andPOP - Pop Culture With Substance

Former Destiny’s Child singer Kelly Rowland performed for a packed house Thursday at Tao’s Worship in Las Vegas, reports Perez Hilton. Rowland was celebrating the finale of her Bravo series, The Fashion Show.

She hit the stage to perform her single When Loves Takes Over after partying in the VIP section of the restaurant.

Earlier this year, Rowland parted ways with her manager, Matthew Knowles, the father of her former band mate Beyonce.

During her current “I Am… Sascha Fierce” tour, singer Beyonce will not allow photographers to shoot her from behind, reports Perez Hilton.

“Beyonce’s costumes are so tiny and her choreography is so complicated that inevitably she sweats,” said an insider. “It looks pretty gross, so no one is allowed to shoot her from that particular angle anymore.”

The tour began in March and ends in November, and is the third world tour for the former Destiny’s Child member. Beyonce will perform in 87 cities across North America, Europe, Japan and Australia. The tour kicked off in Edmonton, followed by shows in Saskatoon, Winnipeg and Vancouver. She will return to Canada on July 20 and July 21 for concerts in Toronto and Montreal, respectively.

It’s not unusual for an actor to release an album, or a musician to star in movies and television. What’s rare is to do both before the age of 16. (And to be a pretty hot dancer, to boot.)

Mishon just became legal to drive in the United States, but he has already starred in three seasons of ABC’s Lincoln Heights and is releasing his second LP, The Yearbook,  this fall.

With a two singles circulating the airwaves, “Excuse Me, Mama” and “Just a Kiss,” attention is flying fast and heavy at the budding triple threat. Mishon was taken under the wing of producer extraordinaire Vincent Herbert, who signed the young R&B singer to his new label Streamline Records, a joint venture with Interscope. Herbert, known for working with major pop stars such as Lady GaGa, Destiny’s Child and Toni Braxton, produced The Yearbook alongside Mishon.

READ MORE »

Kelly Rowland has officially been appointed 2008 Ambassador for the MTV Staying Alive Foundation.

The foundation empowers young people who are working to eliminate HIV and AIDS in their communities.

“I am honoured to work with The Staying Alive Foundation in its mission to transform attitudes to HIV and AIDS around the world,” the Destiny’s Child alum commented in a press release. “The Foundation continues to recognize and reward young people whose relentless mission is to encourage, educate and empower their peers in the fight against HIV and AIDS. I am excited to be a part of this remarkable initiative and look forward to supporting Staying Alive in all its efforts to change the prevailing culture of ignorance which fosters and perpetuates this disease.”

Rowland will kick off her first solo tour and new role simultaneously, when she visits Africa in June. There she will visit tour some of the grassroots projects supported by the Foundation.

Her new album, ‘Ms Kelly Deluxe’, will be released May 12.

Mariah Carey may have led the nominations last night at the 33rd annual American Music Awards, but the real winners were Destiny?s Child, Tim McGraw, Kelly Clarkson, the Black Eyed Peas, and Green Day, each of whom walked away with two awards apiece. Even though Carey had four nods, she ended up with only one statuette for Favorite Female Artist in the Soul/R&B category.

Carey opened up the show, broadcast live on ABC from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, with a performance of her newest single, ?Don?t Forget About Us.? Other singers who took to the stage over the three-hour-long ceremony included Lindsay Lohan, Hilary Duff, Kenny Chesney, the Eurythmics, Santana, Gwen Stefani, and Cyndi Lauper and Sarah McLachlan, who performed a duet of Lauper?s ?80s hit, ?Time After Time.? The Rolling Stones closed the show live via satellite from Salt Lake City.

Destiny?s Child, which gave its last performance on Jimmy Kimmel Live earlier this month, won the award for Favorite Band, Duo or Group in the Soul/R&B category, as well as Best Album for their final record, Destiny Fulfilled. Only one member of the trio, Kelly Rowland, was on hand to accept the award.

Her former bandmates, Beyonce Knowles and Michelle Williams, were not the only nominees who failed to show up at the AMAs. Some other notable absentees included Clarkson, Eminem, the Black Eyed Peas, Green Day and 50 Cent.

AMA nominees are selected based on record sales, and winners determined by a national poll of 20,000 listeners.

Complete List of Winners:

POP/ROCK:
Male Artist: Will Smith
Female Artist: Gwen Stefani
Band, Duo or Group: Black Eyed Peas
Album: American Idiot (Green Day)

SOUL/RHYTHM & BLUES:
Male Artist: R. Kelly
Female Artist: Mariah Carey
Band, Duo or Group: Destiny’s Child
Album: Destiny Fulfilled (Destiny’s Child)

COUNTRY:
Male Artist: Tim McGraw
Female Artist: Gretchen Wilson
Band, Duo or Group: Brooks & Dunn
Album: Live Like You Were Dying (Tim McGraw)

RAP/HIP-HOP:
Male Artist: Eminem
Female Artist: Missy Elliott
Band, Duo or Group: Black Eyed Peas
Album: The Massacre, (50 Cent)

ADULT CONTEMPORARY:
Favorite Artist: Kelly Clarkson

LATIN:
Favorite Artist: Shakira

ALTERNATIVE:
Favorite Artist: Coldplay

CONTEMPORARY INSPIRATIONAL:
Favorite Artist: Mary Mary

BREAKTHROUGH:
New Artist (all genres): Sugarland

T-MOBILE TEXT-IN AWARD: Kelly Clarkson

After announcing their retirement in June, Destiny?s Child has at last taken their final bows. The superstar trio gave what was billed their last performance yesterday on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

The late-night show host handed over the entire hour to the chart-topping R&B group as they performed both indoors and outdoors in front of 1,000 lucky fans. Radio contest winners were flown in from across the United States to witness Beyonce Knowles, Michelle Williams, and Kelly Rowland sing their hits “Survivor,” and their new single, ?Stand Up for Love? for the last time.

