I struggled with what to call this issue. I didn’t want it to be called “B’more Entertained 3,” but I couldn’t think of a theme to tie these stories together. Until the idea literally woke me out of my sleep. 

“The man behind” is the perfect umbrella for each story. Each of these men has accomplished something great. B. Scott is building a media empire that started with a youtube video, Joe is an acclaimed musical triple threat, Robert Cray is a multiple Grammy award winning blues musician who has recorded 30 albums, and Chico Debarge has overcome great odds to become the accomplished musician/ writer/producer. 

The Man Behind the Media Empire

 I don't want to sound like a fan, but I must say this: I LOVE B. SCOTT. Ever since one of my Facebook friends posted a few of his videos, I have been a proud love muffin. I’ve recently found out I’m in good company with Jamie Foxx who declared during his Foxxhole radio show that he is, too, a love muffin. “I LOVE B. SCOTT,” and continued on to say, “He's very attractive. B. Scott looks like a cross between Prince, Rosario Dawson and Lenny Kravitz.” It’s not hard for B. Scott to bake love muffins. With over 62,000 Youtube subscribers it is clear that B. Scott is set apart. In his videos he is personable, open about his life, and very funny. B. Scott is openly gay, multi-racial, and makes no apologies for who he is, where he's been, and where he is going. He makes it very clear that if you love him, he loves you more, if you hate him, he "heave-hos" you and keeps it moving. If you don't know who B. Scott is, I suggest you go to lovebscott.com and youtube.com/lovebscott, twitter.com/lovebscott and get to know him. 

How does a country boy from a small town in North Carolina go from farming to building a media empire? As impossible as that seems, Brandon Scott Sessoms has molded himself into an internet sensation in two years. Sessoms, known to his "love muffins" as B. Scott, left North Carolina after receiving a BA in Psychology from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to work as a real estate agent in DC. In 2005, Sessoms moved to Los Angeles to begin work as a model. After being told that he was too feminine, Sessoms got tired of looking for acceptance from others and decided to take his future in his hands. In July 2007, Sessoms launched his website lovebscott.com and began doing Youtube videos in May of that year. 

From his first video, "Shemar Moore Naked" to his most recent "B.Scott is back: Butt Naked Nothing but Pearls", B. Scott has kept fans intrigued with his humorous and personable videos. The topics of his videos, which are taken from life experiences, pop culture, and fan request, range from the very funny "Two Girls One Cup Reaction" to the more serious "How to Grieve Parts I and II," are always taken in stride. Although B. Scott makes talking in front of a video camera for 5-10 minutes look easy, he makes it clear that it's not as easy as it looks; he claims Youtube has been boot camp for his commentary on Extra and Access Hollywood. "I never considered myself a stereotypical blogger who hides behind their words, I've always had a personality and people know me from my videos. People know me for me not just for the celebrities I sometimes talk about; they come up to me and ‘say oh my god I love your videos, you're so funny and inspirational,'" says B. Scott

Although B. Scott is obviously a very happy and well adjusted man, yes B. Scott is a man despite what you may think he makes it very clear he is a man, a proud one at that, he is very conscious of the past hurts that made him who he is today. As he states in his video "B. Scott Opens Up About Childhood," he was often teased, chastised, ridiculed and beat up over being multiracial, androgynous, and gay. It was the death of his sister that caused him to become the man he is today. "My sister's death really was a time of huge growth for me. I was very close to my sister and when she died it felt like I lost my closest friend and she was the one person who understood me for exactly who I was, she accepted me, she loved me and to lose someone like that really had a profound effect on me. I had to deal with it and accept who I am and move forward if I wanted to continue to achieve the goals I wanted. At certain points when you're backed up against the wall, you feel there's no one there for you, and no one understands, you have to say I'm strong enough and I can do this myself. God and I are gonna work this out," B. Scott says with the wisdom of someone who has been there and done that with no plans of going back. 

