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Anita Baker
Baker performing at the 17th Annual Salute to Freedom
Background information
Born	(1958-01-26) January 26, 1958 (age 54) Toledo, Ohio, United States
Origin	Detroit, Michigan, United States
Genres	R&B, soul jazz, smooth jazz, soul, quiet storm
Occupations	Singer-songwriter
Years active	1978–present
Labels	Ariola (1979) Beverly Glen Records (1982-1984) Elektra (1985-1995) Atlantic (1996-2001) Blue Note (2004-present)
Website	Blue Note artist page

Anita Baker (born January 26, 1958, in Toledo, Ohio, and raised in Detroit, Michigan)^[1] is an American R&B/soul jazz singer-songwriter. To date, Baker has won eight Grammy Awards, and has four platinum albums and two gold albums to her credit.

Music career[link]

[edit] Chapter 8 (1979)

In 1975, Baker (Contralto) joined the Detroit-based band, Chapter 8, which featured Michael J. Powell, who would later produce her solo works. The band eventually got a record deal with Ariola, and their self-titled debut Chapter 8 came out in Fall 1979. Two singles hit the R&B charts: "Ready for Your Love," a duet between Baker and group member Gerald Lyles; and the Baker-led "I Just Wanna Be Your Girl."

Ariola Records was bought by Arista Records. Chapter 8 were subsequently dropped from the label roster.

[edit] The Songstress (1983)

Baker released her solo debut album, The Songstress, in 1983. Produced by Patrick Moten and Otis Smith, the album was released on the small independent label Beverly Glen Records. The album was initially not a success, but featured the moderate R&B hit "Angel".

[edit] Rapture (1985-1986)

She released her second album, Rapture, in 1986. Produced by her friend Michael J. Powell (from the Detroit soul band Chapter 8), Baker wrote several tracks for the album herself including "Been So Long" and "Watch Your Step", and co-wrote the single "Sweet Love" which became her first mainstream hit; it peaked at number eight on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, number two on the U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, also making the Top 20 in the United Kingdom. "Caught Up in the Rapture", "No One in the World", and "Same Ole Love" also became major R&B and adult contemporary chart hits during 1986 and 1987. Rapture remains Baker's biggest-selling album and went on to sell nearly eight million copies worldwide. It also earned Baker two Grammy Awards in 1987: Best R&B Vocal Performance, Female for the album and Best Rhythm & Blues Song for "Sweet Love". A show from Baker's world tour, entitled A Night of Rapture, was filmed and released on home video (and DVD in 2007).

In 1987, Baker collaborated with The Winans on the single "Ain't No Need to Worry", which earned Baker her third Grammy Award the following year, in the Best Soul Gospel Performance by a Duo or Group, Choir or Chorus category.

[edit] Giving You the Best That I Got (1988)

Baker's third album, Giving You the Best That I Got, was released in October 1988. She again worked with Powell, and the album became a critical and commercial success, reaching number one on the Billboard 200 chart and selling five million copies worldwide (including three million in the U.S. alone). It featured such hits as "Just Because" and the title track, which became Baker's biggest pop hit, reaching number three on the Billboard Hot 100 while topping both the R&B and adult contemporary charts.^[2] The album also won three more Grammy awards.

[edit] Compositions (1990)

Baker returned to the studio in 1990 for her fourth album (her third for Elektra), entitled Compositions. Once again produced by Powell, this time Baker became more involved in the songwriting and production process and began to experiment with jazz influences. Baker wrote or co-wrote seven of the nine songs on the album, including the hits "Talk to Me", "Fairy Tales", "No One to Blame", and "Whatever It Takes" (written with Gerald Levert). The album was mostly cut "live", in that the rhythm section was playing as Baker sang. The album included musicians Greg Phillinganes, Nathan East, Paulinho da Costa, Vernon Fails, Ricky Lawson, and Stephen Ferrone.

