Kate's Notes

Rachael Ray

2007-03-19T15:59:00.000-07:00

Rachael Ray

Rachael Domenica Ray (born August 25, 1968) is a celebrity chef, who has developed her knack for simple easy, "eyeballing it" cooking into a small empire, and media blitz. She is an Emmy-winning television personality and author, who currently hosts the syndicated series “Rachael Ray,” in addition to hosting four different programs on cable television's Food Network – “30 Minute Meals,” “$40 a Day,” “Inside Dish,” and “Rachael Ray's Tasty Travels.” She has also authored a series of cookbooks based on the “30 Minute Meals” concept.

Early Life and Career

Born in Glens Falls, New York, Ray's family is Sicilian-American on her mother's side and French American on her father's side. Ray says she was born into cooking. "My first vivid memory is watching mom in a restaurant kitchen. She was flipping something with a spatula. I tried to copy her and ended up grilling my right thumb! I was three or four," says Rachael. “Everyone on both sides of my family cooks."

The Ray family owned several restaurants on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Later, the family relocated to upstate New York, where her mother went to work as the food supervisor for a chain of restaurants. "I was surrounded by all different styles of cooking, and worked in the food service industry in just about every capacity you can imagine.” Ray's parents divorced when she was 13, and her mother took a job as a food supervisor in upstate New York.

She attended high school in Lake George, New York, a small town in the Adirondack Mountains, where she was a cheerleader and worked part-time as a waitress for her mother. Before graduating in 1986, Rachael was already an entrepreneur, running her own gift basket service on the side.

In 1993, after graduating from college, Rachael returned to Lake George and rented a cabin. However, she moved to New York City two years later due to a lack of opportunities back home. She found a job at the Macy's Marketplace candy counter, and was soon promoted to manager of the Fresh Foods department. She was able to learn a lot about gourmet foods, and she used that knowledge to help open and manage Agata & Valentina, a prestigious New York gourmet marketplace. But following bad personal experiences in the city, including a breakup and a mugging, Rachael moved back to Lake George in 1997. There Ray managed Mister Brown's Pub at The Sagamore, a famous hotel on Lake George. From there, she became a buyer at Cowan & Lobel, a gourmet market in suburban Albany. Ray credits the concept of “30 Minute Meals” to her experience working at the store where she met people reluctant to cook. She began teaching a cooking course there showing people how to make meals in 30 minutes or less.

With the success of her "30 Minute Meals" classes, WRGB, the local CBS television affiliate, asked her to appear in a weekly segment on their newscasts. This, along with a public radio appearance and the publication of her first book, led to a “Today Show” spot and her first Food Network contract in 2001. She also appeared in a few commercials for Schenectady-based grocery chain Price Chopper, which stocks all her books at their stores and retains her as an occasional spokesperson.

Ray owns homes in Lake Luzerne, New York and Manhattan's Greenwich Village. On September 24, 2005, in Montalcino, Tuscany, Italy, Ray married John Cusimano, a lawyer and member of the band The Cringe.

Cooking Techniques

Ray teaches simple recipes that she claims can be prepared in 30 minutes or less. She uses garlic and chicken stock as simple ways to boost flavors. She often uses recipes that include her Italian, French, and American heritage, and Ray emphasizes using fresh herbs whenever possible. She believes that measuring "takes away from the creative, hands-on process of cooking" and instead favors approximations such as "half a palmful" and "eyeball it." On her television programs she has used catchphrases such as "E.V.O.O." (extra-virgin olive oil), "yum-o," "so delish," "G.B." (garbage bowl), "stoup" (cross between a soup and stew), and "how good is THAT?" She often refers to sandwiches as "sammies."

She claims to dislike baking desserts and to be notorious for burning bread under the broiler. Ray says her Sicilian maternal grandfather, Emmanuel Scuderi, served as a strong influence on her cooking. To critics of her shortcut techniques, Ray responds, "I have no formal anything. I'm completely unqualified for any job I've ever had."

The retro look of the set she uses on the Food Network features, among other things, a beautiful yellow 1950's Model C Chambers stove. While this stove isn't often used on her program, it is noticed by viewers, so much so that people selling them often refer to Chambers ranges as "the Rachel Ray stove." This has led to an increased interest in saving and restoring these stoves, inspiring both an online discussion forum and a website, as well as numerous references to them in the media.

Media

Reader's Digest launched Ray's eponymous magazine, Every Day with Rachael Ray in conjunction with Reader's Digest. The magazine premiered on October 25, 2005 and featured seven issues in 2006. It will increase to ten issues in 2007.

In addition to her television hosting and cookbooks, Ray has endorsed products for Price Chopper supermarkets and Burger King, and has appended her name to a line of cookware and cutlery. When she endorsed Wüsthof's, sales rose dramatically; she now endorses her own line of santoku knives.

In 2003, she posed for the men's magazine FHM. The New York Times wrote, "The shots feature Ray in short-shorts with an exposed midriff, licking chocolate off a big wooden spoon, eating a strawberry and sitting in a sink, laughing as suds cascade down her thighs." One year later she was named #92 on FHM "100 Sexiest Women 2004." Most recently, she was featured in FHM "100 Sexiest Women 2006," ranking at #71.

In late 2005, Ray signed a deal with Oprah Winfrey and King World Productions to host a syndicated daytime television talk show. The show, Rachael Ray premiered on September 18, 2006. Recurrent appearances on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" were used to fuel the launch, much like Dr. Phil's show was spun off based on his own frequent visits to Oprah. The show tapes in New York City, and Ray will continue to appear on the Food Network. Ray said, in coordination with the syndication announcement, "People know me for my love of food, but I have so much more I want to share." On the September 19 episode of “The Insider,” host Lara Spencer characterized the ratings for the show as "a monster hit.”

In addition to Oprah, Ray has appeared on “The View,” “The Today Show,” “The Tonight Show” with “Jay Leno,” “The Late Show with David Letterman,” “Late Night with Conan O'Brien,” and “Larry King Live.”

In 2006, "Ray's 30 Minute Meals" received an Emmy Award for Outstanding Service Show. Ray was also nominated for Outstanding Service Show Host, but lost to Suze Orman.
Ray was also named one of Time magazine's 100 most influential people of 2006. She was nominated by fellow Food Network star Mario Batali.

According to Forbes magazine, Ray earns about $6 million per year from her books and television shows (excluding her new show, "Rachael Ray").

On November 12, 2006 Mario Batali and Rachael defeated the team of Bobby Flay and Giada De Laurentiis on an episode of the program "Iron Chef America," which featured the use of cranberries as the secret ingredient.

In November 2006, Ray became a spokesperson for Nabisco crackers. She appears in commercials and on boxes for the many Nabisco products. Many boxes with Ray's picture have recipes written by her.

The Oxford American College Dictionary will add the term EVOO, short for Extra Virgin Olive Oil, which Ray has helped popularize.

Ray announced on her show, on February 21, 2007, that a wax creation was made of her. This wax figure will be on display at Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum in New York City.

On March 18, 2007, Food Network debuted a Rachel Ray episode of their special Chefography series.

Criticisms

Some have criticized Ray's "perky" demeanor as well as her lack of a formal chef's education and perceived lack of seriousness about cooking. bCelebrity chef and Travel Channel personality Anthony Bourdain, who graduated from the Culinary Institute of America, has referred to her as a "bobblehead.”

In a Slate article defending Ray, Jill Hunter Pellettieri summarized some of these criticisms by writing: “Ray's ditzy demeanor also makes her easy to dismiss. She giggles off-cue and constantly praises her own cooking. "Smells awesome already!" she says, making her Snapper in a Snap. "I am so psyched about that." She employs kitschy abbreviations—EVOO means "extra virgin olive oil", and gives her dishes nicknames, such as "You-Won't-Be-Single-for-Long Vodka Cream Pasta." The acknowledgments in her $40 a Day cookbook read like a high-school yearbook: "Don …You are the tallest man we've ever had on crew, and yet you pack the smallest bag—ever! Cool." And, it didn't boost her credibility when she posed for pinup shots in FHM. (One featured Ray licking chocolate off a spoon.) When the magazine hit newsstands, she said, "I think it is kinda cool for someone who is goofy, and a cook, just a normal person to be thought of in that way.”

The "30 Minute Meals" concept has been criticized because Ray doesn't account for certain preparation times in the signature half-hour cooking time. Many of these preparations, such as pre-washing herbs and vegetables, are not meal-specific, and Ray counsels they should be done ahead of time. In the Slate article that otherwise mostly complimented her, author Pellettieri went through several of Ray's "30 Minute Meals" recipes and was unable to complete any meal in under half an hour.

Ray has indicated on her cooking show that it may take others over 30 minutes but the point being that it's still fast and simple. Despite describing her recipes as "figure-friendly," Ray does not provide nutritional information.

The New York Times has noted that one of the prices of her popularity has been an "anti-fan site," a LiveJournal page titled "Rachael Ray Sucks." The page's creator acknowledges that it was created partially in jest, and Ray herself has laughed it off.

Ludacris

2007-03-18T17:59:00.000-07:00

Ludacris

Christopher Brian Bridges (born on September 11, 1977), better known as Ludacris, is renowned for his knack for comic rhymes, a big voice, and a graphic artist's widescreen sensibility. Labeled one of the great singles artists of the new decade in hip-hop, this three-time Grammy Award-winning rapper and Screen Actors Guild Award-winning actor was born in Illinois and rode the early-2000s “Dirty South” movement to widespread popularity. His songs enjoyed substantial air-play, first by urban media outlets, then onto the more mainstream MTV and pop radio. In addition to connecting him with super-producers like Timbaland, The Neptunes, Organized Noize, and Def Jam Recordings which gave Ludacris a remarkable marketing push, Ludacris quickly became one of the rap industry's most in-demand rappers, doing cameos on hits for everyone from Missy Elliott ("One Minute Man") to Jermaine Dupri ("Welcome to Atlanta"), when he wasn't dominating the urban market with his own hits, most notably "What's Your Fantasy?," "Southern Hospitality," "Area Codes," and "Rollout (My Business)."

Since his debut album off his own record label, which made it on the Billboard 200, he went onto rule the charts with Chicken-N-Beer (2003), The Red Light District (2004), and his latest release Release Therapy (2006) all toping The Billboard 200 at #1, and with the single from his latest album topping The Billboard Hot Rap Tracks, and achieving #2 on the Billboard Hot 100.

He has also very successfully branched out into movies as well, where he received a plethora of critical praise for his roles in 2004’s Crash, and 2005’s Hustle & Flow; both of which went onto win multiple Oscars that year, including Best Picture, and Best Supporting Actor, respectively.

Early Life and Career

Born in Champaign, Illinois, and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, Ludacris attended Benjamin Banneker High in Atlanta, and Georgia State University. He comes from a musical family, and is the cousin of R&B singer Monica, and cousin to top-notch comedian, and recording artist, Katt Williams.

In order to make a name for himself in Atlanta, and to learn more about the recording industry, he initially found some success as a radio DJ known as Chris Luva Luva. He used the opportunity to hone his craft on the microphone and learn about the industry throughout the Atlanta area, which had become the South's rap mecca starting in the mid-'90s. Eventually, he began aspiring toward a career as a rapper rather than a radio personality. Ludacris then came across the opportunity to work with one of the record producing and hip hop music moguls, Timbaland; after appearing on Timbaland’s bio album (in the original version of "Fat Rabbit") in 1998, Ludacris began taking his rap career seriously.

Incongnegro: Early 2000

He recorded an album, Incognegro, which was released May 16, 2000 on his independent label, Disturbing tha Peace. Ludacris primarily worked with producer Shondrae for the album, though also with Organized Noize to a lesser extent. Though not a smash hit nationally, Incognegro sold impressively in Atlanta, where Ludacris was well known for his radio work. It reached #179 on the Billboard in August of 2000.

Soon after Incognegro became the talk of Atlanta and "What's Your Fantasy?" became a national hit, reaching #21 on The Billboard Hot 100 in 2000. Ludacris’s talent then caught the eye of Scarface, one of the south’s most admired rappers. The “Dirty South” movement was gaining steam, and Def Jam Recordings had given the veteran rapper the go-ahead to scout for talent in order to star a Def Jam South subsidiary. Ludacris subsequently became Scarface's first signing, and Def Jam Recordings repackaged the tracks from Incognegro, along with a few new productions: a U.G.K. collaboration ("Stick 'Em Up"), The Neptunes production ("Southern Hospitality"), and a remix of his previously released song with Timbaland (retitled "Phat Rabbit").

Back For The First Time: Late 2000

Ludacris’s major label debut was released in October of 2000, when Back for the First Time was put out by Def Jam Recordings; the label gave him a substantial marketing push, choosing "What's Your Fantasy?" (an explicit duet about sexual fantasies from both the male and female perspective) as the first single. Though some radio stations were hesitant to air such a provocative song, "What's Your Fantasy?" became an enormous success – as did, to a lesser extent, its even more provocative remix featuring Foxy Brown and Trina. “What’s Your Fantasy?” reached #4 on The Billboard Top 100 and the albums second single, “Southern Hospitality” hit #5 on the Hot Rap Singles, opening the door for countless other exceptionally explicit “Dirty South” songs that would soon become the norm rather than the exception (as most trends tend to do). “What’s Your Fantasy?” was supposedly loosely based on Ludacris’s brief relationship with Sessy Melia, the producer for Incognegro.

Back for the First Time was the beginning of Ludacris's explosion to the top of the rap world.

Word of Mouf: 2001 - 2002

Ludacris’s second release, Word of Mouf, released on November 6, 2001, was also a hit, and he rose in the ranks of young rappers in radio and MTV rotation. The album peaked at #3 in December on The Billboard Hot 100 chart; the album also produced three singles: “Saturday (Oooh! Oooh!),” which peaked at #22 on The Billboard Hot 100, and #10 on the Hot Rap Singles; “Roll Out (My Business),” which peaked at #17 on The Billboard Hot 100, and #7 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks; and finally, “Move B***h,” which reached #10 on The Billboard Hot 100, and #3 on both the Hot Rap Tracks, and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks. The video for the lead single, "Rollout (My Business)" was nominated for a 2002 Video Music Award, and Ludacris performed it live at the awards' pre-show.

Ironically, his career got a boost in 2002 when television’s moral watchdog, Bill O'Reilly expressed outrage that Pepsi had hired Ludacris as a spokesman. O'Reilly criticized Ludacris's foul language and called for a boycott of Pepsi, who then fired Ludacris and hired Ozzy Osbourne's family instead. This caused an ongoing controversy between the two.

Chicken-N-Beer: 2003

In 2003, Ludacris returned to the music scene after a brief hiatus with a new single, "Act A Fool" from the 2 Fast 2 Furious Soundtrack. At around the same time, he released the lead single from his upcoming album, Chicken-N-Beer, called "P-Poppin" (short for "Pussy Poppin'"). Neither of his new singles were as well-received by either the urban or pop audiences as his previous songs had been, and both music videos received only limited airplay.

On October 7, 2003, he released Chicken-N-Beer, which hit #1 on The Billboard 200, but without a popular single, the album fell quickly. However, the album rebounded with hit single, “Stand Up,” that reached #1 on not only The Billboard Hot 100, but also the Hot Rap Tracks, and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks, and went on to be become Ludacris' biggest mainstream hit to date, garnering heavy airplay on mainstream pop, rhythmic, and urban radio stations, as well as on MTV, MTV2, and BET.

Its second single, “Splash Waterfalls,” did not fair quite as well, but still held an impressive #6 on The Billboard Hot 100. The music video for “Splash Waterfalls,” was Ludacris's most sexually suggestive video yet and an R&B remix that featured Raphael Saadiq and sampled Tony! Toni! Tone!'s "Whatever You Want." Ludacris also received his first Grammy Award with Usher and Lil Jon for their hit single "Yeah."

Ludacris next released "Blow It Out," a gritty song with an urban, low-budget music video. It was a departure from the colorful, sensual, R&B leanings of "Splash Waterfalls." "Blow It Out" acted both as a response to the criticism levied by Bill O'Reilly and an attack on Pepsi's role in the affair: “Shout out to Bill O'Reilly, I'm'a throw you a curve / You mad cause I'm a thief and got away with words / I'm'a start my own beverage, it'll calm your nerves / Pepsi's the New Generation?—Blow it out cha ass!” The single peaked at #56 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks in 2004.

On June 1, 2006, a federal jury found that "Stand Up" did not infringe on the copyright of a song called "Straight Like That" by a New Jersey group known as I.O.F. He was quoted saying in an interview at the MTV Awards 2006, "I hope the plaintiffs enjoyed their 15 minutes of fame," Ludacris said after the verdict. "This whole experience is proof to me of why I will always fight for what I believe in."

The Red Light District: 2004

The Red Light District was released December 9, 2004; although not entirely different from the usual antics of the previous albums, Ludacris had taken a more mature approach to his album. Ludacris openly boasted that he might have been the only rapper able to keep Def Jam Recordings afloat on the opening track. Ludacris filmed and recorded the single "Get Back" wherein he was featured as a muscle-bound hulk who was being annoyed by the media and warned critics to leave him alone. He was featured on “Saturday Night Live” playing the song “Get Back” with Sum 41.

The follow-up single was the Austin Powers-inspired, "The Number One Spot." It was produced by New York City's Hot 97 personality DJ Green Lantern, and used Quincy Jones sample of "Soul Bossa Nova," which was sped-up to the tempo of Ludacris' rap flow. Ludacris also filmed the video in which he pokes fun at O'Reilly's problems with Andrea Mackris (Hi Mr. O'Reilly / Hope all is well kiss the plaintiff and the wifey). Production credits come also from veteran producers Timbaland, Lil' Jon, The Medicine Men, Chris Bridges (from Japan) and legendary rapper Doug E. Fresh. Featured artists on the album include Nas, DJ Quik, DMX, Trick Daddy, and Disturbing tha Peace newcomers Bobby Valentino (of Mista fame) and Dolla Boi and Small World. The album debuted at #1 on The Billboard 200.

Release Therapy: 2006

Prior to the release of Release Therapy, Ludacris produced a mixtape album called, Pre-Release Therapy: The Truth Shall Set You Free, which is presented by DJ Green Lantern. Although, Ludacris had previously been featured in his own mixtapes, this was the only mixtape album that focused on new vocals and unreleased appearances by Ludacris.

In addition, in 2006 he changed his look dramatically and began presenting himself as having grown from "the clown prince of rap" into a mature, respectable artist. He then went onto release the new album, Release Therapy, on September 26, 2006 and was back on the charts again with the single "Money Maker."

The hip-hop based magazine, XXL placed Ludacris in the #9 spot for the most anticipated albums of 2006, for Release Therapy. The album had two sides: a “Release” side and a “Therapy” side – the “Release” side having songs that allow him to vent and the “Therapy” side allowing him to relax (feel-good music). The first single, "Money Maker," which featured Pharrell Williams, was released to United States radio outlets on July 17. "Money Maker" reached #1 on the BET 106 & Park Countdown for the first time on September 15, 2006, and #1 on The Billboard Hot 100. Later, in October of 2006, the album reached #1 on The Billboard 200, with sales of more than 300,000 in its first week.

This album was also awarded Rap Album of the year during the 2007 Grammy Awards. With the release of this album, Ludacris marked a change in style in his career with his musical style. A change of hair accompanied this as he cut off his trademark braids for a more conventional "fade" cut. This was done to project a new image for the album: one of business and class.

Musical Technique

Ludacris is known for the immense style in his music, which is ultimately showcased on the first singles from each of his albums. Ludacris is also known for featuring on other artist’s songs, which then become more popular than his own songs from his albums. These songs include Ciara’s “Oh!” and Usher's “Yeah!” His flow ranges from rapping clearly and plainly in the beats of his songs to rapping with a cartoon-like behavior that is unlike to the style of many rap artists. He is more popular for his flow and style, rather than his lyrics, in which in many feature songs, Ludacris’s style contrasts much from the mainstream flow that many rappers follow. He is also known for vocals that stand out in his verses.

Acting Career

Ludacris first role was small: he played the “Customer” in the 2001 film, The Wash; though he gained more notoriety as an actor when he landed a small role in 2003’s 2 Fast 2 Furious, starring Paul Walker. However, his big break came in 2005, where he received critical praise for his roles in two Oscar-winning films: he played Skinny Black in the movie Hustle & Flow (2005, starring Terrence Howard) and had a small role in the drama Crash (2004, with Don Cheadle). Crash includes an ironic sequence where Ludacris's character is dismissive of hip-hop music. Interestingly, in both films, he is physically beaten by characters played by Terrence Howard. In these films, he is occasionally credited as "Chris 'Ludacris' Bridges.”

Not only did these roles give Ludacris a different level of respect amongst his audience and peers, but on January 29, 2006, Hollywood critics took notice and he was awarded with a Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Cast in a Motion Picture for his work in the film Crash. Ludacris also narrated the 2006 Ward Serrill basketball documentary, Heart of the Game.

On March 28, 2006 he appeared in an episode of “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.” Ludacris portrayed Darius Randall, the nephew of Detective Odafin Tutuola, portrayed by Ice T.

Ludacris also provided the voice for the character "Weathers" - a ferret, in the animated film Lil' Pimp in 2005; and he also finished wrapping a small part in the movie Fred Claus, starring Vince Vaughn and Paul Giamatti, where he plays the “Angry Elf,” which is currently in post-production. He is also filming for Def Jam: Icon, a video game that is in production and also includes other famous recording artists including, Russell Simmons, Ice-T, T.I., Method Man, Lil’ Jon and many more.

Controversy, Battles and Media Attention

Bill O'Reilly

In February of 2003, Bill O’Reilly, who is the host of his own right-winged, politically charged talk show, Fox News’s “The O'Reilly Factor,” called for all people to boycott Pepsi because they were using Ludacris as one of their celebrity sponsors; he proclaimed, “So I'm calling for all responsible Americans to fight back and punish Pepsi for using a man who degrades women, who encourages substance abuse, and does all the things that hurt particularly the poor in our society.”

