Set in the small southern beach town of Tybee,
Georgia, "The Last Song" is a coming of age
film about family, Forgiveness and redemption,
directed by Julie Anne Robinson, based on
a screenplay and novel by Nicholas Sparks
“A Walk To Remember”, “The Notebook”).

In the film, Ronnie (played by Myley Cyrus),
a 17 year old musical prodigy, high school graduate and angry teen spawned by her
parents divorce, is dropped off by her mother
(Kelly Preston) along with her younger brother
Jonah (Bobby Coleman) for a summer visit
at her estranged father's beach house
(played by Greg Kinnear).
While there, Ronnie meets Will (played by
Liam Hemsworth) falls in love with the hunkie
volleyball champion but soon after discovers
the real reason for the visit. While the film succeeds in its ability to portray the intricacies
of moving from adolescence to young woman-
hood and exploring themes of forgiveness
and redemption, depending on your side of
the fence,..MORE
Q&A

6 questions for Nicholas Sparks
REVIEW

It's Valentine's Day!


Watch This!

Freedom Riders, Road to Memphis and The Old Man and The
Storm are just a few samples of the expansive award winning
lineup to be showcased on PBS in celebration of Black History
Month. Be sure to tune in and watch in salute of the rich history,
culture and contributions of African Americans. To learn more
visit PBS.org>>>
Editor's Pick!

The Loving Story (Premiers Feb. 14th on HBO)

A racially-charged criminal trial and a heart-rending love story converge in a
documentary about Richard and Mildred Loving, set during the turbulent Civil
Rights era. THE LOVING STORY is a story of love and the struggle for dignity
set against a backdrop of historic anti-miscegenation sentiments in the U.S.
The Lovings, an interracial couple, fell in love and married at a critical time
in American history. Due to a confluence of social and political turmoil, our
reluctant heroes brought about change where previously no one else could. They were paired with two young and ambitious lawyers who were driven to
pave the way for social justice and equal rights through a historic Supreme
Court case; Loving v. Virginia overturned bans on interracial marriage in
sixteen states.

THE LOVING STORY is told through never-before-seen cinema verité footage
of the Lovings and their lawyers and through other authentic footage of the
times. Together with oral accounts by our subjects and interviews with their
family and friends, audiences will be fully emerged in their saga – from their
courtship, to their arrest and exile, to their preparation for the 1967 Supreme
Court case. THE LOVING STORY takes us on a journey into the heart of race
relations in America. But, in the end, it is a dignified and poignant love story
of two people who simply wanted to live in the place they called home.

Want to make this a day to remember?…Here are 5 great ways to celebrate the one you love!

1. Sweets for the sweet...
François Chocolate Bar, carries simply the best Champagne Pop Rock Truffles, $55; Valentine's Day Red Heart Macarons box, $48 for seventeen macarons. Find it at Plaza Hotel, 1 W. 58th St., concourse level, nr. Fifth Ave.; 212-986-9241.

2. Listen to great live music
Stay in one place and get into a swinging mood with a performance by Rene Marie ($80, 7:30 and 10 p.m.) at Jazz at Lincoln Center. The jazz vocalist's set will be accompanied by a four-course meal served from the kitchen of Dizzy's Club Coca-Col

3. See 'The Vow' —Starring Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum. This truly romantic film--based on a true story--proves love and marriage can last a lifetime, come what may.

4. Share a meaningful Message
Words from the bottom of your heart are priceless, so write love letters expressing how you feel, or even listing "10 Reasons Why I Love You" makes for a very sweet present.

5. Hire a private chef! The luxury of having a gourmet meal prepared in the privacy of your own home (by anyone else other than yourself!) Is sure to be an impressive welcomed treat for your mate. Hint! Specially for that hard working mom. To make arrangements anywhere in the U.S visit HireAChef.com

Go see… The Bearden Project at the Studio Museum in Harlem, a tribute to Romare Bearden, an artist and key influencer of many of today's cultural icons. For more info visit thebeardenproject.studiomuseum.org.
The Block ll
By Romare Beardon


Download this!



David Crowder*Band delivers their final album, an epic, triumphant
collection of songs that poetically illustrates that in death something
new is reborn.

The album showcases the band’s unique music style and touches on
worship, pop, rock, bluegrass and electronic genres. Features the
first single "Let Me Feel You Shine".

The band is currently headlining their final tour - the “7” tour - with
25 shows already sold out. The band will play their final show at the
Passion 2012 Conference in January 2012. itunes>

 



Christian hip hop is making a difference for African students in the
Congo this winter. Premier music web site Rapzilla.com in conjunction
with Syntax Distribution releases the compilation album King Kulture
on January 31st. Proceeds from the album benefit Ecole de la Borne,
a school in the Congo started by Christian missionaries.

King Kulture is a two-year project in the making. It features never
before heard tracks from Lecrae, KJ-52, GRITS, Braille and more.