The three singles from Compositions all failed to reach the top forty of the US Billboard Hot 100 chart ("Talk to Me" came closest peaking at number forty-four). The singles became top twenty hits on the R&B singles chart and were also moderate adult contemporary hits. Compositions peaked at number five on the Billboard Top 200 Album Chart, number three on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, and number four on the Billboard Top Contemporary Jazz Albums, and was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America for one million units sold in the US. The album also earned Baker her seventh Grammy Award and her fourth in the category of Best Female R&B Vocal Performance (a category that she had won four times during five awards ceremonies between 1987 - 1991).

Following Compositions, Elektra Records secured the rights to Baker's debut album The Songstress from 1983, and re-released it with a new cover artwork in 1991.

After almost five years of touring, performing, and recording, Baker took a break, only entering the studio to record the jazz standard "Witchcraft" with Frank Sinatra for his 1993 Duets album.

[edit] Rhythm of Love (1994)

Baker's fifth album, Rhythm of Love, was issued in September 1994. After ending her production partnership with Powell, Baker produced most of the album herself along with many famous producers such as George Duke, Arif Mardin, Barry J. Eastmond, and Tommy LiPuma. Rhythm of Love was mainly recorded at Baker's home due to her pregnancy at the time, and she wrote five of the album's twelve songs. The album was a commercial success, peaking at number three on the Billboard Top 200 Album Chart and number one on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, and eventually being certified double platinum by the RIAA. The first single, "Body and Soul", became Baker's first US top forty hit in over five years. Baker won the award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for the single "I Apologize" at the 1996 Grammy Awards, her fifth Grammy Award in this category and her eighth overall. Baker embarked on the Rhythm of Love World Tour in support of the album, on December 14, 1994 to November 14, 1995.

Recent career[link]

After Rhythm of Love, Baker largely withdrew from the public eye for many years to dedicate time to her new family. In June 2002, Rhino Records released The Best of Anita Baker (known as Sweet Love: The Very Best of Anita Baker in the UK, with a slightly different track listing), a compilation of Baker's material from 1983–2002.

Two years later, in March 2004, Blue Note Records announced that they had signed Baker to an exclusive recording contract that would result in at least two new albums. Bruce Lundvall, president and CEO of EMI Jazz & Classics, signed her after she approached him to record for Blue Note. At the same time Rhino Records released A Night of Rapture: Live, a compilation that contained nine live tracks and three multimedia videos recorded in the 1980s.

In September 2004, a decade after her last studio album, Baker released a new album, entitled My Everything. Co-produced by Barry J. Eastmond and Baker herself, she wrote or co-wrote nine of this album's ten tracks, including a duet with Babyface, "Like You Used to Do". Though she had been out of the limelight for some considerable time, the album was still moderately successful, peaking at number four on the Billboard Top 200 Album Chart and number one on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. The album was certified gold by the RIAA, denoting sales in excess of 500,000 units in the US.

In October 2005, Baker released her first Christmas album, Christmas Fantasy. Again produced by Baker and Eastmond, the album mixed traditional Christmas carols ("God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen"), standards ("I'll Be Home for Christmas"), re-imagined classics ("Frosty's Rag"), Broadway show tunes ("My Favorite Things"), and three new songs by Baker and Eastmond ("Moonlight Sleighride", "Family of Man", and "Christmas Fantasy"). She received a Grammy Award nomination in 2007 for Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance for the song "Christmas Time Is Here", although she did not win.

In 2007, Baker appeared on Dave Koz's album At the Movies. She sang "Somewhere" from the Broadway musical West Side Story.^{[citation needed]}

Baker embarked on a concert tour in 2008, entitled An Evening with Anita Baker. Her performance at DTE Energy Music Theatre in Clarkston, Michigan, on July 12, 2008, was recorded and Baker announced plans to release a new DVD and/or CD live album in early 2009.^{[citation needed]}

On September 19, 2008, BusyBoy Productions^[3] filmed her entire An Evening with Anita Baker concert at Mystic Lake Casino Hotel in Prior Lake, Minnesota, for Baker's up-and-coming DVD and B-roll footage for promotional purposes.

