Fascinating interview with Lionel Richie on being a survivor: on Hollywood fame, divorces, parenting, daughter Nicole's problems, dealing with death of famous friends; duet with Jill Johnson - "Sail on" LIVE on SVT's Fredrik Skavlan Show. Excellent!; @jilljohnsons, #teamjill

 

jilljohnsonmusic YouTube Channel video: "Sail On" - Lionel Richie and Jill Johnson. LIVE on SVT's Skavlan Show. Aired March 9, 2012. Uploaded March 10, 2012. http://youtu.be/BatEw1Ci24U

This post was updated in December 2014.

As originally seen at 
http://svtplay.se/v/2737137/skavlan/lionel_richie_och_jill_johnson_-_sail_on?sb,k104116,1,f,-1
The SVT Play video lapsed in March of 2013 so I replaced that video with this version from Jill Johnson's YouTube Channel.

I LOVE THIS VERSION!

Through complete sheer serendipity, while looking thru my nightly check list of foreign Internet sources to see before going to sleep, while checking out some things on the always interesting Swedish Television SVT Play website, which I spend lots of time at, I found this utterly fascinating interview with Grammy Award-winning singer Lionel Richie on talk show host Fredrik Skavlan's very popular Friday night TV show, which airs on both SVT and NRK, the Norwegian TV/Radio service.

If I recall correctly, I read this episode from last Friday drew three million TV viewers combined.

I last mentioned Skavlan last year when I posted his interview with singer Robin Gibb of The Bee Gees on his amazing career, his recent health problems, his remarkably talented family and his efforts to help get an RAF WWII Memorial constructed in London, here:
FEBRUARY 12, 2011 
Robin Gibb and Carola sing "How Deep Is Your Love" on SVT's "Skavlan"; 20-minute interview also!
http://hallandalebeachblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/robin-gibb-and-carola-sing-how-deep-is.html

In this interview, conducted in English and originally with Swedish subtitles, Richie speaks candidly with Skavlan about being a survivor: on fame in Hollywood, his two divorces, learning to be a strong parent when his now-equally famous daughter, Nicole Richie, had her substance abuse problems, dealing with death of longtime famous friends like Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston and Luther Vandross, and how their untimely deaths have changed him and dampened his view of the music industry.

And, of course, there the sweet duet of "Sail on" afterwards that he performs up at the top of this post with popular Swedish Country music singer Jill Johnson.

As regular readers of this blog know from how many times I've posted about her here in the past, I absolutely adore Jill, and could listen to her sing anything, which is why I subscribe to her terrific YouTube Channel, which is usually pretty current compared to most.
http://www.youtube.com/user/jilljohnsonmusic

Jill also sang in December's annual SVT St. Lucia telecast that was great -as usual!
I watched that telecast LIVE online via SVT Play, just like the previous year.  

Originally seen at http://svtplay.se/t/102974/skavlan until April 8th, 2012, as follows,
0:35:36  Intro to Lionel Richie... interview, leading to at 0:52:20 the introduction to song, which closes the show.
As usual, the SVT audio and video quality is amazing, so be sure to click fullskärm for the full screen.

With that episode of the show no longer available in full length, here is most of the Richie interview in two parts

Lionel Richie Interview Part 1 Skavlan

http://youtu.be/4w9IG0M38_I

Lionel Richie Interview Part 2 Skavlan

http://youtu.be/aZPaI2MWMG8

Here's a photo of the three of them that was placed on a Jill Facebook fan page
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=408307265851894&set=a.296809090335046.95935.159825464033410&type=1&ref=nf

Skavlan homepage at SVT: http://www.svt.se/skavlan/
Twitter: @SKAVLANTVShow

http://www.jilljohnson.se/
Twitter @jilljohnsons 

The powerful performance by Karpe Diem doing "Tusen Tegninger" in Oslo last month -with Kork & Traces- that put another big lump in my throat that day

Karpe Diem m/ Kork - "Tusen Tegninger" (Live Minnesceremoni Oslo 2011), Oslo Spektrum, August 21, 2011. http://youtu.be/boQPp2pen60

Karpe Diem performs "Tusen Tegninger" (A Thousand Drawings) with Kork, The Norwegian Radio Orchestra/Kringkastingsorkestret, and the Traces Gospel Choir doing chorus). National Day of Remembrance for Attacks in Oslo and Utøya, Oslo Spektrum, August 21, 2011.

