Daily News Feed 7.8.2009/Vocab: apogee

Maxwell’s New Album Worth the Wait
Maxwell spent the last eight years in a creative coma, like R&B’s answer to Rumpelstiltskin. Weirdly, he wasn’t alone in his retreat. Two of the other leading lights of modern alterna-soul also went poof, including Lauryn Hill, who became too spooked by fame to risk recording another CD, and D’Angelo, who hasn’t been seen since we saw nearly all of him in his smash nudie video for “How Does It Feel.” Maxwell has said he used his sabbatical to clear his head and get a life. But it’s clear from his new CD, “BLACKsummers’night,” he also used the time to woodshed something esthetically unique. While the Brooklyn-based singer has always put an original stamp on soul, never has he devised work of this invention or erudition. (Continue Reading…)

‘Daddy Has Been the Best Father,’ Paris Tells Crowd
Michael Jackson’s daughter touched the hearts of millions when she bid a tearful farewell to her father at his memorial service in a rare public appearance. With her brief speech, 11-year-old Paris Jackson also shocked the event’s organizers, who said her appearance was not a planned part of Tuesday’s star-studded tribute to the “King of Pop” at Los Angeles’ Staples Center. “Ever since I was born, daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine,” she said, fighting back tears as relatives consoled her. (Continue Reading…)

Survey Shows Racial Disparity in 401k Savings Rate
A new study of 401(k) plans has revealed that black and Hispanic workers save significantly less for retirement and tap into their accounts more frequently than white and Asian employees. The study of 3 million 401(k) plans at more than 50 large companies concludes that unless some changes are made to encourage more saving by some minority groups, they run the risk of retiring into poverty. The analysis, released Tuesday, was done by business consultant Hewitt Associates and a nonprofit educational foundation of Chicago-based Ariel Investments. It shows 66 percent of black employees and 65 percent of Hispanic workers participate in their company’s 401(k) plan while 77 percent of white workers and 76 percent of Asians enroll. Black and Hispanic workers also contribute at much lower levels, the study shows. (Continue Reading…)

apogee\AP-uh-jee\, noun: