Tag: music industry

Mayor Urges Witnesses to Come Forward After Takeoff Shooting, Revenge or Nah?

November 2, 2022 soexquizit Celebrity News, Hip Hop, Music Industry 0 Comments

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Mayor (Sylvester Turner) of Houston is asking witnesses to help the authorities to identify takeoff’s killer. This will prevent additional violence associated to the Migos rappers deadly shooting. Takeoff’s death was discussed at a press conference on Tuesday, November 1, 2022. Mayor turner urged witnesses to speak with police if they attended the private event where rapper takeoff was fatally shot.

Message from Mayor Turner:

“I want again to plead to the persons who were there who have information on who the shooters were,“ Turner said. “Give HPD and law-enforcement information so we can solve this situation sooner rather than later. So you don’t have others out there trying to solve it for themselves. OK? We owe that to Takeoff’s mom and to the family.“

Turner continued to say, “and I want the mother to know and the family members to know that this city is praying for them. And we value their family member’s life, and we intend to solve it. And that’s why we are standing here. We intend to solve it because these types of shootings just can’t happen and then we move on to the next one.“

A 24-year-old woman and 23-year-old men were taken to local hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries, the police said. The shooting occurred after a private party had ended at 810 Billard’s & Bowling, as a large group of about 40 people gathering near the front door on the third level an argument occurred and shots were fired from at least two weapons, leading to many people fleeing, as police stated.

Chief Finner stated, “We have no reason to believe that he was involved in anything criminal at the time.“ No suspects have been arrested so far, the authorities said. They are requesting witnesses who left the scene to come forward with any additional information they might have.

“Sometimes the hip-hop community gets a bad name, “Chief Finner said. “I’m calling up on everybody — Are hip-hop artists in Houston and around the nation — we’ve got two police ourselves. There are so many talented individuals, men and women, in that community, who again I love and I respect, and we all need to stand together and make sure no one tears down that industry.“

Kirsnik Khari Ball was Takeoff’s real name. On Tuesday morning he was shot and killed at Houston bowling alley. Chief Troy Finner of HPD confirmed the rapper’s death during a news conference on Tuesday afternoon. Takeoff was 28 years old.

References:

France, L. R., Melas, C., & Vera, A. (2022, November 2). Takeoff, member of rap group Migos, fatally shot outside private party in Houston, police say. CNN. Retrieved November 2, 2022, from https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/01/entertainment/takeoff-migos-dead/index.html

Ivey, J. (2022, November 2). Mayor pleads for police cooperation after takeoff shooting, not revenge. AllHipHop. Retrieved November 2, 2022, from https://allhiphop.com/news/mayor-pleads-for-police-cooperation-after-takeoff-shooting-not-revenge/

Coscarelli, J., & Goodman, J. D. (2022, November 1). Takeoff, of Atlanta Rap Trio Migos, shot dead at 28. The New York Times. Retrieved November 2, 2022, from https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/01/arts/music/takeoff-migos-dead.html

Composed by IG @Soexquizit

Coolio Dies at age 59

October 1, 2022 admin Hip Hop, Music Industry Comments Off on Coolio Dies at age 59

Coolio, pictured on September 08, 2022.

 

Coolio reached his peak in the 90’s topping the charts with hits such as “Gangsta’s Paradise” and “Fantastic Voyage” Coolio’s friend and manager Jarez Posey notified CNN on Thursday, September 29th, 2022 of the celebrity rapper’s passing. The circumstances that brought about this tragic loss is still unknown. 

Here were the details after CNN contacted the authorities to verify. Capt. Erik Scott of the Los Angeles Fire Department confirmed that firefighters and paramedics responded to a call on the 2900 block of South Chesapeake Ave. at 4 p.m. local time for reports of a medical emergency. When they arrived, they found an unresponsive male and performed “resuscitation efforts for approximately 45 minutes.” The patient was determined dead just before 5:00pm on the day of his passing

The autopsy did not show any cause for Coolio’s death. Authorities are conducting further investigations on the cause of death. 