What's next for the man who has already conquered the Internet? "TV. I'm working on a TV show and I'm in talks with several production companies about what type of show or what would be the best for B. Scott. I have an agent, manager, publicist, and I have meetings everyday about the next step. But don't think I'm leaving the Internet," B. Scott says. B. Scott has made it clear that he has big plans for the Love B. Scott brand including said TV show, products, and of course his website. 

"I stand for people accepting and expressing who they are. Be who you are, that's my thing."

The Man Behind the Song

For all of you who didn’t know, Joe and I are dating. No, Joe and I are not really dating. I have to say that before anyone takes that and runs with it, but in my fantasy world Joe has been my boyfriend since July 6, when he sang to me during our interview.  All jokes aside, Joe is one of the greatest singers/songwriters/producers of our generation and it’s a shame he is so slept on. We all can name a Joe song that we love, be it “Stutter,” “Faded Pictures,” “I Wanna Know,” and my personal favorite, for some strange reason is “Love Scene.” 

Joe Thomas is no stranger to the game. Ever since he fell into “the hole in Times Square” at 17. For everyone who is wondering, Joe didn’t really fall into a hole, he has been writing and producing music. With eight studio albums and 18 “Top 40” hits, Joe is one of the most accomplished singers of the past two decades, although that seems lost on a lot of people. “When you go to the B.E.T awards and they’re looking past you, it gets frustrating. But when you get on stage, the fans show you that you’re the best out there,” says Joe. 

Joe, who released his eighth studio album Signature on July 14 under Kedar Entertainment, has made it clear that R&B is not dying nor is he retiring for another 24 years, and even then they may have to pull him off the stage. “They guy standing next to the guy, standing next to the guy, standing next to the guy. My legacy will be real; that people respect like Marvin Gaye. Something that will keep going even after I’m gone. I want to go until I drop. I have to show them up to 60 how to roll,” Joe says with hearty laughter. 

Of all the things I knew about Joe, one of the things I did not know about him was he likes to joke a lot. There were a few times where I was writing stuff down during our interview and I would stop and be like: “what?” because he was always joking. 

I’ve heard a few songs from Signature and I think everyone who likes real R&B should check it out. My favorite songs are, “Friends don’t let Friends,” “Magic,” “Sex Girl,” and “Emergency Room.”

For more information on Joe, go to myspace.com/officialjoemusic.

The Man Behind the Myth

Before I start this story, I just want to apologize to Chico Debarge and I hope I didn’t offend him by asking about his family. I was just being the nosy journalist that I am. Now that we’re done with that, Chico Debarge has been in the music industry for a while. He’s been releasing albums before I was born, which isn’t a long time but in music industry years it’s a lifetime since the average life of a musician is six months at most a year.

Chico, who is the younger brother of 1980’s Motown artist, Debarge; think “I like it” and “All this Love,” got his start when he wrote a song called “Wear it Well” which garnered him a record deal. In June 1986, Chico released his self-named debut album which spawned the top 10 single, “Talk to me.” In 1988, he released his sophomore album Kiss Serious, which spawned the top 20 single, “Rainy Night.” In 1988, Chico’s sizzling career was derailed due to legal troubles when his sentenced to six years in prison. “The prison sentence helped me hone my craft and was positive for me. It allowed me to build my character through hearing so much defamation by the guards. Instead of instilling defeat in me, I allowed it to encourage me,” said Debarge.

After being released in 1994, Chico quickly picked up where he left off, signing with Laface records and releasing Long Time No See, where he collaborated with Joe on my favorite song of 1997, “No Guarantee.” Only July 14, Chico released his sixth album Addiction and is currently on tour with Joe. 

For anyone who saw Unsung with the Debarge family and is wondering how the family is, I know I was, according to Chico everyone is doing well and there are no grudges harbored against their father for the abuse allegations.

For more information on Chico Debarge go to myspace.com/chicodebarge

The Man Behind the Blues

In the B’more Entertained column, the goal is to enlighten the readers to different music, writers, and experiences as a whole. I know many of you listen to R&B, hip hop, neo- soul, jazz, etc but very few of you listen to the blues.  The blues is not called the blues just because the name sounds nice, the musical genre is known for slow music and depressing themes. Let’s face it, in these times all we have to do is turn on the t.v. to get the blues. I want you to move beyond your preconceived notions and get to know the man who, according to Guinness Rockopedia, was the center of the 1980’s blue revival. 