The couple shown in the audience at the end of the video above are Crown Prince Haakon and his wife, Crown Princess Mette-Marit. Her step-brother, Trond Berntsen, an off-duty police officer working security at the AUF youth summer camp on Utøya, which his own son was attending, was the second of the 69 murder victims of Anders Behring Breivik on the island.

Though I try my best to be as organized as possible when I'm writing here or thinking about what I'll be posting here in the near-future, with often a couple of dozen ideas in some degree of completion in cold storage as a Draft, just waiting for a photo or bit of serendipity to strike to make it seem extra delicious, the problem is that being a one-man band here as I am, with no staff or 'significant other' to peer over my shoulder occasionally to remind me of things I need to mention or say from time-to-time, sometimes, unfortunately, ideas slip thru the cracks.

Good ideas that leave me quite exasperated and mad at myself later when they come flooding back to me.

Today, or rather Tuesday night, about the time I saw the Marlins lose to the Mets in extra innings- 12:45-ish, and Matt Dominguez's first Major League at-bat, which was a HBP, hit-by-pitch- I received an email from a wonderfully talented and thoughtful friend overseas.

She wrote that she'd finally been able to spend some time catching-up on the latest adventures here at the blog over the weekend, after getting back from a trip home in Sweden to see her family, and not really doing anything online for a week.

Yes, a real vacation!

Even though it's getting colder there already.

Anyway, she sorta chided me for not having yet posted something here on the blog that I had mentioned in a previous email to her and some mutual friends who also live in England.

Something that I had seen and which had absolutely floored me, as it had her, though perhaps to a lesser degree.

It was a performance that was, in a word, fantastiske, plus, it put a real lump in my throat on a day when I already had several.

In my own view, it was perhaps one of the five MOST AMAZING things I'd seen or heard all year, which makes my neglecting to post it here all the more embarrassing and upsetting for me.

As soon as I saw two simple words she'd written in the subject header, I swallowed hard, because she was right, I had meant to post it two weeks ago and time was, like summer, running out.

The two words? Karpe Diem.

Not the Latin phrase, per se, rather, the Norwegian hip-hop duo of Chirag Patel and Magdi Abdelmaguid, that, prior to watching the Memorial Service LIVE via NRK's website, I'd only had a vague-to-general knowledge of, having read some things about them before and seen a few of their vids on YouTube.

(That's saying somethingm since I hate hip-hop, at least as it's practiced here in the States.)

I guess it won't come as a surprise to those of you of a more sleuthful persuasion that I'm specifically referring to their masterful performance in Oslo at the Spektrum, as part of the National Day of Remembrance for 22/7, the Minneseremoni, where they were, by far, the youngest of the many talented performers that Sunday afternoon, morning Miami time.

(I've already written several posts about the myriad performances that day.)

And being much younger, of course, they were even more conscious of and the national trauma of so many young people -55- being among the 77 murdered that day in July, which made them an inspired-if-not perfect choice for reasons that you'll see.

After you watch their amazing August 21st performance, watch this video from the original single release, which overtly shows the religious aspects of this song about faith and tolerance, as the two of them, a Muslim and Hindu, are shown in various houses of worship throughout Norway.

It's really quite original and moving!

Maybe even genius!

