GOSPEL LEGENDS VICKIE WINANS AND KURT CARR To Headline 10TH Anniversary Concert Celebrating BLACKGOSPELPROMO.COM AND ITS FOUNDER, VEDA BROWN At Impacting Your World Christian Church in Cherry Hill, NJ MONDAY, JULY 25, 2011 @ 7:00 PM
Celebrity Journalist Jawn Murray and Radio Veteran Neicy Tribbett To Emcee Lonnie Hunter & Structure, and Stellar Nominee Bryan Wilson Will Also Perform
Washington, DC, July 6, 2011 – Almost 200,000 people receive Veda Brown’s daily Black Gospel Promo e-mail blasts. The colorful, slickly designed emails promote everything from greeting cards, Jada Pinkett Smith’s “Hawthorne” TV series and Kirk Franklin’s chart- topping CDs to all of Tyler Perry’s movie promos. “Black Gospel Promo has become the CNN of gospel marketing,” says Grammy nominated producer Steven Ford. “Black Gospel Promo has revolutionized the way that the black church spreads the word about its products.”
Now, the gospel music and church communities are coming out to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Black Gospel Promo and the July 27th birthday of its founder, Veda Brown. Gospel legends Vickie Winans and Kurt Carr are headlining the concert in honor of Brown and her enterprise. Radio One’s syndicated on-air personality Lonnie Hunter and his Philadelphia-based group, Structure, will perform songs from his Top CD “I’m Back.” Veteran gospel artist, Bryan Wilson, best known for hits such as “His Eye is on the Sparrow” and “If You’re Talking About Jesus,” will be in the house too. Church leaders such as Bishop Andrew Merritt, Pastor Maria Gardner, Bishop Andrew Ford, and Prophetess Francina Norman will be on hand. Former Billboard magazine gospel critic Lisa Collins, marketing expert Melanie Few, Habakkuk label CEO April Washington-Essex, BET.com blogger Torrence Glenn, PR maven Jojo Pada, BET Sunday Best executive Neily Dickerson and TV producer Bobby Cartright will all attend. “Tom Joyner Morning Show” celebrity journalist Jawn Murray and veteran Philadelphia area radio personality Neicy Tribett will co-host the festivities.
A Philadelphia native, Brown rocketed into cyberspace long before the church market took note of the Internet. After college in the 1990s, she founded AOL’s Net Noir Black Gospel Chapel. AOL eventually sold Net Noir and Brown briefly took a job with a pastor with his own record label. She sent out email blasts on one of the pastor’s CD projects. To her surprise, she received a call from gospel star Fred Hammond’s brother who asked her to send out an email blast on the Commissioned Reunion concert in 2001. “I had no other job at the time,” Brown says. “So, I said, well, let’s try this for a little while.”
A while has turned into a ten-year operation that has allowed the firm to earn six figure revenue grosses in the boom years and to become the leading black gospel marketing company today. It sends out 1,800 eblasts a year for clients ranging from Verizon, McDonald’s, Revlon, Sony Music and Turner Broadcasting, among others. “I’m grateful to still be here working,” says Brown. “The economy has been very unstable the last two years and that’s had a big impact on my business but we’re still doing what we do and I’m thankful.” The free concert takes place at Impacting Your World Christian Center located at 2901 W. Chapel Avenue, Cherry Hill, NJ 08002.
Media Contact: Bill Carpenter at (202) 506-5051 or [email protected]
Family life in America has changed drastically over the last few decades. With forty being the new twenty for women starting a family, it indicates they are no longer prepared to risk their biological clock ticking away while waiting for Mr. Right to come along! While we have all been brainwashed at some point into believing the ideal family has two children, the trend toward one-child families throughout the world is unmistakable.
When social psychologist Susan Newman first published Parenting the Only Child with Random House twenty years ago she was clearly ahead of her time. Here we are now in this new decade where the single child is the fastest growing family unit due to either the rise in the cost of living, the necessity of two-family incomes, older first-time parents, or all three. These and other statistics are discussed and explored in Susan’s latest book, The Case for the Only Child (HCI Books – $14.95).
While people think they know how many children they want, they are rocked into reality by costs, infertility problems, job constraints, or being told they are selfish if they don’t have a second child. As more women and men, by choice or circumstance, keep their families small, the pressures and questions remain:
• What’s really wrong with having one child? • Is one enough for you? For your partner? • What constitutes a complete, happy family? • Will your only child be lonely, spoiled, bossy, or selfish?
The pervasiveness of only-child folklore masquerading as fact implored Dr. Newman to set the record straight about what research really says about having and being an only child while offering the latest findings about the long-term effects of being raised as a singleton.
