Chris Brown never turns down an opportunity to party.
The R&B star hosted the 400 Club At Play party in South Beach, Florida Friday (December 1). A Lot of industry cats were in the building including The Snowman Young Jeezy, Bow Wow, E Class, Terrance J, Flo Rida & Lil Wayne.
Peep the pics below.
Call the RZA hip-hop's foremost alchemist. The self-professed former drug dealer-turned-Grammy-winning rapper-producer has defied all odds to spin not lead into gold, but démodé pop culture and arcane philosophical beliefs into platinum disc upon platinum disc.
And now, after spending years under the tutelage of several high-profile filmmakers, including Quentin Tarantino, he's preparing to unleash his unique mash-up sensibility on the big screen, in a project that will be part chop-socky flick, part spaghetti western and all RZA.
As founding father of the hard-core Staten Island rap collective Wu-Tang Clan, RZA (pronounced "rizza," given name: Robert Diggs) conflated the spiritual enlightenment found in '70s kung fu movies with racially incendiary teachings from the Five-Percent Nation of Islam, adding to the mix references to Taoism and comic books, numerology and snippets of mafia don movie dialogue, articulating a plaintive yet hard-bitten ghetto cri de coeur.
The upshot was an almost unparalleled string of hits that started with the Clan's epochal 1993 debut LP, "Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)," and encompasses such releases as Method Man's multiplatinum-selling "Tical," Raekwon the Chef's "Only Built 4 Cuban Linx . . ." (widely regarded as one of hip-hop's greatest albums) and Ol' Dirty Bastard's gold-selling "Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version," another ranking rap classic.
But after the Wu's tightly knit fabric started to unravel around 2004, RZA began to focus more on film. In recent years, he has been scoring such movies as "Blade: Trinity" and making cameo appearances in Jim Jarmusch's "Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai" and other films. His encyclopedic knowledge of Hong Kong cinema notwithstanding, the producer didn't have any particular ambition to set moviedom on fire. Until, that is, he got a fateful phone call from then-Miramax Co-Chairman Harvey Weinstein.
"Hey RZA, it's Harvey," the RZA recalled, lapsing into a raspy imitation of Weinstein's cigarette-seasoned growl. "I want you to be in my movie. You got a new career now."
Since that appearance with Clive Owen in 2005's "Derailed," RZA has built a respectable filmography with small roles in a number of high-profile, big-budget studio movies, among them Judd Apatow's "Funny People" and Ridley Scott's "American Gangster," as well as a turn in "The Hangover" director Todd Phillips' upcoming comedy, "Due Date," and Paul Haggis' "The Next Three Days" -- a role that reunited him with "Gangster" co-star Russell Crowe.
"I'm working up in the movie business," RZA said. "Maybe in the movie business, I'm working down. How long are you going to be a celebrity? I like the art. I like how it feels to act."
So do such other rappers-turned-actors as LL Cool J, Common, Xzibit, Ludacris, DMX, Ice Cube and even Snoop Dogg. But befitting the producer's magpie ability to glean and repackage cultural stimuli from across the high-low divide, RZA says his acting efforts are in the service of his next career act: a move behind the camera.
With no small amount of backup from a cadre of top-flight filmmakers -- including independent cinema luminary Jarmusch and Hong Kong action movie ace John Woo, but most significantly, Tarantino -- the RZA-rector, as he is sometimes known, is now in final preparations for his debut as a writer-director, "The Man With the Iron Fist." And unlike the fates of some musicians' directorial efforts (say, Madonna's "Filth and Wisdom" or Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst's "The Education of Charlie Banks"), RZA's movie industry backers swear he has the right combination of creativity, chutzpah and discipline to achieve liftoff at the box office.
Planned as a genre-busting opening salvo to the industry, the movie is being produced by "torture porn" poster boy Eli Roth, the writer-director of such low-cost, high-yield horror films as "Hostel" and "Hostel: Part II."
RZA and Eli Roth
(For the time being, though, both filmmakers prefer to remain mum on specific plot points, although Roth allows that "Man With the Iron Fist" should appeal to "an audience that's hungry for kung fu but not grindhouse. Something that's modern, like 'Blade.' ")
"RZA is such a creative fountain. The script is great, he's got characters, jokes. What he does with lyrics, he does with dialogue," Roth said. "And he's done such a great mix: spaghetti western, kung fu, modern fighting infused with hip-hop and multiculture. He has this whole comic book universe figured out. I know he's going to make a brilliant film."
Of course, none of it would be possible without Tarantino, who godfathered Roth's "Hostel" into production as an executive producer and introduced the filmmaker to RZA. A longtime admirer of Wu-Tang Clan's sonic mélange, with his own deeply felt appreciation for the Shaolin monk movie cannon, Tarantino first hired RZA to create the electro-ambient, quasi-hip-hop score for his two-volume kung fu drama " Kill Bill." But their working relationship didn't end there. Tarantino has allowed the RZA to soak up production know-how on the set of every movie he's done since 2003.
Tarantino said he identifies with the hip-hop producer's skill in macromanaging the nine Clan members' unwieldy energies into a cohesive form. "You have to understand that even though they're very different, being a producer on a record is not too different from being a director of film -- especially with something like Wu-Tang Clan," Tarantino said. "All these guys have their different contributions. Everyone has a say. But ultimately, the album is RZA's decision. That's very similar to what a director does. It's a lot like how I was influenced by Phil Spector."
Still, RZA says he would not make the move into filmmaking without Tarantino's explicit blessing.
"Tarantino is my teacher," RZA said solemnly, echoing -- whether intentionally or not -- the kind of dialogue you'd hear in a martial-arts film. "I've watched hundreds of movies with him and spent hundreds of hours learning craft from him. I'm a disciple of Tarantino."
He continued: "When Eli said, 'I want to help you make your movie,' we had to go to Quentin. The teacher. He said, 'You and Eli are ready. You have my blessing.' "
Kanye West's image may have taken a couple of L's in 2009, but the Chicago rapper's ego didn't suffer one bit.
In his latest blog, Kanye reports that he's happy to be back in the studio recording new music "with the same dedication that Kobe (Bryant) has on the court".
West later compares his artistry to two of America's greatest African American poets and one incredible singer/songwriter, writing:
"We will follow in the footsteps of Maya Angelou, Gil Scott Heron and Nina Simone. Their work improved with time."
If Yeezy is to be believed then his future work will sound more like 'The College Dropout' and a lot less like '808's and Heartbreak'
At least we can hope.
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Video After The JumpSnoop D-Oh-Double-G hit up the Chelsea Lately show to talk about everything he's been up to recently.
The hilarious talk show host,(who seems to have a "thing" for rappers) congratulated the rap superstar on getting his Medical Marijuana Licence and asked how she might get one for herself
Chelsea also got the Doggfather to talk about his love for soap operas, the youth football league he sponsers and the possiblity of working with Susan Boyle.
Video After The JumpJamaican sensation Sean Kingston helped ring in the New Year by performing a medley of songs on Billboard's New Year's Eve Special.
Sean got the crowd excited by singing his biggest hit to date "Beautiful Girls" followed by "Take You There" and "Fire Burning"
Tuesday morning, I received the Golden Ticket of journalistic invitations: a summons to Prince's mansion, high atop Mulholland Drive, to hear the new music he'll be releasing sometime after the holidays. At 8 p.m. that evening, I drove my dirty Mazda past the fountain in his courtyard, parked by the limo in the back, and entered his manse. The man himself greeted me in a candelit study, where he was laboring over a laptop with his Web designers, Anthony Malzone and Scott Addison Clay.
The next five hours took me from that room to a car Prince referred to as "Miles Davis," where we listened to one set of songs; into a back room furnished with a round bed, faux-fur carpeting and a plexiglass Rhodes piano, where he played cuts by his new protege, the comely Bria Valente; and into that white limo, where the entirety of "Lotus Flower," the album previewed earlier this month on Indie 103.1, boomed through the speakers as we drove through Hollywood.
Needless to say, it was an amazing experience. After the jump, a few tidbits, including Prince's promise of three albums in 2009 and his thoughts on Proposition 8.
Prince will release not one, but three albums in the new year. He's in final negotiations with "a major retailer" to distribute the music in physical form, and a highly interactive website will also provide an opportunity to buy. He's not working with a record label. "The gatekeepers have to change," he said several times throughout the evening.
He's found his way back to the sound of "When Doves Cry." The first disc, tentatively titled "MPLSOUND," is an electro-flavored solo effort recorded at Paisley Park Studios. Prince experimented with Pro Tools and "new ways of recording" on these trippy, experimental pop songs. One features a Q-Tip rap; another calls a "Funky Congregation" to worship and may become a live set piece.
