Sridhar Silberfein, the founder and producer of the Bhakti Fests notes, “We are so pleased to bring the Bhakti energy back to Madison. Last year we took a risk on the Midwest and we were overwhelmed by the outpouring of regional support. We are thrilled to make Bhakti Fest Midwest an annual tradition. Taking place over the long Independence Day weekend, Bhakti Fest Midwest is a wonderful way to celebrate mental, physical and spiritual freedom in a beautiful setting and bask in the liberating power of numerous top yoga teachers, kirtan artists and workshop leaders.”

The kirtan (a.k.a. chanting) artists at Bhakti Fest Midwest include international superstars of kirtan Jai Uttal, Wah!, and Dave Stringer, plus regional favorites including Milwaukee’s Ragani, Columbus’ Mike Cohen, Minneapolis’ Kirtan Path, Wild Moon Bhaktas and Sitara & Kalyani with Pavan Kumar, Chicago’s Amy and the Bliss Tribe and Rich Logan,  and many other inspiring performers.

Similarly the yoga lineup features world class yoga teachers Saul David Raye, Govinddas & Radha and Yoga Slackers, along with the Midwest’s yoga leaders including Detroit’s Eric Paskel, Milwaukee’s Pam Bliss, Columbus’ Laurel Hodory, Chicago’s Daren Friesen, Indianapolis’ Nikki Myers, and more.

The workshops at Bhakti Fest Midwest span inspirational speakers from near and very far. One of India’s most revered and beloved spiritual leaders – H.H. Pujiya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji Maharaj is giving the keynote address in Madison. Pujya Swamiji is the president and spiritual head of Parmarth Niketan Ashram in Rishikesh, India, one of the largest spiritual institutions in India to which tens of thousands of people from every country, every culture and every walk of life flock for inspiration, peace, and divine connection. He is also the founder/chairman of India Heritage Research Foundation, an international non-profit humanitarian organization running a wide variety of free schools, orphanages, medical clinics and women’s empowerment programs. He is also the founder of Ganga Action Parivar, a world-wide family of scientists, environmentalists and activists working to preserve and protect the sacred Ganges River. From closer to home, David Haberman a professor of Religious Studies at Indiana University, will speak on Revelations of Divine Love in the Bhagavad Gita. Fifteen other workshops will also take place.

Bhakti Fest Midwest also presents extensive breathwork classes. Additionally there is a marketplace with eco-friendly vendors offering delicious, high vibrational raw, vegan, and vegetarian foods and beverages, yoga gear, clothing, musical instruments, crafts and more.

Saul David Raye will present a pre-festival intensive in Madison. For information and tickets please see http://bhaktifest.com/category/festivals/shakti-fest/intensives/.

Picturesque ponds create a natural boundary for the plush green grass and limestone walkways that make Willow Island the ideal outdoor event venue for Bhakti Fest Midwest. Large, elegant Willow trees outlined by the Madison skyline craft a stunning backdrop and unmatched ambiance for the event.

Tickets for the event, including a $50 discount for seniors and college students, $75 tickets for teens and FREE admission for kids under 12, plus the full lineup and tons of info are available at http://bhaktifest.com/category/festivals/bhakti-fest-midwest/.

Here he goes again! As the title of the final track on the Craig Jackson Band‘s new effort suggests, Jackson is back with a fine mix of countryfied Americana style rock tunes on Sweeter Songs, a 6 song ep set for release on his Green Records label April 30th.

Jackson was fortunate to work with much sought after Nashville-based producer, Ken Coomer. The magic happened at Creative Workshop, one of the many top notch recording studios in Berry Hill, an area just south of town that has come to be known as Nashville’s “second Music Row.”

The six song EP is a mix of rock & roll, folk-pop, and Americana which teams Jackson with all-star musicians including bassist David La Bruyere (John Mayer, Shawn Mullins), Juno award-winning blues guitarist Colin Linden (Lindi Ortega), backing vocalist Scotty Huff (Keith Urban, The Mavericks), and organist John Lancaster.  Adam Ollendorff (Will Hoge, Kaycee Musgraves), who also appeared on Jackson’s 2009 release Damn The Roses, contributes electric guitar, 12-string steel and lap steel, while Aaron Oliver adds upright bass to “Much Too Long.”

Jackson has a history of writing and touring with Curb Records artist Ruth Collins, and they collaborate again here on “A Little Love”.  Coomer – whose résumé includes a six-year run as drummer for Wilco and work with Will Hoge, Steve Earle and Emmylou Harris- doubles as the EP’s producer and drummer.  “Ken really captured the rootsy kind of rock vibe I was feeling with these songs,” Jackson says. “Adding his incredible drum and percussion talent gives them a fresh sound I wasn’t expecting, but am totally in love with. Working with him stretched me in ways I would never have thought to explore.”