Being the one to open the dialogue about only children, Dr. Newman was fascinated by the response from both sides of the debate. In The Case for the Only Child, she discusses the pros and cons of a larger family and walks parents (and future parents) through the long list of facts:
• 41% of newborns are born to women over 35 • Five times more people adopt one child as adopt two • Over 70 percent of women with children work • It costs approximately $286,000, not including college, to raise a child today
And asks the questions:
• Why the increase in one-child families? (Starting families later; the stress of needing to work; infertility; divorce; more single parents; step families, and more.) • Can we afford another child? Physically? Emotionally? Financially? • How do children affect women’s employment? The Motherhood Penalty is 5 percent per child…larger in some fields. • The unspoken truth about siblings—does your child need one? • How will the only child fare in the future—without parents and siblings to lean on? • What will the 21st Century family look like? The time is right to discuss a new definition of family and the emerging type of nuclear family—one that consists of a solo child, what Dr. Newman calls and is fast becoming The New Traditional Family. The Case for the Only Child guides parents with one child and parents-to-be through the process of determining what they want so they can feel confident and happy with their decision—whatever it may be.
About The Author: Susan Newman, Ph.D., social psychologist and parenting expert has written 15 books in the family relationship field. She has appeared on 20/20, GMA, The Today Show, and many other television news and radio shows discussing family life and parenting. She is the parent to four stepchildren, the mother of one son, and has a sibling with whom she has an excellent relationship. In other words, her approach to this topic is objective and grounded in decades of research. She lives in New Jersey. You can visit Dr. Newman’s website: www.susannewmanphd.com.
THE CASE FOR THE ONLY CHILD Your Essential Guide Susan Newman, Ph.D. Author of Psychology Today’s “Singletons” blog ISBN: 0-7573-1551-0
“Old age ain’t no place for sissies,” H. L. Mencken declared. It’s especially true the way Marshall Ulrich does it.
This July, to celebrate his 60th birthday, Ulrich will climb two deadly mountains in the same week — right after he finishes running 146 miles across the hottest place on earth.
During the climbs, he and his fellow mountaineers will be roped in, but the best insurances against plummeting off Mount Eiger (13,025 feet) and the Matterhorn (14,692 feet) are strength and experience, both of which Ulrich has in legendary measure. He’ll need them: the Eiger has earned the nicknames “the Ogre” and Mordwand (German: “death wall”) because more than 60 people have perished while trying to scale the north face since 1935. The Matterhorn has claimed even more lives: 500 since it was first climbed in 1865. This fact just makes Ulrich all the more eager to conquer them.
But this is not the first time he has thumbed his nose at advancing age:
• In 2008, when he was 57 years old, Ulrich ran 3,063 miles (the equivalent of 117 back- to-back marathons) across the United States, breaking records set by men more than 15 years his junior.
• Four years earlier, he had ascended Mount Everest.
• To mark his 50th birthday in 2001, he had run across Death Valley four times in a row for a total of nearly 600 miles, crossing the scorching desert and going up and down Mount Whitney in order to raise money for orphans.
This time he will run the Death Valley route just once as his warm-up to the Alps climbs. The infamous Badwater Ultramarathon, dubbed by National Geographic as the toughest footrace in the world, accounts for the first 135 miles but then Ulrich, a 4-time winner and 16-time finisher in this race, never stops at the finish line. He always runs up Mount Whitney and back to make it 146 miles, just because … well, just because.
Earlier this year, Ulrich debuted his memoir, Running On Empty: An Ultramarathoner’s Story of Love, Loss, and a Record-Setting Run Across America (Avery; $26). He is frequently asked why he waited so long to write it because his athletic accomplishments warranted examination sooner than this, readers say. Ulrich responds that he is glad he waited, as this book is richer and more reflective than one he might have written as a younger man. “Before, I didn’t feel qualified to speak with authority,” he admits, though most would argue the point. “Finally, I felt comfortable to write about something more than sport, to communicate some valuable lessons I’ve learned about living.”
It is also because an important element in the book is a recounting of how Ulrich met his wife late in life and how she taught him to love again after great personal tragedy. He credits her not only with helping him to become a better man but also with being essential to his completing this epic, record-setting transcontinental run.
Ulrich has been competing in extreme endurance sports for nearly three decades, but he didn’t start his athletic career in high school as did most peak performers. It wasn’t until his thirties that Ulrich discovered his formidable talent for ultrarunning and set records on some of the world’s toughest courses. In his forties, he became an innovator in the sport, finishing feats of endurance no one had accomplished before and many of which no one will ever attempt to beat. And then he diversified into adventure racing, taking on multi-day team events requiring a combination of such skills as long-distance trail running, ocean paddling, mountain biking, and (on occasion) camel riding.
