YGB Hall of Fame in NY

nHEALTH nENTERTAINMENT nRELATIONSHIPS nRECIPES nSPORTS nHOROSCOPE

Beres Hammond among Jamaicans Inducted in YGB Hall of Fame in NY

Happy Birthday Rihanna!

BY STAFF WRITER, JAMAICANS.COM

The veteran singer Beres Hammond is slated to be inducted into the Young, Gifted & Black (YGB) Caribbean Music Entertainment ICON Hall of Fame in New York. His induction, along with the inductions of other iconic Jamaican entertainers Beenie Man, Freddie McGregor and Marcia Griffiths, coincides with Black History Month. According to the president of YBG, Carl Gray, the ICON Hall of Fame was established to memorialize trailblazing individuals in their roles as historical members of their culture and of society. Gray founded the YGB awards in 2006 in honor of Black History Month, and since its inception, the awards program has grown in prominence and is now a civic event with significant importance in the New York area. The program attracts public and private sector leaders who have local, national, and global appeal. The awards provide peer-to-peer recognition of “Unsung Heroes & Heroines for their Talent, Ambition and Achievements toward the Continued Pursuit of Success” in hopes that their stories will inspire others toward achieving their goals. Beres Hammond first saw success in the 1970s with his recording of “One Step Ahead,” a song that was on the charts for 14 consecutive weeks. His place in reggae history was solidified with his subsequent hit recordings like “Tempted to Touch,” “Rockaway,” “What One Dance Can Do,” and “Putting Up Resistance.” Hugh Beresford Hammond, known professionally as Beres Hammond, was born in 1955 in Annotto Bay, St. Mary. His style of “lovers rock” brought him broad popularity in the 1970s, while his greatest successes were achieved in the 1990s. He was the ninth of ten children and grew up listening to his father’s American soul and jazz records. He was also influenced by Jamaican ska and rocksteady, with particular influence coming from Alton Ellis. After entering local talent contests in the early 1970s he made his first recording “Wanderer” and joined the band Zap Pow as its lead singer in 1975. He also sought a solo career and released his debut album “Soul Reggae” in 1976. Hammond created his own record label Harmony Records in 1985 to release the album “Make a Song.” This included two chart-topping hits influenced by the nascent dancehall genre. After a home invasion in 1987, Hammond left Jamaica for New York and made recordings there, including “How Can We Ease the Pain,” a duet single with Maxi Priest. Hammond signed with Penthouse Records in 1990 and returned to live in Jamaica permanently, recording the dancehall hit “Tempted to Touch.” In 1992, he released “Fire,” a song that was highly praised by the reggae music industry and that prompted interest from major recording studios like Elektra Records. He released five additional albums in the 1990s and a number of compilations to become one of the top lovers rock musicians in the world. In 1994, he released “Love Has No Boundaries,” which featured Buju Banton and Big Youth. His 2012 album ‘One Love, One Life” reached the top of the Billboard Reggae Album chart and was nominated in 2014 for a Grammy

Beres Hammond. Photo: Facebookom

Award. In 2018, the album “Never Ending” was released featuring musicians including Errol Holt, Mafia & Fluxy, Dean Fraser, and Robbie Lyn. It topped the Billboard Reggae Albums Chart after its first week of release. Hammond was presented with the Order of Jamaica in 2013 by Jamaica’s government in recognition of his contribution and dedication to the nation’s music industry.l

Rihanna.Editorial credit: Tinseltown / Shutterstock.com

Our Caribbean and world megasuper star Rihanna celebrated her 33rd birthday on Saturday, February 20. While Rihanna didn’t share her birthday celebrations with fans this year, there was an incredible outpour of celebrity and fan love. Among those offering birthday wishes were Dancehall artist and Love and Hip Hop Atlanta star, Spice who also showed love for the pop star with an Instagram post captioned, “Happy birthday good body @badgalriri big up yuh nice clean self wid rich pocket, yuh clean mouth and yuh good stomach. Love you mi gal, gwaan inspire us. Caribbean gyal run this ask Riri.” Blessings for many more Riri! We love ya!l

HEALTH Listen to Your Heart: Women and Heart Disease

BY MICHAEL MERSCHEL AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION NEWS

