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Legendary Jazz singer Al Jarreau is currently undergoing various tests at a cardiac center in Marseille, France after suffering breathing problems and becoming “weak from the altitude” while in the French Alps last week.

According to his publicist, the 70-year-old Grammy Award-winner became ill July 22 in the southern French Alps which forced the singer to cancel a string of shows in Germany, Azerbaijan and France.

“Mr. Jarreau hopes to resume his tour at the end of the coming week,” according to a statement posted on his website. “Meanwhile, he has been quietly serenading the hospital staff to stay on point.”

Jarreau’s cardiologist, Dr. Jean-Louis Bonnet stated today that the singer could possibly be discharged this weekend before continuing his scheduled European concert tour.

The doctor added that “everything’s going well” and that Jarreau’s “state of health is coming along quite normally.”

The world was Lena Horne’s stage, and she owned it!

A fearless performer and activist, her passing last month saddened those who respected her work and loved her talent.

The Brooklyn, New York native got her first stage job — at the age of 16 — dancing and singing at the legendary Cotton Club in Harlem, where she was mentored by the likes of Duke Ellington and Cab Calloway.

Her undeniable talent took her to Broadway where she was able to display her acting chops, and in the 1940s Horne signed a landmark deal with MGM Studios (becoming the highest paid black actor at the time).

Remembered for such films as ‘Cabin In The Sky,’ ‘Swing Fever,’ and ‘Stormy Weather’ (of which the title song became her signature song), the Tony Award-winning, Grammy Award-winning diva was adamant about not playing stereotypical roles.

In commemoration of what would have been her 93rd birthday, we celebrate the life and times of the late, great, legendary Lena Horne.

I took a poll of some of my industry homies last week to get a sense of how”Thank Me Later,” the debut album for Drake, was going to sell. It turns out that out of those bold enough to make a prediction, my friends Michael Bivins (formerly of Belle, Biv, Devoe and New Edition) and Vigalantee (a rapper in Kansas City, MO), were closest. Vigalantee predicted 450,000 units and Mike Biv predicted 400,000. No matter how you slice it, Drake is now officially the shizzle.

It’’s not as if anyone is surprised by Drake’s stellar debut. He and the rest of the Young Money clique did an outstanding job creating buzz for the album and Drake proved that even in the age of massive Internet pirating, he can still make his money.

Drake’s sales are impressive, but don’t match the sales mojo of Eminem, who pushed out 608,000 copies during the first week of his 2009 album, “Relapse.” He will also most likely never match the amazing performance of his mentor (and I use that term lightly) Lil Wayne, who was able to push over a million in the first week of his album, “Tha Carter III,” released in 2008. Either way, Drake should be congratulated for kicking some butt both here and around the world.

Most of Drake’s songs have been commercial hits, hardly earning the respect of hip hop purists. But what I like about Drake, as opposed to Eminem, Lil Wayne, Jay-Zand others, is that his music doesn’t come with a destructive gimmick. He’s not bragging about packing a gun, selling drugs or being more blinged out than a diamond mine. Instead, he’s just a young brother with a serious flow doing his thing in the studio. While some might think that Drake doesn’t represent the essence of hip hop, I might be inclined to agree: Instead, Drake represents THE FUTURE of hip hop, and that cannot be denied.

In a world where beauty and youth are idolized, it makes one question whether there really is a place for women over 40 in the entertainment industry.

Ten years into her career, Macy Gray found herself a free agent. She had sold 15 million albums world-wide, scored two Grammy Awards as well as two MTV awards, but at 40 years-old the acclaimed singer found that her age rather than her talent was being put into question.

In a recent article penned for the Huffington Post, the raspy voiced songstress discusses her on-going battle with age discrimination and why the entertainment industry should reconsider what it means to be young.

GRAY ON THE FIGHT OF FORTY
“‘I don’t know how to get a 40-year-old woman on the radio. If she was 20, 25 then this record would be incredible.’ This quote comes from a powerful record label executive, just before she said no to signing me for my fifth album. And who would fault her? Everybody knows that a 40-year-old female recording artist is ‘geriatric.’ While a 46-year-old president is the ‘new kid on the block,’ a singer over 30 is just a few songs away from the nursing home of music.”

GRAY ON YOUTH IN A BOTTLE
“The obvious remedies: Age defying crème, botox, face lifts, brow lifts, hair dye, Perricone Promises, super foods and denial. Lying about our age was once a quick fix, but Wikipedia has ruined that for everybody. Cosmetic touch-ups and diet discipline may take ten years off, but how do you go ten years back? How do you sing songs that are relevant to teenagers and who are you fooling if you try?”

