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Jazz 91.9 WCLK | Membership Matters

UPFRONT featuring Nikk Nelson, Morris Robinson and Jamil Jude (AUDIO)

This week's edition of UPFRONT Inside the Entertainment Industry is all about #BlackExcellence. It features three African-American men at the top of their game in television, opera, and theater. 

Celebrity Hairstylist Nikk Nelson stops by to chat about creating looks for ABC's new fall series, "Queens." The show features Grammy winning music diva Brandy, hip hop icon EVE, "Power" actress and singer Naturi Naughton and "Major Crimes" starlet Nadine Velazquez. The show follows the four women in their 40s, who reunite for a chance to recapture their fame as “Queens” of hip hop. Nelson talks about working with Brandy and new hair trends for the fall.   

International Opera star Morris Robinson is here to chat about teaming up with the Atlanta Opera for the https://vimeo.com/636572499">96-Hour Opera Project. The opportunity allows BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, Asian-American, Pacific Islander, Arab-American, Latin-American or other communities of color) composers and librettists four days to write and stage an all-new 10-minute opera based on a Georgia story. The winning team will receive $10,000 and a commission to write a production for the Atlanta opera.  Applications will be available on December 1, 2021 and the competition runs from June 17 to June 20, 2022. Finals will be open to the public and held at Morehouse College's Ray Charles Center for the Performing Arts on Monday, June 20, 2022. CLICK HERE for more information.  

Closing out the show is my exclusive conversation with Jamil Jude, Artistic Director of Kenny Leon's True Colors Theatre Company. He is here to chat about the new season of productions including Marie &Rosetta (November 30-December 30), Raisin (February 8-March 13) and Fannie: The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer (June 14-July 10). 

UPFRONT is hosted and produced by Ray Cornelius for WCLK 91.9 and is recorded from the campus of Clark Atlanta University. The show is presented by The High Museum of Art and The Obama Portraits Tour coming in January. Tickets on Sale Monday October 25.