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Video After The Jump Boxing fans love to debate which fighter is the greatest of all time. In such debates, people generally up end going old school vs new school. For most though, Muhammad Ali has been considered the greatest and most well known boxer of all time. Manny Pacquiao's advisor Michael Koncz doesn't think that is the case anymore. At least not when it comes to popularity. He tells reporter Elie Seckbach that Pac Man is now the biggest name boxing has ever seen. "I think it's all the things we've been doing. 60 Minutes programs, you know - 24-7 again. It's put him into that category of a rock star," Koncz said "I think he's one of the most popular boxers ever, even more than Ali. You gotta remember Muhammad Ali, and he was my favorite boxer. He never became world wide famous until the draft issue, it wasn't because of his boxing. [Ali was convicted for refusing induction into the military]. And I think that's what's happening to Manny too. Like I said with 60 Minutes, the Dateline show that we did, the Jimmy Kimmel show that we did twice. We're taking him out of the boxing circle and putting him into the household." Koncz makes some interesting points, but Ali became worldwide famous without the internet, pay-per-view, Showtime and HBO. I think that's a really hard comparison to make. In other Pacquiao news, it's looking more and more likely that his next opponent will be either Sugar Shane Mosely or Andre Berto. Juan Manuel Marquez was also in the running, but promotor Bob Arum said his asking price was way too high. “Marquez's proposal was so out of line for anything that he got before… I don't think Manny is going to pay any attention to it,” Arum said in an interview with FanHouse.com On the possibility of Floyd Mayweather Jr vs Pacquiao, it doesn't look like that fight will happen until at least the end of 2011, if at all. Oscar De La Hoya of Floyd's promotion team Golden Boy is accusing Arum of ducking his fighter. Arum is calling bullsh*t on that accusation. "That's totally nonsense because you can argue over the first situation, the first go around. They had one position, we had another. But on the second go around we gave in to every one of their positions. We were so anxious to make the fight and Mayweather didn't want to fight," Arum said "And even today we will do the fight unconditionally, unconditionally! And all Mayweather has to do is say ('yes') he wants the fight." So our poll for today is, who is the greatest fighter of all time? Use whatever criteria you want to - popularity, pay-per-view buys etc But the most important thing in determining the greatest is boxing skills.
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TRACK LIST:


1. DJ Noodles - Intro
2.Major leagues prod by whpbeats.com
3.tomorrow prod by vybe beats
4.times have changed prod by whpbeats.com
5. hold it down prod by whpbeats.com
6. nova audition #254
7.executive sutie Ft Detal prod by whpbeats.com
8. tell em how it feel prod by radio ready records
9. a criminal mind prod by real hits productions
10. up and away prod by the college kidz
11. highs and lows prod by the synthesis
12. Let it be prod by whpbeats.com
13. you know my stlye prod by beats planet
14. thru it all prod by skate and johnny
15. Dewey Da Don audition #255
16.Streets Callin Ft Detal & J-Wells
17. Money is the motive Ft Roblo Da StaRR prod by vybe beats
18. Forever
19. How did I Get Here prod by mister ka
20.My Life Ft Mysterre
21. Built for the Struggle Feat. A-Ward prod by superstaro
22. High Risk Ft Ant Ant prod by beats planet
23. Maria Juliet Audition #256
24. All I Want to say outro prod by college kidz
25. DJ Noodles - Outro

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Video After The Jump Matt Olivarez of Redford, Michigan made a very tough decision to have his 10-year old Rottweiler put to sleep, after his vet advised him it would be best. The dog, Mia suffers from spinal injuries, can barely walk and is in constant pain, so Olivarez agreed to have it euthanized. But miraculously, the dog woke up the very next day. "I watched her basically die in front of my eyes, at least I thought she was. And now I got to go through it again? I mean, come on, man," Olivarez said. Thinking the dog was dead, Olivarez brought her home to decide whether to bury her, or to have her cremated. Much to his surprise, when he walks in from work the next day, Mia is alive sitting by her food bowl. "When I came home from work, you know I was like, she was sitting right there, you know, in front of her bowl of food. All I know is that, when they injected her, they injected her twice. And, she went to sleep. And they said, 'That's it. She passed.' And they gave me a blanket, wrapped her up. I took her home. And I wanted to figure out what I wanted to do with her. And, the next morning, I came back, she was wide awake," Olivarez said. Now he's left with an even tougher decision. Whether or not he should take Mia back to the vet to be put to sleep again. "You know, what if I would have buried my dog alive? What if I had her cremated, you know? She would have gotten burned alive. You know, that's animal cruelty. You know, like, all type of stuff, like, I explained that to my kids. How am I going to explain to my kids, I gotta kill Mia twice? I gotta kill her again? My kids are eight and nine years old. I mean, she's a family dog," he said. The clinic where he originally took Mia has agreed to refund his money. I have to be real, if I brought my dog home after being put to sleep, I would bug out. The guy had to carry her from the clinic to his car, then from his car inside his garage. She obviously wasn't breathing. This is too much like the movie 'Pet Sematary.' twitter-5d.gif
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Cocaine City Artist Skyy High Bring To You Our New Mixtape Failure Is Not An Option Visionware Edition With DJ Stunna Appearances From French Montana, Ru Spits, Harry Fraud,Mike Shorey,Ricky Bless Etc R.I.P. B.G. Download Here
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Audio After The Jump "This b*tch is dumb" - B. Pumper Brian Pumper has responded to accusations from Montana Fishburne aka Chippy-D that he released footage of the two engaging in sexual acts without her consent. Montana alleges that she only allowed Brian to film her because it was "practice" for her big porn debut with Vivid Entertainment. Pumper says he has her name signed on the dotted line. "She trying to clown saying she didn't sign any documents. That bitch is lying, I got a seven page contract on her. And I got a videos release where she's showing her ID's," Brian tells Pow-TV. "I got still shots of her smiling, holding her ID underneath her chin. And I got seven page contract that clearly states she did on her own free will, she is aware that it's an adult motion picture and is giving me the rights to own the material and to release it. My lawyer's got it right now....this b*tch is dumb." According to various reports, Montana has hired her own team of lawyers who have demanded Pumper cease selling the XXX film she appears in with him. Brian thinks it might be because she breached her contract with Vivid, who were supposed to be releasing her first sex tape. Instead, they had to compete with Pumper's release which probably caused them to lose money. "She said she did it as practice. Now the whole world gotta know that's bullsh*t. She's looking very comfortable on the cover," Brian says. "The b*tch is lying, she's full of sh*t." Pumper is preparing a diss track for Chippy-D and her boyfriend/pimp J-Pipes. "I'm actually in the process right now, my man just did the beat. *I'm going in on her and her stupid, retarded a** boyfriend. The name of the song is 'B*tch You Signed On The Dotted Line.' " Hilarious stuff, I have a feeling Montana and B. Pumper are going to be going at it for a while, should be entertaining to watch. twitter-5d.gif
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[I'm late with this one, video came out 3 weeks ago]

Rocko is back & is working on his new album 1 Of 1, his first single All Wayz has been release awhile back( off the album & off the mixtape Rocko-Wild Life). Rocko Maybe video(off the mixtape) you can watch below & download Rocko Maybe remix which is came out yesterday. Rocko 1 Of 1 album is coming soon along with official cover & track list!



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Video After The Jump

Veteran rhyme slinger Jadakiss sat down with Cosmic Kev and chopped it up about a few up and coming rappers in the game and what D-Block has lined up.

Kiss explained why he likes to work with young artists like Meek Mill, Joey Jihad and French Montana.

" I mean me being one of the major dudes in New York as far as respected lyrically, I like to help the dudes on the come up like Joey Jihad cause he's nice," Kiss said. "And I like to help them type of artists cause they can't always reach the Hov's, the Nas', the Kanye's. They can't reach some of the artists to get where they need to be and I went through that same thing. So I always embrace the French Montana's, Joey Jihad, all the dudes that's hungry, Meek Mill, all of them dudes on the come up thats nice. I try to show them love early before they pop and everybody jump on the bandwagon."

Jada says D-Block got the cannons cocked and loaded so don't think they're slacking.

"The Champ Is Here Pt 3, I haven't been quiet at all, 500 and something (thousand) dowloads on the internet. Me and SP [Styles] got an EP coming out, 'In and Out'. You know how we do with that, just break some more bread and put another wing on the house. I got the 'Top 5 Dead Or Alive' coming right after that. Donnie G, Don Gorilla just signed with Def Jam so that's another wing on the house."

