Willow Smith recently had a photo shoot and interview for the February 2011 issue of Vanity Fair magazine. The 10-year old pop singer talked about her budding music career and being able to work with rap mogul Jay-Z. She said “It is very cool, because Jay[-Z] really welcomes me and makes me feel like the record label is a place where I can have fun and talk about my career. He and his people make me feel like I’m a part of something. And I love Beyonce—she’s awesome!” I wonder if there’s a Willow-Beyonce collaboration somewhere in the near future.
Rising star Jessie J has recently premiered the music video for her song “Price Tag”. It’s the singer’s second UK single and first US single to come off of her upcoming debut album “Who You Are”, which is due out on March 28th in the UK and April 12th in the US. The single features Atlanta rapper BoB. I love the lyrics and the vibe of the song and hoping that it would be a hit of Jessie J. As for the video, it’s simple, colorful and manages to grab the song’s essence. In other Jessie J news, she has confirmed a new tour in the UK and Ireland in Spring 2011, where she will play 7 shows beginning in Glasgow on March 31 and ending in Belfast on April 9.
Jessie J featuring BoB – Price Tag – New Video
The singer who has supposedly been doing exemplary with his probation is apparently trying to push his luck a bit. So Chris Brown has tried asking a judge to modify his restraining order a bit so that he might be able to attend the Grammys even though Rihanna is going to be there. However Chris Brown’s representative, Tammy Brook, has stated otherwise: “This court date and the lifting of the restraining order is part of the planned ongoing legal proceedings. The date was scheduled months ago. Chris Brown is very thankful for his Grammy nominations, but due to scheduling conflicts, he will not be attending the Grammys.” Maybe Chris Brown should actually get the chance to go to the Grammys. After all, resolving his conflict with Rihanna won’t ever happen without a bit of contact at least… and he can prove that the courses he has graduated were not in vain.
On the big day of this year’s Super Bowl it seems that the Black Eyed Peas have decided to hold a big super-star bash, since they’re going to be performing during half-time and all that. Fergie who is a co-owner of the Miami Dolphins had this to say of the band’s party plans: “As an NFL owner and a football fan, I cannot be more excited to join forces with Sports Illustrated for the hottest party of the season. It will be the kick-off to an amazing weekend in Dallas and we can’t wait to get it started.” Well, certainly all of the big celebrities are going to be there. It doesn’t seem to be invitation based. Black Eyed Peas are probably scoping out the other NFL fans out there.
Or at least this is his daughter’s opinion… no, not Liv Tyler, his other daughter, Mia Tyler. Apparently she thinks that Steven Tyler is what American Idol has been missing for a very long time. This is what Mia Tyler had to say about her dad being a judge on the show: “He’s the funniest man I know. He’s saving the show because it was kind of boring before. There’s only so many times you can watch Simon be mean to people.” So it’s clear… the fan base is polarized: there are those who couldn’t stand Simon Cowell and those who watched the show just because he was there. Well, Steven Tyler surely is a refreshing change to how the show was being done so far.
Check a few auditions from the American Idol aired last night, there is a new contestant btw she is my favorite named Lauren Alaina, she is AWESOME!
Lauren Alaina American Idol Audition:
Another promising one singer Rob Bolin
American Idol 2011- Audition- Ex Lovers- Chelsee Oaks – Rob Bolin
Very Funny one
Christine Mccaffrey American Idol Audition:
During the Milwaukee auditions of the show, one of the people who went for the gold was a 26 year-old Chicago native, Chris Medina. He sang “Break Even” by The Script and he did a damn good job of it apparently. Without any synths or chorus or instruments backing him, he actually made it sound very good so he got a yes from all three of the judges. However, Chris Medina’s motivation for being on the show has a rather inspiring story behind it which he tells during the audition. It does seem like he is a man of character. That probably did impress the judges along with his singing. Hopefully going to Hollywood and through the whole American Idol process won’t change him too much. Definitely one to keep an eye out for.
Chris Medina American Idol Audition:
Chris Medina American Idol Images:
It looks like becoming an actor wasn’t enough for 50 Cent as the rapper has decided to get more involved with movies behind the scenes with his new production company Mayweather Productions. 50 Cent’s partner in the new venture, Floyd Mayweather Jr., spoke about the company saying “We’re going to do what we normally do: sit in a room and brainstorm and try to come up with new ideas … you know, outside the box. Be creative and just work together and try to be positive. That’s the main thing. It’s about working hard, being positive and working together.” I’m entirely sure of this but it’s his money that’s getting wasted.
Alexis Jordan has recently premiered the music video for her song “Good Girl”. The track is the second official single taken from her self-titled debut album, which is set to hit the UK shelves on February 28th and US shelves some time in March. The Roc Nation singer’s latest song is already getting several spins at UK clubs. It was smart of her camp to continue with the light dance/house sound. As for the video, it’s good but I feel like Jay-Z could have spent a little bit more cash on it. Alexis looked amazing though and the choreography was cute.
Alexis Jordan – Good Girl – New Video
A couple of weeks ago, Kanye West announced via Twitter that his joint album with fellow rapper Jay-Z would drop on 1.11.11. The date has come and gone and there’s still no album out. Now, it looks like the album has been delayed further as Kanye went to tweet about it, saying “WATCH THE THRONE COMING IN 2 MONTHS!!!!!!!!!!” With all the delays that this album has seen, it better be good. I suppose I can forgive them if they do make it good. I wasn’t exactly thrilled with their latest single “HAM”. They’re two of the biggest names in hip hop. I would hate to take that back just because of this one album.
Oscar-nominated actress Hailee Steinfeld has a famous teen admirer – Justin Bieber. The 14-year-old actress was nominated for an Academy Award for her the role of Mattie Ross in the Coen brothers adaptation of True Grit. She appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live and spoke about finding out about her nomination. "It was very exciting I think I got more text messages today than any other time in my life. "Its very overwhelming, it’s a lot to comprehend but I have great family and friends who are very supportive." Joked Kimmel: "Maybe the most overwhelming is that Justin Bieber tweeted to and about you today, did you know that?" Steinfeld said: "I did, a friend told me." Bieber, 16, tweeted: "Met at the Globes and she is super talented. CONGRATS to Hailee Steinfeld for being 14 and getting nominated for an OSCAR for TRUE GRIT!" He added: "Now Hailee get a twitter." Kimmel asked the actress what she thought of the tweet. "I’m thinking I should," she said.
Here is a full list of 2011 Academy Award Nominees
Actor in a Leading Role
Javier Bardem in “Biutiful”
Jeff Bridges in “True Grit”
Jesse Eisenberg in “The Social Network”
Colin Firth in “The King’s Speech”
James Franco in “127 Hours”
Actor in a Supporting Role
Christian Bale in “The Fighter”
John Hawkes in “Winter’s Bone”
Jeremy Renner in “The Town”
Mark Ruffalo in “The Kids Are All Right”
Geoffrey Rush in “The King’s Speech”
Actress in a Leading Role
Annette Bening in “The Kids Are All Right”
Nicole Kidman in “Rabbit Hole”
Jennifer Lawrence in “Winter’s Bone”
Natalie Portman in “Black Swan”
Michelle Williams in “Blue Valentine”
Actress in a Supporting Role
Amy Adams in “The Fighter”
Helena Bonham Carter in “The King’s Speech”
Melissa Leo in “The Fighter”
Hailee Steinfeld in “True Grit”
Jacki Weaver in “Animal Kingdom”
Animated Feature Film
“How to Train Your Dragon” Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois
“The Illusionist” Sylvain Chomet
“Toy Story 3” Lee Unkrich
Art Direction
“Alice in Wonderland” Production Design: Robert Stromberg; Set Decoration: Karen O’Hara
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1” Production Design: Stuart Craig; Set Decoration: Stephenie McMillan
