Michelle Williams continues to expand her brand and make a name for herself in the entertainment industry with a new reality series, My Sister’s Keeper. Produced and distributed by Entertainment One (eOne), the series will follow Williams’ journey of writing and recording her third Gospel album, and other aspects of her life.

“I am very thrilled about this opportunity, to extend into television with the eOne family as well, with this series,” she said in a release.

“Working together on my new gospel album and television series, I am excited to share with everyone a behind-the-scenes look at the inspiration and journey of recording for the album, performing, fun family times and other unforgettable experiences out together with my dear sisters.”

One of those sisters sang alongside Williams in a gospel group, United Harmony. Destiny’s Child fans may remember a mini reunion that Williams had during an interview with Ananda Lewis on MTV’s TRL. Fans will have to watch the show to see what musical surprises, if any, the Williams sisters may be cooking up.

“We’re very excited to expand upon our relationship with Michelle on this new collaboration that will provide fans with a peek into her everyday life,” said Tara Long, Senior Vice President of U.S. Alternative Programming.

“eOne’s versatility across all pillars of entertainment from music, film and television through development, production and distribution enables us to offer comprehensive multi-platform opportunities for our partners.”

Williams’ career in entertainment spawns more than a decade. She got her start as a background singer for R&B singer Monica in 1999 and joined Destiny’s Child in 2000.  Alongside Beyoncé Knowles and Kelly Rowland, Williams traveled the globe, selling out shows and collecting major music awards. In 2002, however, she branched out and forged a solo career.

On April 16, 2002 Williams released Heart to Yours via Sanctuary Records and Columbia Records. The album was well received by critics and performed marginally well on the music charts. Do You Know followed in 2004 and featured appearances by former band mates Knowles and Rowland. Knowles and younger sister Solange also wrote and produced on the album. Again, the album received positive reviews. The album did not perform as well as its predecessor though. In 2008 Williams ventured from gospel music and issued a dance/pop album titled Unexpected.  The album was a commercial disappointment. It is Williams’ lowest selling album to date.

In 2003 Williams made her Broadway debut in Aida, replacing Grammy-winning singer Toni Braxton in the lead role. The year 2007 saw Williams star in Oprah Winfrey’s The Color Purple, followed by a ground breaking, historical portrayal as Roxie Hart in Chicago in 2009. Williams is the first woman of color to take on the lead role. In 2011, Williams made a brief departure from the Broadway stage to act in a David E. Talbert play, What My Husband Doesn’t Know. Broadway fans saw Williams return to them in 2013 with a role in Fela!

In addition to being a singer, songwriter and actress, Williams is also a philanthropist, designer and a minority owner of the WNBA’s Chicago Sky.

Image Courtesy : Michelle Williams

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Calabasas, U.S.A. — The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) unveiled on October 24, new details and opened registration for the 12th Annual D.I.C.E. (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit and Awards program, at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, February 5 – 8, 2013.

The annual event, which draws some of the brightest and most influential interactive entertainment industry leaders, decision makers and visionaries, is evolving to better reflect the growth of the industry and foster deeper engagement and interaction among conference attendees. Changes include a new Summit format, a larger venue, and the renaming of the annual awards program, now known simply as the D.I.C.E. Awards.

The Academy established the D.I.C.E. Summit to celebrate the core pillars of the interactive entertainment industry: Design, Innovate, Communicate, and Entertain. Those ideals define the revamped 2013 Summit, which will include an all-conference keynote each morning, followed by focused sessions – centered on each of the core pillars – to drive the rest of the agenda. The first speakers announced include: Randy Pitchford, president of Gearbox Software; Jenova Chen, creative director and co-founder of thatgamecompany; and Jesse Schell, CEO of Schell Games and distinguished professor of the Practice of Entertainment Technology at Carnegie Mellon University.

“Interactive entertainment is ingrained in our culture. We’re a $60 billion global industry of individuals and companies who are pushing the boundaries of technology, creativity and artistic expression every day,” said Martin Rae, president, Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. “The Academy established the annual D.I.C.E. Summit and awards program to not only celebrate our industry achievements, but to provide a dedicated forum to share ideas and foster innovation. Our industry is maturing, and we’re excited to reflect that with changes, such as the new format and new look for the Awards, so that we remain at the forefront of shaping and moving our industry into the next stage of its evolution.”

Each year, the Academy and the global game community gather at the D.I.C.E. Summit to celebrate the artistic achievements that push the scope of interactive entertainment with the annual Interactive Achievement Awards. These peer-driven, annual awards have become one of the highest honors to bestow upon video games and their talented game makers. This year, the Academy is unveiling a new name for the annual awards, the D.I.C.E. Awards.