“We are saddened by the loss of our dear friend and client,” a statement provided to CNN from Coolio’s talent manager Sheila Finegan said.

“He touched the world with the gift of his talent and will be missed profoundly. Thank you to everyone worldwide who has listened to his music and to everyone who has been reaching out regarding his passing. Please have Coolio’s loved ones in your thoughts and prayers.”

Actor Lou Diamond Phillips also offered his condolences by sharing some memories of the artist.

“I am absolutely stunned. Coolio was a friend and one of the warmest, funniest people I’ve ever met. We spent an amazing time together making Red Water in Capetown and we loved going head to head in the kitchen. He was one of a kind. Epic, Legendary and I’ll miss him,” Phillips said in a tweet.

Former NBA player Matt Bonner also recalled time spent with Coolio, saying in a Twitter post the rapper was a “huge hoops fan… we hosted him at a game a few years back… biggest crowd of all-time at a Spurs Overtime concert.”

Coolio was raised in Compton, California, according to a bio on his official website.

Coolio spoke to the Los Angeles Times in 1994, he talked about how he had overcome his drug habits by becoming a firefighter. He ran every day and learned lots of discipline by changing his lifestyle.

“I wasn’t looking for a career, I was looking for a way to clean up – a way to escape the drug thing,” he told the publication. “It was going to kill me and I knew I had to stop. Firefighting training was the discipline I needed. We ran every day. I wasn’t drinking or smoking or doing the stuff I usually did.” – Coolio

Coolio started his career rapping in the 80’s, he was well known in the underground scene. “Fantastic Voyage” put Coolio on the map in the world of music. He then released “Gangsta’s Paradise” from the “Dangerous Minds” movie soundtrack. The late artist received a Grammy in 1996 for the song. 

Coolio’s music will still continue to thrive and be shared in this digital world. With streaming apps and platforms like YouTube Coolio’s music will live on and so will his talent and legacy. In July 2022, the song reached a milestone of one billion views on YouTube.

Because he didn’t use any slang or trendy words in his songs, Coolio referred to his music as being timeless. Learn more in this recent interview. In his career Coolio has sold over 17 million records in his career.

Coolio has made many tv appearances as well on “Celebrity Cook Off’ and “Celebrity Chopped”. He also has a place in the heart of many millennials with his work on the theme song of the show Kenan and Kel, and Dexter’s Laboratory. 

Coolio has definitely left his mark on the world and will be remembered throughout history. 

Rest well Coolio.

 

Written By IG@ Soexquizit
Gonzalez, S. (2022, September 29). Coolio, ‘gangsta’s paradise’ rapper, dead at 59. CNN. Retrieved September 30, 2022, from https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/28/entertainment/coolio-obit/index.html CNN’s Megan Thomas, Cheri Mossburg and Taylor Romine contributed to this CNN report.

JCole Keeps his word and attends a fans graduation ceremony!

June 12, 2022 admin Hip Hop, Music Industry 0 Comments


In 2013, JCole met a die hard fan. He promised to attend her graduation if she kept up all of her grades. JCole is definitely a man of integrity who keeps his word to his fans. After making this promise about a decade ago. JCole kept his promise and attended the high school graduation.

Recently Cierra Bosarge completed college with good grades. Not only did JCole attend the high school graduation, but attended her college graduation ceremony this year as well.

Cierra first reached out to the rapper in 2013 hoping that he would wish her a happy birthday. She finally got a response 3 months later.

“He was like, ‘I know it’s like three months late, but happy birthday.’” Cierra told Complex in 2015. “He laughed at me when I was crying but he said when he comes to Philly he wanted to meet me.”

https://youtu.be/NSvSIfMJySI

Written by IG@Soexquizit

Have you met Dave Mitchell?

May 13, 2022 admin Music Industry 0 Comments

 

Mr. Mitchell started his journey in music at the young age of six years old. His parents listened to lots of great music all the time in their home. Dave’s favorite song is from the Michael Jackson album “Off the Wall” the song is called “Can’t Help It”. Dave experienced what he called a “celestial” feeling from this song particularly. The feeling from this song had a huge impact on Dave. Anything that made him feel this way he wanted to be around it. Shortly after this experience Dave’s mother became the entertainment manager at the Playboy club in Chicago. She soon began to work with a band that started having rehearsals at their home.

