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Fonzi Thornton
Alfonso "Fonzi" Thornton is an American vocalist, songwriter, producer and vocal contractor. In a career spanning 40 years, Thornton has sung backing vocals for top artists across many genres of music. His vocal credits can be found on the recordings of Aretha Franklin, Luther Vandross, Mick Jagger, Bryan Ferry, Roxy Music, Chic (band), Chic, Diana Ross, Garth Brooks, Ray Charles, Mariah Carey, Steely Dan, David Bowie, Robert Palmer (singer), Robert Palmer, Patti LaBelle, Al Jarreau, Michael Jackson, Celine Dion, Phoebe Snow, Scritti Politti, Bette Midler, Lady Gaga and many others. In 2008, Thornton joined the musical entourage of Aretha Franklin as backing vocalist and vocal contractor and continued to accompany her in concert, on recordings and TV until her death in 2018. Early career Born in East Harlem, New York, in his early teens, Alfonso joined neighborhood vocal group, Shades of Jade and befriended a young Luther Vandross. Thornton and Vandross became soloists with ...
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New York City, New York
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on New York Harbor, one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises boroughs of New York City, five boroughs, each coextensive with List of counties in New York, a respective county. The city is the geographical and demographic center of both the Northeast megalopolis and the New York metropolitan area, the largest metropolitan area in the United States by both population and urban area. New York is a global city, global center of financial center, finance and Economy of New York City, commerce, Culture of New York City, culture, high technology, technology, The Entertainment Capital of the World, entertainment and Media in New York City, media, Academy, academics, and List of cities by scientific output, scientific output, the The arts, arts and fashion capital, fashion, and, as hom ...
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Al Jarreau
Alwin Lopez Jarreau (March 12, 1940 – February 12, 2017) was an American singer and songwriter. His 1981 album '' Breakin' Away'' spent two years on the ''Billboard'' 200 and is considered one of the finest examples of the Los Angeles pop and R&B sound. The album won Jarreau the 1982 Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. In all, he won ten Grammy Awards and was nominated 19 other times during his career. Jarreau also sang the theme song of the 1980s television series '' Moonlighting'' and was among the performers on the 1985 charity song "We Are the World". Early life and career Jarreau was born in Milwaukee on March 12, 1940, the fifth of six children. His father Emile Alphonse Jarreau was a Seventh-day Adventist Church minister and singer, and his mother Pearl (Walker) Jarreau was a church pianist. Jarreau and his family sang together in church concerts and in benefits, and Jarreau and his mother performed at PTA meetings. Jarreau was student council president ...
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Miller Lite
Miller Lite is a 4.2% ABV reduced calorie light American lager beer produced by Molson Coors. It was introduced in 1973 in limited markets by the Miller Brewing Company (then owned by Philip Morris, Inc.) and began being distributed nationally in 1975. Miller Lite was the most popular new product in the history of the American beer industry. Its success prompted most other brewers to introduce their own reduced calorie “light” beers. As a result, sales of light beer in the United States went from a negligible amount before Miller Lite was introduced in 1973 to forty-four percent of the United States beer market by 2002. White, Cameron, et. al, "The Marketing of Better-for-You Health Products in the Emergent Issue of Men’s Obesity", '' Health Sociology Review'', Feb. 2015, 23(2): 113–124, p. 119 History The origins of Miller Lite can be traced to Meister Brau Lite, a reduced calorie beer introduced in May 1967 by Chicago brewer Meister Brau, Inc. (formerly known as ...
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Joe Frazier
Joseph William Frazier (January 12, 1944November 7, 2011) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1965 to 1981. Nicknamed "Smokin' Joe", he is widely regarded as one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time. He was known for his strength, durability, formidable left hand, and relentless pressure fighting style. He was also the first boxer to defeat Muhammad Ali in 1971. Frazier won a gold medal at the Boxing at the 1964 Summer Olympics, 1964 Summer Olympics as an amateur boxing, amateur, held the New York State Athletic Commission, NYSAC List of heavyweight boxing champions, heavyweight title from 1968 to 1973, and was the Undisputed championship (boxing), undisputed heavyweight champion from 1970 to 1973. Frazier emerged as the top contender in the late 1960s, becoming undisputed heavyweight champion in 1970. In 1971, he defeated Ali by unanimous decision in the highly anticipated Joe Frazier vs. Muhammad Ali, Fight of the Century. Two years later, Frazier ...
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The Stylistics
The Stylistics are an American Philadelphia soul group that achieved their greatest chart success in the 1970s. They formed in 1968, with a lineup of singers Russell Thompkins Jr., Herb Murrell, Airrion Love, James Smith, and James Dunn. All of their U.S. hits were ballads characterized by the falsetto of Russell Thompkins Jr. and the production of Thom Bell. During the early 1970s, the group had twelve consecutive R&B top ten hits including " Stop, Look, Listen", " You Are Everything", " Betcha by Golly, Wow", " I'm Stone in Love with You", " Break Up to Make Up" and " You Make Me Feel Brand New". They had five gold singles and three gold albums. Career Early years The Stylistics were created from two Philadelphia groups, the Percussions and the Monarchs. The two bands attended the same high school. The Stylistics was first conceived when Airrion Love's English teacher, Beverly Hamilton, suggested the two bands merge. Russell Thompkins Jr., James Smith, and Airrion Love ...
