My Publicist Note Book

How to Tell if a Designer Bag is Authentic Consignment stores are like candy shops for name-brand lovers.  Where else can you find designer bags for a fraction of their retail price? But, all too often, there are also fakes lurking on those treasure-filled shelves.  Linda Lightman, CEO of  Linda's Stuff  and one of the first successful online luxury consignment sellers, has become an expert at authenticating designer pieces.  Read on for her expert, fake-spotting tips and never get ripped off again! Prada  What to Look for: • The plaque should be firmly attached with even stitching • The zippers should be embossed on the back side with either "YKK", "RiRi", "Lampo", "Opti" or "Ipi" • The "R" in  Prada  should have a curved leg  • The interior plaque should match the interior fabric of the bag, or it will have a leather patch with four rivets • All hardware is always...

R&B Hitmaker KEM: Be Flexible, Gentle and Disciplined for Success  Life and music are good in  KEM’s  world. And he has made it so. His newest  album  and fourth studio album is  Promise to Love , which has produced two No. 1 hits— Nobody  and  It’s You —for the internationally-known R&B singer/songwriter. He’s headed back out on the  Forever Charlie Tour  May 28 with  Charlie Wilson  and  Joe Thomas . KEM has three gold albums on Motown’s label:  Kemistry; Kem: Album II , and  Intimacy . Let’s not forget three Grammy nominations among other notable accolades. His 2012 Christmas album,  What Christmas Means , was the third-highest-selling urban Christmas record. KEM also appeared in the 2012 movie,  Sparkle , with Jordin Sparks and the late Whitney Houston, and his music has been featured in numerous movie soundtracks. KEM’s music wins fans over, as does his honesty about formerl...

Stagecoach Festival: Country Music Fans Gather in Southern California for Annual Outdoor Event Tim McGraw, Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton are headlining the ninth annual country music festival. Other performers include Dierks Bentley, the Band Perry and veteran Merle Haggard. Tim McGraw was the headliner for the first day of this year's Stagecoach Country Music Festival on April 24, 2015. In this file photo McGraw performs onstage during the iHeartRadio Album Release Party with Tim McGraw at the iHeartRadio Theater on October 15, 2014 in Burbank, California.  Country music is steeped in American history, often accompanied by string instruments like banjos, guitars and fiddles. But just like many musical genres, country music has evolved and fused with other popular music to now include alt-country, newgrass and just about anything twangy in between.Country music is steeped in American history, often accompanied by string instruments like banjos, guitar...

7 Questions Answered About Transgender: Breaking Down Definitions and Dos & Don'ts  It is believed there have always been people whose brain and bodies are at odds when it comes to their gender.   In the past two decades, the term “transgender” has been used to define this population. [VIDEO] Transgender Terms: Breaking Down Definitions and Dos & Don'ts As part of Diane Sawyer’s exclusive interview with Bruce Jenner, a few experts offered to help answer questions often asked about the transgender community. 1. So How Many People Are Transgender? While it’s impossible to know exactly how many transgender people live in the U.S., the most commonly cited estimate is 700,000—more than the population of Washington, D.C. Most experts on the transgender community believe that the number is probably higher. “If you're in a high school of 2,000 kids, you're probably going to have somewhere between two and four trans kids in that...