May 2008 - Celebrity Bug

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5/31/08

Mariah Careys Performs at '2007 MTV VMAs Japan'

5/31/2008 0
Mariah performed “I’ll Be Lovin’ U Long Time” live for the first time at the MTV Video Music Awards Japan. Check it out below:



If Mariah is indeed singing live, which is often hard to tell becuase she goes back and forth between the two, then this is really her best showing in recent years. Great Performance.
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Alicia Keys Covers 'Seventeen'

5/31/2008 0
Alicia Keys covers the June 2008 issue of Seventeen magazine. She looks great.
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Usher To Endorse Sony Ericcson

5/31/2008 0
Usher announced his deal with Sony Ericcson this week. The mobile-phone maker has picked him to market its Sony Ericsson’s Walkman music phones in the U.S., Canada and 20 European countries. Apparently it’s the first big partnership in North America they’ve done. Usher's new album 'Here I Stand' is on track to become the No. 1 abum this week selling over 400k.

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Usher Covers 'Vibe'

5/31/2008 0
Check out Usher on the cover of the July issue of Vibe.

They could have tried to have some kind of theme or something going on, this is suppose to be The Sexy Issue, and yet you go from Mariah in a bikini to this, the cover definitely should have been switched.
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Whitney and Diddy Eye Leona Lewis Collaboration

5/31/2008 0

Diddy has expressed his desire to collaborate with Leona on his next album and Whitney Houston is also planning a duet with the 23-year-old chart topper. Leona has also broken many records with album Spirit and single Bleeding Love and now she's leaving her mark on YouTube. She has received millions of hits. The promo for her hit single Bleeding Love has entered the site's top ten most viewed videos of all time. She is also the only British artist to make it anywhere near the top ten. At the last count, more than 55 million people had watched the video for Leona's No.1 single.
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2008 BET Awards Breakdown: Best Female Hip-Hop Artist

5/31/2008 0

Nominees:
Lil' Mama
Eve
Missy Elliott
Kid Sister
Trina

Who Should Win?
Trina, other than Lil' Mama, she is the only one that put out an album this year, and of the two Trina gave the more solid effort.

Who Will Win?
Lil' Mama or Trina, are the only two deserving since they actually put out albums.

Who Should Have Been Nominated?
Realistically since there was a lack of female rappers out this year the Female and Male Hip-Hop categories should have been merged into one.

Who Shouldn't Have Been Nominated?
Eve, Kid Sister, or Missy, none of which released albums.
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Usher Performs On 'Good Morning America'

5/31/2008 0
R&B star Usher continued along the promo trail for his new album 'Here I Stand', which highly disappointed me, by performing a set for Good Morning America's Summer Concert series this morning live from New York City's Bryant Part. The superstar performed 'This Ain't Sex', current single 'Moving Mountains' as well as the #1 smash 'Love In This Club':



Usher performing skills are always second to none, I just wish I could say the same about his new album.
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New Music: Jessica Simpson - 'Come on Over'

5/31/2008 0
As pop starlet Jessica Simpson prepares her debut country album, the first single 'Come on Over' has surfaced. Its nice, but with Carrie Underwood currently being the Queen in that genre, I don't know if this can compete.

Listen Here
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5/30/08

Ashanti Talks 'The Declaration'

Candids: Christina Milian, Keri Hilson, Ashanti, and Michelle Williams

5/30/2008 0
Christina Milian was spotted roaming through gifts at the Palm Centro’s MTV Movie Awards Style Lounge. She looks great, but does she have anything going on with her career.

Singer Keri Hilson chills with Polow Da Don at R&B Live in Atlanta.

Ashanti and her Mother attended the Step Up Women’s Network’s 10th Anniversary Inspiration Awards Gala.

Michelle Williams attended “A Great Night In Harlem” Benefit Concert in new York yesterday. I love Michelle but she always comes off like she's 100 years old.

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Toni Braxton Cancels Las Vegas Show

5/30/2008 0
The Flamingo Las Vegas announced Thursday that the remainder of Toni Braxton’s shows at the hotel have been canceled so that she can focus on her health.

The singer hasn’t performed since early April after being hospitalized April 7th with chest pains.

“Toni Braxton: Revealed,” which premiered in August 2006, had been scheduled to return June 6th.

Harrah’s Entertainment and the singer’s reps have not disclosed her current medical condition, but Braxton has received treatment for pericarditis, an inflammation of the heart lining, in the past.

Source: E! Online
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50 Cent's Long Island House Burns Down; Possible Arson

5/30/2008 0
The fire broke out at the six bedroom, five bath house in Dix Hills, NY around 5:00 AM. Six people, including the rapper's ex Shaniqua Tompkins and their 10-year-old son Marquise, were in the house. They all were transported to the hospital and treated for smoke inhalation.

The Chief of the Dix Hills Fire Department tells TMZ that dogs are currently searching the burned out rubble, as the intensity of the fire made it highly suspect. The Chief says they're searching for what substance possibly could have been used as an igniter.

The house has been the subject of a bitter dispute between Fiddy, whose real name is
Curtis Jackson, and Tompkins. The rapper reportedly bought the home -- one of the biggest cribs in the area -- for a cool $2.4 mil in January 2007. Last month he tried to evict Tompkins and Marquise from the house, demanding she pay him $4,500 a month in rent.

UPDATE: Suffolk Police tell us they received a call at 5 AM. An off-duty police officer was driving by and stopped to help rescue the victims inside the house. We're told injuries to all six victims -- including Tompkins -- are non-life threatening and they have been treated and released from the hospital. While they are currently investigating the fire's cause, we're told 50 Cent is not a suspect at this point.
This is a little suspect if I must say so myself, especially when multiple sources saw 50 and Shaniqua having a heated argument on a New Street this past Monday. 50 even reportedly had to be restrained. Hmmmmm.
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Album Cover: Nas

5/30/2008 0
As reported last week, rapper Nas succumbed to mounting pressure from the media and critics alike to change the name of his forthcoming LP - which was controversially titled 'N*gger'. The album will now be title-less, but as you can see Nas still isn't giving up the concept. I personally think their has to be some kind of reasoning behind the previous title and I can't wait to hear it.
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Ashanti Covers 'JET'

5/30/2008 0
R&B songstress Ashanti is featured on the latest cover of JET Magazine. She looks amazing.
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Danity Kane Perform On Tour

5/30/2008 0
Check out Danity Kane performing on the Making The Band 4 New York tour stop at the Hammerstein Ballroom last night:

Bad Girl


Strip Tease


Lights Out


Ecstacy


Pretty Boy


Damaged


The ladies absolutely killed it.
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5/29/08

New Music: Rihanna - 'Disturbia'

5/29/2008 0
'Disturbia' a brand new track from Rihanna's upcoming re-release 'Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded' has surfaced. I must say I'm really liking this one, although vocally there still isn't much of an improvement, this track is still hot.
Listen Here
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2008 BET Awards Breakdown: Best Actor

5/29/2008 0

Nominees:
Anthony Anderson
Don Cheadle
Idris Elba
Terrence Howard
Denzel Washington

Who Should Win?
Denzel Washington always rises above the pack.

Who Will Win?
Denzel Washington.

Who Should Have Been Nominated?
Forest Whitaker, has a rare ability to really tap into the role that neither Elba or Anderson possess.

Who Shouldn't Have Been Nominated?
Anthony Anderson has released a quality film all year and his drama 'K-ville' was canceled due to poor ratings.
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Usher's 'Here I Stand' BET Special

5/29/2008 0
Check out Usher's 'Here I Stand' special on BET which aired this week. He performed a handful of tracks from the new album. Enclosed are performances of Moving Mountains, Here I Stand, Yeah and Love In This Club:





In other Usher news, after first day sale figures were released, 'Here I Stand' is on track to debut at the top spot with over 400K.
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Mariah Carey in Japan

5/29/2008 0
Check out Mariah Carey throwing the first pitch at a Japanese baseball game in Tokyo wearing heels.


You gotta love Mariah.
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Tyra Banks Covers The New York Times

5/29/2008 0
Supermodel turned media mogul Tyra Banks appears on the June 1st cover of The New York Times Magazine. In her feature, the talk show host describes herself in as a mixture of Oprah Winfrey with a dash of Martha Stewart thrown in.

Speaking on Tyra, NYT staff writer says: “Her brand, like her trademark ‘tough but still smiling’ smile, is consistent in all her shows: serious about the frivolous; empathetic and empowering, and always, always aimed at young women, across all races. It’s girly TV with a punch”.

Interesting cover.
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Kanye West - 'Flashing Lights' Version 2 and 3 Videos

5/28/08

Movie Premieres: "Sex and the City: The Movie" NY Premiere

5/28/2008 0
Sarah Jessica Parker and Jennifer Hudson arrive at the New York premiere of “Sex & The City: The Movie” on May 27th. Guests at the premiere included Lil Kim, Mary J. Blige, Michelle Williams, and Fergie. The film hits theaters this Friday March 30th.


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Candids: Halle Berry, Jennifer Hudson, Usher, Michael Jackson, and Rihanna & Chris

5/28/2008 0
Halle Berry was spotted in Beverly Hills wearing an Obama t-shirt. She sure got rid of the baby weight quickly.

Here are more photos of Jennifer Hudson arriving at the “Sex & the City: the Movie” premiere after-party last night.

Usher has an extremely busy week ahead of him. Here he is at MTV’s TRL studios and later at his album release party last night.

The King of Pop Michael Jackson surprised audiences at designer Christian Audigier’s birthday party over the weekend.

An onlooker snapped photos of Rihanna and Chris Brown getting cozy at a Toronto nightclub last week.

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Neosha King (of Cherish) Gets Married

5/28/2008 0
Neosha King, of R&B group Cherish, married her longterm boyfriend Jason Lawrence recently. The pair swapped nuptials in Florida and have been dating for six years, and here's a couple of pics of their marital ceremony:

I had no idea that she was even engaged, but congrats all the same. Check out more pics below:

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Usher's MTV '52 Bands/52 Weeks' Promo Videos

5/28/2008 0
Usher is the featured artist all week on MTV’s “52 Bands/52 Weeks” campaign. Usher portrays leading men from famous films in these promos, which can be viewed all week on MTV and MTV.com. Check out a couple of them below:

Although his album wasn't really saying much, his promotional team is definitely on their grind.

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Solange's Video (Update)

5/28/2008 0
Solange Knowles hits the road with Raheem DeVaughan and Chrisette Michele for a six-week “Art of Love” tour, which started May 21st in Sacramento, CA. Check the cities Solange will be performing at below.

Solange’s sophomore album, SoL-AngeL and The Hadley Street Dreams, features Mark Ronson, Pharrell, Q-Tip, Lamont Dozier, Soul Shock, Jack Splash, Lil Wayne, Boards of Canada, Bilal, and Marsha Ambrosius of Floetry.

The Melina-directed video for the first single, “I Decided,” will premiere on June 5th on BET’s “Access Granted” and online at Yahoo! Music.

“Art of Love” Tour Dates:
May 21 Sacramento, CA Harlows
May 22 San Francisco, CA Fillmore
May 23 Anaheim, CA House of Blues
May 25 Los Angeles, CA House of Blues
May 28 Dallas, TX House of Blues
May 30 Minneapolis, MN Trocodaros
May 31 St Louis, MO The Pagaent
June 1 Kansas City Beaumont Club
June 5 Cleveland, OH House of Blues
June 6 Detroit, MI Chene Park
June 7 Columbus, OH The Cove Lounge
June 8 Memphis, TN Canon Center
June 10 New York City, NY Hammerstein Ballroom
June 11 Westbury, NY North Fork Theatre
June 14 Philadelphia, PA Fillmore
June 20 Atlanta, GA Tabernacle
June 21 Orlando, FL House of Blues
June 22 Miami, FL Fillmore
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New Music: Ciara - 'Click'

5/28/2008 0
Ciara's contribution to the 'Sex & The City' soundtrack, a track titled 'Click', has surfaced. The track written by Rico Love and produced by Salaam Remi, is definitely a solid effort, but has the same feel as Fergie's No. 1 hit 'Glamorous'.

Listen Here
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T.I. To Star In Reality Show

5/28/2008 0

Well it looks like T.I. will be the latest star to jump on the Reality TV bandwagon. The hip-hop star has partnered with MTV for the upcoming project:
“[MTV] will follow the hip-hop star as he performs more than 1,000 of community service before beginning to serve his one-year prison sentence next spring. Ish Entertainment is behind the untitled series, which has scored an eight-episode order from MTV. Cameras already chronicled T.I.’s release from house arrest, and shooting will start in earnest this summer, leading up to his return to jail in early 2009. MTV plans to air the show some time soon after that.”
I'm kind of on the fence about this one, on one hand maybe this is what he needs to help clean up his image, but then the whole Reality TV thing is becoming a little crowded IMO.
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Whitney Houston Performs In Morocco

5/28/2008 0
Whitney Houston performed at Morocco's 'Festival Mawazine' last night. Check out her performances of 'I Love the Lord' and her career defining hit 'I Will Always Love You':


Her voice is definitely on the comeback trail compared to some of her more recent performances.
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Nelly, Ciara, & JD On Set of 'Stepped On My Jays' Video

5/28/2008 0
Check out these pics of Nelly on the set of the video for his upcoming single 'Stepped On My Jays, which was filmed last month. The song's producer, as well as, featured artist Ciara also appear in the video - which is set to premiere in June.


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Usher Flips Out On TRL

5/28/2008 0
Usher stopped by MTV's TRL today in Times Square, New York to promote the release of his much anticipated album 'Here I Stand', which was released today in the US. Though briefly talking over the the LP, Usher had some other things to set straight first. Check out the video below:

I can understand Usher's frustration because the media has unfairly criticized a woman they don't even know, but on the other hand this is the music business and some would argue that it comes with the territory. Either way, Usher should have remain professional.
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Missy Elliott Names New Album 'FANomenal'

5/28/2008 0
After lengthy hiatus, Missy Elliott is set to release her new LP 'FANomenal' later this summer. Addressing the reasoning for choosing the album's title, Missy said the following:

“I had a contest and we had so many people taking part. There were so many fans and I decided I wanted to dedicate it to my fans and spell it with F-A-N, FANomenal. I have had so many people sticking with Missy from day one. So this album is for them.”

This is great news, the music industry is definitely lacking female rappers and Missy always seems to bring the heat.

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'Good Gone Bad: Reloaded' DVD Preview

5/28/2008 0
As Rihanna gears up for the release of the the revamped version of her 'Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded' LP (June 17th), a video preview of the tour DVD (which comes packaged with the set) has surfaced. The concert which was shot last December on the same day she received six Grammy nominations, will measure to be about 75 minutes long. Check it Out:



The concert looks as if it will be entertaining if you don't take her vocals into count, but I personally won't be checking from this.
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New Music: Keri Hilson - 'Energy'

5/28/2008 0

The full version of Keri Hilson's first official single 'Energy' premiered today. Some of you may remember, a snippet of the cut had been floating around a few weeks back. I'm really digging this track, as well as, Keri's delivery of the track. Her debut album In a Perfect World will hits shelves on September 23rd.

Listen Here
(via thatgrapejuice.net)
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On the Racks

5/28/2008 0
Usher - Here I Stand
Click Here to Purchase
Celebrity Bug Rating: 2/5

Fergie - The Dutchess (Deluxe Edition)
Click Here to Purchase
Celebrity Bug Rating: 3.5/5
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5/27/08

2008 BET Awards Breakdown: Best Actress

5/27/2008 0



Nominees:
Angela Bassett
Halle Berry
Queen Latifah
Jill Scott
Chandra Wilson

Who Should Win?
Halle Berry, none of the other actresses embodied the character in their roles as much as she did. Her performance in 'Things We Lost in the Fire' was simply stunning.

Who Will Win?
Halle Berry or Angela Bassett, they definitely shine above the rest, but Halle's performance comes off straight to the point, like she not really acting, while Angela's is a little more forced. Still its a toss up.

Who Should Have Been Nominated?
Jurnee Smollett, gave a strong performance in 'The Great Debators'.

Who Shouldn't Have Been Nominated?
Jill Scott is still a dark horse since she was in a Tyler Perry movie, but there was simply nothing special about her performance.
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New Music: Brooke Valentine - 'Badunkadunk'

5/27/2008 0
R&B singer Brooke Valentine attempts to take another shot at hitting it big after an flop album Chain Letter and her sophomore follow-up Physical Education, which was shelved and never saw the light of day. For those unfamiliar with Brooke, the 23 year old first surfaced in 2005 with the smash 'Girlfight'. She was unfortunately dropped from distributor Virgin Records, but is still currently signed with label Subliminal.

'Badunkadunk' is nothing special and if Brooke expects to complete with the current female R&B line-up (Beyonce, Ashanti, Ciara, Alicia, Mary), then she's definitely going to have to come harder than this.

Listen Here
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New Music: Fergie featuring Will.I.am - 'True'

5/27/2008 0
A new track from Fergie featuring Will.I.am has surfaced recently, although its unknown if the track is a leftover from 'The Dutchess' sessions or is schueduled to be featured on another solo outing, its mostly likely a leftover. 'True' is okay, nothing special, just okay.

Listen Here
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5/25/08

2008 BET Awards Breakdown: Best New Artist

5/25/2008 0



Nominees:
Estelle
Flo Rida
Soulja Boy Tell'em
Chrisette Michelle
The Dream

Who Should Win?
The Dream is the only artist nominated that I can see having a long term career, since he already branched out to writing for other artists.

Who Will Win?
Soulja Boy Tell'em, there's no denying that he's made a big splash onto the scene the year.

Who Should Have Been Nominated?
Its pretty much spot on being that not many new artists have been able to really branch out into the big time this past year.

Who Shouldn't Have Been Nominated?
Neither Christette Michelle or Estelle, done anything in the past year to prove that they can, in fact, have long term successful careers.

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5/24/08

Preview Ashanti's 'The Declaration'

Usher Covers 'Entertainment Weekly' and 'Jet'

5/24/2008 0
Usher, whose brand new album 'Here I Stand' is released this coming Tuesday, appears on two new magazine covers - Entertainment Weekly and Jet:

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