Karpe Diem - Tusen Tegninger (Official music video, from their album, "Aldri solgt en Løgn") Directed by Kavar Singh.

http://youtu.be/GIRWyUmT36Q

Er både svart og hvit

Er både glad og trist

Han så på passet mitt og kastet et blikk og traff meg

For jeg var fuglen på bakken, og han var tvunget til å ville kappe vingene av meg før jeg fikk sunget

Sunget ut om profeten og om gud

Alle disse temaene som ellers er tabu

Du, tror du må si du ber i smug

Når du veit at mange av dine ville sett på deg som sjuk

For det er sjukt at du må si at gud setter oss fri

Jeg utsetter og si at du ser på muslim

Til jeg allerede har gjort et inntrykk

Vente til vi blir litt kjent, og Magdi ekke sinnsyk

Du ekke redd fordi det er ukjent

Du har rett fordi du tror du kjenner meg og jeg er ustemt

Falsk, du må stemme meg fint

For at jeg er hyggelig, Selv om, men det ekke fordi jeg er muslim

Er både hvit og svart

Er både rik og blakk

Hun sa hun aldri hadde møtt en kar som ikke drakk

Og spurte meg om gud dømte meg svart hvitt

For til og med muslimene hun kjente drakk litt men

Brorskapet ekke lenger mellom de som tror på det samme

Har en bror som er hindu, og det handler om å godta

At andre har en mor som, og kanskje en far som

Lærte dem noe annet som

Livet som at himmelen er et mål og livet kanskje er casting

Har ikke masse svin på skogene, jeg har masse marsvin

Og et marsvin er hodepine og aspirin og hvis det får oss til å gjøre gode ting, så hva synes du om at

dama tror på gud og sånt

aner du hvor mange som har spurt meg det du spurte om

Lurte på, hvorfor jeg ikke tar de valga de tar

Du kanke gi gud, så bare gi faen

As of today, September 7th, there are exactly 14 days left to watch the entire Memorial program -or individual selections- at the NRK website: http://www.nrk.no/nett-tv/klipp/777779/

It will be removed on September 22nd.

Don't waste the opportunity to see something very special, which I watched LIVE when it aired via the NRK website.

Karpe Diem's official YouTube Channel is

http://www.youtube.com/user/djensomhetermarius

Official website: http://www.karpediem.no/

Official website for Kork, the Norwegian Radio Orchestra - Kringkastingsorkestret

http://www.kork.no/side/english/

For more information on the Traces Gospel Choir, based in Oslo, please see http://www.tracesgospel.com/

Moved to tears... heart sure to follow... Something truly amazing that I saw for myself -the National Day of Remembrance in Oslo

A-ha - Stay on These Roads, Oslo Spektrum, August 21, 2011.

The band had just held their farewell concert there last year before Christmas.

The couple you see at the end of the performance is Princess Märtha Louise and her husband, author Ari Behn.

Related article, Minneseremoni hylles på Twitter at

http://www.aftenposten.no/nyheter/iriks/article4204626.ece

Moved to tears... heart sure to follow... Something truly amazing that I saw for myself -the National Day of Remembrance telecast from Oslo.

What follows is an excerpt of an email that I sent to someone Far From the Madding Crowd of South Florida, whom I really respect and admire and who has been places and seen things herself, first-hand, that few people have seen.

I sent it to her about 1 p.m. or so Miami time on Sunday afternoon after getting my head and thoughts together after watching the very thing I wrote about yesterday, and encouraged you readers of the blog to see for yourself -the National Day of Remembrance in Oslo, for the attacks in Oslo and Utøya on July 22nd, which claimed 77 innocent lives.

-----

S,

Just wanted to drop you a line to let you know about something truly amazing that I watched this morning -the National Day of Remembrance telecast from Oslo, which was streamed via NRK's website with absolutely amazing audio and video.

I literally felt like I was inside the Spektrum in Oslo.

Because of what you've done in the past and the places you've been, you've seen things that most people can never imagine seeing in-person, met all sorts of interesting and not-so interesting talented and well-known people along the way, and I'm sure that for either reporting or personal reasons, you've also been at your share of impressive memorials for notable people.