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in women of all ages, races, and shapes and sizes in the United States. But women sometimes experience heart disease differently than men. Healthy eating and physical activity go a long way to preventing heart disease, and keeping it from getting worse if you already have it. Read on to learn more about heart disease, high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, how to find out if you’re at risk, how to protect your heart, and more. Symptoms of a heart attack: •Women are somewhat less likely than men to experience chest pain. Instead, they are more likely to experience: -Dizziness -Fatigue -Nausea -Pressure or tightness in the chest -Stomach pain •Women are also more likely than men to have no symptoms of coronary heart disease. Because women and their doctors may not recognize coronary heart disease symptoms that are different from men’s, women may not be diagnosed and treated as quickly as men. It is important to seek care right away if you have symptoms of coronary heart disease.

UNLOCK

Your right to health care with dignity

Unlock affordable health services and having your own doctor Become a member of NYC Care!

Follow-up treatment for heart disease:

•Doctors are less likely to refer women for diagnostic tests for coronary heart disease. •Women are more likely than men to

NYC Care, the key to the City’s health care, is a no- or low-cost medical services program offered by NYC Health + Hospitals to New Yorkers who do not qualify for health insurance.

Coming to the Bronx on August 1 and available citywide by late 2020. To learn more and to enroll, call 1-646-NYC-CARE (1-646-692-2273). Visit nyccare.nyc experience delays receiving an initial EKG, are less likely to receive care from a heart specialist during hospitalization, and are less likely to receive certain types of therapy and medicines. •Younger women are more likely than men to be misdiagnosed and sent home from the emergency department after cardiac events that occur from undiagnosed and untreated vascular heart disease.

Risk Factors for Heart Disease

Risk factors are conditions or habits that make a person more likely to develop a disease. They can also increase the chances that an existing disease will get worse. Many of the risk factors that affect men also affect women. Important risk factors for heart disease are: •Having high blood pressure •Having high cholesterol •Unhealthy lifestyle •Being overweight or obese •Diabetes and prediabetes •Smoking •Being physically inactive •Having a family history of early heart disease •Having a history of preeclampsia during pregnancy •Unhealthy diet •Age (55 or older for women)

Family history of early heart disease is a risk factor that can’t be changed. If your father or brother had a heart attack before age 55, or if your mother or sister had one before age 65, you are more likely to get heart disease yourself. You may wonder: If I have just one risk factor for heart disease—say, I'm overweight or I have high blood cholesterol— aren’t I more or less "safe"? Unfortunately, no. Each risk factor greatly increases your chance of developing heart disease. But having more than one risk factor is especially serious, because risk factors tend to "gang up" and worsen each other’s effects.

Pregnancy and Heart Disease

Preeclampsia—high blood pressure during pregnancy with signs of damage to another organ system such as the kidneys—is another heart disease risk factor you can't control. However, if you've had the condition, you should take extra care to try to control other heart disease risk factors. This is because preeclampsia raises your risk for heart and blood vessel problems later in life. Aside from preeclampsia, having heart disease or heart problems before pregnancy can raise your risk for pregnancy complications or pregnancy-related death during or after childbirth.

Menopause and Heart Disease

Heart disease increases with age, including during and after menopause. In middle age women tend to develop more risk factors for heart disease, in part due to increasing body weight and in part because their body's production of estrogen drops. Women who go through early menopause, especially if they had a hysterectomy, are more likely to develop heart disease as women of the same age who have not yet gone through menopause. Treatment with menopausal hormone therapy immediately after menopause may reduce risk of heart disease but not of stroke, but treatment later in life increases the risk of both heart disease and stroke.

Take Action for Your Heart Health

While some risk factors, such as age and family history of early heart disease, can't be changed, the truth is, there is something we can do at every stage of life to reduce our risk of heart disease. Being more physically active and eating a healthy diet are important steps for your heart health. You can make the changes gradually, one at a time. But making them is very important. Here’s some things you can do now for your heart health: •Move more •Improve your nutrition and eat healthier Check your heart health stats/numbers •Improve sleep and reduce stress •Stop smoking •Aim for a healthy weight

So, the message is clear: Every woman needs to take her heart disease risk seriously—and take action now to reduce that risk.l