On April 25, 2010, Baker performed at the New Orleans Annual Jazz Fest 2010 at the Congo Square Stage.^{[citation needed]}

On June 10, 2010, Baker sang the National Anthem at Game 4 of the NBA Finals in TD Garden. Her performance was criticized by viewers, and many began criticizing the performance on Twitter after she finished singing.^[4]

Baker was scheduled to release her seventh studio album in 2010, entitled 21st Century Love, on Blue Note Records/EMI.^[5] However, the album has yet to surface.

Baker was scheduled to perform at VH1 Divas Celebrates Soul taped December 18 2011: she was to sing "Sweet Love" during a salute to Detroit R&B music. However Baker dropped out of the show at the last minute: rumors claimed there had been friction between Baker and Divas 2011 performer Jill Scott but Baker attributed her leaving the show to its producers refusing to allow her to properly rehearse her number with the other Divas performers who'd be singing with her - presumably Marsha Ambrosius and Ledisi who performed "Sweet Love" on the finalized Divas 2011 broadcast.^[6]

Personal life[link]

She married Walter Bridgforth Jr. on Christmas Eve 1988. As of October 2007 they were finalizing their divorce.^[7] They have two sons, Walter Baker Bridgforth (born January 1993) and Edward Carlton Bridgforth (born May 1994).^[8] Baker currently lives in Grosse Pointe, Michigan.^[9]

Selected awards and accolades[link]

Grammy Awards[link]

American Music Awards[link]

Other honors[link]

• Baker received a "Legend Award" at the 2010 Soul Train Music Awards, where she also performed and was honored.^[11]

Discography[link]

• 1983: The Songstress
• 1986: Rapture
• 1988: Giving You the Best That I Got
• 1990: Compositions
• 1994: Rhythm of Love
• 2004: My Everything
• 2005: Christmas Fantasy

Tours[link]

• A Night of Rapture Tour (1986/87)
• Giving You The Best Tour (1988)
• Compositions World Tour (1990)
• The Rhythm of Love Tour (1994/95)
• An Evening with Anita Baker Tour (2008)

References[link]

External links[link]

	Book: Anita Baker
Wikipedia books are collections of articles that can be downloaded or ordered in print.

• Official Website
• Anita Baker on Blue Note Records
• Anita Baker at Allmusic
• Anita Baker at the Internet Movie Database
• Biography and note to fans at SoulTracks
• Official Myspace Page

Diahann Carroll
photo by Carl Van Vechten, 1955
Born	Carol Diahann Johnson (1935-07-17) July 17, 1935 (age 76) Bronx, New York, U.S.
Occupation	Actress/Singer
Years active	1954–present
Spouse	Vic Damone (1987–1996) Robert DeLeon (1975–1977) Fredde Glusman (1973–1973) Monte Kay (1956–1963)
Children	1 child: Suzanne Kay Bamford
Website
http://diahanncarroll.net

Diahann Carroll (/daɪˈæn ˈkær.əl/; born July 17, 1935, in New York, New York) is an American television and stage actress and singer. Diahann Carroll has had a long, successful career that has expanded throughout 5 decades.

Having appeared in some of the earliest major studio films to feature black casts such as Carmen Jones and Porgy and Bess, she starred in 1968's Julia, one of the first series on American television to star a black woman in a non-stereotypical role. Later she created the role of Dominique Deveraux on the popular prime time soap opera, Dynasty.

She is the recipient of numerous stage and screen awards and nominations. Carroll has been married four times and became the mother of a daughter in 1960. She is a breast cancer survivor and activist.