Currently based in East Nashville, Craig Jackson was born in Southern California, where he grew up surrounded by the sun-baked California Rock of the Grateful Dead, Tom Petty and Jackson Browne, drawing on those influences with Sweeter Songs. The choice of fruit crate label art for the EP cover compliments the warm vibe of his music and songwriting.

Earlier releases from the Craig Jackson Band include Last House on the Left, Midwest, Spanish Rain, and Damn the Roses, which have enjoyed airplay on radio stations across the country, including Nashville’s Lightning 100 and Los Angeles’ KLOS 95.5. A national campaign to Americana and Non-Commercial radio kicks off April 29.

As the title suggests, Sweeter Songs may just be the sweetest batch of songs Craig Jackson has ever written.

Sweeter Songs Track Listing:

A Sweeter Song (co-written by Adam Ollendorff)
A Little Love (co-written by Ruth Collins)
Much Too Long (co-written by Don Gallardo)
Things Get Lost
Sound Of The World
Here I Go Again (co-written by Adam Ollendorff)

www.craigjackson.com

Celebrating its third season, Shakti Fest the spring celebration of the divine feminine produced by Bhakti Fest, the originator of yoga and kirtan festivals in the booming American yoga and spirituality festival scene is celebrating its third season May 17 -19 at the Joshua Tree Retreat Center, in Joshua Tree, CA. In addition to Bhakti Fest’s unique focus on kirtan music, along with hosting the country’s top yoga teachers, Shakti Fest brings together some of the top wisdom teachers of our time for over 25 workshops.

The Shakti centered workshops highlighted include Mirabai Devi’s “Living in Light: Anchoring the Power of the Divine Feminine” and Laura Amazzone’s “Shakti and the Tantric Wisdom Goddesses!” Devi’s session seeks to fully awaken, the Divine Feminine – the highest level of feminine expression and manifestation in the universe with a workshop filled with light as she guides attendees through an experience of transformation and healing that will culminate in a blissful state of divine awakening, an open heart, a healed body, and an expanded consciousness including a special Shakti Light Transmission for 2013. Amazzone’s session will be an experience of how the Tantric Wisdom Goddesses are the Shakti of spiritual empowerment, transformation and liberation–and discover how they are present within everyone.

Other workshops include kirtan superstar Krishna Das presenting “Awakening Bhakti” where he will share some secrets of leading kirtans; Meditation expert Dr. Lorin Roche PhD explains the way we each manifest Shakti differently through an exploration of The Radiance Sutras; HoopGirl Christabel Zamor will lead a special session of Shakti generating spiritual hooping; Zat Baraka leads a tantric breathwork workshop on the power of self-initiation; noted spiritual artist Paul Heussenstamm leads “Mandalas as Psychic Maps;”  Brazilian yogini Nubia Teixeira leads a classic Indian dance class in her unique style; Joshua Tree Retreat Center Director Victoria Gevoian leads a workshop in “The 8 Key Tibetan Breaths;” Timothy Leary’s son Zach Leary, a longtime Bhakti Yoga practitioner will lead daily Hanuman Chalisa recitations. Additionally Bhakti Fest’s spiritual god father Ram Dass will give a special video message.

According to Sridhar Silberfein, founder and producer of the Bhakti Fests, “At Shakti Fest we like to allow space for context of the other spiritual disciplines at the festival – Yoga Asana – the physical yoga practice, and the devotional yoga of kirtan – Bhakti Yoga. Our workshops bring all the aspects together on the mental plane fostering greater understanding among our attendees. Having an annual message from our inspiration Ram Dass on video adds an even deeper level of wisdom and unity to our event.”

In addition to the workshops, the kirtan at Shakti Fest include the top two female kirtan players – Wah! and Donna De Lory as well as the genre’s superstar Jai Uttal, plus Dave Stringer, Prema Hara, Larisa Stow and Shakti Tribe, Govind das & Radha and many other inspiring performers. Plus world class yoga teachers Shiva Rea and Sara Ivanhoe bring their immense Shakti energy to the Joshua Tree desert along with Saul David Raye, Kia Miller, Christi Christensen, Felicia Tomasko, Elka Haeckel and many more.

Shakti Fest also presents attendees with the opportunity to experience massage and other spa treatments in the healing sanctuary. Additionally there is a marketplace with eco-friendly vendors offering delicious, high vibrational raw, vegan, and vegetarian foods and beverages, yoga gear, clothing, musical instruments, crafts and more.

