Entertainment blogging from The Oklahoman's Brandy McDonnell

Joe McBride, Najee, Kirk Whalum and more to play 2013 Charlie Christian International Music Festiva

The 2013 Charlie Christian International Music Festival will feature national artists Joe McBride, Najee, and Kirk Whalum in concert June 7-8 at the Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark.

They will be joined by All Funk Radio Show from Dallas, Texas, and Grady Nichols from Tulsa. Also featured in the line up are Matt Stansberry & The Romance and the Robert Banks & Classic Edge.

Gates open at 6 p.m. Friday, June 7,  and the show starts at 7 p.m. On Saturday, June 8, gates open at 3:30 p.m. and the final concert of the week begins 4:30 p.m.

Tickets are on sale now and may be purchased online at www.charliechristianmusicfestival.com or www.okcredhawks.com. For more information, call Black Liberated Arts Center, Inc. at (405) 524-3800.

According to Mark Temple, festival chairman, tickets may be purchased at the following community outlets: Charlie’s Jazz, Rhythm & Blues Store, Hopkins HairCare and Learning Tree Toys and Books.

The festival runs June 4-8 and has three free events associated with it. The opening event, “Ralph Ellison Understood Through Charlie Christian,” will be at 7 p.m. June 4 at the Oklahoma History Center. Music will be provided by TaylorMadeJazz. This event is free and funded in part by the Oklahoma Humanities and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Other funding is provided by the Oklahoma Arts Council, Friends of the Oklahoma City/County Historical Society Archives, Friends of the Oklahoma City/County Historical Society and BancFirst.

June 5 is the date for the Jam Session at Woody’s Sport Bar and Grill at 7 p.m. Musicians are admitted free, everybody else pays $5.

The Battle of the Bands between Shortt Dogg and the 411 Band takes place on June 6 in Lower Bricktown, on the Lower Bricktown Plaza and is presented by Chevy Music Showcase.

Deep Deuce’s Urban Roots is the place on Saturday, June 7 for a delicious brunch from 11:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. with music by “Miss Muffy” & Friends and stories of Deep Deuce told by Anita Arnold, author, “Oklahoma City Music: Deep Deuce and Beyond. This family-friendly event will feature arts and crafts vendors.

For more information, go to www.charliechristianmusicfestival.com.

-BAM

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Musician and performance lineup announced for 2013 Paseo Arts Festival

The Paseo Arts Association has announced the music and performance lineup for the 2013 Paseo Arts Festival, set for May 25-27 in the historic Paseo Arts District.

Musicians and other performers featured at the festival will perform on one of two stages: the North Stage—near Picasso Café—or the South Stage—in the middle of Paseo Drive, near NW 28 Street. The North Stage, curated by Casey Friedman of Acoustic Oklahoma, features singer-songwriters and acoustic performers of all stripes, while the South Stage features high-energy, louder musicians and some of the event’s most popular returning acts, such as perennial Festival opening act Tarpley’s Tappers (Saturday, noon, South Stage) and Edgar Cruz (Monday, 4 p.m., South Stage)

Music committee chair Amy Young and Casey Friedman have worked since January to curate a strong, diverse group of performers, encompassing every genre from country, blues, and folk to rock, electronic music, and much more.

“This festival, even though it’s smaller than some, truly captures and celebrates the local Oklahoma music flavor.” Friedman said in a news release. “I think we’ve gathered some of the best, most talented, hardest-working musicians in the metro area. I’m really proud of the lineup we have.”

Among the acts she is most excited to see, Young lists Sunday headliners Pidgin Band (Sunday, 9:30 p.m., South Stage), who describe their sound as “experimental Afro-Funk,” and who Young said will “put on a high-energy show that will really get people moving.”

Beau Jennings (Sunday, 5 p.m., North Stage) is another musician that Young mentions. Previously headlining the Brooklyn-based band Cheyenne, Jennings has now made a home in Oklahoma, and has recently filmed a documentary on Will Rogers.

On the North Stage, Casey Friedman is looking forward to a performance by Bat-or Kalo. Kalo is best known in her native Israel, where she became well-known as a child star. She has been in and out of Oklahoma since 2005, and Friedman looks forward to her bringing an international aspect to the roster. Friedman also looks forward to performances by new rising local star Josh Qualls. (Saturday, 7 p.m., North Stage)

The musicians described above are only a few of the 57 acts booked for The Paseo Arts Festival, which will take place on Memorial Day weekend in the Paseo Arts District, Oklahoma City’s distinctive arts community. The Paseo Arts District is located between NW 30 and 27 Streets and Walker and Hudson Avenue.

