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National Association of Black Journalists Invites Author Dr. Kela Henry to Author Showcase Miami #NABJ19 Convention and Career Fair

New York, New York (Tuesday, June 25, 2019) – Dr. Kela Henry (aka Dr. Kela) and her debut book “Nia & The Numbers Game: A Teenagers Guide to Education, Relationships & Sex” are going to the NABJ19 Authors Showcase. This year the panel had dozens of entries of outstanding books to pick from, and “Nia & The Numbers Game” was among them. The books were judged by a team of experienced NABJ members on compelling subject matter, writing style, relevance and uniqueness. This year’s theme is Fight The Power: Press Forward with Passion and Purpose.

Released on BTH Creations LLC, a new imprint started by Dr. Kela, “Nia & The Numbers Game: A Teenagers Guide to Education, Relationships & Sex” is part novel, part self-help guide, and aims to teach teenage girls about decision-making. Growing up is a confusing, and often lonely experience. Shining a much-needed light into this darkness is Nia (Swahili for purpose), whose journey to adulthood is fraught with all the struggles of adolescence. Readers follow Nia, a typical African American girl, on her life’s journey. Nia’s troubles with her divorced and rule-oriented parents, her entrance into puberty, her relationships with both friends and boyfriends, and her academic ambitions are a lens through which readers can understand their own personal development. From changes in her body, to the joy of first love, to the pressures to have sex and on top of all that, applying to college, the book explains to readers how everyday choices directly impacts one’s future. Although Nia makes mistakes along the way, Dr. Henry stresses the importance in how Nia considers and thinks about her actions rather than acting impulsively.

The 2019 NABJ Annual Convention & Career Fair is the premier venue for journalism education, career development and networking opportunity that draws leaders in journalism, media, technology, business, arts and entertainment. Over 3,000 of the nation’s top journalists, media executives, public relations professionals and students will gather in Miami, beginning August 7-11. Dr. Kela’s Author Showcase will be Thursday, August 8 at 4:00 PM in the Royal Ballroom 4 of the convention hotel, the JW Marriott Turnberry Resort and Spa in Adventura, Florida. Scheduled to be interviewed by renowned San Francisco journalist, Barbara Rodgers, formerly one of the most recognizable newscasters on KPIX-TV and currently a host of Comcast Newsmakers California, Dr. Kela will also be selling and signing books.

About the Author / BTH Creations LLC: Dr. Kela Henry graduated from the Medical College of Pennsylvania-Hahnemann School of Medicine in 1999 before returning to her home state of Georgia and completing her residency program at the Medical College of Georgia, Augusta. She specializes in family medicine and runs a successful practice in the metro Atlanta area, which is part of the Emory Healthcare System. Dr. Henry is an advocate for all teenage girls with a focus on the African American communities. BTH Creations LLC is a new publishing imprint formed by Dr. Kela Henry. The goal is to inspire and motivate teenage girls to own their education and to find the resources they need to have the life they dream of living, no matter what their circumstances. Please visit www.drkelahenry.com for more information.

About KeyMedia Public Relations: Located in New York City, KeyMedia Public Relations is a results-driven, boutique PR firm and Production Company owned and operated by Denise Marsa. The company provides a full spectrum of services, ranging from creative and strategic to advisory. The focus is on arts & entertainment, health and wellness and non-profit.

VIRTUOSO PIANIST SHIZ’KA STEPS ONTO THE RECORDING STAGE WITH HER DEBUT ALBUM, SCARLATTI SONATAS

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(Tuesday, February 26, 2019 – New York, New York) – Kéze Records announces the release of ShiZ’ka’s debut album SCARLATTI SONATAS featuring fourteen of the renowned composer Giuseppe Domenico Scarlatti’s sonatas. Playing classical piano since the age of four, ShiZ’ka is an acknowledged Scarlatti authority who has studied with renowned Japanese teachers Toshimi Sakou, Keita Kosaka, Makoto Yamahata, and Mako Okamoto. She has also studied at prominent music schools including Doshisha Women’s College of Liberal Arts and Berklee College of Music.

ShiZ’ka comes from a family of musicians. Her parents Nobue and Toshiyuki Saeki are both classical musicians (bassoonist and oboist respectively) and run a very successful music school, Poco A Poco, in Japan. Since ShiZ’ka was very young, she possessed a deep passion to perform. Much later, she was profoundly inspired by the nobility of Emil Gilels’ performances.

She supplemented her classical training by studying with famed jazz pianists Makoto Takenaka and Yoko Yamamoto. Her early exposure to jazz has influenced her approach towards classical music, in what some are calling an “individual sensibility to timing and rhythm, with clarity and articulation.”

When asked why Scarlatti, ShiZ’ka explains, “When I started learning the Sonatas, my hands and fingers naturally played each piece as if I had played them all my life. It was a body, mind and soul connection for me. Hearing a recording of Elaine Comparone playing the K118 on the harpsichord impressed me so much that I made it a goal to play the Sonatas on the piano as brilliantly and as gracefully as Ms Comparone did on the piece’s originally intended instrument.”

The fourteen sonatas from Scarlatti’s repertoire have been chosen by ShiZ’ka and were recorded in random order. After the recordings were completed, ShiZ’ka took an intuitive approach to organizing the order for the sonatas so the album would have an organic flow, rendering each sonata relevant to the other, while allowing each sonata to stand on its own. 

International Piano Magazine recently stated in its review, “This is a refreshing brace of Scarlatti sonatas. The order of the Sonatas works beautifully; there is no doubting that ShiZ’ka has a resonance with Scarlatti’s style.”

ShiZ’ka now resides in New York. She has recently performed at St. John’s in the Village, the Mount Sinai Guggenheim Atrium in NYC, Third Street Music School Settlement, Tenri Cultural Institute and The National Opera Center. 

About KeyMedia Public Relations: Located in New York City, KeyMedia Public Relations is a results-driven, boutique PR firm and Production Company owned and operated by Denise Marsa. The company provides a full spectrum of services, ranging from creative and strategic to advisory. The focus is on arts & entertainment, health and wellness and non-profit.

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