Around the Tubes: February 17, 2024

      

I have gotten a plethora of cool press releases have been flooding my inbox recently that you may find interesting. This post includes blurbs on Wicked, Bob Marley, Rod Stewart, The Black Crowes, and Hulu's spring schedule.

- After two decades as one of the most beloved and enduring musicals on the stage, Wicked makes its long-awaited journey to the big screen as a spectacular, generation-defining cinematic event this holiday season.  Wicked, the untold story of the witches of Oz, stars Emmy, Grammy and Tony winning powerhouse Cynthia Erivo (Harriet, Broadway’s The Color Purple) as Elphaba, a young woman, misunderstood because of her unusual green skin, who has yet to discover her true power, and Grammy-winning, multi-platinum recording artist and global superstar Ariana Grande as Glinda, a popular young woman, gilded by privilege and ambition, who has yet to discover her true heart. WICKED – In Theaters November 27.

- In conjunction with the upcoming biopic Bob Marley: One Love, which is based on the life of global icon, Island/UMe will be releasing a new limited edition of Bob Marley ’s timeless album, Exodus, on May 24, 2024. Including an exclusive 10” LP of rare bonus tracks and an essay by Jamaican historian Herbie Miller, this all-new package will be encased in a gatefold design for the first time and is available for preorder HERE.  Cited by Time Magazine as the Best Album of the 20th Century (“Every song is a classic, from the messages of love to the anthems of revolution”) and the BBC as the “album that defined the 20th Century,” the legacy of Exodus extends beyond genres, eras, and continents, whose impact propelled Third World culture and politics into the global spotlight.

-  To mark Valentine's Day, Sir Rod Stewart and Jools Holland with his Rhythm & Blues Orchestra release “Pennies From Heaven," their third offering from the exquisite collaborative album Swing Fever - out February 23rd on Warner Records.  The track sees a sensational interpretation of the early American classic written by Arthur Johnston and Johnny Burke.  As Jools explains, "It’s such a lovely song and you can do it a lot of different ways. The lyrics are very optimistic and positive, and in the mouth of Rod, they're like modern poems of the 20th century. It's an expression of joy and the message of it is, 'It's going to be alright.'"

- legendary rock band The Black Crowes debut “Cross Your Fingers,” their second release from their highly anticipated new album Happiness Bastards, dropping March 15th via the band’s own Silver Arrow Records. An electrifying plea against a toxic lover “Cross Your Fingers” couples’ romantic agony with a killer guitar riff, emphasizing the blistering heat of a fraught relationship. Stream “Cross Your Fingers” HERE. Following the exhilarating lead single “Wanting and Waiting,” from the forthcoming album Happiness Bastards, “Cross Your Fingers” packs on the momentum with the urgency of a band who is just getting started. A delicate acoustic introduction makes way for an explosive, guitar-tearing drop and rhythmic chorus infused with the funk and soul of the Robinson Brothers’ Georgia roots. Since its release in January, “Wanting and Waiting” has dominated the airwaves – already top 10 at four radio formats, including AAA, Americana, Active Rock, and Canadian Active Rock.

- Hulu announced launch dates for three forthcoming titles: “Under The Bridge,” “Freaknik: The Wildest Party Never Told,” and “The Contestant.”  Please see below for Hulu's Spring Programming Slate.  Click on the title for the trailer (if available):

SERIES

EXTRAORDINARY SEASON 2 (MARCH 6, 2024,all at once)

WE WERE THE LUCKY ONES (MARCH 28, 2024, 3 episodes at launch, then weekly)

UNDER THE BRIDGE (APRIL 17, 2024, 2 at launch, then weekly)

THANK YOU, GOODNIGHT: THE BON JOVI STORY (APRIL 26, 2024, all at once)

FILMS

FREAKNIK: THE WILDEST PARTY NEVER TOLD (MARCH 21, 2024)

THE CONTESTANT (MAY 2, 2024)

KIDS & FAMILY

DAVEY & JONESIE'S LOCKER (MARCH 22, 2024, all at once)

Around the Tubes: January 10, 2024

     

I have gotten a plethora of cool press releases have been flooding my inbox recently that you may find interesting. This post includes blurbs on A Gentleman in Moscow, Em Beihold, Noah Kahan, Bob Marley, Garbage, Marcus King, Yard Act, Zara Larsson, The Veronicas, Dylan, The Chi, and Dreaming Whilst Black.