At this time Dave started to really develop a love for the drums. The band fascinated him, knowing that all the different instruments had to come together and created a musical euphoria. He realized that the drums are literally the heartbeat of the band. Dave began to watch and study the drummer learning to anticipate his routine and musical pattern. Before long, Dave started playing the songs they were rehearsing. Dave believes that God saw his curiosity and growing passion for music. He was blessed with the opportunity to play drums with several musical artists and groups in Chicago.

While attending a new church in the Chicagoland area Dave began helping the ministry by selecting the music to play after service was concluded. After a year of assisting the audio ministry. The drummer shared with Dave, that he was leaving, and was not coming back. This was a complete shock for Dave, and the audio Ministry was turned over to him immediately. Dave felt some anxiety about it but didn’t let that stop him. He was 14 years old when he started his audio engineer journey. His new responsibility was exciting and nerve wrecking at the same time. Dave had lots of on-the-job training, but no formal experience or training outside of the church.

Today Dave has over 35 years of sound and music production experience. Dave realized over the years that sound is the most important part of any event or organization. Dave made so many friends in the TV/Video world and hadn’t realized how much they had influenced him. Around this time Dave was presented with an opportunity to produce a promo video for one of his sisters in Florida. It was then that Dave realized he had a love and attraction for media. Dave utilized his education from Columbia College in Chicago, along with his resources. Because of the relationships he built, Dave has mentors to share wisdom, advise, and examples with him.

Dave was exposed to business through his church youth program called “Partners” this was an impactful experience for everyone who participated. Dave learned business principals, took field trips, and learned things like how to conduct a sales pitch, and run a business. Dave won the “Top Salesman Award” during their sales competition. The person who sold the most cartons of eggs won. It meant a lot to Dave to win that competition even up to this day.
One of the assignments in the partners group was to create a vision board. Dave’s board consisted of music studio’s, music, audio, media, and business. All the things on Dave’s vision board have manifested. “Dreams will come true when you trust God, put in the work, patience, and persistence”, says Dave. Today he owns a company called Renewed Mind Inc. Its business model is comprised of 5 M’s: Music, Media, Marketing, Management, and Mentorship.

Dave recently partnered with a men’s skincare line called Dion Michaels. That opportunity allowed him to produce commercials that were to be aired nationwide. David has been truly blessed to do what he is passionate about while serving others with his skills, gifts, and talents. “It was a struggle because of the lack of resources. I struggled with being patient and being ok with the process of growth and development.”

What does success mean to you?

“I really believe that things aren’t always easy, but they’re worth it.”

“I’m most proud that I get to do what I love, the very thing I said to myself as a child was to be around music to stay connected to that magic feeling and being an example to my daughter to pursue the dreams that move you. What sets me apart from others is my relentless pursuit of vision and wanting to help others pursue theirs as well.”

I define success as reaching maximum potential, along with happiness.

Contact Info:

  • Email: dave@renewedmindinc.com
  • Website: renewedmindinc.com
  • Instagram: @renewedmindinc
  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/renewedmindinc
  • Twitter: https://twitter.com/renewedmindinc
  • SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/renewedmindmusic
  • Other: https://tinyurl.com/RenewYourMindBook

Reference:

Stories, L. (2022, February 21). Rising stars: Meet Dave Mitchell. VoyageRaleigh Magazine | Raleigh’s Most Inspiring Stories. Retrieved May 12, 2022, from https://voyageraleigh.com/interview/rising-stars-meet-dave-mitchell/

R-Kelly Case Update: The Judge is telling him No, But His Attorney is Telling Him Yes…

May 5, 2022 admin Music Industry 0 Comments

R-Kelly is currently facing a life sentence for racketeering. He is scheduled for two court dates. One in Brooklyn on June 15th and August 1st in Chicago. Kelly’s lawyer Jennifer Bonjean is an attorney with Chicago roots who helped to free Bill Cosby recently. Bonjean filed a motion Monday to get some of the pending charges against Kelly dismissed. The singer is charged with child pornography and obstruction of justice in the Chicago federal court. Bonjean reached out to the federal Judge in Brooklyn to request them to change the date for the June 15th court date until after the August 1st trial in Chicago. The Brooklyn Judge refused to postpone Kelly’s sentencing. He is not waiting until after the August trial is completed.