I've been to a few myself, but clearly not as many as you.

That said, this morning's ceremony was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen, by turns inspiring, poignant and sweet, but most of all, clear-eyed and resolved.

You never heard the word democracy used as much at a memorial ceremony as it was heard today in Oslo.

The combination of the top-level Norwegian music, whether names you know, like A-ha to Sissel, to others I was unfamiliar with but who still left me equally dumbstruck, plus the Norwegian Radio Orchestra, and the amazing heartfelt sets, lighting and stage backgrounds, candles everywhere... well, it really got to me from the start.

For long periods of time there was a golden heart formed by candles seemingly looming over the heads of the orchestra, and it was a very powerful symbol in ways that my mere words here can't convey.

And when, after about 90 minutes, they finally got to the point where five well-known Norwegian performers came on stage and read out-loud the names of the 77 people who perished, as large photos of them were shown on TV and inside the hall, WOW!

And all I could think of was those families sitting at a table in their own homes and knowing that they had to choose one photo to represent the qualities and life of their loved one to the country, one photo, well, it was so quiet that you could hear the sobbing after some kids names were read.

For the families involved, this was the day they dreaded most.

After the funerals and the family get-together in towns big and small, they always knew there would be this national day of remembrance to point to, a day where the whole country would be watching and listening.

A day that the country mourned together and put those memories in their heads forever.

But after today, there are no more ceremonies for the affected families, just the rest of their lives...and lots of haunting, never-ending questions about what might've been.

Here's the link to the complete program which will be available on the NRK website until Sept. 20th.

At some point in the near future, when you have the time and opportunity, perhaps you can see that it was as advertised: truly amazing.

http://www.nrk.no/nett-tv/klipp/777779/

The performers are listed on the left of the video when you pull this webpage up.

You can even click and hear just the performances you want.

Unfortunately, while I could watch this Full Screen when it was LIVE, the version they have here doesn't allow you to see it quite the same way I did and appreciate the intimate details.

If I come across a better version this week, I'll send the link.

It's just under two hours long and really gets moving after the first 20 minutes.

FYI: when Bjørn Eidsvåg sings the haunting song, "Eg Ser" (I see), with the full orchestra behind him, wow, the whole program goes up another level in intensity.

And then they read the 77 names...

-----

It all began with this...

Susanne Sundfør - Mitt Lille Land (My Small Country)

http://youtu.be/CFIPYsAozBo

As I write this post, there is not yet a video available online of Bjørn Eidsvåg singing from Sunday afternoon that I can post separately here, though you can hear him sing at the link above.

There is, however, an excellent video of him singing this on July 30th, a week after the attacks, at Oslo Domkirke, the Cathedral in Oslo, with an orchestra, and the powerful feeling is just as beautiful and haunting and sad.

It's the very same cathedral where the July 23rd ceremony was held from whence came the screen shots I posted on the blog yesterday, including King Harald and Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg, both of whom gave very heartfelt and dignified speeches Sunday.

Bjørn Eidsvåg - Eg Ser (I see)

http://youtu.be/UvwNjIjVrZQ

Sunday's LIVE telecast of the National Memorial in Oslo can be seen at NRK at 9 a.m. Eastern U.S./Canada - Minnesceremoni från Norge

SVT Rapport video: Överlevande åter på Utöya. August 19, 2011.

SVT's Thursday night news segment on the survivors returning to Utøya for the first time since the armed attack one month ago, along with dozens of family members of the survivors and deceased and an army of psychologists.

http://svtplay.se/v/2507829/rapport/overlevande_ater_pa_utoya

SVT Rapport video: Sorgen fortfarande starkt närvarande i Oslo. August 19, 2011.

SVT news segment from Thursday night on the strong grief still being felt a month later in the Norwegian capital.

http://svtplay.se/v/2507901/rapport/sorgen_fortfarande_starkt_narvarande_i_oslo

Both videos available at SVT Play website until August 19, 2012.