- SHOWTIME today released first-look images from the new eight-episode series A GENTLEMAN IN MOSCOW and announced it will premiere Friday, March 29 on streaming and on demand for Paramount+ subscribers with the Paramount+ with SHOWTIME plan before its on-air debut on Paramount+ with SHOWTIME on Sunday, March 31 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. The series also will premiere on Paramount+ on March 29 in Canada, the UK and Australia with additional Paramount+ international territories to follow at a later date.   An adaptation of Amor Towles’ internationally best-selling novel, A GENTLEMAN IN MOSCOW follows Count Alexander Rostov, played by Emmy^® Award-winning actor Ewan McGregor (Star Wars franchise, Halston, Trainspotting), who, in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution, finds that his gilded past has placed him on the wrong side of history. Spared immediate execution, he is banished by a Soviet tribunal to an attic room in the opulent Hotel Metropol and threatened with death if he ever sets foot outside again. As the years pass and some of the most tumultuous decades in Russian history unfold outside the hotel’s doors, Rostov’s reduced circumstances provide him entry into a much larger world of emotional discovery. As he builds a new life within the walls of the hotel, he discovers the true value of friendship, family and love.

 

- Platinum-certified critically acclaimed singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Em Beihold returns with her much-anticipated new single “Maybe Life Is Good” out now via Moon Projects/Republic Records.  Listen to “Maybe Life Is Good” HERE.  Fans have clamored for the track’s official release ever since she first posted a snippet of “Maybe Life Is Good” on social media. In advance of its arrival, it has already generated nearly 500K views and counting across platforms.

-  GRAMMY® nominated, multi-platinum singer and songwriter Noah Kahan reveals the long awaited final release of the Stick Season series titled Stick Season (Forever), out today via Mercury Records/Republic Records—listen HERE. The 30-track collection includes his new highly anticipated single “Forever” and two new collaborations, “You’re Gonna Go Far” with Brandi Carlile and “Paul Revere” with Gregory Alan Isakov. These three new songs join 21 previously released tracks from 2022’s Platinum-Certified Stick Season and its 2023 follow-up Stick Season (We’ll All Be Here Forever), as well as critically acclaimed collaborations with Post Malone, Kacey Musgraves, Hozier, Sam Fender, Gracie Abrams, and Lizzy McAlpine.  Noah says, “I am excited and kind of sad to be releasing ‘Forever,’ alongside these two dream collaborations with Brandi Carlile and Gregory Alan Isakov. Firstly, I’m grateful and beyond proud to be sharing these two songs with artists that have soundtracked my entire life. Gregory and Brandi have written songs that have carried me through pain, loneliness, dramatic life changes, and the entirety of my career. I am so honored to have them on this final re-release.”

- The worldwide digital release of the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack from the highly anticipated feature Bob Marley: One Love is available now via UMe/Island Records/Tuff Gong.  Bob Marley and the Wailers — One Love: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack comprises 17 of the late reggae luminary’s best-known recordings, which will be featured in director Reinaldo Marcus Green’s biographical drama. The film debuts in theaters nationwide on Feb. 14. Experience Bob Marley and the Wailers — One Love: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack HERE

- Due to demand, influential alternative rock band Garbage is making their 4th studio album, Bleed Like Me, available on vinyl for the first time since it was originally released in 2005. Bleed Like Me is out on April 5 via UMe.  Fully remastered for 2024, this expanded reissue of 2005’s Bleed Like Me includes 2CD, 1LP white vinyl, deluxe 2LP red vinyl, and HD digital formats and features b-sides, rare tracks, remixes and alternate versions of tracks.  PRE-ORDER HERE

