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‘Black Is King’ co-director, Blitz Bazawule to direct ‘The Color Purple’ Feature Musical
Hot off of co-directing Beyoncé’s Disney+ visual album feature Black Is King, Ghana-born filmmaker Blitz Bazawule is set to direct Warner Bros. musical film The Color Purple, based on the Tony-winning Broadway musical.
I hear that the feature’s producers Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg, Scott Sanders, and Quincy Jones caught Bazawule’s movie The Burial Of Kojo on Netflix, and were wowed by his vibrant visual style.
“We, were all blown away by Blitz’s unique vision as a director and look forward to seeing how he brings the next evolution of this beloved story to life,” Winfrey tells Deadline.
Bazawule is a composer and musician of four studio albums: Stereotype (2009), Native Sun (2011), Afropolitan Dreams (2014) and Diasporadical (2016), and his musical sensibility, and what he could bring to The Color Purple, also impressed the producers as well. Bazawule co-directed Black Is King with Beyoncé and Emmanuel Adjei, helming the South African shoot. Following his zoom call pitch with the producers, I hear Warners moved fast to sign Bazawule.Marcus Gardley is writing the screenplay based on The Color Purple Broadway reimagining of Alice Walker’s 1982 novel. The story depicts the lives of African American families and relationships in early twentieth-century Georgia. The musical, featuring jazz, ragtime, gospel, blues and African rhythms, has a book by Marsha Norman with music by Brenda Russell, Allee Willis and Stephen Bray.
EPs are Walker, Rebecca Walker, Kristie Macosko Krieger, Carla Gardini and Mara Jacobs.
The original Broadway musical debuted in 2005, scoring 11 Tony Award nominations in 2006 and winning for LaChanze’s role as Celie. It ran for 910 performances. A revival in 2015 scored four more Tony noms and won for Best Revival of a Musical and for Cynthia Erivo in her Broadway debut. The musical has also won Grammy and Emmy awards.
Spielberg, directed and produced the 11-time Oscar-nominated 1985 film, which Jones also produced. Winfrey, made her feature debut in the original movie and earned a Supporting Actress Oscar nom. Winfrey, Jones and Sanders also produced the Broadway musical.
Bazawule’s The Burial Of Kojo premiered at Urbanworld Film Festival where it won Best Narrative Feature (World Cinema). It also won the Grand Prize at the 2019 Luxor African Film Festival in Egypt. Bazawule is the founder of Africa Film Society, an organization focused on the preservation and distribution of classic African cinema. He is a Senior TED Fellow and recipient of the Vilcek Prize.
Buzz
D Jay lands two nominations ahead of 2023 Vodafone Ghana Music Awards with smash hit ‘Balance It’
Talk about the 24th edition of the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards has already begun to spread like wildfire. And with fans flocking online to check out the newly released nomination list from Charterhouse Ghana, artists like D Jay are among those sparking such buzz. The sensational singer landed two nominations in two big categories for the upcoming event: ‘’’Best Afrobeats Song’’ and ‘’Best New Artiste’’.
His smash hit ‘Balance It’ was the obvious pick. It was one of the blockbuster releases of the previous year and as such, will compete with other popular tracks in its category: Camidoh’s ‘Sugarcane Remix’, Gyakie’s ‘Something’, KiDi’s ‘Champagne’, King Promise’s ‘Ginger’ and FBS’s ‘Jo’ for ‘’Best Afrobeats Song’’. There will also be tough competition from six other newcomers contesting with D Jay for the ‘’Best New Artiste’’ award.
Speaking to a source close to us, D Jay expressed his gratitude and excitement: ‘’The past year was really intense. There were many sleepless nights and the team and I worked super hard, so I am excited to see we were given two nominations. This is a huge boost for us after all the sacrifices we made. I’m thankful to everyone who never stopped streaming ‘Balance It.’ I want to win this award for all of you. Let’s make it happen!’’.
At only 21 years old, D Jay has been making waves in the music industry with his catchy and melodious Afrobeats songs. His biggest song, ‘Balance It,’ became a viral sensation on TikTok with over 100 million views and 40 million streams worldwide before attracting a verse from emPawa Africa boss, Mr Eazi on its remix last year. The song racked up over one million Shazams and is one of TikTok’s favorite songs for creating content.
D Jay is currently promoting his latest song ‘Morning Stress,’ which you can listen to here: https://empawaafrica.lnk.to/DJayMorningStress
Buzz
Lamisi Honoured In The Netherlands
Sensational Ghanaian singer, songwriter, and performer, Regina Lamisi Awiniman Anabilla Akuka, known by the stage name, Lamisi, has been awarded in the Kingdom of the Netherlands for her exploits in alternative music and for promoting the rich Ghanaian culture to her global audience.
The musician was part of several distinguished individuals and other professionals in the diaspora awarded for flying high the flag of Ghana and contributing their quota to the country’s development in various ways.
The recognition of the musician by the Representative Council of Ghanaian Organisations in the Netherlands (RECOGIN) and the Embassy of Ghana in the Kingdom of the Netherlands happened on Saturday 11th March 2023 at Schepenbergweg in Amsterdam.
Presenting a plaque to the musician, His Excellency Francis Danti Kotia, Ghana’s Ambassador to the Kingdom of the Netherlands commended Lamisi for her great success over the years in representing her people and staying true to her culture, which is evident in her music, costuming, and performances.
“It is important we are doing this today as it shows great respect for you, the others, and the rules you have decided to live by. Honour helps us act in a way that lives up to high ideals, looks out for vulnerable people, and makes a way forward that is better than what has come before; better for everyone. We are convinced this is going to urge you to do more and we also believe that greater things are yet to come for you”, he added.
The ceremony was part of activities to mark the celebration of Ghana’s independence anniversary dubbed “Ghana @ 66 Celebration”, organised by RECOGIN and supported by the Embassy of Ghana in the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and Akwaaba Holland. Lamisi gave an outstanding performance to crown the ceremony.
By Harriet Ama Bampoe
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National Petroleum Authority (NPA) responds after Fameye reveals he was served with diluted fuel
Ghanaian musician, Fameye recently experienced a problem with contaminated fuel, and the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) has responded quickly to his situation. (more…)
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I’ll Emerge winner of VGMA “Best Rap Performance Again” – Lyrical Joe
Ghanaian rapper, Joesph Gamor, knwn by all in the entertainment fraternity as ‘Lyrical Joe’ has disclosed that he is confident of winning the ‘Best Rap Performance’ award at the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards, for the second time in a row. (more…)
Buzz
Funke Akindele deletes all politics related posts from IG Account After Losing Elections
Renowned Nigerian movie star, Funke Akindele has deleted all her Instagram posts relating to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) after the party lost drastically in the just-ended governorship election in Nigeria. (more…)
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