Pepsi dropped Ludacris and instead signed the foul-mouthed, drug addled Osborne Family. In response, popular hip-hop music mogul Russell Simmons organized a boycott against the company. Simmons demanded an apology from Pepsi to Ludacris and a 5 million dollar donation to one of Ludacris' charities. Eventually, Simmons and Pepsi settled on an agreement to stop the boycott, before it officially began. While Pepsi did not formally apologize to Ludacris, they did agree to donate millions of dollars over several years to Russell Simmons Hip-Hop Summit Action Network.

Ludacris' song "Blow It Out" (from the Chicken-N-Beer album) acted as a scathing response to his critics, namely Bill O'Reilly. In another song, "Hoes in My Room", he tells a story about anonymous prostitutes being left in his room, and at the end of the last verse says: "Then it got to my head and Somethin' remind me / I know who let 'em in, it was Bill O'Reilly." Then, in 2004, in "Number 1 Spot": "Respected highly, Hi Mr. O'Reilly / Hope all is well, kiss the plaintiff and the wifey."

When Ludacris hosted “Saturday Night Live” in 2006, a sketch involved O'Reilly telling a Def Jam executive that he will boycott Def Jam if Ludacris isn't fired. O'Reilly, played by Darrell Hammond, says that although his boycotts have had the opposite effect of his intention, Def Jam's sales will decrease dramatically.

Upon winning the Grammy for Best Rap Album on February 11, 2007, Ludacris included in his thank-yous a "special shout-out to Bill O'Reilly." The following day, Bill O'Reilly responded on his show with a less than enthusiastic response. He soon began criticizing Ludacris' Grammy win - O'Reilly did not appreciate his lyrics.

Oprah Winfrey

In a 2006 interview with GQ magazine, Ludacris criticized Oprah Winfrey about his appearance on her show with the cast of the film Crash. During the interview, the conversation veered by Winfrey from the movie to Ludacris's lyrical content; he felt this was unfair as he was visiting her show in the capacity of an actor and not a rapper. Also, Ludacris was upset that some of his responses were later edited from the show's airing. He was later joined by other rappers such as 50 Cent, Ice Cube and Killer Mike who argued that Winfrey had an anti-hip hop bias.

Winfrey responded by saying that she's opposed to rap lyrics that "marginalize women," but enjoys some artists, including Jay-Z and Kanye West, who appeared on her show. She also said she spoke with Ludacris backstage after his appearance to explain her position and said she understood that his music was for entertainment purposes, but that some of his listeners might take it literally. Ludacris later said the media had blown his comments out of proportion and said he respects Winfrey and considers her "a great individual." At the 2007 Grammy Awards Ludacris gave a special shout-out to Oprah Winfrey; this time, however, not ironically, as he did with O'Reilly.

T.I.

In 2004, before the release of his debut album Straight Outta Ca$hville, Nashville native and G-Unit member Young Buck would enlist the services of fellow Atlanta emcee T.I., also known as T.I.P. in his native Bankhead neighborhood of west side Atlanta. They would create a track entitled "Stomp" amid growing tension between Buck's good friend Ludacris and T.I. On the track, T.I. takes covert shots at Ludacris including the line "me gettin' beat down, that's ludicrous." Buck, immediately sensing the tension, decided before releasing the track to notify Ludacris that T.I. had mentioned him since he didn't want to position himself as encouraging T.I.'s actions. Ludacris heard the track and asked Buck if he could add his own verse; to which Buck agreed. The results end up being costly for T.I., as he is berated throughout Ludacris' verse and called out by name in his last line. Representatives from T.I. notified Buck that T.I.'s vocals would not be cleared for the album unless T.I. is allowed to change his verse, and also have Ludacris change his. Buck refused this offer and T.I. prohibited his vocals from being used. Buck had Hypeman and fellow rapper D-Tay replace T.I. on the song; D-Tay himself was eventually replaced by Compton rapper The Game on the official release.

Although T.I. was removed, the street cut featuring him and Ludacris had already been leaked to DJs in Atlanta and New York City. T.I. was unable to stop the track's distribution throughout the streets of the nation at this point. It is widely accepted that T.I. "lost" this battle with Ludacris easily being the victor. The beef between Ludacris and T.I. was then put to an end behind closed doors as T.I. said that the problems between them have ceased.

However, in 2006, T.I. would release his highly anticipated fourth solo album entitled KING. In his Just Blaze produced track titled "I'm Talkin To You," T.I. lyrically attacks one or more unknown targets who have widely been speculated to be either Ludacris, New Orleans rapper Lil Wayne, or Houston rapper Lil' Flip (whom T.I. also had beef with but has since ended their animosity behind closed doors) or a combination of all three. It is still unknown whether or not T.I. was in fact battling Ludacris again or anyone else for that matter at all.

Others

In July of 2006, a track entitled "War with God" would see Ludacris return after some time off from music, and concentrating on movies instead. In the track, Ludacris goes on the offensive against an unknown rapper who has sold drugs, and makes repeated references to shooting guns in his songs, isn't as rich as he (Ludacris) and likes to give himself titles - all very well known characteristics and facts directly relating to T.I and Young Jeezy (or countless other less popular rappers) or the new coming rappers Yung Joc and Young Dro. In this instance, it also unknown whether or not Ludacris is indeed aiming his disses at Young Jeezy, T.I. or if the track is even a song recorded recently. Ludacris recently stated that the song was deeper than just a diss, and the song is more about him than anyone else, it's showing that he isn't just the “cartoon entertainer” type rapper that he has always been portrayed as, when asked about who specific rhymes were aimed at he said "The guilty will speak." The track was confirmed as a selection from Ludacris' album Release Therapy. "War with God" uses a beat written by Don Cheegro and Dirty Harry.

Charity Work and Activism

Ludacris founded The Ludacris Foundation, along with Chaka Zulu; it is an organization that helps young middle and high school students motivate themselves in creative arts.

Linkin Park

2007-03-17T13:34:00.000-07:00

Linkin Park

Linkin Park (born 1995) not only broke down barriers, with their blend of old-school hip-hop, traditional classic rock, and spooling electronic vibes, this alternative metal quintet crushed them. Their southern Californian musical roots were also an underlying basis, for drummer Rob Bourdon, guitarist Brad Delson, and MC/vocalist Mike Shinoda formed a tight friendship while still in high school. Shortly after graduation, art student and DJ Joseph Hahn hooked up with bassist Dave "Phoenix" Farrell and Shinoda. After sometime of struggling for representation, the two-time Grammy Award winning “nu metal” band from Los Angeles, California, often credited with being the most successful exponent of the nu metal genre, went onto produce their debut album Hybrid Thoery, which was released in 2000.

It took a little while for audiences to truly recognize the innovation and talent Linkin Park had to offer, but they did with enthusiasm, when in January of 2002 (2 years after its initial release), Linkin Park's first album reached #1 on the Billboard Top 200 chart. Since then they had created a string of successful records, delving into all sorts of cutting-edge mediums, such as their computer graphics based and anime videos, their elaborate tours, and even their collaborations with Jay-Z, which thrust the concept of the “mashup” into the ears of music fans, and moguls alike.

With their next album Minutes to Midnight will be released on May 8, 2007, the world better be ready for what’s coming next.

Early Life

The lineage of Linkin Park all started in 1995 when rapper and MC Mike Shinoda and guitarist Brad Delson graduated from Agoura High School in the Los Angeles suburb of Agoura Hills, California. Upon graduation, they formed a side band with their friend, drummer Rob Bourdon, under the moniker Xero. Previously, Delson and Bourdon were both in previous bands.

The three members of Xero played novice forms of their music together while at college. Delson attended the University of California, Los Angeles. Shinoda went to the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. While at UCLA, Delson met bassist Dave Farrell. D elson and Farrell were roommates and often practiced and played together. Previously, Farrell played in a band called Tasty Snax, or The Snax with Mark Fiore, who later became Linkin Park's cinematographer.

While at the Art Center College of Design, Shinoda met Joseph Hahn. Farrell and Hahn later joined Xero. The five men were later joined by lead vocalist Mark Wakefield (who had attended high school with Delson and Shinoda) and, together, they recorded their first, self-titled demo tape. The tape was sent out to various record labels but it was never considered and the band was never signed. Shortly thereafter, Wakefield left the band and became a manager for Taproot.

When Wakefield left, Shinoda began auditioning for a new vocalist and at the same time Delson began interning for a Warner Brothers Records A&R representative named Jeff Blue as part of his communications degree. Blue alerted Delson and Shinoda to Chester Bennington, a young vocalist from Phoenix, Arizona who was looking to joining another band, after being the vocalist for Grey Daze from 1993 to 1997.

Shinoda and Delson sent Bennington a tape containing instrumentation for a song; Bennington then recorded vocals for it and called Shinoda, playing the song for him over the phone. This was the start of things to come as the band was instantly impressed by the vocal abilities of Bennington and it did not take long to realize the advantages of his voice and his ability to mold it to be both soft and thought-provoking as well as hard and attention-grabbing.

Once Bennington had joined the group, they attempted to have the band signed. Unfortunately, the name was already taken by a 70s and 80s band from Australia so they changed their name to Hybrid Theory and the band's line-up solidified — almost. Farrell temporarily left the band due to previous commitments with The Snax/Tasty Snax and, as such, wasn't able to record bass for their first, self-titled EP. Instead, Delson and a bassist named Kyle Christner played bass. Released in mid-1999, only one thousand copies of Hybrid Theory EP were pressed. Several copies were sent to various record labels, including Warner Bros. Records. The rest of the copies were given to early members of the band's newly formed street team. Farrell was temporarily replaced by Scott Koziol. Scott appears in the video for "One Step Closer" from the Hybrid Theory album.

The band was subsequently signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1999 thanks to Blue. However, they were forced to change their name again due to a trademark issue with a British electronic group called Hybrid. After they went through several rounds of brain storming new names (Clear, Probing Lagers, Ten P.M. Stocker), Bennington eventually suggested the use of the name "Lincoln Park" because he would drive by it in Santa Monica, California (now known as Christine Reed Park). They changed it to Linkin park, because the domain name LincolnPark.com was already taken.

Hybrid Theory: Early 2000s

On October 24, 2000, Linkin Park's debut album, Hybrid Theory, was released in the United States. The only track cut from the album was the remake of "High Voltage," a hip hop song that appeared on the Hybrid Theory EP. Several songs from the EP were re-recorded as demos for Hybrid Theory, but it is unknown whether the tracks will ever appear as official B-sides or not. Their debut album has sold 24 million copies world wide as of October 2006, and its first single was "One Step Closer.” The album eventually peaked on the Billboard 200 Chart at #2 in January of 2002, and the single “One Step Closer,” reached #5 on the Billboard Modern Rock Chart.

The band performed in its first nationally-recognized concert on December 17, 2000 as a part of KROQ Radio's Almost Acoustic Christmas concert special. Shinoda wrote a new song entitled "My December" for the occasion. The song was released as a B-side on the single for One Step Closer and on several versions of Hybrid Theory released internationally. It was later featured on a Christmas album released by KROQ DJs Kevin and Bean.

In early 2001, Farrell joined Linkin Park once again and the band's second single, "Crawling," was released and won the band a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance in 2002. The band embarked on its first ever national festival tour, the Ozzfest, with other acts such as Black Sabbath, Marilyn Manson, Slipknot, and Zack Wylde's Black Label Society.

In mid-2001, the band released its third single, "In the End." The song would prove to be the band's biggest hit and was one of the most-spun songs of 2001. The video for the song was directed by Nathan "Karma" Cox and Hahn, and featured the band playing atop a gigantic statue in the rain. The video contained almost all computer graphics, which was much more than most music videos at the time. The single, “In the End” reached #1 of the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks in 2001.

On November 21, 2001, the band released its first DVD titled Frat Party at the Pankake Festival. The DVD featured all of the band's videos up to this point in their career and featured a documentary of the band touring in support of Hybrid Theory. There are also a lot of hidden Easter eggs allowing viewers to access hidden videos on the DVD, including a 1999 garage-like performance of a demo of "Esaul" later redone and renamed "A Place For My Head".

In early 2002, the band put together its first headlining tour called Projekt Revolution. The first leg of the tour featured Adema, Cypress Hill, the Apex Theory, and DJ Z-Trip. During the course of the tour, Shinoda and Hahn collaborated with The X-Ecutioners on the song "It's Goin' Down." Shortly after the tour ended, the band headed back to the studio for the first time since early 2000. After being sent several remixes of Linkin Park songs, Shinoda decided to release a remix album. Initially, Shinoda only wanted to remix a couple of songs and release an EP. However, thanks to encouragement from his bandmates (Delson and Hahn especially), Shinoda decided to take the project a step further.

Reanimation: 2002

The project, which would take on the name Reanimation, featured one remix for each song from Hybrid Theory, as well as remixes of the songs "My December" and "High Voltage." Each song was remixed by a different artist and there were rumors that there were over fifty remixes that Shinoda received during the course of the project. Shinoda went through and listened to each remix, hand-picking the best ones. Only two of the remixes that didn't make the album were ever released, those being the Crystal Method's remix of "Points of Authority" (featured on the second CD issued to the LPU) and Marilyn Manson's remix of "By Myself." The only other confirmed remix was of "My December" by Team Sleep. The remix was turned away because it made the song even darker; Shinoda went with the version on the CD because it made the song seem more up-beat and happier. Artists featured on the album include Chali 2na of Jurassic 5, Stephen Richards of Taproot, Kelli Ali of Sneaker Pimps, and many more. The project was released on July 30, 2002, and its first and only single was "Pts.Of.Athrty" ("Points of Authority") remixed by Jay Gordon.

Meteora: Late 2002 - 2003

The band headed back to the studio in mid-2002 to record their follow-up to Hybrid Theory. The album's first single, "Somewhere I Belong," was released in February of 2003 to critical acclaim. On March 25, 2003, Meteora was released and debuted at #1 on The Billboard 200 in April 2003 after selling 810,000 copies in its first week. It has sold nearly 11 million copies worldwide, and more than half of that in the United States alone.

Following the release of the album, the band embarked on its second Projekt Revolution tour with Blindside, Mudvayne and Xzibit. "Faint" was released as a single toward the end of the tour. Following the second Projekt Revolution, the band joined Metallica on their Summer Sanitarium Tour 2003. The band also headlined on the 2003 Reading Festival in the United Kingdom with co-headliner Blink-182, playing a highly energetic set to some 65,000 fans.

Shortly after the Sanitarium tour came to a close, the band released "Numb" as a single. They shot a video for the single in Prague, Czech Republic while simultaneously shooting a video for the song "From the Inside."

Live In Texas: 2003

On November 18, 2003, Linkin Park released a brand-new DVD/CD live set entitled Live in Texas. The footage was shot while on the Summer Sanitarium tour in Dallas and Houston, Texas. The DVD featured seventeen songs and the CD featured a selection of twelve of those.

At the end of 2003, the band performed at its third KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas concert. They headlined night one and played a seventeen-song set. At the end of Linkin Park's set, they played "One Step Closer" and were joined on stage by P.O.D.'s frontman, Sonny Sandoval.

Meteora World Tour and Collision Course: 2004

At the beginning of 2004, the band set off on its Meteora World Tour with P.O.D., Hoobastank and Story of the Year. The band claimed that this was the final leg of the world-wide tour that the band had been on since Meteora was released.

During the tour, the band's video for "From the Inside" was released internationally, after they finished their stint on the road, the band began work on their most ambitious music video to date for their single "Breaking the Habit”; it featured Japanese-style animation by the same studio that created the animated scenes in Kill Bill; the video was directed by Kazuto Nakazawa and Hahn.

Linkin Park then set off on its third Projekt Revolution tour. The tour featured two stages, and a substantial lineup including, Korn, Snoop Dogg, The Used and Less Than Jake, and many others; Projekt Revolution was the biggest-selling tour of 2004.

At the end of 2004, Linkin Park announced a collaboration with Jay-Z; the EP called Collision Course, was released on November 30, and featured "mashups" (a musical genre of songs that consist entirely of parts of other songs) of seven Linkin Park songs and six Jay-Z songs. The first single, "Numb/Encore," peaked at #20 on the Billboard Charts and remained in the charts for six months, going on to win a Grammy. The album itself debuted at #1 on the Billboard Charts.

Music for Relief, Fort Minor: 2005

The year 2005 marked a rather quiet year for Linkin Park. The band established Music for Relief, an organization dedicated to helping those affected by the 2004 Indian tsunami. The band played two shows in 2005, one in California for Music for Relief, and one during the Live 8 series of concerts at the Philadelphia, PA venue. In May, the band demanded to be released from its contract with Warner Bros. on the grounds of "a lack of confidence." The band was recently in negotiations with the label over a new record contract. Linkin Park had four albums left outstanding on its 2000 record contract. In December 2005, the band announced that they had finally reached a settlement with Warner Bros. Records.

Solo Ventures and Minutes to Midnight: 2005 – Present

In July, Shinoda announced a hip-hop side project called Fort Minor. Shinoda explained the project as a way for him to return to his hip-hop roots. Shortly after Shinoda's announcement of Fort Minor, Bennington was also revealed to be working on a solo project of his own. The project features Amir Derakh and Ryan Shuck of Orgy both playing guitar (as well as producing). Little is known about Bennington's side project other than its name, Snow White Tan.

In December of 2005, Shinoda was confirmed as the co-producer for the next Linkin Park album. On February 8, 2006, the band announced the producer for their third studio album would be Rick Rubin, who has worked with such bands as The Beastie Boys, Red Hot Chili Peppers, System of a Down and many others.

During the Grammy Award Ceremony 2006, Linkin Park joined with Jay-Z and Paul McCartney, where they performed the song "Numb/Encore/Yesterday." The band went on to win a Grammy award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration.

Linkin Park spent the majority of 2006 writing and recording their third album, and in various interview described the musical direction of the album. Lead singer Bennington stated "we're straying away from a lot of the predictable sounds we've had in the past, but there's no question in your mind when you hear it that it's Linkin Park... We've always said we write the music we write so that we can spread our wings as far as we want and try new things and go anywhere. I think we're really going to prove that with this new record." Regarding album co-producer Rick Rubin, Shinoda stated, "Rick is one of those guys where you can go through any door you want to go through. We're trying everything, just messing around with it until it sounds good.”

It was announced that their next album, entitled Minutes to Midnight will be released on May 8, 2007.

Fan Club (LPU)

Linkin Park has a very devoted and diligent fan base; they were given a name to their cause when in November of 2001, a friend of the band, Jessica Bardas, suggested the concept of fan club. The club called the” Linkin Park Underground (LPU),” gives members a package every year containing a T-shirt, a CD and several odds and ends, including guitar picks, stickers and posters. The first CD featured was a re-issue of Hybrid Theory EP, with new artwork.

In November of 2002, the second edition of the LPU launched as "Underground 2.0" and the second package was revealed. The new fan club-only EP features the Crystal Method's remix of "Points of Authority" and a song called "Dedicated,” which is thought to have been cut from the Hybrid Theory EP. Also included is a fifty-second instrumental track entitled "A.06.” It was originally a demo for their future studio album, Meteora.

In November of 2003, the third edition of the LPU was sent out. The package's CD contained the five tracks that were cut from the Live in Texas DVD for its CD. This did not sit well with many fan club members, who claimed that the band should have placed rare songs on the CD (as with year two) instead of the live tracks.

The fourth edition of the LPU launched in November. The CD that shipped with the package featured two new songs; one was a roughly two-minute long instrumental piece called "Sold My Soul to Yo Mama" by Mr. Hahn, and the other a song called "Standing in the Middle", a collaboration with Motion Man. "Standing in the Middle" was originally recorded in 2001 as a "practice" song for Reanimation. Motion Man was eventually featured on Kutmasta Kurt's reinterpretation of "In the End."

Linkin Park's fifth installment of the LPU fan club launched on November 21, 2005. The CD shipped with the fifth fan club package featured live tracks from the band's performance during Live 8 plus several songs with Jay-Z.

Linkin Park Underground volume 6, Limited Edition Fan Club CD included a Linkin Park performed live in August 2006 at Summer Sonic, hosted by Metallica in Japan. A new song, tentatively codenamed "QWERTY" and also referred in various websites as “Behind Your Lies,” leaked on numerous websites after being played at the concert. "QWERTY" (live and studio version), “Reading My Eyes” (live) and other exclusive live and studio tracks were released on the fan club CD.

Evanescence

2007-03-17T10:50:00.000-07:00

Evanescence

Evanescence (born 1998) is the two-time Grammy Award-winning band that is defined by the lead singer, Amy Lee's beautiful melodies, compelling lyrics, poignant piano and stunning vocals, fused with Terry Balsamo's urgent, yet intricate guitar, to form a seamless, ethereal mixture that perfectly channels the band's hard rock and classical sensibilities. This goth-inspired enigma was founded in Little Rock, Arkansas by singer Amy Lee and former guitarist Ben Moody, after recording two private EPs, and a demo CD named Origin with the help of Bigwig Enterprises, the band released their first full-length album, Fallen, on the Wind-up Records label in 2003 – it went onto sell more than 14 million copies worldwide. After abrupt changes to the band's lineup due to creative differences, and other, Evanescence released their second studio album, The Open Door, which shot straight to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August of 2006.

The inherent drama in Evanescence's music - a kind of audio odyssey that can turn on a dime from piano-led introspection to hammering guitar - has resonated with listeners everywhere.

Early Life

Evanescence was founded by singer, pianist and songwriter Amy Lee and former lead guitarist and songwriter Ben Moody. The two met at a youth camp in Little Rock, Arkansas, where Moody heard Lee playing "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)" by Meat Loaf on the piano. Their first songs were "Solitude" and "Give Unto Me," written by Lee, and "Understanding" and "My Immortal," written by Moody. The songs were edited by both artists, and they shared equal credit.

The band's evolving sound - a nearly mystical marriage between rock, goth and classical - was informed by a curious duality. Lee, who spent nine years studying classical piano, explains, "When I was in high school I listened to a lot of death metal bands. Both genres are intricate, complex types of music that are very dramatic, and I'm naturally drawn to that."