- Marcus King announced the release of his new Rick Rubin produced album, Mood Swings, released on April 5 via American/Republic Records. In support of this new album, King also announced his 2024 headlining tour across North America and Europe produced by Live Nation and FPC Live!, in addition to dates supporting Chris Stapleton. More information available on https://www.marcuskingofficial.com/ - for information on tickets and pre-sale see below.  Mood Swings is King’s magnum opus, an eclectic symphony of soul that is uniquely timeless and current.  Drawing on King’s darkest moments, it became a beacon of hope for King as he created it, and will be a refuge for anyone going through similar challenges in their lives.

- Yard Act have shared "When The Laughter Stops" feat. Katy J Pearson, the final advance preview of their upcoming second album Where's My Utopia? due out on March 1st.  Where's My Utopia? is the follow up to the Leeds band's breakout debut record The Overload, which arrived in January 2022. The Overload was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize after a slew of positive reviews, national radio playlistings, and a placing at #2 on the Official UK Charts. The new album is a co-production between Yard Act and Gorillaz member Remi Kabaka Jr..  Listen to "When The Laughter Stops" feat. Katy J Pearson HERE.  Watch the "When The Laughter Stops" feat. Katy J Pearson video HERE.  Preorder Where's My Utopia? HERE.

- Multiplatinum chart-topping global pop powerhouse Zara Larsson releases her brand-new studio album VENUS. Get the 12-track album HERE via Sommer House/Epic Records. Along with the new album, today Zara Larsson has shared the electric official music video for new single “You Love Who You Love.” The video was notably co-directed by Zara herself alongside Viivi Huska. In the clip, Zara stars as a pawnshop owner where you can trade in your ex’s gold for cash, and lends her support to a friend getting over a breakup. Watch it HERE. Just yesterday, Zara Larsson gave the US debut TV performance of “You Love Who You Love” on Good Morning America. Watch it HERE.

- Hitmaking Australian sisters The Veronicas further teased their highly anticipated new album Gothic Summer by unveiling the newest single “Here To Dance.” Over a funk-disco rhythmic bass and shimmery strings, “Here To Dance” reminds you to dance like no one's watching. "This song is about disengaging from drama, whether online or personal, and remaining unbothered," Jessica explains. "’I don't care who's watching, I'm just here to dance’ is a metaphor and a directive to go where the love is." Stream HERE.

- one of the UK’s hottest prospects, rising pop/alt-artist DYLAN, has returned with “The Alibi”, a glittering reintroduction with incisive lyricism that pushes her sound into the upper echelons of pop. The soundtrack to her generation’s heartbreak, the track sees the 24-year old- who was recently nominated for Rolling Stone UK's "Rising Star Award," reaches new heights of vulnerability, while boasting some of her strongest storytelling to date.  Listen to 'The Alibi'  Co-written by DYLAN with Ines Dunn (Mimi Webb) & Jonny Coffer (Beyoncé), “The Alibi” shifts away from the driving guitars normally associated with DYLAN, drawing focus to DYLAN’s crystalline voice placed over synths that build into an irresistibly hooky chorus. A deeply personal, yet relatable pop-anthem, the track documents the aftermath of her greatest, yet most toxic love story. That these lyrics are set to her most polished track to date, makes the song even more striking.

- SHOWTIME announced today that the second half of the sixth season of the hit drama series THE CHI will return on Friday, May 10 on streaming and on demand for Paramount+ subscribers with the Paramount+ with SHOWTIME^® plan, before making its on-air debut on Paramount+ with SHOWTIME on Sunday, May 12, at 9 p.m. ET/PT. The series is currently in production in Chicago on the remaining eight episodes of the supersized 16-episode season.   Created and executive produced by Emmy^® winner Lena Waithe (Twenties, Master of None) under her Hillman Grad banner and executive produced by Academy Award^® and Emmy winner Common (Selma), THE CHI is a timely coming-of-age story centering on a group of residents on the South Side of Chicago who become linked by coincidence but bonded by the need for connection and redemption. Produced entirely in its namesake city, THE CHI is produced by 20th Television.