--------------------------

Sunday's LIVE telecast of the National Memorial in Oslo regarding the attacks in Oslo and Utøya on July 22 can be seen via computer at NRK at 9 a.m. Eastern U.S./Canada.

http://www.nrk.no/video/direkte_minneseremoni_21_august/3D147755BB517E07/

According to the latest information on SVT's website, the following individuals are scheduled to participate:

Music: Kringkastingorkestern, Susanne Sundfør, Leif Ove Andsnes, Karpe Diem, Dumdum Boys, Sivert Høyem, Jarle Bernhoft, Bjørn Eidsvåg, Ingrid Olave, Sissel Kyrkjebø and A-ha.

Readings will be led by actors Aksel Hennie, Anders Baasmo Christiansen, Ane Dahl Torp, Adil Khan, Ingrid Bolso Berdal, Sofie Gråbøl and Maria Bonnevie.

The ceremony will be hosted by (reporter/singer) Haddy N'jie.

I've refrained up 'till now from writing about what transpired a month ago in Oslo and Utøya on July 22nd for reasons that are not entirely worth getting into right now. Perhaps in the not-so-distant future.

There were some things, though, that I wanted to share now that I think reflect my frame of mind and what I will eventually post here, and will give you some small guidance if you watch Sunday's national memorial service.

First and foremost, as it always does, timing and opportunity rules everything.

I was reading/watching the LIVE reports of the armed attacks in Norway by Anders Behring Breivik -via Stockholm and Oslo- within mere minutes of it happening, even BEFORE it was being reported in the U.S. media, because of the fact that that particular morning -my time- I was already looking at Swedish news websites like Aftenposten, SVT, TV4, Svenska Dagbladet, Expressen, et al.

I'd also written some recent posts about Norway, so still had the NRK website handy as well on my Bookmark list.

SVT video: NRK:s Peter Svaar direktrapporterar från Oslo. July 22, 2011.

http://svtplay.se/v/2486151/rapport/nrk_s_peter_svaar_direktrapporterar_fran_oslo?sb,k103266,9,f,161015

Above, one of the first on-scene reports of the explosion downtown by NRK's Peter Svaar.

Norska TV2 berättar från Utöya. July 22, 2011.

http://svtplay.se/v/2486325/rapport/norska_tv2_berattar_fran_utoya

Above, one of the first reports from Norway's TV2 on what happened in Utøya, with lots of helicopter shots outlining the island.

I watched the foreign and domestic coverage for a few hours almost continually for days, constantly amazed at the VERY poor and incorrect reporting being done in the U.S. media on this rapidly-evolving story.

In CNN's case, that is, the U.S. version of CNN, that included reporting low casualty figures hours and hours after it common knowledge among the media on the scene that the grim numbers were FAR HIGHER, an upsetting point that I made in some quick emails to some U.S. media friends around the country, some well-known, that I wanted to know the true scope of the attacks, not the old info being foolishly repeated over-and-over on CNN.

One of the emails I sent was this news about an important Tweet warning being sent around the area as people were warned to turn off their cell phone rings.

My subject header was: FYI: Ominous Twitter warnings went out re Utøya: ”Ring inte ön"

"RING INTE FOLK PÅ UTØYA. De gömmer sig för gärningsmannen. Kopiera statusen! (Ambulansen kommer inte fram ertersom det fortfarande är skottlossning)."

which roughly means:

Do not call the island on your mobile as fake cop re-loading gun in search of people to shoot, is listening for rings from phones. Ambulances won't arrive if shooting is happening.

from Ungdomarnas larm från ön på twitter: Hjälp oss, Nyheter, Aftonbladet

http://www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/article13364079.ab

I also watched the LIVE telecast on SVT Play via NRK the following day of the Memorial service at the Oslo Cathedral that drew so many notable figures, as well as the families whose loved ones had perished.