Two of Lee and Moody's songs found playtime on local radio stations, raising local awareness of the group and demand for a show. The band eventually appeared live, and became one of the most popular acts in the area. A fter experimenting with band names, such as "Childish Intentions" and "Stricken," they decided on Evanescence, which means "disappearance" or "fading away" (from the word evanesce, which means "to disappear"). Lee has stated she loves the name because it is mysterious and dark, and places a picture in the listeners' mind.

Their first full-length demo CD, Origin (released in 2000), is relatively unknown. The band also released two Extended plays (EPs). First, the self-titled Evanescence EP (1998) of which about 100 copies were made, and second the Sound Asleep EP, also known as the Whisper EP (1999), limited to 50 copies. Origin and the EPs contain demo versions of some of the songs on their debut album, Fallen. For example, the recording of "My Immortal" found on Fallen can also be found on Origin, minus a handful of additional string accompaniments. Only 2,500 copies of this record were produced; in response, Lee and Moody encouraged fans to download the band's older songs from the Internet.

Fallen: 2003

In early 2003, the lineup was completed by Amy Lee and Ben Moody's friends, John LeCompt, Rocky Gray and Will Boyd, all of whom worked on Evanescence's earlier songs. Meanwhile, Evanescence signed on with their first major label, Wind-up Records, and began work on their next album, Fallen. While looking to promote Fallen, the video game company Nintendo offered the band to perform on the "Nintendo Fusion Tour." Evanescence accepted the offer and became the headlining band for the 2003 Fusion Tour.

Fallen spent 43 weeks on the Billboard Top 10; has been certified 6 times Platinum; and has sold more than 14 million copies worldwide, including 6.6 million in the United States. The album was listed for 104 weeks on the Billboard top 200, and it was one of eight albums in the history of the chart to spend at least a year on the Billboard Top 50.

Evanescence's major label debut single "Bring Me to Life," which features guest vocals from Paul McCoy of 12 Stones, was a global hit for the band and reached #5 on the United States Billboard Hot 100. It provided Evanescence with their first United Kingdom #1 listing, where it stayed for four weeks from June to July 2003. The song also became the official theme for WWE's "No Way Out." The equally popular "My Immortal" peaked at #7 in the United States and United Kingdom charts, and both songs were featured in the soundtrack for the action movie Daredevil. "Bring Me to Life" garnered recognition for the band at the Grammy Awards of 2004, where the band was given the Best Hard Rock Performance and Best New Artist awards. The two other singles off Fallen are "Going Under" (#5 United States Modern Rock Tracks, #8 United Kingdom Charts) and "Everybody's Fool" (#36 United States Modern Rock Tracks, #23 United Kingdom Charts); both were promoted by a music video.

Lineup Changes - Anywhere but Home: 2004

On October 22, 2003, Moody left the band during the European tour for Fallen, reportedly because of creative differences. In an interview several months later, Amy Lee said: "...we'd gotten to a point that if something didn't change, we wouldn't have been able to make a second record." Many people were confused by this statement, because in their Fallen album cover they state each other as best friends. Since then, Lee has said it was almost a relief that he left because of tensions created within the band. Moody was replaced by Terry Balsamo from Cold.

In 2004, Evanescence's new lineup released a DVD/CD compilation entitled Anywhere but Home. The DVD includes a concert in Paris, as well as behind-the-scenes features, including shots of the band backstage, signing autographs, and warming up. The CD contains a previously unreleased song entitled "Missing", which was internationally released as a single that reached #1 in Spain. Also on the CD are the live songs "Breathe No More" (the album version being from the Elektra movie soundtrack), "Farther Away," and the band's cover of Korn's "Thoughtless."

On July 14, 2006, it was confirmed by a spokesperson for the band's label that bassist Will Boyd had left the band for "not wanting to do another big tour" and wanting "to be close to his family." Amy Lee originally broke the news to the fans in a post on an unofficial Evanescence site, EvBoard.com. In an interview with MTV, posted on their website on August 10, 2006, Lee announced that Tim McCord, former Revolution Smile guitarist, would switch instruments and play bass for the band.

The Open Door: 2006

To promote the release of the band's second album, The Open Door, Amy Lee and John LeCompt visited capital cities in Europe. Previews took place in London, England on September 6, 2006; Barcelona, Spain on September 8, 2006; and Paris, France on Monday, September 11, 2006. At the previews, the new album was played to fans who were the winners of various competitions, a short Q&A took place, and Lee and LeCompt performed acoustic tracks from the album before doing a signing session. On October 2, 2006, the day before the album was released in the United States, Evanescence appeared on “Late Night with Conan O'Brien” and performed the song "Call Me When You're Sober" for Conan O’Brien and his audience. The band also spent time in New York City for press and a photo shoot for Metal Edge magazine.

The 13-track album, The Open Door, was released in Canada and the United States on October 3, 2006; the United Kingdom on October 2, 2006; and Australia on September 30, 2006. The album sold 447,000 copies in the United States in its first week of sales and earned their first #1 ranking on the Billboard 200 album chart, becoming the 700th #1 debut in Billboard history.

The album progressed slowly for several reasons, including Amy Lee's desire to maximize the creative process and not rush production, other band members' side projects, guitarist Terry Balsamo's stroke, and the controversy surrounding the dismissal of their former manager.

Although Lee stated on Evboard that Evanescence's new album would be completed in March 2006, the release was pushed to October 3, 2006, allegedly because "Wind-up Records...wanted to make a few changes to the upcoming single "Call Me When You're Sober," which hit modern rock and alternative rock radio on August 7, 2006. The music video for "Call Me When You're Sober" was shot in Los Angeles and is based on the fairy tale “Little Red Riding Hood”; it was directed by Marc Webb; lead male character featured in the video is British actor Oliver Goodwill. The Open Door became available for pre-order on the iTunes Music Store on August 15, 2006.

Amy Lee confirmed that she wrote a song for the 2005 film version of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe released by Disney, but it was rejected due to its dark sound. Lee, however, said it was just "more great stuff for the album." Another song which was written for the Narnia movie did make it onto the album, the Mozart-inspired "Lacrymosa.”

The tour for the album began on October 5, 2006 in Toronto and included locations in Canada, the United States and Europe during 2006. The tour continued on January 5, 2007 and included stops in Canada (alongside band Stone Sour), Japan and Australia (alongside band Shihad) and will return to the United States for a second tour (alongside bands Chevelle and Finger Eleven).

"Call Me When You're Sober": Inspiration From A Dark Place

The inspiration for the single, “Call Me When You're Sober,” off the their 2006 album, The Open Door, was made clear after Amy Lee's former boyfriend, Seether frontman Shaun Morgan, checked himself into rehab for "unspecified problems" in late July 2006. L ee stated that she's not worried about listeners knowing what inspired the song: “‘Call Me When You're Sober' says something that's impossible to hide from. I'm stuck with everyone knowing exactly what I'm talking about. And if there's consequences for that, which there are, then I have to face them. But it's true, and it really happened, and it meant so much to me and felt so good to just blurt it out that it was worth it. And I think it's a really great song and I'm really proud of it. ”

In response, Morgan has said: “ It saddens me that our whole relationship was reduced to that. That, you know, almost three years we spent together comes down to 'Oh, woe is me, you don't care about me.' I'm disappointed that that's all that really mattered. I'm kind of irritated that our dirty laundry had to be aired, you know, all over the world. I wouldn't do that to somebody.”
Morgan was discharged August 28, 2006, according to Seether's publicist.

Christian Controversy

Originally promoted in Christian stores, the band eventually made it clear they did not want to be considered as part of the Christian rock genre. Wind-up Records chairman Alan Meltzer issued a press release in April 2003 asking for the band's music to be removed from Christian retail outlets.

During a 2003 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Ben Moody stated, "We're actually high on the Christian charts, and I'm like, What the f--k are we even doing there?" This seemed to go against earlier sentiments by Moody that "We hope to express in our music that Christianity is not a rigid list of rules to follow..." and also "The message we as a band want to convey more than anything is simple—God is Love." This has led to criticism of the band within the Christian community, even more so given that the band themselves approved of the plan to distribute Fallen to the Christian market. Terry Hemmings, CEO of Christian music distributor Provident, expressed puzzlement at the band's about-face, saying "They clearly understood the album would be sold in these [Christian music] channels." Ex-vocalist and keyboardist David Hodges eventually left the band over the controversy, with other members stating that he had been pulling them in more of a Christian direction than Lee and Moody were comfortable with.

When asked by Billboard in 2006 if Evanescence was a "Christian band," Amy Lee responded, "Can we please skip the Christian thing? I'm so over it. It's the lamest thing. I fought that from the beginning; I never wanted to be associated with it. It was a Ben thing. It's over."

Jennifer Lopez

2007-03-17T08:51:00.000-07:00

Jennifer Lopez

Jennifer Lynn Lopez (born July 24, 1969), popularly nicknamed J.Lo, has gone onto be one of the most successful "triple-threat" (acting, singing, modeling) icons of our time; and given that she is of Puerto Rican disent, she has become the most powerful female Latin-American entertainer in the world, earning in the tens-of-millions for her movie roles. This Golden Globe Award-nominated American actress, Grammy Award-nominated singer, songwriter, dancer, and fashion designer known internationally for her beauty and bountiful backside, broke out in her first starring role as fellow Hispanic singer Selena in the movie based on her life, she has graced the silver screen in several multi-million dollar movies, and created numerous albums over the course of her 10-plus year career.

She has also become an icon in American culture for everything from the infamous dress worn to the Grammy Awards in 1998, to her monumentally high-profile relationship with Ben Affleck, where the nickname “Bennifer” came about, to hundreds of debates about the size of her butt, the woman has ruled every facet of media, and made sure she’s always on top. .

According to Forbes magazine, she is the richest Latin American in Hollywood; and, People en Español named her the most influential Hispanic entertainer in America, and one of the 100 Most Influential Hispanics, which pays tribute to Hispanics who have had an impact on their communities.

Early Life

Born to Puerto Rican parents, Guadalupe Rodríguez, a kindergarten teacher, and David Lopez, a computer programmer, Lopez was raised in the Castle Hill neighborhood in the Bronx, New York City, New York, where she spent her entire academic career in Catholic schools. Jennifer is the middle of three daughters. Her elder sister, Leslie, is a housewife who sings opera. Her younger sister, Lynda, is a DJ on New York's WKTU, a VH1 VJ., and a morning news show correspondent on New York's Channel 11. Jennifer's parents were born in Puerto Rico, but did not meet until both came to America. Her mother's parents were Europeans who settled in Puerto Rico. She says that it was her parents' work ethic that made a difference in her life. Jennifer took singing and dancing lessons from age 5, and she attended 12 years of Catholic school, including an all-girl high school, where she played softball, tennis and was also a gymnast.
The young Lopez always dreamed of becoming a performer, and with talents in singing and dancing, Lopez began performing in stage musicals, dancing in a European tour of Golden Musicals of Broadway, a Japanese tour of Synchronicity, and local productions of Oklahoma and Jesus Christ Superstar.

Early Career

She began financing singing and dancing lessons for herself from the age of nineteen. After leaving a one-semester career at Baruch College, Lopez divided her time between working in a legal office, dance classes, and dance performances in Manhattan clubs at night. After months of auditioning for dance roles, Lopez was selected as a dancer for various rap artists' music videos, and was given a guest spot at the American Music Awards as a backup dancer for the New Kids on the Block and their performance of their song "Games" in 1991.

After being rejected for the gig twice, Lopez gained her first regular high-profile gig as a "Fly Girl" dancer on the television comedy program “In Living Color” in 1991. What Lopez was really itching to do was act, but she stuck around on “In Living Color” for a short while, following producer Keenan Ivory Wayans' advice. Jim Carrey was not the only star in the making on “In Living Color”; Lopez was yet to arrive on the scene. Jennifer's "Fly Girl" role led to more roles on the small screen.

Soon after, Lopez became a backup dancer for famed singer Janet Jackson and made an appearance in her 1993 video "That's the Way Love Goes”; and she also landed a recurring role on FOX's short-lived series “South Central” after one of her “In Living Color” co-workers referred her to her South Central writer and producer husband. Although the show did not last very long, Lopez was seen on television again, this time as "Melinda Lopez" in the made-for-TV movie, Second Chances. Her portrayal of the part was so impressive that big-league producer Aaron Spelling wanted to continue the role on another one of his series, “Malibu Shores.” After appearing in a mere few episodes, Lopez refused to develop the deal further (the show was axed anyhow), with the hopes of taking her talents to the silver screen.

One more made-for-TV role can be seen on Jennifer's resume; Rosie the nurse, in the 1993 movie Nurses on the Line: The Crash of Flight 7. Her role in the 1995 film Mi Familia, about the lives of Mexican immigrants in Los Angeles from the 1930s to today, was the role which showed filmmakers that this Latin beauty was serious about acting.

Film Acting Career

One year later, Jennifer played roles in Francis Ford Coppola's 1996 comedy Jack starring Robin Williams, beating out Ashley Judd for the role. In her next film role, riding the Money Train with Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes, she was the only one to receive positive reviews in a film that may have well tipped off the tracks. Lopez also played in the 1997 thriller Blood and Wine with Jack Nicholson.

Having already worked with Jennifer in the critically-acclaimed Mi Familia, Gregory Nava asked Lopez to audition for his 1997 biopic on the slain Tejano singer, Selena, who’s life was tragically cut short when she was killed by an obsessive fan cum stalker. After an intense auditioning process, Jennifer won the role that would make her a star. Lopez was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy in 1998.

She was chosen by "People" magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World in 1997.

She also became the first Latin actress to get paid $1 million or more for a film role. Some of her other critically-acclaimed films include Selena in 1997, Out of Sight in 1998 with George Clooney, the mind-bending thriller, The Cell in 2000 with Vincent D’Onofrio, and 2005’s An Unfinished Life with Robert Redford. Lopez's performances were critically less well-received, however financially successful in the films The Wedding Planner with Matthew McConaughey in 2001 , Maid in Manhattan costarring Ralph Fiennes in 2002, which grossed $94,011,225, 2005’s Monster-in-Law with onscreen (and possibly off-screen) nemesis, Jane Fonda. Lopez received $15,000,000 for her role in Monster-in-Law, and 2004’s Shall We Dance? costarring Richard Gere and Susan Sarandon, which grossed $112,238,000 at the international box office. Domestically, Shall We Dance? grossed $57,890,460 for a total of $170,128,460 in worldwide tally: her largest box office gross to date.

She also starred in one of the worst movies of all time in 2002, entitled Gigli; a movie on which she met her current ex-fiancé, Ben Affleck, and a movie that was panned by critics, fans, friends, and even the stars themselves. After four unsuccessful previous nominations, she won the worst actress Razzie for Gigli in 2003.

Lopez also guest-starred in the sixth season finale of “Will & Grace” in 2004, playing herself.

At this time, Lopez became is the first actress-singer to have a film (The Wedding Planner) and an album (J. Lo) at number one in the same week.

Lopez has finished shooting two new independent films: Bordertown with Antonio Banderas and El Cantante with her husband, Marc Anthony, and which is based on the life story of Hector Lavoe, who started the salsa movement in 1975 and brought it to the United States. El Cantante was shown at the Toronto International Film Festival where it got positive reviews. Bordertown was shown at the Brussels Film Festival.

It was also announced that she will be starring in the movie, The Governess, which is a comedy that will be released in 2008.

Despite not having a film that grossed over $100 million domestically, Lopez is one of the highest-paid actresses in Hollywood and also the highest-paid Latin actress in Hollywood history, partly because of the moderate success of her films.

Upcoming Project: Reality Television

In May 2006, MTV gave the green-light on her executively-produced reality show, “DanceLife.” The show will follow the lives of six aspiring dancers as their struggle to make it in the competitive world of professional dance. Lopez, who took an active role in selecting the show's participants, is also slated to make cameo appearances over the course of the season and the show's eight-episode run began on January 15, 2007.

The producer of the Oscar nominated hit movie Dreamgirls, Laurence Mark, expressed his desire to work with Lopez, who presented him an award at the 2007 Golden Globe Awards. "It would enchant to me to continue making musical and in special making a musical comedy with Jennifer Lopez".

In addition, Lopez will make an appearance as a performer and a mentor on "American Idol" on April 11, 2007.

Music Career

Lopez has sold over forty-eight million records worldwide.

On the 6: 1999

Lopez's debut album On the 6, a reference to the 6 subway line she used to take growing up in Castle Hill, was released on June 1, 1999, and reached the top ten of the Billboard 200. The album featured the multi-week Billboard Hot 100 number-one lead single, "If You Had My Love," as well as the top ten hit "Waiting for Tonight." It also contained the Spanish-language, Latin-flavored duet "No Me Ames" with Marc Anthony. Though "No Me Ames" never had a commercial release, it reached number one on the United States Hot Latin Tracks. Despite this, the music video for "No Me Ames" received moderate airplay on the music channels VH1 (United States) and The Box (United Kingdom).

On the 6 also featured guest artists such as Big Pun and Fat Joe on the track "Feelin' So Good", which failed to make the top fifty of the Billboard Hot 100. "Let's Get Loud", the final single, earned Lopez a Grammy Award nomination in the "Best Dance Recording" category in 2001. "Waiting for Tonight" was nominated for the same category the previous year. "No Me Ames" received two nominations at the 2000 Latin Grammy Awards — Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and Best Music Video. On the 6, her debut album went 6 times platinum.

In 1999, she won the VH1/Vogue Fashion Award for Most Fashionable Female Artist. She also received a Latin Grammy nomination and won the Billboard Latin Award for a duet she did with Marc Anthony ("No Me Ames"), as well as the MTV Video Music Award for Best Dance Video, for "Waiting For Tonight," in 2000.

Interestingly enough, years before they married (or even became a couple), she and Marc Anthony sang a song together called "No Me Ames" which appeared on her album On the 6.

J. Lo: 2001

Lopez's second album, J. Lo, was released on January 23, 2001 and debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. The lead single, "Love Don't Cost a Thing," was her first number-one single in the United Kingdom and took her into the top five on the United States Billboard Hot 100. The song was believed to be based on her recently ex-boyfriend, P. Diddy, or Sean Combs. She followed it up with "Play" which gave her another top twenty hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and reached number three in the United Kingdom. Her next two singles were "I'm Real" and "Ain't It Funny" which were quickly rising up the charts. To capitalize on this, Lopez asked The Inc. Records (then known as Murder Inc.) to remix both songs, which featured rap artists Ja Rule (on both) and Caddillac Tah (on the "Ain't It Funny" remix). Both remixes reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for several weeks. She re-released J. Lo on her thirty-second birthday with the remix of "I'm Real" as a bonus track.

In 2002, Lopez won a World Music Award for World's Best-Selling Latin Female Artist, an MTV Video Music Award for Best Hip-Hop Video ("I'm Real" featuring Ja Rule), a VH1/Vogue Fashion Award for Most Influential Artist, and an MTV Europe Music Award for Best Female.

J to tha L-O!: The Remixes: 2002

Following the success of the re-release of J. Lo, Lopez decided to devote an entire album to the remixing effort, releasing J to tha L-O!: The Remixes, on February 5, 2002. This album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, becoming the first remix album in history to debut at the top on the chart. Featured artists on J to tha L-O!: The Remixes included P. Diddy, Fat Joe, and Nas, and the album also included rare dance and hip-hop remixes of past singles.

This Is Me... Then: 2002

On November 26, 2002, Lopez released her third studio album, This Is Me... Then, which reached number two on the Billboard 200 and spawned four singles: "Jenny from the Block" (featuring Jadakiss and Styles P), which reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100; "All I Have" (featuring LL Cool J), which spent multiple weeks at number one; "I'm Glad"; and "Baby I Love U!" The album included a cover of Carly Simon's 1978 "You Belong to Me." It performed well on the charts, selling 2.5 million copies in the United States alone.

Rebirth: 2005

After a year away from the music scene, Lopez released her fourth studio album, Rebirth, on March 1, 2005. Although debuting and peaking at number two on the Billboard 200, the album quickly fell off the charts. It spawned one hit in "Get Right," which reached the top fifteen in the United States. and became her second Platinum hit (after "If You Had My Love"). "Get Right" was also successful in the United Kingdom, becoming her second number-one single there. The second single, "Hold You Down," which featured Fat Joe, reached number sixty-four on the United States Hot 100; it peaked at number six in the United Kingdom and ascended to the top twenty in Australia. Another song, "Cherry Pie," was slated for a fall release, but the plans to make a video were cancelled as the album sales were definitely too weak and the promotion budget exceeded. It was released to radio stations in Spain.

Rebirth was certified Platinum in the United States by the RIAA. Nevertheless, Lopez was featured on LL Cool J's single "Control Myself," which was released on February 1, 2006. It reached number four on the United States Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the United Kingdom Singles Chart. It was Lopez's first United States. top ten hit in three years.

Como Ama una Mujer: 2007

She will officially release her first full Spanish-language album, titled Como Ama una Mujer, on March 27, 2007 in the United States and April 3, 2007 in Europe. The lead single, "Qué Hiciste" (Spanish for "What Have You Done"), was officially released to radio stations in January 2007.

Fifth English studio album: 2007

She is also working on her fifth English studio album, in which she is working with producer Swizz Beatz. "It's coming out incredible,” he said. "We're putting together some great things, and not what everyone's expecting. Think a little Jamiroquai, a little Sade. It's real feel-good music." Other producers are Timbaland, Cory Rooney, Jermaine Dupri, and newcomer Peter Wade. It has been confirmed to be released in November 2007 and that Jonathan "J.R." Rotem is working on some tracks as well.

Other Business Opportunities; Media and Otherwise

Lopez modeled for Louis Vuitton’s Winter 2003 campaign.

Lopez owns a clothing line, JLO by Jennifer Lopez, whose brand has been licensed for a term by Warnaco Group. Her line includes different types of clothing for young women, including jeans, T-shirts, coats, belts, purses, and lingerie. In 2005, she launched a new clothing line called Sweetface. She is planning to launch a jewelry line, as well as an accessory line that includes hats, gloves, and scarves.