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As a rule, I like energy and expressiveness in music. In other words, I cannot understand why I should spend my time on the things that do not catch my ear. However, everything is absolutely different with Kings of Convenience, a Norwegian band including two cute guys, Erlend Oye (Øye) and Eirik Glambek Boe (Bøe).ef46035b470d.jpg“What we build is bigger than a sum of two” (24-25, Declaration of Dependence) – oh, I even put it as an epigraph for my research paper about synergy effect. Indeed, two guitars and two voices create something exceeding calm guitar-accompanied compositions of singers-songwriters. Just imagine: they use neither electronics nor even drums. I will not say that they nevertheless give you energy and so on – no, this music is absolutely for relaxation and joy. But it is very sunny, charming and of high quality.09a0bf22d343.jpgThat is why I feel perpetual desire to recommend Kings of Convenience to other people. My colleague in writing college term paper answered me, “Oh, I won’t listen to those hipsters’ idols”. Well, I think that not a single cell of my body is about hipsters; however, I still admire them endlessly. It is time to make hipsters share such a lovely source of good mood and peace in soul. Try Kings of Convenience, I highly recommend them to you.The band’s albums (I recommend them all):Quiet is the New Loud (2001)Versus (remix album) (2001)Riot on an Empty Street (2004)Declaration of Dependence (2009)
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Yelawolf has started to create a great buzz within the hip hop community. The Alabama MC can count one of the premier artists in the game as a fan now.

According to producer Jim Jonsin, Em is really digging Yela's music.

"I actually played a video of Yelawolf for Eminem, Pop The Trunk and he really liked it," explained the producer. "He (Eminem) was like 'wow,that's the sh*t. I need to do some sh*t like that.'"

Eminem and Yelawolf are now label mates at Interscope Records, so it's possible we may see a collaboration down the line.

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Producer Jim Jonsin Speaking On Yelawolf and Eminem


Yelawolf "Pop The Trunk" Music Video
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Official All Star Remix For "Beamer, Benz or Bentley" the 1st single from Lloyd Banks new album dropping this summer

Download It On iTunes! http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/beamer-benz-or-bentley-remix/id372467840

Also Download The Oriiginal Version On iTunes!

http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/beamer-benz-or-bentley-feat/id354096244

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Hip-hop’s new-school frontrunner Drake just released “Find Your Love,” the second single from his forthcoming debut album, Thank Me Later. This Kanye West produced track finds the rapper singing about what he describes as “one of my worst character traits.” Apparently the 24-year-old has the worst luck picking the right woman. “I look for love in the wrong people,” he recently told us. “It just always seem like the women I find are poison for me. I love women that can just walk into a room and stop the whole area. And I think that those initial qualities always end up getting me hurt, which is a crazy thing for a guy to say.”

The beat’s hip-hop-meets-Phil Collins pop sound is similar to the dreary tunes found on West’s last album 808's and Hearbreak. But Drake, sans the Auto-Tune West used, sings well here. On “Love,” Drake, hurt by women many times before, hopes his next relationship doesn’t crash like the others. “I’ve been through this s— so many times that if I go through his again,” he says of the song’s concept, “I better find your love. You better be that one. Because if not, I don’t know what type of guy I’m going to turn into.”

Broken hearts aren’t typically the topic of hip-hop songs. Drake believes that his supporters, especially the guys, will be able to relate. But he knows he’s taking a chance. “Find Your Love” is an extremely vulnerable song,” he says. “And it’s actually a huge risk. It almost feels like the song should be performed by a woman. I’m just hoping that men really hear the song and they’re honest with themselves. I know a lot of men feel that way.”

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AP – Joan Griffith-Lee, left, and her husband Don Lee share a moment as they pose for a photograph Thursday.

NEW YORK – For Kenny and Lynette Seymour, last weekend's black marriage gala was about celebrating their seven-year marriage. They got to meet other black couples while spending a romantic evening together.

"Every time you meet another couple, you learn something new about yourself and relationships in general," said Kenny Seymour, a 39-year-old Broadway music director who lives in Queens. "It was beautiful to be around a bunch of married people in love."