“Inception” Production Design: Guy Hendrix Dyas; Set Decoration: Larry Dias and Doug Mowat
“The King’s Speech” Production Design: Eve Stewart; Set Decoration: Judy Farr
“True Grit” Production Design: Jess Gonchor; Set Decoration: Nancy Haigh
Cinematography
“Black Swan” Matthew Libatique
“Inception” Wally Pfister
“The King’s Speech” Danny Cohen
“The Social Network” Jeff Cronenweth
“True Grit” Roger Deakins
Costume Design
“Alice in Wonderland” Colleen Atwood
“I Am Love” Antonella Cannarozzi
“The King’s Speech” Jenny Beavan
“The Tempest” Sandy Powell
“True Grit” Mary Zophres
Directing
“Black Swan” Darren Aronofsky
“The Fighter” David O. Russell
“The King’s Speech” Tom Hooper
“The Social Network” David Fincher
“True Grit” Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
Documentary (Feature)
“Exit through the Gift Shop” Banksy and Jaimie D’Cruz
“Gasland” Josh Fox and Trish Adlesic
“Inside Job” Charles Ferguson and Audrey Marrs
“Restrepo” Tim Hetherington and Sebastian Junger
“Waste Land” Lucy Walker and Angus Aynsley
Documentary (Short Subject)
“Killing in the Name” Nominees to be determined
“Poster Girl” Nominees to be determined
“Strangers No More” Karen Goodman and Kirk Simon
“Sun Come Up” Jennifer Redfearn and Tim Metzger
“The Warriors of Qiugang” Ruby Yang and Thomas Lennon
Film Editing
“Black Swan” Andrew Weisblum
“The Fighter” Pamela Martin
“The King’s Speech” Tariq Anwar
“127 Hours” Jon Harris
“The Social Network” Angus Wall and Kirk Baxter
Foreign Language Film
“Biutiful” Mexico
“Dogtooth” Greece
“In a Better World” Denmark
“Incendies” Canada
“Outside the Law (Hors-la-loi)” Algeria
Makeup
“Barney’s Version” Adrien Morot
“The Way Back” Edouard F. Henriques, Gregory Funk and Yolanda Toussieng
“The Wolfman” Rick Baker and Dave Elsey
Music (Original Score)
“How to Train Your Dragon” John Powell
“Inception” Hans Zimmer
“The King’s Speech” Alexandre Desplat
“127 Hours” A.R. Rahman
“The Social Network” Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
Music (Original Song)
“Coming Home” from “Country Strong” Music and Lyric by Tom Douglas, Troy Verges and Hillary Lindsey
“I See the Light” from “Tangled” Music by Alan Menken Lyric by Glenn Slater
“If I Rise” from “127 Hours” Music by A.R. Rahman Lyric by Dido and Rollo Armstrong
“We Belong Together” from “Toy Story 3" Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
Best Picture
“Black Swan” Mike Medavoy, Brian Oliver and Scott Franklin, Producers
“The Fighter” David Hoberman, Todd Lieberman and Mark Wahlberg, Producers
“Inception” Emma Thomas and Christopher Nolan, Producers
“The Kids Are All Right” Gary Gilbert, Jeffrey Levy-Hinte and Celine Rattray, Producers
“The King’s Speech” Iain Canning, Emile Sherman and Gareth Unwin, Producers
“127 Hours” Christian Colson, Danny Boyle and John Smithson, Producers
“The Social Network” Scott Rudin, Dana Brunetti, Michael De Luca and Ceán Chaffin, Producers
“Toy Story 3” Darla K. Anderson, Producer
“True Grit” Scott Rudin, Ethan Coen and Joel Coen, Producers
“Winter’s Bone" Anne Rosellini and Alix Madigan-Yorkin, Producers
Short Film (Animated)
“Day & Night” Teddy Newton
“The Gruffalo” Jakob Schuh and Max Lang
“Let’s Pollute” Geefwee Boedoe
“The Lost Thing” Shaun Tan and Andrew Ruhemann
“Madagascar, carnet de voyage (Madagascar, a Journey Diary)” Bastien Dubois
Short Film (Live Action)
“The Confession” Tanel Toom
“The Crush” Michael Creagh
“God of Love” Luke Matheny
“Na Wewe” Ivan Goldschmidt
“Wish 143” Ian Barnes and Samantha Waite
Sound Editing
“Inception” Richard King
“Toy Story 3” Tom Myers and Michael Silvers
“Tron: Legacy” Gwendolyn Yates Whittle and Addison Teague
“True Grit” Skip Lievsay and Craig Berkey
“Unstoppable” Mark P. Stoeckinger
Sound Mixing
“Inception” Lora Hirschberg, Gary A. Rizzo and Ed Novick
“The King’s Speech” Paul Hamblin, Martin Jensen and John Midgley
“Salt” Jeffrey J. Haboush, Greg P. Russell, Scott Millan and William Sarokin
“The Social Network” Ren Klyce, David Parker, Michael Semanick and Mark Weingarten