There will be three separate ticket intensives around Shakti Fest: Saul David Raye’s pre-festival intensive – “Honoring & Embodying the Divine Strength, Wisdom & Love of the Mother,” a pre-festival Kirtan with Marine turned Monk Indradyumna Swami, and a post-festival intensive with Shiva Rea “Awakening of the Energetic Heart – Integrating Bhakti in Daily Life.” For information and tickets please see http://bhaktifest.com/category/festivals/shakti-fest/intensives/.

The Joshua Tree Retreat Center is the perfect setting to foster inner reflection and spiritual reconnection because of its peacefulness and natural desert beauty. Accommodation options include camping and RV parking, all on site. There are also ten local hotels within a few miles of the retreat center.

For a full list of performers and teachers and to purchase tickets (kids under 12 are FREE) please visit http://bhaktifest.com/category/festivals/shakti-fest/.

2012 saw an explosion of yoga festivals, and the Shakti Fest lineup is ushering in the 2013 season with a stellar line up of the yoga world’s top instructors including yoga DVD leader Shiva Rae, spiritual activist Saul David Raye, Weight Watcher’s yoga programmer Sara Ivanhoe, Yoga of Heart author Mark Whitwell, popular vinyasa teacher Kia Miller, Exhale Center for Sacred Movement director Cristi Christensen, LA Yoga editor Felicia Tomasko, Bhakti Yoga Shala founders Govind das & Radha, and Slackline yoga originators YogaSlackers, along with over 10 other teachers. For the full yoga line up please see http://bhaktifest.com/category/festivals/shakti-fest/yoga/.

According to Sridhar Silberfein, founder and producer of the Bhakti Fests, “Shakti Fest is proud to bring the top yoga teachers in North America to teach at our spring festival featuring yoga, kirtan and other yogic disciplines. The devotional spirit of kirtan permeates every aspect of the festival giving the yoga classes a joyful heart opening spirit that deepens attendee’s practices in a unique way.”

In addition to the yoga, Bhakti Fest holds daily kirtan concerts with the top two female kirtan players – Wah! and Donna De Lory as well as the genre’s superstar Jai Uttal, plus Dave Stringer, Prema Hara, Larisa Stow and Shakti Tribe, Sean Johnson and the Wild Lotus Band and many other inspiring performers.

Each day will also feature extensive wisdom workshops geared to educate and inspire including such Shakti themed presentations Mirabai Devi’s “Living in Light: Anchoring the Power of the Divine Feminine” and Laura Amazzone’s “Shakti and the Tantric Wisdom Goddesses!”

Attendees will be invited to leave the busy world behind and immerse themselves in a conscious community for three full days for what the festival producers call “the path of the heart.” They will experience a thriving eco-friendly vendor village with artisan merchants offering, raw, vegan, and vegetarian foods, yoga gear, clothing, musical instruments, crafts and more.

There will be two separate ticket yoga intensives around Shakti Fest: Saul David Raye’s pre-festival intensive – “Honoring & Embodying the Divine Strength, Wisdom & Love of the Mother” and a post-festival intensive with Shiva Rea “Awakening of the Energetic Heart – Integrating Bhakti in Daily Life.” For information and tickets please see http://bhaktifest.com/category/festivals/shakti-fest/intensives/.

The Joshua Tree Retreat Center is the perfect setting to foster inner reflection and spiritual reconnection because of its peacefulness and natural desert beauty. Accommodation options include on-site housing, RV and camping as well as over 10 hotels within a few miles of the retreat center.

For a full list of performers and teachers and to purchase tickets (kids under 12 are FREE) please visit http://bhaktifest.com/category/festivals/shakti-fest/.

“an album that can sit comfortably and confidently next to any of the current crop of Mumfords and Avetts” - Emmet Smith, The Cleveland Plain Dealer

After great gigs at Bonaroo and SXSW, and having already conquered their northeast Ohio home base, indie folksters Bethesda are ready to bring their current yet old timey sound to a larger audience with their third release The Reunion, available April 9 through InKind Music/Sony RED. Sounding like Mumford & Sons with Florence Welch singing lead, a high-stepping video, and touring plans throughout the year, the group are sure to pick up many new fans in 2013.

Named after the ancient sacred healing waters in Jerusalem, Bethesda delivers an uplifting experience through consciously crafted songs, stirring live shows and the desire to create a community from the new believers that they meet.

The Reunion’s ten tracks feature Shanna Delaney’s crystal clear vocals joined with Eric Ling’s warm vocal harmonies and rhythm guitar, energetic lead guitar and banjo by Jesse Scaggs, richly interwoven fiddle from Christopher Black, knee-slapping rhythms from Justin Rife on drums, and Dan Corby laying down the bottom on bass which, as an ensemble, crescendo into a indie-approved, Americana hipster-hootenanny.  Bethesda traveled to Denver, Colorado to work with Tim Gerak at Mammoth Cave Studios, tapping into the local folk scene.

Using songs infused with inspiring messages on their new album The Reunion, Bethesda drew inspiration from family and friends. “We wanted to focus on what we do well: embrace our storytelling side”, says founding member and guitarist/vocalist Eric Ling. “This is the most thematic of our releases.  The concept of reunion ties these songs together. This album is an evolution for us – I feel we captured the energy of the live shows in a whole new way on this release. It’s an album for our fans to re-experience seeing us in concert.”

Eric describes the challenge to compose a song at the request of his grandfather. “It was hard – nothing I wrote captured the richness of his life. Then he died… I had a breakthrough while at his funeral, meeting all these people from his past, men he had worked with in the coal mine – it was a reunion around his life.  It made me think of a Civil War story, how widows went to the battlefields to search for the belongings of their lost husbands, sons, brothers. It was believed that if the articles were found, they’d be able to move on.  Seeing my grandfather’s history on that day helped me find the words.”

A married couple, Eric and Shanna formed the band after they met while studying at Kent State. “Our first date was a road trip to Cleveland for a Badly Drawn Boy concert. We got completely lost, missed the show and ended up at Ruby Tuesday’s for dinner…and she still wanted to see me after that!” remembers Eric.  They did have to work out their musical differences – Shanna was in music theater, with roots in bluegrass music; Eric was into angsty singer-songwriters including Elliot Smith and Bright Eyes. “I gave up my desire to be dissonant, she started to open up to a more indie approach.” remembers Eric.

It was in the healing waters of the Caribbean that they further committed to making beautiful music together. “I remember talking with Eric while we were swimming one day on our honeymoon, telling him that playing music needed to always be a part of my life.” said Shanna. “Eric promised we would figure out a way for us to always be making music.”

When they met their rhythm section, Justin and Dan, at a progressive, artsy community church, a casual collaboration soon turned out to be an epiphany, and they became a real band. As Bethesda grew, Jesse was added for an even bigger dynamic with melodic electric guitar, and violinist and keyboardist Christopher joined to enhance a more traditional folk flavor.

Bethesda released their debut full length album Love In The Time Of Tra La La in 2010, and the EP Dream Tiger And Other Tails in 2012.  They’re a prolific live band, having played Bonnaroo, South x Southwest, and The Rock N Roll Hall of Fame festivals in 2012 along with dozens of other gigs. “Bethesda is all about building relationships to connect with our audience,” says Eric. “We don’t have to come up with schtick – we strive to be honest and original.”  In the tradition of their name, Bethesda will move you in many ways, brightly immersing their listeners in authentic, high-spirited good times.

Bethesda will be touring throughout 2013. Currently confirmed dates include:

April 12         Southpark Tavern               Dayton, OH

April 13         Adelphia Music Hall             Marietta, OH

April 19         Arnold’s                                Cincinnati, OH

April 20         Willie’s Locally Known       Lexington, KY

May 4           Inside Out Gallery              Traverse City, MI

May 10          Bullfrog Brewery                Williamsport, PA

May 11          Fontana’s                             New York, NY

May 17          Abilene                                 Rochester, NY

May 24          Bier Baron                           Washington, DC

July 5            Cleveland Museum of Art  Cleveland, OH

July 14          Bunbury Music Festival     Cincinnati, OH

July 27          Burning River Festival       Cleveland, OH

Some of the music is traditionally performed, yet many of today’s kirtan musicians create contemporary adaptations based in jazz, blues, rock, and rap.  This artistic integration of cultures has become extremely successful and draws a following as diverse and unique as the music itself. For a taste of kirtan, please download Shakti headliner Jai Uttal’s bluesy “Jai Ma” for free here.

The kirtan (a.k.a. chanting) artists at Shakti Fest also include the top two female kirtan players – Wah! and Donna De Lory as well as Dave Stringer, Prema Hara, Larisa Stow and Shakti Tribe, Govind das & Radha, Sean Johnson and the Wild Lotus Band, and many other inspiring performers.

Of Wah! Yoga Journal notes “Mantra-scene veteran Wah! seems to be halfway between samadhi (union) and ecstasy. Her theme is the oneness of divine love and eros. Wah! lays down her love dharma in sultry downtempo grooves, throbbing club beats, and spoken-word rap passages. When the groove’s in full gear, she has us right where she wants us: blissed out and deep in the throes of a love that can’t be labeled.”