As he entered his fifties, he was hailed by Trail Runner magazine as one of the legends of the trail; Outside crowned him “Endurance King,” and Adventure Sports highlighted him as an athlete “Over Fifty and Kicking Your Butt.” That’s when he started climbing and went to the top of the highest mountains on every continent, reaching all seven summits on his first attempts.
So Running On Empty is both a love story and a thrilling look into the life of someone who has accomplished more than most people can comprehend–and who continues to take on new challenges to show that the human body and the will to endure are miraculous indeed. For Ulrich, there are no such things as “too old,” “too far,” or “too difficult.”
For a closer look at the life of this extraordinary man, please visit his website at: www.MarshallUlrich.com.
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TIP SHEET:
Dean Karnazes, acclaimed endurance athlete and bestselling author of Ultramarathon Man: Confessions of an All-Night Runner: “Marshall is The Man. Definitively. His run across America at the age of 57 sealed that distinction forever. He’s living proof that endurance never sleeps, never gets old, never tires. Nothing can stop him, and that gives us all hope, gives us resolve to keep trying.” — Aron Ralston, author of Between a Rock and a Hard Place and subject of 127 Hours: “Usually, graceful would be applied to a runner’s form. With Marshall Ulrich, it’s even more apt a descriptor of his spirit, his soul, which he generously shares with us in Running on Empty. Tempting as it might also be to describe him as superhuman, Marshall has fallen and struggled and risen and struggled some more. His story, therefore, is ours, and whatever one might admire in him is also, therefore, in each of us.”
Mark Burnett, Emmy-award winning producer of Survivor, Eco-Challenge, The Apprentice, and Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader? “Marshall and I go way back to the first Eco-Challenge in 1995. An athlete of astonishing grit both then and now, he never fails to push the limits of his sport, no matter what extreme endurance event he’s chosen. Running on Empty tells the story of Marshall’s greatest test: reading it, you get a sense of how tough this man is, but there’s also a bit of Everyman in Marsh. He’s an inspiration to all of us.”
In My Own Words … “I Was Born Gay” by Multiple Emmy-winning CNN Anchor Don Lemon
New York, NY, May 16, 2011 — Using Ascot Media and Aston Publicity Groups’ innovative announcement tool ‘In My Own Words’ (IMOW) as the vehicle in which to speak out and put an end to the speculation surrounding him, Don Lemon is making an official statement to the media that he is gay.
The statement below was written by Don Lemon and it may be copied, printed and announced but cannot be altered in any way without the express permission of Don Lemon.
“Today I chose to step out on faith and begin openly living my own truth. And let me say right up front that I hope many of you will be inspired to do the same thing in your daily lives. Some of the things I’ve chosen to reveal in my book Transparent were very difficult to share with even those closest to me.
There was a time when I was terrified of revealing these things to the person I love most in this world – my own mother. But when I finally mustered the courage to tell her that I had been molested as a child and that I was born gay, my life began to change in positive ways that I never imagined possible. Yet I still chose to keep those secrets hidden from the world. I, like most gay people, lived a life of fear. Fear that if some employers, co-workers, friends, neighbors and family members learned of my sexuality, I would be shunned, mocked and ostracized. It is a burden that millions of people carry with them every single day. And sadly, while the mockery and ostracizing are realized by millions of people every day, I truly believe it doesn’t have to happen and that’s why I feel compelled to share what I’ve written in Transparent.
As a journalist I believe that part of my mission is to shed light onto dark places. So, the disclosure of this information does not inhibit in any way my ability to be the professional, fair and objective journalist I have always been.
My book is dedicated to the memory of Rutgers University student Tyler Clementi, who jumped to his death from a bridge after his dorm mates streamed his private business over the Internet for the world to see. Tyler might still be with us today if more gay men and women had chosen to live proudly and openly. It is also dedicated to the millions of young, gay people who believe they are alone when dealing with their own sexual identities. You are not alone! There are people, like me and many others, who are thriving in their personal and professional lives and although we sometimes have a hard time with it ourselves, we are here to show you by example that you too can overcome any obstacle as long as you stay strong and, most of all, stay alive.”
New York, NY, May 23, 2011 — Using Ascot Media and Aston Publicity Groups’ innovative announcement tool ‘In My Own Words’ (IMOW) as the vehicle in which to speak out, Flavor Flav: The Icon speaks to his fans.
The statement below was written by Flavor Flav and it may be copied, printed and announced but cannot be altered in any way without the express permission of Flavor Flav (William Jonathon Drayton, Jr.).
“To all of my fams (I’ve taken the ‘n’ out of fans and replaced it with an ‘m,’ because a fan doesn’t do anything for me but cool me off when I’m hot and a ‘fam’ is one that supports me), I thank you all for making me who I am today. Without y’all, I would just be an ordinary person in the street, no different and no better than anyone else – the only thing that makes me different is my job description.