“True Grit” Skip Lievsay, Craig Berkey, Greg Orloff and Peter F. Kurland
Visual Effects
“Alice in Wonderland” Ken Ralston, David Schaub, Carey Villegas and Sean Phillips
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1” Tim Burke, John Richardson, Christian Manz and Nicolas Aithadi
“Hereafter” Michael Owens, Bryan Grill, Stephan Trojanski and Joe Farrell
“Inception” Paul Franklin, Chris Corbould, Andrew Lockley and Peter Bebb
“Iron Man 2” Janek Sirrs, Ben Snow, Ged Wright and Daniel Sudick
Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
“127 Hours” Screenplay by Danny Boyle & Simon Beaufoy
“The Social Network” Screenplay by Aaron Sorkin
“Toy Story 3” Screenplay by Michael Arndt; Story by John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich
“True Grit” Written for the screen by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
“Winter’s Bone” Adapted for the screen by Debra Granik & Anne Rosellini
Writing (Original Screenplay)
“Another Year” Written by Mike Leigh
“The Fighter” Screenplay by Scott Silver and Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson; Story by Keith Dorrington & Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson
“Inception” Written by Christopher Nolan
“The Kids Are All Right” Written by Lisa Cholodenko & Stuart Blumberg
It seems that of all of the singers out there Christina Aguilera is the one who will be getting the honor of singing the National Anthem at the beginning of next month’s Super Bowl. This is what Christina Aguilera had to say about this opportunity: “I have been performing the anthem since I was seven years old and I must say the Super Bowl is a dream come true. I am really excited to be part of such an iconic event.” Well it’s good to know that she’s had a lot of practice until now. Still, this shouldn’t be as big of a challenge as it might sound, especially for someone like Christina Aguilera.
Just when you thought that there was no more that could be done with “Never Say Never”, Justin Bieber has brought on another epic composer for the documentary. Ester Dean, who is apparently behind Rihanna’s “Say my name” and Katy Perry’s “Firework” is the new addition to Justin Bieber’s super-awesome squad. This is what she had to say about working with the teenage singer: “I first met Justin with Usher at an ‘American Idol’ event. He was like, ‘Oh my God … I’m such a fan of your songwriting!’ And I’m like, ‘You’re a fan? I’m a fan of your music!’ He’s a very talented guy. He was very easy to work with and was very nice. We just finished up some music for the new movie he has coming out. I can’t get too much into it. I don’t want to give too much away. But it’s going to be great.” How much more awesomeness could this documentary take? They’d better release it already before it just pops.
It seems that the singer has struck again or will do so soon. Recently it has been revealed that the filming for Lady GaGa’s new music video for the single “Born this Way” has been completed. Now it’s just a matter of waiting until the thing also gets released… it probably won’t take too long. Lady GaGa’s own stylist, Nicola Formichetti, a woman of… particular tastes, one must assume since she’s styling Lady GaGa, has said about the new music video that it is “the most amazing thing ever”. Here’s another youtube mania coming up. Hopefully Lady GaGa won’t torture her fans too much and release the damn thing soon.
It looks like the Universe just wants to keep Kanye West’s genius at bay whatever the cost. It’s just that combined with Jay-Z’s mastery it would just create an album of epic proportions. So Kanye West and Jay-Z’s new album just keeps getting delayed. This is what Kanye West recently tweeted about the release date: “WATCH THE THRONE COMING IN 2 MONTHS!!!!!!!!!!” So it’s another two months of excruciating wait for that greatly sought revelation. Well, at least all of the impatient ones out there can comfort themselves with the sheer awesomeness of the new song “H.A.M.” courtesy of the Kanye West and Jay-Z duo.