Donna De Lory is recognized worldwide as a singer, songwriter, producer and musician, consciously creating music with a positive message. Well-known as a background singer and dancer for Madonna, De Lory has continued to make her presence felt as a solo artist. A devoted student of yoga and spiritual teachings, Donna is inspired by Indian devotional music, Sanskrit mantras, Western pop, Northern African grooves, as well as dance beats from her travels around the globe.

Jai Uttal has cut a serpentine swath through the musical world over the course of a recording career that’s spanned more than two decades and 17 albums, including the Grammy nominated Mondo Rama, with treks into multi-cultural world music, avant-garde jazz, electronic rock and traditional Indian kirtan—or sacred chants—his six recordings this past decade with the Sounds True label have become staples of the yoga-practicing community. His recent releases include Queen of Hearts that incorporates a reggae vibe into kirtan, and Kirtan Kids an album created for families to sing, laugh, dance, and celebrate life together.

In addition to the kirtan, Shakti Fest hosts world class yoga teachers Shiva Rea and Sara Ivanhoe bringing their immense Shakti energy to the Joshua Tree desert along with Kia Miller, Christi Christensen, Felicia Tomasko, Elka Haeckel, Saul David Raye and many more. The Shakti centered workshops highlighted in May include Mirabai Devi’s “Living in Light: Anchoring the Power of the Divine Feminine” and Laura Amazzone’s “Shakti and the Tantric Wisdom Goddesses!” Shakti Fest also presents attendees with the opportunity to experience massage and other spa treatments in the healing sanctuary. Additionally there is a marketplace with eco-friendly vendors offering delicious, high vibrational raw, vegan, and vegetarian foods and beverages, yoga gear, clothing, musical instruments, crafts and more.

There will also be a separate ticket pre-festival Kirtan with Marine turned Monk Indradyumna Swami. For information and tickets please see http://bhaktifest.com/category/festivals/shakti-fest/intensives/.

The Joshua Tree Desert Retreat Center is the perfect setting to foster inner reflection and spiritual reconnection because of its peacefulness and natural desert beauty. Accommodation options include camping and RV parking, all on site. There are also ten local hotels within a few miles of the retreat center.

For a full list of performers and teachers and to purchase tickets (kids under 12 are FREE) please visit http://bhaktifest.com/category/festivals/shakti-fest/.

Photography by: Adele Godfrey, http://www.adelegodfrey.com
Makeup by: Alisa Jurnari
Hair by: Mary Wood

The popular host of NBC’s Early Today Show, MSNBC anchor and founder of the Eric De La Cruz Hope for Hearts Foundation, Veronica De La Cruz, gave birth to a healthy baby boy on Wednesday, March 13, 2013 on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. The television journalist’s 8 pound, 4 ounce bundle of joy was born with dark hair and green eyes and has been named Hartley Eric, after the journalist’s brother who died in 2009.

“Before my brother died, I started an online campaign to raise money for a life-saving heart transplant,” noted De La Cruz. “Thousands of compassionate Twitter followers came out to support the effort and we lovingly referred to them as Eric’s Twitter Army. They all displayed banners on their online avatars that read, ‘<3 Eric,’ which is where my son’s name comes from. If you look at my own social media profile, you will see still see a heart followed by the name Eric. That is what inspired my son’s name.”

De La Cruz and her mother Rose have been over the moon at little Hartley’s arrival, with the new mom noting, “After the pain and devastation of losing Eric almost four years ago, having a healthy baby feels like an incredible miracle. Of course, he couldn’t be any more beautiful. I think I can safely say I have finally met the love of my life.”

De La Cruz said she is looking forward to sharing her personal journey into motherhood through a new non-profit organization and website which will launch later this year.

Prior to joining MSNBC in 2010, De La Cruz spent five and a half years at CNN Worldwide, serving as an anchor and correspondent. Most recently, she was a correspondent for CNN’s American Morning. In addition, she founded and anchored CNN Pipeline and created the segment Dotcom Desk. During her tenure at CNN, De La Cruz anchored and reported live coverage of major breaking news stories such as Hurricane Katrina, the Southeast Asian Tsunami, the 2008 presidential elections, the Israeli-Hezbollah conflict, the death of Ronald Reagan, the collapse of Wall Street, the housing market crash, and a series that celebrated diversity entitled Asian in America.

Before joining CNN in 2003, De La Cruz anchored and reported for KYMA, an NBC News affiliate in Yuma, Arizona. During her tenure at KYMA, De La Cruz covered pertinent issues such as immigration and the U.S.-Mexico border, the nation’s growing shortage of qualified nurses, and the plight of the migrant farm worker and a special series on the homeless in the Yuma area.