“You're going to get an album that's amazing with all the artists you
love and all these songs you can't get anywhere else,” RapZilla.com
founder Philip Rood says. “It's a must-have for any Christian hip hop
fan, but also what you're putting into is helping others.” itunes>






Fred Hammond has been a trailblazer throughout his 30-year career.
He founded the legendary band Commissioned that brought freshly

funky air to the traditional Gospel world in the 1980s. Then, in the
`90, he ushered in the urban praise and worship music movement
with his Radical For Christ ensemble. With God, Love & Romance,
Hammond continues to break new ground for the Gospel genre.
Disc One is a suite of love songs touching on the topics of courtship,
romance and even lost love while Disc Two gives us the soul stirring
Gospel songs we've grown accustomed to from Hammond. itunes>



3 must see films

Act of Valor

An unprecedented blend of real-life heroism and original filmmaking, Act of Valor
stars a group of active-duty Navy SEALs in a powerful story of contemporary
global anti-terrorism. Inspired by true events, the film combines stunning combat
sequences, up-to-the minute battlefield technology and heart-pumping emotion
for the ultimate action adventure. Act of Valor takes audiences deep into the
secretive world of the most elite, highly trained group of warriors in the modern
world. When the rescue of a kidnapped CIA operative leads to the discovery of a
deadly terrorist plot against the U.S., a team of SEALs is dispatched on a worldwide
manhunt. As the valiant men of Bandito Platoon race to stop a coordinated attack
that could kill and wound thousands of American civilians, they must balance their
commitment to country, team and their families back home. Each time they
accomplish their mission, a new piece of intelligence reveals another shocking twist
to the deadly terror plot, which stretches from Chechnya to the Philippinesand from
Ukraine to Somalia. The widening operation sends the SEALs across the globe as
they track the terrorist ring to the U.S.-Mexico border, where they engage in an
epic firefight with an outcome that has potentially unimaginable consequences
for the future of America.

Good Deeds

A successful, wealthy businessman, Wesley Deeds (Tyler Perry) has always done
what's expected of him, whether it's assuming the helm of his father's company,
tolerating his brother's misbehavior at the office or planning to marry his beautiful
but restless fiancee, Natalie (Gabrielle Union). But Wesley is jolted out of his
predictable routine when he meets Lindsey (Thandie Newton), a down-on-her-luck
single mother who works on the cleaning crew in his office building. When he offers
to help her get back on her feet, the chance encounter with someone so far outside
his usual circle ignites something in Wesley. This one good deed may finally spark
his courage to exchange the life that's expected of him for the life he's always really
wanted. A moving, uplifting drama about coincidence, courage, and the defining
choices we make on our paths to happiness, TYLER PERRY'S GOOD DEEDS is written,
produced and directed by Tyler Perry, and stars Perry, Thandie Newton, Brian White,
Rebecca Romijn, Jamie Kennedy, Eddie Cibrian, Jordenn Thompson, Beverly Johnson,
with Phylicia Rashad, and Gabrielle Union.

 

Salmon Fishing In the Yemen

From the director of Chocolat and the Oscar-winning(R) screenwriter of Slumdog
Millionaire comes the inspirational comedy Salmon Fishing in the Yemen. When
Britain's leading fisheries expert (Ewan McGregor) is approached by a consultant
(Emily Blunt) to help realize a sheikh's (Amr Waked) vision of bringing the sport
of fly-fishing to the desert, he immediately thinks the project is both absurd and
unachievable. But when the Prime Minister's overzealous press secretary (Kristin
Scott Thomas) latches on to it as a "good will" story, this unlikely team will put it
all on the line and embark on an upstream journey of faith and fish to prove
the impossible, possible.



SITES WE LOVE!

DesignTaxi.com

A global creative network aimed to inspire, promote and empower creative
professionals, designtaxi.com, provides daily updates on creativity and
innovation and connects in 'real time' talent to opportunities, whether
for collaboration, networking or business around the world. Go>>>

Mailchimp.com

Possibly the most powerful email-marketing service in the universe! Whether
you own a business or manage email newsletters for clients, you need an
email–marketing service that takes care of the complicated stuff so you can
focus on your job.

MailChimp makes it easy to design exceptional email campaigns, share them
on social networks, integrate it with web services you already use, manage
subscribers and track your results. You'll love mixing and matching MailChimp's
templates, features and integrations to suit your needs—think of it as your
own personal newsletter publishing platform.




TRENDS & CULTURE:
What to do, see and explore in February...


Bestselling author of “The Notebook” and "A Walk to
Remember" chats with D. Smith about his latest film.

What was most challenging about this adaptation?

The real challenge was crafting a very realistic angry teen while
simultaneously making the viewer or reader like her. Sometimes
teenagers are just not that likable, and we all know it! But you
still have to show an element of humanity and that there's
something more than meets the eye”.


Did you write the role of Ronnie, specifically with Myley Cyrus
in mind?


In this instance a bit of coincidence took place. I was approached by Overstock Entertainment
to create a scrip for Myley Cyrus, coincidentally as I was thinking...MORE



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Lysa TerKeurst takes a
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Mary Mary
Is up to something big!