“Over the past several years, our members and many supporters independently began referring to our awards program simply as the D.I.C.E. Awards – a nickname celebrating the shared history and principles embodied in the D.I.C.E. Summit moniker,” said Rae. “We began to think that this nickname, coined by our community, would serve as the best and boldest way to represent the awards. It truly encapsulates what we are all about – the celebration of the amazing designers, innovators, communicators, and entertainers within the video game and interactive entertainment industry.”

The 16th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards will be held the evening of February 7, 2013, on the main stage of Hard Rock Hotel’s acclaimed concert venue, The Joint. Call for nominations for the D.I.C.E. Awards will be announced in the coming weeks.

2013 D.I.C.E. Summit Format Changes

The 2013 D.I.C.E. Summit gets underway on Tuesday, February 5, 2013, with a full day of networking events for attendees. New activities this year include a 5K run and whiskey, beer and wine tastings, which join the annual golf, go-kart and poker tournaments.

A new all-conference keynote will kick off each day with a discussion that touches on all of the four pillars of the D.I.C.E. moniker. The rest of each day will offer attendees four separate experiences, each defined by one of those pillars, led by a track keynote at the start of each segment. Concluding each conference track will be a special networking event where attendees will have an opportunity to mingle with attendees and speakers in that section. The three-day event will be capped off with the 16th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards celebration.

First D.I.C.E. Summit Speakers

The D.I.C.E. Summit speaker program is renowned for jump starting the key industry conversations that resonate throughout the year, and impact the trends directly affecting the industry. The first speakers exemplify the types of industry luminaries who will enlighten, inspire and challenge the attendees.

• Randy Pitchford, co-founder, owner and President of Gearbox Software, and the individual who spearheaded the award winning, best-selling original franchises Brothers in Arms and Borderlands
• Jenova Chen, creative director and co-founder of thatgamecompany, and the visionary designer of the award-winning games Flow, Flower, and most recently the critically received Journey
• Jesse Schell, CEO of Shell Games, and Distinguished Professor of the Practice of Entertainment Technology at Carnegie Mellon University, who will be presenting for the first time a follow-up to his provocative 2010 D.I.C.E. Session talk on game-a-geddon, also known as Design Outside The Box.

Registration for the 2013 D.I.C.E. Summit is currently open. Register until November 9, 2012 to get the early registration pricing at www.dicesummit.org.

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It has been about 10 years since the attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. Even though its been ten years, Ground Zero has not been forgotten and continues to move forward. Proposed in 2006, New York City is building the Freedom Tower, which will be the city’s new commercial building. The building is not suppose to replace the twin towers, but instead it is built for remembrance of those who lost their lives and it is a symbol of the power of America. With an estimated completion in 2013, the World Trade Center will now consist of five different buildings and areas with the hopes of creating an economic boost for the United States. There will be five new skyscrapers, a September 11^th memorial and museum, a transportation hub, retail complex, and a center of performing arts. The site will be built with some of the worlds most famous architects including; David Childs and Santiago Calatrava with hopes of creating a substantiate and safe World Trade Center.

The first tower will soar over 1, 776 feet over New York City, making it Americas tallest building. It will be known as the Freedom Tower and will be the main office space of the new design. The second tower will be 1, 349 feet and will be composed of the Performing Arts Center topped off with an eighty foot antenna. The last three towers will all rise around 900 feet with restaurants, memorials, and more. Besides the Freedom Tower, the memorial for September 11^th will be the most significant of the project with two pools that will stand in place of where the twin towers use to be. It will have two waterfalls, which will soon be the two biggest man made waterfalls of all time. All 3,000 lives that were taken on the attacks will be engraved around the edges of the pool. This will recognize the lives lost from the trade centers, the pentagon, and the plane crashes. Any visitors of the memorial and museum will go through a series of experiences in order to get the full effect of the tragedy.

“The design strives to make visible of what is absent,” stated Micheal Arad, one of the architects on the project. He stresses the main goal of the new World Trade Center is the remembrance of the lives lost. Even though it has been over ten years, and with the recent passing away of Osama Bin Laden, fear is still a factor in terrorist attacks in New York City. The World Trade Center’s other main goal, because of this, is safety. Some of the primary safety precautions of the new site include; fireproofing, structural stability, chemical air filters, wider staircases for evacuating, safer elevators, three feet deep concrete walls for refugee in case of attack, and an extra staircase for fire fighters. The site developer, Larry Silivstein, states that it will be one of the biggest and most expensive projects that America has ever seen, with hopes of healing the agony the terrorists left on the United States. The project is estimated to cost over two billion dollars, using some of the most expensive materials and designers.

Ten years ago, the largest tragedy hit the United states and now, ten years later, the largest memorial will be built. The new World Trade Center project could never and will never replace the twin towers. Instead, it will keep the lives lost remembered and honored. Wars, attacks, and millions of lives lost have been working towards this goal for years. The Freedom Tower will become a new symbol for the United States just as Lady Liberty has become. The new tower represents our country’s ability to move forward and to overcome all evil.

Image Courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/28722563@N05/

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