your profession is, the truth remains the same. And you must come to the realization that if you continue to work hard and focus, opportunities will find their way to you. “There’s no such thing as an overnight success.” IN HIS just-released autobiography, “Sing to Me: My Story of Making Music, Finding Magic, and Searching for Who’s Next,” famed producer-writer L.A. Reid sheds new light on the famous animosity between Michael L.A. Reid Jackson and Prince. Reid recalls the time he and partner Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds went to
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BLAIR UNDERWOOD A
nyone who does not know who Blair Underwood is has, perhaps, been living under a rock, or maybe on another planet, for the last 30 or so years. The much-respected, award-winning actor has maintained a consistent presence in movies, on television and on stage for those three decades. Many people are most familiar with Underwood for the seven years (1987-1994, 149 episodes) he played Jonathan Rollins, an attorney known for his headstrong nature, on the long-running TV series “L.A. Law.” Underwood is always looking for a great script, a strong character and the right director, but he is philosophical about certain things, such as a TV show that he had high hopes for being short-lived. “What 30 years teaches you is that if one thing doesn’t last, something else will come down the pipe,” he said. “You never know how long things will last, if they will last, and how people will use them in the future. All you can do is the best you can.” BORN IN Tacoma, Washington, Underwood’s family traveled a lot because his father was a colonel in the U.S. Army. At one point they lived in Germany. After graduating from Petersburg High School in Petersburg, Virginia, Underwood enrolled in the Carnegie Mellon School of Drama, in Pittsburg. He had decided that acting was his career choice, and he made it his business to learn everything he could about his craft. He also took advantage of every audition opportunity. Underwood made his film debut in “Krush Groove,” a teen-oriented film released in 1985 when breakdancing was popular and rap music was in the process of becoming an integral part of the American musical landscape. NEXT UP was an appearance on “The Cosby Show” that led to appearing in several episodes of the ABC daytime drama “One Life to Live” which, in turn, led to landing the regular role on “L.A. Law.” Of course, it was his talent that was the determining factor in his hiring each time, but looking good was also a major plus. Which brings to mind one of the most unexpected aspects of one of the plum roles landed by Underwood. In 2003, he was signed for five episodes of season six of the hugely popular series “Sex and the City,” as Dr. Robert Leeds, the love interest of Miranda Hobbes, portrayed by Cynthia Nixon.
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