Bonjean is challenging the courts saying the crimes R-Kelly was accused of were past the statute of limitations, so they should not have been able to hold up in court. 2009 was the last year that Kelly could have been convicted of any crimes regarding these allegations.                 

  

The Sun Times Chicago wrote, “For now, Kelly is locked up in a federal detention center in New York.

Bonjean’s new motion targets counts alleging that Kelly exploited a minor to create child pornography in 1998 and 1999, sought to obtain child pornography between 2001 and 2007, and committed other sex crimes between 1996 and 2001.

She argued that the statute of limitations largely expired on those counts around 2009, a decade before Kelly’s federal indictment in Chicago.

“In its recently discovered enthusiasm to prosecute Mr. Kelly, the government reaches back a quarter century to bring charges of sexual abuse and receiving child pornography that have been long time-barred,” Bonjean wrote.”

Was R-Kelly lying about not being guilty? I guess his “Body was Calling” the experts. Take a look and let’s see what they have to say.

                                (Source: Sun-Times Media Wire – Copyright Chicago Sun-Times 2022.)     

 

Created by @Soexquizit   

Is 6ix9ine Broke, or was it a Joke?

April 26, 2022 admin Hip Hop 0 Comments

It seems like Takashi is facing some sort of financial hard ship even though he claims to be crazy rich. I have heard about famous rap artist in the music industry getting loaner cars, chains, and clothes. Are they using prop money now? Honestly! I don’t think this is anything new. Rappers have to have a certain type of image to be a relevant mainstream artist.

Apparently, Takashi may have to pay some sort of fines and damages for a bold daylight robbery he was a part of in New Yorks Time Square back in 2018. He eligibly robbed Seketha Wonzer and Kevin Dozier they are now suing Takashi for losing their jobs due to the mental anguish and crime that had taken place violated them. The pair won the case by default because Takashi did not show up or respond in time to defend himself on time. After the judgment was set in the plaintiff’s favor Takashi then showed to court to speak to the Judge telling them that he was broke, and he could barely see his family. He said, that the pandemic has affected his touring dates and recently he has found it very difficult to book dates.

Shortly after Takashi was seen in a music video counting millions of dollars, and showing off his expensive car collection. Seketha Wonzer and Kevin Dozier’s lawyers got wind of the video and recently told the judge that Takashi’s actions demonstrate his total lack of remorse for his role in the robbery.

“Despite subsequently informing the media that the funds displayed were fictitious, the fact remains that [6ix9ine] brazenly boasted about being rich after having committed serious federal offenses. Indeed, that boast, in and of itself, clearly shows 6ix9ine’s total lack of remorse. [6ix9ine,] adding insult to injury, belittles the anguish of his victims by touting his stability and success. And, worse, he did so as part of his entertainment business and is actually financially capitalizing upon it,” Wonzer and Dozier’s lawyer Matthew G. DeOreo told Judge Jennifer E. Willis.

The pair claim Takashi is also threatening them in the lyrics to “GINÉ” where he raps:

“Run up on a n####, gimme that Where your jewelry at ? Stupid little n####, gimme that/Where your blicky at?/Pull up on em’ make it brrrrrraaaaaattt/B#### you know that when I see you, we gonna make it brrrrrraaaaaattt“

Robert S. Meloni, who is defending 6ix9ine against Seketha Wonzer and Kevin Dozier’s claims, has already replied.

Meloni claims 6ix9ine’s “generic” lyrics are protected by his first amendment rights. He also denied that the lyrics in “GINÉ” are directed at Wonzer and Dozier.