Early years[link]

Carroll was born Carol Diahann Johnson in The Bronx, New York, to John Johnson of Aiken, South Carolina and Mabel Faulk^[1] of Bladenboro, North Carolina. When Carroll was an infant, the family moved to Harlem where she grew up. She attended Music & Art High School, along with schoolmate Billy Dee Williams. In many interviews about her childhood Diahann Carroll remembers her parents support of her and enrolled her in dance, singing and modeling classes. By the time Diahann Carroll was 15 she was modeling for Ebony Magazine she stood at 6 ft and had a lean build. After graduating high school, Diahann Carroll attended New York University to major in sociology.

Career[link]

At the age of 18, Carroll got her big break when she appeared as a contestant on the Dumont Television Network program, Chance of a Lifetime. On the show which aired Friday, January 8, 1954, Carroll took the $1,000 top prize on the strength of her rendition of the Jerome Kern/Oscar Hammerstein song, "Why Was I Born?". She went on to win the following four weeks. Engagements at Manhattan's Café Society and Latin Quarter nightclubs soon followed.^[2]

Carroll's film debut was a supporting role in Carmen Jones (1954) as a friend of the sultry lead character. She then starred in the Broadway musical, House of Flowers. In 1959, she played Clara in the film version of Gershwin's Porgy and Bess, but her character's singing parts were dubbed by opera singer Loulie Jean Norman. She made a guest star appearance in the series Peter Gunn, in the episode "Sing a Song of Murder" in 1960. In 1962 she won the Tony Award for best actress (a first for a black woman) for the role of Barbara Woodruff in the Samuel A. Taylor and Richard Rodgers musical No Strings. In 1974, she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for Claudine.

Carroll and Sammy Davis, Jr. on The Hollywood Palace, 1968.

Carroll is best known for her title role in the 1968 television series Julia, which made her the first African American actress to star in her own television series where she did not play a domestic worker. She was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1969, and won the Golden Globe Award for "Best Actress In A Television Series" in 1968.^[3] Her first Emmy nomination had come in 1963 for Naked City. Some of her other earlier work included appearances on shows hosted by Jack Paar, Merv Griffin, Johnny Carson, Judy Garland and Ed Sullivan, and on The Hollywood Palace variety show.

In 1984, Carroll joined the nighttime soap opera Dynasty as the jetsetter Dominique Deveraux, half-sister of Blake Carrington (played by actor John Forsythe). Her high profile role on Dynasty also reunited her with actor Billy Dee Williams, who briefly played her onscreen husband Brady Lloyd. Carroll remained on the show until 1987, simultaneously making several appearances on its short-lived spin-off, The Colbys.

She received her third Emmy nomination in 1989 for the recurring role of Marion Gilbert in A Different World. In 2006, she appeared in the television medical drama Grey's Anatomy as Jane Burke, the demanding mother of Dr. Preston Burke.

She appeared as Nana in 2010 Lifetime Movies At Risk and The Front, movie adaptations of two Patricia Cornwell novels.

Carroll starred as the crazed silent movie star Norma Desmond in the Canadian production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical version of the classic film Sunset Boulevard.

In December 2008, Carroll was cast in USA Network’s series White Collar as June, the savvy widow who rents out her guest room to Neal Caffrey.^[4]

Carroll was featured in UniGlobe Entertainment's breast cancer docudrama entitled, 1 a Minute, released in 2010.^[5]

Personal life[link]

Carroll has had four marriages, the first of which, with the record producer Monte Kay, produced a daughter, Suzanne Kay Bamford (born September 9, 1960), who became a freelance media journalist.

