A NIGHT OF HOPE CONCERT AT BARCLAYS

Al Sharpton With Hezekiah Walker

 Al Sharpton Speaks

GRAMMY award-winning gospel great and Brooklynite Hezekiah Walker announced at a press conference at The House of the Lord Church that he and his Love Fellowship Choir will be performing in his “A Night of Hope” concert at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on Monday, December 10. The Rev. Al Sharpton, the Rev. Dr. Herbert Daughtry and Bruce Ratner, the majority owner and developer of Barclays Center and the Chairman and CEO of Forest City Ratner Companies, also spoke at the press conference.

It was also announced at the press conference that 2012 Verizon’s How Sweet the Sound™ Gospel Celebration, the country’s premiere and most prestigious gospel music experience, will take place at Barclays Center on Sunday, November 4. 2012 Verizon’s How Sweet the Sound™ gives choirs across the country a chance to rejoice in song and praise; sing in front of gospel greats and fans; and compete for a chance to win up to $50,000 in cash and prizes. 2012 Verizon’s How Sweet the Sound™ will be hosted by GRAMMY award-winning artists Donald Lawrence and Yolanda Adams. Erica Campbell of Mary Mary, Fred Hammond, Hezekiah Walker and CeCe Winans will serve as resident judges for this year’s competition and also perform.

In addition to today’s announcements, last month Barclays Center revealed it will host four of the most successful performers in gospel music history, Kirk Franklin, Marvin Sapp, Donnie McClurkin and Israel Houghton, for ‘The King’s Men’ tour on Sunday, October 14.

“I grew up in Fort Greene and it was always a dream of mine for a major venue in Brooklyn to become the home for gospel music -- now it’s a reality,” said Hezekiah Walker. “Thanks to Bruce Ratner, Barclays Center will be the place where the top gospel artists come to perform. I can’t wait to perform there myself.”

“We are proud to make Barclays Center the home of gospel in New York and to welcome Hezekiah and several of gospel’s greatest performers onto Brooklyn’s biggest stage,” said Bruce Ratner. “Our goal is to celebrate a wide variety of entertainment at Barclays Center and to continue attracting the best to the borough.”

"I grew up a boy preacher in Brooklyn,” said the Rev. Al Sharpton, President of National Action Network and MSNBC host. “I preached at programs featuring gospel greats like Mahalia Jackson and Rev. James Cleveland. Brooklyn has always been a gospel global headquarters, and it is appropriate and significant that Barclays Center will continue to heighten that tradition."

“For 40 years, our church, which is just a few blocks from Barclays Center, has prayed and worked for meaningful change to come to this community,” said Rev. Herbert Daughtry, Pastor of The House of the Lord Church and Founder of the Downtown Brooklyn Neighborhood Alliance. “We are delighted to witness the fulfillment of our prayers as Barclays Center brings tremendous benefits and opportunities to our communities, through economic development, neighborhood revitalization, and world-class sports and entertainment. We are thrilled that Barclays Center, located in the Borough of Churches, will be New York’s official Home of Gospel Music.”

“A Night of Hope” with Hezekiah Walker, of which a portion of the proceeds will benefit The Children of Haiti Relief Fund, will feature guest performances from CeCe Winans, Fred Hammond, Donald Lawrence, and more. Hezekiah Walker and Love Fellowship Choir have performed with a bevy of well-known artists and have remained in the Top 10 in gospel music sales since 1986.

Tickets for A Night of Hope and 2012 Verizon’s How Sweet the Sound™ at Barclays Center will go on sale soon. Tickets for The King’s Men are currently on sale at Barclayscenter.com or Ticketmaster.com or by calling 800-745-3000. Brooklyn Nets All Access season ticket buyers have the opportunity to purchase tickets for Barclays Center events before the general public. For more information, visit Barclayscenter.com and follow @BarclaysCenter on Twitter and Facebook (facebook.com/BarclaysCenter) for the latest updates and special pre-sale offers.

About Barclays Center

Scheduled to open in September 2012, Barclays Center will be a major sports and entertainment venue in the heart of Brooklyn, New York. Developed by Brooklyn-based real estate developer Forest City Ratner Companies, and designed by the award-winning architectural firms AECOM (www.aecom.com/architecture) and SHoP Architects (www.shoparc.com), Barclays Center will have one of the most intimate seating configurations ever designed into a modern multi-purpose arena, with unparalleled sightlines and first-class amenities. Barclays Center will offer 18,200 seats for basketball and up to 19,000 seats for concerts, and will also have 100 luxury suites, four bars/lounges, three clubs, and a restaurant.

