Look To The Stars News: Raven Symone

Bid2Beat AIDS For Special Christmas Gifts

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 14:00:00 -0000

One of the biggest celebrity charity auction events of the year is currently gearing up for its launch on December 1.

Bid2Beat AIDS is an annual event that will feature over 1000 items from top stars such as 50 Cent, Adam Sandler, Adrian Grenier, Aerosmith, Alec Baldwin, Amy Winehouse, Antonio Banderas, Britney Spears, Cameron Diaz, Common , Death Cab for Cutie, Denzel Washington, P. Diddy, Donny Osmond, Elton John, Fall Out Boy, Foo Fighters, Good Charlotte, Green Day, Hanson, Hilary Duff, Jake Gyllenhaal, James Blunt, James Earl Jones, James Morrison, Jamie Foxx, Jay-Z , Jennifer Hudson, Jennifer Lopez, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jeremy Piven, Jessica Alba, John Legend, Johnny Depp, Kanye West, Kirsten Dunst, Ludacris , M.I.A., Madonna, Mariah Carey, Neil Patrick Harris, Ozzy Osbourne, Phil Collins, Raven Symone, Razorlight, Rihanna , Sacha Baron Cohen, Sharon Osbourne, Victoria Beckham, Whoopi Goldberg, Will Ferrell, Wyclef Jean, and many, many more. Also up for grabs will be VIP tickets to concerts and backstage visits with stars like Bernadette Peters, Jewel, Aimee Mann, Joan Rivers, and Michael Feinstein.

The annual auction will raise money for LIFEbeat, the music industry’s AIDS fundraising and service charity. The first three BID 2 BEAT AIDS auctions raised nearly $250,000, and this year’s looks set to be the biggest yet.

More info about the auction can be found at the Bid2Beat AIDS website, and the auction will go live on World AIDS Day here.

Look To The Stars will keep you posted as the items are announced.

Divas Simply Sing For Women With AIDS

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 14:00:00 -0000

The 18th annual DIVAS SIMPLY SINGING! Concert takes place in the Wilshire Theatre in Beverly Hills this weekend.

Hosted by Sheryl Lee Ralph, the show promises to be a magical evening of song and entertainment that will benefit the Women Alive Coalition. The event will feature a host of the most talented women in the entertainment business – including Patti LaBelle, Patti Austin, Miki Howard, Angie Stone, Raven Symone – united in a benefit concert to continue the courageous battle against HIV/AIDS.

In 1990 Sheryl Lee Ralph established the Diva Foundation and created DIVAS Simply Singing! as a loving memorial to the many friends she had lost to HIV/AIDS. For 18 consecutive years, the Diva and her friends have come together to raise their voices in song and commitment to HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention. Each diva performs one song with the sole accompaniment of a concert grand piano.

Every cent of the millions raised through their efforts goes to help men, women, and children infected and affected by HIV/AIDS.

The show takes place on October 11, and more information can be found at the Divas Simply Singing! website.

Honeys We Love: Finesse Mitchell

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 15:30:00 -0000

Written by Delinda Lombardo

For this week’s Honeys We Love column, Look to the Stars contributor Delinda Lombardo caught up with comedian/actor/writer Finesse Mitchell in an effort to pick his brain about gender equality, dating advice and inspiration.

Aside from entertaining fans around the world as a regular on Saturday Night Live (2003-2006), he recently penned his first ‘dating advice’ book Your Girlfriends Only Know So Much and also dishes out honest relationship advice in Essence magazine. Mitchell has also appeared in such films as Mad Money, Who’s Your Caddy and The Comebacks, and proves that there are some mighty fine men out there who are more than willing to help women get along with each other while not dating “crazy.”

Finesse, tell me a little bit about the inspiration behind your column in Essence Magazine? You seem to be giving some great dating advice to women?

At first I think my aspiration was “this will be fun”, an opportunity to get some stuff off my chest, as well as talk to some other guys and figure out what they want to say and tell women, because it’s so hard – in my opinion – to communicate honestly with women. Sometimes we have such a hard time communicating how we feel to people we really love and care about because either they can’t take it or we’re afraid we’re going to hurt their feelings. So I figured it would be fun to be that guy, the one to shoot it straight from the hip and make you laugh at the same time. But you also get something from the advice; women will enjoy hearing it from a man more so than their girlfriends telling them something.