- SHOWTIME has picked up a second season of the critically acclaimed half-hour dramedy series DREAMING WHILST BLACK, which garnered industry praise for its inaugural season, including nominations from the 2024 Film Independent Spirit Awards and the NAACP Image Awards. Featuring returning star and BAFTA Award winning co-creator and co-writer Adjani Salmon (Chivalry), season two is expected to commence filming later this year in the UK. The season will premiere in the U.S. on streaming and on demand for Paramount+ for subscribers with the Paramount+ with SHOWTIME plan, on air on Paramount+ with SHOWTIME, and in the UK on BBC Three and iPlayer. The series is co-produced by Big Deal Films in creative collaboration with A24. A24 will also distribute the series globally.  Loosely inspired by real-life events, DREAMING WHILST BLACK season one tells the story of Kwabena (Salmon), an aspiring filmmaker stuck in a dead-end recruitment job who takes the first step toward achieving his dream. Along the way, he is quickly confronted with the tribulations of balancing finances, love, and his own sense of reality. The series was adapted from the web series and acclaimed Big Deal Films-produced BBC pilot of the same name, which earned Salmon the 2022 BAFTA for Emerging Talent: Fiction and Screen International Star of Tomorrow. The show and Salmon have secured additional award recognition within the UK, including The Royal Television Society's 2022 Breakthrough Award win for Salmon and series nominations in the International Emmys and the Broadcast Awards.

 

57 Channels and Only This Is On: February 4, 2024

  

True Detective:  Is this show really going down the supernatural rabbit hole?  The first season played footsie with it before declaring that humans are the real monsters.  But they are really laying it on thick this season to the point where they really are going to have a hard time explaining how this is all really happening.

 

Death and Other Details:  Wait, they already caught the murderer?  The waitress really did it?  Well, I guess that was the death and now we are moving on to the other details.  Though I got the feeling the Indian dude is the big bad they were speaking of.

 

Percy Jackson and the Olympians:   Ha, Edge got beat up by a little kid.  That would have been the saddest defeat I saw this week if it were not for…

 

La Brea:  Scott asking if this was Back to the Future or Terminator rules is the smartest thing anyone said on this show, even though that was pretty much already asked during Endgame.  Unfortunately we did not get an answer.

 

The Challenge: Battle for a New Challenge:  Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha.  Last week those two duds had to team up to beat a chick and this week they lost to one because they were too dumb to make a chicken out of shapes.  Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha.

Around the Tubes: February 3, 2023

    

I have gotten a plethora of cool press releases have been flooding my inbox recently that you may find interesting. This post includes blurbs on Extraordinary, Black History Month, The Last Repair Shop, and Black Pumas, and Colouring.

- Hulu has released first look images for the highly anticipated second season of the critically-acclaimed comedy "Extraordinary."  The Original series will premiere Wednesday, March 6, only on Hulu in the U.S. and Disney+ in the rest of the world. Season two picks up where season one spectacularly left off, following Jen (Máiréad Tyers) on her powers journey as she enrols as a client at the power clinic. Jen soon discovers that the process of finding her power isn’t as easy as she hoped, and things in the rest of her life aren’t smooth sailing either. Ex-cat, now-boyfriend Jizzlord (Luke Rollason) has had an unexpected revelation about his past, and Kash (Bilal Hasna) and Carrie (Sofia Oxenham) are attempting to be totally mature and dignified about their break-up, which is not easy when they’re still living under the same roof. It seems that Jen and the gang are dealing with new levels of adulting and chaos that none of them are prepared for. 