He's ready to revive the Quiet Storm. "We got sick of waiting for Sade to make a new album," he said, introducing Valente's new album, "Elixir." The tracks are chill, with Valente's buttery voice melding with beats by Morris Hayes and Prince's guitar lines. Some are explicitly sexual. "This music is nasty, but it's not dirty," Prince said, explaining how sensual music fits in with his much-discussed faith -- he's a Jehovah's Witness. "There's no profanity. It isn't promoting promiscuity. She's singing about her lover, who could be her partner for life."
He loves his guitar. As the tracks played on Indie 103.1 indicated, "Lotus Flower" is rooted in the instrument. Prince said he refocused on his playing while performing live dates with the singer Tamar Davis in 2006; with the spotlight trained on someone else, he could fall back in love with solos and riffs. "Lotus Flower" is a varied album, featuring cuts recorded over the course of two years, but standout tracks include some heavy rockers -- especially the apocalyptic "Dreamer," which Prince said was partly inspired by the radical black comedian Dick Gregory.
He did not vote for Proposition 8. In fact, he didn't vote at all. "I didn't vote for Obama either," he explained. "Jehovah's Witnesses haven't voted for their whole inception." The controversy over a recent New Yorker "Talk of the Town" item, which Prince feels implied he supported the gay-marriage ban, has upset him. It's the first thing he wanted to discuss when the Web geeks had gone and we were alone. "I have friends that are gay and we study the Bible together," he said. He added that two sides fighting "only benefit the third person" who instigated the fight.
Source: L.A. Times
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Videos After The JumpMs.Keri Baby indeed, being the protege of super producer Timbaland can't be an easy thing but, Keri Hilson has proven she is up to the challenge.
Keri dropped her critically acclaimed as well as fan favorite debut cd "In A Perfect World" in March 2009 and hasn't looked back since.
The Interscope songbird made an appearance on Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve With Ryan Seacrest special and performed two of her biggest hits "Turning Me On" and "Knock Me Down"
Robin Thicke also made an appearance, performing his new single "Sex Therapy"
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A Florida inmate is demanding he be allowed to receive his smut behind bars, damn the rules.
Jorge Niebla, is currently serving 13 life sentences for six counts of kidnapping with a weapon, two counts of armed robbery, one count of carjacking, one count of burglary with assault and six counts of attempted second degree murder of a law enforcement officer.
He filed the two page lawsuit against Penthouse Magazine in handwritten block letters, complete with misspellings to Manhattan Federal Court.
“I would like to purchase the magazine but staff are being predjudice (sic) and don’t have respect for my basic rights.” Niebla wrote, also adding that Penthouse is not allowing him "access to the media"
The New York Post reports Niebla claims he never heard back after he wrote the company in August 2008 and asked for the price and ordering instructions for its April 2007 issue, which features a nude pictorial of burlesque star Dita Von Teese.
Niebla was ordered by a Florida judge to fill out a form to get a waiver of the $350 filing fee
Penthouse couldn't be reached for comment.
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Rapper Bow Wow isn't "lil" any more, and now that he's of legal drinking age, he seems to think it's cool to drive after a night of getting his drink on.TMZ reports that Bow Weezy partied it up in Miami with Akon and Chris Brown for New Year's Eve, and as they club hopped, he tweeted all about it.
In one Twitter update (@bowwow614), the young rapper said he was a "tipsy as f***", but still drove his Lamborghini after drinks at LIV nightclub at the Fontainbleau in Miami.
"Face numb Im whippin the Lambo. Tispy as f*k. Just left @livmiami," he wrote.
Then just minutes later, he continued, tweeting: "Im f**ked up!!! Ohhhh damn. Y i drive the lambo. Chris might have to drive after next spot."
Those tweets were deleted as of press time. Bow Wow has since apologized, calling his previous updates "immature."
"Apologize for that tweet," he wrote. "It was stupid and immature. Not a way i want to kick my #2010 year off. I got too much good stuff lined up. my bad."
Source: BallerStatus
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NEW YORK -- Washington Wizards teammates Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton drew guns on each other during a Christmas Eve locker room argument over a gambling debt, according to The New York Post.
