SUSAYE GREENE - DOWN TO EARTH AND REACHING FOR THE SKY
The last official (70's) Supreme

Listen to this interview with Rhonda Ross Kendrick. It may take about 90 seconds before you actually hear Rhonda. There must have been a technical problem. It is a bit difficult to hear the interviewer, but Rhonda comes through loud and clear. Enjoy!

Rhonda Ross has joined the Advisory Board and will serve as the Honorary Chair for Hearts of Gold's upcoming fall fundraising gala. The event will feature co-Mistresses of Ceremonies Soledad O’Brien , Anchor and Special Correspondent for CNN and Goodwill Ambassador for Hearts of Gold, along with Law & Order: Special Victims Unit’s Tamara Tunie (Jessica; ATWT).

Hearts of Gold is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to improving the lives of New York City's homeless mothers and their children. The 13th Annual Fall Fundraising Gala, It’s A Love Thing, will be held on Thursday, November 12 at 6:00 p.m. at Metropolitan Pavilion on 125 West 18th Street. The family-friendly evening will include a cocktail reception and a live auction. The highlight of the 1970s-themed night will be a runway fashion show with the fall collections of Beth Bowley, Teenflo, Transit, Zapa, and other designers. For the first time this year, the gala will also feature an after-hours party dubbed Love Unlimited, to be held following the fashion show and auction at Metropolitan Pavilion.

In addition to her work with Hearts of Gold, Rhonda let Another World Today in on what else she's been up to since leaving Bay City:

"Another World holds and will always hold a very special place in my heart. I learned so much from the producers, directors and the veteran actors on that show. The people in the cast remain my dear friends to this day. On top of that, we had the best fans of any show ever! I will be forever grateful for my time in Bay City !

Since the show went off the air, I have continued to act as well as perform my Song-Telling concerts (Jazz vocals with a spoken-word vibe) around the country and around the world. Then, because of a love for real estate, in 2008, I launched Ross Realty International and am having a lot of success being an entrepreneur!

I gave birth to my son, Raif-Henok Emmanuel Kendrick, on August 7th, 2009, one week shy of my birthday (which is on the 14th). We are both Leos! His name is very meaningful: Raif (pronounced Ra-eef) means merciful, forgiving, and big-hearted. Henok is the Ethiopian translation of "Enoch" - a very faithful man in the bible. Emmanuel means "God is with us," and Kendrick (my married last name) actually means "Royal Power.

Having now become a mother, I am very sensitive to the overwhelming desire that each mother has for her child, and I want all of NYC's mothers to feel the pride, satisfaction, and overall contentment that comes with seeing their children thrive! Hearts of Gold is an amazing organization that serves homeless mothers and their very deserving children by making sure the that their children receive holiday celebrations, and school clothes and supplies, and their mothers receive shelter and employment. I am honored and humbled to have joined the Advisory Board of Hearts of Gold and to be serving as the Honorary Chair of their upcoming fundraising gala on November 12th!"

Individual tickets for It’s A Love Thing are available for $250, $500, and $1,000, with tables starting at $2,500. Tickets to the after-party, which runs from 10:30 p.m. - 1:00 a.m. and includes open bar and dancing, are $50. Proceeds from It’s A Love Thing and Love Unlimited will be used to support the more than 450 children and over 375 mothers in residence annually at three Manhattan shelters.

More information at: HEARTSOFGOLD.ORG

NEW DIANA ROSS ALBUM! ALMIGHTY EXCLUSIVE!
'ALMIGHTY PRESENTS: WE LOVE DIANA ROSS'!

EXCLUSIVELY AVAILABLE FROM WWW.ALMIGHTYRECORDS.COM!

Diana Ross — Almighty Presents: We Love Diana Ross

We are delighted to finally announce that, after 5 years in the making, the Diana Ross Project we have all been waiting for is now available to Club Members!

This digital bundle was originally planned to be released by Universal but fortunately Universal have now granted Almighty the rights to release this from our very own Almighty website! As always, Club Members will get to listen to the exciting collection, in full, before anyone else! Plus, although this is being released as a digital collection only… Club Members will find themselves getting a very special, limited-edition package through their letterbox this month!

The 3 disc album is overflowing with exclusives, such as the brand new mixes of ‘Ain’t No Mountain High Enough’ and ‘The Boss’, plus first time airings of ‘Remember Me’, ‘Reach Out And Touch’ and ‘I’m Still Waiting’, plus the sensational Almighty 'In The Mix' disc 3!