Other black couples will be marking the eighth annual Black Marriage Day this weekend, by attending workshops, black-tie dinners and other activities. Some groups have held events throughout the month, although Black Marriage Day, which celebrates matrimony in the black community, falls on the fourth Sunday in March.

The founder estimates more than 300 celebrations are being held this weekend. The aim is to try to stabilize, if not reverse, the trend of non-commitment within the black community. Studies show blacks are less likely to marry than other ethnic groups and more likely to divorce and bear children out of wedlock.

Experts blame the disparities in part on high black male unemployment, high black male imprisonment and the moderate performance of black men in college compared with black women.

They also note the lack of positive images of black marriage in the media and several misperceptions about matrimony — that it's for white people, that it's a ball and chain, that fatherhood and marriage are not linked.

"They have either seen really bad examples of what marriage looks like or no examples at all," said Yolanda "Yanni" Brown, 42, a divorced mother of two in Chicago, who is hosting black marriage events. "They are saying, 'Why bother? This works for us,' not knowing there are so many other benefits of being married."

Brown says she wishes she had fought for her marriage.

Joseph Arrington II, a 38-year-old black entertainment attorney in Atlanta, said there was a time when he wanted to get married, but his interest has waned. He hasn't had a girlfriend in 15 years. His parents celebrated their 50th anniversary last year. He said he focuses on his work.

"It's a combination of two things," he said. "I haven't found anyone, and I'm not actively seeking someone."

Gerard Abdul, 45, a who lives in East Orange, N.J., and runs an entertainment company, has never seen himself as the marrying type. He has nine children by five women. He said he cared about them all, and each wanted to marry him. But he wasn't interested.

"Because I'm so independent and on my own, I really didn't see the science of marrying them when I really didn't have to," Abdul said.

"I'm a great father," he added. "But I probably would have been a lousy husband."

Despite those attitudes toward marriage, there are a handful of campaigns to get blacks to walk down the aisle, from the federal government's African American Healthy Marriage Initiative to Marry Your Baby Daddy Day, with 10 unwed couples with children tying the knot later this year in New York.

"You Saved Me," a documentary that explores the marriages of eight black couples, will be screened in more than 20 cities this weekend as part of a Black Marriage Day premiere.

"We want people to take away that successful positive (black) marriages do exist," said Lamar Tyler of Waldorf, Md., who produced "You Saved Me" with his wife, Ronnie. The Tylers started their blog "Black and Married With Kids" in 2007 and released "Happily Ever After: A Positive Image of Black Marriage" last year.

Don Lee and his wife, Joan Griffith-Lee, of New York's Staten Island, who have three children, will be watching "Happily Ever After" Friday night and participating in a discussion at a coffeehouse. The couple have been married almost 20 years.

Several of their friends are divorced, and Griffith-Lee, 45, who works at Columbia University, said she and her husband often talk about why.

"We hope to leave there with a new awareness and maybe some tools that can help as we get older," she said.

Black Marriage Day founder Nisa Islam Muhammad is encouraging couples to renew their vows in front of friends and family in honor of Tyler Perry's movie "Why Did I Get Married Too?" which opens April 2.

Muhammad points out that many black children come from single-parent households and contends that the media are not helping. There's never been a black "Bachelor" on the popular TV show, and the star of the 2008 movie "27 Dresses," about a 27-time bridesmaid, was white.

"We're going to focus on the positives," said Muhammad, executive director of Wedded Bliss Foundation, which helps people develop healthy relationships and marriages. "We're going to show ourselves and our community that marriage does matter and we have some fabulous marriages in our community worth celebrating."

Those include the marriage of President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, said Roland Warren, president of the National Fatherhood Initiative in Germantown, Md. He credits the couple with setting a positive example and creating more discussion about the issue. In a way, their marriage is evidence of the importance of marriage in the African-American community, he said.

Most blacks already think that marriage is a good thing, said Andrew Cherlin, a professor of sociology and public policy at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. But many can't find anyone they think would make a good spouse.

But at least Black Marriage Day will get people thinking about marriage, says Tammy Greer Brown, 43, executive director of Celebrating Real Family Life and organizer of the Staten Island event, who said she hopes to spark a discussion about marriage. She said she grew up in a single-parent home and didn't want that for her kids. She has been married for more than 10 years.

"My daughter is already talking about getting married," she said. "She wants to be like my husband and I."