Electro hip hop duo 3OH!3 have recently premiered the music video for “Touchin’ on My”. The song is the official third single taken from their latest studio LP “Streets of Gold”. The Matt Squire-produced song was released as a digital download back in May 2010, before the album hit stores, in the US. It peaked at number 49 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart back then. The song is now getting the official single treatment and will go for US radio spins in the coming weeks. I expect to see it go up higher in the charts with the support of this music video. The song is fun and I think it’s the strongest track off of their album. As for the video, it’s pure craziness that everyone’s sure to have fun watching.
3OH!3 – Touchin’ on My – Official Music Video
Jay Sean is back with a new single called “Hit the Lights” which features rapper Lil Wayne. The song is a definite club banger. The J-Remy and Bobbygass-produced track will officially be released in the UK on February 8th. Jay’s new studio album “Freeze Time” will hit stores two weeks later on February 22nd. I think this song is going to kill on the radio. The singer’s latest track needs to get to number one because I think it’s miles better than “2012”. But if he’s planning to release this in the US, he better ask for some help with Lil Wayne if he wants to score another number one on Billboard’s Hot 100.
Jay Sean feat. Lil’ Wayne – Hit the Lights – New Song:
Jennifer Lopez recently gave Ryan Seacrest the go signal to premiere her new single “On the Floor”. As announced, this is the final version of the RedOne-produced track and I’m glad to say that it’s so much better than the leaked demo. There’s more of JLo in the intro and rapper Pitbull’s minute long verse was divided into two parts, one at the beginning and another to close the song. The beat is also neater along with some improvement on the pop singer’s vocals. Overall, this version sounds and feels hotter. Now that the song is on US radio, I wonder how long it will take for her to perform it on American Idol.
Jennifer Lopez – On the Floor – New Song
It seems that Michael Lohan is very proud of all of the progress that his daughter Lindsay Lohan has made with staying sober recently. It seems that the singer’s father has been going to her AA meetings with her and had the following to report: “We went to an AA meeting last night then went home and had a quiet night. She changed back to the girl she used to be. When she was at her best – literally. She’s done a 180 and I’m very proud of her.” Lindsay Lohan must be feeling pretty good with herself right now too. Hopefully those meetings will help her remain sober for longer than anyone would ever dare imagine anymore.
Well, actually hockey mom… and, not mom just yet, but she does seem to be on the right path for it. It seems that whenever Carrie Underwood is home alone because her new husband has to play a game in another city, being a married and honorable woman, there’s not much for her to do. This is what Carrie Underwood related about those difficult moments: “It is hard being a hockey wife. They will go off for a few days at a time to play some road games, and I am just like sitting at home twiddling my thumbs thinking, ‘What do I do?’ I cleaned, and we are moving into a new house, and so I was unpacking all of his stuff. And laundry and dishes.” Laundry, dishes and cleaning… and she’s only been married near half-a-year. Carrie Undewood’s husband must sure be happy to have her under his roof.
Melody Thornton, a former member of the Pussycat Dolls, turned up at the Los Angeles Lakers VS Los Angeles Clippers game this past Sunday to perform the US national anthem. Now that the PCD era is a thing of the past for Melody, the singer is currently working in the studio on her debut solo album. A song of hers, called “Love Gun”, actually leaked on the internet back in September 2010 but there’s been no news of her until now. The anthem gig was good promotion for her with the presenter announcing that Melody was a former member of PCD and that she was working on a solo album. As for her rendition of the anthem, it was good but not the best I’ve heard it done.
Melody Thornton – US National Anthem – Video
Nas just had his child and spousal support obligations sliced in half but he still has to pay his ex-wife Kelis a pretty penny. According to legal documents filed in LA County Superior Court, the rapper must now pay just a bit over $5000 a month in child support and $20,000 a month in spousal support. It sounds like a lot but Nas was actually paying twice that until he convinced the judge that the bad economy has hit even the rap business hard. Add the fact that hes not really working and there you go. So this month, Nas gets to pocket an extra $25,000 for himself.