Whether fronting the break-through act of the time 'Diana Ross and The Supremes' or as a solo artist, Diana Ross has established herself as a true legend; selling over 100 million records, charting 18 number 1's, crossing over into television and film and cementing it all with a triumphant display of distinctive and highly acclaimed awards, such as a Golden Globe, a Tony Award and no less than 12 Grammy Award nominations! This unprecedented and soul inspiring success brought us some of the most loved music in history, from 'I'm Coming Out' to 'Ain't No Mountain High Enough' and 'Upside Down' to 'Touch Me In The Morning'. 'Almighty Presents: We Love Diana Ross' is a must-have collection of Diana Ross history, presented as an uplifting dance package, a perfect contrast which compliments these timeless tracks and vocals, creating an outstanding blend of classic and 'now'.

Here's the full tracklist...

Disc 1:
1. Love Hangover (Almighty 12” Mix)
2. The Boss (Almighty 12” Essential Mix)
3. I'm Coming Out (Almighty 12” Anthem Mix)
4. Remember Me (Almighty 12” Anthem Mix)
5. No-one Gets The Prize (Almighty Anthem Radio Edit)
6. Ain't No Mountain High Enough (Almighty 12" Essential Mix)
7. I Thought It Took A Little Time (Almighty Anthem Radio Edit)

Disc 2:
1. Lovin', Livin' And Givin' (Almighty Definitive Mix)
2. Upside Down (Almighty 12” Anthem Mix)
3. Surrender (Almighty Anthem Album Mix)
4. Touch Me In The Morning (Almighty Definitive Mix)
5. I'm Still Waiting (Almighty Breeze Mix)
6. Reach Out And Touch (Somebody's Hand) (Almighty Breeze Mix)

Disc 3:
Almighty Presents: We Love Diana Ross - In The Mix
Various Artists — Almighty Club Special 2009

Have you ever noticed that Diana Ross never tried to shorten her name to just ‘Diana’? It so happens that various of her Motown albums are called diana and Diana!; but two are called Diana Ross – and two are called Ross. You didn’t get this Beyoncé, Madonna, Reba, single-name branding kind of thing.

For Diana Ross, fame was more complex than trying to make, then claim, a name exclusively. It was even more complex than creating the classic songs here in such a timeless way, and performing them for a lifetime. To stake a place in mainstream America when Diana Ross, The Supremes, and Motown at large did, was to do so understanding that they were pioneers- African-Americans entering a level of visibility where they needed to move with all the ease of those born to privilege. No mistakes allowed.

As ego-driven as stardom is, Motown artists knew that in the early and mid-1960s, there was social strategy to getting a hit record, appearing on The Ed Sullivan Show and playing luxe nightspots like the Copacabana in New York, and London's Talk of the Town. Mrs. Maxine Powell - now Professor Powell - the finishing school coach who tutored personal carriage, imaging and professional strategy to the Motown roster in the famed Artist Development department, was a key player in the striving upwardly-mobile African-American community of post-World War II Detroit, making sure that when black people entered the echelons of power, affluence and influence, they stayed there, alongside those who were entitled by their heritage.

Keeping both names, announcing herself and her family name every time Diana Ross mounted the stage or was played on the radio, was not merely self-regard, but a tribute to the wisdom of Berry Gordy, Professor Powell and many others who dared to create and maintain the conditions for an integrated America. Diana Ross? Even Miss Ross? Yes, Ma'am, and I'd no more roll my eyes at addressing her as she wishes, than I would arrive at church in trainers and a singlet. I know she changed my world, making it more diverse, interesting and welcoming to me.

The statistics are of course, fabulous: Golden Globe winner and Oscar nominee for Lady Sings the Blues; Tony Award winner for her one-woman show An Evening With Diana Ross, and noted in the Guinness Book of World Records in 1993 for her eighteen No. 1 singles - six as a solo artist, and twelve as lead singer of The Supremes. Celebrated in the prestigious Kennedy Center Honors 2007.

But Beyoncé Knowles, Lauryn Hill and many others who've paid musical and video homage to her - all of them know this before anything else: Diana Ross set the table for those who came after her as surely as Lena Horne, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and others set the table for her. She knows it, owns it and it’s a big reason why WE LOVE DIANA ROSS.

With gratitude,

Brian Chin
New York, October 2009

ALMIGHTYRECORDS.COM