“While the lyrics may be coarse and generally offensive in polite society, there is no support at all that plaintiffs are the subject of the song ‘GINÉ’s’ lyrics,” he told Judge Willis. 6ix9ine’s lawyer doubled down on the rapper’s desperate financial situation as well.

Like 6ix9ine, Meloni said the money in the Instagram video was fake.

Reference: Winslow, M. W. (2022, April 22). Tekashi 6ix9ine Fake Money. All Hip Hop. Retrieved April 25, 2022, from https://allhiphop.com/news/6ix9ine-digging-out-of-financial-hole-says-lawyer/

Written by IG @Soexquizit

Do Scam Rappers REALLY Scam?

March 1, 2022 admin Music Industry 0 Comments

TeeJayx6

What is scam rap?

Scam rap is a technological cultural shift towards psychological data driven crime. This Detroit kid Teejayx6 a.k.a “Teejay Witherspoon” started off his scam career by deceiving adults on Twitter at the age of 12. “I used to make a fake warehouse page, saying I was a store,” he said in a recent No Jumper interview. “I’d put a fake location in the bio area thing, then I’d post Xboxes, TVs, everything on there – sell them for like $500.” He called this an “original scam” that was supposedly common that everyone did. My question is, did he do any scamming? Is the actual scam making other people believe that he was scamming and could help them scam too? At about 15 or 16 Teejayx6 decided to combine rapping and scamming since he always wanted to rap. “If you ain’t got no money bro, trust me you can’t be stressin. I’m about to teach you how to swipe from these little lessons.” In his song  “Swipe Lesson”  Teejayx6 explains step by step how to scam. This June 2019 track taught people how to credit scam.

Teejayx6 was supposedly never arrested for any crimes! How is this possible. Fans thought he had been arrested during a live concert when U.S. Marshalls showed up, hand cuffed him and escorted him off stage. Later fans found out the arrest at the concert was staged to make noise and headlines. This is something to think about. How is it that other scam rappers such as “Shitty Boyz” “Woods a.k.a “_selfmadekash” on IG. Other scam rappers have been arrested and prosecuted for their scam crimes. How is it that Teejayx6 has never been prosecuted or done prison time? He had private meeting where he would coach people on the art of scamming and air drop them information and resources. Maybe the feds can’t build a case on Teejayx6? He was asked during an interview do you care about your fans getting into trouble or being prosecuted for crimes they committed? He tells the interviewer no he doesn’t care, and they shouldn’t have gotten caught! Teejayx6 has supposedly claimed well over $10 million from his scamming activities. How long will he be able to continue scamming and not get caught? Maybe it’s just a marketing tactic. What do you think?

There is another group featured on World Star Hip hop. They call themselves G4Boyzb they are culturally of Ghanian and Nigerian descent. They talk about how scamming is the only way for them. They rap about how they scam online and use people to get their money. In the song “Scam Likely” they talk about how they go fishing on Tinder. They reference how tough and persistent they must be to get what they want from people. They spoke about getting gift cards to use and buy things from Walmart. This was expressed in their song called “In Scam We Trust” In some cases, these scammers may not even be overseas but your “Local Scammer.” As the song said, “I gon take my time, I gon date online” be especially careful if you are into online dating. These scammers have no remorse or care for you it’s all bout the next dollar so don’t answer if it says, “Scam Likely.”

G4 Boyz

If you were ever scammed, please report it. You can report all scams and fraudulent activities to The Federal Trade Commission. You can also contact The Office of the Inspector General to open an investigation. You may be able to help prevent someone else from being scammed or taken advantage of.

Written by IG @Soexquizit

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References

“First He’ll Scam You, Then He’ll Rap About It” Video: https://youtu.be/MA6AXTnc4sc

What Is Scam Rap? (vice.com)

Women in the 60’s who are relevant in the music and entertainment Industry?