In addition to her role as an MSNBC anchor, De La Cruz is an active volunteer with groups promoting healthcare reform and in 2010 started the Eric De La Cruz’s Hope for Hearts Foundation, a non-profit organization, in honor of her brother Eric, who passed away after a struggle to get health insurance with a pre-existing medical condition. The Hope For Hearts Foundation assists patients and families in need as they face the daunting financial and emotional challenges associated with obtaining a heart transplant.De La Cruz began her career in broadcasting hosting a music show she created called Direct Drive on the Digital Entertainment Network, where she interviewed countless musicians and bands. She also served as a host for SonicNet and Eruptor Entertainment’s Living Giant.

Prior to her career in journalism, De La Cruz spent a decade of her life as a competitive figure skater. She is a member of the Asian American Journalists Association. She also mentors students at the Associated Press Television-Radio Association’s academy as well as other university students, most recently doing so in Paris. She resides in New York City.

Mukti Silberfein, a founder and producer of the Bhakti Fests including Shakti Fest notes, “We are pleased to bring the Shakti energy to Joshua Tree for a third year. Taking place in May, a week after Mother’s Day, Shakti is a wonderful way to experience the divinity of mother earth in a beautiful setting and bask in the feminine power of numerous top yoga teachers, kirtan artists and workshop leaders.”

The kirtan (a.k.a. chanting) artists at Shakti Fest include the top two female kirtan players – Wah! and Donna De Lory as well as the genre’s superstar Jai Uttal, plus Dave Stringer, Prema Hara, Larisa Stow and Shakti Tribe, Govind das & Radha and many other inspiring performers.

Of Wah! Yoga Journal notes “Mantra-scene veteran Wah! seems to be halfway between samadhi (union) and ecstasy. Her theme is the oneness of divine love and eros. Wah! lays down her love dharma in sultry downtempo grooves, throbbing club beats, and spoken-word rap passages. When the groove’s in full gear, she has us right where she wants us: blissed out and deep in the throes of a love that can’t be labeled.”

Donna De Lory is recognized worldwide as a singer, songwriter, producer and musician, consciously creating music with a positive message. Well-known as a background singer and dancer for Madonna, De Lory has continued to make her presence felt as a solo artist. A devoted student of yoga and spiritual teachings, Donna is inspired by Indian devotional music, Sanskrit mantras, Western pop, Northern African grooves, as well as dance beats from her travels around the globe.

World class yoga teachers Shiva Rea and Sara Ivanhoe bring their immense Shakti energy to the Joshua Tree desert along with Kia Miller, Christi Christensen, Felicia Tomasko, Elka Haeckel and many more. Shiva Rea’s “Yoga Shakti” is one of the most popular yoga DVDs of all time, released in 2004 it continues to be a top seller. A creator of Prana Flow Yoga, Rae’s classes are a must attend highlight of any festival. One of the faces of yoga in America, Sara Ivanhoe is the instructor for the “Yoga for Dummies” series, the “Crunch Yoga” series and Russell Simmon’s collaborator on “Yoga Live.”  She had an extended run on Fit TV with “All Star Workouts” and on Exercise TV with “Yoga on the Edge.” Sara was a regular on Vh1′s “Dr. Drew’s Celebrity Rehab” and has been featured on all the major news channels.

The Shakti centered workshops highlighted in May include Mirabai Devi’s “Living in Light: Anchoring the Power of the Divine Feminine” and Laura Amazzone’s “Shakti and the Tantric Wisdom Goddesses!” Devi’s session seeks to fully awaken, the Divine Feminine – the highest level of feminine expression and manifestation in the universe with a workshop filled with light as she guides attendees through an experience of transformation and healing that will culminate in a blissful state of divine awakening, an open heart, a healed body, and an expanded consciousness including a special Shakti Light Transmission for 2013. Amazzone’s session will be an experience of how the Tantric Wisdom Goddesses are the Shakti of spiritual empowerment, transformation and liberation–and discover how they are present within everyone.

Shakti Fest also presents attendees with the opportunity to experience massage and other spa treatments in the healing sanctuary. Additionally there is a marketplace with eco-friendly vendors offering delicious, high vibrational raw, vegan, and vegetarian foods and beverages, yoga gear, clothing, musical instruments, crafts and more.

There will be three separate ticket intensives around Shakti Fest: Saul David Raye’s pre-festival intensive – “Honoring & Embodying the Divine Strength, Wisdom & Love of the Mother,” a pre-festival Kirtan with Marine turned Monk Indradyumna Swami, and a post-festival intensive with Shiva Rea “Awakening of the Energetic Heart – Integrating Bhakti in Daily Life.” For information and tickets please see http://bhaktifest.com/category/festivals/shakti-fest/intensives/.