- In honor of Black History Month, Hulu is proud to continue highlighting Black stories and storytellers through our refreshed "Black Stories Always" hub throughout February and all year round. This upcoming month brings exciting TV and film premieres, including Hulu Original "Love & WWE: Bianca & Montez," Nat Geo’s "Genius: MLK/X" and "The Space Race," Andscape's "Sacred Soil: The Piney Woods School Story," and the season three premiere of acclaimed series and winner of Emmy and Golden Globe Awards, "Abbott Elementary!"   As part of Hulu’s "Black Stories Always" campaign, explore our extensive film and TV content showcasing talents of Black creators. Titles include FX’s "Snowfall," Andscape’s "Cypher," Onyx Collective’s "Reasonable Doubt," fan-favorites including "The Bernie Mac Show," "My Wife and Kids," "The Wonder Years," the beloved film "Soul Food" and many more. This year marks the iconic anniversaries of "Family Matters" (35 years), "Sister, Sister" (30 years) and "Black-ish" (10 years), as well as the 10th anniversary of the Academy Award-winning film "12 Years A Slave."

- From Oscar® and Grammy®-nominated and Emmy®-winning filmmaker, musician and LAUSD star alumni Kris Bowers (A Concerto is a Conversation, Green Book, King Richard, Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story) and Oscar® winning director Ben Proudfoot (two-time Oscar® nominee for The Queen of Basketball and A Concerto is a Conversation), comes THE LAST REPAIR SHOP, a film about LAUSD’s unique free and freely-repaired musical instrument repair shop, which helped launch countless illustrious careers and millions of music lovers.  Watch Now Here (Full 39-Minute Film): https://youtu.be/xttrkgKXtZ4?si=HO02BhzJAZPN5rMO

Grammy-nominated contemporary soul group Black Pumas is set to deliver an electrifying live performance from The Wiltern on Friday, February 9, 2024. Part of their Chronicles of a Diamond tour, the show will air live on Veeps, allowing fans worldwide to be a part of the magic. The in-person show at The Wiltern is sold out so the Veeps livestream provides an exclusive opportunity for fans without tickets to experience it. Veeps All Access subscribers can access the show for free, otherwise tickets to the show are on sale for $14.99.   Hailing from Austin, Texas, Black Pumas set the music world on fire with their debut album, which garnered three Grammy nominations in 2020. Ever since then, they have been a force in redefining soul music. With their massively anticipated sophomore album Chronicles of a Diamond released in October 2023, Black Pumas continue to ride the wave of acclaim. The record solidified their status in the music industry, earning them their seventh Grammy nomination overall, with this year’s nomination for Best Rock Performance for their song "More Than a Love Song."

 

- With his anticipated new album Love To You, Mate due out February 23 via Bella Union, and following the singles “Lune”, “For You” and “Love To You, Mate”, Colouring today shares another new track, “How’d It Get So Real?”, ahead of the LP’s release. “How’d It Get So Real?” was something Jack Kenworthy’s wife Helen said to him during the year following her brother’s cancer diagnosis and the song is a message of support to her during this turbulent time. With its shuffling groove and beautiful ear worm of a chorus the song is one of the most uplifting and life-affirming on the album. Click HERE to listen.  “I've always been on the side of making up scenarios rather than being really honest about my life within my music,” adds Jack about his second album Love To You, Mate. “This is the first time I've been able to do that. I've been less scared of it because it's not my story. It’s a shared one.”

57 Channels and Only This Is On: January 28, 2024

 

True Detective:  If it not for the podcasts I listen about the show, I would not have gotten the Rust connection from the first season.  Though, I do miss a lot because I grab the tablet whenever the corpsicicle is on screen and sometime forget to put it down

 

Death and Other Details:  This episode was really missing Wynn Duffy.  He and Mandy Patinkin are the only interesting parts of the show.