In the fall of 2007, Lopez will retire JLO by Jennifer Lopez and launch a new juniors' line called JustSweet. The ad campaign will be featured in major magazines such as Glamour and Vogue. A runway show during New York Fashion Week is expected.

On April 12, 2002, Lopez opened an elegant Cuban restaurant in the South Lake district of Pasadena, California named Madre's.

Lopez has also dabbled in the perfume industry, with her debut "Glow by J.Lo" which broke numerous records in sales. The perfume made history in 2001, by being the number-one perfume in more than nine countries in less than four months.

In October 2003, Lopez introduced a perfume called "Still." Before launching another completely new fragrance, she revisited 2002 "Glow" by creating a limited edition spin-off entitled "Miami Glow by J.Lo," in homage to her adopted hometown of Miami. Around the same time, Lopez came up with a "Glow" body line, which featured different body lotions and bronzers. For the Christmas season of 2005, she launched another fragrance, "Live by Jennifer Lopez." Most recently, for 2006’s Valentine's Day, "Miami Glow" was replaced by yet another "Glow" spinoff — "Love at First Glow by J.Lo." Her latest fragrance is called "Live Luxe" and was released in August 2006, with "Glow After Dark" following its release in January 2007. "Glow After Dark" was stated as being a unisex fragrance, but it is not. Her fragrance line enjoys global sales of more than $500 million.

Lopez is also a spokesperson for Lux shampoo in Japan, appearing in the product's television commercials.

She is the first woman who has been placed number one two years in a row for FHM magazine's list of the 100 Sexiest Females in the World and the 100 Sexiest Females in the United States. Lopez was also on the The Hollywood Reporter's list of the top ten actress salaries in 2002, 2003, and 2004, and she made the 2007 Forbes magazine's list as #9 of The Richest 20 Women In Entertainment: her wealth is estimated at $110 million.

In addition, Lopez is the first Latin actress to get the cover of Vogue magazine and she also made the Guinness World Book of Records in 2007 as the most powerful actress.

Personal Life

Her first marriage was to Cuban-born Ojani Noa on February 22, 1997. Lopez met Noa while he worked as a waiter at a Miami restaurant. They divorced in March 1998. They remained on such good terms that Lopez employed Noa as the manager of her Pasadena restaurant Madre's in April 2002. However, their friendship soured in October 2002 when Lopez fired Noa from the role. Since late 2006 to early 2007, Lopez has been in court trying to prevent Noa from publishing a tell-all book on his short marriage to Lopez . She is trying to have the case seen by a private judge. The book is said to portray her as a cheater.

She then had a two-and-a-half-year relationship with Sean Combs, better known as P. Diddy, recording artist and world-class producer. On December 27, 1999, Lopez and Combs were at Club New York, a midtown Manhattan nightclub, when a gunfire erupted between Combs' entourage and another group. Lopez and Combs were being driven away from the scene when they were chased and stopped by the police. A stolen gun was found in the front seat of their vehicle. Lopez was charged with felony gun possession, but the charges were dropped, as she was riding in the back seat at the time. Lopez terminated her involvement with Combs shortly thereafter, and Combs reconciled with Kim Porter, mother of his three children.

Her second marriage was to her former backup dancer, Cris Judd. She met Judd while filming the music video for her single "Love Don't Cost a Thing." In 2001, after dating her back-up dancer Cris Judd for less than eight months, the couple married in September 2001.

On April 12, 2002, Lopez opened an elegant Cuban restaurant in the South Lake district of Pasadena, California named Madre's. A media sensation was creating when during a press shoot for the fancy restaurant; a mysterious man appeared out of the sidelines and gave Lopez a floral arrangement from Ben Affleck, even as then-husband Cris Judd stood next to her. Lopez was widely criticized for what appeared to be infidelity on her part.

Lopez and Judd divorced in August of 2002; the settlement cost her $15 million.

Lopez's next relationship was with actor Ben Affleck. Lopez and Affleck's relationship was highly publicized, with the media dubbing them "Bennifer." Lopez announced her engagement to Affleck in November 2002, after Affleck gave her a six-carat pink diamond ring worth a reported $1.2 million. Lopez promised interviewers that Affleck was indeed "the one," and that they would soon have a family. The marriage, planned for September 14, 2003 in Santa Barbara, California, was called off just hours before the event. During the week before the scheduled nuptials, Affleck had been seen by press carousing at a strip club in Vancouver with friends. The media blitz intensified when it was Lopez's own sister who called in live radio to tell Jennifer where her fiancé had been the previous night. Lopez would only respond by saying it was a terrible way to begin the day, finding out about Affleck's behavior in that manner. Publicists announced a permanent split on January 20, 2004. Affleck has refused to speak of his relationship with Lopez, only citing intense media attention as the cause of the break-up. Their relationship was parodied by Trey Parker and Matt Stone on the “South Park” episode "Fat Butt and Pancake Head," which aired on April 16, 2003. There was a media furor as to whether Lopez would give Affleck back his ring after the break-up. Lopez did belatedly return it, though not eagerly. Ben Affleck has since married and has a daughter, Violet, with actress Jennifer Garner.

Shortly after her break-up with Affleck, Lopez was seen out with singer Marc Anthony, who at that time was still married to his wife, former Miss Universe, Dayanara Torres, with whom he had a toddler and an infant. Lopez and Anthony married in a secret wedding on June 5, 2004, less than a week after his divorce from Torres was finalized on June 1.

Lopez's guests had been invited to an "afternoon party" at Lopez's house and had not been made aware that they were actually going to her wedding. The bride wore a Vera Wang wedding dress. Days after the wedding, Anthony refused to comment on it during interviews. Lopez confirmed the marriage in February 2005, but admitted that "everyone knows. It's not a secret.” Marc's daughter, Ariana, appeared in Jennifer's music video "Get Right" as her little sister. Marc would not admit to his marriage with Lopez for a very extended period. He maintains a very defensive and private stance regarding his marriage to Lopez.

She and Marc Anthony live in Bel-Air. In addition, they have a house on Fisher Island and another one in Long Island, New York.

Controversy and Media Spotlight

On April 10, 2006, Lopez filed a request for injunction against her first husband, Ojani, to stop him from publishing materials that are disparaging. He supposedly signed an non-disclosure agreement in 2004 that prevents him from such a publication.

Lopez's frequent use of animal fur in her clothing lines and personal wardrobe has brought the scorn of people concerned with animal rights. At the Los Angeles première of Monster-in-Law, more than one hundred protesters from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) held a demonstration to highlight their concerns. Lopez told a radio DJ she was open to being educated on the topic.

In addition, in 2005, there was some controversy around her fashion line "Sweetface" due to the excessive use of fur for the clothes. Members of PETA protested against her and famous PETA member Heather Mills stormed with some reporters into Lopez's office in New York and expected an explanation from Lopez, but the singer wasn't there. Mills then left a DVD in Lopez' office, which shows how brutally animals are murdered just to get their fur. Mills was then asked to leave by Lopez' assistant.

A Miami woman had sued him with a paternity lawsuit, while he was still married to Torres. However, three separate DNA tests were conducted, all of which showed Marc was not the father.

After Lopez and her husband, Marc Anthony were invited, and attended Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes wedding in Italy, it was rumored that the Latin lovers were considering entering the Church of Scientology in late 2006 because they were having trouble conceiving a child.

Though Lopez has denied that she is receiving IVF treatments in order to get pregnant, sources close to Lopez claim that because she cannot seem to conceive, she might be in the process of adopting a child from Puerto Rico: "Jen and Marc are dying to have kids but it just doesn't seem to be working for them. Jen realizes she's not getting any younger, so they've jointly decided that adoption may be the answer to their prayers." A source said that they chose that country, because both of their parents are from there.

Charity Work and Activism

Lopez has done more than her share of charity work over the years; she supports several foundations, including Children's Health Fund, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles Free Clinic, and MusiCares.

She and her husband, Marc Anthony made a large donation to Children’s Health Fund’s Operation Assist after Hurricane Katrina, and encouraged their fans to give as well.

In early 2006, the Los Angeles Childrens Hospital benefited from an online auction of clothing owned and worn by Lopez: seven items were sold to the highest bidder at overstock.com during the week of May 16th-23rd, 2006, including a brown poncho, a blue satin gown and jeans with Lopez’s signature. Lopez also organised a similar auction the previous year for the hospital.

On November 21, 2006, Lopez was one of many stars including, Mick Jagger, Claire Danes, Zach Braff, Martin Scorsese, Bob Saget and Don Rickles who took the stage at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on to honor Paramount Pictures CEO Brad Grey at a gala dinner celebrating the 40th Anniversary of the Los Angeles Free Clinic. Lopez's husband, Marc Anthony performed a lively three-song set backed by his powerhouse salsa band. Also in attendance was actor Mark Wahlberg and former California Governor Gray Davis.

Lopez donated an item to watchmaker, Nixon be made into a watch, the sale of which benefitted the MusiCares MAP Fund—a pool of resources set aside to address addiction and recovery needs of members of the music community.

Lil' Wayne

2007-03-17T05:29:00.001-07:00

Lil' Wayne

Dwayne Michael Carter Jr (born September 27, 1982 in New Orleans, Louisiana), better known as Lil' Wayne, got hip-hop fans attentions when he came into the spotlight as the youngest boy in the young rapping group, Hot Boys in the late 1990s. Since then he has become an American, Grammy-nominated rapper, and has achieved a steady stream of best selling albums, and a lucrative solo career. He went onto produce several top-ten albums on the Billboard 200 Chart, and earned the respect of his pears as a lyrist and beat-master.

He has also become the CEO of Young Money Entertainment and the president of the New Orleans-based label Cash Money Records; the very same record company he idolized as a child, and which gave him his first break. He has come a long way since the beginning of his rapping career, and, given his young age, will continue to flourish for years to come.

Early Life

Born in the poverty-stricken and crime-ridden Hollygrove section of New Orleans, Louisiana, which is part of the 17th Ward, Wayne’s biological father left him when he was an infant; subsequently Reginald "Rabbit" Carter acted as his stepfather until the age of sixteen. Even though crime, and substance abuse was all around him, Wayne struggled to keep off the streets and to stay in school.

Wayne's first contact with hip-hop was listening to local Cash Money artists such as Pimp Daddy and U.N.L.V.; he credits both of their names as his earliest influences. He first started rapping at block parties around his neighborhood; at one of these impromptu performances an earlier Cash Money Records artist who was from the same neighborhood as Lil Wayne, Lil Slim, took notice; he gave Wayne the Cash Money Records phone number. Wayne then accompanied Lil Slim on an autograph signing session, where he met Cash Money Records owners, Brian "Baby" Williams and Ronald "Slim" Williams for the first time. His free styling, rhyming abilities impressed the Williams brothers; however, they did not sign the 11 year old to their record company immediately. Instead of letting the obstacle discourage him, Wayne began calling the company and recording some of his freestyle rapping on Baby Williams’s answering machine, in addition to lurking around the Cash Money offices nearly every day in order to convince the brothers to sign him to their record label. His dedication paid off, and Baby Williams became impressed by Wayne’s tenacity and finally signed him to Cash Money Records; he then acquainted him with another newcomer Lil' Doogie (who would later become famous as B.G.) to form group The B.G.'z. The group released their first and only album, True Story, in 1995. Wayne then dropped out of school at the age of 13, in order to fully pursue a music career.

However, unlike many child rappers, such as Lil' Romeo and Bow Wow who performed bubblegum rap until their late teens, Wayne did not rap about adolescent issues. Though, he did refrain from swearing in his rhymes out of respect for his mother’s wishes.

Hot Boys: 1997 - 1999

Formed in 1997, the Hot Boys consisted of four rappers from the same neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana. Two of the four, B.G. and Juvenile, were already regionally successful, each having spent several years making a name for themselves in the local rap scene. Young Turk and Lil’ Wayne, where the two new comers: critics said that they both rapped with a polished style that belied their age and inexperience. The Hot Boys' output was significantly similar, in personnel as well as musical direction, to the group members' solo albums. This, coupled with the fact that all four rappers were signed to the same label, made the Hot Boys as much a marketing ploy than an actual group.

In 1997, the foursome released their debut album, Get it How U Live, on the then-independent Cash Money Records. The Hot Boys limited themselves to typical gangsta topics: guns, sex, and money. However, the four rappers' entertaining and varied deliveries and original backing tracks (provided by in-house producer Mannie Fresh) separated their release from numerous similarly themed releases. Despite little or no commercial exposure, Get it How U Live quickly sold over 400,000 copies, primarily in the mid-South; following B.G.'s national success, the album was reissued nationally in 1999, followed later that year by Guerrilla Warfare, which was their Universal debut, and which went onto have platinum status.

Lil’ Wayne Goes Solo: 1999 - 2005

Wayne launched his solo career in 1999, at age 17, with the release of Tha Block Is Hot.
Though he didn’t vear far away from his Hot Boys cohorts; from beginning to end, Juvenile, B.G., and Turk back him on just over half of the album's 17 songs. In addition, Brian "Baby" Williams and Mannie Fresh make several appearances as well, and Fresh produces the entire album. With help from his friends, the album reached #3 on the Billboard 200 in November of 1999.

His sophomore album, Lights Out was released in 2000. C ritics praised that Wayne showed substantial growth as a rapper and lyrist, supports by some of Mannie Fresh’s wildest production to date. Wayne is deep on heartfelt songs like "Everything" and "Grown Man," and he is street-smart on insightful songs like "Lil One" and "Get off the Corner." He's much more effective, though, when he lightens up his lyrics and has fun, as on "Shine," "Let's Go," and "Hit U Up," three album highlights. His stuttering beats on "Tha Blues" were classified as “breathtaking,” by critics and as are the Eastern-style ones on "Hit U Up," and the album-opener, "Get off the Corner," sounds absolutely massive and reached #88 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks. Lights Out reached #13 on the Billboard 200 in January of 2001.

Lil Wayne's third album 500 Degreez was released in 2002, and tries to trump the big Cash Money hit by ex-labelmate Juvenile (400 Degreez). With the smooth, laid-back productions of Mannie Fresh leading the way for Wayne's drawling delivery, 500 Degreez does was critically praised as doing just that. The whole album's powered by the infectious party hit "Way of Life," which reached #71 on the Billboard Hot 100. The entire album reached #6 on The Billboard 200 in August of 2002.

Coming into his Own: 2004 – 2005

In 2004, Wayne released Tha Carter; this marked a personal milestone for him, as he was quoted as saying that had finally perfected his trade. Tha Carter also earned him respect outside of just his home area in the south. Though most southern rappers are stereotyped as having little to no lyrical ability, Wayne’s nimble flows proves that there are always exceptions.

In 2005, Wayne became the president of the Cash Money label and began work on a new album.
On December 11, 2005, Wayne released Tha Carter, Vol. 2 which further solidified his spot as a contemporary rapper, selling more than 238,000 copies and debuting at #2 on the Billboard Top 200 albums chart; it has also been certified platinum. The lead single off the album, "Fireman," became a hit in the United States, peaking at #32 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The second single, "Grown Man," was solicited to urban radios in January of 2006 in hopes of spreading to Top 40 Mainstream and then to the Billboard Hot 100, but failed to do so and also failed to receive any attention due to lack of promotion and no video. The third single "Hustler Muzik" was accompanied by a music video and gained minor attention, reaching #87 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Tha Carter, Vol. 2 appeared at the end of year while Lil Wayne was busy in his native New Orleans raising money for victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Recently, Wayne was recruited by the Boyz N Da Hood as their fourth member after Young Jeezy left the group to engage in his solo career. However, due to scheduling conflicts involving the promotion of Tha Carter, Vol. 2, Wayne was never be formally named an active member of Boyz N Da Hood; though, he maintains a very good relationship with the group and even records new tracks with them on occasion. Lil Wayne will also be featured on Roman Verone's up coming mix CD and LP due out soon.

Inspiration and Continuation: 2006 – Present

In 2006, Wayne released his critically acclaimed sequel to his Dedication mixtape with DJ Drama called Dedication 2. On it, he included a final track entitled "Georgia....Bush" that addresses the problems surrounding the government's response to Hurricane Katrina in his native New Orleans, Lousiana, which places a large amount of blame on President George W. Bush. Throughout the track, he claims that theories of the government sabotaging the levees of New Orleans' Lower Ninth Ward were indeed true. The track was recorded on the beat to Ludacris' single "Georgia" which sampled the Ray Charles track "Georgia On My Mind." This song is followed by a freestyle called "Money, Money, Money" over 2Pac's “Ambitionz Az a Ridah.” The freestyle was originally done on BET's “Rap City” following the release of Tha Carter II.

Lil Wayne is set to release two collaboration LPs.

The mixtape I Can't Feel My Face with Juelz Santana was released over the summer in 2006; extreme demand and popularity followed, and there are now rumors of it becoming a major-label commercially released LP.

On October 31 2006, Wayne released an album with his mentor Baby: Like Father, Like Son.

Personal Life

Many confuse Brian “Baby” Williams as Wayne's birth father; however, this is false, as evidenced by Wayne's singles "Everything" (from Lights Out), and a song on Like Father, Like Son, where Wayne explains that his “Dad died when I was 16."

Lil Wayne has been linked to female rapper Trina since around the time of the 2005 NBA All-Star Game at the Pepsi Center in Denver. They later recorded a single, “Don't Trip,” which appeared on her album Glamorest Life, and appeared on the remix for Remy Ma's "Conceited (along with Papoose and Jae Millz). After these collaborations came about, rumors began regarding a possible relationship, and even an engagement, between the two. On a radio interview, Trina said that the relationship was more of a "brother-sister" relationship; and later, on “Victoria's RapBasement,” Wayne said he knew nothing of the rumors.

However, in an issue of Sister 2 Sister magazine, Trina later said that she made a huge understatement at that radio interview, and that "He's one of the sweetest people I've ever met...I have so much love for him!" However, she just laughed when further questions were asked and added, "We're both happy. That's all the world needs to know." In the March 2006 issue of VIBE magazine, Lil Wayne said that this relationship was better than his past ones because "She's (also) a rapper, so we understand each other." When asked about the ring, he smiled and said, "She just likes rings. I saw a nice one, so I got it for her."

A picture of Wayne and Brian “Baby” Williams kissing drew some media and fan attention. While it was explained as a father-son kiss, the photo is highly controversial, and Williams later claimed the kiss was a "black variation" of Mafia affection.

It was announced that Wayne and Trina recently ended their relationship; this was stated by Wayne, himself, on BET's 106 and Park.

Lil Wayne has recently purchased a sky box at the Louisiana Superdome with Birdman.

Legal Issues and Arrest

On August 14, 2006, Wayne was arrested on charges of possession of less than one ounce of marijuana and possession of a controlled substance. Police claim the rapper was in possession of several unlabeled bottles — one containing 60 pills of Alprazolam, a generic form of Xanax that is used to treat anxiety disorders and panic attacks; another containing 59 hydrocodone pills — along with "two small burnt joints of marijuana," the report read. A second man, Derrick Lawrence, 37, was also charged with possession of less than 1 ounce of marijuana. He was released from Georgia's Fulton County Jail on $11,000 bond following his arrest.

Wayne is being sued by a group of Florida concert promoters, who claim the rapper still owes them $45,000 after he failed to show up for a performance in October 2006.

Charity Work

Though he’s come a long way from the rough streets of the Hollygrove section of New Orleans, he returned after the Hurricane to help his neighborhood, and do anything he could.

He also was a staunch non-supporter of President George W. Bush, and In 2006, Lil Wayne released his critically acclaimed sequel to his Dedication mixtape with DJ Drama called Dedication 2. On it, he included a final track entitled "Georgia....Bush" that addresses the problems surrounding the government's response to Hurricane Katrina in his native New Orleans, Lousiana, which places a large amount of blame on President George W. Bush. Throughout the track, he claims that theories of the government sabotaging the levees of New Orleans' Lower Ninth Ward were indeed true.

Tyra Banks

2007-03-15T05:42:00.000-07:00

Tyra Banks

Tyra Lynne Banks (born December 4, 1973) came into prominence as one of the only black supermodels in the world. However, she has transformed her supermodel status into a lucrative career, spanning all realms of media, including a television personality, author, actress, singer, executive producer, and extremely successful talk show host. She first emerged into the covergirl spotlight as a model for the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and one of the original Victoria's Secret Angels. Early in her career, she was also featured in the racially charged, Higher Learning, directed by Spike Lee.

Recently, she has gone on to host the reality television show “America's Next Top Model” and is also currently hosting her own daytime talk show, "The Tyra Banks Show," on which she made tabloid headlines simply by gaining weight and embracing the change; she has made a publicity campaign out of her weight-gain on her show, trying to be an example for all women to love themselves the way they are: it was inspirational things like this that prompted Time magazine to name her as one of the world's 100 most influential people in 2006.

Early Life

Born in Los Angeles, California, to Donald (Don) Banks and his wife, now divorced, Carolyn Estelle London (1946 -), Banks was raised in Inglewood, California with her older brother Devin (now divorced with children). She attended Immaculate Heart High School, an all-girl, independent Catholic private school in Los Angeles. Growing up, she was very thin and often teased (as models often are); she was considered to be “ugly.” Banks later said that this was a very difficult period for her and she developed a “very strong self-image problem.” Her mother managed her daughter's modeling career and in 1989 established London Photography, a home-based glamour portrait business.

In 1991, Banks was about to begin her freshman year at Loyola Marymount University in Southern California when Elite Model Management gave the 17-year-old her first modeling job. Prior to this entry into the fashion world, Banks had been rejected several times for modeling assignments. In fact, she states that she did not consider her first job to be the start of a long career in fashion: “An agent saw pictures of me and said that I was the only girl she wanted to take back to Paris... I didn't leave thinking I was going to be some big fashion model. I just wanted to make money for junior college.”

Banks was also featured in a 1991 Tina Turner music video for the song "Love Thing."

