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At the recently held Miss Haynes Smith Caribbean Talented Teen Pageant , 18-year-old Neila Jones of Nevis won the title. The 36th annual event which was in held at the Sugar Mas Sugar Mill in Basseterre, St.Kitts saw 9 contestants across the Caribbean vying for the title. The First Runner up went to 16-year-old Lécresha Wallace of Dominica and Second Runner Up went to Miss Grenada, 18-year-old Aina Cenac , who also won Best Interview. Along with the title Jones also capped “ Best theatrical appearance ”, while Miss Jamaica, Jenelle Baldie, 18, was adjudged Miss Photogenic ; Best Performing Talent went to 17-year-old Jovoncia Proctor from Anguilla; and Miss USVI, 14-year-old Akira Pickering-Haynes took Best Evening Wear . The other remaining contestants were: Miss St. Kitts, 15-year-old Rikki Blake-Brookes, Miss Barbados, Beviny Payne, 16; and Miss St. Maarten, 13 year-old Jondalin Brown.

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts will honour Sir Sidney Poitier with the Fellowship at the EE British Academy Film Awards on Sunday 14 February. Awarded annually, the Fellowship is the highest accolade bestowed by BAFTA upon an individual in recognition of an outstanding and exceptional contribution to film, television or games. Fellows previously honoured for their work in film include Charlie Chaplin, Alfred Hitchcock, Steven Spielberg, Sean Connery, Elizabeth Taylor, Stanley Kubrick, Anthony Hopkins, Laurence Olivier, Judi Dench, Vanessa Redgrave, Christopher Lee, Martin Scorsese, Alan Parker and Helen Mirren. Mike Leigh received the Fellowship at last year’s Film Awards. Sidney Poitier said: “I am extremely honored to have been chosen to receive the Fellowship and my deep appreciation to the British Academy for the recognition.” Amanda Berry OBE, Chief Executive of BAFTA, said: “I’m absolutely thrilled that Sidney Poitier is to become a Fellow of BAFTA. Sidney is a luminary of film whose outstanding talent in front of the camera, and significant work in other fields, has made him one of the most important figures of his generation. His determination to pursue his dreams is an inspirational story for young people starting out in the industry today. By recognising Sidney with the Fellowship at the Film Awards on Sunday 14 February, BAFTA will be honouring one of cinema’s true greats.” Sir Sidney Poitier’s award-winning career features six BAFTA nominations, including one BAFTA win, and a British Academy Britannia Award for Lifetime Contribution to International Film. Poitier began his acting career on Broadway in the 1940s before moving to film in 1950, receiving his first credit as Dr Luther Brooks in No Way Out. He was the first African-American to play a wide range of leading roles; he was BAFTA-nominated for his performances in Edge of the City, A Raisin in the Sun, Lilies of the Field (for which he was the first African-American to win the Oscar for Best Actor in 1964), A Patch of Blue,In the Heat of the Night and The Defiant Ones, for which he won a BAFTA in 1959. His other acting credits include Blackboard Jungle, To Sir With Love, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, Sneakers, The Jackal and Porgy and Bess. Poitier was awarded an Honorary Oscar in 2002 “for his extraordinary performances and unique presence on the screen and for representing the industry with dignity, style and intelligence.” Poitier has also been nominated for seven Golden Globes, winning once, and was presented with the Cecil B DeMille Award in 1982. Alongside his illustrious acting career, Poitier has directed nine feature films including the Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder comedy, Stir Crazy, as well as Buck and the Preacher, Uptown Saturday Night and Fast Forward. In television, Poitier’s acting credits include Separate but Equal, Children of the Dustand, portaying Nelson Mandela, Mandela and de Klerk. As well as pushing the boundaries of his craft on screen, Poitier played an active role in the American civil rights campaign and served as Ambassador of the Bahamas to Japan and UNESCO from 1997 to 2007. In 1974, Queen Elizabeth II conferred a knighthood on Poitier, and in 2009 he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award of the USA, by President Obama. The EE British Academy Film Awards take place on Sunday 14 February at the Royal Opera House in London’s Covent Garden. Stephen Fry will be returning to host this year’s ceremony, which will be broadcast exclusively on BBC One in the UK and in all major territories around the world. On the night, www.bafta.org will feature red carpet highlights, photography and winners interviews, as well as dedicated coverage on its social networks including Facebook (/BAFTA), Twitter (@BAFTA / #EEBAFTAs), Tumblr and Instagram.