 

Percy Jackson and the Olympians:   Um, how did Annabeth get out of Hades?  I guess the ball thing will do it, but why not break it when she started turning into a tree?

 

La Brea:  Why was the one chick so worried about leaving the other one alone in case a giant boar came by?  Wouldn’t the boar just get stuck before reaching the other chick?  Go get help.  But the whole Ty in the current timeline just really feels like it is going to create a paradox.

 

The Challenge: Battle for a New Challenge:  Hilarious that the dudes had to team up to beat a girl.  But it really looks bad that two girls went home, girls finished last in every heat and a guy one every heat.  I think Michele was the only female that finished before a male in her heat.  Maybe these challenges are not as evenly matched between the genders as they thought.

 

Around the Tubes: January 27, 2023

    

I have gotten a plethora of cool press releases have been flooding my inbox recently that you may find interesting. This post includes blurbs on We Were the Lucky Ones, Solar Opposites, Love & WWE: Bianca & Montez, Bon Jovi, Amy Sheppard, Ariana Grande, The Libertines, 6 Minutes to Glory: The HBCU Band Experience, and Ahmed Al-kadri.

- Hulu debuted seven first look images from upcoming Original series "We Were the Lucky Ones." The limited series, based on a true story, will premiere on Hulu with three episodes on March 28, and new episodes launching weekly.  DATE ANNOUNCEMENT: HERE.  Based on Georgia Hunter’s New York Times bestselling novel, the television adaptation of “We Were the Lucky Ones” is a limited series inspired by the incredible true story of one Jewish family separated at the start of World War II, determined to survive and reunite. “We Were the Lucky Ones” demonstrates how in the face of the twentieth century’s darkest moment, the human spirit can endure and even thrive. The series is a tribute to the triumph of hope and love against all odds. CAST:  The series stars Joey King, Logan Lerman, Hadas Yaron, Henry-Lloyd Hughes, Amit Rahav, Sam Woolf, Michael Aloni, Moran Rosenblatt, Eva Feiler, Lior Ashkenazi, and Robin Weigert.

 

- Citizens of Earth, prepare for a brand new “Solar Opposites” Valentine's Day special crash landing on Hulu on Monday, February 5th!  TRAILER: HERE 

- Check out the all-new trailer for Hulu's "Love & WWE: Bianca & Montez." All eight episodes premiere Friday, February 2nd on Hulu.  TRAILER: HERE  “Love & WWE: Bianca & Montez” is a fun, exciting peek into the personal lives of WWE’s hottest couple. Bianca Belair and Montez Ford’s road to WrestleMania is a wild ride, as Montez continues his ascent and Bianca fights to hold on to her title. With the support of their tight knit group of friends, family and fellow superstars, the dynamic duo somehow always manages to pull off the impossible.  

- Hulu announced its acquisition of “Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story,” the first-ever docu-series on the band’s history with full cooperation from all past and present members of Bon Jovi. The docu-series is a ROS production, the banner of filmmaker Gotham Chopra.   The four-part, all-access series chronicling four decades of the iconic rock band Bon Jovi premieres Friday, April 26, on Huluin the U.S., and coming soon to Star+ in Latin America and Disney+ in all other territories. Following one of the world’s most iconic bands and its frontman, Jon Bon Jovi, the documentary gives us a view behind the music and the man.

- Multi-talented Australian singer-songwriter Amy Sheppard is set to make her biggest splash yet in the United States with the release of her latest single, ‘Overthinking’, which is now available here.  Now based in Nashville, Amy holds the distinction of being the most-played Australian female artist on country radio between 2022 and 2023. This impressive momentum is rapidly extending to the United States, where her latest single ‘Overthinking’ has made a significant impact. This week, it broke into the Music Row Top 100, climbing to sit at number 85 with a bullet, signaling a rapidly growing popularity in the American country music scene.