Above, right-to-left: King Harald, Queen Sonja, Princess Märtha Louise and her husband, author Ari Behn.

That started at 5 a.m. Miami and was very tough to watch as you'd see people just start crying, tearing-up or sobbing out-of-the-blue.

Especially after the poignant lighting of the candles!

The emotion of the occasion gets to the King and Queen, too.

Above and below are just some of the screen shots of the dozens I took of that church service which I have been holding onto, knowing that it would be impractical to simply post them all, knowing that 99% of you would not have enough context to appreciate what was taking place just from the photos.

While it might not always seem that way to some of you, especially those of you who are in South Florida, I try my best not to be too preachy here on the blog, and I knew that it would be hard to drop ALL those photos on you all, out-of-the-blue, then as now, without seeming either patronizing or...???

Because if you have to explain everything...

So I've held onto them.

But I thought I'd share a few now...

The Royal Family represents.

Above and below, Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg addresses those assembled in the cathedral and across the nation.

http://youtu.be/8oPbd9UvZuY

Above, Prime Minister Stoltenberg singing along.

All screen shots on this page by South Beach Hoosier.

A talented & worthy American takes Scandinavia by storm: up-close with Chris Medina - One Day In Stockholm (What Are Words)

UniversalMusicSweden video: Chris Medina - One Day In Stockholm (What Are Words). Chris appears on Rix FM in Stockholm. Yes, they DO have 'Morning Zoo' radio formats in Sweden. http://youtu.be/eNjSIKIBE1U

---------

Chris Medina VEVO video: What Are Words

http://youtu.be/nQY4dIxY1H4

I received the behind-the-scenes Chris Medina video at the top of this post within about ten minutes of it being posted to YouTube by Universal Music Sweden last month, and thus was one of the first persons to see it.
That's the kind of video I want to see more of!

As most of you know by now, I'm NOT an American Idol viewer.
The only time I've actually watched it for even a minute without immediately changing the channel from Fox-TV, was when it intentionally bled over past nine o'clock into the time slot for HOUSE. That's it.

I want to see genuine musical talent, not contrived histrionics or teen divas and attitudes and ponderous programs larded with no-talents. Which is why so many foreign TV music programs are MUCH more to my liking, however friendly they try to be to the "talent."
They're much more cut-throat and don't indulge contestants as much because of their back-story or haircut or on-air melodrama like American version does or did.

You don't need to be Quincy Jones to see that Chris Medina CLEARLY has a unique voice and talent, just like Carrie Underwood or Kelly Clarkson, so why does the American version of Idol persist with all the crummy shows for weeks, while shows like ET and Access Hollywood relentlessly hype the no-talents as interesting curiosities, when they're not? Advertising dollars.
Sometimes, less is more.
Just saying.




ABC News Good Morning America: Robin Roberts with Chris Medina.




NRK-TV video: Chris Medina LIVE on VG Lista Topp 20, Rådhusplassen, (City Hall) Oslo, Norway. June 2011
http://youtu.be/ap6oY2cN11E
The complete version of this performance as aired by NRK is here:
http://www.vgtv.no/#!id=41778
See interview at http://www.vgtv.no/#!id=41779

His daytime performance in Bergen is here: http://www.vgtv.no/#!id=42240

As of today, Chris Medina is #1 on the official Swedish singles chart, http://allcharts.org/music/sweden/singles.htm and #3 on the Norwegian chart: http://lista.vg.no/

Not bad for a 27-year old guy that you never heard of eight months ago!

--------------

http://www.rixfm.com/

Listen LIVE here: http://webradio.rixfm.com/webbradio/webbradio-rixfm.php
Just remember, Stockholm is six hours ahead of us in the U.S. Eastern time-slot!

http://www.youtube.com/OfficialChrisMedina

http://www.facebook.com/OfficialChrisMedina

http://www.youtube.com/user/UniversalMusicSweden