For more information, go to www.thepaseo.com.

See the full live entertainment schedule after the break.

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What to do in Oklahoma on May 16, 2013: Hear Parmalee at the Wormy Dog

Today's featured event:

Hear emerging country band Parmalee at 9:30 tonight at the Wormy Dog Saloon, 311 E Sheridan. Doors open at 6 p.m.

The North Carolina outfit has already earned two consecutive Top 40 Country radio hits, including its debut single, “Musta Had A Good Time,” and “Carolina.”

The family band comprised of brothers Matt and Scott Thomas (lead vocals/ guitar and drums, respectively), cousin Barry Knox (bass) and lifelong best friend Josh McSwain (guitar). Influenced by such musical heavyweights as the Allman Brothers, Travis Tritt and Bob Seger, the band’s name is derived from the small town of Parmele, N.C., (population 262), which is home to a gas station, two blinking yellow lights and a small tin-roofed barn dubbed Studio B, where the band practiced on every given evening.

Parmalee was handpicked by Southwest Airlines as the first act to perform for the 2013 season on its Southwest Airlines "Travelin’ Taylor Tour," sponsored by Taylor Guitars. On Monday, the band performed on its Taylor Guitars for passengers at 35,000 feet in midair on a direct flight from Nashville, Tenn., to Houston, Texas.

For more information on the OKC show, go to www.wormydog.com.

For more events, go to www.wimgo.com.

-BAM

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Wednesday Video Spotlight: Driving with Serge Ibaka – The Thunder take on Memphis in Game 5 tonight in Oklahoma City

It’s do-or-die Thunder up time tonight at The ‘Peake!

The Oklahoma City Thunder takes on Memphis Grizzlies in Game 5 of their Western Conference playoffs series. The Grizzlies lead the series 3-1, so our hometown boys in blue must win tonight or end their season.

To help you Thunder up, cruise with power forward Serge Ibaka to Chesapeake Energy Arena. We need Serge in the zone and playing at peak form tonight!

The game tips off at 8:30 tonight at The ‘Peake, 100 W Reno. It will air on TNT.

For extra Thunder pride, check out my excellent colleague Jennifer Palmer’s feature on the making of the complimentary T-shirts the Thunder home crowds have become so famous for during the playoffs by clicking here.

-BAM

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Wednesday Video Spotlight: One-time screening of Paul McCartney and Wings concert film “Rockshow” Thursday night at Harkins Bricktown

A special one-time screening of “Rockshow” — a concert film starring Paul McCartney and Wings on their 1975-76 “Wings Over the World” tour — will be presented at 7 p.m. Thursday at Harkins Bricktown Cinema 16, 150 E Reno Ave.

SpectiCast, in association with Eagle Rock Entertainment, is premiering the film in theaters in the U.K. on Wednesday and worldwide on Thursday.

Although filmed on the tour in 1976 at the enormous Kingdome in Seattle, “Rockshow,” originally a cutdown version of the concert, was not premiered until November 1980 in New York and April 1981 in London.

The film will be shown at nearly 1,000 theaters in more than 700 cities worldwide, including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Cape Town, South Africa, Sydney, Rome, Warsaw, Poland, and many other cities across the U.S., Mexico, Asia, Europe and South America. These special theatrical presentations will include a bonus 12-minute interview with McCartney, according to a news release.

The demand that greeted Paul McCartney and Wings (Linda McCartney, Joe English, Denny Laine and Jimmy McCulloch) in the spring of 1976 as they embarked on what would become their only North American tour was overwhelming.

Having released four consecutive chart-busting albums including “Red Rose Speedway, “Band on the Run,” “Venus and Mars” and “Wings at the Speed of Sound” — not to mention 1973′s Academy Award-winning James Bond theme “Live and Let Die” — McCartney’s solo career was in full flight, having not performed in the States for 10 years, either solo or with The Beatles.

Tickets for “Rockshow” are available at participating theater box offices and online at www.rockshowonscreen.com.

McCartney will bring his “Out There” Tour to Tulsa for a two-night stand May 29-30 at the BOK Center. For more information, go to www.bokcenter.com.

-BAM

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“Judy ‘n’ Jody” reunion concert set for Thursday night at the Oklahoma History Center

Many of the musicians who played on Oklahoma’s beloved “Jude ‘n’ Jody” show will perform at a reunion Thursday night, and the public is invited.

Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at the Oklahoma History Center, 800 Nazih Zuhdi Drive. The festivities will include free food and live music.

Guests will be invited to tour the “Oklahoma @ the Movies” exhibit, see historic footage of the television show, and partake in light refreshments. A cash bar will be available.

