JumpinJack AJ

https://www.remindmagazine.com/article/41426/tatyana-ali-the-fresh-prince-of-bel-air-aszi-and-the-octopus/?fbclid=IwY2xjawRca1FleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFYaHBwRUVZMFN5THZ3YjA4c3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHkZ473xOoJz1iTOix3WkuFWKUDbGDnG3xWd1wG-hjzPbc9AYnJUY1iFIV_Dj_aem_pG7HKSxKwn0J-Tk7YJ2DKg Tatyana Ali Tells All About ‘Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’ & Where She Is Now Gerry Strauss © Warner Bros./ Everett Collection What To Know Tatyana Ali credits Will Smith for making The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air set feel like a great place to learn comedy. After Fresh Prince, Ali pursued music, continued acting, and launched Baby Yams. Her latest project is a children’s book aimed at celebrating the magic of children’s imaginative play. From her early days on Sesame Street and The Cosby Show to her years playing Ashley Banks on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Tatyana Ali has grown up with the world watching. Before joining the cast of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in 1990, Tatyana was performing in front of a studio audience thanks to her work on The Cosby Show. “I was definitely comfortable performing in front of an audience, but comedy was a new thing for me. On The Cosby Show, my character was a friend of Rudy’s character, so I didn’t get a lot of jokes necessarily. Most of my roles had been drama, so I really had to learn comedy on Fresh Prince,” she told ReMIND Magazine. “But it was a great place to learn because Alfonso Ribeiro had done so many sitcoms leading up to it, and Will was also learning. It was a steep learning curve, but I was kind of in a classroom." Will actually came onto the show as a rookie actor after his success in the music world. While he was obviously learning as well, Tatyana learned some things from him, too. © Warner Bros./ Everett Collection “I think the freedom that we had with ad-libbing came from Will. He was a rapper, while I’d come from Broadway and theater, where you stick to the script,” she shared. “His playfulness and that experimentation of seeing what plays with the crowd, I think that had something to do with his musical background. So we took that spirit on, and we’d ad-lib. Some of the funniest moments in the show came from that.” At the time of the show’s peak popularity, word on the street was that tape days of Fresh Prince were close to the hottest party in town. “I loved it. We had a DJ, which nobody really did back then. It was music-filled, and Quincy Jones and his kids would come on Fridays. Heavy D would stop by, and Queen Latifah would be there,” she tells. “The cast from A Different World would come on Fridays for our tape days. It sure felt like a party to me as a kid, just meeting while you’re onstage doing your thing and then looking behind the camera and seeing all of these people that you admire and get to watch. Oh, it was definitely a party. I remember also during the week, during rehearsals, we had fun. We worked really hard, but we laughed till we cried almost every day in rehearsals. We had a good time.” Following Fresh Prince, Tatyana focused on her own music and started touring, and also continued acting. Now a mom of two sons, she’s spread her wings to succeed outside of the TV bubble while doing her part to make the world a better place (10% of all proceeds from her Baby Yams brand of handmade baby quilts are donated to support community birth workers). “In the very beginning, when I put out the first 50 blankets, I didn’t think Baby Yams was necessarily going to be something after that. It was just a one-time project, but it did so well. I saw it as a vehicle to help tell the story of the care that mamas deserve to have from our healthcare system,” she explains. Tatyana’s newest project is her children’s book, Aszi and the Octopus, on bookshelves now. “The idea came from my oldest. He’s always loved octopuses. He loves marine life, and it’s been an opening for me as a mom to get him to read and be interested in math and science and all these things,” she says. “I wanted to get into his imaginary world and honor it. I achieved a lot at a young age, and that’s very important, but I love the idea of letting our kids play, and I wanted to celebrate that. So that’s really what I hoped to get across in the book. There’s magic in our children’s play worlds if we let them just play.”

Martin Lawrence was on Shawn Stockman's (Boyz II Men) "On That Note" podcast. He starts talking about Bad Boys at the 38 minute mark.

Rock The House Released April 7, 1987 - Reissued in 1988 and 1997 Word Up Records, Champion Records, Jive Records, RCA - RUSH Management 1. Girls Ain't Nothing But Trouble* 2. Just One of Those Days 3. Rock The House 4. Taking It To The Top 5. The Magnificent Jazzy Jeff 6. Just Rockin' 7. Guys Ain't Nothing But Trouble featuring Ice Cream Tee 8. A Touch of Jazz 9. Don't Even Try It !0. Special Announcement ** 11. Girls Ain't Nothing But Trouble (Instrumental) *** *1988 Extended Remix or Laidley & Oakenfold Mix/UK Mix, depending on the release. ** Jive Records release *** Japanese Avex Trax release SINGLES: GIrls Ain't Nothing But Trouble - ALTERNATE VERSIONS: Radio (Original Version), Instrumental, Def Mix, Def Beat, Laidley & Oakenfold Mix (also known as UK Mix), 1988 Extended Mix, 1988 Single Mix, 1988 Instrumental A Touch of Jazz - ALTERNATE VERSION: Extended Re-Touch, Collapsed In The Street Mix, Collapsed In The Street Edit The Magnificent Jazzy Jeff - Alternate Versions: Dub Instrumental, Instrumental Version Just One Of Those Days - ALTERNATE VERSIONS: UK Remix, UK Remix-Dub Version, UK Remix-Bonus Scratch Beats Guys Ain't Nothing But Trouble w Ice Cream Tee B-SIDES of the Era: New Kids On The Block (from Jive Records compilation Word 2) The Megadope Mix *A medley of Don't Even Try It, Just One of Those Days, Girls Ain't Nothing But Trouble, Just Rockin', The Magnificent Jazzy Jeff, A Touch of Jazz MUSIC VIDEO: Girls Ain't Nothing But Trouble

This is my first time seeing this. I've revisited The Boys' music recently. For a split second, in their 1989 music video, around the minute and 30 second mark, you'll see a familiar face.

The album is out today. Buy or listen to it here: https://orcd.co/twtmc

This is crazy. From the sound of "Nicki/Who Knows", we can tell it was from the Code Red era. Most of the songs on Code Red were recorded and mixed at Battery Studios. It very well could have been birthed around the time of "I Wanna Rock" with those lives drums and guitar. It's always good to hear Jeff chime in on the vocals. "Dance or Die" is on the Made In America soundtrack and "Don't Fight The Feeling" is from the Japanese release of Jive's Greatest Hits album, as is "Lovely Day/Lovely Daze". They have Code Red and Homebase vibes in their DNA. "Family Christmas" was the b-side to some "I Think I Can Beat Mike Tyson" back in 1989. My impression are that these are songs and skits they recorded at Battery Studios over the years (not 1997) that were put on a demo cassette. Lovely Daze and Don't Fight The Feeling were recorded at Battery Studios. Dance or Die and Family Chrstmas don't list where they were recorded on the releases that I have. I hope the lable that listed this is willing to share, or works out something where the songs are properly released. Jive Records was recently reinstated. They are or RCA likely own the JJ+FP library. I'm not sure if that applies to unreleased music.

It's crazy to think that we haven't had an album from Jill Scott in 10 years. That ends in February. Some of the producers include Carvin Haggins, Andre Harris (both from DJ Jazzy Jeff's A Touch of Jazz fame), DJ Premier, Adam Blackstone, and David Banner. You can sample it here: https://www.missjillscott.com/preview The CD, record, and other merchandise is available here: https://shop.missjillscott.com/ Here's an interview she recently did discussing it:

I agree with most of this. At the same time, what is sucess in music anymore? Sure, there's people like Taylor Swift and Beyonce, but most people don't value music. They think it should be free and they'll listen to whatever the record labels pay for to be a success. Most people dont' have standards for the music they listen to. I think releasing the other albums so quickly was too much. He should allow for them to breathe. Since he's such a determined person, I'd be surprised if he really doesn't get this music out someway. I especially agree with him not keeping his core audience in mind. As an artist, I want him to do what he wants, but I don't think this album as a whole delivers to those who are in his corner. I like the album, but I don't love the album. I think he had a lot to get off his chest, but that could have been done with a formula that we all love. I think most of his fan base wants classic Hip-Hop that appeals to radio and the mainstream. The album comes across as a compilation album to me, featuring lots of different sounds, but not truly coming together as an album. I don't think the fact that he cussed on this album helped it, but I know there's a lot of people who probably though it was ill fitting. I'm one of them. I listen to the edited version of the album. I don't think the producers were a main factor in its success. I think most of the guest artists contributed to the songs well, but the collaborations alone were nothing huge. The way he dropped the singles is pretty standard these days. A lot of artists drop singles until the album is complete. I like the old school way of dropping one single a month or two before the album, then the other singles come as the album comes out or afterward. I agree that physical media was a big factor. If he had sold CDs, records, and even cassettes, it would have helped the album chat. I hate that I don't have a Based On A True Story CD sitting next to his other albums. I would have listened to it more if I had the physical reminder of the album. I feel like he should release a three disc album with all the songs he's recorded for the project. Just have 2,000-3,000 made. Sign some of them, and put them on the website. "Pretty Girls" was just a bad idea. Being a runway song, he could have partnered with some event where the song fit and let it be tied that, but since he released it as a stand along single, it just came across as a huge misstep of what people want and what they expect from him. I think another main factor is that the US music fan base is jaded. Artists who were very successful just 10, 15 years ago are not supported...even laughed at. I don't know what makes people turn on an artist, but with him having such a successful past and the Oscars incident, it's kind of words against him. A lot of international music fans seem to be there for the love and support. That's why Will toured overseas. While he should have did a few spot dates in big cities here in the US, I don't know if he would have had the same success over here in the US. I hope this isn't the last we hear from him musically. Even if he doesn't take a chance on solo music, he's almost guaranteed success under the DJ Jazzy Jeff + Fresh Prince banner. They've neglected that for too long. I was just listening to Willennium the other day. That JJ+FP magic is loved and respected by so many.

Pre-orders for the physical copies are live. https://shop.massappeal.com/collections/cabin-in-the-sky-1?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email

It's here!

I heard CD sales are going back down this. It's discouraging that albums like Based On A True Story haven't gotten a CD release. Earlier this year, I realized I misplaced Heavy D's last album, which was only released digitally and can no longer be bought. I still aggressively buy CDs. I year the younger generation has embrased them, but by buying used ones, which doens't help the industry.

Well said. I love the many facets of Hip-Hop. To say it has to be one way is silly.