"It Is No Secret What God Can Do" is a song that will give you healing for your body and soul. This is a beautiful rendition by Saxophonist, Keven Bonfieldwas produced by Howell Allen

Rob Sheffield pays tribute to mercurial rock icon David Bowie. Zuma Planet Earth is a lot bluer today without David Bowie , the greatest rock star who ever fell to this or any other world. He was the hottest tramp, the slinkiest vagabond, the prettiest star who ever shouted "You're not alone!" to an arena full of the world's loneliest kids. He was the most human and most alien of rock artists, turning to face the strange, speaking to the freak in everyone. He stared into your twitchy teenage eyes to assure you that you've torn your dress and your face is a mess, yet that's precisely why you're a juvenile success. Whichever Bowie you loved best — the glam starman, the wispy balladeer, the Berlin archduke — he made you feel braver and freer, which is why the world felt different after you heard Bowie. This man's spaceship always knew which way to go. That's why he always inspired such fierce devotion. As a teenager in the Eighties, at home glued to my radio on Saturday because I couldn't get a ticket to the Bowie show in Boston, I listened as a group of WBCN DJs arrived at the studio fresh from the show, with a cigarette butt they'd swiped from an ashtray backstage. And I listened with goosebumps as they ceremonially smoked it on the air. Bowie fanatics are like that. Which is why so many different people have heard themselves in his music, whether it's Barbra Streisand covering "Life On Mars?" in 1974 or D'Angelo covering "Space Oddity" in 2012, George Clinton namechecking him on Mothership Connection or Public Enemy sampling him in "Night of the Living Baseheads." Somehow I really thought he'd outlive us all. After all, he'd outlived so many David Bowies before. The weekend he died, I was listening to nothing but Bowie. On Friday night, his birthday, I went to see the tribute band Holy Holy play The Man Who Sold the World in New York, with producer Tony Visconti on bass, original Spiders drummer Woody Woodmansey and Heaven 17 singer Glenn Gregory. After finishing the album, they did another solid hour of early Seventies Bowie classics from "Five Years" to "Watch That Man." Visconti had the crowd sing "Happy Birthday" into his phone and texted it to Bowie. "David's at his birthday party," he told us. "This isn't it." (Were we all secretly hoping maybe the Dame would show up? Of course we were.) I got weepy when Visconti's daughter sang "Lady Stardust," a song that has always made me verklempt because it's reminded me Bowie was going to die someday, though Friday night, that still seemed far away. I spent the rest of the weekend listening to Station to Station and Low — an ordinary weekend, since those are easily the two most-played albums in my apartment — along with the 1974 outtake "Candidate (Demo)," and of course the new Blackstar, an album which sounded very different 24 hours ago. As Visconti said last night when the news broke, Blackstar was a "parting gift." In his last couple of years on the planet, Bowie threw himself back into the music career everyone figured he'd long since retired from gracefully, making The Next Day and Blackstar as his farewells to the flock he'd assembled over the years. Heading for the final curtain, Bowie chose to face it the way he faced everything else — it was cold and it rained, so he felt like an actor and went to work, going out at a creative peak. No other rock artist left a final testament anything like this. Nor like the excellent off-Broadway musical he debuted last year, Lazarus, which I was lucky enough to see in December — definitely the only time I've ever seen actors sing "Heroes" while swimming like dolphins through a puddle of milk. For all his spaciness, it was his crackpot compassion that made him Bowie. You can see that even in a movie like The Man Who Fell to Earth, which barely has a single coherent scene. The movie is a mess, just because Bowie is too hot to share the screen with anyone — you can see all the other actors watching him, wondering, "Is David looking at me? Does he think I'm pretty? Does he respect my creative process?" Bowie's at his most zonked out, yet he still seems like the least confused figure there. But he looks so cool (orange hair! Borsalino hat! Trench coat and tennis whites and silver pants!) that I've seen this movie several dozen times anyway. As the Martian lodger stranded on earth, Bowie records an album for his wife back on his home planet, The Visitor, hoping it will get get played on the radio and his wife out there in space will hear it. That music — we never hear it in the movie — might have been the hazy cosmic jive Bowie hears on the radio in "Starman," the hit that made him a true star in the U.K. after years of false starts. He