Modeling Career

Banks' career took with several high profile modeling contracts, most notably the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and Victoria's Secret. In 1996, she was the first black woman to be featured on the cover of the Sports Illustrated's Swimsuit Issue and appeared on the cover again in 1997. Also that year she won the prestigious Michael Award for Supermodel of the Year. Banks has done runway shows in Paris, Milan, London, Tokyo and the United States, and has been featured in many magazines, television commercials, and billboard advertisements. Her modeling credits include runway and/or print work for Cover Girl, Swatch, Pepsi, Nike, Inc., XOXO, LensCrafters, Tommy Hilfiger, Victoria's Secret, Ralph Lauren, Dolce & Gabbana, Yves Saint-Laurent, Chanel, Escada, Anna Sui, Michael Kors, Liz Claiborne, and Richard Tyler (designer). Banks has appeared on many international magazines, including the covers of Vogue, Elle, Amica, Ellegirl, L'Officiel, Harper's Bazaar, Photo, Cosmopolitan, Essence, and Sports Illustrated.

Body Image

Banks stood out from the waif-like models popular at the time, and had to work hard to persuade modeling agencies to take a chance on her more voluptuous physique. At the time of her prominent modeling opportunities, she reportedly weighed approximately 140 pounds. To give herself more options, Banks decided to branch out from high fashion into the commercial fashion industry. She later commented: " I told my agency to call Victoria's Secret, and I told them to call Sports Illustrated... I said [that] my body is changing, and seamstresses are calling me 'grosso' in Italian, and I know what the hell that means. And I'm not about to starve."

Banks addressed her physique in an interview with The Sun, saying, "I am totally against plastic surgery. A lot of people think I have breast implants because I have the biggest boobs in the business. But I was a 34C when I was 17. They stay up when I wear a push-up bra. But if people could see me when I come home and take off my bra, how could they think these are fake?" She is known for being proud of her curvaceous body, and once commented, "Some models are flat-chested so they can run around without bouncing. I can't. Black women don't have the same body image problems as white women. They are proud of their bodies."

Pictures of Banks in late 2006 showed a significant weight gain; Banks said that she was "upset" when rude comments were posted on a gossip website. Because of this, Banks went to People magazine to discuss the weight gain and people's expectations of her; she also dealt with the issue on the February 1, 2007 episode of “The Tyra Banks Show.” On that episode, Banks wore the same bathing suit in the photo to show that the reason why she looked so fat was because of the angle of the photo and angle of her waistline. She later appeared on “Larry King Live” to talk to King about the news. Fans of shock jocks Opie and Anthony and Jim "Monster Rain" Norton, known as Pests Out West, posted a sign calling Banks a "Fatty Pig Fatty" outside of her studio in California. The National Enquirer has begun referring to Banks as "Spare Tyra" (a pun on spare tire).

According to People's Galina Espinoza, she has resigned herself to putting on about five pounds a year. However, at that rate Tyra would weigh a morbidly obese 316 pounds at the age of 65.

Other Media Opportunities

Despite her phenomenal success as a supermodel, Banks began venturing from modeling to becoming a media personality after 2000. She is the hostess, head judge, and an executive producer of the UPN (now the CW) television show “America's Next Top Model.” Banks also enjoyed a brief stint as a recording artist. During season two of “America's Next Top Model,” the contestants danced in her first music video for the single “Shake Ya Body” produced by experienced record producer Darkchild.

Banks retired from modeling in May 2005 to concentrate more on her television show. She walked the runway for the final time at the 2005 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.

Television Career

Banks' television career began on the fourth season of “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” in which she played Jackie Ames, Will Smith's ex-girlfriend. She also appeared on “Felicity.” She once starred in an episode of “MADtv.” Banks has also starred as the fictitious brought to life doll, Eve, in the Disney film Life-Size, along side Lindsay Lohan. She also appeared on Nick Cannon's “Wild 'N Out,” as a special guest host and team captain. She was also a Barker's Beauty on the game show, “The Price Is Right,” acting as one of the spoke models that assist Bob Barker with the prizes.

She is now the executive producer, host and head judge of the hit television show “America's Next Top Model.” She also currently hosts “The Tyra Banks Show,” a daytime talk show which premiered on September 12, 2005 and recently began its second season. The show now draws over 1.9 million viewers. The show features stories about everyday people mixed in with celebrity interviews, much like the early format of “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” with Oprah Winfrey. Under the slogan "Every woman has a story," Banks promotes her show using emotional flashbacks to her own childhood and adolescence. Many of the episodes deal with issues facing women today.

Music Career

Banks appeared in several music videos including Tiara Summers's "Wild Girls," Michael Jackson's "Black or White", and in George Michael's "Too Funky" (with fellow supermodel Linda Evangelista).

In 2004, she recorded her first single, "Shake Ya Body,” which had a music video featuring the “America's Next Top Model, Cycle 2” contestants. The video had its world premiere on UPN, but the single was a failure for Banks. On her show, she commented to Carmen Electra, "Girl, that makes the two of us with music videos that people didn't like."

Though "Shake Ya Body" was a failure, record producer Darkchild told JET in 2004 that Banks "has what it takes to pull it off...she had a hungriness to want to be in the studio all the time. Some people want to be divas in the studio and work for three or four hours. You had to tell Tyra to stop or she will keep you going." As for her voice: "People will be shocked. She can really sing, she's like between soprano and high alto. I challenged her vocally. I pushed her, but not too far. I pushed her where vocally it fit the track."

Banks released a single with NBA star Kobe Bryant, titled "K.O.B.E.", which was performed on NBA TV, and had a single/soundtrack from the Disney movie Life-Size called "Be A Star." She also sang in the musical/movie "Eight Crazy Nights." Banks also sings the Top Model theme song and has a song called "Baby" which has been leaked on the internet.

Movie Career

Banks has had minor roles in a few movies over the years. Her debut in movies came in 1995 when she co-starred in the critically acclaimed drama Higher Learning along with Omar Epps, Jennifer Connelly and Ice-Cube. She also co-starred with Lindsay Lohan in the Disney film Life-Size, playing a doll named Eve who comes to life. She also co-starred in 1999's Love Stinks, 2000s Coyote Ugly, alongside Maria Bello, and 2002's Halloween: Resurrection – the eighth film in the Halloween franchise.

Personal Life and Media Attention

Tyra continues to address fat acceptance on her show, most recently hiring plus-sized actress Danielle Fishel as a special correspondent in February 2007. Banks has vowed to not allow digital retouching of any future photographs of herself; rather, she will rely solely on makeup and hairstyling to enhance her appearance.

She suffers from extreme delphinophobia, the fear of dolphins, which she disclosed in her daytime talk show. She later admitted in an online chat interview that she hadn't fully conquered this phobia. Conversely, Banks has expressed her ardent enthusiasm for the cosmetic uses of Vaseline.

Banks works as a motivational speaker for young girls and a photographer in her spare time.

Banks has been romantically involved with director John Singleton, investment banker Craig Davis, basketball player Chris Webber, and musician Seal who is now married to fellow supermodel Heidi Klum), although she claims that she prefers to date non-celebrities, as she strongly dislikes the media scrutiny that comes with being in a relationship with another famous person. She is currently single.

Banks has always wished to become a mother, but her professional life has not allowed her to have children. She has said that she needs to be in a place in her life where she is prepared for such a big step.

Body Image Controversy

When Banks was at the height of her supermodel stardom, she stood out from the waif-like models popular at the time, and had to work hard to persuade modeling agencies to take a chance on her more voluptuous physique. At the time of her prominent modeling opportunities, she reportedly weighed approximately 140 pounds. To give herself more options, Banks decided to branch out from high fashion into the commercial fashion industry. She later commented: " I told my agency to call Victoria's Secret, and I told them to call Sports Illustrated... I said [that] my body is changing, and seamstresses are calling me 'grosso' in Italian, and I know what the hell that means. And I'm not about to starve."

Banks addressed her physique in an interview with The Sun, saying, "I am totally against plastic surgery. A lot of people think I have breast implants because I have the biggest boobs in the business. But I was a 34C when I was 17. They stay up when I wear a push-up bra. But if people could see me when I come home and take off my bra, how could they think these are fake?" She is known for being proud of her curvaceous body, and once commented, "Some models are flat-chested so they can run around without bouncing. I can't. Black women don't have the same body image problems as white women. They are proud of their bodies."

Pictures of Banks in late 2006 showed a significant weight gain; Banks said that she was "upset" when rude comments were posted on a gossip website. Because of this, Banks went to People magazine to discuss the weight gain and people's expectations of her; she also dealt with the issue on the February 1, 2007 episode of “The Tyra Banks Show.” On that episode, Banks wore the same bathing suit in the photo to show that the reason why she looked so fat was because of the angle of the photo and angle of her waistline. She later appeared on “Larry King Live” to talk to King about the news. Fans of shock jocks Opie and Anthony and Jim "Monster Rain" Norton, known as Pests Out West, posted a sign calling Banks a "Fatty Pig Fatty" outside of her studio in California. The National Enquirer has begun referring to Banks as "Spare Tyra" (a pun on spare tire).

According to People's Galina Espinoza, she has resigned herself to putting on about five pounds a year. However, at that rate Banks would weigh a morbidly obese 316 pounds at the age of 65.

Charity Work and Activism

Banks also acts as the patron for TZONE, a leadership program created by Banks for young girls that according to the organization, "reinforces core values of trust and support, challenges teen girls to resist negative social pressures, and enhances self-empowerment—inspiring girls to become confident leaders in their communities." She has also established the Tyra Banks Scholarship, a fund aimed at providing African-American girls the opportunity to attend her alma mater, Immaculate Heart High School.

Norah Jones

2007-03-15T04:48:00.000-07:00

Norah Jones

Norah Jones (born March 30, 1979) became a recording industry darling when she swept the 2003 Grammy Awards and took home eight awards, including Album of the Year, for her debut album, Come Away With Me – a contemporary pop album with a sensual, plaintive soul/folk/country tinge, which sold over twenty million copies worldwide. Following the monumental success of her first album, her 2004 sophomore release, Feels like Home, garnered more than a million sales in the first week.

In 2007, she released her third album, Not Too Late, which hit at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. While Jones is best-known for her sultry-yet-powerful vocal style, often compared to that of Billie Holiday or Nina Simone, her abilities as a jazz pianist have likewise been celebrated; and in the near future her acting ability will be celebrated as well, when she joins Jude Law, Tim Roth and Natalie Portman for the film, My Blueberry Nights set to be released in October of 2007.

Early Life

Born Geetali Norah Jones Shankar in New York City, New York, to a musical family (her father Indian sitar maestro Ravi Shankar and Jones’s half-sister is musician Anoushka Shankar, Ravi Shankar's daughter from his second marriage) Jones spent her childhood with her mother, Sue Jones. They moved to Dallas, Texas, when Jones was only four. She went onto attend Interlochen Arts Camp, Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Dallas, Texas. Jones always had an intrinsic love for music; a fan of Bill Evans and Billie Holiday among others from the 'oldies' section since she was a child, and also considers Willie Nelson as her idol, Jones has been quoted as saying, "My mom had this eight-album Billie Holiday set, I picked out one disc that I liked and played that over and over again."

From a young age, Jones began singing in church choirs, taking piano lessons, and even briefly trying out the alto saxophone. While in high school, she won the DownBeat Student Music Awards for Best Jazz Vocalist (twice, in 1996 and 1997) and Best Original Composition (1996). She then joined the University of North Texas, where she majored in jazz piano. In 1999, two years into the program, Jones left for New York City. It was at this time when she met and became romantically involved with bassist Lee Alexander.

Music Career: The Beginning

Jones’s trip to New York was supposed to be simply a summer stay; however, Jones soon realized that she would not be returning home for quite some time.

Engrossed in the music scene, Jones gravitated toward local musicians and songwriters who urged her, after seeing her sing, to jump-start her own career. In between jobs as a waitress, Jones soon started a band in which she sung lead vocals and, of course, played piano. In October 2000, the band ambitiously brought a demo to EMI Blue Note Records, whose roster boasts a host of blues, jazz, folk, and country musicians.

At a meeting with Blue Note president Bruce Lundvall in January 2001, Jones played her three-song tape, hoping to earn a break. Lundvall was so impressed with this young girl's talents that he signed her on the spot.

Come Away with Me: 2002 – 2004

Her first album, Come Away with Me, debuted in February 2002. Instantly celebrated by critics for its blending of mellow, acoustic pop with soul and country, it hit #1 on the United States Billboard 200, while the single for the album, "Don't Know Why," hit #4 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, and #30 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Come Away with Me was heavily nominated for the Grammy Awards of 2003. By receiving Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best New Artist honors all in 2003, she became only the second person to win the "Big Four" of the Grammies in one year (the other being Christopher Cross in 1979). Of the eight awards for Come Away with Me, Jones personally received five, with the other three attributed to the album itself. "Don't Know Why" was also performed on an episode of "Sesame Street," in which Jones changed the lyrics to "Don't know why Y didn't come," and thereby introduced the letter Y to the young audience. She said of her Grammy winning experience, "I felt like I went to somebody else's birthday party and I ate all their cake without anybody else getting a piece,” when asked by Katie Couric how she felt after sweeping the Grammy Awards in 2003.

Throughout 2002 and 2003, Jones appeared on stages, globally, for her first tour with the Handsome Band, traveling throughout Asia, America, Europe and Australia. The tour was received with numerous sell-out concerts and positive critical acclaim.

Feels like Home: 2004 - 2006

Released on February 9, 2004, her sophmore album entitled Feels like Home deviated from the softer, jazz mood that Come Away with Me fans were used to, and took on a more country music feel. That did not stop the album from becoming extremely successful, and within a week of its release, Feels like Home had sold over a million copies, making it the highest-selling album in the history of Blue Note Records. It hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on February 23, 2004, and its single, “Sunrise,” hit #26 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart in 2004.

Jones received three awards at the Grammy Awards of 2005, including Record of the Year and Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals for her collaboration with Ray Charles on the song "Here We Go Again." She personally earned her eighth Grammy (and eleventh overall) for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for her song "Sunrise." That year, Jones also appeared on the self-titled record by Amos Lee.

Jones toured globally again, to promote the album with the Handsome Band, and the addition of backing singer Daru Oda. She was also listed in Time magazine as one of the most influential people of 2004.

Not Too Late: 2007 – Present

Her third album, Not Too Late, was released by Blue Note Records on January 30, 2007, to both critical and public acclaim. It has become the 800th album to reach the top spot in the United Kingdom charts. On February 11th, 2007, Jones appeared on “60 Minutes” for an interview with Katie Couric. During the interview she claimed that this album was different because unlike its predecessors, and that she wrote every song on the album herself with her bassist and songwriting partner, Lee Alexander. She also said that because she wrote all the songs, some are much darker than the previous albums. The song "My Dear Country" is a political satire, she wrote it before the United States Presidential Election Day in 2004. As of February 2007, Not Too Late held the title of #1 most listened to album on Rhapsody Music Service. The album sold more then 2.2 million copies in 3 weeks.

The first single released from Not Too Late was entitled, “Thinking About You.” It peaked at #82 in the Billboard 100 and earned its highest chart ranking in Italy at #5.

Acting Opportunities

Jones made a cameo appearance in the 2002 film, Two Weeks Notice with Sandra Bullock, and Hugh Grant; her scene shows her briefly at the piano, singing at a charity benefit.

In the latter part of 2003, rumors emerged that veteran Indian filmmaker Dev Anand was planning to make the film Song of Life, inspired by Jones's troubled relationship with her father, Ravi Shankar. Both Jones and Shankar were enraged by the rumors; Jones commented, "[Anand] has no idea of our story, and he's not going to represent it in a truthful way, I'm sure. It's sad because it's personal stuff and nobody's business but ours."

In February 2006, Screen International reported that Jones would make her acting debut in a film by 2046 and Chungking Express director Wong Kar-wai. The film called My Blueberry Nights, with Jude Law, Tim Roth and Natalie Portman, would be Wong Kai-wai's English language debut and will be partly funded by StudioCanal and Jet Tone Productions.

Collaborations

The Little Willies

The Little Willies is a band formed in 2003. It features Jones on piano and vocals. The other members of the band are Richard Julian on vocals, Jim Campilongo on guitar, Lee Alexander on bass and Dan Rieser on percussion.

Ryan Adams & the Cardinals

Jones sang lead vocals with Ryan Adams in the song "Dear John" which is on the album "Jacksonville City Nights" by Ryan Adams & the Cardinals, released September 27th, 2005.

Foo Fighters

Jones also collaborated with Foo Fighters on their 2005 record, In Your Honor, singing vocals with Dave Grohl on "Virginia Moon." The song was nominated for a Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal in 2006.

Peeping Tom

Peeping Tom is an experimental collaboration album by Mike Patton released in 2006. Jones collaborated on the album, appearing on track 10 "Sucker."

El Madmo

On May 12, 2006, Jones (disguised in a blonde wig, heavy make-up, fishnets and short shorts) played guitar and sang vocals in the tongue-in-cheek punk band El Madmo. They opened for the band Pela. The band consists of "El" (Handsome Band's Daru Oda), "Maddie" (Norah Jones) and "Mo."

Musical Style

Jones was a lounge singer before becoming a recording artist. Jones played with numerous artists and bands including Wax Poetic and the Peter Malick Group. Jones performed quite frequently with guitarist Charlie Hunter in 2001 and appeared on Outkast's Speakerboxxx/The Love Below album in a duet with André 3000 in 2003. While Jones is best-known for her sultry-yet-powerful vocal style, often compared to that of Billie Holiday or Nina Simone, her abilities as a jazz pianist have likewise been celebrated. On January 19, 2003, Jones appeared as a guest on Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz on NPR, performing jazz standards such as "September in the Rain" and "I Can't Get Started," and later that year she appeared again with McPartland at the Tanglewood Jazz Festival, performing more standards such as "Lover Man" and "Walking My Baby Back Home." She has performed at the New Orleans Jazz Festival in both 2004 and 2005.

Personal Life

Currently, her boyfriend is her bassist Lee Alexander.

Charity Work and Activism

In September of 2004, Wyclef Jean and Jones recorded a charity song for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. The song’s lyrics were written by both Jean and Jones, from the perspective of a victim seeking for a shelter. The ballad, “Any Other Day” was available for downloads through MSN Music at the price of 99 cents and all proceeds was donated to the American Red Cross and AmeriCare for Gulf Coast Hurricane Relief.

Fall Out Boy

2007-03-14T12:03:00.000-07:00

Fall Out Boy

Fall Out Boy (Born 2001) is an pop punk/alternative rock band that began receiving prominent radio airply with their singles, “Dance Dance,” “Sugar We're Going Down,” and most recently, their ear-splitting sing along anthem, “This Ain’t a Scene, It’s an Arms Race” from their latest album, Infinity on High. The group consists of singer, guitarist, Patrick Stump, lead guitarist, Joe Trohman, drummer, Andy Hurley; and last and nowhere near least, bassist, backup singer, and the band’s main lyrist, Pete Wentz, who is the dramatic one, the brooding one, and the pretty face to make all the young teens scream wrapped up into a single hot-rocker. This emo-ish, pop-punk quartet from the upper class suburbs of Chicago took its name from the sidekick to Bart Simpson’s favorite superhero, Radioactive Man. Once an indie act known only to skateboarding Warped Tour kids, as soon as their singles hit the radio waves, the tail of their success became music history.

With a few life experiences under their belt, most notably Wentz’s overdose and attempted suicide on anti-anxiety meds, they’ve come into their own and garnered some not-too-shabby record sales, along with some pretty positive reviews, which can only hope to mean a pretty positive future for the group.

Early Life

The four members of Chicago's Fall Out Boy came together in suburban Wilmette, Illinois around 2001. Their vocalist and guitarist had been in and out of various units connected to Chicago's underground hardcore scene. Most notably, Hurley drummed for Racetraitor, the furiously political metal-core outfit whose brief output was both a rallying point and sticking point within the hardcore community.

Stump is the sole band member without any tattoos and the only one without ties to the local hardcore scene. The son of a folk singer turned corporate drone, instead of playing basement shows, he spent most of high school in his bedroom, obsessing over music. "That's what I did instead of making out with chicks," he said. "I didn't have girlfriends or anything." His strongest memory of his parents' divorce is carrying his father's records out of the house. He learned a lot of songs from his dad, which was a mixed blessing. "It's sort of gross to watch your dad sing -- kind of guttural and passionate," Stump continued. "It's almost like watching him bone."

As Fall Out Boy, the quartet used the unbridled intensity of hardcore as a foundation for melody-drenched pop-punk with a heavy debt to the Emo scene. They debuted with a self-released demo in 2001, following it up in May 2002 with a split LP on Uprising that also featured Project Rocket (for which Hurley also drummed). The band returned on the label in January with the mini-LP Fall Out Boy's Evening Out with Your Girl, but by this point a bidding war of sorts was already in full swing.

During this period Fall Out Boy built a following playing in Chicago and surrounding suburbs. The Knights of Columbus Hall was the site of many early Fall Out Boy shows. Their video for "Dead on Arrival" was shot there, which also served as a site for several "secret shows".

The Beginning: 2002 – 2004

Fall Out Boy eventually signed a deal with Gainesville, FL's Fueled by Ramen, the label co-owned by Less Than Jake drummer Vinnie Fiorello, but also received an advance from Island Records to record their proper debut. The advance came with a right of first refusal for Island on Fall Out Boy's next album, but it also financed the recording of "Take This to Your Grave."

Drummer Andy Hurley joined the band after Fall Out Boy's Evening Out With Your Girlfriend was released. The same year they released their 2nd full-length album, Take This to Your Grave, on Fueled by Ramen, with singles such as "Grand Theft Autumn/Where is Your Boy" and "Saturday" receiving airplay on FUSE and mtvU. The album achieved Gold status, though only after the success of their next album. They are also featured on Bad Scene, Everyone's Fault, which occurred at Butch Vig's Smart Studios compound in Madison, Wisconsin, with Sean O'Keefe at the helm, was a tribute album to the band Jawbreaker, covering “Save Your Generation.” They released the acoustic EP My Heart Will Always Be the B-Side to My Tongue on Fueled by Ramen, which included a DVD, in 2004.

