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Kelly Rowland is enjoying huge success with her new album 'Here I Am,' but the finished product didn't come without a lot of hard work.

In this new interview with Artisan News Service, the Texas beauty talks about the process of putting the project together.

"The biggest obstacle in getting the album done was probably having everything ready, and putting all the songs together -- the sequencing," Kelly said. "I recorded maybe 50-60 songs for this album. So choosing them all and making it happen and the album title 'Here I Am.' I just really wanted it to be a definitive moment for me, and I got a chance to have that happen."

'Here I Am' currently sits atop Billboards Hip Hop/R&B albums chart.

As we previously reported, Big Sean is in trouble after an upstate New York woman complained she was sexually assaulted during a concert last Thursday.

Big Sean, real name Sean Anderson, and another man, Willie Hansbro, were both charged with misdemeanor counts of forcible touching, unlawful imprisonment and sex abuse.

However, Sean is denying the allegations. He released a statement to Miss Info yesterday through his lawyer, Scott E. Leemon.

“Last night, recording artists, Sean “Big Sean” Anderson and Willie “Sayitainttone” Hansbro were arrested and then immediately released by the NY State Police in connection with an allegation made by a female who was at their concert in Lewiston, New York. Both men were charged with misdemeanors and they both vehemently deny the allegations. I am confident, that after further investigation, both men will be vindicated.”

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During her tour stop in Houston last Friday [July 29], Katy Perry paid homage to UGK by performing an acoustic version of their hit collaboration with Jay-Z, "Big Pimpin."

Props to Katy, but this would have been a lot better if she would have brought Bun B out to represent for H-Town, and his late rhyme partner Pimp C.

How do you think Katy did?

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Credit rating agency Standard & Poor's downgraded the U.S. credit rating for the first time ever from AAA to AA+.

John Chambers, the head of sovereign ratings for S&P, told CNN much of the blame falls on the hands of Congress and it's inability to stabilize the country's debt situation with the deficit reduction plan that was passed on Tuesday.

"Our political view of the United States have been altered," Chambers said. "We've taken the rating down a notch. The political brinkmanship over raising the debt ceiling was something that was really beyond our expectations. The U.S. getting to the last day before they had cash management problems. There are very few governments that separate the budget process from the debt authorization. And we also think more broadly that this debate -- although we do have an agreement that will deliver $2.1 trillion dollars in savings over the next decade, it's gonna be difficult to get beyond that, at least in the near term. And you do need to get beyond that before the debt to GDP ration is going to stabilize."

So what exactly does all this mean?

The New York Daily News reports that it hit will hit Americans directly in their pocketbooks by raising borrowing costs.

With the country's trust factor dented by political haggling in Washington, the fallout has the potential to affect mortgage rates, credit card bills and boost borrowing costs for American consumers and companies.

The downgrade could further weaken an already-fragile economy by undermining investors' faith in U.S. bonds, increasing borrowing costs and further slowing whatever chance there was of a recovery.

It could also increase the cost of home mortgages, auto loans and other types of lending tied to interest rates paid on U.S. Treasuries.

JPMorgan Chase estimated that a cut would raise the nation's borrowing costs by $100 billion a year, Bloomberg News reported.

Republicans and Democrats are already pointing their fingers at each other, which is what helped to get us here in the first place. Our political parties have to find a common ground and be able to work together if things are going to get better.

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West Coast rapper Glasses Malone's shoot in Brooklyn, New York for his latest video "Eastsidin" was marred by violence yesterday after gunshots were fired following a fight.

Pow-TV.net was on the scene and captured some of the chaotic events.

Behind The Scenes At the Glasses Malone video shoot in Brooklyn. (East 21st and Church) There was an earlier altercation where at DJ was slapped in the face by a local crip member. We knew he was going to come back, so we tried to wrap up the shoot early. During the final take, they came back three deep and all three got beat up. At the 2:09 mark you see one person getting jumped by at least 12 people. After he gets stomped out, someone lets a shot off in the air and everyone runs for cover!

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Several weeks ago we got our fist look at Bane from the Warner Bros. movie 'Dark Knight Rises,' now we get a peek of Catwoman as played by Anne Hathaway.