GRAY ON BEING YOUNG AT HEART
“The truth is that as a mother of three teenagers, I can tell you that the music industry drastically underestimates the souls of the young. And that there are over 40 million women, in the United States alone, in their 30s, 40s and beyond, that are starving to be musically inspired and lyrically represented. While the fans miss out on great music because of age discrimination, there is still BEAUTY IN THE WORLD.”

Basseterre, St.Kitts – Grammy award winning artiste Wyclef Jean joined rising Kittitian superstar, Infamus in what many termed the most memorable musical performance in recent times.

Wyclef Jean met Infamus when he was invited to be the headline act at a Concert held at St.Kitts’ Warner Park Stadium.

The Haitian born artiste during his astounding performance told thousands that he heard a song playing the previous night and liked it.

Just as the beat for Inafmus’ first big hit ‘21 Gun Salute (We Miss You)’ began playing the crowd reacted with a massive uproar as they were thrilled to see their very own being recognized by the megastar.

Infamus entered the stage letting the viewers know that he was there to represent as he shouted his now famous line “Infamus a Represent !!!!!!”

He performed his two hit singles and did a impromptu performance with Wyclef Jean for ‘Feel like Crying’.

“I like your songs,” Jean declared. “Them tunes need to be on 106 & Park, We gotta work on that. I got to go back and talk to them people and tell them I saw something tonight.”

Jean’s statement followed with an eruption of cheers once more from the massive crowd and both artistes continued performing together with freestyles and an on the spot remix for Jean’s hit ‘Sweetest Girl’.

This collaborative performance came about after a member of Jean’s band along with his manager made contact with Infamus the night before.

According to Infamus’ Manager Diego Spanner, Jean’s manager was amazed at the crowd’s reaction when the DJ played ‘Feel Like Crying’ during his set. They then observed a young boy singing the song as if he knew every word.

“He then asked the little boy what was the name of the artiste, because it appeared to them as if it was an international song as everyone was into it,” he said. “The boy then corrected their initial assumption by boldly stating, “He’s from right here! His name is Infamus!”

When Jean’s manager managed to get in contact with Infamus later that evening he expressed his liking for the music and thought it would be good to have him perform with Wyclef Jean.

Upon Jean’s arrival to the island the following day, Infamus was thrilled to receive a follow up phone call from the international star, which confirmed the collaborative performance.

Jean’s team also highlighted their anxiety to have the young artiste record in there state of the art studio back in New York along with the possibilities of being contracted to Yclef Records. Yclef Records is a record label owned by Jean and their aim is to showcase talents from all hidden corners of the world.

Performing live on stage with Wyclef Jean has been the greatest experience in the career of this young artiste, who possess a unique singing style he expresses as “Life & Times”.

USHER’S latest disc, Raymond v Raymond, is a bit like déjà vu. It has all the elements of his earlier albums. There’s the less-than-subtle autobiographical relationship track — in this case, it’s a song about divorce (Papers). And in the vein of 2004’s Confessions, a woefully apologetic Usher spills the beans about cheating on Foolin’ Around. It opens with him saying: “I know I vowed to never do this again, but it seems to be the only thing I’m good at.”

While it’s clear he underestimates his ability to do better in the fidelity department, it seems the singer has limited himself musically as well.

The Jim Jonsin-produced There Goes My Baby is instantly appealing, but upbeat club tracks including Lil Freak, featuring rap “it” girl Nicki Minaj, and She Don’t Know, with Ludacris, are catchy but disappointingly safe choices for 31-year-old Usher.

So Many Girls and the will.i.am-produced OMG border on disastrous as far as sound and lyrics go, but the real letdown of Raymond v Raymond is that those who listen to it won’t know any more about Usher Raymond, as an artiste or a man, than they previously did.

Reggae Legend, Ernie Smith in celebrating 42 years in reggae music has re-launched his website featuring significant changes to further promote his career.

The site is designed to enhance Ernie’s visibility on the World Wide Web. Producers, Performers, Promoters, Radio DJs and Sound System Operators are encouraged to visit Ernie’s website for information as well as to listen, and/ or download samples of his songs – old and new – for study/cover/collaboration.

Fans, Family and friends are also encouraged to submit photos of themselves and Ernie for review and possibly, periodic inclusion on the site.

All in all 2010 is gearing up to be fun-filled.

Ernie Smith is promoting his album “Country Mile” and will be visiting some Caribbean Islands, East Coast of the United States and Central America from late March to August 2010.

The Reggae Ballardeer recently told us “I am heartened by the responses I have been receiving from the album. I know now that my evergreen fans are enjoying it and lo and behold, I have a new crop of fans. I am blessed. It is my hope that Music Lovers everywhere will be satisfied after listening. I did try to touch on some key issues of social forms”.

Ernie is slated to perform on the 8th Annual Talent Search and Award Show at Giggles Comedy & Entertainment Centre, Long Island, on the 27th of March.