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Candi Staton
Canzetta Maria "Candi" Staton (, ) (born March 13, 1940) is an American singer–songwriter, best known in the United States for her 1970 cover of Tammy Wynette's " Stand by Your Man" and her 1976 disco chart-topper " Young Hearts Run Free". In Europe, Staton's biggest selling record is the anthemic " You Got the Love" from 1986, released in collaboration with the Source. Staton was inducted into the Christian Music Hall of Fame and is a four-time Grammy Award nominee. Biography Early life and career Born in Hanceville, Alabama, Staton and her sister Maggie were sent to Nashville, Tennessee at around age 11 or 12 for school. While attending Jewell Christian Academy, Staton's vocal abilities were soon noticed by her peers and the school's pastor. Amazed by her voice, the pastor paired Staton and her sister with a third girl, Naomi Harrison, and they formed the Jewell Gospel Trio. As teenagers, the group toured the traditional gospel circuit during the 1950s with the Soul Stirr ...
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Sesame Street
''Sesame Street'' is an American educational television, educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation, and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000) and was created by Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett. It is known for its images communicated through the use of Jim Henson's The Muppets, Muppets, and includes short films, with humor and cultural references. It premiered on November 10, 1969, to positive reviews, some controversy, and high viewership. It has aired on the United States national Public broadcasting, public television provider PBS since its debut, with its first run moving to Pay television, premium channel HBO on January 16, 2016, then its sister streaming service Max (streaming service), HBO Max in 2020, and most recently Netflix in 2025. The show's format consists of a combination of Commercial broadcasting, commercial television production element ...
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Apollo Theater
The Apollo Theater (formerly the Hurtig & Seamon's New Theatre; also Apollo Theatre or 125th Street Apollo Theatre) is a multi-use Theater (structure), theater at 253 125th Street (Manhattan), West 125th Street in the Harlem neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City. It is a popular venue for African Americans, Black American performers and is the home of the TV show ''Showtime at the Apollo''. The theater, which has approximately 1,500 seats across three levels, was designed by George Keister with elements of the Classical Revival architecture, neoclassical style. The facade and interior of the theater are New York City designated landmarks and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Nonprofit organization, nonprofit Apollo Theater Foundation (ATF) operates the theater and a recording studio at the Apollo Theater, as well as two smaller auditoriums at the Victoria Theater (Harlem), Victoria Theater. The Apollo was developed by Jules Hurtig and Harry ...
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East Harlem, New York
East Harlem, also known as Spanish Harlem, or , is a neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City, north of the Upper East Side and bounded by 96th Street to the south, Fifth Avenue to the west, and the East and Harlem Rivers to the east and north. Despite its name, it is generally not considered to be a part of Harlem proper, but it is one of the neighborhoods included in Greater Harlem. The neighborhood has one of the largest Hispanic communities in New York City, mostly Puerto Ricans, as well as Dominicans, Cubans, and Mexicans. The community is notable for its contributions to Latin freestyle and salsa music. East Harlem also includes the remnants of a once predominant Italian community, or Italian Harlem. The Chinese population has increased dramatically in East Harlem since 2000. East Harlem has historically suffered from many social issues, such as a high crime rate, the highest jobless rate in New York City, teenage pregnancy, AIDS, drug abuse, homelessness, ...
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Lady Gaga
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta (born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her image reinventions and versatility across the entertainment industry, she is an influential figure in popular music. After signing with Interscope Records in 2007, Gaga achieved global recognition with her debut album, ''The Fame'' (2008), and its reissue ''The Fame Monster'' (2009). The project scored a string of successful singles, including "Just Dance (song), Just Dance", "Poker Face (song), Poker Face", "Bad Romance", "Telephone (song), Telephone", and "Alejandro (song), Alejandro". Her second full-length album, ''Born This Way (album), Born This Way'' (2011), explored electronic rock and techno-pop and sold Lists of fastest-selling albums, more than one million copies first-week. Its Born This Way (song), title track became the fastest-selling song on the iTunes Store, with over one million downloads in less than a w ...
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Bette Midler
Bette Midler ( ;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American actress, comedian, singer, and author. Throughout her five-decade career Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Bette Midler, numerous accolades, including four Golden Globe Awards, three Grammy Awards, three Primetime Emmy Awards, two Tony Awards, and a Kennedy Center Honors, Kennedy Center Honor, in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards and a British Academy Film Award. Born in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, Hawaii, Midler began her professional career in several off-off-Broadway plays, prior to her engagements in ''Fiddler on the Roof'' and ''Salvation (musical), Salvation'' on Broadway theatre, Broadway in the late 1960s. She came to prominence in 1970 when she began singing in the Continental Baths, a local gay bathhouse where she managed to build up a core following. Since 1970, Midler has released 14 studio albums as a solo artist, selling over 30 milli ...
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Scritti Politti
Scritti Politti are a British band formed in 1977 in Leeds by singer-songwriter Green Gartside, who is the sole remaining member of the original band. Initially formed as a punk culture, punk-aligned underground act influenced by leftist politics, they transitioned into a commercial pop music project in the early 1980s, achieving success on the record charts in the UK. The group's most successful album, 1985's ''Cupid & Psyche 85'', spawned three UK Top 20 hits with "Wood Beez (Pray Like Aretha Franklin)", "Absolute (Scritti Politti song), Absolute", and "The Word Girl", and one US Top 20 hit with "Perfect Way (Scritti Politti song), Perfect Way". The band's 1988 album ''Provision (album), Provision'' peaked in the UK Top 10 and produced a UK Top 20 hit single, "Oh Patti". After releasing two non-album singles in 1991, as well as a collaboration with B.E.F. (British Electric Foundation), B.E.F., the band returned in the late 1990s after a seven-year break. History Origins In t ...
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