The program will begin at 7:15 p.m. Thursday. Admission is free, but seating is limited.

Grammy winner Jody Miller, who appeared on the “Jude ‘n’ Jody” show and had numerous top 10 hits, including “Queen of the House,” will take part in the concert.

Also featured will be Jude Northcutt, who is best remembered by Oklahoma natives as “Jude” of the Jude ‘n’ Jody furniture store band and country music duo.

Northcutt and Harold Dean “Jody” Taylor were regularly featured on Oklahoma City TV for 40 years, appearing on all three network affiliated stations. They began appearing on a show on an Ada TV station in 1954, then moved to Oklahoma City television in 1956. They continued to appear on local TV programs through 1980.-

Jody Taylor died in 2009 at the age of 74.

While not the original “Jody” of the show, Miller, who hails from Blanchard, is known for a number of hits from the 1960s and ‘70s, most notably “Queen of the House,” her 1965 answer to Erick-bred Roger Miller’s smash “King of the Road.”

In addition to the headliners, several musicians who have worked with Northcutt over the years will be reunited at the concert.

A special announcement regarding the proposed Oklahoma Museum of Popular Culture, or OKPOP, will be made during the program.

Eligible guests will be able to join AARP and then take advantage of a special discounted rate to join the Oklahoma Historical Society.

For reservations or information, contact Nicole Harvey at the Oklahoma History Center at 522-5202 or by email at nharvey@okhistory.org.

-BAM

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Interview: Toby Keith Foundation’s 10th annual hometown fundraiser brings in $1 million for OK Kids Korral

NORMAN — With the help of more than a thousand fellow celebrities and hundreds of supporters, Toby Keith’s 10th annual hometown fundraiser raised more than $1 million last weekend. Toby Keith’s 10th annual hometown fundraiser raised more than $1 million last weekend.

The Toby Keith & Friends Golf Classic, along with its Denim & Diamond dinner and auction, benefits the Toby Keith Foundation and its primary project: the construction of the OK Kids Korral, a home-away-from-home for Oklahoma children fighting cancer and their families.

The $8.5 million, 25,000-square-foot lodge on the south end of the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center is due to open in a matter of months.

“For the first time, we get to show people some results of what we’ve been working on for the last decade,” Keith said backstage at Friday’s Denim & Diamond event at Riverwind Casino. “The OK Kids Korral should be open in the fall, and people get to drive by and actually see where their money went.”

Having results to show seemed to resonate with supporters at the two-day event. With Keith and Tulsa comedian Rodney Carrington acting as auctioneers, Friday night’s live auction raised nearly $500,000 alone. The highest-priced item was a behind-the-scenes day with Keith’s crew on his upcoming “Hammer Down Tour.” CMT Music Awards and Academy of Country Music Awards packages and a custom Honda Rune motorcycle were other top-selling live auction items, according to a news release.

The Denim & Diamonds dinner also boasted nearly 100 silent auction items, including the opportunity to name a sandwich at the Oklahoma City Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar and Grill, which sold for $10,000.

The 2012 fundraiser raised $664,000.

Juliet Nees-Bright, executive director of The Toby Keith Foundation, said the appearance of Edmond resident Beth McDowell and her daughter Mia, 3, at Friday’s event also moved donors. Mia, who is cancer-free after battling stage 4 neuroblastoma, enchanted attendees when she began twirling around the stage.

“When I told them about our day rooms for families who live relatively close to OKC, but who have multiple appointments in a day, she (Beth) told me how they … really needed a place like the Korral while they were in treatment,” Nees-Bright said. “So, I asked her to come speak to the people at our event.”

The Korral, 818 NE 8, also will have overnight suites for families who must travel hundreds of miles from rural Oklahoma towns for their children to receive treatment, plus a kitchen, dining hall, indoor and outdoor playgrounds, game rooms and a movie theater.

Together, the live and silent auction totals were by far the biggest in the fundraiser’s 10-year history. Organizers believe the event is one of the biggest auctions ever in the state, according to the release.

In addition, a record-breaking 240 people participated in Saturday’s golf tournament at Belmar Golf Club in Norman, forcing organizers to arrange two separate shotgun starts for the first time.

For more information on the OK Kids Korral, go to  www.tobykeithfoundation.org.

-BAM

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Photo Slam to showcase 12 Oklahoma photographers Thursday at Oklahoma City Museum of Art

That’s what the Oklahoma City Museum of Art and Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition are going for with their Photo Slam, a speedy showcase of 12 Oklahoma artists planned for Thursday night at the museum.

