Bellas, I am so tardy to the Melanie Fiona party!

I’ve been watching this beautiful young singer on the rise, but I guess I wasn’t paying close enough attention. All of a sudden, my mind connected the dots. The chick I’d seen on VH1 Soul with Questlove, was the vocalist behind that version of Sam Cooke’s Cupid that I heard at Starbucks! And the same artist I’d been reading about on Soulbounce forever! OH! This is Melanie Fiona!

It took me a while, but now I’m head over heels for her sound and her style.

Melanie Fiona hails from Toronto, but — according to Wikipedia – has parents from Guyana. Which perhaps explains the Caribbean influence that comes through loud and clear in her Subway Series. In this awesome clip, she performs her songs “Sad Songs,” “Please Don’t Go” and “Bang Bang” on the streets and in the subway stations of New York City.

So. Amazing. The sounds of steelpan gave me chills – such an amazing and underused instrument.

Melanie’s album, The Bridge, is available for sale right now. Show a real singer some love, if you’re feeling this!

Talk about a sweet revenge!

I read the story of Roxanne Shante fighting the system and getting what she earned and deserved in the NY Daily News.

Of course being an Eighties baby, I was familiar with Roxanne Shante. The hip hop pioneer was one of the first ladies to rock a mic, and one of the first to experience the harsh realities of the recording industry. From the NY Daily News:

“This is a story that needs to be told,” Shante said. “I’m an example that you can be a teenage mom, come from the projects, and be raised by a single parent, and you can still come out of it a doctor.”
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Summer fragrances are such sweet respite from the realities of the season — when it’s hot, steamy, and sweaty out there, there’s something so refreshing about a light scent. While it’s still warm out you should check store shelves for these luscious perfumes — they’ll make you smell some kinda delicious regardless of what season we’re in.

Last week I was spritzing myself with Calvin Klein’s 2009 Eternity Summer and my mom in law literally stopped in her tracks as she was walking by. “Mmmmm! You smell gorgeous!”

Why thanks, Mom! Yes. Yes I do.

Eternity Summer will win you over if you’re a fan of Calvin Klein fragrances in general – it hews close to the formula of clean, fresh and floral. The initial spritz is sweet, but when it all dries down, it’s a mild, clean floral at heart. It’s a pleasant scent, but didn’t make my heart skip a beat.

I found Calvin Klein’s Euphoria Spring Temptation to be far more heady, delicious, and me. Now Smell This did a great rundown of the fragrance notes: ” lush pear blossom, guava leaf, fluid waterfall accord, pink lily, dewy violet, white sandalwood, pure frosted musk and untouched amber.”

Heavens to mergatroid.

All of that sounds fancy enough, but I am not so complicated when it comes to fragrance. Does Euphoria Spring Temptation smell good? YES. It’s fruity yet floral, feminine and refreshing. And the bottle looks gorgeous on my dresser. Spring, Summer – who cares! I’d gladly repurchase this when my bottle runs out. It’s perfumey without being overpowering.

Which is not what I can say about Queen Latifah’s debut fragrance, titled simply – Queen. Its a notable and regal blend, alright — incense, musk, sandalwood, cognac and golden tequila are among its notes.
This is a heavy, very womanly, very I AM WEARING PERFUME kind of fragrance — far more a Fall fragrance than a Summer scent. I found it to be reminiscent of Eighties era fragrances, but not in a bad way.

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My question is, is there anything Amanda Diva can’t do?

She can rap. She can sing. She can spit a mean spoken word verse. She’s a blogger and a cable television personality, and an internet television personality and an artist. She’s a hip hop diva with Caribbean roots who isn’t afraid to blaze her own trail.

To say she’s bold and ambitious is an understatement. She’s exactly the kind of role model I’m looking to in my own time of transition.

All this and more makes her a perfect Afrobella of the Month for these ever-changing times.

I interviewed Amanda forever ago, in like mid-2008. But I saved a stash of awesome interviews for the time when I could bring them to life in a fuller fashion.

Thanks to the incredible skill of my video editor Gisele Parson, we’re finally able to make that happen.

Bellas, I present to you the tour-de-force that is Amanda Diva.

I know I’m biased, but I need to shout about it — I love what Gisele is doing with the images! Please show her some love if you feel the same. And my next task is to work on getting better quality audio for my interviews. Apologies for the volume level and clarity there.

For those of you at work who can’t peep the video, we chat about the cookie cutter image of women in hip hop, being asked to alter your image in the music industry, and defining yourself when you do so many things so well.

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Did you watch the Academy Awards this weekend? I live tweeted the whole thing, but still I want to shine a light on the beautiful bellas walking the red carpet. This was quite a year for black actresses at the Oscars!

First of all, Taraji P. Henson absolutely took my breath away in her Roberto Cavalli gown. Her skin tone glowed in that glorious dress, and her necklace! So up my alley. Just Jared revealed a closer shot of her vintage-style diamond necklace. Gorgeous. Couple that with the sleek, asymmetrical hairstyle, and she was a total showstopper.

As BellaSugar points out, her look is very fresh, soft, and pretty, but with a fierce modern look thanks to that smoldering smokey eye. To achieve the look yourself, I just gotta shout out the Benefit Smokin’ Eyes kit once more, and that bronzy deep peach cheek reminds me very much of PUR Minerals pressed mineral blush in Burnished Bronze. Which is a GREAT shade for accenting deep brown skin.

Can we talk about Miss Viola Davis? She was a vision in a gold Reem Acra gown. Or at least I thought so — apparently the idiots on E’s Fashion Police disagreed and called it “too Motown.” Whatever the hell THAT’s supposed to mean. The fabulous Project Rungay gave her kudos on the fit of the gown, and I agree — she looked incredibly luminous and happy.

Bellasugar pointed out her gold eyeshadow and raspberry lip, and gasp — a reader noticed that her foundation is a tad too light and not blended to match her neck. That’s happened to me often with mineral makeup, so I feel her pain. And I gotta say, for a glorious golden eye, I still love love LOVE b.l.a.c minerals. Don’t sleep on their Carnival mineral eye pigment, and for a berry lip that lasts all night, you could do no better than Valana Minerals Berry Bliss. This lipstick glides on and lingers like a lipstain. And yo, the sample sets for $5.99 are a GREAT deal that last for a while.

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Seven years ago, on August 25, 2001 — the music world lost one of its brightest up and coming stars. Aaliyah’s death affected me profoundly then, and still her shadow looms so large over the music scene now. Who can blame lesser emulators for trying to jack her swagger?

I just spent the evening browsing around YouTube, watching countless Aaliyah videos and wondering what could have been. There are some wonderful Aaliyah tributes out there, but I found myself becoming super depressed. It’s almost impossible for me to choose just one Aaliyah video. So here are three of my faves.

Hot Like Fire was my JAM back in 97, 98. Freshman year of college. Man, oh man. Memories.

At Your Best (You Are Love) can bring tears to my eyes to this very day. Aaliyah’s voice is so crystal clear and so sparklingly beautiful on that track. Love it.

And of course, One in a Million. That stuttering bass, her angelic voice floating over it. Your smile, your style, so fly, I can’t deny. This track never gets played out.

There were some cool online tributes to Aaliyah this past week. Fashionista 101 did a great Aaliyah-inspired beauty makeover. Her eye shadow blending skills are sick! Spinner did a clash of the cover songs, featuring Aaliyah’s original version of Are You That Somebody versus The Gossip’s cover. In tribute to Aaliyah, The Fader is featuring an exclusive freeload by DJ the Honorable Caps titled U R Missed. If you’re a fan, you should check it out.

Click here to visit the Aaliyah memorial fund. At just 22 years old, baby girl left us way too soon. I know I’m not alone in wondering what could have been.