Stephonne

23. Stephonne Singleton – “Want Me” / Glory Blue Music / April 26, 2019
[Co-produced by, Justin Mantooth, and recorded at Westend Recording Studios. Johnny Hamil on bass, Ben Byard on guitar and Adam McKee on drums. Stephonne grew up in KCK. He released his debut album, “Caged Bird Sings Songs About Red Beard.” The album was one of WMM’s 118 Best Recordings of 2018. Stephonne was born and raised in Wyandotte County, Kansas. He has performed in multiple shows for Late Night Theatre. Stephonne told John Long of Camp Magazine “I was surrounded by records, and my parents always had music on.” He expects to move more toward releasing singles rather than entire albums.]

- Mark Manning - Wednesday Midday Medley

You may have spotted Stephonne Singleton at Missie B’s, performing in drag as Kita Rose or as an actor in the local Late Night Theatre collective. But as a musician, he first attracted attention around the time of his debut album release — “Caged Bird Sings Songs About Red Beard” — recorded with My Brothers and Sisters’ bandleader Jamie Searle. In April, Stephonne premiered “Want Me,” a slick single that drips with sensuality. He's headlining a show at recordBar on Saturday with support from local blues/funk collective Stone Cutters Union. Tickets are available.

- Michelle Bacon - 909 News

Kansas City-based singer-songwriter Stephonne Singleton just released a brand new track entitled "Want Me" today, and the dark, slick bop oozes all things sex, bewilderment, and tension.

"Those things describe my coming of age as a Black gay man in Kansas City," Stephonne said in a statement. "I've put my heart and peace of mind through a whole fucking lot."

With help from his co-producer Justin Mantooth, Stephonne also wrote and produced the track, and the time he spent working on "Want Me" really shows.

"I've never felt this confident in myself or my music before," he said. "NYC changed me in a way I can't explain. My first album is my baby but I haven't felt anything as visceral, connected and urgent as this music feels. I'm ready to truly show who I am." - Pride

Kansas City-based alt-rock singer-songwriter Stephonne takes listeners on an emotional ride with the release of his latest single, “Want Me”. Taking on all roles from production to vocals, Stephonne shows listeners the full range of his musical talents in this powerful new track.
Listen here – https://open.spotify.com/track/7z0A3ayysnLYWBKYolxqs3?si=lWhdJ106SEKIhZE2fJZVKg
Energetic guitars, booming drums, and the plunking of piano keys make up a grand, bone-chilling accompaniment which gives “Want Me” something of a natural theatricality. With dynamic vocals–ranging from a near whisper to a full belt–Stephonne takes listeners on a journey through the confusing and contradictory feelings of love and (dis)trust. “I don’t want you, because I fear I’ll need you,” the track opens, reflecting Stephonne’s hesitation in acting on his feelings. Ultimately, Stephonne decides that solitude is more secure: “Leave me lonely, it’s the only thing I know to be true.” The story Stephonne tells through “Want Me” is somewhat heartwarming, somewhat tragic, and entirely compelling.
Born and raised in Kansas City, MO, Stephonne has had his head in the stars since the age of 8. Growing up, he was surrounded by music, listening to everything from jazz and blues to R&B and old school soul around the house and performing in his church choir. He started songwriting at age 10, always keeping in mind every detail from instruments to vocal arrangements–a meticulousness that’s evident in his ambitious productions. His interest in alternative rock began in junior high with bands like Alice In Chains, later leading him to record his own music and form a college band, Glory Blue, which would put out two full albums and numerous performances over two years. Now, working solo, Stephonne is one of many people making room for Black artists outside of genres like rap and R&B.
“Want Me” is Stephonne’s first release since dropping his debut album, Caged Bird Sings Songs About Red Beard, last year. Be sure to keep an eye out for more music from Stephonne!

- RJ Frometa - Vents Magazine

Kansas City-based alt-rock singer-songwriter Stephonne takes listeners on an emotional ride with today’s release of his latest single, “Want Me”. Taking on all roles from production to vocals, Stephonne shows listeners the full range of his musical talents in this powerful new track.

Energetic guitars, booming drums, and the plunking of piano keys make up a grand, bone-chilling accompaniment which gives “Want Me” something of a natural theatricality. With dynamic vocals–ranging from a near whisper to a full belt–Stephonne takes listeners on a journey through the confusing and contradictory feelings of love and (dis)trust. “I don’t want you, because I fear I’ll need you,” the track opens, reflecting Stephonne’s hesitation in acting on his feelings. Ultimately, Stephonne decides that solitude is more secure: “Leave me lonely, it’s the only thing I know to be true.” The story Stephonne tells through “Want Me” is somewhat heartwarming, somewhat tragic, and entirely compelling.

Born and raised in Kansas City, MO, Stephonne has had his head in the stars since the age of 8. Growing up, he was surrounded by music, listening to everything from jazz and blues to R&B and old school soul around the house and performing in his church choir. He started songwriting at age 10, always keeping in mind every detail from instruments to vocal arrangements–a meticulousness that’s evident in his ambitious productions. His interest in alternative rock began in junior high with bands like Alice In Chains, later leading him to record his own music and form a college band, Glory Blue, which would put out two full albums and numerous performances over two years. Now, working solo, Stephonne is one of many people making room for Black artists outside of genres like rap and R&B.

“Want Me” is Stephonne’s first release since dropping his debut album, Caged Bird Sings Songs About Red Beard, last year. Be sure to keep an eye out for more music from Stephonne!

- Giselle - Stage Right Secrets

Stephonne
“Want Me” single
(Glory Blue Music)

Stephonne Singleton, a Kansas City, Kansas, native who perhaps is best-known locally for his Late Night Theatre work, is releasing a brand-new single in April. It blew me away. The song comes not long after Stephonne’s 2018 album, Caged Bird Sings Songs About Red Beard, which I also enjoyed. “Want Me” is slow and sensual, with a sexy alternative-rock guitar and powerful, breathy vocals that combine alternative and R&B. The vocals are the definite highlight, but adding the melody of the bass, drums, piano and guitar makes the sound wonderfully atmospheric. It would be right at home in a steamy sex scene or at the end of an action movie in the ’90s or early 2000s. This is officially my new favorite from this amazing local artist. I can’t wait to hear more from him. Look for Stephonne at http://www.stephonne.com.

- Monica Soto - Camp Kansas City Magazine

Stephonne Singleton, born and raised in Wyandotte County, Kansas, has mixed music and theater in his Kansas City arts career. Now 32, he’s sung in drag as Kita Rose, he’s sung under his own name, and he’s performed in several Late Night Theatre plays.

