by Marlon West (FB: marlon.west1 Threads: @stlmarlonwest IG: stlmarlonwest Spotify: marlonwest) Happy Music Monday, you all! Once again it’s your friend and selector, Marlon West, with another ..read more

After President Joe Biden‘s graceful exit yesterday morning from the race for re-election as the Democratic Presidential nominee, he quickly endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as his pick for the top of the ticket. Yesterday evening, over 44,000 Black women and allies joined a Zoom hosted by winwithblackwomen.org founder and organizer Jotaka Eaddy and raised over $1.5 million for Harris’ newly-minted campaign to secure the nomination. It took several tries for the majority of participants from all over the U.S. and overseas to join as the Zoom webinar was initially capped at 1,000. Eaddy an ..read more

by Marlon West (FB: marlon.west1 Threads: @stlmarlonwest IG: stlmarlonwest Spotify: marlonwest) Happy Music Monday, you all. It’s your friend and selector back again with another collection for listening, and this time rump shaking, pleasure. While Detroit is known as “Hitsville U.S.A.” thanks to Motown, and Memphis is known as the epicenter of “Southern Soul” thanks to Stax Records. Dayton, however, is known as “The Funk Capital of the World.”   When Lakeside dubbed it “The Land of Funk” in its swashbuckling 1980 hit “Fantastic Voyage”, Dayton’s west side was already the birth ..read more

by Marlon West (FB: marlon.west1 Threads: @stlmarlonwest IG: stlmarlonwest Spotify: marlonwest) Happy Music Monday, y’all. If you haven’t already, please dig Jamila Wignot’s new documentary “Stax: Soulsville U.S.A.”, currently streaming on Max. The four-part film tells the story of Stax Records, the iconic R&B label, from its late-1950s beginnings to its 1975 demise. In its prime the label featured stars like Rufus Thomas and Carla Thomas, Sam and Dave, and Otis Redding, as well as the ace house band of Booker T. and the MGs. Stax was a colorblind oasis of racial harmony in an o ..read more

by Jeff Meier (FB: Jeff.Meier.90) Here at Good Black News, we’ve decided to have some fun and make up a new holiday. With Patti LaBelle (born May 24th) and her good friend and Gemini sister Gladys Knight (born May 28th) both turning 80 over this long weekend, we’re thinking the perfect date is May 26th. In much the same way that George Washington and Abraham Lincoln’s birthdays were lumped together to create President’s Day in February, we’re launching… Legendary Divas Day! Certainly, Divas need their own day. May 26th splits the difference between Patti’s and Gladys’ birthdates and gives us a ..read more

by Marlon West (FB: marlon.west1 Threads: @stlmarlonwest IG: stlmarlonwest Spotify: marlonwest) While Reggae is a true import from Jamaica, it really gained a global footing in England. It and Punk both arose out of the economic depression and social inequality in the late 1960’s and 1970’s. Many Reggae songs of the time like Bob Marley’s “Punky Reggae Party” and “Concrete Jungle” were overt commentary on life in London, while many Punk artists adopted some of these traits and spreading a message of rebellion against the Establishment. The Clash, The Police, and others used reggae b ..read more

by Lori Lakin Hutcherson, GBN Editor-in-Chief I’m starting off straight up corny by saying I’ve been a “transparent soul” with anyone who’d listen to me about my anticipation of WILLOW’s sixth and latest solo LP, which finally dropped May 3rd. My owning of my corniness, turns out, totally vibes with the messages about the freedom to express & accept your feelings, warts and all, coursing throughout the #greatalbum “empathogen” (2024). Not only do I absolutely love how WILLOW wrestles lyrically (and musically) with Big Ideas such as existence, ego, anxiety, pain, self-sabotage, fear and lov ..read more

by Marlon West (FB: marlon.west1 Threads: @stlmarlonwest IG: stlmarlonwest Spotify: marlonwest) Thanks to our Editor-In-Chief, Lori Lakin Hutcherson, for reminding me that it April is Jazz Appreciation Month. So, to that end, I’ve assembled this collection of new and recent Jazz releases. Most of these track have been released in 2024. None of them is older than five years old. These tracks encompass a wide range of styles and showcase the creativity and artistry of today’s jazz musicians. This collection features rom compelling compositions to virtuosic performances, by the likes o ..read more

by Marlon West (FB: marlon.west1 Twitter: @marlonw IG: stlmarlonwest Spotify: marlonwest) Happy Music Monday! In the weeks since Beyoncé’s recent Country releases, there’s been much debate on her Country bona fides, though the sista has never been shy about voicing her Texas pride. From Beyoncé’s history with the genre, from the song “Daddy Lessons”, from her 2016 album Lemonade, to the Stetsons worn by Destiny’s Child, many Country devotees ignore her roots and those of other Black artists. While talking to a good friend and colleague last week, he pointed out that it’s not musician ..read more

by Marlon West (FB: marlon.west1 Twitter: @marlonw IG: stlmarlonwest Spotify: marlonwest) Back in the fall of 1981 when I was in my first semester at Columbia College, I became friends with a fellow from a Chicagoland suburb. He was a dyed-in-the-wool Rolling Stones fan. One afternoon their version of “Just My Imagination” played on the radio near us. I recall mentioning it was a Temptations cover, and with some level of indignation, he told me that Jagger and Richards wrote EVERY song The Stones performed. I was shocked. We were decades away from being able to Google such ..read more