Adam Levine recently went naked for a good cause. With only a pair of female hands covering up the rock stars dirty bits, the 31-year old Maroon 5 lead singer stripped down to encourage men to check for signs of prostate and testicular cancer. The hot pictures of Adam are featured in the February 2011 issue of UKs Cosmopolitan. Even if no one gets a glimpse of his dirty bits, its safe to assume that Adams girlfriend, Victorias Secret model Anne Vyalitsyna, is one lucky girl just by looking at that hot body. I wonder whose hands those are in the pictures.
Adam Levine Naked Pictures
Soulja Boy made a daring claim on his Twitter this past Sunday that was soon re-tweeted by his legions of fans. According to the rapper, Willow Smiths hit song Whip My Hair, which has catapulted the 9-year old singer into superstardom, was actually all his doing. Soulja Boy said YES ITS TRUE I WROTE “WHIP MY HAIR” FOR WILLOW SMITH. THATS WHY SHE SAYS HOP OUT THE BED TURN MY SWAG ON. WE GETTING $$$ 2011 NO GAMES (sic). However, Ronald Jackson and Janae Rockwell are listed as the songwriting team behind the track and not the rapper. Why would he make such a claim to fame? Apparently, Soulja Boy trademarked the phrase turn my swag on after the song became a hit, which means that the songs producers will have to compensate him for using it in Willows song. Shady!
Here is Britney Spears demo of Britney’ brand new single “Hold It Against Me” has just leaked online today. Check it out
Britney Spears – Hold It Against Me – New Song Audio
Just when you thought that boy bands are a thing of the past, two of the biggest to ever hit the music industry join forces to prove you wrong. New Kids on the Block and Backstreet Boys are going on tour together and they just added a slew of new dates to their upcoming summer tour. There are 16 new concert dates which include stops in San Antonio, Vancouver, Minneapolis, Kansas City, St. Louis, Orlando, Indianapolis, Cleveland and Atlantic City. Now more of their fans can relive their teenybopper days and kids can check out what the hype was all about.
The full version of the unreleased 50 Cent track called Sunday Morning has finally arrived. A snippet of the song leaked back in late 2009. Then a DJ promised that he would be releasing the full song in May 2010 but it wasnt until last week that the song leaked in its entirety. The song is good and has a great vibe. The rapper kills it in the verses. The song was actually crafted during the recording sessions to 50 Cents fourth studio album Before I Self Destruct but it failed to make the final cut. Im not entirely sure why though because I think the song is great and definitely better than some of the music that did make its way into the CD.
50 Cent Sunday Morning New Song
Former Oasis rocker Liam Gallagher has hit out at his brother Noel once again and called him a “f****” in a new interview. Liam, 38, who now performs with his new band Beady Eye, said he is not “a****” about his brother’s music plans for the future. Speaking about his sibling’s return to music, Liam told UK magazine Uncut: “I’m sure it will be all very civilised and grown-up. One of those gigs you can really stroke your chin at. With four rent-a-Scousers wearing shell-suits.” He added: “I’ve heard his f****** new record because I f****** sang on half of it. When I was in America for Dig Out Your Soul. And he swiped some off [sic], because he obviously knew he wanted to do a solo album. “So he can talk all the bull**** about, ‘Oh, I was intimidated’ and all that. F****** nonsense.”
Chris Brown released a song this past Friday called Where Do We Go from Here via his official Twitter. The Jim Jonsin-produced track features rapper Pitbull. All I can say about it is that I absolutely love it! The song has an electro dance vibe that screams hit. Pitbull is actually in charge of the verses while Chris takes over for the choruses. Its a great effort that I hope to see on the R&B singers upcoming album FAME. However, it seems like its just a buzz record to increase the hype for Chris new music. I cant help but say thanks though for giving out such a great tune.
Chris Brown and Pitbull Where Do We Go from Here New Song