Robert Cray, the multiple Grammy award-winning musician, who has been a professional musician for over 32 years, finds distress with the isolated state of music. “When you turn on the radio you should be able to hear a wide variety of music. There are only two types of music. Music you like and music you don’t like. That’s how music was when I was growing up. That’s a big difficulty, it categorizes every body and it changes your audience and where your records are found and it’s mixed up that way,” said Cray. 

Cray, who is set to release his new album, This Time, tomorrow, has removed himself from trying to please everyone. “There are a lot of different grooves and stories. I don’t expect everyone to everybody to get into everything on the record but hopefully there’s something everyone can relate to,” Cray said about his new album. 

In addition to his 30 plus albums, Cray had a blink and you miss it cameo in 1978’s Animal House, don’t expect to see him crossing over anytime soon, as Cray has made it clear that he is not an actor. As if winning Grammy’s, reviving the Blues scene in the 80’s, and releasing over thirty albums, Cray has also performed with blues legend, B.B. King, Tina Turner, Chuck Berry, and Eric Clapton. 

For more information on Robert Cray, go to www.robertcray.com and myspace.com/robertcray. 

Upcoming events:

• •Restaurant Week 8/7-8/16 various restaurants. Restaurant week is a chance to economically savor the diverse cuisine of Baltimore. With over two-dozen restaurants offering 3-course lunch specials for $20.09 and dinner specials for $30.09, everyone can find something to satisfy their pallets. www.baltimorerestaurantweek.com
• •Baltimore’s Fashion Week 8/10- 8/14 War Memorial Building 101 N. Gay St. Yes, Baltimore has a fashion. There will be parties and fashion shows with local designers. This is a great event for fashionistas and aspiring designers, but I must warn you, fashion show tickets are a little pricy, at: $45 for regular tickets and $55 for VIP tickets. www.baltimoresfashionweek.com
• •Stone Soul Picnic D.C. 8/15, RFK stadium grounds in DC. I don’t know how many of you are willing to venture to DC considering the ridiculous price of gas, but I say if you’re considering it, why not? Mary Mary, Chico Debarge, and Ginuwine are scheduled to perform. However, you must take into account that you are not allowed to bring barbecues and festival food is overpriced.
• •Stone Soul Picnic Baltimore 8/22 Druid Hill Park, Stone Soul Picnic. Mario, Ginuwine, Melanie Fiona, and Jeff Majors. It’s free, do I need to really say anything else? Bring your family, friends, food, blankets, lawn chairs, and tents and enjoy the music. 
• •Baltimore County African American Heritage Festival 9/20 Towson Courts Plaza, Towson MD. There will be more information about this event in the future. 
• •Maryland State Fair 8/28/-9/7 Timonium Fairgrounds. The Maryland State Fair has been a Maryland tradition for over 131 years and it’s no wonder why. If you attend any day of the fair, you may see more than a few of your friends and family. The fair is also wallet friendly. Tickets cost  $8, which may be even less with discount tickets and the light rail stops right in front of the fairgrounds, so you’ll also save money on gas. www.marylandstatefair.com
• •Baltimore Book Festival 9/25-27 Mount Vernon 600 N. Charles Street. I believe reading is fundamental and everyone should do more of it. So why not get started at one of the last summer events? Take the family down to Mount Vernon and enjoy the festivities. This year’s authors include Amiri Baraka, KRS-One, and Chris Gardner. www.I struggled with what to call this issue. I didn’t want it to be called “B’more Entertained 3,” but I couldn’t think of a theme to tie these stories together. Until the idea literally woke me out of my sleep. “The man behind” is the perfect umbrella for each story. Each of these men has accomplished something great. B. Scott is building a media empire that started with a youtube video, Joe is an acclaimed musical triple threat, Robert Cray is a multiple Grammy award winning blues musician who has recorded 30 albums, and Chico Debarge has overcome great odds to become the accomplished musician/ writer/producer. 

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