February 13, 2022 admin Music Industry 0 Comments

 

Women have held very prominent positions in the entertainment industry for some time. Check out this article on Suzanne Celeste de Passe an American Businesswoman, television, music, and film producer. Suzanne was born July 19th, 1946, in New York to a Harlem born mother from Jamaican descent, and a father of Haitian and French descent. Suzanne grew up in Harlem. She attended Manhattan High School, and later graduating from Syracuse University. Suzanne started her career at Cheetah night club in New York. Suzanne’s friend Cindy Birdsong who had just joined the Supremes in 1967, after Florence Ballard left the group. Suzanne worked under the Motown founder Berry Gordy as one of his Star Executives. Her starting position there was Creative Assistant to Gordy. Suzanne’s first act was Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5. She oversaw developing them as artists. Suzanne managed their grooming, wardrobe, and took their act to the road.  Growing with steady experience and drive Suzanne rose to the rank of Motown’s CEO. Suzanne was the subject of two Harvard Business School case studies:  “Suzanne de Passe and Motown Productions” and “De Passe Entertainment”, Suzanne has lectured at the Harvard Business School on a few occasions. Her career is so huge and vast with so many accomplishments. Look at her interview with Josh Flagg. She shares so many great moments with us.

 

 

See all of Suzanne’s achievements over the years.

  • The Temptations, NBC, four hours, 1998, de Passe Entertainment. NAACP Image Award Winner for Best Miniseries. (Nominated for six Emmy Awards, including Best Mini-Series and won an Emmy for Best Director.) Also nominated for a Golden Globe and won the Producers Guild Award; Directors Guild Award; and Prism Award. Starring: Leon, Charles Malik Whitfield, DB Woodside, Terron Brooks and Christian Payton.
  • Dead Man’s Walk (miniseries), ABC, five hours, 1996, de Passe Entertainment. Starring: Edward James Olmos, Keith Carradine, Brian Dennehy and F. Murray Abraham.
  • Buffalo Girls, CBS, four hours, 1995, de Passe Entertainment. Nominated for eleven Emmy Awards, including Best Miniseries and Best Actress. Starring Anjelica Huston, Melanie Griffith, Reba McEntire, Sam Elliott and Jack Palance.
  • Streets of Laredo (miniseries), CBS, five hours, 1995, de Passe Entertainment. Starring: James Garner, Sissy Spacek, Sam Shepard and Sonia Braga.
  • Return to Lonesome Dove, CBS, four hours, 1993, Motown Productions. Starring: Jon Voight, Barbara Hershey, Rick Schroder and Louis Gossett Jr. and William Petersen.
  • The Jacksons: An American Dream, ABC, five hours, 1992, Motown Productions. Nominated for multiple Emmy Awards, including Best Miniseries. Starring: Angela Bassett, Billy Dee Williams, and Vanessa Williams as Suzanne.
  • Lonesome Dove (miniseries), CBS, eight hours, 1989, Motown Productions. Emmy, Golden Globe, Peabody Award-winning miniseries. Named “Outstanding Program of the Year” by Television Critics Association, Best Miniseries in TV Guide Annual Readers Choice Awards, D.W. Griffith Award by National Board of Review. Among other honors, the success of this landmark western resulted in de Passe’s induction into the Cowboy Hall of Fame. “Lonesome Dove” was based on Larry McMurtry’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Starring: Robert Duvall, Tommy Lee Jones and Anjelica Huston.
  • Small Sacrifices, ABC, four hours, 1989, Motown Productions. Nominated for three Emmy Awards, including Best Miniseries and two Golden Globe Awards. Winner of the Peabody Award. Based on Ann Rule’s best-selling book. Starring: Farrah Fawcett, Ryan O’Neal and John Shea.

Series

  • Producer King: The upcoming DreamWorks motion picture on the life of Martin Luther King Jr. with Steven Spielberg and Madison Jones.
  • Executive Producer, the upcoming series, Becoming KK Jones, Fox Television Network
  • Executive Producer, Life Changerstelevision series with superstar music producer, Rodney Jerkins (Lady Gaga, Beyoncé)
  • Producer, Humpty Dumpty

Television movies

Network

  • The Loretta Claiborne Story– Two-hour, 2000, Disney/ABC Sunday Night, de Passe Entertainment.
  • Someone Else’s Child– Two-hour, 1998, ABC, de Passe Entertainment.
  • The Last Electric Knight– (AKA Sidekicks) – Two-hour, 1989, ABC, Motown Productions.
  • Bridemaids– Two-hour, 1989, CBS, Motown Productions.
  • Happy Endings– Two-hour, 1983, CBS, King Entertainment, Motown Productions.

