Alicia Saldenha

Donny Hathaway

  Christmas time has come again. Even here in Japan, which is not a predominantly Christian country, the holiday lights, decorations, events and songs declare the season's popularity.

One of my favorite Christmas songs is Donny Hathaway's This Christmas. I love listening to his version and I love singing it as well. In fact, I've performed it a few times this month at various Christmas events.

Today, I'd like to share a beautiful version which I discovered recently on YouTube. What is even… Read more

The Nutcracker - http://www.cbtnva.org/nutcracker

 

Baltimore Symphony Orchestra & Baltimore School for the Arts dancers - http://www.bsomusic.org/calendar/events/2014-2015-events/the-nutcracker.aspx

As a child, The Nutcracker was one of my favorite ballet productions. It inspired my desire to become a ballerina and to take ballet lessons in primary school back in Trinidad.
 
With a fabulous score by Tchaikovsky, the ballet premièred at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg on Sunday, December 18, 1892… Read more

The official lyrics video for my new single, Can You See Me? (Hands in the Air) has been released. 

Please check it out and please help me share the links on social media. 

The song is a call for solidarity in the face of racism, institutionalized discrimination and police brutality.
We have lost too many of our sisters and brothers, sons and daughters, mothers and fathers, to this hatred.

#BlackLivesMatter #SayHerName #LaquanMcDonald #Sandra Bland #TamirRice #EricGarner


Can You See Me? (Hands in the Air) 
Artist… Read more

The 43rd edition of the Pirelli Calendar is causing a stir, ironically, for NOT featuring overtly sexual images as it has been wont to do in previous years.

The 2016 calendar takes, in my humble opinion, a leap forward, by appositely shining the spotlight on talented and accomplished women - among them artists, writers, filmmakers, athletes and philanthropists. 

Iconic photographer, Annie Leibovitz, given a free rein in choosing and capturing the faces, decided on women she admired, including director and… Read more

 

M.I.A. in music video for Borders

Reading about a new M.I.A. release is enough for me to click on the link and listen to the new song or watch the new video. She is such an original and talented young woman.

Today, after watching the beautiful and self-directed music video for her new release, Borders, my love and respect for her has grown even more.

Not only is she addressing such an important and pressing human rights issue, but she is doing it in such a creative and visually stunning way. That is the… Read more

Saul Williams (from Buzzfeed)

Where does one begin when speaking about the wonderful Saul Williams? 
He is so prolific - an actor, rapper, musician, artist, and writer. 

No wonder that he was commissioned to write a book about about the United States of America. 
In US (a.), he reflects on the complicated issue of identity, of being an American, and the ways in which race informs that identity.
Check out the beautiful interview on Buzzfeed here.

Enjoy this video below. He is definitely one of the artists… Read more

Sananda Maitreya

He's back.
I have loved Sananda Maitreya since way back when he was known as Terrence Trent Darby.
His voice, his wonderful songs, his style, his sex appeal--- it was all enthralling. I followed his career as he became more and more philosophical and continued to produce beautiful music.  Today, my respect for him increases with the release of his new, powerful, passionate song and heartbreakingly beautiful music video.
The song is called I Wanna Breathe. According to AfroPunk, where… Read more

The first single from the Lady A Project is due to be released soon. 
It is a protest song and a call for solidarity in the face of racism, police brutality and injustice.
Here is the cover art.
What do you think? :-)

Photography by Fabio Dal Grande, Emoeye Photography. http://www.emoeye.com/
Cover Art by Kim Bernard. https://kimbernard.carbonmade.com/

Single: Can You See Me? (Hands in the Air)
Artist: Alicia Saldenha
Writer/Producer: Alicia Saldenha
Mixing Engineer: Chris Howe  

Upcoming Single by Lady A aka Alicia…

Read more

Were you excited when BET first launched? I was.

Coming from the Caribbean twin-island nation of Trinidad and Tobago, it took a while before our little country got cable television. One of the channels I was most excited about was BET along with MTV. Music was always my passion.

Do you still feel that enthusiasm for BET and its programming in recent years? I don't.

And what do you think of BET's recent statement about its refusal to air the Million Man March 20 year reunion held in Washington, D.C. on October… Read more

Hi Friends,

I've been wanting to do a music podcast for a while now, to promote the great independent artists I have discovered over the years and to introduce more and more people to the gorgeous music coming out of my homeland, Trinidad and Tobago.

Finally, here it is! Thanks to Blackan Radio, Japan, for hosting the show. Blackan has been a great champion of independent music by foreign artists in Japan, as well as a big supporter of my music and my albums, Rose, with indigo jam unit, and my solo album… Read more