Lovely Hoffman

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Lovely Hoffman
Born
Boston, Massachusetts, US
Alma materBoston College
Occupation(s)Singer-songwriter, musical theatre performer, music producer, stage actress
Musical career
Genrescontemporary R&B, gospel music, dance
Instrument(s)Vocals, piano
Years active2003–present
Labels100 Decibels Music Group
Websitewww.lovelyhoffman.com

Lovely Hoffman is an American recording artist, musical theater performer, record producer, musician, actress and educator. She is best known for her 2017 breakout single "My Black Is Beautiful", a song she wrote to address low self-esteem among young girls of color.[1] In 2010, Lovely established herself in the theatre arts world when she was cast to co-star alongside Broadway star Marissa Perry in a production of Hairspray the musical, which was directed by Todd Michel Smith and Judine Somerville both cast members of the original Broadway production.[2] She received notable recognition in 2007 when her debut single, "Can't Wait" peaked #10 on the urban college radio charts.[3] Lovely has also performed and shared the stage with other notable R&B artists including Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter Ne-Yo and multi-platinum recording artist and producer T-Pain.

Early life and education[edit]

Hoffman was born in Roxbury, Massachusetts, a neighborhood of Boston. Her father is a pastor and she grew up singing in her father’s church.[4] Growing up, she struggled with self-esteem and credits Brandy Norwood as one of her influences and inspiration for helping overcome some of her insecurities.[5][4] Hoffman attended Boston College for both her undergraduate and graduate studies. She majored in Political Science, Communications, and minored in Music. She received her Masters in Education.[4][6]

Theatre[edit]

In September 2013, Hoffman was cast in the lead role of Celie for a New England production of The Color Purple, a role which Whoopi Goldberg originally portrayed in the Steven Spielberg directed film based on the 1982 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Alice Walker. Produced by Speakeasy Stage Company, the show opened January 10, 2014 as a Boston premiere.[4] Lovely received an IRNE Award for best actress in a musical for her performance.[7] In October 2019, Lovely starred as Sister Rosetta Tharpe, who is often referred to as the "Godmother of Rock & Roll," in the Greater Boston Stage Company production of Marie and Rosetta, a play with music written by George Brant, that chronicles the legendary American gospel singer and guitarist’s time with her protegee, Marie Knight, who together, rose to become a great gospel duo.[8][9][10]

Music[edit]

As a former middle-school history teacher, Hoffman noticed that young black girls were self-conscious about their appearance and as a result lacked confidence, which correlated to their academic achievement. She wrote a song "My Black Is Beautiful," to address low self-esteem issues among teenage girls of color.[11] The song achieved wide popularity and gained significant public media attention for challenging beauty standards and empowering young school-aged girls of color with confidence in order to improve their performance in school.[11][5] Hoffman explained why she wrote the song and its cultural significance with CNN on National Teacher Day on May 9, 2017.[12] The single was released in February, 2017, and rose to #45 on the Urban Adult Contemporary radio charts, making it Hoffman’s first release to gain mainstream success.[1] The music video went viral after being featured and shared online by several publications and media outlets.[13][14][15]

Theatre performance[edit]

Year Title Role Producer Notes
2019 Marie and Rosetta Rosetta Tharpe Greater Boston Stage Company[8] Cast in lead role
2019 Caroline, or Change Radio 3 Moonbox Productions[16]
2019 Little Shop of Horrors Crystal Lyric Stage Company of Boston[17] Version: Broadway Revival
2013 The Color Purple Celie SpeakEasy Stage Company Cast in lead role – Celie; New England regional premiere
2012 Little Shop of Horrors Crystal New Repertory Theatre[18] Played the role of Crystal; one third of the Street Urchins girl trio
2011 Ain't Misbehavin Nell Carter Lyric Stage Company of Boston[19][20][21] Played the role "Nell Carter" played in the Original Broadway Cast
2011 Ragtime Sara's Friend Emerson Umbrella
2011 Sunfish Storyteller Stoneham Theatre[22]
2010 Hairspray Dynamite Reagle Music Theatre[23] Understudy: Motormouth Maybelle
2010 Ain't Misbehavin Armelia McQueen Lexington Players[24]
2009 Hair Dionne Winthrop Players
2009 Our Story Various Characters Origination
2007 Ntune Ensemble Quannapowitt Players