AVENTURA – Singer/songwriter K’Jon will be making a special appearance performing his hit single “On The Ocean” and signing autographs for customers at Macy’s Fashion Store at Aventura, First Floor 19535 Biscayne Boulevard on Friday, March 19, at 7pm, as an official Jazz In The Gardens pre-festival event.

The first 200 customers to make a purchase of $50 or more at Macy’s Fashion Store at Aventura Mall on the day of the event will receive a copy of K’Jon’s CD, and poster, which he’ll autograph.

Three lucky couples will be chosen on-site to participate in a Chicago Style Steppin’ contest. They’ll compete for a chance to win a pair of Jazz in the Gardens tickets and a Macy’s gift card.

K’Jon, knows how to set the scene! He has recently released his first full-length major label debut, I Get Around, a superb collection with nods to both his contemporaries, including KEM and Robin Thicke, and his predecessors, like fellow Detroiter, Marvin Gaye. According to Billboard, the Detroit native’s hit 2009 single, “On The Ocean”, has spent a record 72 weeks on the R&B/Hip Hop Songs chart, surpassing Usher’s record.

“On The Ocean” has become a huge hit within the Chicago Style Steppin’ community. In other parts of the country, the elegant adult style of dance is called “jazz dance”, “The Cakewalk”, “The Ringshout”, “The Jitterbug” and “The Swing”, spawning thousands of avid followers across the United States.

K’Jon has been singing since he was eight years old- but what started out as a hobby has morphed into an incredible career. In 2004, his song, “Miami” was featured on the soundtrack for 2Fast2Furious. He has opened for everyone from Ludacris and Ne-Yo to Raheem DeVaughn.

MIRAMAR – Hundreds of people packed the Miramar Cultural Center recently for Rhythms of Africa, Music Around the World, with Willie Stewart, formerly of the legendary Jamaican reggae band Third World, and a group of 60 children from Miramar Early Childhood program, Aspira, and Little Kids of Miramar.

Stewart, who spent 23 years with Third World, and later pursued music education in England, began weekly lessons with the children in December.

“Most of the kids had never picked up a musical instrument before I met them,” said Stewart. “They were eager to learn and quickly absorbed everything in just 10 one-hour sessions over an eight week period.”

After a brief history lesson on the many uses of the drum, the show, designed to highlight the journey of music from Africa across the continents, got off to a rousing start. Seemingly hesitant at first, the children, some of whom were dwarfed by the larger drums, quickly got into the swing of things, performing a repertoire of music from the Ivory Coast to Morocco.

The synergy between Stewart and the children was highly evident throughout the hour-long segment as they moved effortlessly from one piece to the next.

Also joining Stewart, to round out the musical journey through Brazil, Haiti, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and the U.S., were seven-year-old master percussionist Miguel Russell, local violinist Nicole Yarling, Jamaican singers Sabrina Williams and Carl McDonald, singer Melissa Stokes, his daughter Leea Stewart, and backed by musicians Jesse Jones, Jr. and his brother famous jazz trumpeter Melton Mustafa, Steve Lashley, of KC & the Sunshine Band, guitarist Robert Johnston, Jaime Hinckson, and Trinidadian steel pan player George Goddard. Dancer Nicholas Pairman of the National Dance Theatre Company (NDTC) of Jamaica and Florida State University dancers paid special tribute to James Brown and Michael Jackson.

KINGSTON, Jamaica – Jamaica’s musical fraternity is lending its support to the recovery efforts of its Caribbean neighbors in Haiti. This has resulted in the creation of “Listen 2 the Call,” a collaborative song which will have its global premiere on Tuesday, February 23 at 4:53 pm EST. Written by Raymond Azan, co-founder of For Jamaica Inc., and produced by Handel Tucker, “Listen 2 the Call” is a special musical gift made possible through the contribution of more than 30 of the island’s top artistes and musicians.

This version of “Listen 2 the Call,” which will premiere on February 23, is a special mix of the song, which runs for four minutes and fifty three seconds to commemorate the time the quake hit the Haitian capital. The lyrics offer encouragement and support for the people of Haiti.

According to the producers, “The goal of this project is to inspire people around the world to “Listen 2 the Call” not only of the poor, the suffering and displaced in Haiti, but rather to listen to their conscience and extend a helping hand.”

“Music is an important part of our culture and it is heartening to see the collaboration of a number of our top entertainers as part of a global effort to help our Haitian neighbors,” says John Lynch, Director of Tourism, Jamaica Tourist Board. “We hope everyone will “Listen 2 the Call” and act.”

Following the global simulcast premiere on February 23, the full version of the song will be available online for purchase. Proceeds from the sale of this song, including videos will be used to assist Haiti’s recovery and rehabilitation.