Was that also the idea behind your book ‘Your Girlfriends Only Know So Much’?

Yeah. My book is more of a ‘big brother’ book for all women who don’t have a big brother or who don’t have that good guy friend they can bounce stuff off of.

There seems to be a lot of cattiness when it comes to women getting along with each other. What can we do to combat this? Where does it come from?

There are so many women who make it blatantly obvious they are intimidated or feel insecure or don’t know how to communicate with other beautiful women – so much so that the other woman is automatically the enemy and it becomes a competition now. I’m talking about women who give other women the evil eye when they walk in the room – that’s a huge turn off for men, not just because it’s a jealously trait, but because it shows insecurity about yourself. I think that’s a problem when it comes to a person’s personality and communicating with people in general. Men who have anything going for themselves attract all types of women, so they want a women at their side that can handle a room, that can handle interacting with other women they don’t know – women of different ages or races.

Which women in your life have been the most influential and why?

My mother, just because she was my kindergarten teacher and she stressed on me the importance of education and prioritizing – [she] changed my entire life. Also, the women I’ve dated from my college years up until now, all those women were very special because they helped create the personality that I have now. Sometimes relationships don’t work out just because of timing or you’re too young, but once you get it, you get it. You can get it and be really bitter because someone broke your heart, or you can date a woman and leave the experience with ‘you know what, I know what I did wrong’, and you’re a better person for it. And those are the women you still want to be friends with to this day and recognize that even if you don’t want to date them, you learned a lot from that relationship.

Who do you currently feel is a good role model for young women to look up to?

Raven Symone. She’s perfect. I mean, she has ten times more money than some of the other girls on the scene right now, and you never hear about her getting in trouble. And Scarlett Johansson, I think she’s great.

Are there any male celebrities, aside from yourself, that you feel are making a positive impact?

Different people can know the same person but know him in a different capacity. Now, I love Chris Webber and there are things I personally know about him and there are things I don’t know. But, what I do know and love about him is who has a bigger heart – so, when you see somebody that talented and serious about giving back, the point is, he’s doing it. It’s a huge example for everybody who is in the league (NBA) making that kind of money or any entertainer that has that type of popularity – or every business person – they can really look at somebody like Chris and say, ‘what am I doing, I have just as much money, what can I do?,’ so I think he inspires people that way.

What is the one talent you would most like to have?

I would love to be able to sing. If I could sing I wouldn’t tell one joke. If I could sing I’d be so sexy!

What is your most treasured possession?

My relationship, because I’m putting so much into it. I really believe in it and it’s changed my whole life. So I guess my most treasured possession right now is the woman I’m dating because if something happened to her I would go crazy.

You must have some guilty pleasures?

Poker. And I love to watch the news. I’m fascinated with the election this year. I’m always watching people, whether it’s for work or if I’m just interested, I like to surround myself with positive people.

Speaking of politics, if you were President of the United States, who are the three women you would insist on running the Oval Office with you?

My wife, Condolezza Rice, and Hillary Clinton. Someone who can appeal to my heartstrings, someone who I think is smart as a whip and someone who I think is very political. You can guess which women are what!

If Nike were to produce a Finesse Mitchell Signature shoe, what would it be called?

They would call my shoe the ‘Equalizer,’ because I’m on the same level as everybody else and we are all equal.

To find out more about Finesse Mitchell, visit www.athlebrities.com.

There'll Be Feuding And Fighting Between Celebrities... All For Charity

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 11:32:00 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

Celebrity Family Feud is set to invade primetime next week, when it premieres on Tuesday, June 24, on NBC.

Hosted by Al Roker, the familiar show will get a star twist when 24 celebrity “families” front up to do battle on behalf of their favorite charities. First up in next week’s maiden broadcast are Law & Order: SVU star Ice-T and family – playing for Unity 2 – going up against Team Rivers, led by the queens of the red carpet, Joan and Melissa Rivers, playing for Guide Dogs for the Blind.