Barclays Center will host an extensive variety of events, including premier concerts, monthly major professional boxing cards, top college basketball, family shows, professional hockey, and the Brooklyn Nets. Some of the special programming that is already scheduled includes JAY Z, who will open the building on September 28 with the first of his multiple concerts, Barbra Streisand, Andrea Bocelli, Justin Bieber, Leonard Cohen, Rush,UB40, Maxi Priest, Hezekiah Walker, The King’s Men gospel concert with Kirk Franklin, Marvin Sapp, Donnie McClurkin, and Israel Houghton, 2012 Verizon’s How Sweet the Sound™, the Barclays Center Classic men’s college basketball tournament, Atlantic 10 Men’s Basketball Championship, Coaches vs. Cancer Classic, Islanders vs. Devils game, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus and Disney on Ice, and the New York Masters equestrian show jumping. Current programming alliances with Barclays Center include Golden Boy Promotions, IMG, Feld Entertainment, Lagardère Unlimited, and the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

In addition to Barclays, the naming rights partner, Founding Partners for Barclays Center include Calvin Klein, Cushman & Wakefield, EmblemHealth, Foxwoods Resort Casino, MetroPCS, Stolichnaya, and Ticketmaster. Other sponsors include: Anheuser-Busch, The Coca-Cola Company, Haier America, HighPoint Solutions, LIU Brooklyn, New York Marriott at the Brooklyn Bridge, Tyco, and Willis.

Located atop one of the largest transportation hubs in New York City, Barclays Center will be accessible by 11 subway lines, the Long Island Rail Road, and 11 bus lines.

Photos Courtesy Of: Adam Pantozzi/Barclays Center

CLARICE TAYLOR TO BE CELEBRATED TUESDAY

Al Sharpton Will Give Eulogy

The life of American stage, film, radio and television actress Clarice Taylor will be celebrated on Tuesday at Canaan Baptist Church in Harlem. Taylor, best known for her recurring role on The Cosby Show as Anna Huxtable, mother of Bill Cosby’s character Dr. Heathcliff “Cliff” Huxtable, died of heart failure at her home in Englewood, New Jersey on Monday, May 30, 2011 surrounded by family, according to family spokesperson, Terrie M. Williams. She was 93.

Born on September 20, 1917 in Buckingham County, Virginia, Taylor went on to grace the stage and screen for more than half a century. Her stage credits include the hit musical The Wiz, as Addaperle, the Good Witch of the North and an Obie for a touring production of her own one-woman show Moms (based on the life of Moms Mabley); she was also one of the founding members of the Negro Ensemble Company in the East Village in 1967. Her many career highlights include playing Harriet on the television show Sesame Street, and roles in such films as Otto Preminger’s Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon, Clint Eastwood’s Play Misty For Me, and Oscar Williams’s Five On The Black Hand Side.

Members of the public may pay their respects at a public viewing on Tuesday, June 7 from noon to 4 pm at Canaan Baptist Church, located at 132 West 116 Street, between Lenox Avenue and Adam Clayton Powell Boulevard.

Later that evening, luminaries will join friends and family of Taylor in paying tribute to the beloved entertainer at a private wake from 5:00 to 7:00 pm, followed directly by Taylor's private "Celebration of Life" funeral service. The Rev. Al Sharpton will deliver the eulogy.

The family issued the following statement: “We are humbled by the support and love we have received from far and wide in our time of loss. The family is grateful for the light and laughter our mother gave not only to us but to the world during her time on The Cosby Show and throughout her long and illustrious career.” Taylor is survived by two sons, William and James Thomas; daughter-in-law Gizele Thomas; grandchildren Jason, Kristen, Raoul Jr., and Jared; and a host of relatives and friends.



Arrangements are being handled by Benta’s Funeral Home in Harlem. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture/NYPL, to which Taylor desired to bequeath her papers and her life’s work. Donations can be sent to the Schomburg at 515 Malcolm X Boulevard, New York, NY 10037-1801, attn: Dr. Khalil Gibran Muhammad; the check memo should read: In Memory of Clarice Taylor. Correspondence to the family may be sent c/o William Thomas, 2275 Morrison Avenue, Union, NJ 07083.

The body will be interred at The Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx.


Photo By: Rd/Leon/Retna