“Late Night Theatre is my favorite place in the whole wide world,” he says, “and the support and opportunity Ron [Megee], Jessica [Dressler] and Chadwick [Brooks] give me has fed me so much as an artist and has nurtured me to be able to fully express myself on a stage.”

Late Night is not his first foray into theater.

“I did a lot of theater when I was in high school,” he says. “When I got to college, it was different for me, and I didn’t really get too into it. Then when it got to the city, I was really interested, but never was able to get the information I needed about how to audition. I didn’t know anything about the business, how to get the headshot or any of that kind of stuff. So it all seemed pretty, like, far away for me.”


Stephonne in Late Night Theatre’s production of “Cluelessness”.
Another part of theater for him was performing in drag for the first time, Singleton said. “I think being a drag queen at Missie B’s was the first thing that actually was a step in that direction.”

“I used to be afraid of drag queens,” Singleton says. He attributes his start in drag performance to Genewa Stanwyck and the late Connie Carlysle, who asked him to perform in their Manic Monday show at Missie B’s. “That’s when it all started. Kita Rose was born.”

Singleton lives in midtown Kansas City. When not recording or performing in Late Night plays, Singleton works at his day job as an event coordinator and manager for Home Advisor in Lenexa, Kansas.

He majored in music at Benedictine College, in Atchison, Kansas.

Singleton writes his own music, and he said that he’s not technically a musician, but mainly a vocalist.

“I play the piano enough to write. I’m not Alicia Keys. Maybe someday,” he laughed.
He released his first album, Caged Bird Sings Songs About Red Beard, in 2018. This month, he is releasing his new single, “Want Me.” (See Monica Soto’s review in Musicality http://camp.lgbt/2019/03/30/musicality-stephonne-vassy-sigrid-lauv-troye-sivan/.)

Singleton attributes his love of music to his family. Much of his musical background, he says, was also formed by singing in his church choir.

“I was surrounded by records, and my parents always had music on. … She would, like, turn on Luther Vandross, or Anita Baker, or all of these artists. We had Barbra Streisand records, Beatles records, the Isley Brothers. I remember watching Lady Sings the Blues [a film about jazz singer Billie Holliday] and I was, like, 7. I lived in a super musical world.”

He expects to move more toward releasing singles rather than entire albums.

“I love albums. I grew up on albums, listening from the start to the finish and everything. And I love that about my first album, but it is such an expense, such an undertaking. Especially when you factor in the studio time rates, musician arrangements, mixing, getting everything exactly the way it’s meant to sound. I really wanted to just be able to release more content and be more in control of my narrative. I’ll probably release three to four singles this year and try to do some videos for at least two of those and just keep whetting appetites. I’m not saying I won’t be writing for an album – and most of these songs released this year might make that album – but if it hits me, it hits me and it just happens organically. And if not, I’m not going to do it until it’s funded by a major windfall,” he said, laughing.

Singleton said that his new release was also made possible by his co-producer, Justin Mantooth. Recorded at Westend Recording Studios, the track features Johnny Hamil on bass, Ben Byard on guitar and Adam McKee on drums.

“I’ve never felt this confident in myself or my music before,” Singleton says. “My first album is my baby, but I haven’t felt anything as visceral, connected and urgent as this music feels. I’m ready to truly show who I am.”

Singleton said that fans can support his recording of more new singles, upcoming touring, distribution and promotion by donating at www.gofundme.com/Stephonne.

“Every bit helps,” he says, “because as an independent artist, I don’t have Adele’s resources. It’s all me, without any label backing. Me and my listeners are my label right now, and I’m so excited to make them proud with this new material.”

“Want Me” will be released worldwide in late April on Apple Music, Spotify, Tidal and all digital/streaming platforms. For updates, shows, and more, visit www.stephonne.com!

- John Long - Camp Kansas City Magazine

Judy Garland is back in our nation’s consciousness—for the umpteenth time—thanks to Renee Zellweger’s Oscar-worthy performance of the embattled super-diva in Judy. In case you missed Zellweger’s star vehicle in theaters, it’s not too late to still enjoy all things Judy. Late Night Theatre’s infamous troupe of weirdoes is paying homage to the opioid-addled actress. The show, you ask?

Judy Garland’s Pill Poppin’ Christmas. (Because, of course, it is.)

The show features a raucous ensemble cast, but it’s really a chance for actress (and LNT co-founder) Jessica Dressler to embody every nuanced, Quaaluded quirk of Garland’s—and then some. She’s mastered the late actress’s cadence, her tics and that unwavering, flinch-free perma-smile. Oh, and when given the opportunity to belt out a song, Dressler can practically rip the roof right off Missie B’s.

Even though I was sober and paying dutiful attention, the show’s plot—set in 1963—still somehow escaped me. From what I gleaned, Garland is somehow Judy-napped by four teenagers. She then gives a drugged-out, holiday performance which saves a local Podunk TV station from going under on Christmas Eve—or something like that. (I think.) The local teen yokels join in on the fun pretending to be Judy’s superstar friends. The premise is a bit flimsy, but who cares? It’s Late Night Theatre and you’ll probably be half in the bag before the curtain ever goes up. With the script loosely in effect, the characters stay on point throughout—although you have to wonder how much of it improvised on the fly because of missed cues or forgotten lines. Again, who cares? It’s clear the actors are having a gay ol’ time up on stage—and as Dressler casually mentioned the only time she popped out of character—the evening’s performance was being fueled by Fireball shots.

Dressler doesn’t just chew scenery; she swallows it whole—with camp-tastic aplomb. But the rest of the cast is just as much of a delight. They are forever mugging to the audience and milking every zinger for maximum laughs (and playful one-upsmanship). One second Molliann McCulley is running amuck as a pubescent (and vodka-pounding) Liza Minelli, and the next drag maven Loretta Martin is doing her best Barbra Streisand impersonation. (I would watch Martin read off the back of a cereal box. She’s a veteran scene stealer who seems to get just as much of a kick out of the audience as they do of her.)

The songs come fast and furious. Get Happy! The Trolley Song! Consider Yourself! Each tune allowed the tight-knit cast a chance to show off some solo vocal prowess alongside ever-present comedic flair. (Stephonne Singleton deserves an MVP award for toggling between Eartha Kitt, Diana Ross, and Sammy Davis, Jr. in the span of 25 minutes.)