Last week, the Wizards and Arenas acknowledged that Arenas had stored unloaded firearms in a container in his locker, and the NBA said it was looking into the situation.
It was during that investigation that a confrontation between Arenas and Crittenton was revealed, according to a Yahoo! Sports report.
The dispute stemmed from an unspecified disagreement, sources told Yahoo! Sports.
Citing an anonymous source, the newspaper reported in Friday's edition, however, that the standoff was sparked when Crittenton became angry at Arenas for refusing to make good on a gambling debt.
That prompted Arenas to draw on Crittenton, who then also grabbed for a gun, league security sources tell the Post.
Asked by the Post about the confrontation, Arenas denied pulling a gun on Crittenton.
"This is unprecedented in the history of sports," Billy Hunter, executive director of the Player's Association, told the Post. "I've never heard of players pulling guns on each other in a locker room."
The Wizards said on the night of Dec. 24 that Arenas had stored unloaded firearms in a container in his locker at the arena and that the NBA was looking into the situation.
On Tuesday, Washington, D.C. police said they were investigating a report that weapons were found inside a locker room at the Verizon Center.
Now, the federal government is also involved. Ben Friedman, a spokesman for the US Attorney's Office in DC, told the Post "we're working with the Metropolitan Police Department on the investigation."
Source: ESPN
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Videos After The Jump106 and Park had by far the best New Year's Eve Show. They brought together some of the hottest acts in the game today in both rap and r&b.
The star studded show featured performances from Maino, Omarion , Trey Songz , New Boyz, Pleasure P and Dorrough. As well as Yo Gotti featuring Nicki Minaj, Clipse, Jerimih, Day 26 and Mishon
Trey Songz Performing "Say Ahh"
Clipse Performing "I'm Good"
Yo Gotti Performing "5 Star Chick" ft Nicki Minaj
Omarion Performing "I Get It In"
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With the close of the decade here, there is no shortage of “best of” lists reviewing top achievements throughout the pop culture landscape. But when it comes to most noteworthy music of the ‘00’s, one album that has been showing up on just about everyone’s list is 50 Cent’s 2003 debut Get Rich Or Die Tryin’. The seminal release, which has to date sold over 12 million copies worldwide, transformed the troubled Curtis Jackson, a former Queens, New York drug dealer and local mixtape favorite, into one of the biggest musical acts on the planet.
Propelled by the hypnotic Dr. Dre-produced anthem “In da Club” and the backing of hip-hop’s paramount seller Eminem (50 was the first artist signed to Em’s Shady Records, which released the project jointly with Dre’s Aftermath Records), Get Rich represented more than just a commercial triumph. It was a cultural landmark that gave East Coast street rap a fresh platform, opening up a new world for the unlikely entertainment mogul.
Looking back on the album, 50 Cent has a more personal attachment to Get Rich or Die Tryin’.
“With Get Rich I had so much to prove on that album,” recalls the rapper who dropped his fourth studio album, Before I Self Destruct, in November. “Everything had to be perfect in my head. I wanted to make sure that everything I said captured my true feelings at that time. I just felt like it was God’s plan to be where I was at. My mind frame at that point was the music. Anything that would have come in my way at that point I would have removed it the best way I know how. The ‘hood teaches you to do it in a way that’s not sensible.”
One of the aspects that made critics take note of 50 Cent was his surprising vulnerability, a trait that you would not normally associate with a combative, controversial artist who has been involved in high profile verbal sparring with everyone from Ja Rule, Jadakiss, and Game to Kanye West, Rick Ross, and most recently, Jay-Z. But 50 insist he was just keeping it real.
“A lot of rappers don’t write about their fears or point out where they didn’t get the best of a situation,” he says. “So the first time I experimented with it was with songs like ‘Many Men.’ I’m telling folks that there is blood in my eyes and I can’t see. I’m hurt at that point. I’m vulnerable.”
Yet, after Get Rich, 50 Cent’s life would never be the same as his success spun off a multi-million dollar label (G-Unit Records); a successful G-Unit clothing line; a major film (2005’s Get Rich or Die Tryin’); and a stable of platinum acts (a crew that included Game, Lloyd Banks, and Young Buck). But even as the commercial muscle has dramatically declined for 50 Cent, the spitter insists that he is still the same hungry kid who made the music world take notice.
“That’s what people want from me…. to give them the real shit,” he says. “That’s a part of me. It’s necessary to have aggression to survive but that’s not all of me. There’s so much more.”