Source: Yahoo

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BallerStatusNews

Nude photos leaked of rapper Trina over the weekend. Now, she has finally addressed the leak,saying she's taken the privacy invasion tothe FBI.

The Miami rapper previously revealed that she had lost her cellphone recently and was afraid that the images stored on it might make theirway to the Internet. And, they did.

Several photos of Trina were leaked to various blogs just days ago, some of which show her crying,others showing an allergic skin reaction, and some display her exposed
body parts.

The websites we first spotted them on have since removed the pics.

She told MTV News Monday (March 1) that the person who found the photos tried to extort her for money.

"[The images are] me on a very upset day -- I think I was in Canada, upset crying," she told the network. "Just personal stuff. Photos in thestudio. I think [one] was me having an allergic reaction, breaking out.
I just think it was my personal stuff and for someone to do that is so,
so wrong. So now I'm actually having it looked into by the FBI and it's
gonna be a bigger situation than just leaked photos. Hopefully we can
deal with the situation and put an end to it."

Trina went on to explain that while some of the racy images she took herself, some were placed in there just to draw more attention to theset.

As far as the pics of the rash on her arm, Trina said the took them to show her doctor. But, she doesn't sure what caused the allergicreaction.

"I don't recall being allergic to anything, but obviously, yeah [I am]," she said. "I was in the studio recording for a couple of days andjust started having breakouts. And my doctor said you're allergic to
shellfish or makeup bronzer."

Her doctor diagnosed her with Urticaria, which she says has since gone away.

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Video After The Jump

Fans can stop hitting Fabolous up on Twitter. It took a few more months than expected, but Fabo's Gangsta Grillz mixtape The Funeral Service: There Is No Competition 2 was uploaded to the Internet Thursday. The tape contains guest appearances from Nicki Minaj, Red Cafe, Paul Cain and others, with a slew of jacked beats and some original material. So now that the unofficial tape is out, when is Loso's Way 2 coming?


"The new album — I'm looking to come with another summer release," he said. "Probably late July or early August. I'm gathering joints together — so any producer trying to make that Loso's Way 2, you can send them in. I got a couple of things in the stash. I always keep beats on the side even if they don't work at the time. I know a hot beat when I hear it. The 'Throw It In the Bag' [remix] I had for seven, eight months before I used it. I knew it was a hot joint. When I did the remix I started digging in the crates and pulled it up. I haven't went it to start [laying] vocals [on the album] yet, but we in the motion of it."

After one of his most successful years in 2009, Fab wants to grow in 2010.

"Just the next level in the career, the evolution of Fabulous," he said of the direction of the next Loso's Way. "Me, a kid coming from the housing projects in Brooklyn and having the ability to make music, from the mixtape level to graduating to the album level, now just being able to make good music. Keep stable who I am as an artist, as a person. Of course, the next level of my life. On the first Loso's Way, I touched on having a son and stuff like that. That was the next step for me in general, in life — evolving as a man. Now there are things I'm evolving in as an artist as well."