“It’s like a poetry slam, a story slam, the idea of a slam, where it’s like a real high-energy, fast-paced discussion,” said Chandra Boyd, the museum’s senior associate curator of education.

“The idea is that each photographer has five minutes to present their work, and they can do that in any format. … If they go over the five minutes, they get gonged. It’s fun to see the photographers’ personalities come out. They really get into this opportunity to tell about their work.”

Dynamic presentation

The Photo Slam doesn’t follow the typical art lecture format, said OVAC Associate Director Kelsey Karper.

Along with dynamic and competitive poetry slams, she said Photo Slam is inspired by PechaKucha, a presentation style developed in Tokyo in 2003. A kind of show-and-tell version of an open mike, PechaKucha — which translates roughly to “chit-chat” in Japanese — is aimed at architects and other creative types, who showcase their work and ideas in 20 images, each shown for just 20 seconds.

“It’s a way to give a presentation that’s more interesting, fast-moving and entertaining, so that’s the format that you get. But there’s a very strict time limit,” Karper said.

“We were taking these ideas from different types of really engaging presentation styles, and we kind of melded them together to come up with the Photo Slam.”

She’s not kidding about the strict time limit: Photographers who go over the time limit really will hear someone really bang a gong.

“We do encourage the artists to use their five minutes creatively. In the past, we’ve had people incorporate music. We had one photographer who went through the theater and hid things under everyone’s seats,” Karper said. “We’ve actually even had the presenting photographer taking pictures of the audience during their presentation … so I’m excited to see what this year’s group will do.”

Oklahoma showcase

The museum and OVAC served up their first Photo Slam in 2008, and Thursday’s event will mark the third installment. The slams typically are offered in conjunction with a photography exhibition at the museum. “Herb Ritts: Beauty & Celebrity,” an exhibit of 80 black-and-white images by the legendary portrait photographer, opened last week at the museum and shows there through July 28.

Carlos Knight, art director at This Land Press, selected the dozen Photo Slam participants from a pool of applicants. Oklahoma City photographer Rex Barrett will be the master of ceremonies for the juried showcase.

The 12 chosen photographers — Lucia Martinez, Wendy Mutz, Kurt Nagy, Zach Nash, Ben Pendleton, all of Oklahoma City; Natalie Slater and Chad Clark, both of Tulsa; Sarah Engel Barnett, Norman; Summer Lu, Weatherford; Thomas Tucker, Edmond; Crystal Walters, Pryor; and Reginna Zhidov Chickasha — come from around the state and have varying degrees of photography experience.” from students to pros.

“It’s any level, it’s anyone who’s aspiring or accomplished. So “I think that’s the really fun part. You’ve got like professional photographers up against people who are hobbyists,” Boyd said.

“This is really their chance to get into the museum and fill the auditorium with people who are also photo enthusiasts. … We’ve had really good attendance in the past. I think by partnering with Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition, they are good to help us really connect to the art community in a way that we normally don’t get to do.”

In addition, the 12 participants work in varying styles, techniques and subject matters. Traditional photographs, iPhone shots and photo manipulations are expected to be included.

“It is limited to photography, but within photography, there’s all these variations in different styles and ways of working and photographic methods,” Karper said. “That’s part of what makes it really interesting.”

The gong doesn’t hurt, either.

GOING ON

Photo Slam

When: 7 p.m. Thursday.

Where: Oklahoma City Museum of Art, 415 Couch Drive.

Admission: Free. Admission to the rest of the museum is $5 after 5 p.m. Thursdays.

Information: www.ovac-ok.org or www.okcmoa.com.

-BAM

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What to do in Oklahoma on May 15, 2013: See Trent Lawson’s velvet paintings at a.k.a. gallery in the Paseo

Today’s featured event:

See the exhibit “Velvet Memes: New Work by Trent Lawson” at a.k.a. gallery, 3001 Paseo in the Paseo Arts District.

The gallery is noon to 5 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday.

The Oklahoma City specializes in kitschy and witty velvet paintings that mingle pop culture and art history. They are definitely worth seeing while the exhibit is on view through May 27.

For more information, go to http://akagallery.net or www.trentlawson.net.

For more events, go to www.wimgo.com.

-BAM

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What to do in Oklahoma on May 14, 2013: Hear Parker Millsap at The Deli in Norman (with video)

Today’s featured event:

NORMAN – Hear red dirt singer/songwriter/musician Parker Millsap play a free show from 7 to 9 p.m. at The Deli, 309 White Street.

At 10 p.m., Caravact and The Great American Jug Band will take the stage.

For more information, go to www.thedeli.us.

For more events, go to www.wimgo.com.

-BAM

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