Cable

  • Zenon: Z3– Two-hour, 2004, The Disney Channel, de Passe Entertainment.
  • Zenon: The Zequel– Two-hour, 2001, The Disney Channel, de Passe Entertainment. When it aired, the movie had the highest-ever rating for a Disney Channel original movie. Premiered January 2001 with 3.3 rating/6 share.
  • Cheaters– Two-hour, 2000, HBO Films, de Passe Entertainment.
  • Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century– Two-hour, 1999, The Disney Channel, de Passe Entertainment.

Specials

  • Executive Producer, Commander In Chief’s Inaugural Ball for President Barack Obama.
  • 70th Anniversary Tribute to the Apollo Theatre: Two-hour, 2004, NBC, de Passe Entertainment.
  • Motown 40: The’
  • ‘Music is Forever, Four-hour documentary 1998, ABC, de Passe Entertainment. Executive Producer & Writer.
  • Motown 30: What’s Goin’ On, Two-hour, 1990, CBS, Motown Productions, and Emmy Award Nominee. Executive Producer & Writer.
  • Motown: Merri X-Mas, One-hour, 1987, ABC, Motown Productions.
  • Motown Returns to the Apollo, Three-hour, 1985, NBC, Motown Productions. Emmy Award winner for best variety Program. NAACP Image Award winner. Executive Producer & Writer.
  • Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever, Two-hour, 1983, NBC, Motown Productions, Emmy Award winner for best variety program. Winner of NAACP Image Award and Peabody Award. Executive Producer & Writer.
  • Motown on Showtime: – Smokey Robinson – One-hour, 1990, Showtime, Motown Productions. – Comedy on Campus – One-hour, 990, Showtime, Motown Productions. – Michael Jackson – One-hour, 1988, Showtime, Motown Productions. – Marvin Gaye – One-hour, 1987, Showtime, Motown Productions. – Temptations and Four Tops – One-hour, 1986, Showtime, Motown Productions

Series

  • Sister, Sister: Half-hour sitcom – 122 episodes completed, 1995–1999, ABC/The WB, de Passe Entertainment. Starring: Tia and Tamera Mowry, Tim Reid and Jackee Harry.
  • Smart Guy: Half-hour sitcom – 51 episodes completed, 1996–1999, The WB, de Passe Entertainment. Starring: Tahj Mowry, John Marshall Jones, Jason Weaver, Omar Gooding and Essence Atkins.
  • On Our Own: Half-hour sitcom – 19 episodes completed, 1994–1995, ABC, de Passe Entertainment. Starring: The Smollet Family.
  • The Motown Revuestarring Smokey Robinson: Six one-hour episodes, 1986, NBC, Motown Productions. Starring: Smokey Robinson.

First-run syndication

  • Showtime at the Apollo: 130 one-hour episodes completed, variety program format. 2002–Present. Syndicated through Warner Brothers/Telepictures.
  • Lonesome Dove, The Outlaw Years: 44 one-hour episodes completed, western drama, 1994-1996. Starring: Eric McCormack, Scott Bairstow and Paul Le Mat.
  • Night Life: (195) half-hour episodes, talk show. 1986-87. Hosted by David Brenner.