During each episode of the new series, four celebrity families will be pitted against each other in tournament-style fun and games, with the winners from each round moving on to the final round—where they’ll compete to win up to $50,000 for their designated charity.

Other stars to compete on the show will include Vivica Fox, Raven Symone, Kim Kardashian, and teams from The Office and My Name Is Earl, and charities such as the Make-A-Wish Foundation, the USO, and the National Breast Cancer Foundation will benefit.

Red Cross Announces The 2008 Celebrity Cabinet

Fri, 29 Feb 2008 11:36:18 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

The American Red Cross unveiled their 7th annual National Celebrity Cabinet yesterday, February 28, with 15 new members from movies, sports, and television.

Skateboard legend Tony Hawk will join former Beverly Hills 90210 and Dancing With The Stars alum Jennie Garth, Heroes’ Masi Oka, Gossip Girl’s Penn Badgley, House M.D.’s Lisa Edelstein and Kal Penn, Ugly Betty’s Ana Ortiz, Grey’s Anatomy’s Sara Ramirez, Scrubs’ Judy Reyes, Everyone Loves Raymond’s Patricia Heaton, Hairspray’s Brittany Snow, two-time NASCAR champion Greg Biffle, New York Yankee Robinson Cano, NFL star Matt Leinart, and Life Coach Iyanla Vazant in the 2008 Red Cross National Celebrity Cabinet, part of a mobilizing force to urge people to perform extraordinary life-saving acts in dire circumstances through the assistance of the Red Cross.

“I am extremely honored to participate in the Red Cross National Celebrity Cabinet, especially at a time when we have the ability to do so much for people around the world who have endured such tragedies,” said new member Jennie Garth. “The Red Cross brings help and hope to those in need and has done tremendous good for so many different people on a global level. I believe this is a time when we can educate others and the Red Cross allows for the opportunity for each individual to contribute to the effort. I am grateful that I am able be part of this amazing organization.”

The 47 members of the 2008 National Celebrity Cabinet will be “on-call” to donate their time, skills, passion, and energy to help the Red Cross highlight their important initiatives and response efforts. It will be chaired once again by Sherry Lansing, former CEO of Paramount Pictures and member of the Red Cross Board of Govenors.

“This is my sixth year serving as chair for the Celebrity Cabinet,” she said. “It’s an honor to be a part of such a meaningful cause with such talented people.”

The Red Cross has benefited from the involvement of public figures and celebrities since World War I, and over the years actors and artists have played an important role in raising public awareness of Red Cross services nationwide. Cabinet members pledge their support for a one year term, although many members of the current National Celebrity Cabinet, including Heidi Klum and Leeza Gibbons, have been involved for over five years.

“The Red Cross is a volunteer driven organization that provides humanitarian help to those in need,” said Klum. “It is an honor for me to participate in their celebrity cabinet and encourage all individuals to become involved with their local Red Cross.”

Members of the 2008 National Celebrity Cabinet will be involved in one of the country’s largest volunteer networks and will promote awareness of Red Cross services by participating in public service advertisements, as well as donating their time, money and blood, aiding in disaster relief, and lending a helping hand to those in need. Returning members include Jackie Chan, Sara Evans (who recently organized an auction as part of her involvement), Jamie Lee Curtis, Patti LaBelle, Jimmy Smits, Marlee Matlin, Nancy O’Dell, Jane Seymour, Peyton Manning, Jimmie Johnson, Rascal Flatts, Julianne Moore, George Foreman, Marcia Gay Harden, Elisabeth Rohm, Eli Manning, Daddy Yankee, Chayanne, Aisha Tyler, Pierce Brosnan, Amy Grant, Miley Ray Cyrus, Kristen Bell, Pat Green, Dwayne Johnson (AKA The Rock), Dr. Phil McGraw, Raven Symone, Niki Taylor, Burney Lamar, and Bradley Whitford.

The American Red Cross National Celebrity Cabinet was developed in 2002 as part of the Entertainment Outreach Program.

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