Singles[edit]

Year Single Chart positions Radio Release
US
2007 "Can't Wait"[25] 10[3] Urban Radio Mixshow iTunes, CD single
2009 "Light Switch"[26] — Urban & Dance Radio Mixshow iTunes, CD single
2010 "Twista "Wetter" Remix" — Urban Radio Mixshow mixtape
2017 "My Black is Beautiful"[1] 45 Urban AC iTunes, streaming

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Digital and Radio Facts Talks to Lovely Hoffman – Her Black is Absolutely Beautiful - Digital and Radio Facts". Radiofacts.com. September 15, 2017. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  2. ^ "Marissa Perry Stars in Reagle Music Theatre's HAIRSPRAY". Boston.broadwayworld.com. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
  3. ^ a b "Rap Attacks College Charts Top 30 May 28, 2007". Archived from the original on November 19, 2008. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d "Lovely development in 'Color Purple' - The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  5. ^ a b Hickman, Janelle M (April 12, 2017). "Lovely Hoffman Creates "My Black is Beautiful" to Teach Students About Beauty Standards". Teen Vogue. Retrieved December 16, 2019.
  6. ^ Mosley, Tonya (April 6, 2017). "How One Boston Teacher Is Building Self-Esteem With A Song". Wbur. Retrieved December 16, 2019.
  7. ^ "Lovely Hoffman and Sam Yin to be Honored at SpeakEasy's 2017 Spring Gala". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  8. ^ a b "Weighing the balance of song, story, and history in 'Cambodian Rock Band,' 'Marie and Rosetta' - The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  9. ^ "Arts This Week: 'J.M.W. Turner: Watercolors From Tate' And 'Marie And Rosetta'". Wgbh.org. October 24, 2019. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  10. ^ Lu, Diana (October 11, 2019). "Front Porch And GBSC Tell The Untold Story Of The Mother Of Rock 'N' Roll Rosetta Tharpe". Wbur. Retrieved December 16, 2019.
  11. ^ a b Johnson, Akillah (March 28, 2017). "These black students struggled with beauty standards, so their teacher wrote a song". Boston Globe. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  12. ^ Hoffman, Lovely (May 9, 2017). "Teacher: I wrote a song to help my students build confidence". Cnn.com. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  13. ^ King, Brittany (February 17, 2017). "This Musician is Changing the Way Black Girls See Themselves". Huffpost. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  14. ^ Willis, Kiersten (February 15, 2017). "Boston Educator Saw Too Many Young Black Girls with Low Self-Esteem and Did Something About It". Atlantablackstar.com. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  15. ^ "How One Boston Teacher Reminds Her Girl Students That Their Black Is Beautiful In Viral Video". Essence.com. October 26, 2020. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  16. ^ "'Caroline, or Change:' Musical production examines race, workers' rights in the 1960s". Baystatebanner.com. May 9, 2019. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  17. ^ Grossman, Nancy. "BWW Review: LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS: This Plant's No Shrinking Violet". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  18. ^ "Little Shop of Horrors is Serious Fun". Boston.com. May 3, 2012. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
  19. ^ CLAY, CAROLYN (November 29, 2011). "Ain't Misbehavin at Lyric Stage". Thephoenix.com. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
  20. ^ Gillian Daniels (November 22, 2011). "Ain't Misbehavin': Tribute to a Lost Harlem". Netheatregeek.com. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
  21. ^ "Women in charge of Lyric Stage's 'Ain't Misbehavin". Articles.boston.com. November 18, 2011. Archived from the original on July 15, 2012. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
  22. ^ "World Premiere Musical..." Archived from the original on July 25, 2011. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  23. ^ "Announced Marissa Perry to Return to Hairspray". Playbill.com. July 21, 2010. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
  24. ^ "Players Bring 'Ain't Misbehavin" to three stages, three towns". Dailynewstranscript.com. March 3, 2010. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
  25. ^ "Can't Wait – Lovely Hoffman | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. July 18, 2006. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
  26. ^ "Allmusic.com". Allmusic.com. August 7, 2008. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
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