Award programs

  • 2006 Black Movie Awards: A Celebration of Black Cinema: Past, Present, & Future. A 90-minute special which aired nationally on Turner Network Television (TNT) October 18, 2006. Hosted by Tyler Perry
  • 2005 Black Movie Awards: A Celebration of Black Cinema: Past, Present, & Future.A 90-minute special which aired nationally on Turner Network Television (TNT) October 19, 2005. Hosted by Cedric the Entertainer
  • 34th NAACP Image Awards, Two-hour special, 2003 FOX, de Passe Entertainment. Hosted by Cedric the Entertainer.
  • 2003 Essence Awards, Two-hour special, FOX, de Passe Entertainment.
  • 2002 Essence Awards, Two-hour special, FOX, de Passe Entertainment. Hosted by Steve Harvey
  • 33rd NAACP Image Awards, Two-hour special, 2002, FOX, de Passe Entertainment. Hosted by Chris Tucker
  • 32nd NAACP Image Awards, Two-hour special, 2001, FOX, de Passe Entertainment. Hosted by Chris Tucker
  • MUSIC and MORE…Image Awards, One-hour special, 2001, WB, de Passe Entertainment. Hosted by Sinbad and Brandy.[15]

Awards

The recipient of an Academy Award nomination for co-writing the screenplay Lady Sings the Blues making her the first person of color to be nominated for Best Original Screenplay, as well as the first black woman nominated in any category besides an acting category.[2] De Passe also won two Emmy Awards and NAACP Image Awards as executive producer of Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever and Motown Returns to the Apollo. De Passe served as executive producer for the highly acclaimed and multiple award-winning, CBS western miniseries Lonesome Dove, that won both Golden Globe and Peabody Awards and was voted “Outstanding Program of the Year” by the Television Critics Association.

As executive producer of the benchmark NBC miniseries The Temptations, de Passe won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Miniseries and was nominated for both the Golden Globe Award and Emmy Award for Best Miniseries. She also served as Executive Producer for Small Sacrifices, The Jacksons: An American Dream and Buffalo Girls, all of which were nominated for the Emmy Award for Best Miniseries.[16]

A veteran of over three decades in Hollywood, generating over a billion dollars in revenue in the entertainment industry, and dividing her time and talent between Los Angeles and New York, de Passe has also received countless awards for her contributions to the television, movie and music industries including:

  • Essence: Hollywood Women of Power Visionary Award (2008)
  • Savannah Film Festival Lifetime Achievement Award (2008)
  • Black Enterprise Top 50 Hollywood Power Brokers (2007)
  • The AWRT (American Women in Radio and Television) Silver Satellite Award (1999);
  • Revlon Business Woman of the Year Award (1994);
  • Inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame (1990);
  • Essence Award (1989); and
  • Women in FilmCrystal Award for outstanding women who, through their endurance and the excellence of their work, have helped to expand the role of women within the entertainment industry.[17] (1988).
  • Candace Award, National Coalition of 100 Black Women, 1983 and 1989[18]Recent community honors include:
  • 2010 Recipient The George Arents Award is Syracuse University’s highest alumni honor, presented annually to alumni who have made outstanding contributions to their chosen fields.
  • Center for The Advancement of Women: 2007 Changing the Landscape for Women Honoree
  • Jackie Robinson Foundation 2006 Trailblazer Award
  • Ebony Magazine selected de Passe for its highest honor, presenting her with the 2004 Madame C. J. Walker Award
  • 2003 Whitney M. Young Award; Los Angeles Urban League’s highest accolade. (In keeping with tradition, de Passe presented the 2004 award to Magic Johnson.)

In 1978, De Passe married actor Paul Le Mat and they had 3 children together. They have since divorced.

Boards, trade associations and affiliations

  • Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Member
  • Alpha Kappa Alphasorority, Honorary Member
  • American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, Member
  • American Film Institute, Trustee
  • American Society of Composers and Publishers, Member
  • Caucus of Writers, Producers and Directors, Executive Committee
  • Debbie Allen Dance Academy, Board Member
  • Humanities Prize, Board Member
  • Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce, Former Board Member
  • Los Angeles Opera, Board Member
  • National Association of Recording Arts and Sciences, Member
  • National Association of Television Arts and Sciences, Member
  • New York City Ballet, Former Board Member
  • Producers Guild of America, Member
  • Writers Guild of America, Member

Additionally, she has appeared as a speaker before numerous businesses and industry trade groups, including:

  • Miller Brewing Company; Black Entertainment and Sports Lawyers Association.
  • Burger King Franchise Owners Association
  • Chicago Minority Business Development Council.