performed it on Top of the Pops, taped on July 5, 1972 and broadcast the next day, a scene witnessed by every future musician in the British Isles — everything halfway interesting in British rock goes back to that four minutes of glam, yet watching it today is still startling. The best portrait of Bowie in the 1970s remains the BBC documentary Cracked Actor, where he twitches, sniffles, sings along with Aretha Franklin in the back of his limo, and does his onstage Hamlet-in-shades routine, holding a skull in his hand and jamming his tongue down its throat. Suck, baby, suck. He hit Number One in the U.S. with the disco John Lennon collabo "Fame," which got instantly plundered by James Brown for "Hot" — making Bowie the rare rock star who could truthfully claim James Brown ripped him off. (Shortly before he died, the Godfather said that if he ever had a tribute album, Bowie would be his choice to do "Soul Power" — one of the weirdest things JB ever said.) His "plastic soul" period culminated at the 1975 Grammy Awards, where Bowie, looking dashing but scarily drug-ravaged in his tux, greeted the crowd: "Ladies and gentlemen — and others." He gave the Best R&B Performance trophy to Aretha Franklin, who gushed, "Wow, this is so good, I could kiss David Bowie! I mean that in a beautiful way, because we dig it!" Bowie and L.A. had a toxic fling — as he recalled, "I blew my nose one day and half my brains came out." But he was just beginning his most golden years, assembling the best band he ever had, probably the all-time greatest unnamed rock band: the core rhythm section of drummer Dennis Davis, bassist George Murray and guitarist Carlos Alomar. Armed with this crew, and other key collaborators like Tony Visconti and Brian Eno and Robert Fripp, Bowie made his five best albums in a five-year blaze from 1976 to 1980, the best five-album run of anyone in the Seventies (or since): Station to Station, Low, Heroes, Lodger and Scary Monsters. In this timespan, he also made the two albums that brought back Iggy Pop from the dead — The Idiot, prized by Bowie freaks as a rare showcase for his eccentric lead guitar, and Lust for Life — and his finest live album, Stage, from the 1978 tour, absurdly turning the ambient instrumentals from Low and Heroes into arena rock. As he put it at the time, "I'm using myself as a canvas and trying to paint the truth of our time on it. The white face, the baggy pants — they're Pierrot, the eternal clown putting across the great sadness of 1976." He returned in the Eighties with Let's Dance, moving in on the New Romantic pop he'd created in his own image, with genuinely great moments like "Criminal World" (covering the German Bowie clones Metro) and "Modern Love" (wailing that "church on time" call and response like his life depends on it). After a decade or so in the wilderness, he began writing strong songs again in the mid-Nineties, with Earthling and Hours, exploring what became the grand theme of his final phase — true love, the kind he'd found with Iman. "Looking for Satellites" on Earthling, "Seven" and "Thursday's Child" on Hours — sincere and soulful tunes, yet overlooked because it was hard to find them under all the cheezoid production glop. (Too bad he never got a chance to redo these songs with his more simpatico recent band.) But in the final 20 years of his life, he never made a weak album. Heathen, Reality, The Next Day and Blackstar were up to his own highest standards. But everything that made Bowie my hero — it's all there in "Young Americans," from 1974, a song of almost bottomless compassion. He belts it in his tortured Elvis voice, over grand glam-funk, a pushing-thirty limey rock star full of yearning and affection (and lust, lots of that) for the young Americans he sees around him. He wishes he could be as real and open-hearted as they are, but those kids are the song that makes him break down and cry. Especially the two lovers on the road, all the way from Washington, who pose a question anyone can relate to: "We've lived for just these 20 years — do we have to die for the 50 more?" Bowie's answer was no, and he proved it — he kept expanding and mutating right up to the edge of 70, celebrating his 69th birthday with an album that lived up to all the restless spirit he'd chased his whole career. He assured his fans we didn't have to give up on life, didn't have to play it safe, didn't have to fall into a rut — and he proved it was possible in his own music. (If he says he can do it, he can do it — he don't make false claims.) When I saw him live for the last time, at Madison Square Garden in 2003, he did three songs from Outside, a forgotten (and frankly awful) 1995 album he was fully aware nobody liked. Yet he was just obeying his code: a whole career without a predictable moment. What a trip to be a fan of his. Thanks, David Bowie. Source: Rollingstone