Source: MTV

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Video After The Jump The Unveiling: Lil Wayne's 'The Nino Brown Story, Pt. 2' DVD Over the Christmas break, we brought you guys some exclusive clips from DJ Scoob Doo's "The Nino Brown Story, Pt. 2." The DVD gives you the most up close and personal footage of Lil Wayne ever. Well, since everybody has been talking about our preview on Facebook and Twitter, being the cool dudes we are, we decided to give you a little more. In this exclusive, we catch Wayne in some rare studio downtime. Instead of recording, he's talking about the ESPN show "Jim Rome Is Burning." Wayne said he had quite the time watching Rome rail against Tennessee head coach Lane Kiffin. Of course, Kiffin was the talk of the sports world when Weezy referenced him on his No Ceilings mixtape via the "Banned From TV" freestyle.
"[Rome] put what I said up [on the TV screen]: 'Smoke weed, talk sh-- like Lane Kiffin,' " Wayne tells Mack Maine in the clip. "Then he said Lane Kiffin said, 'We don't indulge in that.' Rome said, 'Little do you know, Lane, that you're gonna be sitting in some high schooler's living room and his mom is gonna call him from the back. And he's gonna come up front and he's gonna have an iPod on, and you know what he's gonna be listening to? "Smoke weed, talk sh-- like Lane Kiffin." You're gonna have to say, "We're cool with that guy you're listening to." You know what, Lane? This is a good day for you and Tennessee.' I was like, 'N---a, Jim Rome crazy!' " In Kiffin's defense, the coach did thank Wayne on his Twitter page last year in the wake of No Ceilings: "Looking forward to another great practice today and a huge game Saturday. ... Also a huge shout to Lil Wayne for boosting our street cred!" Sports junkie Wayne also said that when he goes away for his prison sentence next month, he wants to keep up with what's going on with the athletes and games. "I need to get that ESPN the Magazine sh-- in the bing," he tells Mack Maine. "The Nino Brown Story, Pt. 2" hits stores January 22, but you can get it now at DJScoobDoo.com. "It was about 5 o'clock in the morning. I was watching 'New Jack City,' " Scoob told us about how the DVD series came about. "I heard 'Cash Money Brothers,' I heard Nino Brown, I heard Tha Carter. I just shot up like, 'Ugh.' Next thing you know, I put a whole DVD together, which was 'The Nino Brown Story, Pt. 1.' I gave it to Wayne. He didn't know what it was. He just knew it was called 'Nino Brown.' That's how it was created. Now the Nino Brown story is the Lil Wayne story. We are going places with this I never imagined. The second DVD is 10 times better." MTV Follow Me @Twitter.com/ChasinMoPaper
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MTV Reports:50 Cent has often criticized the rap game for being a little too soft lately. He's openly asked, where's the aggressive content? He's also pointed out how few hit hip-hop songs from the past couple of years don't have an R&B singer on the hook. Through mixtapes such as the War Angel LP, he's served up lethal doses of hardcore rap, so it was a little surprising to see him team with R&B singer Ne-Yo on his new single "Baby by Me," for which the two shot a video last weekend.50 said that just because he's got a song with a crooning chorus doesn't mean he's abandoned a street edge for his upcoming Before I Self Destruct LP."Not particularly this song, but the entire project ... I meant for it to be a little harder and what I fell in love with about hip-hop and within hip-hop," Fif said on the song's video set Saturday. "I accomplished it. Before I Self Destruct is absolutely harder than Get Rich or Die Tryin' or other projects in between. The Massacre had some real aggressive content on it, but there were other things I wanted to do, like 'Ryder Music,' 'Baltimore Love Thing,' 'Build You Up,' featuring Jamie Foxx. This project [Before I Self Destruct], I kept all of those things out of it. I just made it what I wanted it to be. This album is my album right now. It's like the prequel to Get Rich — the things I missed on that project."Before I Self Destruct is slated for a November 23 release.
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CNN Reports PARIS, France (CNN) -- Former first lady Laura Bush praised the performance of her husband's successor Monday, breaking with many Republicans in telling CNN that she thinks President Obama is doing a good job under tough circumstances. Former first lady Laura Bush defended President Obama's decision to address the nation's schoolchildren. She also criticized Washington's sharp political divide during an interview covering a range of topics including her thoughts on first lady Michelle Obama, former Vice President Dick Cheney, the situation in Afghanistan and Myanmar, and life after eight tumultuous years in the White House. Bush sat down with CNN on Monday during a United Nations meeting in Paris, France, where she was promoting global literacy, a cause she trumpeted during her husband's administration. The typically reserved former first lady defended Obama's decision to deliver a back-to-school speech to students, putting her at odds with many conservatives afraid that the president will use the opportunity to advance his political agenda. "I think he is [doing a good job]," Bush said when asked to assess Obama's job performance. "I think he has got a lot on his plate, and he has tackled a lot to start with, and that has probably made it more difficult." Michelle Obama is also "doing great," she said, in part by turning the White House into a comfortable home for her family. Watch more of the interview » Referencing the uproar over Obama's address to schoolchildren, which will be aired nationwide Tuesday, Laura Bush said it's "really important for everyone to respect the president of the United States." Bush didn't completely dismiss the concerns of some conservatives but noted that controversial Education Department plans