The Joshua Tree Desert Retreat Center is the perfect setting to foster inner reflection and spiritual reconnection because of its peacefulness and natural desert beauty. Accommodation options include camping and RV parking, all on site. There are also ten local hotels within a few miles of the retreat center.

For a full list of performers and teachers and to purchase tickets (kids under 12 are FREE) please visit http://bhaktifest.com/category/festivals/shakti-fest/.

Howard Gordon and Alex Gansa will receive the Upton Sinclair Award at Liberty Hill’s Annual Dinner April 23

Liberty Hill Foundation’s annual Upton Sinclair Dinner celebrates and honors community leaders at the frontlines of change in Los Angeles and beyond. This year’s recipients of the namesake Upton Sinclair Award are co-creators and executive producers of Showtime’s award-winning series, “Homeland”, Alex Gansa and Howard Gordon. Political activist-philanthropists Alison Morgan and Parke Skelton will receive the Founder’s Award and award-winning television and film producer Charles F. Johnson will receive the Creative Vision Award.

The 2013 fundraising gala takes place on April 23 at the Beverly Hilton. Liberty Hill expects more than 600 friends, supporters, and allies to join in celebration of their 2013 honorees. All proceeds will support Liberty Hill’s mission of change, not charity. Through grants, training programs, and campaigns, Liberty Hill advances social justice in Los Angeles.

The Upton Sinclair award is given annually to a person whose lifelong crusade for equality and justice inspires us today. This year Liberty Hill is proud to present the award to two outstanding individuals, Alex Gansa and Howard Gordon, executive producers of “Homeland.” Friends and collaborators since their senior year at Princeton, Alex and Howard also worked together on television’s “Spenser for Hire,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “The X-Files,” and “24.” Alex’s additional television credits include being executive producer and writer on “Dawson’s Creek,” and “Entourage,” as well as writing for numerous other television shows. Howard Gordon’s twenty-five-year career in television includes work on “Angel,” “Sisters,” “The Inside,” and “Strange World.”

Liberty Hill is honoring Alex and Howard for their achievement as creators, executive producers, and showrunners of “Homeland,” a politically nuanced dramatization of cultural difference and the complexities of war. In addition to winning the 2012 Golden Globe for Best Television Series, “Homeland” also won six 2012 Primetime Emmy Awards. These awards included two given to Alex and Howard for Outstanding Drama Series and for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series for their pilot episode of “Homeland.” The show also won two WGA awards in the categories of Best New Series and Episodic Drama, the Peabody Award, Television Critics’ Association Award, Critics’ Choice Television Award, and was named one of AFI’s Top Ten Programs of the Year in both 2011 and 2012. 

But Alex and Howard’s talents are not limited to creating smart, sophisticated, exciting television—they are also deeply committed to social justice, equality, and fighting for a healthier planet.

This year the recipients of the Founders Award, given to those whose philosophy and philanthropy embodies the spirit of “Change, Not Charity” are husband and wife Alison Morgan and Parke Skelton. They are a powerful combination, one that truly embodies the spirit of the award. Their reach, independently and together, throughout California’s social justice and political communities is extensive.

Moving to Los Angeles from NY as a performer, Alison soon became engaged in the AIDS activism movement.  She then found a niche as a progressive political fundraiser for candidates including Senator Barbara Boxer, Attorney General Billy Lockyer, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, former State Senator Sheila Kuehl, State Senator Fran Pavley, former Assemblymember Mike Feuer, Congressmember Karen Bass, and former Assemblymember Jackie Goldberg.  She now serves the broader community through the cultivation of financial resources and board development in the non-profit world.  She is the Major Gifts Consultant of the civil rights advocacy organization Advancement Project, having previously been the Development Director of the Western Center on Law and Poverty.  Now on Liberty Hill’s Advisory Board after a six-year stint on the Board of Directors, Alison currently serves on the Board of the Sequoyah School in Pasadena.

Parke Skelton is one of California’s preeminent political campaign consultants.  His firm, SG&A Campaigns, has run campaigns for scores of progressive Democratic candidates including Controller John Chiang, Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones, Secretary of State Debra Bowen, Congressmembers Karen Bass, Julia Brownley, Judy Chu, Alan Lowenthal, Adam Schiff, Brad Sherman and Hilda Solis, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and District Attorney Jackie Lacey.  Parke has been name one of the 100 Most Influential Californians by Capitol Weekly.

