Stew

Mark Stewart (born August 16, 1961), known by his stage name Stew, is an American singer-songwriter and playwright from Los Angeles, California, United States. In the early 1990s, he formed a band called The Negro Problem and later went on to release albums under his own name. His 2000 release Guest Host was named Album of the Year by Entertainment Weekly and his 2002 album, The Naked Dutch Painter and Other Songs, repeated that feat. He toured in support of Love's Arthur Lee in 2002 and in 2003 he was invited to take part in the Lincoln Center's American Songbook series of concerts. Stew’s 2008 Broadway musical, the semi-autobiographical Passing Strange (co-written with Heidi Rodewald), received seven Tony Award nominations, winning the award for Best Book. The live show was adapted into a film by Spike Lee, which was screened at the 2009 Sundance film festival.