Hailing from the beautiful Island of Barbados Nikita’s music is a fusion of all sounds - R&B/Soul music, Pop, Alternative, always with the sweet base and music of the Caribbean. She is vision of Caribbean beauty and her voice will take you on an escape, to a world of soul, expression and richness that grips her every fibre as a Caribbean woman! Her sound is eclectic, with Caribbean rhythm at its base and fused with sounds of other genres, ultimately enveloping your ears with a sound that croons and sooths your soul. As destiny would have it, Nikita was born into a family of great singers and song competition winners, names synonymous with music in Barbados. It is no wonder that from age 4, she dominated the stage! That first performance at her pre-school graduation led to performances at school, church and family gatherings creating the foundation that has ultimately resulted in Nikita performing on almost every major stage in Barbados and dominating competitions along her path! In 2007, Nikita shared the stage with the Queen of Soul herself, Patti Labelle, at the Hilton Barbados; an opportunity that is revered by singers across the globe! Nikita has established a deep-seated presence in the hearts of Barbadians. For the last three years has serenaded tourists to the islands’ shores as the guest singer at the 5 star hotel, The Sandy Lane Hotel Barbados, known as the premier address of the region, hosting royalty, celebrities and the rich with the likes of Queen Elizabeth II, Oprah Winfrey and Tiger Woods. Nikita is intent on sharing her Barbadian voice and expression with the rest of world, warming hearts, provoking smiles and being the messenger of inspiration for her listeners. Red carpet moment at the Barbados Music awards 2016, where she took home the “Breakthrough Award” for her achievement

Lady Saw (Marion Hall) , the newly converted dancehall artist is set to perform at the One Love in the Park show slated for Valentine’s Day, February 14, 2016 at the Vincent Torres Park in Lauderdale Lakes. This will be Lady Saw’s first South Florida performance since she shocked the dancehall world with her baptism in December. The former dancehall artist, who has been known for her raw lyrics and R-rated onstage performances for decades, has vowed to put all of that behind her and sing for the Lord. Lady Saw will be joining headliner, veteran artist Leroy Sibbles , and a host of other performers for the 2nd annual show. According to promoters, they had booked Lady Saw prior to her conversion, but kept her on the bill because they knew she would fit right in with her gospel music, especially with another gospel artist in the lineup. “ This show will have something for everyone. It’s where reggae and R&B meet lover’s rock and gospel.” Fans who are expecting to hear hits such as “ Sycamore Tree” and “It’s Raining ” will be disappointed, but will get to see and hear the other side of the artist, who has shed the stage name Lady Saw , and is going by her given name, Marion Hall. She is expected to show off her admirable vocals in this debut gospel performance.

Reggae artist Sizzla released his new EP, “ Sizzla in Dub ,” Friday, January 8, 2016 on iTunes, Amazon and Spotify. The four-track EP exhibits dubstyle renderings of Sizzla’s culture hits, “ Vision,” “Burn It Down,” “One Day” and “Blessing Us, ” produced by Kemar “Flava” McGregor for the FM Records label. Born Miguel Orlando Collins on April 17, 1976 in Kingston, Jamaica, Sizzla is a top-selling reggae artist who has appeared on the Billboard Reggae Albums Chart 28 times between 1997 and 2014. His 2013 album, “ The Messiah ,” was nominated for “ Best Reggae Album ” at the 2014 Grammy Awards. He has released more than 70 albums during his career.

Naomi Campbell has joined the # BalmainArmy for their /Summer 2016 ad campaign shot by Steven Klein. Campbell, 45, joins Cindy Crawford, 49 and Claudia Schiffer, 45 as the stars of Balmain's spring/summer 16 campaign . These women looked stunning in the latest Balmain campaign. They were the original supermodels of the 90s and now Cindy, Naomi and Claudia prove they've still got it as they reunite for a sizzling fashion campaign.

There is something about Reggae music that stars divert from their main genre to sample or record it. Brazilian R&B artiste Negra Li diverted from regular recording to team up with her husband Jr Dread to do the song titled "Sunshine". CEO/Producer of Donsome Records, Adrian "Donsome" Hanson explains that it all came about when while listening to Jr Dread on the track he thought it needed 'a woman's touch'. And of course he didn't have to look any further than to the artiste's wife who is already an established singer, actress and model. Having recorded singles as well as being featured with Akon on 'Beautiful' and starring in the television musical Antonia. "I knew it would be perfect seeing that it is a love song. And I knew and loved her vocals on the song Beautiful the producer shared. After sending the beat to Jr Dread he came with a perfect love song that was just missing the female verse. I listened to his verse and in less than five minutes came up with the words that would match his lyrics and show a female's sincerity to her soul mate," he said of his penning input on the song. Negra Li was more than up to the task as this is not her first reggae flavoured song. "I always loved reggae music. And on all of my R&B albums I include a reggae song on it," she said. It is even more enjoyable as she gets to record with her husband whose response "It's always a joy and an honour because not only am I her husband but I'm also her biggest fan. Music is an integral part of our life," he said of the combination. 'Sunshine' a song about love blooming was the perfect fit for the couple and needless to say the chemistry was spot on from the natural love flow. Right now both husband and wife are focused on different projects with this one song in common, but as far as her husband is concerned ... you never know! More combinations could be in the works. With Reggae music being a powerful force in Brazil ... think Jimmy Cliff and other artistes that the country has embraced, it is not surprising that Negra Li admits her thoughts on reggae as being "one of the most powerful and beautiful music". "It always brings a positive and revolutionary message. And it doesn't matter if you are old or a baby, it's a sound that everyone loves," she shares. An admirer of the late reggae legend Bob Marley for his impact on the music of this century she also loves many artistes and groups such as Israel Vibration, Sizzla, Dezarie, Steel Pulse and Queen Omega to name a few. Although Negra Li is actively involved in dancing, acting, modeling and singer, for her nothing beats the music. "Cause it's a universal language that can last forever and influence people in a positive way. It helped me to be an actress and to be strong and passionate about life. The Brazilian beauty is presently recording her third album laced with a lot of influences. Her ultimate goal though is to one day do a full reggae project.