However, mourning fans shouldn?t rule out a future reunion. Asked by Kimmel if the split would be permanent, Rowland replied, “You never know.?

Rowland added that the group is parting amicably. ?I think the most beautiful thing is that we’re not parting because there were problems,? she said. ?We’re parting because we’re celebrating each others’ growth.”

Destiny?s Child released a greatest hits album, #1?s, earlier this month. It shot to the top of the Billboard 200 chart in its first week of sales.

After their current world tour, Destiny’s Child will split up.

According to their record label, the trio will pursue solo careers after playing shows in North America this summer.

News broke Sunday night when MTV reported that Kelly Rowland announced to an audience in Spain on Saturday that this would be their last European appearance together.

“Thanking their fans for years of love and support, Beyonce Knowles, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams announced that they would be retiring as Destiny’s Child and moving forward to pursue personal goals and individual careers in music, theater, television and film,” a statement from their label said.

“As a group, we’ve been blessed with success and the greatest fans in the world,” the group said collectively. “We have been working together as Destiny’s Child since we were nine, and touring together since we were fourteen. After a lot of discussion and some deep soul searching, we realized that our current tour has given us the opportunity to leave Destiny’s Child on a high note, united in our friendship and filled with an overwhelming gratitude for our music, our fans, and each other. After all these wonderful years working together, we realized that now is the time to pursue our personal goals and solo efforts in earnest. This is a time of natural growth for all of us. No matter what happens, we will always love each other as friends and sisters and will always support each other as artists. We want to thank all of our fans for their incredible love and support and hope to see you all again as we continue fulfilling our destinies.”

Their North American tour begins July 9 in St. Louis. Vancouver will be the site of Destiny’s child’s last concert, slated for September 10. The “Destiny Fulfilled…And Lovin’ It” tour will feature Mario, Amerie and Tyra as openers.

Following 2001’s “Survivor” album, the group went on a 3-year hiatus. Each member pursued solo careers, but Knowles became such a huge star that many wondered if she’d return to the group. When she did, the question became how long she’d stay with the group.

Rowland and Williams each released successful albums, but not nearly as successful as Knowles’ “Dangerously in Love.”

Beyonce, featuring Kelly and Michelle… ok we’ll give them some respect.

Destiny’s Child (better? we bolded it) have released dates for their upcoming North American tour.

The trio will tour together for the first time in four years.

The “Destiny Fulfilled … And Lovin’ It Tour” (can you take a guess who is sponsoring it? You’re wrong if you guessed Burger King) will begin July 9 and will end two months later on September 10 in Vancouver.

Amerie and Mario will open on some dates.

Here are the dates, with more to be announced:
7/9 – St. Louis, MO @ Savvis Center
7/10 – Memphis, TN @ FedEx Arena
7/12 – Nashville, TN @ Gaylord Arena
7/15 – Atlanta, GA @ Phillips Arena
7/16 – Tampa, FL @ St. Pete Times Forum
7/17 – Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ Office Depot Center
7/20 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Mellon Arena
7/22 – Charlotte, NC @ Verizon Amphitheatre
7/23 – Virginia Beach, VA @ Verizon Amphitheatre
7/24 – Raleigh, NC @ Alltell Pavilion
7/28 – Albany, NY @ Pepsi Arena
7/29 – New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden
7/31 – Washington, DC @ MCI Center
8/3 – Uncasville, CT @ Mohegan Sun
8/5 – Philadelphia, PA @ Wachovia Center
8/6 – Boston, MA @ TD North Bank Garden
8/7 – Hershey, PA @ Hershey Park Stadium
8/9 – Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre
8/10 – Toronto, ON @ Air Canada Center
8/12 – Cleveland, OH @ Gund Arena
8/13 – Columbus, OH @ Nationwide Arena
8/14 – Auburn Hills, MI @ The Palace of Auburn Hills
8/19 – San Antonio, TX @ SBC Center
8/20 – Houston, TX @ Toyota Center
8/23 – Denver, CO @ Pepsi Center
8/26 – Las Vegas, NV @ Mandalay Bay Arena
8/27 – Phoenix, AZ @ America West Arena
9/1 – Los Angeles, CA @ Staples Center
9/2 – Anaheim, CA @ Arrowhead Pond
9/3 – Oakland, CA @ Oakland Arena
9/4 – San Jose, CA @ HP Pavilion
9/9 – Seattle, WA @ Key Arena
9/10 – Vancouver, BC @ GM Place

Will Solange Knowles join Destiny’s Child? Matthew Knowles said yes. Beyonce says no.

Beyonce tells MTV that the group will remain a trio, despite claims by her father and the group’s manager, Matthew, that her sister, Solange, might be joining the group.

“The Solange rumour is definitely a rumour,” Beyonce said. “She’s not going to be a member of Destiny’s Child.”

She said the group will record in the new year.

“We’ve all grown so much … it’s going to be incredible. Hopefully, we’ll own next summer.”