Wentz Suicide Attempt/Overdose

In February of 2005, Wentz may have tried to kill himself: sitting in a Best Buy parking lot in Chicago, he took so many Ativan pills that he collapsed and had to be hospitalized for a week.
Though Wentz refuses to call it a suicide attempt, he has said that he does not know what else to term it: "I was isolating myself further and further." He told Rolling Stone that he has a fascination with the suicides of Elliott Smith and Ian Curtis and was quoted saying “The more I isolated myself, the more isolated I'd feel. I wasn't sleeping. I just wanted my head to shut off, like, I just wanted to completely stop thinking about anything at all… It's so hard to think about and understand. I'm not making an argument for being a disturbed genius; I was a confused kid," he said. "I felt like I was being Pete Wentz for everybody else, and I didn't have Pete Wentz to turn to."

He still is wracked with insecurity: "I feel confidence in myself, but at the same time there's these cracks in the facade and those little things underneath that are unstable," he said. He takes Xanax every day to calm an anxiety disorder and takes Ambien to sleep.

Commercial Success (From Under the Cork Tree): 2005 – 2006

Their breakout album, the ambitious From Under the Cork Tree, was released on May 3, 2005, quickly reaching the Top Ten of Billboard's album chart, debuting at #9 on the Billboard 200, and spawning two Top Ten hits with "Sugar We're Going Down" and the furiously upbeat "Dance, Dance." The album went double platinum, and earned the guys a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist. The song "7 Minutes in Heaven (Atavan Halen)" from their album From Under the Cork Tree, is based upon Wentz's attempted suicide.

The album sold over 70,000 copies in its first week, and soon thereafter achieving Double Platinum status. Their first single, "Sugar We're Goin' Down," peaked at #8 on the Billboard Hot 100" and reached #1 on MTV's TRL, where the video was retired. The video also won the MTV2 Award at the 2005 MTV Video Music Awards. The band was nominated for Best New Artist at the 2006 Grammy Awards. Stump wrote "Sugar, We're Going Down" in about ten minutes. He admits to deliberately slurring Wentz's lyrics to "make them sound better."

Fall Out Boy has toured with multiple bands, including Taking Back Sunday, Less Than Jake, blink-182, Panic! at the Disco, Midtown, Hawthorne Heights, The All-American Rejects, The Academy Is..., The Hush Sound, October Fall, and From First to Last.

Fall Out Boy's star status in the underground – driven by the especially extroverted Wentz, who also gained exposure with his clothing line and Decaydance imprint (of Fueled by Ramen) – had boiled over into the mainstream. They toured extensively behind the album, both at home and abroad, including spring 2006 arena dates, in addition to appearing on TRL, late-night television, and music award shows. Without taking a break, the guys eventually hunkered down to work on their follow-up record with From Under the Cork Tree producer Neil Avron and, somewhat surprisingly, Babyface.

Bigger and Better (Infinity on High): 2007 – Present

Their next album, Infinity on High, was released on February 6, 2007; its title was taken from a line in one of Van Gogh's personal letters. The first single off the album, "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race," debuted at the 2006 American Music Awards. The video debuted on MTV Tuesday, December 19, 2006. They have also collaborated with producer Timbaland for his new album Timbaland Presents Shock Value. They are featuring in the song, “One & Only.”

Spearheaded by the hit single "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race," the album continued Fall Out Boy's streak, debuting at number one on the Billboard charts and going platinum about a month later.

In the album's opening week, Infinity on High reached number 1 on the Billboard 200, selling 260,000 copies.

"This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race" peaked at number 2 on the United Kingdom Singles Chart on 4 February 2007, making it their most successful song in the United Kingdom to date. This was after the single entered the United States Hot 100 at number 2 and the United States Pop 100 at number 1.

Fall Out Boy will be headlining the Honda Civic Tour along with bands and performers such as, +44, The Academy Is..., Paul Wall and Cobra Starship. The tour kicks off on April 18, 2007 and ends on June 11, 2007. The band is promoting their new album on this tour. It has also been heard that Fall Out Boy is planning to give away designs of different album covers for each day they tour. One person from each show will receive this prize. The twist is (and of course there is one), each piece of artwork will have been created with blood from each of the four members of the band.

Fall Out Boy also appeared on “Last Call” with Carson Daly on Wednesday, February 20, 2007

In addition, Fall Out Boy has been confirmed as one of the acts playing in the Live Earth concerts on July 7 2007.

They also made an appearance on the March 8th issue of Rolling Stone, where the cover featured a shirtless Pete Wentz, along with with rest of the band. The cover read, "The Fabulous Life, the Secret Torment of America's Hottest Band." Fall Out Boy also made appearances on Spin and Alternative Press.

Lead Singer Patrick Stump has recently featured in a song with Gym Class Heroes, also signed with Fueled By Ramen, named “Cupid's Chokehold.”

The band has recently finished shooting a video for "thnks fr th mmrs," according to a blog on their website.

The Band and Drugs

Fall Out Boy is very open to discussing their drug use, eventhough most of them are straight-edge, meaning they do not indulge in any drugs or alcohol. Aside from Wentz, who admittedly takes prescription anti-anxiety pills and sleeping medication, Trohman, the metalhead son of a cardiologist, used his bar mitzvah money to buy his first "half-stack." He's the only Jewish guy in the band (his Smiths-themed tattoo violates Talmudic law) and the only one who's not straight-edge. During a 2003 trip to Tokyo, Trohman started drinking, and he's partial to weed now, too. "I smoke a decent amount," he said to Rolling Stone. "This is gonna sound like a total fuckin' pothead's logic, but it helped me put some things in perspective." The last year has offered a lot that needed to be sorted out. "It's like, 'Go do this thing, go do that thing. Go to Fuse, go to MTV,'" continued Trohman, who's dating a college student from back home. "It's not just like, 'Here you go. Here's a million dollars.' All of this stuff is awesome, but it's tiring."

Justin Timberlake

2007-03-14T10:06:00.001-07:00

Justin Timberlake

Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) has come a long way from his beginning days on the “Mickey Mouse Club” where he starred alongside fellow future pop-star, and ex-girlfriend Britney Spears. Now a days, the singing sensation is considered to be a contender for the coveted title of the new “King of Pop” (usurping the fallen Michael Jackson). Though this pop-R&B singer and actor came into fame in the music industry as the front-man of pop boy-band 'N Sync, since then he has won four Grammy Awards, and in 2002, he released his debut solo album, Justified, which sold over seven million copies worldwide. Timberlake's sophomore solo album, FutureSex/LoveSounds, was released in 2006 with the #1 hit singles "SexyBack," "My Love," and "What Goes Around Comes Around."

Since his inception into the limelight, he has also gone from being the crush object of teen magazines, to the handsome hunk of women's magazines. He is also a darling to the tabloid circuit with his high-profile relationship and breakup with Britney Spears, and then his attempted low-profile relationship with knock-out, Cameron Diaz. Their recent breakup has thrust him back onto the cover of the gossip rags, which intently follow his brief romances with Hollywood beauties such as Scarlett Johansson, who starred in his video for “What Goes Around Comes Around,” and Jessica Beil. By bringing sexy back to his international fanbase, Timberlake has solidified himself as a pop-sensation for all the world to adore.

Early Life

Bron in Memphis, Tennessee to Randall Timberlake and Lynn nee Bomar, Timberlake grew up in Millington, a small town just north of Memphis. He is of British ancestry, and his paternal grandfather, Charles L. Timberlake, was a Baptist minister. Timberlake was raised in the Baptist religion, although he considers himself more "spiritual than religious." His parents divorced in approximately 1985 and have both since remarried; his mother, who now runs an entertainment company called JustinTime Entertainment (and who manages the all-girl group Innosense), remarried to Paul Harless, a banker, when Justin was aged 5; and his father, a choir director at a Baptist church, has two children, Jonathan (born c1993) and Stephen (born c1998), from his second marriage. A half-sister, Laura Katherine, died shortly after birth in 1997 and is mentioned on one of Timberlake's record acknowledgments as "My Angel in Heaven."

Timberlake sang at the Grand Ole Opry when he was just ten years old, and he also attempted to start his singing career when he sang a few country music songs on "Star Search" as Justin Randall in 1993, at the age of 11. Later in 1993, he got a real taste of fame when he joined the ranks of “The Mickey Mouse Club.” There he met future girlfriend and pop-superstar Britney Spears, future tour mate Christina Aguilera, and future band mate JC Chasez. When the show ended in 1995, Timberlake recruited Chasez to be in a new all-male singing group Lou Pearlman was forming with Chris Kirkpatrick. The group would come to be known as ‘N Sync. In 1999 Justin acted as Jason Sharpe in the made-for-television movie, Model Behavior.

Timberlake's dancing and singing style are influenced by his idol, Michael Jackson.

'N Sync: 1995 – 2000

Timberlake was a member of the popular 1990s boy band, 'N Sync, and was considered universally as a teen idol. The group was formed in 1995, when Justin was just 14 years old; they began their career 1996 in Germany and hit it big in the United States two years later in 1998, eventually releasing the fastest-selling album of all time, No Strings Attached in 2000. In 2002, after the completion of their Celebrity Tour and release of "Girlfriend," the third single from their 2001 album Celebrity, the group decided to take time off, at which point Timberlake began work on his first solo album. The album signaled a transition from his squeaky-clean boy band image to a sexier, more mature look and feel.

Justified: 2002 – 2004

In August 2002, after months of recording the album, Timberlake performed at the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards, where he premiered his first single, "Like I Love You," a sparse dance track produced by The Neptunes. The song reached #11 on the Billboard Hot 100. Following the single, Timberlake released his debut solo album, Justified, on November 5, 2002. The album was also a success, despite selling considerably less than previous 'N Sync efforts. It debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200 album chart, selling 439,000 copies in its first week of release; and his debut solo single "Like I Love You" reached #2 in the United Kingdom singles chart in October of 2002.

The album would eventually go on to sell over 5 million copies in the United States and over 7 million copies worldwide. The album contained several tracks which were created to be part of Michael Jackson's Invincible album, but did not make it to the final selection of songs used for it. The album also received critical acclaim, thanks to its heavy R&B influence provided by hip-hop producers The Neptunes and Timbaland. It spun off hits throughout late 2002 and 2003, including the top ten singles "Cry Me A River" and "Rock Your Body." His third solo single, "Rock Your Body," debuted at #2 in the United Kingdom singles chart

He went onto perform a duet with Kylie Minogue at the 2003 Brit Awards, and he hosted the 2003 MTV Movie awards with actor Sean William Scott.

Timberlake won his first Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Album for Justified and won a Grammy for Best Pop Male for the single, "Cry Me A River” in 2004.

Timberlake supported the album by co-headlining the Justified/Stripped Tour with Christina Aguilera in the summer of 2003. For many dates, Black Eyed Peas served as the opening act; Timberlake appeared unaccredited on their smash hit "Where Is The Love?" which was also released in the summer of 2003. His record company did not want Timberlake to be credited for fear that it would take focus away from his solo releases; still, Timberlake often appeared with Black Eyed Peas to perform the track live, including during the 2003 MTV Europe Music Awards. By the end of the year, Timberlake recorded a song entitled "I'm Lovin' It." It was used by McDonald's as the theme to their "I'm Lovin' It" campaign.

The Super Bowl Incident: "Wardrobe Malfunction"

In February 2004, during the halftime show of the Super Bowl XXXVIII, Timberlake performed his single, "Rock Your Body," with Janet Jackson before a television audience of over 140 million viewers. At the end of the performance, Timberlake tore off a part of Jackson's black leather costume in a "costume reveal" meant to accompany a portion of the song lyrics, "gonna have you naked by the end of this song." Part of the costume became apparently detached, and Jackson's nipple was briefly exposed, which also revealed a type of nipple ring. This caused a national controversy and the FCC and many family groups lambasted Timberlake and Jackson for the occurrence. Timberlake apologized for the incident saying that he was "sorry that anyone was offended by the wardrobe malfunction during the halftime performance of the Super Bowl... It was not intentional and is regrettable." The phrase "wardrobe malfunction" has since been used by the media to refer to the incident and has entered pop culture.

As a result of the controversy, Timberlake and Jackson were banned from the 2004 Grammy Awards unless they agreed to apologize on screen at the event. Jackson declined. Timberlake attended and issued a scripted apology while accepting the first of two Grammy Awards he received that night (Best Pop Vocal Album for Justified and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Cry Me A River"). He had also been nominated for Album of the Year for Justified, Record of the Year for "Cry Me A River," and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for "Where Is The Love?" with Black Eyed Peas.

Collaborations and Acting Opportunities: 2004–2006

After the Super Bowl controversy, Timberlake put his recording career on hold in an attempt to jumpstart his acting career. Timberlake had a few minor acting roles during his early music career, including a bit part as a model in the 2000 made-for-television film Model Behavior, and a cameo in the 2001 film, On the Line; however, he was seeking more substantial roles.

The first role he took during this time was as a journalist in the thriller Edison Force, which was filmed in 2004 and received a direct-to-video release on July 18, 2006. He then went onto appear in the film Alpha Dog in 2006, and had a much publicized and drooled over sex-scene with Christina Ricci in 2007’s Black Snake Moan with Samuel L. Jackson. He is also featured in Richard Kelly's Southland Tales, and in addition, he will voice a young King Arthur in the animated film Shrek the Third with then girlfriend, Cameron Diaz, which will be released in 2007. He also appeared as a young Elton John, in the video for John's song, "This Train Don't Stop There Anymore."

Meanwhile, he continued to record with other artists. After "Where Is The Love?", he again collaborated with Black Eyed Peas on the 2005 track, "My Style" from their album Monkey Business. Additionally, Timberlake was featured on Nelly's song, "Work It," which was remixed and included on Nelly's 2003 remix album. When recording the 2005 single "Signs" with Snoop Dogg, Timberlake discovered a throat condition: nodules were subsequently removed from his throat in an operation that took place on May 5, 2005. He was advised not to sing or speak loudly for at least a few months. In the summer of 2005, Timberlake started his own record company, JayTee Records.

Timberlake also ended up collaberating with the 1980s sensation, Duran Duran in 2006 for a song on the band's album. In November of that year, lead singer Simon Le Bon told The Associated Press the band had "collaborated in a writing and production manner on one of those tracks with Justin Timberlake."

FutureSex/LoveSounds: 2006 – Present

Timberlake had a cameo in Nelly Furtado and Timbaland's video for her single "Promiscuous." He released his second solo album, FutureSex/LoveSounds, on September 12, 2006. The album, which Timberlake created in 2005, debuted in the number one position on the Billboard chart, selling 684,000 copies its first week. The album is also the biggest album ever for pre-orders on iTunes, and beat Coldplay's record for the biggest one-week sales of a digital album. The album was produced by Timbaland, will.i.am, Rick Rubin and Timberlake himself, and features guest vocals by Three 6 Mafia, T.I. and will.i.am. A studio representative described it as being "all about sexiness" and aiming for "an adult feel." The album's lead single, "SexyBack," was performed by Timberlake at the opening of the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards. It began receiving radio and Internet play on July 7, 2006, and premiered at #90 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles and by week nine it reached number one, where it remained for seven consecutive weeks. He received his first United Kingdom #1 with his song "SexyBack.”

"My Love," the album's second single, also produced by Timbaland and featuring rapper T.I., reached number one on the Hot 100 for the week ending November 11, 2006.

Timberlake performed the album's third single "What Goes Around Comes Around" on the December 16, 2006 episode of “Saturday Night Live,” the same week it debuted at #64 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song is reported to have been inspired by the break-up of his childhood friend and business partner Trace Ayala with actress Elisha Cuthbert.

In October of 2006, Timberlake confirmed that he would focus on his music career rather than his film roles, specifying that it would be a "dumb thing to do at this point" to leave the music industry.

Justin was featured in the 2006 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show for being the special guest performer. Timberlake performed the first single “Sexy Back” at the first part of the show, and later performed a medley of “My Love” and “LoveStoned/I Think She Knows.”

He won two MTV Europe Music Awards in 2006 for Best Male Artist and Best Pop. He also hosted the show in Copenhagen, Denmark in November of 2006.

In January 2007, Timberlake embarked on the FutureSex/LoveShow Tour. According to the sweet escape.com, “Summer Love” is confirmed to be his fourth single off the album as it already has charted on the Pop 100 Airplay at #76.

Branching Out

Timberlake has opened several restaurants in the United States. In 2005, he launched the William Rast clothing line, sold in Bloomingdale's, with childhood friend Trace Ayala. The 2007 line will contain cord jackets, cashmere sweaters, jeans and polo shirts. In 2004, ABC hired Timberlake to write a song for its NBA coverage.

Near the end of 2002, Timberlake was the first celebrity to appear on “Punk'd,” a candid camera type show created by Ashton Kutcher to trick celebrities. Three episodes later, he set up Kelly Osbourne to be "Punk'd," thus making him the first celebrity to appear on the show more than once. Timberlake later spoofed Ashton Kutcher and “Punk'd” in a 2003 episode of NBC's “Saturday Night Live.” In 2006, he hosted the European MTV Music Awards. On December 16, 2006, he hosted “Saturday Night Live,” doing double duty as both host and musical guest for the second time. During this appearance, he and Andy Samberg performed an R&B song for a skit entitled "Dick in a Box," which some radio stations have aired as an unofficial single from Timberlake. The video for “Dick in a Box,” was a U-tube video sensation.

Nickelodeon announced on February 3, 2007, that Timberlake would be the host of the 2007 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards.

Timberlake has been given "Sexiest Man" titles by Teen People and Cosmopolitan magazines.

Personal Life and Media Attention

Two early teen romances, first to a school sweetheart and then to aspiring pop singer Veronica Finn predated intense media interest, but both ended unhappily. Timberlake then entered a high-profile celebrity relationship with fellow pop singer Britney Spears, with whom he had worked on the “New Mickey Mouse Club.”

This ended abruptly in March 2002, amidst allegations of Spears' infidelity with choreographer Wade Robson, a mutual friend of Spears and Timberlake. Lynn Harless, Timberlake’s mother, said, as a mother, she too was devastated regarding the break-up, but to this day speaks warmly of Spears, "Britney grew up on my living room floor. I still love her to death. They (Justin and Britney) were together 10 of 11 years and had, from day one, instant chemistry between them. She's a sweet girl. I just hate what she's going through now."

The breakup proved to be positive as it influenced the lyrics and theme of Timberlakes' hit “Cry Me A River” one of the biggest and best performing singles from Justified, and featured a Spears doppleganger in the video. Timberlake stated in Rolling Stone, referring to his breakup with Spears’s: "I may not ever get over her. I really do still love that girl.” He also came out on national television and admitted to having sex with the pop-princess, even though Spears contended that she was still a virgin all along. Later, she was forced to come out to the press and also admitted she had sex with Timberlake.

Timberlake later dated actress-dancer Jenna Dewan (mid 2002) and actress-singer Alyssa Milano (between September and October of 2002). Soon after their breakup, Timberlake began dating actress Cameron Diaz soon after they met at the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards in April 2003. Their approximately 10-year age difference made good fodder for the tabloid-fires. They were photographed hundreds of times over the next three years, usually on vacation during activities, even though they attempted to keep their relationship usually very low-profile, and refused to talk about their relationship. However, in late 2006, regular rumors of break-ups began to be reported in the tabloid press and were invariably denied by their respective representatives.

On the December 16, 2006 episode of "Saturday Night Live," Diaz introduced Timberlake as the night's musical guest; however, the couple actually did split up shortly afterwards, and they issued the following joint statement on January 11, 2007: "It has always been our preference not to comment on the status of our relationship, but, out of respect for the time we've spent together, we feel compelled to do so now, in light of recent speculation and the number of inaccurate stories that are being reported by the media. We have, in fact, ended our romantic relationship and have done so mutually and as friends, with continued love and respect for one another."

Since he broke up with Cameron Diaz, he has been romantically linked to Jessica Beil, when he and the Esquire magazine's 2006’s “Most Beautiful Woman Alive,” were seen skiing together. More notably however, it has been rumored that he is dating the star of his new video, “What Goes Around Comes Around,” Scarlett Johansson. The two have been seen several times together in public and the gossip is swirling that the pair are in a relationship.

He has also admitted publicly to using drugs on numerous occasions in interviews done around the time of his sophomore album, FutureSex/LoveSounds’s release, stating that he sees nothing wrong with it: “I've done way too many drugs already. I've already inhaled and I've already ... who knows?” Timberlake told the British magazine Observer Music Monthly, “I'm just like everyone else, I get completely plastered, I've done my fair share of drugs and I've been caught places with my pants down. It's just I make sure there are no cameras around.”

He was, however, quite forthcoming about his use of controlled substances, saying that because of his squeaky-clean image, he’s held to a higher standard than some rockers. “What I really think is that I've never done anything that bad,” he said. “I don't show up drunk to functions and the drugs I do have been in my own private time ... If Courtney Love shows up to a function it's like: ‘Oh that’s Courtney Love,’ but if I show up drunk it's like: ‘Oh my God.’”

Some of Timberlake’s odd idiosyncrasies include, singing himself to sleep, collecting sneakers, having a hefty car collection, including a half a dozen Harley Davidsons, a Mercedes M Class and two Mercedes Benz. He cites his greatest fears as dying unloved, snakes, sharks, spiders and falling unconscious at a concert from the stuffed animals fans throw on stage.

He loves skiing, snowboarding and surfing, which he has been photographed doing several times with his ex Diaz. He is also best friends with his personal assistant, Trace Ayala, whom he introduced to Elisha Cuthbert, and prompted their long-term relationship. He also supposedly wrote the song, “What Goes Around Comes Around” about the blond beauty.

Charity Work and Activism

In October of 2005, the Grammy Association awarded Timberlake for humanitarian efforts in Tennessee, alongside writer/director Craig Brewer, also a Memphis native.

He founded The Justin Timberlake Foundation through the Giving Back Fund. The foundation's goals are similar to the Save the Music Foundation.

