Hello World,

I’ve never heard that Master P had any interest in faith-oriented entertainment, but this appeared in my inbox earlier today so I’m sharing it with you…The trailer looks interesting so we will see…

Hip hop icon & Media Mogul Master P & Romeo Miller team up with film director LazRael Lison & soundtrack producer Tracy Bell (Asah Entertainment) on new romantic comedy film “Never and Again” scheduled to release February 11th on BET Plus. 

The highly anticipated film features star studded cast: Master P, Jackie Long (ATL, Games People Play), Denise Boutte (Why Did I Get Married, Meet the Browns) Ella Joyce (Set the Off, Roc), Christian Keyes (Saint &Sinners)Vanessa Simmons (Monogamy), Bebe Drake, Cymphonique Miller, Day 26’s Willie Taylor, Bishop Don Magic Juan and Jayson Bernard.

Never and Again focuses on a budding romance between Kevin (Long) and Jasmine (Boutte) first sparked during their teenage years. The duo equally supported and shared passion for each other’s dreams — her love for music and his love for football, ultimately falling madly in love in the process. The Never and Again 11 song soundtrack lead single “Made For Me” by acclaimed Gospel Singer Tim Rogers features R&B singer Tweet. 

As with many love stories including during the puppy love phase with couples first starting out, outside circumstances can cause things to unravel. In Never and Again, the same reigns true as the love between Kevin and Jasmine takes a dramatic shift as tragedy soon unfolds and a momentary lapse in judgement pulls them apart. As has often been said over the course of history, time heals all wounds, because many years later, their paths cross again and the two are forced to trust one another. Will the love they once shared be enough to save them now?

“It’s a great romance with a lot of faith” – Romeo Miller 

Below is the trailer:

Co-producing this film alongside writer Lison, under the Summer House Pictures are Tatiana Chekhova, Jayson Bernard and Roberto Rosario, Jr. of J&R Productions and Tracy Bell of Asah Entertainment. The Executive Producers for Never and Again include the Master P, his son Romeo Miller, and Kristi Kilday in association with Genius Minds and Antonio Trotter. Never and Again will be available on BET Plus on February 11th.

Any thoughts?

The post Music Icon Master P Set to Debut New Film Highlighting Love, Comedy & Faith… appeared first on After the Altar Call.

Hello World,

Guess what? I’m fresh from celebrating my second wedding anniversary with my hubby in Jamaica and have renewed energy to tackle all things at the cross section of faith, relationships and pop culture i.e. the focus of this blog!

So I watched the third new episode of TV One’s “Born Again Virgin” last night. If you did not read my recap of the first two episodes of this new show, please check out “Born Again Virgin’ Recap: Did You Watch Last Night?” But below is a the succinct premise of the show:

Jenna (Danielle Nicolet), the central character of the sitcom, is a born again virgin meaning she is taking sex off the table so that it won’t cloud her decision in making the right choice of a mate. The writer and blogger, who is in her 30s, decided to become celibate after realizing that her “body count” has surpassed her age. She lives in Atlanta with her roommate Kelly (Meagan Holder), a hard-driving pr exec and her other roommate Tara (Eva Marcille), who is an over-the-top actress.

The official title of this episode is “Back on Top,” and I’m not sure why since this episode is about secrets. Anywho, Jenna continues her dangerous flirtation with her hot neighbor and lawyer Donovan (Durrell “Tank” Babbs) and decides to hang out with him in his apartment. And the reason why this is dangerous is two-fold. First of all, if you are trying to be celibate, in general, one should avoid being behind closed doors with a hot guy for too long. Secondly, although Donovan claims to support Jenna in her decision to be celibate, his actions in the first two episodes demonstrate that he would certainly not mind if Jenna slips up at least once with him…And that is another key to successful celibacy. One must date men who truly support you in your celibate journey…Although Jenna is able to remain celibate behind the closed doors of Donovan’s apartment, she cannot resist searching through his things when he leaves her alone for a bit. I will neither confirm nor deny that I have taken the opportunity to search for “clues” about a man’s character when left alone in his home LOL. Jenna finds a video of porn movie “Chocolate Shake” and her chocolate shake of a temptation Donovan is the star of the movie. Obviously, she is intrigued about this juicy secret and wants to ask him about it but cannot because she is not supposed to know about it!

Meanwhile, Tara is starring in a new film “Peachtree Massacre.” The title alone doesn’t suggest this is a high brow film. The fact that the film is likely not very good aside, Tara is secretly scared that she is also bad in it. She reveals her secret fear to Kelly on the night of the movie premiere. Kelly, on the other hand, has a secret relationship with a struggling Mama’s boy Rick (Jackie Long).