In 1973, Carroll surprised the press by marrying Las Vegas boutique owner Fred Glusman. She and British television host and producer David Frost had been dating at the time, and were actually engaged. Several weeks later, she filed for divorce, charging Glusman with physical abuse. In 1975, she married Robert DeLeon, a managing editor of Jet magazine. She was widowed two years later when DeLeon was killed in a car crash.^[6] Carroll's fourth and last marriage was to singer Vic Damone in 1987. The union, which Carroll admitted was turbulent, saw a legal separation in 1991, a reconciliation, and finally divorce in 1996.^[7][8]

Work[link]

Television[link]

Theater[link]

• House of Flowers (December 30, 1954 - May 21, 1955) (Broadway)
• No Strings (March 15, 1962 - August 3, 1963) (Broadway)
• Same Time, Next Year (1977) (Los Angeles)
• Agnes of God (March 30, 1982 - September 4, 1983) (replacement for Elizabeth Ashley starting in spring of 1983)
• Love Letters (1990) (Los Angeles)
• Sunset Boulevard (1995–1996) (Toronto)

Awards and nominations[link]

Awards

• 1962 Tony Award for Best Actress – No Strings
• 1968 Golden Globe Award for Best TV Star - Female – Julia
• 2011 Inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame.

Nominations

• 1969 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series – Julia
• 1963 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Single Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role – Naked City
• 1970 Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Comedy/Musical Television Series – Julia
• 1975 Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Comedy/Musical Motion Picture – Claudine
• 1975 Academy Award for Best Actress – Claudine
• 1989 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series – A Different World
• 1992 Women in Film Crystal Award.^[9]
• 1998 Women in Film Lucy Award^[10]
• 1999 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performance in a Children's Special/Series – The Sweetest Gift
• 2000 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Mini-Series/Television Movie – Having a Say: The Delany Sisters' 1st 100 Years
• 2005 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Television Drama Series – Soul Food
• 2008 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series – Grey's Anatomy

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Diahann Carroll at the Internet Broadway Database
• Diahann Carroll at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
• Diahann Carroll at the Internet Movie Database
• Diahann Carroll at the TCM Movie Database
• Diahann Carroll at Yahoo! Movies^{[dead link]}
• The HistoryMakers Biography
• Diahann Carroll at Discogs
• Diahann Carroll's oral history video excerpts at The National Visionary Leadership Project

Debbie Allen
Allen in December 2010
Born	Deborrah Kaye Allen (1950-01-16) January 16, 1950 (age 62) Houston, Texas, U.S.
Occupation	Actress, choreographer, television director, television producer
Years active	1976–present
Spouse	Win Wilford (m. 1975–1983) «start: (1975)–end+1: (1984)»"Marriage: Win Wilford to Debbie Allen" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.db.wn.com/index.php/Debbie_Allen) Norm Nixon (m. 1984) «start: (1984)»"Marriage: Norm Nixon to Debbie Allen" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.db.wn.com/index.php/Debbie_Allen)
Website
http://www.debbieallendanceacademy.com

Deborrah Kaye “Debbie” Allen (born January 16, 1950) is an American actress, dancer, choreographer, television director, television producer, and a member of the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities.^[1][2] She is perhaps best known for her work on the 1982 musical-drama television series Fame, where she portrayed dance teacher Lydia Grant, and served as the series' principal choreographer. She is the younger sister of actress/singer Phylicia Rashād.

Life and career[link]

Early years[link]

Allen was born in Houston, Texas, the youngest of four children to orthodontist Andrew Arthur Allen Sr. and Vivian (née Ayers) Allen, she is a poet (Spice of Dawns and other books) and museum art director.^[3]

She went on to earn a B.A. degree in classical Greek literature, speech, and theater from Howard University. She holds honoris causa Doctorates from Howard University and the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. She currently teaches young dancers. She also taught choreography to former Los Angeles Lakers dancer-turned-singer, Paula Abdul. Her daughter, Vivian Nixon, played Kalimba in the Broadway production of Hot Feet.

Career[link]

Debbie Allen had her Broadway debut in the chorus of Purlie. Allen also created the role of Beneatha in the Tony Award-winning musical Raisin. She first began receiving critical attention in 1980 for her appearance in the role of Anita in the Broadway revival of West Side Story which earned her a Tony Award nomination and a Drama Desk Award, she would receive a second Tony Award nomination in 1986 for her performance in the title role of Bob Fosse's Sweet Charity. One of her earlier television appearances was in the TV sitcom Good Times in a memorable 2-part episode titled "J.J's Fiancee'" as J.J's drug-addicted fiancee, Diana.