Source: Vibe.com
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Video After The Jump2009 was a standout year for The Black Eyed Peas. Their latest album, 'The E.N.D.' garnered six Grammy nominations. Spawning the hits "I Gotta Feeling" and "Boom Boom Pow".
The hip hop group celebrated by performing "Meet Me Halfway" on the ABC special Dick Clark's New Year's Eve Rockin' Eve With Ryan Seacrest.
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Videos After The JumpRihanna helped warm up a cold night, performing several of her hit songs as the snow fell on New York's Rockerfeller Center.
This segment for NBC's New Years Ever With Carson Daly Special was taped a couple weeks ago, but that didn't make a difference as Riri represented well. The Def Jam R&B princess gave stand out performances of "Hard". "Umbrella & Run This Town" featuring Jay-Z and her new single "Wait Your Turn"
Rihanna Performing "Hard"
Rihanna Performing "Wait Your Turn"
Rihanna Perfoming "Run This Town" ft Jay-Z x "Umbrella"
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When Michael Vick was named the Eagles' recipient of the Ed Block Courage Award - a distinction he received in a vote by his teammates - it didn't take long for the selection to draw criticism.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, an animal-rights organization, released a statement yesterday condemning the honor being given to Vick. PETA has been critical of the NFL and the Eagles since Vick was reinstated after serving 18 months for his role in a dogfighting operation.
"The Philadelphia Eagles fumbled when they gave Michael Vick the Ed Block Courage Award, which was named after a man who advocated in behalf of abused children," the statement from PETA read.
"Michael Vick should not be the person anyone points to as a model of sportsmanship, even though he has now exchanged dogs for touchdowns after serving time for extreme cruelty to animals. We wish him well in educating others, but this is not appropriate and does not mark a joyous moment in NFL history."
The Ed Block is an annual award given by each NFL team in memory of the former Baltimore Colts trainer. It is usually awarded to a player that has shown courage in rebounding from an injury or overcoming extraordinary difficulties. Past Eagles winners include long-snapper Jon Dorenbos, whose mother was murdered by his father when he was 12, and Correll Buckhalter, now with Denver who came back from several knee injuries.
Vick, who did not practice yesterday because of a quadriceps bruise, said he appreciated the gesture by his teammates.
"I've had to overcome a lot, more than probably one single individual can bear," Vick said. "Take a look at what I've been through. You ask certain people to walk in my shoes, they probably couldn't do it. Probably 95 percent of the people in this world - because nobody had to endure what I've been through, situations I've been put in, situations I've placed myself in, decisions that I've made - whether they were good or bad."
Eagles coach Andy Reid, who said the vote was unanimous, was asked if he was worried about how his players' selection would be interpreted in light of the quarterback's past.
"I'm not sure you can explain it, unless you've kind of gone through it here with him," Reid said. "Everybody is going to have their opinion on it I'm sure. Until you've been with him for the hours that his teammates have been with him and seen him through all these different things that he's had to go through, that time-tested part of it, you can't appreciate it. I don't expect everybody to understand it."
Donovan McNabb, who lobbied Reid to acquire Vick, said the honor was "well deserved."
"I don't care what people say on the outside," McNabb said. "That was something voted on by his peers."
Philadelphia Inquirer
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Ronelle "Big Gates" Levatte, manager/brother of rapper Plies, has responded to rumors that his younger brother was incarcerated after a show in Atlanta last week.
According to reports, Plies born Algernod Washington, was allegedly arrested by federal agents after a performance at the Hot 107.9’s Jingle Bash.
The show, which took place on December 26th, featured performances by Lil Wayne, Keri Hilson, Soulja Boy and Trey Songz.
In an exclusive statement to AllHipHop.com, Big Gates, also founder and co-owner of Plies’ label Big Gates Records, claimed an unknown person called the police on Plies prior to his performance.
"Enemies of my little brother Plies contacted police in a failed attempt to have him arrested prior to his performance in Atlanta," Big Gates told AllHipHop.com. "Plies was not detained Nor arrested."
Big Gates said that Plies is not in the custody of federal agents.
The rapper recently shot a video for “Medicine” featuring Keri Hilson in addition to preparing material for his upcoming album, Goon Affiliated, which is due in stores in Spring 2010.
AllHipHop
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