We stopped and ate burgers and candies that we brought with us. We stopped at village after village and I met some of the cutest and sweetest kids anywhere. "We flew everywhere," Knight adds, "but on the last leg I insisted on being driven cross country. It's in South Africa where her jewelry line is put together by tribeswomen "who make the beads out of old vinyl records. We are always going to have trouble in our lives, but it is very difficult to kill our spirit." It's the same joie de vivre she discovered during a concert tour of South Africa earlier this year prior to the World Cup soccer tournament. And neither should any of us." Despite everything, the folks Knight met during her trip to the recovering city "are hopeful and upbeat. It is so good that Essence stayed in the city. "That's why I want to give this shout-out. People who have the wherewithal to bring about really dramatic changes" haven't done as much as they should. "They've been slow to react." A half decade later, "there is still much to do. As far as she is concerned, the city, state and federal authorities "are still behind the eight ball" in improving conditions. In July, she chose the Big Easy to unveil her new line of jewelry at the Essence Magazine Festival because "it is important we keep the spotlight on the city." "We have to bring them as much business as we possibly can," says the legendary R&B singer as she prepares for her concert in the MGM Grand at Foxwoods on Saturday. She's doing her bit to help the city recover. But the death and the devastation left by Hurricane Katrina five years ago still claw at Gladys Knight because, even though she was born in Georgia and now lives in Las Vegas, those who perished in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans were our brothers and sisters.
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