Right before the intermission, Dressler takes it down a notch to give a goose bump-inducing rendition of Somewhere Over the Rainbow and then in true Judy Garland fashion, she overdoses with hilarious results. Eventually, Garland’s performance saves “KC’s only privately owned, public-access station” and all is right with the world.

As if the show weren’t meta enough, folks in the audience pull double duty as—you guessed it—audience members of the faux TV show. There are singing squirrels, Ron Megee dressed as Elvis singing The Dreidel Song, and at one point the cast uses pill bottles as maracas while Dressler sings her heart out. The wigs, the gender-bending costumes, the kitschy props all get a gold star and deserve equal billing. Speaking of, there are so many costume changes, it worries me how chaotic things must be behind-the-scenes.

If you’re a Mensa member, this irreverent show probably isn’t for you. But if you’re looking for any excuse to bust a gut laughing, sing along to some zany showtunes and watch Dressler’s tour-de-farce performance, you should order your tickets today. Our only complaint? We really should have popped some pills and washed ‘em down with vodka before we arrived. That’s our bad.

Judy Garland’s Pill Poppin’ Christmas

Now thru December 23rd
Missie B’s, 805 W. 39th, Kansas City

Starring: Jessica Dressler, Molliann McCulley, Stephonne Singleton, Loretta Martin, and Ron Megee.

Directed by: Ron Megee

- Michael Mackie - In Kansas City Magazine

Want to know the sign of a good Late Night Theatre performance? When you’re standing out in the lobby and you overhear another theatergoer mention to her friend that there “were so many fundamental things in that show that were just wrong.” When her friend asked her to be more specific, the critic-at-hand said, “No, there wasn’t anything wrong with the show, per se. I meant the show was just wrong—like just the sheer inappropriateness of it all. It was offensive and wrong, but, you know, in a good way.”

For Late Night Theatre creator Ron Megee, that’s the ultimate compliment. Megee and his motley crew of clever misfits kicked off their 22nd year of gender-bending comedy with a spoof of the perennial 80s sitcom, Facts of Life. Their version? The ironic and aptly named Alternative Facts of Life.

Megee—who is often flanked by a recurring cast of familiar local talent—pulled out his A-list brigade for this show. It was indeed an all-star line-up which included Megee pulling double duty—spoofing both Mrs. Garrett and in the second act, portraying Garrett’s sister, his version of a dour Cloris Leachman. Megee was clearly having fun paying homage to Charlotte Rae. His wavering voice, wobbly gait and gigantic back-combed, red bouffant only added to the crowd’s reaction.

Flanking him was the hair-flipping, snob-tastic Blair (a scene-stealing Spencer Brown), rollerskating Tootie (standout Stephonne Singleton), the oh-so mulleted Jo (crowd favorite Jessica Dressler) and everyone’s favorite loveable, neurotic twit, Natalie (played effortlessly by loveable, neurotic twit Chadwick Brooks.)

The show opened up a few seasons in to the sitcom’s run when the girls were helping run Edna’s Edibles. References to the early 80s were sprinkled in liberally as the crowd ate up the campy premise that Mrs. Garrett’s store was in dire straits because of a rival caterer that had just opened up. Flubbed lines, missed cues and an odd, unidentifiable techno-hum through the first act only added to the mayhem. The unexplainable music emanating from one of the speakers became a running gag throughout the casts’ opening salvos.

At one point, Megee stopped the show to find out where the mystery music was coming from. Without missing a beat, Brown’s Blair frenetically started blow-drying her hyper-feathered hair—for four minutes. The crowd roared with approval. No one took a single shot at the cast during the technical snafu. Instead, the audience merely continued doing shots. All’s fair on the Late Night stage.

If you’ve never been to a Late Night show, expect a loose interpretation of your fave sitcoms. Alternative Facts of Life, however, seemed even more skewered and snarky than usual. Given that it was opening night, the cast was still finding their panty-hosed footing. Dressler—who should be given a Tony merely for mugging to the audience—had a majority of the good one-liners. Whether or not they were ad-libbed, we’ll never know. But Dressler always seemed to throw in a zinger or two that cracked up her castmates.

Without giving much away, the first act ends with a shocking climax. And just like in the show, we find Edna’s Edibles has burnt to the ground and has re-emerged as the neon-centric novelty shop “Over Our Heads.” In the second act, Tootie is no longer on skates. Jo is embracing her butch new wardrobe. Blair’s bustline had blossomed. And Natalie—well, she’s still a dork, but Brooks plays her lovingly. His cherubic face is just round enough to imitate her perpetual half-squint, half-smile.

Megee is back as Beverly Ann Stickle, Mrs. Garrett’s sister—but with a seemingly dark side. Megee begged the audience not to divulge any spoilers, so we won’t—but let’s just say there’s a slow-motion fight scene set to Joan Jett’s Bad Reputation that had people falling out of their chairs laughing. The audience is forever on the edge of their seats wondering what will happen next. Same goes for the cast it seems. Not only is there never a dull moment, there’s a good amount of improv thrown in for good measure.

On a very special episode …
If you’re looking for an uproarious night of things that are “wrong,” then Late Night Theatre has struck again. Oh, and let’s not forget the completely arbitrary pop music interludes—complete with slapstick choreography. If you’re of a certain age, you’ll be floored at the sheer nostalgic kitsch of it all. (Two words: Jermaine Jackson.) If you’re too young to remember Facts of Life, then go see it simply for the whimsy factor. It’s the ultimate blast from the past—complete with stirrup pants.

Alternative Facts of Life— limited run now through June 9th at Missie B’s.

Cast: Stephonne Singleton, Jessica Dressler, Spencer Brown, Chadwick Brooks and Ron Megee

- Michael Mackie - In Kansas City Magazine

The Top 50 Albums of 2018
The 131-minutes of byzantine jazz improvisations that crown my rankings is a reflection of the middling year for long-form recordings. The real action takes place on the subsequent listing of EPs.

1. Dave Holland- Uncharted Territories
2. Kendrick Lamar, The Weeknd & SZA- Black Panther: The Album
3. Ambrose Akinmusire- Origami Harvest
4. St. Vincent- MassEducation
5. Rhye- Blood
6. Drake- Scorpion
7. Logan Richardson- Blues People
8. Cardi B- Invasion of Privacy
9. Fatoumata Diawara- Fenfo
10. RP Boo- I’ll Tell You What!

11. Migos- Culture II
12. Cécile McLorin Salvant- The Window
13. Eddie Palmieri- Full Circle
14. Brockhampton- Iridescence
15. Bettye LaVette- Things Have Changed
16. Four Fists- 6666
17. Hailu Mergia- Lnala Belu
18. Leikeli47- Acrylic
19. Blood Orange- Negro Swan
20. Ashley Monroe- Sparrow

21. Anderson Paak- Oxnard
22. Ariana Grande- Sweetener
23. Tyshawn Sorey- Pillars
24. Kelly Hunt- Even the Sparrow
25. Vincent Peirani- Night Walker
26. Rosalía- El Mal Querer
27. Bixiga 70- Quebra Cabeça
28. Brad Mehldau- After Bach
29. Courtney Barnett- Tell Me How You Really Feel
30. Stephonne Singleton- Caged Bird Sings Songs About Red Beard

31. Sons of Kemet- Your Queen Is a Reptile
32. Halestorm- Vicious
33. Jupiter & Okwess- Kin Sonic
34. Rodney Crowell- Acoustic Classics
35. Elza Soares- Deus É Mulher
36. Hélène Grimaud- Memory
37. Fantastic Negrito- Please Don’t Be Dead
38. Nicole Mitchell- Maroon Cloud
39. Jorja Smith- Lost & Found
40. Lonnie Holley- Mith

41. Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats- Tearing at the Seams
42. Andrew Cyrille- Lebroba
43. Santigold- I Don’t Want: The Gold Fire Sessions
44. Noname- Room 25
45. Sly & Robbie and Nils Petter Molvaer- Nordub
46. Ben Miller Band- Choke Cherry Tree
47. Rich the Factor- CEO of the Blacktop
48. Matthew Shipp- Zero
49. Anja Lechner and Pablo Márquez- Schubert: Die Nacht
50. Kamasi Washington- Heaven and Earth

- Bill Brownlee - There Stands The Glass

We sit down with Bill Brownlee and talk about his BEST OF 2018. Brownlee freelances for The Star, he has blogs about music and jazz and he goes to more concerts than almost anyone we know. We hear music and talk about these musicians with KC connections: Logan Richardson, Kelly Hunt, Tech N9ne, Peter Schlamb and Stephonne.

We also talk about some non-KC acts as well and hear about some of Bill's favorite concerts of 2018. - The Bridge - Eight One Sixty

Musicians associated with Kansas City released dozens of albums in 2018. A few of the most prominent projects aren’t included here. Rather than acting as a barometer of parochial groupthink, my list contains the ten albums with the most artistic merit.

1. Logan Richardson- Blues People

2. Kelly Hunt- Even the Sparrow

3. Stephonne- Caged Bird Sings Songs About Red Beard

4. Rich the Factor- CEO of the Blacktop, CEO of the Blacktop 2 and CEO of the Blacktop 3

5. Janelle Monáe- Dirty Computer

6. The Project H- Everyday, Forever

7. Chen Yi- Concertos for String Instruments

8. Stephen Martin- Vision

9. Tech N9ne- Planet

10. Calvin Arsenia- Cantaloupe

- Bill Brownlee - There Stands The Glass

Stephonne
Caged Bird Sings Songs About Red Beard
(Glory Blue Music)

If you’re looking for something sexy, smooth and jazzy, look no further than this debut album by Stephonne Singleton, a Kansas City, Kan., native known for his work with Late Night Theatre. His soulful, sensual and breathy vocals stand out on this album. His style of vibrato is hard to compare to anyone else’s. The album has a ’90s feel that obsesses me. Songs like “Dangerous” have an alternative rock sound, and Singleton excels at that. He gets serious and sweet in “You Are Fire,” as he does in “Untitled (The Joke of It All),” but “Untitled” has an atmospheric and stellar bass-heavy beat. Other favorite songs are “Fine Feelin’ Blue,” “Hide & Seek,” and “How I Feel.” Make sure to check out this amazing album. It’s available on most online platforms, like Spotify.

- Monica Soto - Camp Kansas City Magazine

Stephonne Singleton has been making music for as long as he can remember, and it’s all been building up to this moment.

He’s on the verge of releasing his first solo album.

“I’m so excited!” Singleton says. “I’ve never worked harder on anything in my entire life. It’s my heart. And I get to finally share that.”

He describes his music as a marriage of Prince and Billie Holiday, and it’s got elements of grunge and folk.

He imagines it will have a wide audience, spanning ages, racial and ethnic groups, straight and LGBT communities, as well as “a fifteen-year-old that’s going through a really hard time or a breakup.”

Facebook and other social media tools have allowed independent musicians like Singleton to build audiences without having anything to do with big record labels or agents. But recent concerns about private data are leading some to rethink how they use the platform.

“It’s troubling that we kind of have this trust in Facebook to make sure that we were safe and that our information was safe, and we find out that it’s not,” Singleton says.

Yet, Facebook changed the way the music business works in ways that are hard to ignore.

Jesse Kates, singer/songwriter/guitarist for the Sexy Accident, has been playing in bands since the mid-‘90s – before most people had even heard of the internet.

Back then, venues and record labels still took out lots of print ads to promote shows or albums. Most cities had multiple news outlets covering local music, and bands themselves would plaster towns with fliers in the weeks before a show.

Kates says by the mid- to late 2000s, however, free and easy-to-use social media platforms were making those promotional tools obsolete.

“Over time, the use of the fliers and the time it takes to put them up, started to feel less and less useful and important,” Kates says.

He soured on Facebook after former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden leaked documents about government surveillance programs.

“I was trying to make some sort of statement,” Kates says. “I figured, ‘Ok, what does this feel like? Let me try this. Let me delete my Facebook account.’”

It didn’t last long.

Realizing how limited his promotions would be without Facebook, he rejoined almost immediately. But he says it’s becoming harder and harder for musicians to use the platform, because its always-changing algorithm seems to reduce the visibility of promotional posts.

Jesse Kates (left) of the Kansas City band the Sexy Accident, says Facebook's changing algorithm has made it hard to use for promoting music shows.
CREDIT JESSE KATES

“You just have to figure out these weird hacks,” he says. “Like if I post up a picture of the poster, and I wait for people to start clicking on it and sharing it, and then I follow on with an edit with the information about the show, then it’ll get seen.”

So are musicians stuck with a platform that’s hard to use and has now also lost their trust?

Not necessarily, according to Ari Herstand, a musician, author and band consultant based in Los Angeles.

“If you don’t want to be on Facebook, then you just have to get really creative about how you’re going to reach your audience,” Herstand says.

Facebook has more than a billion users, but it’s not that popular with many groups, especially teenagers.

Depending on who they’re trying to reach, he says, many bands have better luck using platforms that aren’t household names.

“There are some other artists that have put their entire strategy into livestreaming on You Now,” Herstand says. “And they’re building their entire career that way, and they’re making over $10,000 a month on this other platform.”

And there still is a world outside of social media and the whims of algorithms.

Herstand says one of the best ways musicians can get out from under Facebook’s thumb is the nearly medieval email list.

“With your email list, you own those contacts,” Herstand says. “On every social media platform, you rent your fans to that social media platform. At any point, Facebook could flip a switch, and you lose access to every fan that you have on Facebook.”

Herstand says Facebook could to a lot to rebuild bridges with musicians instead of treating them like businesses – though he’s not holding his breath.

“I would love to see create a music division at Facebook and see what they could do to really help out independent musicians reach a larger audience and sustain careers,” Herstand says.

Stephonne Singleton says he’s hopeful that Facebook will make some major changes, or that another platform will come along.

Until then, he just can’t afford to give up the free promotion that Facebook offers – especially with his debut album coming out in a few weeks.

“If someone creates something, I’m on. Like, give it to me!” Singleton says. “But until then, I don’t feel bad for using the platform. I gotta get it any way I can!”

Alex Smith is a health reporter for KCUR. You can reach him alexs@kcur.org. - KCUR 89.3

Segment 2, beginning at 34:37: For one local artist, music is a quest to find self-love.

Stephonne Singleton, a singer-songwriter, has spent eight years working on his first album. The Wyandotte County native shares how growing up listening to the singers like Mary J. Blige, Patti LaBelle and Barbara Streisand shaped his musical style.

- Gina Kaufmann - KCUR 89.3

Stephonne

My Brothers and Sisters

If you’re looking for a good soul-stirring, acquaint yourself with Stephonne. The KC-born artist evokes the sultry sashay of Prince — one of his primary inspirations — and the omniscient wisdom of great jazz singers from bygone eras. He recombines the best elements of soul, R&B and funk, informing the resulting sound with some kind of magical instinct for the irresistible. Now if he could just get his debut album wrapped up and available for our eager ears. As is, we’ll settle for a sexy NYE with him and the local neo-soul powerhouse My Brothers & Sisters. Tickets are $60; perks include champagne (“all you can drink until midnight,” if we are to believe the Tank Room) and a free coat check.

8 p.m. Saturday, December 31, at Tank Room, 1813 Grand

- Natalie Gallagher - The Pitch KC

Growing up, Stephonne Singleton told people he wanted to play music. He’s black; he’s tall; he’s a dude, and he thinks that’s why most people responded saying: “So you wanna be rapper?” But people’s assumptions were far different from Stephonne’s true musical dreams.

Stephonne Singleton is a Kansas City based singer-songwriter who grew up in Wyandotte County. His family struggled to make ends meet, making his Johnson County friend’s lives seem glamorous. He went attended Catholic School kindergarten through college, even though he knew he was gay for most of his life. He felt constrained by emotional barriers growing up, and he channels that into his music.

Stephone and our Ghost Notes producer Jamie Searle are recording an album right now called Caged Bird Sings Songs About Red Beard. Today Stephonne sheds light on the darkness that comes with feeling like a caged bird, and the joys of being set free. This is Ghost Notes.

- - Fountain City Frequency - Ghost Notes

By Timothy Finn
tfinn@kcstar.com
and Bill Brownlee
Special to The Star

On a crisp, clear, late-summer evening, the 12th annual Crossroads Music Fest went off without any major hitches. Over the course of nearly eight hours, more than three dozen bands showcased a wide variety of music styles at nine venues on Grand Boulevard and McGee Street, drawing nearly 1,400 fans, musicians, staff and volunteers into the Crossroads District. Here are some snapshots of more than half the performances.

Rural Grit at Collection
It has become something of a tradition: the Rural Grit troupe opening the Crossroads Music Fest, which they did at 6 p.m. Saturday. The loose affiliation of songwriters and musicians that hosts a weekly Monday happy hour at the Brick moved a few blocks north to Collection, where an early-bird crowd of several dozen listened to mainstays like Dave Reigner, Mark Smeltzer, Jason Beers and Caleb Gardner gather around one microphone and roll through a series of old-time country and country-blues songs, like “Banks of the Ohio.”

Emmaline Twist at the Tank Room
They’re a new band, but one with plenty of miles on its odometer. This ensemble of Kansas City music veterans writes songs that indulge in the better traits of post-punk and shoegaze rock. The Cure is an obvious influence. The influence of bands like New Order and Interpol is more insinuated. The savory twist is the shoegaze element, which recalls bands like Luna. It’s all poured into top-notch songcraft that highlights the vocals of Meredith McGrade, who will remind you now and then of heyday Chrissie Hynde.

Alex Abramovitz at the Brick
Abramovitz is a dapper trumpeter with an uptown stage presence. He and his drum/bass/guitar trio entertained a few dozen dinner-hour patrons with a keen set of swinging jazz tunes, some of it New Orleans style, like “Tin Roof Blues.”
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Spirit is the Spirit at the Living Room
They’re a true-blood indie band but their style is progressive, residing somewhere along the spectrum between bands like Granddaddy and the Flaming Lips but with some “Revolver”-era Beatlishness tossed in. Songs typically contain melodic riffs within a larger melodic riff, stretching, wending and veering song structures into unexpected. Extra attention is required to appreciate the architecture, but the rewards are worth it.

Brody Buster with the Matchsellers at Good Golly
This was the VIP venue, and the music entertainment comprised three sets of two artists or bands collaborating. The first set was from Buster, the former blues-harp whiz kid turned into guitar slinger, and the Matchsellers, a fiddle/guitar duo that applies its own twists to the Gillian Welch/David Rawlings show. This was a match that sounded destined to be. Their takes on roadhouse blues and country blues was vibrant and spirited.

Kelley Hunt at RecordBar
She has been a mainstay of the Kansas City/Lawrence music community for decades, and she showed why during a 75-minute set that showcased her many talents: as a singer, a songwriter and a musician. Her refined blend of blues, soul, R&B and roots music aroused a crowd of a couple hundred, especially the new song, “Stand Up,” a feel-good anthem that lit up the room.