The annual Young View Awards (YVAs) will be held live on February 20th at the National Indoor Sports Centre Kingston. This year’s international guest artist is pop sensation Pia Mia , along with other local artist such as Vershon, Vanessa Bling, Dexta Daps, Devin Di Dakta, Christopher Martin, Bling Dwag and more! Pia Mia is an American singer, songwriter, and model from Guam and is best known for her song "Do It Again"(featuring Chris Brown andTyga) The elegant affair will hosted by Bambino & Bella Blair. For tickets and more information visit YVAs

The French Caribbean island is about to have a moment—here are four reasons to visit in 2016. Guadeloupe is, as Derek Zoolander might say, so hot right now. The French Caribbean island, often twinned with nearby Martinique, has always been popular with French tourists. Now, it has become easier than ever for Americans to visit thanks to new direct fares from New York and Boston on low-cost carrier Norwegian Air. The island is so buzzy that Condé Nast Traveler named it one of the top 16 places to visit in 2016. So, why should you book a ticket? Here are four reasons to go now. T'S EUROPE, BUT NOT. As an Overseas Department of France, Guadeloupe is officially part of the E.U., meaning that you can spend the leftover Euros from your last trip to the continent. It also means that the bulk of the travelers who visit are French nationals who come for weeks at a time thanks to generous vacation policies, particularly in the summers, so the accommodations lean more toward guesthouses and rented homes than expensive hotels or all-inclusive resorts. One thing to keep an eye out for: Most cars on the island are stick shift, so if you're not comfortable driving one you'll need to book an automatic as far ahead as possible, since most of the rental agencies only have a few. You'll also be able to stock up on French products like La Roche-Posay sunscreens. Photo by Corrie Vierregger Pigeon, Basse Terre THERE'S A BEACH FOR EVERYONE. Guadeloupe may be small, but it has a wide range of beach options. In the town of Sainte-Anne, there's a white sand beach (no pebbles in sight) just a two-minute walk from shops and cafes, which makes it a good option for people who want to multitask or mixed groups who want options. Near the capital of Basse-Terre are black sand beaches like Malendure, whose turquoise-turned-cobalt waters are reminiscent of Lake Tahoe. The beaches at Pearl Beach are ringed with beautiful coral formations, and Courvelle Beach's clear, still waters draw snorkelers from around the world. AND THERE'S ALSO A GROWING CULTURAL SCENE. On a rainy day (more likely, a rainy afternoon, as the humidity often breaks following a shower around 3 or 4 p.m.), check out the Mémorial ACTe museum, which opened in summer 2015 near the airport in Pointe-a-Pitre. Housed in a stunning lattice-work building, the multimedia exhibits discuss the history of the slave trade around the Caribbean. Also in Pointe-a-Pitre is a the Musée Sainte-John Perse, which honors the Guadeloupe-born poet who went on to win the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1960. YOU CAN LEARN FRENCH AND EAT FROMAGE... WHILE SIMULTANEOUSLY WORKING ON YOUR TAN. Sure, it's fun to study French in Paris. But if it's the middle of winter and strolling the Seine doesn't seem quite as appealing as usual, you can always practice your parlez-vous while lying on a beach, getting a tan, and sipping a rum punch (often at the same time). The France-meets-Caribbean vibe means you can enjoy fancy cheeses and pastries while also wearing shorts and flip-flops. For French-Creole fusion at its best, head to the restaurant Le Mabouya dans le Bouteille in the lively Marina de Saint-François: the fish dishes are changed based on the day's catch and the dry French wines are stored in one of the island's few climate-controlled cellars. Written by Lilit Marcus Cntraveler

Last night Lip Sync Battle kicked off its second season and it was a night to remember. This must-see episode of the season featured Channing Tatum vs. his wife, Jenna Dewan Tatum . Channing competed against his wife, Jenna, on Thursday’s night’s episode of Lip Sync Battle with “ Run the World (Girls) ” the actor brought his A-game dressed like Queen Bey herself in a wig, thigh-highs, fringe booty shorts, a bra as a top, and some sort of necklace-belt torture-contraption-as-fashion. Beyoncé joined in on the epic the performance. Jenna herself gave a not so PG 13 performance of emulating her husband’s Magic Mike character for a lip-sync performance of Ginuwine’s “Pony” that included a little bit of a lap dance. In the end the host, LL Cool J declared the competition a tie. Hosted by LL Cool J and Chrissy Teigen Lip Sync Battle is on Spike tv Thursdays at 10 PM EST Who do you think should have won?