The character doesn't resemble any of the ones from Batman movies of years past (no cat ears?), but that might turn out to be a good thing as director Christoper Nolan usually has a few tricks up his sleeve.

We'll find out when 'Dark Knight Rises' hits theaters summer 2012.

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Strange Music artist Jay Rock drops visuals for "Boomerang" off of his brand new album 'Follow Me Home.'

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We've all seen DMX battle his inner demons over the past few years. Trouble with the law and drugs have kept him in jail more than the recording booth during that time. He sat down with Mesa, Arizona's ABC15, recently for one of his more candid interviews to talk about everything from his mental health to new music.

Since being released from an Arizona prison two weeks ago X has started on a new album. He already has ten songs recorded, and is looking to regain a position at the top of the rap game.

"There will never be another me, never," Dark Man told ABC15. "To this date I have records that have yet to be broken."

The 40-year old, born Earl Simmons, says his new addiction is music. That, along with prayer he hopes will keep him away from drugs.

"I start the day off with a prayer, and ask the Lord to guide my steps," X said when asked how he is staying clean and sober. "Every album there's a gospel song and a prayer."

When X was sentencing last year for parole violation Judge Christine Mulleneaux, told him she thought he had “an undiagnosed mental condition.” For the first time he spoke about being bi-polar -- saying he sometimes can't separate DMX from Earl Simmons.

"I used to really clear on who was what -- and what characteristics each personality had, but I don't know at this point if there is a difference."

Sounds like X is still trying to find himself. We wish him the best and hope he can stay clean.

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Check out the latest visuals from 2011 XXL Freshman and Young Money rapper Lil Twist featuring Mishon.

Nicki Minaj suffered a wardrobe malfunction today during her performance on Good Morning America.

The Young Money princess was performing "Where The Girls At" when her left breast popped out of her top. Like a true pro, Nicki kept on going like nothing happened.

See the NSFW pic HERE and video below.

In other Nicki news, the Dallas police have released the 911 call from last month.

Minaj had apparently gotten into a scuffle with her boyfriend. Although she denied the fight later, she can clearly be heard on the tape yelling "look what he did to my face!"

Check out the call below.

There are few groups in the rap game with a catalog of hits to rival Mobb Deep. And now for the first time in nearly four years, fans from coast to coast will get the chance to see Prodigy and Havoc perform in person on their just announced "The Infamous" U.S. tour.

The 5-week, 17-city trek kicks off August 12 in New Orleans and travels to Houston, Philadelphia, Las Vegas, and Atlanta, before wrapping up in Charlotte, N.C. on September 17.

Check the tour dates below and keep it locked on TheMostInfamous.com and Thisis50.com for up to the minute hip hop news and information.

MOBB DEEP "THE INFAMOUS" TOUR 2011

FRIDAY, AUG.12, 2011- HOUSE OF BLUES NEW ORLEANS, LA.

SATURDAY, AUG.13, 2011- HOUSE OF BLUES HOUSTON,TX.

SUNDAY, AUG.14, 2011- HOUSE OF BLUES DALLAS,TX.

TUESDAY, AUG.16, 2011- THEATRE OF LIVING ARTS PHILADELPHIA,PA.

SATURDAY, AUG.20, 2011- (ROCK THE BELLS) SAN MANUEL AMPITHEATER SAN BERNARDINO,CA.

SUNDAY, AUG.21, 2011- HOUSE OF BLUES SAN DIEGO,CA.

MONDAY, AUG.22, 2011- HOUSE OF BLUES LAS VEGAS,NV.

SATURDAY, AUG.27, 2011- (ROCK THE BELLS) SHORELINE AMPITHEATER MOUNTAIN VIEW,CA.

TUESDAY, AUG.30, 2011- EGYPTIAN ROOM INDIANAPOLIS,IN.

WEDNESDAY, AUG.31, 2011- BOGART'S CINCINATI,OH.

SATURDAY, SEPT.3, 2011- (ROCK THE BELLS) GOVERNOR'S ISLAND, N.Y.

THURSDAY, SEPT.8, 2011- HOUSE OF BLUES CLEVELAND,OH.

SATURDAY, SEPT.10, 2011- (ROCK THE BELLS) MANSFIELD,MA.

TUESDAY, SEPT.13, 2011- THE FILMORE MIAMI BEACH,FL.

THURSDAY, SEPT.15, 2011- TABERNACLE ATLANTA,GA.

FRIDAY, SEPT.16, 2011- HOUSE OF BLUES MYRTLE BEACH,S.C.

SATURDAY, SEPT.17, 2011- THE FILLMORE CHARLOTTE,N.C.

The latest in designer contact lenses will put a twinkle in your eye and lighten your wallet considerably at the same time.

Shekhar Eye Research has developed new custom-made, gold-plated contact lenses that feature 18 diamonds. They retail for $15,000.

Creator Chandrashekhar Chawan, predicts the contacts will become a big hit for those not satisfied with simply wearing jewelry on their bodies.

“I got mixed responses — some said its looks scary, but most of the people loved it,” Chawan told TODAY.com. “Bollywood personalities loved the concept, that it’s going to be ‘in thing’ in fashion soon. Look at Lady Gaga and her followers. People take time to digest [new fashion], until some celebrity starts using it.”

Although the contacts look like they might be uncomfortable to wear, Chawan claims they are perfectly safe. He uses Chandra Boston Scleral lenses, a product normally used to treat eye illnesses, to hold the jewelry part of the lenses in such a way that it does not touch on the cornea.

It probably won't be long before a rappers try this out, so let the countdown begin.

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Never one to shy away from discussions about the Illuminati, Freemasons, and secret societies -- Prodigy of Mobb Deep was a guest on the Alex Jones Show today.

Among the topics discussed were the 9/11 attacks and President Obama.

"My view on [Obama] number 1, is you can't be a President of the United States unless you're a part of this bloodline that they got going on that goes all the way back to European royalty," P said. "They got this bloodline going on and whether people believe it or not, it's very real. You will not be an American President unless you are linked and a part of this bloodline and Obama is. That's why he was placed where he is now," Prodigy further explained. "I heard people say 'well all humans are related.' Nah I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about first, third, fourth, fifth cousins. Like this is your family. Obama is a part of that whether he knows it or not. I can only assume and look at the facts. From what I see he's down with this conspiracy to rule the world basically. To brainwash people and to kill people... genocide. Everything that's going on out here that is just so fantastic you really don't want to believe it -- Obama is down with it."

Peep the rest of the interview below as P talks more about the Illuminati and why he believes they carried out the 9/11 attacks as part of a satanic ritual.

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N.O.R.E. is prepping the release of his next project titled 'S.U.P.E.R.T.H.U.G.'

Check out the latest visuals from that project featuring Cory Gunz and The Alchemist on the production.

Soulja Boy announced this morning he would be removing his trademark tattoos from his face.

Although he didn't give a specific reason, it is known that Soulja has delved into acting recently with the movie 'Juice.' It's possible the just turned 21-year old is looking to transition into more roles.

What do you think about Soulja's decision? And how do you feel about face tattoos in general?

The much talked about collaboration between D-Block and the Wu Tang Clan has come to fruition. If this joint is any indication of what the project is going to sound like then it's going to be a scorcher.

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TAKE A RIDE WITH TEAM BIGGA RANKIN MUSIC AS TEAM BIGGA RANKIN FILMS JOINS BIGGA RANKIN, TRAE, BOO ROSSINI AND 2 CHAINZ AS THEY MOB THRU THE STREETS OF MIAMI AND ATLANTA FOR THE STREETS MOST REQUESTED VIDEO. YOU WANTED IT, SO HERE IT GOES... 2 WORDS... DUFFLE BAG!

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Young Jeezy is giving his fans something to hold them over until his album Thug Motivation 103: Hustlerz Ambition drops September 20.

The Snowman just announced that he is releasing a new mixtape, The Real Is Back 2 within the next week.

"The Real Is Back 2 -- give me a week, gimme three days I got you," Jeezy said.

You heard the man. Expect that to drop sooner than later.