Idol Chatter

The History Channel premiered, on March3rd, the first episode of Roma Downey and Mark Burnett’s The Bible. The epic docudrama was received by 14.8 million viewers.

In episode two Joshua conquers Jericho; Delilah betrays Samson as the Israelites battle the Philistines; Samuel anoints David king, a move that could throw the nation into civil war; Saul is consumed with jealousy when David defeats Goliath; King David ushers in a golden age for Israel, but is soon seduced by power and lust for Bathsheba; God forgives David, and his son, Solomon, builds God’s temple in Jerusalem.

Click here to watch a sneak peek of Episode 2 airing Sunday, March 10th.

Photo credit: Harpo, Inc. Photographer George Burns

Oprah Winfrey and Don Miguel Ruiz, New York Times bestselling author of “The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom,” discuss the profound power of each of the agreements in an all-new episode of “Super Soul Sunday,” the award-winning series designed to help viewers awaken to their best selves and discover a deeper connection to the world around them.  The episode airs this Sunday, March 3 at 11 a.m. ET/PT on OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network.

Originally introduced to Winfrey and her audience by Ellen DeGeneres in 1999, “The Four Agreements” would eventually be selected as one of Oprah’s Favorite Things and soar to the top of the bestseller’s list.  During this candid interview, don Miguel Ruiz shares how his near death experiences opened him to more profound levels of spiritual awareness.  Plus, find out how avid readers have been impacted by the lessons of “The Four Agreements.”

All new episodes of “Super Soul Sunday” will continue throughout March and April featuring Oprah Winfrey’s conversations with today’s acclaimed authors and thought leaders about life’s big questions. This season’s line-up will also include Winfrey’s mentor Dr. Maya Angelou.  Viewers can join the global conversation online via Oprah.com, Facebook and Twitter using #SuperSoulSunday.

Pastor Rick Warren and Oprah Winfrey

Photo Credit: © 2013 Harpo Studios, Inc.

Los Angeles – Oprah Winfrey and Pastor Rick Warren, author of The Purpose Driven Life, discuss the fundamental concepts explored in his best-selling book in an all-new episode of “Oprah’s Lifeclass,” the popular series where Winfrey engages with thought-leaders in inspiring conversations about principles that guide our lives.  The episode airs this Sunday, February 24 at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network.

In part two of Winfrey’s conversation with Warren, the two help viewers answer life’s biggest questions: ‘What on earth am I here for?’ and ‘What is my purpose?’  They talk about the three levels of existence: survival, success and significance, and how to start living your life with more purpose.  Plus, an update from a former guest on “The Oprah Winfrey Show”who survived being held hostage in 2005 by the Atlanta Spree Killer after reading The Purpose Driven Life. 

Make sure you tune in and watch as life’s biggest questions are addressed.

If you’ve been following music at Beliefnet for awhile then you know that I think an awful lot of a capella pop group Pentatonix. Since winning NBC’s The Sing-Off with their impressive take on a capella pop the group has gone on to prove that they have what it takes to bring a capella to the mainstream. They have racked up fans by the truckload with two great EPs and numerous YouTube covers of popular songs. Last night I was finally able to experience the group live in Silver Spring, MD and man do I have a lot to say about it.

PTX has made its mark by applying vocal acrobatics and intense arrangements to otherwise simple pop songs, and these arrangements shined live. “Starships” and “Thrift Shop” were the best of the lot with bassist Avi Kaplan shining on the Macklemore and Ryan Lewis hit. While the covers were great fun and a staple of any a capella performance, the show really hit its best notes when the band veered away from that comfort zone. Those highlights included a five-part a capella song that beat boxer Kevin Olusola and bassist Avi created by splitting the audience into three sections. It was a really cool experience, but not quite as cool as Kevin beat-boxing and playing cello at the same time. He was discovered for this talent and it was great fun to see it incorporated into the set.

For this fan though, the most exciting part of the night were the original songs. If Pentatonix wants to transition from a great a capella group to a great group period, they are going to have to put out more killer original songs. Well, they are well on their way. If audience reaction is telling, they won’t have any problem getting people on board either. “The Baddest Girl” from their first EP got one of the biggest reactions of the night with Avi’s new track “The Peaceful War” being one of the songs I heard people discussing on my way out. Release that song guys, people love it!

All in all this current iteration of the Pentatonix show is an amazing hour and a half of entertainment. It’s good clean fun, and you will see some of the craziest vocal acrobatics you will see. The surprisingly diverse audience had a great time from start to finish. The most exciting  though, is that the best is definitely to come for this group. They are incredibly talented, great showmen/women, and genuine people to boot. Pentatonix is easy to cheer for, and I’m planning to do just that.