Akon

2007-03-14T09:20:00.000-07:00

Akon

Aliaune Damala Bouga Time Puru Nacka Lu Lu Lu Badara Akon Thiam, often going by the shorter Aliaune Thiam (born 14 October 1981), internationally known as simply Akon, earned a world wide fanbase with his hit single, “Smack That,” in 2006, featuring Eminem. The song stayed at #2 on the Billboard 100 for five consecutive weeks. Originally from Senegal and splitting his time between Africa and the United States as a child, this former drug dealer and prison inmate has turned his life around to become a Grammy Award-nominated hip-hop and R&B singer, songwriter, record producer, fashion designer, actor and record executive. He is the founder of both Konvict Muzik and Kon Live Distribution.

Releasing three albums to date and collaberating with dozens of A-list recording artists, including Dr. Dre, Timbaland, and Whitney Houston, his music combines west African-styled vocals mixed with East Coast and Southern beats.

Early Life

The son of a jazz percussionist, Mor Thiam, Akon was born in St. Louis, Missouri, and raised in Dakar, Senegal, until he was seven years old. His family then moved to the United States in order to receive a better education for the children; after which, Akon split his time between Senegal and the United States. When he was 15 his family permanently moved to Jersey City, New Jersey.

Akon speaks English, French, and Wolof and attended Snyder High School in New Jersey, where he discovered is love for hip hop music. His first song was entitled "Operations of Nature," which he recorded at age 15. However, before he could get a recording career off the ground, he was jailed for armed robbery and drug distribution charges. He used his time in prison to work on music, and upon release, Akon began writing and recording tracks in his home studio. The tapes found their way to SRC/Universal, which released Akon's debut LP Trouble in June 2004.

Trouble: 2004 – 2005

Akon's solo debut album, Trouble, described as a hybrid of Akon's silky, West African-styled vocals mixed with East Coast and Southern beats, was released on June 29, 2004. It spawned the hit singles "Locked Up" and "Lonely," as well as "Belly Dancer (Bananza)," "Pot Of Gold," and "Ghetto." "Locked Up" was inspired by his three-year jail sentence for grand theft auto, and reached the top 10 in the United States and the top five in the United Kingdom. Sadly, his manager at the time of Trouble’s release, Robert Montanez, was shot to death following a dispute in New Jersey in December 2005. Akon was also in the car and was shot in the shoulder; however he made a full recovery.

The single, "Ghetto" became a radio hit when it was remixed to include verses from legendary rappers 2Pac and The Notorious B.I.G. In 2005, he released the single "Lonely" (which samples Bobby Vinton's "Mr. Lonely"). The song reached the top five on the Billboard Hot 100, and topped the charts in Australia, the United States and Germany. His album also climbed to number one in the United Kingdom in April, 2005. When music channel, The Box, had a top ten weekly chart, which was calculated by the amount of video requests, Akon's "Lonely" became the longest running single on the top of the chart for over 15 weeks.

In 2005, Akon gained more popularity after being featured on Young Jeezy's debut album, Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101, on the song "Soul Survivor," which became a top five hit on the Billboard Hot 100.

Konvicted: 2006 – 2007

Akon's sophomore album, Konvicted, was released on November 14, 2006, and included collaborations with Eminem, Snoop Dogg and Styles P. The album was dedicated to his late manager, Robert Montanez and debuted at number two on the Billboard 200, selling 286,000 copies in its first week. After only five weeks, Konvicted sold more than one million records in the United States and more than 1.3 million worldwide.

Before its official release, however, in late August 2006, Akon released the single "Smack That" which featured Eminem, and peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 for five consecutive weeks; the single was accompanied by a music video directed by Raymond Garced. On the week of October 5, of that same year, Akon broke a record on the Hot 100, when he achieved the largest climb in the chart's 48-year-history with "Smack That," jumping from number 95 to number seven. The song's monstrous leap is fueled by its number six debut on Hot Digital Songs with approximately 67,000 downloads sold. In December 2006, Akon's "Smack That" was nominated for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration at the 49th Annual Grammy Awards.

Akon collaborated with Snoop Dogg for the second single off of Konvicted, "I Wanna Love You," which was released in September 2006. “I Wanna Love You” earned Akon his first number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100, and Snoop Dogg’s second; it topped the United States charts for two consecutive weeks.

In January 2007, Akon released his third single, "Don't Matter," which peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 for two consecutive weeks.

Konvicted has continued to stay in the top twenty of the Billboard 200 after 16 weeks, where it peaked at number two on four different occasions. It has sold more than 1.7 million records in the United States and 2.4 million worldwide.

In 2006, Akon started his new record label Kon Live Distribution under Interscope Records. The first artist to sign was Chilli from TLC. Her debut solo album, Point of View, will be released under Kon Live. Earl Ray has also been signed to the label.

He was featured on Gwen Stefani’s latest album, The Sweet Escape. He made an appearance on the title track and second single, "The Sweet Escape," which was produced by him. On December 10, 2006, both Akon and Stefani appeared as musical guests on “Saturday Night Live"; however, the song was not performed because Stefani was not yet completely familiar with the lyrics. "The Sweet Escape" went on to reach #3 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Upcoming Projects and Collaborations

There has been some news of a collaborative album between Akon and Young Jeezy, in later 2007 or 2008. After their 2005 Akon-produced single, "Soul Survivor, the duo says that there should be more to expect from them in the future; and Jeezy has stated that the album will be somewhat similar to Jay-Z and R. Kelly's, The Best of Both Worlds or Unfinished Business collaborative albums.

Akon has also collaborated with Chamillionaire on his latest endeavor entitled, Mixtape Messiah 2. He is featured on "Ridin' Overseas," which Akon also produced. The Mixtape Messiah 2 became available for download on Chamillionaire's website on December 24, 2006.

Akon is set to embark on a world tour in 2007. Starting in Africa, he plans on touring through Europe and then over to the United States. There is no word yet on supporting acts, but Akon told Billboard.com, "We'll probably get the hottest act in whatever region we're in." When asked about the rumors of an upcoming collaboration with Michael Jackson, Akon laughed, saying only, “Right now that's in the air. I can't talk about it.” There has also been some talk of Akon working with Elton John; however, those too are unsubstantiated rumors.

Akon was also effusive about another upcoming collaboration with Whitney Houston. "I'm working on more uptempo records for her," he says. "She's been through a lot and has a dark history. So we've got to make the album brighter because she's come out of the cave now. She wants a celebration. She needs to come back to the old Whitney we remember."

Akon is rumored to make an appearance on Papoose's major label debut album, The Nacirema Dream. Currently the track, "Go to War (Ghetto Soldier)" on which Akon is featured, is tentative. The Nacirema Dream is slated to be released March 2007.

Akon is scheduled to appear on Bone Thugs-N-Harmony's upcoming album Strength and Loyalty. He will be featured on the album's lead single entitled "I Tried," which will be released in February, 2007. The album itself will be released on April 17, 2007.

Akon will be the executive producer on his first member of Konvict Muzik, Kardinal Offishall’s fourth solo album, Not for Sale; it is scheduled for release in early 2007. Kardinal Offishall’s album will feature established artists such as Lil' Wayne, De La Soul, Clipse, Rihanna and Stat Quo.

He is also expected to make guest appearances on Three 6 Mafia's eighth studio album, Da Last 2 Walk in addition to appearances from T.I., Paul Wall, Lil' Scrappy, Young Buck and more. The album will be released in the spring of 2007.

In addition, recording artist, T.I.'s, 5th album, T.I. vs. T.I.P., is scheduled for release in the summer of 2007. It will boast production from high profile producers such as Dr. Dre, Eminem, Lil Jon, Just Blaze, Timbaland, as well as Akon. Akon is also expected to make a guest appearance on the album.

We The Best is the upcoming sophomore album from DJ Khaled, scheduled for release in the summer of 2007. The lead single, "We Takin' Over" will feature T.I., Rick Ross, Fat Joe, Lil Wayne and Birdman as well as Akon.

Akon is rumoured to be featured on Juvenile's upcoming album, entitled Diary of a Soulja. "The Verdict" and "I'm So Fly" are two tracks that Akon is featured on and may make the album. The album is scheduled to be released during the third quarter of 2007.

Epiphany, the sophomore album by T-Pain will be executively produced by Akon. The album is expected to be released sometime 2007.

Upcoming Aftermath rapper, G.A.G.E. will release his debut solo album, The Soundtrack To My Life sometime in 2007 and is expected to feature production from Dr. Dre, Scott Storch, Cool & Dre and others. The album can expect to have appearances from Akon, Busta Rhymes, The Game, Snoop Dogg, Rick Ross, T.I., and many more.

Acting Opportunities

Akon is also planning to work on a full-length movie about his life. The title has been confirmed as Illegal Alien, and the release date is unknown at the time.

He was also featured on a Verizon Wireless commercial.

Fashion

In February 2007, Akon's clothing line, “Konvict Clothing,” will launch. It features urban street wear including denim jeans, hoodies, t-shirts and hats. It also has an upscale version called “Aliaune,” which will feature high-end clothes, including blazers and expensive denim for both men and women.

Personal Life

He is a Muslim, and is a believer and practitioner of Polygamy; this topic has caused some amount of controversy when he first disclosed it on a radio program: "I really don’t bite my tongue for anybody and I always felt like if you’re going to be real, you got to be truthful all the way around the board. Lies only make things worse. But it got to a point where my coming out like that ended up being a mistake."

He fears not of being a spectacle, however, and drives an orange Lamborghini Gallardo. He also has expressed his unexpected love for Phil Collins: "I love Phil Collins. 'In The Air Tonight' is an incredible song. I hope to work with Phil. He's got an amazing vocal tone. His vocal tone makes me cry."

Akon also owns a diamond mine in South Africa and denies the existence of conflict diamonds, noting in an interview with the British Independent, "I don't even believe in conflict diamonds...That's just a movie. Think about it. Ain't nobody thought about nothing about no conflict diamonds until the movie came out."

Although he had a previous occupation as a drug dealer, he states that he has never used drugs. He also states that in spite of his previous criminal history he has turned his life around; this is explored in his song, "Tired Of Runnin'."

Charity Work and Activism

Akon has his own charity for underprivileged children in Africa called United For Africa.

Pink

2007-03-14T08:42:00.000-07:00

Pink

Alecia Beth Moore (born on September 8, 1979), known professionally as Pink (sometimes stylized as P!nk), originally came into prominence in 2000 as a soulful answer to the pop princesses and boy bands of the time; however, her rock n’ roll, punk personality could not be tamed, and she broke out all on her own as a rebel with a feminist cause, often making fun of the teen-queens and celebutaunts, parading her boisterous, tom-boy personality for all the media to see.

Known for her unorthodox fashion choices and deep, rowdy sound, Pink released her first record, the R&B-influenced Can't Take Me Home, in 2000; lacking creative control on her first venture, she made sure to make up for lost time with her second, and in 2001 released M!ssundaztood which doned a more pop rock-influence, officially regaining control of her public image. M!ssundaztood was her biggest seller to date, and it produced three top ten hits in the United States. Next, in 2003, she released Try This; however, it failed to match the success of her sophmore album. After taking a break, Pink released her fourth studio album, I'm Not Dead, in 2006, which peaked at #6 on the Billboard 200.

Over the course of her vibrant career she has sold over 20 million albums, and she made sure to do it her way.

Early Life and Career

Born in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania to Vietnam veteran James Moore and registered nurse, Judy Kugel, Pink is of Jewish ancestry on her mother's side, and is Irish, German and Lithuanian on her father's. When Pink was a child, her father would play the guitar and sing Bob Dylan and Don McLean songs for her; she knew from an early age that she wanted to be a rock star. Her parents divorced when she was seven years old, and she grew up in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, where she attended Central Bucks West High School. Pink was a very active teenager, and went through phases as a skateboarder, hip-hopper and gymnast. While in high school, Pink joined her first "official" band called Middle Ground, but the band never took off. According to Pink, her biggest influences are Janis Joplin, Steven Tyler, Bad Religion, Mary J. Blige, Bob Marley, Billy Joel, Indigo Girls, Don McLean, 2Pac, and The Notorious B.I.G.

Pink developed her voice early on in her life: an asthmatic, she learned to breathe from her lower abdomen instead of her chest on doctor's advice, and started singing lessons to learn this technique. A young Pink proclaimed her love for music by running through her house singing songs, and creating her own fantasies by doing so. While growing up, the Philadelphia club scene provided her the venue to express herself by both singing and dancing. At the age of 13, Pink met a popular Philadelphia club dancer named Skratch, who she started dancing with. This led to her singing backup in his rap group, Schools of Thought.

By the time she was 14, Pink had penned her first song. Songwriting became a way for the future R&B/pop singer to express her feelings and thoughts on her Philadelphia childhood and adolescent experiences, in a therapeutic way. One of her favorite pastimes, going to clubs, became part of her start in the music industry. She would frequent Club Fever every Friday night, where she eventually was given a 5-minute spot. Although Pink was sometimes boo-ed while on stage, she used the negativity as more fuel to the fire of her ambition. Her career took a turn in the right direction after a representative came to Club Fever in search of an addition to an R&B group. Impressed by Pink's voice and style, she was signed as the new member of the short-lived group, Basic Instinct.

At age sixteen, she joined an R&B Atlanta-based trio called Choice, which included Chrissy Conway of the Christian girl group ZOEgirl. Signed with LaFace Records, Choice was just as ill-fated as Basic Instinct, but this time due to differing ambitions and mentalities of the group members. It did lead however, to Pink's relationship with LaFace, presently Pink's record label. As one of the lead singers of Choice, Pink was asked by Darryl Simmons to contribute to the songwriting of the group's song, "Just To Be Loving You." It was her contribution to the song that triggered her love for songwriting - once a childhood hobby and now part of her job.
The group signed with LaFace Records and contributed "Key to My Heart" to the soundtrack of the 1996 film Kazaam. Choice eventually disbanded before having recorded an album; Pink remained at LaFace as a solo act. Daryl Simmons took her to recordings where she sang backing vocals for Diana Ross, 98 Degrees, Kenny Lattimore, Tevin Campbell and more.

Can't Take Me Home: 2000 – 2001

Pink's debut album, Can't Take Me Home, was released in April 2000. A substantial success, the album went double platinum in the United States, and sold 4 million copies worldwide and produced two United States top ten singles: “There You Go” and “Most Girls.” “There You Go" became a Top 40 Pop chart staple, and was even named the number 2 breakup song of all-time by US magazine. The second single, "Most Girls," is seeing the same success as its predecessor, if not more, by shedding light on the money-grubbing tendencies of "most girls."

The album's third single, "You Make Me Sick," was released towards the end of 2000 and became a smaller top-forty hit in early 2001, and was featured in the film Save the Last Dance. Pink later acknowledged, in regard to Can't Take Me Home, that she chose to relinquish creative control to her record label and that she did not like the music she made at this time or her image, which included bright pink hair, and a pop-princess image.

In the same year she collaborated with pop singer Christina Aguilera, rapper Lil' Kim and R&B/pop singer Mýa on a cover of Patty Labelle's 1975 single "Lady Marmalade" recorded for the soundtrack of the film Moulin Rouge. Produced by hip-hop producers Rockwilder and Missy Elliott, the song topped the charts in countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia and won a Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals.

M!ssundaztood: 2001 – 2002

Tired of being marketed as another cookie-cutter pop act and eager to become a more serious songwriter and musician, Pink wanted to break away from her Hollywood record producer’s image, and took her sound in a new direction, seeking more creative control during the recording of her second album. She recruited former 4 Non Blondes vocalist Linda Perry, and together they co-wrote and co-produced most of the tracks on M!ssundaztood, which was released via Arista Records in November 2001.

The album’s lead single "Get the Party Started," written and produced by Perry, went top five in the United States and many other countries. The album's other singles — "Don't Let Me Get Me," the Dallas Austin-produced "Just like a Pill," and "Family Portrait" — were also radio and chart successes, with "Just like a Pill" becoming Pink's first solo United Kingdom number-one hit in September 2002. This song also features on the Playstation game, Singstar: Party. The success of the singles, which were substantial hits on Adult Top 40 radio, pushed the album to gold and platinum status in more than twenty countries, with worldwide sales of twelve million. The tracks "18 Wheeler" and "Eventually" were rumored as fifth singles, but after sales that exceeded all expectations, Pink took a short hiatus. M!ssundaztood was the second-best-selling album in the United Kingdom during 2002, and Pink was the best-selling female artist globally.

In 2002, Pink and Perry co-wrote a song for Faith Hill's album Cry called "If You're Gonna Fly." That same year, she also started an American and European tour called The Party Tour.

Try This: 2002 – 2003

In mid-2003, Pink contributed the song "Feel Good Time" to the soundtrack of the film Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle with Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore and Lucy Lui, in which she had a cameo appearance as a motocross race ramp owner/promoter. "Feel Good Time," written by singer Beck, was produced by electronic music artist William Orbit and based on the song "Fresh Garbage" by the 1960s band Spirit, and it peaked outside the top forty on Billboard's Hot 100 chart.

"Feel Good Time" was included on non-United States editions of Pink's third album Try This, which was released in November 2003. Eight of the thirteen tracks were co-written with Tim Armstrong of punk band Rancid, and Linda Perry was featured on the album as a writer and musician. Though Try This reached the top ten on album charts in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia, sales were considerably lower than those of M!ssundaztood; it sold only 709,000 copies in the United States, and 3.5 million worldwide. The singles "Trouble" and "God Is a DJ" did not reach the Unites States top-forty but went top ten in other countries; "Last to Know" was released as a single outside North America. "Trouble" earned Pink her second Grammy Award (for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance) at the 2004 Grammy Awards, and "Feel Good Time" was nominated in the category of Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals.

Pink toured extensively through Europe for Try This, where the album was better received.

I'm Not Dead: 2006 – Present

Pink's fourth album, I'm Not Dead, was released in April 2006 through LaFace Records. Lead single "Stupid Girls" gave Pink her biggest United States hit since "Just like a Pill" and earned the MTV Video Music Award for Best Pop Video, also receiving a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Pink worked with producers Max Martin, billymann, MachoPsycho, Christopher Rojas, Butch Walker, Lukasz Gottwald, and Josh Abraham on the album, which charted inside the top ten in sixteen countries. The video for “Stupid Girls” poked fun the celebrity tabloid darlings, Nicole Richie, Lindsay Lohan, Jessica Simpson and others, and touched on the topic of beauty and riches and dumb-blonds being more valued in American pop-culture than young women with intelligence.

Subsequent singles "Who Knew" and "U + Ur Hand" were substantial hits across the world, but only "U + Ur Hand" charted on the United States Hot 100. The fourth single, "Nobody Knows," was only released in Europe and Australasia. Another track, "Dear Mr. President," is an open letter to American President George W. Bush. The song topped the singles chart in Belgium and will be released in the United Kingdom as a double A-side with "Leave Me Alone (I'm Lonely)."

Pink has toured around the world during 2006 and 2007 on her I'm Not Dead Tour, for which ticket sales in Australia were particularly high. Her concert on December 4, 2006 in Wembley Arena on the United Kingdom leg of the tour was hosted by London club G-A-Y, and it holds the record as the United Kingdom’s biggest indoor gay and lesbian event. A DVD that was recorded at the December 4, 2006 show is expected on April 20, 2007. In 2007 she opened for Justin Timberlake on the American leg of his FutureSex/LoveShow Tour.

In 2006, Pink recorded a song in Switzerland with Scottish singer Annie Lennox, slated to be released a single in 2007. Also in 2006, Pink was chosen to sing the theme song for NBC Sunday Night Football, "Waiting All Day for Sunday Night," which is a take on "I Hate Myself for Lovin' You" by Joan Jett. She contributed a cover of Rufus's "Tell Me Something Good" to the soundtrack of the film Happy Feet.

Acting Career

Pink appeared as herself in the films Ski to the Max (2000) and Rollerball (2002). After her cameo performance in Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, Pink looked for another film script and settled on the horror film Catacombs, which was shot in early 2006 and co-stars Shannyn Sossamon. She has said of her filming experience in Catacombs, "It's pretty intense…It's not only a sort of slasher type, scary movie; it's also psychological and shows how mean and cruel siblings can be to one another. I liked that part of it.”

Pink was also once on the short list of people to play Janis Joplin in an upcoming biopic titled The Gospel According to Janis, but she chose not to saying it would be disrespectful to Joplin because the film makers didn't want to say she died of a heroin overdose. The role eventually went to Zooey Deschanel.

Personal Life

Pink is known for extreme fashion choices, and funky style. She dyes her hair frequently, but she is a natural blond. On “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” she revealed to DeGeneres that there are real diamonds attached to her teeth. According to her, her dog's name is "Fucker," which she revealed in a live broadcast for MuchMusic in 2003, forcing broadcasters to censor the name in subsequent showings. She later said on “Friday Night With Jonathan Ross” that her father adopted this dog and changed its name.

Pink married motocross racer Carey Hart in Costa Rica on January 7, 2006. She proposed to him by holding up a sign for him to see during one of his races. Before she began her relationship with Hart, she was rumored to have dated Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee (who many other stars have dated over the years, including Pamela Anderson, Heather Locklear, and Carmen Elekra)

Pink kissed actress Kristanna Loken at the 2003 World Music Awards in Monte Carlo and said she had a girlfriend at age thirteen, though she does not identify herself as gay (however, many internet gossip sites claim otherwise). She has said that most of her friends are gay and that she's "had her moments." However, she has worked with the gay rights group Human Rights Campaign.

She has talked openly about her extreme lifestyle, from her marriage, to her partying: "I was extreme... from skateboarder to hip-hopper to rave child to lead singer of a rock band -- I did it all, and all at the same time."

In December 2006, rumors were swirling around claiming that Pink and Hart were having trouble in their marriage: A source said, "Pink and Carey's marriage is in trouble. They're both crazy busy with their separate careers, and it's beginning to take a toll on their relationship. They're hardly ever together." However, these rumors were never substantiated.

Charity Work and Activism

Pink is also a prominent campaigner for PETA, contributing her voice towards causes such as Kentucky Fried Chicken's alleged poor treatment of chicken before slaughter. She sent a letter to Prince William, criticizing the Royal Family's guards' usage of bearskin for their headwear.