My life has taught me that nothing is really easy. Everything in life you want can come to you, but you really, really have to earn it and deserve it. You only get to live physically once in this lifetime, so while we are living this one time – we need to make the best of it. When we die, we become nothing but memories to other people and we want to leave them the best memories ever.
If I could influence and mentor today’s youth, based on my past experience, I would tell them that I made some very serious mistakes in my life. I would like for everyone in the world to read my book about the mistakes I’ve made, so hopefully they won’t make the same ones.
I have always been told I have a lot of interesting things to say and stories to tell. I’ve often thought about doing my own talk show. If I did, I would probably use the style of Arsenio Hall, but a Jerry Springer or Maury Povich style show should be a lot of fun. I have been asked if I would ever do Donald Trump’s Celebrity Apprentice Show and my reply to that is it would be a pleasure to once again see and talk to Donald Trump. If I do come out with my own show some time, all I can say is… ‘Once again, Flavor Flav has reinvented himself.’
Anyway, I decided to write a book. My new book is called Flavor Flav: The Icon The Memoir (Farrah Gray Publishing). My book is edgy, compassionate and often hilarious! My book is a thrill ride from the heights of my stardom to the depths of my despair and Yo! I’m still here to tell it. I’ve been down some pretty dark holes – but somehow I always found the strength to climb back out of them.
I get asked about regrets but I have no regrets in my life and I would change nothing. The reason is because it took the past to bring the future, and if I was to change something in my past then today I might not be able to teach what I’ve learned.
I want to add that I think Ascot/Aston’s In My Own Words (IMOW) is a great idea for celebrities to say in their own words how they feel about their life and what’s going on in it. That’s why we, Public Enemy, made a record called Don’t Believe The Hype, which means…don’t believe everything you read or hear. The best source for the true information is ‘from the horse’s mouth!’
God bless you all with your life, your future, your goals, and your families. And once again, I thank you for making me who I am today – Flavor Flav: The Icon.
God bless and peace to all. See y’all on my book tour!
Flavor Flav Sunday, May 22, 2011
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Additional Information:
Tour Information:
New York Tour – May 23 – 30, 2011
Los Angeles Tour/The Grammy Museum – May 31 – June 7, 2011
Freaky Comedy/Book Tour – Summer
Flavor Flav: The Icon The Memoir (Farrah Gray Publishing) Available Everywhere Books Are Sold.
Ascot and Aston give celebrities the opportunity to fight back against negative or incorrect information distributed by the paparazzi by allowing them to voice their side of the story in an official statement, written in their very own words and distributed in mass to all media outlets. On the night of Sunday, May 15th, the publicists of these two teams were the first to announce to the media, CNN News Anchor Don Lemon’s Official Announcement: “I Was Born Gay.”
“Today I chose to step out on faith and begin openly living my own truth. And let me say right up front that I hope many of you will be inspired to do the same thing in your daily lives. Some of the things I’ve chosen to reveal in my book Transparent were very difficult to share with even those closest to me.
There was a time when I was terrified of revealing these things to the person I love most in this world – my own mother. But when I finally mustered the courage to tell her that I had been molested as a child and that I was born gay, my life began to change in positive ways that I never imagined possible. Yet I still chose to keep those secrets hidden from the world. I, like most gay people, lived a life of fear. Fear that if some employers, co-workers, friends, neighbors and family members learned of my sexuality, I would be shunned, mocked and ostracized. It is a burden that millions of people carry with them every single day. And sadly, while the mockery and ostracizing are realized by millions of people every day, I truly believe it doesn’t have to happen and that’s why I feel compelled to share what I’ve written in Transparent.
As a journalist I believe that part of my mission is to shed light onto dark places. So, the disclosure of this information does not inhibit in any way my ability to be the professional, fair and objective journalist I have always been.
My book is dedicated to the memory of Rutgers University student Tyler Clementi, who jumped to his death from a bridge after his dorm mates streamed his private business over the Internet for the world to see. Tyler might still be with us today if more gay men and women had chosen to live proudly and openly. It is also dedicated to the millions of young, gay people who believe they are alone when dealing with their own sexual identities. You are not alone! There are people, like me and many others, who are thriving in their personal and professional lives and although we sometimes have a hard time with it ourselves, we are here to show you by example that you too can overcome any obstacle as long as you stay strong and, most of all, stay alive.”
“We hope at some point in the future to have the opportunity of getting a direct quote from Britney Spears, who we believe has been the brunt of a great deal of negative publicity over the years, and we feel it’s time she had her chance to have the truth heard,” commented Stevens.
