I Loved Working With Cindy Mizelle and Nils Lofgren on Ain’t The Truth Enough Video

“Neal, Who?” I initially said when my friend, Cindy Mizelle, called to ask for my help on a video shoot for Nils Lofgren’s Ain’t The Truth Enough music video. My music taste runs from retro Disco and 80s R&B to house music and Euro-pop. When she called, I was probably listening to either the Emotions (Best Of My Love) or Aretha Franklin (Jump To It).
But what kind of idiot turns down working with the multi-talented, beautiful Cindy Mizelle??? She’s one of my favorite vocalists of all time. Cindy and I worked together with Luther Vandross. Cindy was one of Luther’s longtime backing vocalists on tour and his records. She used to do a step-out on the song, Going In Circles with Luther’s Songs Tour.

Cindy also lent her stunning vocals to my dance anthem, That Man Of Mine, in the 90s, co-written and produced by Keith Harrmeyer. Watching Cindy Mizelle do her thing in front of a microphone was life-changing. Within seconds, I witnessed her switch phrasing and tones to wrap her voice beautifully around the melody.

She has also worked with Whitney Houston, Steely Dan, Alicia Keys, Bruce Springsteen, Billy Ocean, and Dave Matthews Band.
I designed several sets of tour costumes for Dave’s Lovely Ladies (Tawatha Agee, Brenda White-King, and Cindy) in the 2000s. The picture above features costumes with reversible skirts to mix and match. My ideas seem heavy-handed today, especially pairing check prints, bold stripes, and vinyl ruffles. But the idea was to create bold statement pieces that they could pair with other clothing to create their looks.

I’m not the only person who loves and admires Cindy. Mariah Carey praises many singers in her new memoir The Meaning of Mariah Carey, but she’s particularly effusive about her. “To me, she was one of the absolute greatest,” writes Carey. “Cindy Mizelle was the background singer. She sang with the most gifted vocalists of all time — Barbra Streisand, Whitney Houston, Luther Vandross, and the Rolling Stones. She was a real singer’s singer. Cindy was that girl to me. I looked up to her so much.”

Of course, once I found out ‘Neal’ is Nils Lofgren, a rock legend, amazing songwriter, and virtuoso rock guitarist who has recorded and performed with Bruce Springsteen as a member of the E Street Band,  I roped master stylist and Hale Organic salon owner Joe Murray into helping on the video shoot.
It was fun for me to step away from diabetes outreach and jump back into styling and working in entertainment, too. I spent half my life pursuing my dreams of working in entertainment. I didn’t have a master plan, just a deep passion that happily carried me a long, long way.

For all his success, Nils Lofgren is a down-to-earth, caring, and kind person. Even though he was on the road touring with Bruce, he found time to drop me an email expressing his gratitude.
Mountains
Ain’t The Truth Enough appears on Nils Lofgren’s new album, Mountains. Nils said the album started out “as a form of therapy, but it very quickly grew beyond that” and that it was “so freeing to work without any restrictions,” calling it “some of the most inspired work” he has ever made. He wrote and recorded the album at his home in Arizona and enlisted a wonderful kaleidoscope of talent, including Ron Carter, Neil Young, and David Crosby.  This album is jammed with great melodies, glorious guitar playing, heartfelt lyrics, and catchy hooks that have this disco kid dancing around.
I’m happy to say I’m now a big Nils Lofgren fan and thrilled to participate in this project. Ringo Starr????? Unbelievable!!!
Don’t worry; I’m not giving up my day job working to glamorize good health for women and their loved ones living with diabetes.

What’s Trending This Week At Divabetic

Check out the latest headlines in diabetes, diabetes self-management, healthy lifestyles and diva entertainment that we think you should know about this weekend.

FDA Approves First Blood Sugar Monitor without Finger Prick

Abbott’s new FreeStyle Libre Flash Glucose Monitoring System, approved Wednesday by the Food and Drug Administration, uses a small sensor attached to the upper arm. Patients wave a reader device over it to see the current blood sugar level and changes over the past eight hours. READ MORE

Seattle-Caught Salmon Contains Cocaine, Antidepressants & Pain Relievers

Salmon is purported to be one of the healthiest foods due to its high omega-3 content, protein, and essential fatty acids, but if the fish is obtained from the Puget Sound, it is anything but healthy.

According to a recent study, up to 81 drugs and personal-care products were detected in the flesh of salmon caught in the Puget Sound. Some of the drugs include Prozac, Advil, Benadryl, Lipitor, and even cocaine. READ MORE

Non-nutritive Sweeteners Can Aid Weight Management in Diabetes

A scientific statement from the American Heart Association and American Diabetes Association concluded that non-nutritive sweeteners, when used carefully, may aid in reducing total energy intake and assist with weight loss or weight control while providing beneficial effects on related metabolic parameters. READ MORE

FDA Approves New Fast-Acting Mealtime Insulin

Officials with the FDA have approved fast-acting insulin aspart (Fiasp, Novo Nordisk) for the treatment of adults with diabetes. Fiasp is a fast-acting mealtime insulin designed for individuals in need of improved overall glucose control. READ MORE

8 Powerful Women (including Jillian Michaels and Victoria Beckham) Who Have Opened Up About Their Struggles With PCOS

Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) affects about 10 million women in the world. If you’re personally coping with PCOS, always remember that you are not alone. In fact, even some major celebrities with PCOS have used their platform to speak out about their struggles (and triumphs!) with the disorder, and cultivate awareness in our society. READ MORE

Music Spotlight: Kelsea Ballerini’s song, “Legends”  is a mid-tempo ballad reflecting on a past love, though Ballerini also views the song as a message to her fans.

“I wrote it from the perspective of a breakup,” Ballerini told RSC. “Now I’m in such a different place in my life that, to me at least, it’s a love song about a love that you look back on that doesn’t even necessarily have to end. I hope my fans hear it as a letter to them but also they hear their own love story in it too.” READ MORE

Movie Spotlight: “Our Souls At Night” starring Robert Redford and Jane Fonda As Neighbors With Benefits

“Our Souls at Night” chronicles the blossoming of a December-December romance between two neighbors in the fictional prairie town of Holt, Colo. It begins not with a spark of passion but with a sensible, if unusual, proposal. Addie Moore shows up at Louis Waters’s house and asks if he will sleep with her. Addie doesn’t mean she wants to have sex with Louis. She wants to slide under the covers next to him, turn off the bedside lamp and chat quietly until slumber arrives, simulating the easy marital intimacy that the two of them, both long widowed, have learned to live without. Louis, startled by the idea, agrees to think about it. READ MORE