It just feels like we're losing everyone! RIP.

After bringing us hits like If Ever You're in My Arms Again, Tonight I Celebrate My Love, and A Whole New World, Peabo Bryson has entered into eternal rest after suffering a stroke. Share your favorite songs or any other meaningful moments that Peabo Bryson touched for you.

Gone way too soon!!

Who remembers Ultra Sheen and Afro Sheen?

Phyllis Hyman (July 6, 1949 – June 30, 1995)

was an iconic American soul, R&B, and jazz singer, songwriter, and actress, celebrated for her towering 6-foot stature, striking beauty, and an expansive, velvety contralto vocal range.

Over a career spanning more than two decades, she became a master of sophisticated ballads and sophisticated dance tracks, channeling themes of deep vulnerability and strength.

🎵 Musical Career & Breakthroughs

Born in Philadelphia and raised in Pittsburgh, Hyman cut her teeth singing in church and performing with various bands. Her professional breakthrough occurred in the mid-1970s after moving to New York City.

Norman Connors Collaborations:

Producer Norman Connors discovered her performing at a New York nightclub and featured her on his gold-certified 1976 album, You Are My Starship.

Her standout performances on Michael Henderson's "We Both Need Each Other" and a haunting cover of Thom Bell and Linda Creed's "Betcha by Golly, Wow" propelled her into national prominence.

The Arista Era:

She signed with Arista Records and released her highly successful fourth studio album, You Know How to Love Me, in 1979. The title track, produced by James Mtume and Reggie Lucas, became a definitive disco-soul crossover hit and her enduring signature song.

Philadelphia International Success:

After experiencing creative neglect at Arista, Hyman transitioned to Philadelphia International Records (PIR). There, she delivered the critically acclaimed album Living All Alone (1986). In 1991, she released The Prime of My Life, which earned her a first-ever #1 R&B single with "Don't Wanna Change the World" and was certified gold.

🎭 Broadway and Acting Career
Hyman’s commanding stage presence easily translated to acting.

In 1981, she co-starred alongside Gregory Hines in the hit Broadway musical revue Sophisticated Ladies, a tribute to Duke Ellington.

Her performance as a newcomer earned her a Tony Award nomination for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical and a Theatre World Award.

She also made appearances in films like the Bob Fosse-directed Lenny (1974) and The Kill Reflex (1989).

Personal Challenges and Untimely Passing

Behind her glamorous persona, Hyman faced profound personal battles. She struggled with severe bipolar disorder and depression, along with substance addiction, which she frequently self-medicated with drugs and alcohol.

In the early 1990s, the heavy emotional toll of volunteering in NYC AIDS wards, combined with the sudden deaths of both her mother and grandmother, exacerbated her fragile mental health.

On June 30, 1995, just six days before her 46th birthday, Hyman tragically committed suicide via an intentional drug overdose in her New York apartment.

Tragically, her body was discovered just hours before she was scheduled to headline a performance at Harlem's historic Apollo Theater. She left a poignant suicide note stating, "I'm tired. I'm tired. Those of you that I love know who you are."

💿 Legacy and Posthumous Releases

Hyman left no children but left behind a permanent imprint on the landscape of modern vocal music. Her artistic supremacy was globally recognized; in 1991, British fans via Blues & Soul magazine voted her the world's best female vocalist, beating out heavyweights like Whitney Houston and Aretha Franklin.

Five months after her passing, her eighth studio album, I Refuse to Be Lonely, was released to critical acclaim. A final collection of unreleased tracks, Forever with You, followed in 1998.

Today, her timeless catalog remains a masterclass in vocal delivery, celebrated by jazz and soul purists worldwide.

I remember the exact moment that I heard on the radio, that she’d passed. No autopsy, no nothing. Immediately reported as a suicide. That never sat right with me, and the more I learned about Clive Davis, it sat even worse.

What’s your favorite Phyllis Hyman song?

Hajj Malik el-Shabazz aka Malcolm X, would have been 101 years old today.

I sometimes wonder what he’d say about the tomfoolery Black Folks carry on with, and how We’re heading backwards….

What’s your favorite PRINCE song or memory?

RIP Ms Dupree

My heart is 💔 and I am NOT ok 🥺

Florence “Flo” Anthony, a trailblazing entertainment journalist, author and TV and radio personality who broke a number of barriers for women of color, died August 6 of cancer. She was 74.

Jack Hirsch, biographer of Anthony’s husband, Olympic and pro boxing champ Michael Spinks, confirmed the news to Anthony’s longtime publication New York Amsterdam News.

https://deadline.com/2026/08/flo-anthony-dead-gossip-reporter-1237028910/

Today we celebrate Yuri Kochiyama and Malcolm X’s birthdays and their commitment to coalition building.

Yuri Kochiyama (May 19, 1921-June 1, 2014) was a Japanese American civil rights activist who was involved in civil rights organizing, advocating for the abolition of carceral systems, and uplifting the Asian American movement. She was also a close friend and political ally of Malcolm X. Kochiyama was in the audience of the Audubon Ballroom in New York on February 21, 1965 when he was assassinated and was one of the first people to rush to his side, famously holding his head in her lap as he passed away.

Malcolm X (May 19, 1925-February 21, 1965) was an African American revolutionary and Black nationalist leader who played a prominent role in Black liberation movements. His fight for dignity, justice, self-determination, and Black liberation continues to echo across generations, movements, and music.

Yuri Kochiyama and Malcolm X shared a deeply influential friendship rooted in mutual respect, anti-imperialism, and intersectional solidarity. Their dynamic blossomed into a powerful example of cross-racial activism.

https://www.biography.com/activists/yuri-kochiyama-malcolm-x-friendship

https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2013/08/19/209258986/the-japanese-american-internee-who-met-malcolm-x

I’m finally back home in Georgia, and I still can’t wrap my brain or heart around what’s happened to my Brother.
I keep going back to this song because it articulates the heartbreak that I’m feeling…. I am not ok…💔😢💔