recommending that students draft letters discussing what they can do to help Obama had been changed. "I think there is a place for the president ... to talk to schoolchildren and encourage" them, she said. Parents should follow his example and "encourage their own children to stay in school and to study hard and to try to achieve the dream that they have." Bush indicated that she didn't think it was fair for Obama to be labeled a "socialist" by critics and expressed her disappointment with the intensely polarized nature of contemporary American politics. Part of the reason for the polarization, she said, was the increase in the number of congressional districts dominated by either strongly conservative or liberal voters. "We've seen that for the last eight years, certainly, and we're still seeing it," she said. "That's just a fact of life." iReport.com: Share your thoughts on Obama's speech Bush conceded that after her husband was elected president, he was unable to replicate his success as governor of Texas in reaching across the aisle to Democrats. "He was disappointed that that was not the way it worked out in Washington," she said. "I'm sure President Obama didn't expect it to be that way [either]. ... All of us need to do what we can to come together on issues." Despite her husband's disappointment, he is "doing very well," she said. Both of them are now working on their memoirs, she noted. Though the former first lady criticized the excessive partisanship of Washington, she expressed gratitude for Cheney's decision to vocally defend her husband's performance. Cheney has been outspoken in his defense of the Bush administration's national security record, which has been sharply criticized on, among other things, questions relating to the detention and interrogation of terrorist suspects. "I think that Vice President Cheney has every right to speak out, and I appreciate that he is defending" the administration, Bush said. "I think that is important. I think there is a place for that." Bush also said it doesn't bother her husband that Cheney's "out there being critical." The former first lady said her husband still speaks with Cheney occasionally. Multiple sources have indicated that the two men parted ways on several issues in the last years of their administration, including Bush's refusal to offer a pardon for former top Cheney aide Lewis "Scooter" Libby. Libby was convicted on charges of perjury, obstruction of justice and lying to investigators looking into the leak that resulted in the exposure of CIA agent Valerie Plame Wilson. Though Bush expressed confidence that her husband will ultimately be remembered as "somebody who stood for freedom and who stood for the security of our country," she admitted that she's worried about the current situation in Afghanistan. "I'm very concerned, of course," she said. "All of us are concerned, and everybody, as they look at Afghanistan from around the world, really hope and want to [do] whatever they can to help the government stabilize, to see that the elections were fair." Bush said she hoped people "will redouble their efforts" to help the country fend off Taliban and al Qaeda extremists. She also repeated her outspoken criticism of the government of Myanmar, also known by its former name of Burma, which has come under fire for imprisoning pro-democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi. "She's always been held under house arrest [because] they're afraid of her popularity. They think that undermines their regime," Bush said. "I hope that they'll see what she really wants. ... She wants [the nation to have] a peaceful transition to a democracy and to have the chance for Burma to really build itself [into] a very wealthy and educated nation." After her husband's eight controversial years in the White House, what does Bush have to say to critics who believe he had a negative, destructive influence in the world? "I would say that that's absolutely not right," Bush said. "I don't think they have either the right view of him or what his responsibilities are and were as president of the United States."
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HipHopWired Reports The Black Eyed Peas are riding high after breaking the Billboard record for longest act on the top 100 with their successful singles, “I Gotta Feeling” and “Boom Boom Pow.” Unfortunately for the chart topping group, someone's stepped up to shoot them down. A former employee on the Peas' concert tour is suing the band for an undisclosed amount of damages. Winter Sumpter claims that she was severely injured during band's 2007 “Black Blue & You” Tour. During the band's Burbank, California performance, Sumpter says she fell through a flight of stairs when “one of the treads became detached.” In her court claim she says she suffered “severe and permanent injuries” and was left with “mental, physical, nervous pain and suffering.” Of course she's pointing the finger at the Peas for her clumsiness but she's not stopping there. She is also asking for a handout from their tour manager, and other concert officials. You know what they say; more money, more problems. Despite the shady lawsuit, the Peas can crown themselves victorious overseas after a ban on one of their concerts was lifted. The band made headlines after Malaysian officials banned Muslim citizens from attending their upcoming concert in the country. Now however, that ban has been lifted and all citizens of Malaysia are free to attend at their will. The ban was put in place because the concert is sponsored by the Irish beer company, Guinness. Muslims are denounced from using alcohol as part of their Islamic law. Muslim officials have yet to provide a reason why the ban was lifted but they are imposing strict rules. Guinness will not be allowed to sell their product at the concert or use its logo for publicity. The concert is part of the beer company's 250th anniversary.
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