Amado Espinoza at Collection
A native of Bolivia and a resident of Kansas City resident, Espinoza plays Andean music on the pan flute and charango, a sibling of the lute. His covers of “Eleanor Rigby” and “El Condor Pasa (If I Could)” were highlights of a stellar set.

Not a Planet at RecordBar
The set from this dynamic Kansas City quartet was the official release party for “Smoke Bombs & Cigarettes: The History of Now,” their new recording, which showcased their panoramic, genre- and era-crossing style. Their music arouses a wealth of resemblances and comparisons, from Queen to Muse, Led Zeppelin and the wide-ranging sounds of ‘70s FM radio. It’s all well-crafted and –arranged and performed with lots of charisma and flair, especially from frontman Nathan Corsi, who nails the rock-star role accordingly.

Radkey at RecordBar
More than four years have passed since this trio of brothers burst into the local music community with their loud, fast and melodic take on old-school punk, which pays homage to several bands, especially the Misfits. Years of touring have honed their live performances, stripping away the novelty and turning them into a taught, muscular and confident band that can easily command a venue large or small. Longevity appears to be written in the stars for them.

Irieplaceables Ska Orchestra, The Brick
An invigorating set by the horn-driven sextet the Irieplaceables Ska Orchestra at the Brick acted as a fitting tribute to Prince Buster, the Jamaican music legend who died on Wednesday. The young group played ska classics, original material and a danceable rendition of Charles Mingus’ jazz composition “Haitian Fight Song.”

The Molly Hammer Quartet, Green Lady Lounge
Molly Hammer, a jazz vocalist who has recently faced serious health difficulties, radiated good cheer at the Green Lady Lounge. Her brisk scat at the conclusion of “No More Blues” seemed intended to obliterate melancholy. Organist Ken Lovern added tasteful gospel flourishes to a sultry version of “A Sunday Kind of Love.”

Caleb Martin Ryan, the Living Room
Caleb Martin Ryan, a singer-songwriter from Fayetteville, graduated from high school in May. “Gypsy Livin’,” his first full-length album, was released by the locally based Mudstomp Records on Friday. Accompanied by the fine fiddler Nathanael Josiah Stone, Ryan sang rustic folk songs while standing barefoot on the downstairs stage at the Living Room.

Heidi Lynne Gluck, the Tank Room
Heidi Lynne Gluck’s superb recordings tend to be placid and delicate. She and a three-piece backing band overhauled her sound at the Tank Room. Gluck’s limber voice and accordionist Kass Lien battled to carry the melodies over Gluck’s wrenching guitar outbursts and the brute force of a powerful rhythm section on striking material like “The Only Girl In the Room” and “Pony Show.”

Julian Davis & the Hayburners, Collection
Julian Davis told the audience at Collection that “my tent blew away and my phone got ruined” in the storms that wreaked havoc at the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, Kansas, the day prior to the Crossroads Music Fest. The burgeoning old-timey and bluegrass luminary seemed no worse for wear. He and his two-piece band played with a rowdy enthusiasm that made chestnuts like “Roll in My Sweet Baby’s Arms” sound as essential as the latest Beyoncé hit.

Michaela Ann, Mod Gallery
The Nashville based Michaela Ann and the group that bears her name has attended two Folk Alliance International conferences in Kansas City, but Saturday’s show at the Mod Gallery was its first public performance in the area. The quartet played a few song that evoked the overly familiar sound of “Harvest”-era Neil Young. The best selection was a sleek cover of Hank Williams’ “Your Cheatin’ Heart.”

Under the Big Oak Tree, the Living Room
Unlike a lot of contemporary folk musicians, the three members of Under the Big Oak Tree are entirely free of irony and condescension. The guilelessness of the trio from St. Joseph as they performed agrarian reveries like “Local Honey” was refreshing.

Ivory Black, the Tank Room
Most of the attention that Ivory Black has received in recent months focuses on her status as a person with a non-binary gender identity. She made a case for herself as musician worth watching on Saturday. Backed by a sturdy three-piece band, she performed mainstream melodic rock, dance-pop and “Family Table,” a new song that sounded like an incipient hit.

Mitch Towne Trio, the Orion Room at the Green Lady Lounge
Patrons at the Green Lady Lounge occasionally treat live jazz like inconsequential background music. The Mitch Towne Trio wasn’t having it on Saturday. Organist Towne, saxophonist Stephen Martin and drummer John Kizilarmut tore into a John Coltrane composition with a fervor that caused even the loudest revelers to applaud in appreciation for the trio’s hard-charging attack.

Various Blonde, the Living Room
Various Blonde, one of Kansas City’s most consistently interesting indie-rock bands, previewed material from “All Bases Covered,” an album slated for Sept. 17 release on the Record Machine label. A rendition of the title track was among the sexy, insinuating songs that showcased the group’s new dance-oriented approach on the upstairs stage of the Living Room.

Stephonne Singleton, Tank Room
The premier neo-soul band in Kansas City, if not the best ensemble in the area regardless of genre, performed for 20 people at the Tank Room in the early hours of Sunday morning. Stephonne Singleton may lack promotional acumen, but he knows how to assemble a remarkable band. Nine musicians backed the vocalist in a ravishing set of impressive original material and covers of songs associated with the Beatles, Aretha Franklin and Radiohead.

Timothy Finn: 816-234-4781, @phinnagain. Bill Brownlee: @happyinbag

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/entertainment/ent-columns-blogs/back-to-rockville/article101268387.html#storylink=cpy - The Kansas City Star

Jamie Searle thought his 2014 Halloween show was grand and ambitious.

“My Brothers & Sisters Presents: The Films, Music and Costumes of Tim Burton,” performed at the Riot Room, was a lavish set featuring the arrangements of Danny Elfman music and a mashup of scenes from Burton’s movies.

At the time, Searle told The Star, “I think this is the tip of the iceberg as far as how far I can push myself creatively.”

He wasn’t kidding.

Saturday night, Searle is presenting “Macabre KC” at the Garage at Knuckleheads. It will be a bigger, more lavish and more ambitious show than its predecessor.

“I’ve blown up (the Burton) idea into a much more theatrical event,” he said. “Last year, we pulled off some great things, and I learned a ton. But this year, the show will be more interwoven and I’ll be working with a wider variety of artists and performers.”

“Macabre” will showcase several entertainers, starting with My Brothers and Sisters, an 21-piece band. Members of City In Motion dance school, aerialists, storytelling and music performances by Calvin Arsenia, Jessica Paige, Christian Robinson and Stephonne Singleton also are on the bill.

