FAIRFAX, VA. (Top40 Charts/ United Negro College Fund) - Luminaries from entertainment, politics, and sports are ready to roll out the red carpet for one of America's greatest living performers and composers as the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) hosts An Evening of Stars (AEOS) Tribute to Smokey Robinson.
Presented by Target, this year's AEOS will be taped on Saturday, September 22nd at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium and will air nationwide in late January, 2008. Tickets for the September 22 taping are available through the Ticketmaster Web site and at all Ticketmaster locations in the Pasadena/Los Angeles metropolitan area. National corporate sponsors of AEOS are American Airlines, Toyota, McDonald's, Wachovia, and AT&T.
Scheduled to appear at the taping of the AEOS Tribute to Smokey Robinson are award-winning singers Yolanda Adams, Anita Baker, Macy Gray, Heather Headley, Chris Isaak, John Legend, Kenny Lattimore, Chante Moore, Ne-Yo, Joss Stone, Nancy Wilson and Stevie Wonder. Presenters will include Tichina Arnold and Tyler James Williams from Everybody Hates Chris, Merri Dee of Chicago Superstation WGN, actor-comedian Jimmy Fallon, Hill Harper from CSI-NY; Taraji P. Henson from Hustle and Flow; LisaRaye McCoy-Misick from All of Us, Shemar Moore from Criminal Minds, Kimberly Elise from Close to Home, Persia White and Golden Brooks from Girlfriends, syndicated radio host and HBCU fundraiser, Tom Joyner, Shaun Robinson, co-host of Access Hollywood; NBA Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Making special taped appearances will be Secretary of State Dr. Condoleezza Rice, Diana Ross, Aretha Franklin and Martha Reeves. Presenting the Award of Excellence to Smokey Robinson will be Motown Records founder and music industry icon, Berry Gordy.
Described by Bob Dylan as "America's greatest living poet," Robinson has been an active supporter of UNCF through his appearances on past An Evening of Stars tributes, on the Lou Rawls Parade of Stars telethon which preceded the new tribute program, and participation in numerous UNCF fundraising events.
Robinson has received numerous awards including the Kennedy Center Honors, a Grammy Living Legend Award, NARAS Lifetime Achievement Award, the National Medal of Arts award from the President of the United States, and an honorary Doctorate of Music from Howard University. He has also been inducted into the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame and The Songwriters' Hall of Fame.
"Smokey Robinson and all the other stars who will sparkle on this year's AEOS are doing much more than showcasing some of the best creative talent our culture has to offer," said Michael L. Lomax, Ph.D., president and CEO of UNCF. "They are making sure that the millions of Americans who tune in to AEOS understand that there is nothing more important than helping UNCF make sure that deserving young men and women get the college education they need to launch their careers and support their families and careers."
Returning as executive producer and director of An Evening of Stars is five-time Emmy Award winner Louis J. Horvitz, whose credits include numerous years directing The Academy Awards, The Prime Time Emmy Awards, The Kennedy Center Honors, The ALMA Awards presented by the National Council of La Raza, and The People's Choice Awards. He has also directed The MTV Movie Awards as well as The American Film Institute (AFI) tributes to Robert DeNiro (2003), Meryl Streep (2004), George Lucas (2005), Sean Connery (2006), and Al Pacino (2007).