Allen was first introduced as Lydia Grant in the 1980 film Fame. Although her role in the film was relatively small, Lydia would become a central figure in the television adaptation, which ran from 1982 to 1987. During the opening montage of each episode, Grant told her students: "You've got big dreams? You want fame? Well, fame costs. And right here is where you start paying ... in sweat." Allen was nominated for the Emmy Award for Best Actress four times during the show's run. She is the only actress to have appeared in all three screen incarnations of Fame, playing Lydia Grant in both the 1980 film and 1982 television series and playing the school principal in the 2009 remake.^{[citation needed]}

Allen was also lead choreographer for the film and television series, winning two Emmy Awards and one Golden Globe Award.In an article from the Museum of Broadcast Communications, the Hollywood Reporter commented on Allen's impact as the producer-director of the television series, A Different World. The show dealt with the life of students at the fictional historically black college, Hillman, and ran for six seasons on NBC.^[4]

Debbie Allen was also selected to appear in the 1979 miniseries Roots: The Next Generations by Alex Haley where she plays the wife of Alex Haley.

In 2008 she directed the all-African-American Broadway production of Tennessee Williams' Pulitzer Prize-winning drama Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, starring stage veterans James Earl Jones (Big Daddy), her sister Phylicia Rashād (Big Mama) and Anika Noni Rose (Maggie, the Cat), as well as film actor Terrence Howard, who made his Broadway debut as Brick. The production, with some roles recast, had a limited run (2009-April 2010) in London.^[5]

Allen has released two solo albums, 1986's Sweet Charity and 1989's Special Look which also had several singles off the album. In 2001, Allen fulfilled a lifelong dream by opening the Debbie Allen Dance Academy in Los Angeles, California. Allen's academy offers a comprehensive curriculum for boys and girls ages four to eighteen in all the major dance techniques including Classical Ballet, Modern, African, jazz, and Hip-Hop. In addition special workshops are held for concentration in the Peking Opera, Martial Arts dance techniques, Flamenco, Salsa, and Tap.

Debbie Allen was awarded an honorary doctorate from the North Carolina School of the Arts, as well as from her Alma Mater, Howard University.

Awards and honors[link]

• Allen was appointed by President George W. Bush in 2001 as a member of the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities.^[6]

• For her contributions to the television industry, Debbie Allen was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

• Allen was presented with the George and Ira Gershwin Award for Lifetime Musical Achievement, at the 1992 UCLA Spring Sing.^[7]

• Three-time Emmy Award winner for Choreography for the series Fame and The Motown 25th Anniversary Special.

• 10 Image Awards as a director, actress, choreographer and producer for Fame, A Different World, Motown 25, The Academy Awards, The Debbie Allen Special and Amistad.

Personal life[link]

Allen is married to former NBA player Norm Nixon,^[8] and they are the parents of dancer Vivian Nichole Nixon, and basketball player Norman Ellard Nixon Jr. (Wofford College & Southern University). Allen was previously married to Win Wilford from 1975 to 1983.^[9][10][11]

She is the sister of actress Phylicia Rashād, and Tex Allen (Andrew Arthur Allen Jr, born 1945), noted jazz composer.^[3]

Work[link]

2004 Dreams- Children's Theater at The Kennedy Center Washington DC 2006 Pearl- Children's Theater at the Kennedy Center Washington DC

See also[link]

• The Kids from "Fame"

References[link]

External links[link]

• Debbie Allen | PlaybillVault.com
• Debbie Allen at the Internet Broadway Database
• Debbie Allen at the Internet Movie Database
• Debbie Allen at AllRovi
• Debbie Allen on Twitter