Their performances will be presented amid the re-creation of movie scenes by the orchestra. One of those will feature opera soprano Sarah Tannehill Anderson performing a scene from the science-fiction film “The Fifth Element.”

“I didn’t want something stagnant, like: ‘Here is this section of the show; now we’re going on to this section,’ ” Searle said. “(‘Macabre’) will be a larger, interwoven thing that no one necessarily for a second will feel like, ‘Oh, it’s another one of those things.’ The fatigue that might happen at a show because the imagery and setup are constant will not occur at this show.”

Searle started working on “Macabre” in mid-July. “I know that on July 20, my wife was in surgery for a tonsillectomy and I was in the waiting room I ordered a ton of (movie) DVDs on eBay to start cutting up,” he said. “So that’s when I started conceptualizing what I wanted to do.”

That concept was informed by a fresh perspective on last year’s show, which, by all measures, was a success but which Searle did not want to repeat.

“What I learned from last year is it’s about casting more of an illusion than an exact replica,” he said. “The more dramatic the illusion, the more a sense of presence you can accomplish. It’s less of doing it right along with the exact film and more like creating magic and taking you through a roller-coaster ride (of) humor and darkness and everything else. It’s a better way of getting into the fantasy around ‘The Fifth Element’ scene.”

That scene is “one of the most iconic sci-fi scenes ever,” Searle said. “Sarah Tannehill Anderson will be dressed in the exact costume singing that. We’re doing it from start to finish, from the opera part to the dance, where it all goes electronic.”

Between scenes, “Macabre” will present My Brothers and Sisters doing original material and covers and other performers like Paige.

She said she didn’t know what she was getting herself into when she asked Searle a couple of months ago if My Brothers and Sisters wanted to do a show with her band on Halloween.

“He’d already started on his mad-genius ‘Macabre’ party plan and invited us onboard,” she said.

Paige said she has created something that better suits the show’s theme.

“I am working on a darker, more dramatic and cinematic pop set for our contribution,” she said. “Jamie has put together such amazing ‘scenes,’ is how I would describe them, that I felt without losing our own music identity, it would blend well with the show.”

“Jessica is an up-and-coming star,” Searle said, “and the other artists in the show are people I’ve worked with: Calvin will play a song of his that I produced. There will be a full, gigantic band behind him. And Stephonne and Christian — I’ve been working with them, too.”

His intent with “Macabre,” Searle said, is to get them into an ideal environment for singers.

“A lot of singers, especially in the pop realm, don’t really thrive when they, say, sit down with just a guitar player,” he said. “The realm they thrive in is full production. So getting together with them to put out this larger thing is beneficial to everyone.”

Searle has been assisted behind the scenes by a staff of about 20, including a costume designer who has worked with the thrash-metal band Gwar. The show will be heavy on visuals, choreographed to avoid repetition and redundancy.

“Even at (electronic dance music) concerts, where the light shows are legendary, after a while it can become dull because you’re being inundated with the same stimuli,” he said. “This show changes the focal point from a scene with lights or visuals to a singer, like Jessica Paige, where it’s not all about what’s going on around her and behind her. It makes it a whole new ballgame.”

Paige said: “The show is going to blow people’s minds. To call it a show feels like a disservice, actually. It’s going to be an experience for the audience.”

Searle said, “The quality and the amount of content and creative energy in this show compared to last year is twentyfold,” yet he is already thinking about next year’s show. The buzz about “Macabre” has drawn attention and inquiries from others in the Kansas City arts and entertainment community.

“My imagination has cracked open into a different realm,” he said. “I’ve talked to a bunch of people excited about this idea, people in events planning and the marketing world. I was introduced to Quixotic, who has shown some interest. I want to make this an annual event, and I can predict that next year is going to be even bigger. Gigantic.”

Timothy Finn: 816-234-4781, @phinnagain

SATURDAY

My Brothers and Sisters and guests will perform “Macabre KC” at 9 p.m. Saturday at the Garage at Knuckleheads. Tickets are $20. A $75 VIP package includes food, drink and premium seating. The show is a benefit for the Midwest Music Foundation and radio station KKFI (90.1 FM).

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/entertainment/ent-columns-blogs/back-to-rockville/article41715207.html#storylink=cpy - Timothy Finn, Kansas City Star

Well, it had been a few years since I’d seen a Late Night Theatre show, and a few minutes into “Black Bewitched” I could see that the all the essential ingredients were still in place: It was raucous, rowdy, raw and relentless in its efforts to get laughs from a willing audience.

The performance space at Missie B’s, the 39th Street bar known for its drag shows, is about as intimate and/or cramped as any storefront theater that comes to mind.

For this kind of show, that’s a good thing. Many of the theatergoers, seated elbow-to-elbow, were easily within sweat-flinging distance of the actors at the Sunday matinee. And the performers more than once left the stage and shimmied into the audience.

Ron Megee, the Late Night co-founder who directed and wrote “Black Bewitched” with Jessica Dressler, served as emcee. In that role he encouraged theatergoers to drink – he calls what he does at Missie B’s “bar theater” – and it seems logical that a couple of stiff drinks might enhance a person’s appreciation of Late Night’s rude, crude and over-the-top humor.

As the title suggests, the show re-imagines the 1960s sitcom “Bewitched,” which was built around an attractive young witch and her befuddled suburban husband, as though portrayed by African-American actors.

Act 1 is essentially a “Bewitched” episode in which Samantha has to manage her meddling mother, Endora (also a witch), who wants to throw a Halloween party over hubby Darrin’s objections. Act II is a repetition of the same plot on acid.

Megee throws in plenty of musical numbers, almost all of them pop hits from earlier eras.

Some are lip-synced while others are performed with live vocals and Karaoke backing tracks. “Stop in the Name of Love,” “Think,” “Loop de Loop,” “I Can’t Help Myself,” “Rock Steady” and “Witchy Woman,” among others, are woven into the show.

The performers all have their moments.

Thanks in large part to Jon Fulton Adams’ costumes, Ray Fry as Endora dominates the stage like an opulent decorated cake in Dayglo wigs and makeup that brings to mind legendary drag star Divine. (Andy Chambers is credited with makeup and hair design). Ryan Webster as Samantha is poised and knows just how to twirl Samantha’s blonde wig; Webster also gets some big laughs at a certain point in the show when he appears in an ill-fitting Afro wig, which virtually conceals his face.

Some of the most memorable humor is generated by Stephonne Singleton as Aunt Clara.