Unable to contain her secret, Jenna blurts out the fact that she found “Chocolate Shake.” Donovan is justifiably upset that his privacy has been compromised and the date is over. As a peace offering, she brings her early diaries to him so that Donovan can find out all of her “dirty little secrets.” He is intrigued but ultimately resists searching through her diaries like she did his apartment. And furthermore, Donovan reveals that he did not star in the movie that she found. It was his doppelganger, and his friends gave him a video of the movie to him as a joke. So let me be honest: I found that hard to believe, and I think this particular plot twist was on an old episode of “Living Single.” If I am remembering correctly, Overton happened to see a stripper who looked just like him and who was the star on porn videos. I don’t know anyone who has a doppelganger who starred in a porn video. Do you know anyone? However, Donovan and Jenna make up and all is well that ends well.

Tara is devastated when Twitter roasts her for her role in the slasher film. One of the hashtags is #dietaradie. But her reputation is redeemed when she ends up showing her bosom to fans at an event. A new hashtag is created to pay homage to her twin peaks so to speak. Okay, confession: this part of the show happened a bit too fast for me to fully grasp what happened hence the following sentence. I’m not sure if Kelly’s secret relationship with Rick is resolved, but I’m guessing a few more episodes will be devoted to them.

Overall, as I said in my previous post, I like the show, but I can tell the show is still finding its way. The characters still seem like they are saying lines to each other ran than naturally interacting, but that is to be expected when a show is new. Also, since Jenna is supposed to be blogging about her experiences being a born again virgin in Atlanta, I hope to see her in more situations worthy of being blogged about.

What do you think?

The post Secrets Are Meant To Be Revealed: ‘Born Again Virgin’ Season 1 Episode 3 Recap… appeared first on After the Altar Call.

Terri J. Vaughn, Danielle Deadwyler & Tandria Potts, director of the film

On Wednesday night, I was blessed to attend a screening of the new GMC TV film “A Cross to Bear” at Midtown Arts Cinema. Based on an original screenplay written by Cas Sigers Beedles and Terri J. Vaughn (Remember Lovita Alizé Jenkins-Robinson from “The Steve Harvey Show” back in the day?), director-actor Kim Fields returns to the front of the camera in a heartwarming story of redemption.

I must admit I was expecting a kind of cheesy, melodramatic,  fluffy film, but I was truly taken in by the film. And judging by the audience that I sat with, I was not the only one inspired. A woman behind me cried throughout the screening, and a young woman in front of me swayed and cooed at the tender love story that was a subplot in the film.  The movie will air on GMC TV tomorrow (Feb. 18) at 7 p.m. EST with encore telecasts at 9 p.m. and 11 p.m.

Tandria Potts and Kim Fields

“A Cross to Bear” tells the unflinching and inspiring story of Erica Moses, a would-be dancer with no family connections who finds herself fighting alcoholism and living on the streets with her newborn child after being left by her boyfriend. One ill-fated night, she takes refuge from the cold in an empty building with a handful of other homeless people and her life is shattered. Traumatized and now living at the home of Joan (who is portrayed by Fields), a former nurse who has dedicated her life to helping woman like Erica and other women in transition get back on their feet. As the cause of Erica’s personal hell is revealed, slowly, with the help of Joan’s unique brand of tough love and the friendship of Tina, a former crack baby who also lives in Joan’s house, and the guidance of other women who have found new beginnings at Joan’s House, Erica finds the will to live and learns the redemptive power of forgiveness.

I was able to speak to some of the actors in the film, many of whom will be making their television debut such as Danielle Deadwyler, whose stage credits include a performance in Kenny Leon’s True Colors Theatre productions of “for colored girls who have considered suicide when the rainbow is enough” and “The Colored Museum” under the direction of Jasmine Guy, portrayed Erica Moses. Deadwyler, who grew up in Capitol View Homes, attended Grady High School and graduated from Spelman College, identifed with Erica’s struggle to escape her circumstances and achieve her dreams. (And the film was shot in the A!)

“If you are steadfast, do the work, continuously, your dreams will manifest,” said Deadwyler.

A critical scene at the beginning of the film shows Erica as a child watching her mother, who seems to be an alcoholic, use her feminine wiles to secure the money and affection of a man despite the cost to her self-esteem and her child. Years later, Erica has not learned from her mother’s mistakes and finds herself in a similar precarious position.

When the film was originally conceived about six years ago, Vaughn was slated to portray Erica. However, once the film was backed by GMC TV after years of false starts and setbacks, Vaughn felt it would be best to be a producer on the film instead. “This film means a lot to me. I’m a huge advocate for creating projects for television that my nieces can see,” said Vaughn, whose husband Karon Riley is in the film. Vaughn’s producing partner Sigers Beedles was inspired to write this film based on her experiences volunteering in a homeless shelter. “I’m fascinated with people who are at the lowest of their low points and how they are able to come out of that because some don’t.”

“A Cross to Bear” also features performances by Malinda Williams (“The Wood,” “Soul Food”), Jackie Long (“ATL,” “Idlewild”) vocalists Angie Stone and Kenny Lattimore, and and Christian hip hop artist Lecrae Moore.

Lecrae Moore

Look out for the bomb performance by newcomer Tamika Tanner who portrays Tina…Y’all will know her name some day….Remember you read it here first…

Tamika Tanner, who also is the owner of Gimme Some Suga Bakery Bar

Any thoughts?

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