- GRAMMY® Award-winning, multi-platinum recording artist and international superstar, Ariana Grande debuts at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with “yes, and?”.  The debut marks Ariana Grande’s eighth #1 and twenty-first Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100.  Each lead single from her first seven studio albums debuted in the Top 10, the only artist to achieve this accomplishment. In addition, “yes, and?” debuts at  #1 on the Digital Song Sales Chart.  “yes, and?” is the lead single to her highly anticipated seventh full length album, eternal sunshine, to be released on March 8 via Republic Records and available now for pre-order HERE.

- Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band BON JOVI commemorates the 40th anniversary of its self-titled debut with the digital release of BON JOVI DELUXE EDITION on all streaming platforms today via Island/UMe with a special 40th anniversary trailer.   Additionally, the GRAMMY Award-winning band has announced the release of an exclusive limited-edition ruby color vinyl LP on March 24 and limited-edition cassette on April 5.  Listen to the Deluxe Edition HERE.  Pre-order on the group’s official D2C store HERE.  BON JOVI DELUXE EDITION consists of the remastered original album in addition to a total of nine bonus tracks, including unreleased studio recordings and four rare live cuts. Jon Bon Jovi co-produced BON JOVI DELUXE EDITION alongside longtime sound engineer Obie O’Brien who also mixed the bonus material.

 

- The Libertines are cock-a-hoop to announce the release a new single Shiver, taken from the band’s forthcoming new album, All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade. Listen/Stream Shiver HERE!  Shiver is co-written by Peter Doherty and Carl Barât:

- AspireTV, the network that celebrates and reflects Black life, style and culture, will debut the second season of 6 Minutes to Glory: The HBCU Band Experience on Saturday, Feb. 3 at 8 p.m. ET. Two episodes will debut each week for three weeks with a “HBCU Alums: Where are they now?” special on Feb. 24.  The series is a tribute to the distinctive and fascinating culture of Black Marching Bands – The Halftime Show. Focused on one HBCU band per episode, viewers will get an insider look at the band through the eyes of the students and hear about band members’ dreams, their inspiration for attending an HBCU and joining the bands, and how each school’s band has their own traditions that make them truly unique. The season will highlight bands from six Historically Black Colleges & Universities including Jackson State University, Alcorn State University, Grambling State University, Prairie View A&M, Texas Southern University and Alabama A&M University.  AspireTV, the network that celebrates and reflects Black life, style and culture, will debut the second season of 6 Minutes to Glory: The HBCU Band Experience on Saturday, Feb. 3 at 8 p.m. ET. Two episodes will debut each week for three weeks with a “HBCU Alums: Where are they now?” special on Feb. 24.  The series is a tribute to the distinctive and fascinating culture of Black Marching Bands – The Halftime Show. Focused on one HBCU band per episode, viewers will get an insider look at the band through the eyes of the students and hear about band members’ dreams, their inspiration for attending an HBCU and joining the bands, and how each school’s band has their own traditions that make them truly unique. The season will highlight bands from six Historically Black Colleges & Universities including Jackson State University, Alcorn State University, Grambling State University, Prairie View A&M, Texas Southern University and Alabama A&M University.

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- Yemeni-American comedian, Ahmed Al-kadri is poised to release his first comedy special, Special Not Special on February 24th via YouTube. As a Yemeni-American navigating the cultural maze of an immigrant household in Dallas, Texas, Ahmed brings his striking goofy charm to tales that span the spectrum of life's absurdities from taking mushrooms at a Lizzo concert and playing Taboo with his brothers to the comedic nuances of dual cultural identities. The hour offers the telling of uproarious misadventures involving drug-dealing escapades, dating mishaps, and a slew of other silly situations as Ahmed turns the ordinary into the extraordinary. In his own words the special “really just answers the question “who is Ahmed Al-kadri.” But Special Not Special is more than just laughs; it's a rollercoaster ride through the complexities of growing up Yemeni-American, where every moment, whether it's special or not, is infused with Ahmed's unique brand of humor and cultural identity. Said Al-kadri: