andPOP » R&B

Lil Wayne in Jail in NY but Wanted in AZ

andPOP Staff — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 00:29:59 +0000

Wow, Lil Wayne really is a career criminal. Although he is currently in a New York jail for gun charges, Arizona wants him for drug charges stemming from a 2008 arrest.

TMZ reports that Yuma County, Arizona has issued a bench warrant for the rapper. Lil Wayne plead not guilty to the drug charges where DEA agents found 105 grams of marijuana, 29 grams of cocaine and 41 grams of ecstasy pills and a 40-caliber pistol on his tour bus.

He was supposed to be in court today to plead his case. It would be a shame if once he gets out of jail, he will be thrown back in.

The Body of James Brown is … Missing?

Sam Rashid — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 20:54:12 +0000

James Brown is still rocking out from beyond the grave. But how? His daughter, LaRhonda Pettit claims that his body as been stolen, reports CHARTattack.

Pettit has been keeping her father’s body in a crypt at her South Carolina home since December 25, 2006. She was watching over Brown’s body while a mausoleum was being constructed. And now, Pettit says that the body cannot be found.

“My daddy’s body has disappeared,” Pettit said. “I have no clue where it was taken, but I need to know where.”

Pettit believes that someone had moved the body of her father to prevent an autopsy from being conducted. On Christmas Day of 2006, Brown was found dead of an apparent heart attack.

“It was common knowledge daddy took illegal drugs until his death,” Pettit said. “He was also hooked on painkillers. At the very least there were enablers who helped cause his death.”

Now, the strange part. Brown did not recognize Pettit in his will. But Pettit says that Brown had had an affair with her mother in the 1960s. Also, a DNA test found that Pettit was 99.9 per cent likely Brown’s daughter.

More interesting, following the death of the Godfather of Soul, Pettit and 12 other people claimed to be one of Brown’s illegitimate children.

So, is the body missing? You be the judge.

Beyonce Funds Beauty School

Angelina Irinici — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 16:29:18 +0000

If Beyonce isn’t flawless enough, she is now. On Friday she and her mother, Tina Knowles, unveiled a project they have been working and dreaming about for years: the Beyonce Cosmetology Center. She spoke in downtown Brooklyn, New York, at the Phoenix House, which is a nonprofit recovery centre for drug and alcohol addiction, reports MTV News.

The press release states that the program is “a seven-month cosmetology training course for adult men and women.” L’Oreal will be donating all of the products used, as the superstar is a spokeswoman for the beauty company. The star and her mother have pledged to donate $100,000 annually to the program.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg attended the unveiling and after remarks from him, Tina and others, Knowles gave a gracious speech explaining both her ties to the house and her hopes for the program. In 2007, she first visited the house while researching for her role in “Cadillac Records”, where she played Etta James, a legendary blues, R&B, rock and roll, gospel and jazz singer/songwriter.

The Phoenix House provides vocational training, but the 28-year-old still wanted to fund the beauty school while looking to the future.

“I felt like they needed something that was geared towards women — something that would teach them skills that would give them hope even after the Phoenix House,” she said.

Her mother was an influence as she owned and operated a salon in their hometown of Houston.

“I saw that a salon was a place for women to socialize, share stories, cry, laugh and get advice,” she explained of her growing up around a beauty parlor. Almost shedding a tear she said, “Most importantly, I saw the joy it brought my mother, knowing she was a part of their transformation.”

The successful singer/songwriter, actress, spokeswoman and model admires the strength of the people who’ve chosen to attend Phoenix House. She believes that none of them chose to be addicts, but have all “chosen to get better.” The “Single ladies” singer ended after photo ops and cutting the ceremonial ribbon with an honest statement.

“It’s a very proud day for me and my mother,” she said.

John Mayer’s Controversial, Racist Interview Causes Twitter Uproar

Angelina Irinici — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 20:25:13 +0000

John Mayer should perhaps think before he talks, and stick to playing his guitar after his controversial comments in a Playboy magazine interview, in which he used the “N” word, among other comments. Subsequently, he doesn’t have many fans from the hip-hop community at this time.

MTVnews.com reports that Mayer apologized yesterday for some of the content of his interview, where he freely talked about sex, former girlfriends Jennifer Aniston and Jessica Simpson, and made comments that some believe to be as racist. He described his penis as being “sort of like a white supremacist” since he doesn’t sleep with black women and has a lack of “a hood pass”.

The whole debacle has caused quite the stir on Twitter, where many celebs from the hip-hop community have tweeted their thoughts on the whole matter.

The Roots’ was perhaps one of the only who seemed to be in a forgiving mood. “Hmmm. I’ll give Mayer a benefit of the doubt (remember how people misinterpreted my photo?) and assume that was a punch line gone awry,” Referring to a photo of an apparently racist lunch menu at the NBC café that ?uest posted as a joke for Black History Month. The drummer then added, “LOL then again on 2nd read … can’t wait to see spin on this. I swear his #1 demographic is the white dude black women would do in a second.”

Talib Kweli wasn’t having it and tweeted, “My man John Mayer love the taste of his own foot.”

Joell Ortiz tweeted, “John Mayer will get off the hook just like Asher Roth did. Throw money, a lame apology and some good PR at us and we forget. … John Mayer should not open his mouth unless he is singing.”

That is exactly what the 32-year-old singing sensation has already started doing. He wrote this apology yesterday via Twitter, in hopes that fans would show some sympathy: “I am sorry that I used the ['N'] word. And it’s such a shame that I did because the point I was trying to make was in the exact opposite spirit of the word itself. He added, “I will never say it again.” Well, we should hope so.

He then added to his apology at a concert last night in Nashville, as he broke down onstage, stopped playing and told the crowd, “I quit the media game. I’m out. I’m done. I just want to play my guitar.”

“I decided that I would try to be as clever as possible all the time and I did that at the expense of the people that I love, and that feels absolutely terrible,” Mayer continued.

Kid Cudi to Star in HBO’s New Show

Angelina Irinici — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 18:51:55 +0000

It is not doubt that Kid Cudi has reached much success in the music industry in a short period of time. He has had three Grammy nominations and is featured on tracks with the likes of Jay-Z, Kanye West and Shakira. Now, Cudi is ready to take his success to a new level, as he is ready to hit the big screen.

According to MTVnews.com, Cudi, whose given name is Scott Mescudi, is making his acting debut in HBO’s new show “How to Make It in America”.

“The fact that everybody is finally getting to see me act and stuff is part of my dream coming true. It’s just really dope, and people could see me be silly. My album was so deep and serious, and that was just me showing my dark side,” Cudi said. “Acting is therapeutic — just being able to pretend to be somebody else for a little bit, it’s dope.”

The series is executively produced by the same team behind HBO’s hit show, “Entourage” which includes big names like: Mark Wahlberg, Stephen Levinson, Rob Weiss and Julian Farino. However, don’t expect A-list celebrities and luxurious lifestyles. The show is centered on two characters, Ben Epstein and Cam Calderson, played by Bryan Greenberg and Victor Rasuk, as they attempt to start their own fashion line. Cudi plays their friend Domingo Dean, a name he chose after his two older brothers. It follows their story and trials and tribulations facing normal guys in New York City.

“I’m talking about these guys work a 9-to-5 — actually, one of them doesn’t even have a job. As the story goes along you see all of the hardships that they’ve had to go through in order to achieve their dreams,” Cudi said.

Cudi has always thought about acting, but the show came as somewhat of a surprise. The show’s creator, Ian Edleman, approached Cudi one night and asked if he ever considered acting.

“Of course I was like, ‘Yeah,’ but it was in the club and I was trashed. I didn’t necessarily take him seriously. Two days later he had his assistant send me a script and I was like, ‘Wow, this is dope. I would love to be a part of this.’ ”

Cudi still had to audition for the part, and did so while he was working with Kanye West on West’s “808s & Heartbreak” record.

“I would dip away from sessions with Kanye and go rehearse my lines when nobody was around because I was very self-conscious and I didn’t want them to see me and make fun of me,” said Cudi.

The cast gets the opportunity to see all sides of New York as they film everywhere from Brooklyn to the Upper East Side. They said that was a major plus in the filming of the show.

“What was great about shooting the show was, sometimes me as a native New Yorker, I’ll find spots and we’ll start shooting and I’ll say, ‘I’ve never even seen this place before. I never even heard of this place’,” Lords of Dogtown star, Victor Rasuk said.

Bryan Greenberg, from One Tree Hill, also had positive things to say about filming in NYC.

“The cool thing about this show is, like, we’re shooting in the best locations in NYC — the best restaurants, the best clubs,” Greenberg said. “This is definitely one of the sets where all of my friends want to come visit.”

Catch the premier of “How to Make It in America” Sunday on HBO.

Iyaz New Single!

andPOP Staff — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 20:45:16 +0000

Iyaz has a new single! Mr. Replay Iyaz (Time Is Money/Beluga Heights/Warner Bros Records) has a new smash song called “Solo”. Enjoy the track and learn all of the lyrics! Official video coming soon

Matisyahu – Not Your Typical Reggae Star

andPOP Staff — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 20:05:11 +0000

When you think Reggae musicians you wouldn’t necessarily think of an Orthodox Jew. Well Matisyahu has broken down that stereotype by combing traditional Jewish themes with a Reggae sound, and also achieving Top 40 status. Matisyahu spoke with Korey before a recent Toronto date.

Teddy Pendergrass Dies

andPOP Staff — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 15:40:04 +0000

Remember the songs “Close the Door” and “Love T.K.O.”? Well they were written by an amazing soul singer named Teddy Pendergrass, one of the major R&B singers during the 1970’s. Pendergrass died Wednesday after surgery 8 months ago for colon cancer. His recovery was very intense and unfortunately was unable to hang on.

Pendegrass was born in Philadelphia in 1950 and was singing since 2 years old. His rise to fame was during the 1970’s when he lead Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes to the top of the charts with hits like “If You Don’t Know Me by Now” and “I Miss You.” He later started to work on solo projects and continued his rise to the top. In 1982 he crashed his Rolls Royce, leaving the 31 year old paralyzed from the waist down. Pendegrass is certainly a music legend that has not only left a mark on R&B but music as a whole.

Beyonce Taking a Break

andPOP Staff — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 23:43:38 +0000

Beyonce is taking a little break reports USA Today. After an amazing 2009 in which she performed at President Obama’s inauguration, collaborated with Alicia Keys, an amazing tour and other notable events, Beyonce has said she needs some R&R.

After she performs at the Grammy Awards on January 31, she plans to do a whole lot of nothing. “I’ve always worked hard, but I feel like I worked harder this past year than I have since I was just starting out. I just had all these great opportunities. … It’s definitely time to take a break, to recharge my batteries,” the singer told USA Today. “I’d like to take about six months and not go into the studio. I need to just live life, to be inspired by things again.”

Beyonce has been nominated for 10 Grammy Awards. We have a feeling she won’t be going home empty handed.

New Jimi Hendrix Album to be Released

Sara Harowitz — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 03:08:55 +0000

Yes, Jimi Hendrix has been dead for nearly 40 years. But that doesn’t mean he can’t release new music.

March 9 will see the release of Valleys Of Neptune, an album that features over an hour of Hendrix’s music that has never before been commercially released, reports CHARTattack.com.

Most of Valleys Of Neptune was recorded back in 1969, and features the Jimi Hendrix Experience’s final studio recordings. It was originally supposed to be the follow-up album to 1968’s Electric Ladyland and featured their new bassist Billy Cox.

The album’s release will be preceded by it’s title track, “Valleys Of Neptune”, which is said to come out as a single on Feb. 2.

The Jimi Hendrix Experience’s Are You Experienced?, Axis: Bold As Love, Electric Ladyland and First Rays Of The Rising Sun will all be reissued in deluxe CD/DVD packages on March 9. For those old school lovers, they will also be available on vinyl. Live At Woodstock, which shows Hendrix’s legendary performance at the famous 1969 music festival, is also set to be available on DVD.

Here are the songs on Valleys Of Neptune:

“Stone Free”
“Valleys Of Neptune”
“Bleeding Heart”
“Hear My Train A Comin’”
“Mr. Bad Luck”
“Sunshine Of Your Love”
“Lover Man”
“Ships Passing Through The Night”
“Fire”
“Red House”
“Lullaby For The Summer”
“Crying Blue Rain”