Meredith Wolfe, as Uncle Arthur, is a revelation when she prances out in Act II and performs James Brown’s “Say it Loud – I’m Black and I’m Proud” paired with “Sex Machine.” Wolfe can sing but she also taps into the Brown persona and rivets our attention.

Kory Burch has some amusing moments but Darrin, as he was on the original TV show, is a straight man who sets up the comic antics of the other characters.

Nothing is too nonsensical for a Late Night show. There’s an actor in a bear suit. An abominable snowman shows up. Actors crack themselves and each other up. Loretta Martin, one of Missie B’s drag stars, made a “guest” appearance at the Sunday show. And the matinee audience couldn’t get enough.

There’s some funny stuff in this show but it could have been funnier. The Late Night aesthetic leans to onstage anarchy, not precise comic timing. - The Kansas City Star

And now, ladies and gentlemen, the time has come for a discussion of over-the-top, in-your-face, for-profit, populist theater.

Opening this weekend is “Black Bewitched,” the latest production from Late Night Theatre, which in the last year or so has found the ideal home at Missie B’s. The 39th Street bar known for its drag shows and raunchy stand-up comics is the perfect fit for a theater company that specializes in cross-dressing parodies.

Founder Ron Megee, who began staging shows in the 1990s with a defiant core of performers and designers, made a name for himself with crazed versions (he often called them “tributes”) of schlocky movies from earlier eras, including “Valley of the Dolls” and Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds.” Through the years he and other members of the troupe, particularly Missy Koonce and David Wayne Reed, produced wild shows that took gleeful potshots at arcane corners of pop culture.

The current show trains its crosshairs on a popular 1960s sitcom about a witch married to a “normal” businessman whose middle-class life is often complicated by the antics of her supernaturally gifted relatives. But, as usual, Megee has re-imagined the show with a radical supposition: What if “Bewitched” had been performed by African-American actors?

Megee is directing the show. He wrote the script with Jessica Dressler. The idea, he said, had occurred to him back in the days when Late Night had its own downtown theater.

“I’ve been thinking of it for years, and now I’ve finally found a cast I really liked and put it together,” Megee said. “‘Bewitched’ was a look at interracial relationships without saying so. It was a look at society at a time of turmoil but doing it with comedy.”

Megee uses the basic premise as a platform for an exploration of how African-American culture was later depicted on prime-time TV and in pop music.

“Act 1 is almost verbatim ‘Bewitched,’ and then things start getting crazy,” he said.

Ultimately the show, as Megee described it, explodes into a kaleidoscopic mashup of sitcoms from the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s, including “Sanford & Son,” “Cosby” and “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. All of it, Megee said, will be “set to the sounds of the ’60s and ’70s.”

The cast includes Ryan Webster (aka Moltyn Decadence) as Samantha; Kory Burch (aka Regina LaRae) as Darrin #1; Ray Fry (aka Widow Von du) as Endora; and Stephonne Singleton (aka Kita Rose) as Aunt Clara. As Uncle Arthur, Meredith Wolfe replaces the originally announced Christopher Barksdale.

Late Night became dormant for a time after it left its home on Grand Boulevard near 17th Street. Last year the troupe re-emerged at Missie B’s.

The influence of the Late Night aesthetic on local theater is undeniable. Megee, like other performers associated with the outfit, found his way into mainstream productions at the American Heartland and the New Theatre. In 2012, he co-starred with Mark Robbins, arguably the city’s finest classically trained actor, in the KC Rep production of Charles Ludlam’s “The Mystery of Irma Vep,” a genre-busting, gender-bending farce in which two actors play dozens of characters.

Ludlam, who founded the Ridiculous Theatrical Company in the 1960s in New York, is the inspiration for much of what Megee does in Kansas City. Ludlam’s satirical plays were often steeped in literature but almost always executed with an anything-for-a-laugh sensibility.

In October, De De DeVille, a drag performer who temporarily went “mainstream” when he/she appeared in a supporting role in “Harvey” at the New Theatre, will produce and star in “Die Mommie Die” by Charles Busch at Crown Center. DeVille has appeared in several Late Night productions. Busch was inspired by Ludlam but found greater mainstream success.

Also in October, Missy Koonce, one of the key members of the original Late Night company, will direct the world premiere of Forrest Attaway’s “Chainsaw: The Musical” at the Living Room.

Megee said his way of developing a script is less about slaving away at a keyboard than it is finding out what his actors can bring to the work.

“You know Late Night,” he said. “Our plots are really thin. We improv and work on ’em until we have a script. We’re one step away from the Ridiculous Theatre of Annoyance.”

(The Annoyance Theatre, based in Chicago, got started in the 1980s. Reportedly, its “Co-Ed Prison Sluts” at one time was the longest-running musical in Chicago theater history).

Megee said Missie B’s in many ways is the ideal home for Late Night, because the club absorbs the overhead costs. The stage is configured to seat about 100 theatergoers for each Late Night performance. The Friday and Saturday shows start at 8 p.m. and have to be over in less than two hours. The drag shows, Missie B’s claim to fame, begin at 10 p.m. sharp.

“We’re having about 2,000 people see each of our shows,” Megee said. “It’s pure escapism. Just know that coming in. You’re going to see all levels of acting ability. Backstage, during intermission, we have to move to one side of the dressing room because drag queens and drag kings come in and start getting ready. Our sets have to be incorporated into their shows or they have to be movable.”

The theatergoers, he said, cut across class lines. You might see a politician or a member of the financial elite sitting next to a leather daddy.

“Our audience base is just twisted,” he said. “And you have a captive audience drinking. How can you beat that?”

The for-profit model, Megee said, makes sense for the kind of entertainment he produces.

“I realized after 10 years of Late Night that boards of directors aren’t really for us,” he said. “There are not grants for this kind of theater.” - The Kansas City Star

"Glory Blue's debut CD spotlights a pair of young artists who have joined forces and talents to create a collection of acoustic pop songs that tell stories (and sometimes cautionary tales) of young love and its hurts. Justin Manion's simple, clean guitar work and Stephonne Singleton's soulful and silky vocals create a unique musical blend, and their lyrics reveal a search for something deeper--a spirituality behind the ins and outs of young relationships that speaks of forgiveness, redemption and, at times, prayer. It's a solid first effort of mostly acoustic guitar and vocals, but the several more fully produced tracks perhaps illustrate what lies next for this talented duo. Let's hope Glory Blue's sophomore release follows soon." ---Steve Givens - Steve Givens, St. Louis