Liberty Hill is proud to present this year’s Creative Vision Award to visionary filmmaker and producer Charles F. Johnson. As producer on such television shows as “NCIS,” “Magnum, P.I.,” “The Rockford Files,” “B.L. Stryker,” “Quantum Leap,” and “JAG,” Charles F. Johnson has built pathways within the entertainment industry to create innovative stories, imbuing characters with depth and vitality through his nuanced understanding of history, the artistic power of his chosen media, and his commitment to racial equality on and off screen.

In 2012 he produced the NAACP Image Award-winning feature film Red Tails. Over 20 years in the making, this is a powerful story of the Tuskegee Airmen, African-American “Top Guns” whose pioneering service as fighter pilots helped end World War II and challenge racial stereotypes at home.  With Executive Producer George Lucas and the onscreen talents of Terrence Howard, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Nate Parker, and David Oleyowo, this film has become a trailblazer in its storytelling, which is based on historic moments and people.

Charles’s activism began in the late 1960s, when he attended Howard University alongside such classmates as Stokely Carmichael. During the Civil Rights Movement, he was active in protests and marches, and later was involved in John F. Kennedy’s presidential campaign. Charles earned his law degree from Howard University, was drafted during the Vietnam War, worked as a copyright lawyer for several years, and finally decided to “follow his dreams” and in 1971 embarked on a new career in entertainment. He attended the Professional Theater Workshop in Hollywood, then found work at Universal Studios in its mailroom, and soon became a production coordinator. His successful and accomplished career as a producer on television shows at Universal soon followed, and continues to this day. Deeply committed to social justice, education, and the power of community engagement, Charles advances social change through creativity, passion, and philanthropic investment in a broad range of organizations, including his leadership as a Trustee of the Art Center College in Pasadena.

This year’s dinner will feature entertainment from singers Alethea Mills and Chavonne Stewart, Jackson Browne’s backup singers. Mills has also recorded with Ray Charles, Al Jarreau, George Benson, Ruben Stoddard and others.

For information on event sponsorship and tickets please visit www.libertyhill.org/dinner or  contact Geneva O’Brien at 310.491.1401 or via email at GenevaOB@blueroomevents.com.

With an increasingly crowded schedule of yoga festivals and conferences each year, Bhakti Fest differentiates their events with an elevated focus on yoga beyond asana, bringing in an extensive focus on devotional chanting known as kirtan, along with breathwork or pranayama, and workshops that incorporate a variety of spiritual traditions and other modalities.

Bhakti Fest debuts their season in May with Shakti Fest at the incredible Joshua Tree Desert Retreat Center, with a three day event that celebrates divine feminine power. Taking place a week after Mother’s Day, Shakti Fest brings a spirit of creation and empowerment through kirtan headliners Wah! and Donna De Lory, yoga teachers including Shiva Rae, Kia Miller and Sara Ivanhoe, Laura Amazzone’s Shakti and the Tantra Wisdom Goddesses workshop, and Mirabai Devi’s Living in Light: Anchoring the Power of the Divine Feminine seminar.

Bringing the Bhakti vibe to the Alliant Energy Center in Madison for the only major yoga festival in the region, Bhakti Fest Midwest brings national yoga names including Saul David Raye and Govindas & Radha together with regional favorites Laurel Hodory, Darren Friesen, and Nikki Myers. Jai Uttal is the kirtan headliner in Wisconsin and an incredible teacher from India – H.H. Pujiya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji Maharaj is giving the keynote address.

The original, and largest event, Bhakti Fest West takes place over four days in September at the incomparable Joshua Tree Desert Retreat Center. The festival has evolved into a must attend event on the yoga calendar and brings together top yoga teachers including Bryan Kest, Mark Whitwell, Micheline Berry, Sienna Sherman and Elena Brower, with kirtan superstars Krishna Das, Deva Premal & Miten, and Snatam Kaur, along with workshop leaders Google’s Gopi Kallayil, Zach Leary, authors Radhanath Swami, Phil Goldberg and many more.

Sridhar Silberfein, founder and producer of the Bhakti Fests notes, “Bhakti is devotion to love. Shining within and without like the sun. We emanate pure love whenever and wherever we go, giving unconditional love to everyone, especially our personal relationships. This year’s Bhakti Fest events will be a total immersion in this love for all involved.”

Attendees will experience independent thriving communities complete with eco-friendly vendor villages offering delicious, high vibrational raw, vegan, and vegetarian foods and beverages, yoga gear, clothing, musical instruments, crafts and more. Bhakti Fest is a vehicle for evolution of human consciousness through a heart-centered revolution, building a community of people drawn to follow the path of the heart – a devotional, prayerful, loving, healthful, respectful family.