February is National Teen Dating Violence and Awareness Month.  Is your teenager safe with their dating partner?  How well do you know who they are dating?  Do you know even know that they are dating?  According to a study from 2006, about one in 11 teens reports being a victim of physical dating abuse each year.  What happens in the relationships of teens can be fun and exciting but what happens can also be dangerous.

In this week’s broadcast of Lyn Twyman’s Courage Empowerment Forum on www.party934.com, 94.9 FM Hudson Valley, NY, Lyn’s special guest is Shalanda Moten, founder and executive director of the Dating Violence Prevention Center.  We’ll discuss with Shalanda what inspired her to create her organization and the programs they offer to help young women and the community prevent dating violence.  We’ll also learn more about the “My Boyfriend Rocks Campaign”.  This program is a must hear for all parents of young people who are dating or on the cusp of dating.

Go to the link and listen live every Tuesday night at 9pm ET!  www.party934.com

About Shalanda Moten:

Shalanda Moten currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer for the Dating Violence Prevention Center. As such, she has extensive experience working with non-profits in all aspects of management, programming, and community development. Her specialty areas include (a) clinical research, (b) crisis intervention, (c) prevention services, and (d)psychoeducational groups. Moreover, her appointments include service to Liz Claiborne’s Love is Not Abuse (LINA) Coalition, Start Strong Atlanta at the Jane Fonda Center, Ending Violence Against Women (EVAW): The HBCU Project, Communities in Schools Atlanta, Gwinnett Children’s Shelter, Grady Rape Crisis Center, and Hands on Atlanta Americorps.

Furthermore, Ms. Moten is currently pursuing her Ed.D. in Counseling Psychology from the American School of Professional School Psychology, and previously earned a Bachelors of Art in Psychology from Spelman College, and a Masters of Art in Community Counseling from the Georgia School of Professional Psychology. She has received formal academic training in the areas of Brief Psychotherapy, Cognitive-Behavioral, Behavioral, Existential, Interpersonal, Gestalt, Transactional Analysis, and Constructivist Therapy. Finally, her research interests are as follows: (a) dating violence, (b) date and acquaintance rape, (c) eating disorders, (d) self-mutilation, and (e) female genital mutilation.

http://www.datingviolence.org/

Featured Independent Music Artist and Song

Natalie Brown
Pop/Blue-eyed Soul/R&B – Vocalist & Songwriter

 

Born in Canada, Natalie Brown’s passion for music was nurtured from a young age by her involvement in theater, gospel music, creative writing and local session work as a vocalist and writer. Upon deciding to pursue a professional music career, she moved to California and was selected to sing with internationally acclaimed Gospel recording artist Ron Kenoly during his “Welcome Home” tour in 1996. She toured around the USA and upon returning to California, Natalie studied with world-renowned vocal instructors Seth Riggs (Stevie Wonder, Tevin Campbell, Deborah Cox) and Dave Stroud (Terry Ellis of En Vogue, Rosie Gaines).

Natalie’s debut album was released in late 2000 and contained thirteen original songs. Created with a thoughtful range of subject matter, tempo and mood throughout the album, “Let The Candle Burn” was enthusiastically welcomed by fans and industry personnel alike. She painted an interesting tapestry of sound on an album that included carefree, upbeat tracks, mid-tempo chillout songs and sweet soulful ballads.

Natalie returned to the studio to record the 2003 Holiday album entitled “A Cool Christmas”, a 10 song Cool R&B/Pop influenced collection of Holiday favorites. The album included the beloved “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”, the soaring chime of “Silver Bells” and the quietly understated “I’ll Be Home For Christmas”. Natalie pulled Ray Charles’ “Christmas Time” out of the archives and gave it a light, airy spin that served the tune well. Up-tempo numbers included a Swing infused “Let It Snow” and a contemporary pairing of “Winter Wonderland” and “Sleigh Ride”. A mellow-groove rendition of “Give Love on Christmas Day” rounded out the sure-to-please Holiday offering.

In the Spring of 2004 the digital singles ‘I Wonder’ and ‘Queen of Me’ were made available on Natalie’s official site. The songs garnered tremendous attention and In July 2004, ‘Queen of Me’ was released by Avex, Inc. Japan on the “Soul Essentials 7” series with songs by Rahsaan Patterson, Earth, Wind & Fire and others.

Much to the delight of fans eagerly awaiting new material, January 30th, 2009 saw the release of the long awaited sophomore album “Random Thoughts”. The album features a selection of songs with varying themes (Natalie’s Random Thoughts) that range from the inspiring “Hold Your Head Up High”, the girl power anthem “Queen of Me” and the uplifting “It’s A Beautiful Day”, to the thought provoking “What’s Going on Next Door?”, the unity rallying call of “Come Closer”, the sultry “How I Love 2 Love U”, the soulful “You’re Mysterious” and signature love ballad “I Knew You Were The One”, and more.
Natalie has actively been licensing her music for Film/TV and Commercial placements for the past 7 years. She’s had music placed on every major North American cable network and premium television programs across the globe. A partial listing of domestic placements can be found on her website.
Natalie currently resides in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Other than music, she enjoys reading, creating custom jewelry, mentoring other artists, watching movies, hanging out on Twitter and shopping.

Official Web Site: www.natalie-brown (natalie DASH brown DOT com)
Twitter: www.twitter.com/Natalie_Brown (Natalie UNDERSCORE Brown)
Facebook: www.facebook.com/NatalieBrownMusic
MySpace: www.myspace.com/NatalieBrown