In November 2006, Pink mentioned in the News of the World that she is disgusted with fellow singer Beyoncé for wearing animal fur. Pink has most recently taken on the Australian wool industry over its practice of mulesing, lending her face and fame to the PETA. In January 2007, Pink conceded that she had been misled by PETA over the issue of mulesing in the Australian wool industry, and that she had not done enough research of her own before lending her name to the campaign.

Vida Guerra

2007-03-13T20:17:00.000-07:00

Vida Guerra

Vida Guerra (born March 19, 1980 in Havana, Cuba) is a Cuban-born beauty who made the trip over to the United States mainstream as a model, occasional actress and singer. Her first notable appearance was in a photo shoot for the United States edition of FHM magazine in 2002, and since then, she has modeled for many other men's magazines, including the lucrative launching board, Playboy. Subsequently, she has become one of the world’s most-lusted after women, and early last year she even cracked the top 10 most searched names of female celebrities on the Internet, joining the likes Pamela Anderson, Paris Hilton, Carmen Electra and Oprah Winfrey.

Early Life

Born in Havana, Cuba, Guerra moved with her family to the United States when she was just six years old; they ended up in the town of Perth Amboy, New Jersey. In interviews, Guerra has said that she was teased when she was younger because of the size of her butt, which was rather large for someone of her otherwise small stature. Outgoing, even at that young age, Guerra quickly adapted to the new country and culture. She began getting involved in dance and some modeling, strutting around in a G-string when she was 18 for a fashion show in her hometown of Perth Amboy.

Growing up she entered a couple of runway shows modeling swimwear, and appeared in a few music videos. Guerra's first taste of fame came after successfully auditioning for a Big Pun video called "New York to New Orleans." She sat next to the now deceased rapper and grooved to the beat throughout the song which, unfortunately, did not get much play on television music stations. Following this slight exposure, Guerra returned to her normal life: she took a job as a loans officer, but still kept her eye out for modeling opportunities whenever they came

Rise to Fame

After browsing through an FHM magazine, a close (and very wise) friend suggested she send in pictures of herself. With nothing to lose, Guerra did just that. Upon receiving Guerra’s photos, FHM felt they fit in perfectly with a recent search for "everyday" women in lingerie. The pictures were posted in the December 2002 issue of the magazine and though they were very good, Guerra thought nothing more of the opportunity until readers bombarded FHM with letters demanding more of the Cuban beauty with the large booty.

Overwhelmed with the response, the magazine called Guerra back and asked her to officially pose for them. Jumping at the opportunity, Guerra agreed and was featured very scantily clad in both the March and May 2003 issues. Now that her face and body was out there, people began to take notice. The St. Louis rap group, Naturally Smooth, even asked her to pose for its album cover. She was honored at the end of 2003 with FHM's "Rear of the Year" award and was then cast as a muse in the comedy short “Writer's Block.”

Since then, she has been featured on the front cover as well as on the inside of many magazines, including DUB magazine, Smooth, Escape, and Open Your Eyes (Abre Tus Ojos), and has made multiple appearances on several Spanish language television programs such as “El Gordo y La Flaca (The Fat Man and the Skinny Woman).”

Guerra has also become a staple in music videos, appearing in "Shake Your Tailfeather" (P. Diddy, Nelly and Murphy Lee, from the Bad Boys 2 Soundtrack) and "The New Workout Plan" (Kanye West), in "Obsession" (Frankie J) among others. Additionally, she has appeared in Burger King's Tendercrisp Bacon Cheddar Ranch commercial, a couple of sketches on Dave Chappelle's comedy show on Comedy Central, such as the infamous "Piss On You" videos (spoofing the infamous R. Kelly sex tape), and also appeared in the film National Lampoon's Dorm Daze 2. Guerra lent her voice to the video game Scarface: The World Is Yours.

She became "FHM's Model of the Year" in 2004, and she also created a calendar for troops serving in the Middle East (and one for FHM), and she continues to be a hot commodity.

In April 2005, in an event reminiscent of Paris Hilton's similar misfortunes with her mobile phone, Guerra's camera phone was allegedly hacked: dozens of her photos, including nude pictures as well as personal photos, were posted on the Internet and disseminated widely. In interviews, Guerra said the nude body images were of another woman, and that they were presented along with actual non-nude camera phone images of herself to give the appearance that she was the naked woman pictured. However, her record label at the time maintained that the photos were legitimate, and accused Guerra of leaking them deliberately as a publicity stunt. Guerra was dropped by the label over this incident.

Guerra was recently voted Number 26 in FHM's "Top 100 Sexiest Females" list and is twice the winner of the magazine's "Best Butt" Award. To capitalize on this fame, Guerra has made her own calendar, featuring more pictures of her. She has also appears on “Primped,” produced by GoTV Networks, where Guerra helps three "average" women become "primped” and done up to look beautiful.

She was named #26 in FHM's "100 Sexiest Women in the World 2005" special supplement, and named #21 in FHM magazine's "100 Sexiest Women in the World 2006" supplement.

Despite not posing nude for formal photo shoots in the past, Guerra appeared fully nude in the July 2006 issue of Playboy. She said that she had agreed to pose partly because she felt that they would do it with class, and partly because, due to the hacked phone incident, she wanted people to know what she really looked like naked, and not confuse her with some other woman. She also appeared in the January/February 2007 issue of FHM.

Music Career

The first track from Guerra's self titled debut album was leaked onto the internet on November 2, 2006. The song is titled "You Got Me." Her CD is believed to feature Paul Wall, Mike Jones, and a few other unconfirmed artists. It has been reported that Guerra both sings and raps on the album. It was voted number one on Telemundo's special, "Best New Album Debuts." It was announced on her DVD, Vida Guerra Exposed, that her self titled album will be released on February 2007 by In Ya Face Records.

Personal Life

Now a recognized model, Guerra grabbed more headlines after appearing with tight end Jeremy Shockey of the New York Giants at the opening of Jay-Z's New York nightclub. The relationship did not last long.

She has a dog named Cocoa, and her measurements are listed as 34C, 25, 37 according to IMDBs trivia page.

She says that she goes to the gym three or four times a week, and tries “to eat healthy when I can and drink a lot of water. It really sucks to exercise but a girl has to do what a girl has to do.”

She also says that she wants “to get more into acting and become an actress,” and “That’s my one and only goal right now."

Sean Paul

2007-03-13T20:07:00.000-07:00

Sean Paul

Fame is nothing new for this reggae singer and dancehall artist Sean Paul Ryan Francis Henriques (born January 8, 1973), known simply as Sean Paul, who has been a star in his native Jamaica for nearly a decade. But it wasn't until his album Dutty Rock, which spawned the top ten Billboard Hot 100 singles "Get Busy" and "Gimme the Light," that Paul blew up in the United States; after which he was invited to collaborate with the likes of 50 Cent, Busta Rhymes, Beyonce and tens of other established recording artist, making him a musical sensation, seemingly overnight.

Though, in his youth, he might have been fast tracked to follow in his family’s footsteps of competitive water polo or swimming, dance and music were his first priority and passion; he dove into the recording industry instead, with extremely profitable results, spawning several hit albums and numerous top charted singles.

Early Life

Sean Paul was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and spent his early years “comfortably” in Upper Saint Andrew Parish, a few miles north of his birthplace. His parents were both talented athletes, and his mother a well-known painter. His father is Jewish (whose Portuguese family emigrated to Jamaica in the 17th century) and his mother Chinese Jamaican. In line with his Sephardic heritage, he was a pupil at the island's Hillel Academy, a non-religious school funded by the local Jewish community. He claims to be a direct descendant of Solomon through his father.

Many members of Sean Paul's family are swimmers. His grandfather was on the first Jamaican men's national water polo team. His father also played water polo for the team in the 1960s, and competed in long-distance swimming, while Sean Paul's mother was a backstroke swimmer. Sean Paul played for the national water polo team from the ages of 13 to 21. However, he gave up the sport in order to launch his musical career.

Musical Career

Dancehall music was Sean Paul's first love, and he became proficient at crafting rhythm tracks. He became a DJ after writing his own songs, basing his style largely on the works of Super Cat and Don Yute. The latter was later to become his idol and mentor. Sean Paul was closely connected to the reggae-pop band Third World. His brother, Jason "Jigzag" Henriques, and his best friend Zameer Masjedee helped him open up business connections. Paul released his debut single "Baby Girl (Don't Cry)" with producer Jeremy Harding in 1996. It proved a significant success, and led to further Jamaican hits like "Nah Get No Bly (One More Try)," "Deport Them," "Excite Me," "Infiltrate," and "Strategy."

In 1999, Sean Paul started to attract audiences in the United States. He was commissioned to collaborate with fellow dancehall hit maker Mr. Vegas on a production for rapper DMX, entitled "Top Shotter." The song went on to be included in the film Belly, directed by Hype Williams). Paul also recorded the Jamaican chart-topper "Ladies Man" with rapper Spanner Banner, through the latter's label, Sweet Angel Productions. The success of "Ladies Man" resulted in Sean Paul being approached by the then little-known Harding, who burst on the scene with his production of Beenie Man's crossover hit "Who Am I" and most famously recorded "Baby Girl (Don't Cry)" with Sean Paul.

The following single, "Infiltrate," joined the singer's combination hit in the Jamaican top charts. Also that year, Paul scored a top ten hit on the Billboard Rap chart with "Hot Gal Today," which quickly became his signature tune. Sean Paul fell out very publicly with Mr. Vegas over the packaging of Vegas' remix of "Hot Gal Today," but this did not slow Sean Paul's career momentum.

Stage One: 2000 – 2001

In March 2000, Paul released his first album, Stage One, on VP Records, which included many of his previous hit singles and compilation cuts, plus several new tracks. He played the Summer Jam 2000 in New York City, where he was held in high acclaim. Sean Paul's fan base grew tremendously with fans from all over the world. In 2001, Paul appeared on Toronto rapper Kardinal Offishall's Quest for Fire: Firestarter, Vol. 1 on a single called "Money Jane," which was released in Canada the previous year and featured Jully Black.

Critics for Rolling Stone said that “there are some enjoyable tunes here, namely the hit single, ‘Infiltrate,’ which burned up dancehalls with its pumping beat, and ‘Hot Gal Today,’ a duet with ultra-hot DJ Mr. Vegas, which displays an interesting blend of Sean Paul's hard voice with Vegas' smoother vocals. ‘Faded,’ a take on Shania Twain's ‘Looks Like We Made It,’ also illustrates clever treatment.”

Dutty Rock: 2002 - 2004

In 2002, he announced the release of his second album, Dutty Rock. Pushed by the success of the singles "Gimme the Light," which peaked at #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2002, and "Get Busy," which peaked at #1 in 2003, the album was a worldwide success, eventually selling over six million copies. Simultaneously, Sean Paul was heard on Beyoncé's single "Baby Boy" and Blu Cantrell's "Breathe," both chart hits in 2003, and helping to push his reputation further still in the United States.

Reviewers said that all “Dancehall-reggae crossover hits tend to be deliciously simple. ‘Gimme the Light,’ Sean Paul's unlikely summer smash, is no different – a sticky ode to toking, with a twinkling beat and an undeniable hook.”

The Trinity: 2005 – Present

On September 27, 2005, Sean Paul released his third album called The Trinity.

Sean Paul spent part of 2006 opening for Mariah Carey's Adventures of Mimi Tour. In September of that year he started work on his fourth album, and was featured on the single "Break It Off" (High Altitude Riddim) with Rihanna, on her A Girl Like Me album.
He was nominated for four awards at the 2006 Billboard Music Awards, including male artist of the year, rap artist of the year, hot 100 single of the year, and pop single of the year for his hit "Temperature.”

Rolling Stone reviewed the album, saying, “While Trinity is consistently engaging, it never quite achieves Dutty's immediate, overwhelming pop appeal. Sean Paul still knows how to get a party started - he just won't be setting the world on fire.”

He returned to his native Jamaica to perform at the Cricket World Cup 2007 opening ceremony.
Television Appearances

He has appeared on several television programs, including “Punk'd,” “106 & Park,” “Sean Paul Respect,” “Making the Video” (for "Get Busy," "Gimme the Light," "Like Glue," "We Be Burnin'," and "Temperature") though he always plays himself, and his music videos have been broadcast on MTV and BET.

Charity Work and Activism

Paul is actively trying to make the world more aware of, and stopping the violence in his home country of Jamaica. In January of 2007, Paul launched a one-man campaign to stop youth violence in Jamaica on his upcoming new album. In order to raise awarness of the problem plaguing the country, Paul insists his upcoming dancehall release won't be full of party anthems, but will deal with issues that concern him about his native country. Paul told MTV News, "The content is just a little different than what people expect from me. "It's not about partying, it's not about ladies; it's about the kids with the guns in the streets. It's more reality." And he hoped one new track, "Sufferer," prompts gun-wielding gangmembers to give up their arms and stop the violence. He added, "I'm talking about the younger generation that has no other option for success than to find a gun somewhere. I try to appeal to them: 'I know you a sufferer, but it doesn't mean that you can't or shouldn't expect any better.' "It's a lot different than from what I usually say, like, 'Get busy, shake that thing.'" Paul will dedicate the album to two young friends who have recently been killed in youth-related violence: "I saw potential in these two kids and many others. It really hit home. And I'm thinking of a voice, I need to say something to people."

Victoria Beckham

2007-03-13T18:32:00.000-07:00

Victoria Beckham

Victoria Caroline Beckham (born on the 17th April, 1974) came into prominence as the feisty, extraordinary beauty, “Posh Spice,” from the late 1990s pop sensation, Spice Girls. However, since her inception into the international lime light, she has gained notoriety separate from the all-girl group as the highly-fashionable Victoria Beckham, wife to former Manchester United and current Real Madrid footballer David Beckham, and fashion designer, socialite, businesswoman and sometime singer, songwriter and actress.

Whether it be for her fashion choices, high-profile appearances, or indulgent shopping spree, Beckham is almost always featured in the weekly supermarket tabloids, and is widely considered to be one of the most written about, discussed, and analyzed British celebrities of the modern era. She has gone onto have her manicured hands in all spectrums of media, including a reality show documenting her cross-over to the United States, and authoring two books.

Early Life

Born in Hertfordshire, England, to Jackie and Tony Adams, Beckham has two siblings, brother Christian and sister Louise. When she was young, her father ran a successful electrical wholesale business and her family was well-off by most standards. As a child, Victoria was surprisingly lonely and insecure; other children often teased her because she had severe acne, and because she was embarrassed by their family’s wealth, she would ask her father not to drop her off in front of school so as not to be seen in the family's Rolls-Royce. Though she was a shy child, Beckham was in a band while in school, and studied at the Jason Theatre School before moving on to the Laine Arts Theatre College, where she dabbled in dance and modeling; and although her original band never took off, her life was forever changed when saw an ad in The Stage looking for five women who could sing and dance with the intent to form a group. This ad led her to the formation of Spice Girls.

Released in 1996, the Spice Girls' first single, "Wannabe," and their debut album, Spice, were smash hits in the United States and abroad. Beckham, along with her band mates Melanie Brown, Emma Bunton, Melanie Chisholm, and Geri Halliwell became instant household names, with success that spurned a movie, Spice World, starring the five-some, and a platinum album to boot. With hits like "2 Become 1" and "Spice Up Your Life," Spice Girls went on to sell over 35 million albums and 25 million singles worldwide, igniting a worldwide phenomenon in the process. But this mega success was relatively short-lived. Worldwide tours, millions of albums sold, and a movie (Spiceworld) later, Geri "Ginger Spice" Halliwell decided to split from Spice Girls in May 1998, which left a huge void in the group. After the remaining foursome released Forever in 2000, which was met with lukewarm sales, Spice Girls decided to split up and pursue solo projects. Taking some time off and falling in love in the process, "Posh Spice" married soccer star David Beckham in July 1999, and together they have three sons, Brooklyn, Romeo and Cruz.

Solo Career

Despite being one of the most famous celebrities in Britain, and having all her music reach the United Kingdom top ten, Beckham's career as a solo artist is largely considered to have been a commercial failure. She was the last of the Spice Girls to launch a solo career, allegedly due to her reluctance to "go it alone."

In August 2000, Beckham released her first single outside of Spice Girls: “Out Of Your Mind”: a collaboration with the garage act the Truesteppers and Dane Bowers. The week of release coincided with the release of “Groovejet (If This Ain't Love)” by Sophie Ellis-Bextor, resulting in a chart battle dubbed "Posh vs. Posher" by the tabloids. Following a huge publicity campaign, “Out Of Your Mind” was outsold by 20,000 copies and debuted at number two with first week sales of 180,584 copies (a figure that would have usually guaranteed a #1 position, but given the publicity battle, it fell short).

Beckham was given a solo recording contract by her group label Virgin Records. Her true debut single as a solo artist, “Not Such An Innocent Girl,” was released in September 2001. Again, she faced competition in another hugely hyped chart battle, this time with Kylie Minogue's single “Can't Get You Out Of My Head.” Victoria was unlikely to beat Kylie, but she gave the project huge promotion, and the record had an expensive and futuristic video.

In the week of release, the United Kingdom tabloid newspaper The Sun ran a daily progress chart covering the chart battle, but they gave up half way through the week when it was clear the battle was a one horse race; that horse being Kylie Minogue. A potential factor attributable to Beckham’s weaker sales could be the due to the media furor she created after wearing a fake lip ring during a live performance in Birmingham, an event that also saw her getting booed and pelted with fruit by a hostile public. She was widely criticized by many groups, including the British Dental Association, for setting a bad example that her younger fans may wish to emulate. It has since been argued that this 'stunt' and the ensuing media backlash was the beginning of the end of Beckham’s music career.

Released a after “Not Such An Innocent Girl,” Beckham’s debut album reached number 10 in the United Kingdom album chart. The album featured the much talked about “Every Part Of Me,” a song co-written by Beckham and dedicated to her son, Brooklyn, who is featured in the beginning of the song; Brooklyn's "part" was allegedly an off-chance recording which took place during a recording session break.

The second and final single to be released from the album was A Mind Of Its Own; this track was much slower catching on. The single stalled at number 6 in the United Kingdom and sold 56,500 copies. Following this lackluster chart performance, rumors started spreading that Beckham was soon to be dropped by her label. These were refuted at the time.

A third single, “I Wish,” was promoted but never materialized. The single version was a remix featuring Robbie Craig, and was performed on television on “Friday Night's All Wright.” Many hoped this single would revitalize the album's reputation, but following the announcement of Beckham's second pregnancy it was shelved, and Beckham parted ways with Virgin Records.

Telstar: The Attempt to Go Solo

However, to the surprise of the music industry, Telstar Records signed Beckham in 2002 in a deal made with Simon Fuller's 19 Management. She spent much of 2002 recording a 'pop-influenced' album, but it was shelved after Beckham was not happy with the results. Instead of pop, Beckham wanted to record tracks with a more R&B and hip-hop influence, and to accomplish this she began working with urban producer Damon Dash. These plans reportedly worried Telstar and Simon Fuller, but they compromised with Beckham, allowing her to release a Dash produced track (“This Groove”) along-side one of her earlier pop tracks (“Let Your Head Go”) from the shelved album.

The resulting double A-side single “Let Your Head Go / This Groove” was released in the United Kingdom in late December 2003, following heavy promotion and many television appearances around Christmas. The single hit #3 on the charts, although critics were fast to point out this was not much of an accomplishment due to singles receiving their lowest sales of the year the week after Christmas. “This Groove” sparked some media interest and controversy because of its lascivious content: phone sex. This double A-side remains Beckham's last single release to date.

As another compromise, Telstar allowed her to release some of her urban tracks on The Real Beckhams DVD. This 2003 documentary was released in January 2004, and bonus material included the videos for “Let Your Head Go” and “This Groove,” as well as four previously unreleased tracks: “Resentment,” “That Dude,” “Me And You This Time and Valentine” (none of the songs had a writing credit from Beckham); “Resentment” has since been covered by Beyoncé Knowles and released on her solo album B'Day (2006).

Outside of the United Kingdom, Damon Dash had plans for Beckham in the United States, including a potential release of “Let Your Head Go / This Groove” under the name of "Posh Spice Victoria Beckham." The release was proposed for sometime between March to May 2004, but never occurred. A Dash produced track “It's That Simple,” featuring M.O.P. was released on vinyl, and received a premiere on BBC urban music radio station, 1Xtra. This only generated further criticism, with the feeling being that Beckham was a far from convincing urban act. Around this time, a 90 second snippet of a track called “Come Together” was released to the media, which was notable for sampling The Beatles' song “Come Together.” However, a full version never leaked.

With the United Kingdom media describing her music career a failure, and combined with a rumored fall out between Dash and Fuller, remaining plans for Beckham's music career were cancelled. To try and salvage her music career, Beckham again began work on pop-styled tracks in 2004. It is known that she recorded a track written for her by Cathy Dennis entitled “My Love Is For Real.” With the collapse of Telstar Records, the pressure to stay with her family caused by the Rebecca Loos scandal (David Beckham, her husband, was found out to be cheating on Beckham with Loos), and the announcement of Beckham's third pregnancy, this song has never been heard, except for a leaked remix by Armand van Helden.

Unreleased Music

A previously unknown track, “Back To Life,” was put online in 2005 after someone found it in a small record store. Although uncertain, it is believed this track dates from early recording sessions for the Beckham album. It sold for £390, although the buyer never leaked the songs onto the internet after being warned by lawyers representing the copyright owner of the material.

Future in Music

On February 26, 2006, Beckham stated in an interview with the Sunday Mirror, "I'm never going to sing again, unless it was a chance to do something with the Spice Girls. I don't really miss the shows we did together. I miss the girls more. I see Geri a lot — I love her, she's amazing. I speak to the others from time to time. I love them too and miss them."

Beckham also declared that, for the moment, she and her former Spice Girls are enjoying their solo careers in various fields. She says: "We're all still doing our own thing. But that's the great thing about the position we're in now — when we decide we want to do more stuff, we can. There's no pressure and, at the end of the day, our fans have been so supportive — and so loyal — that hopefully, when we do come back they'll still be there.”

Her spokeswoman added that, "She's focusing on her fashion activity at the moment and should she wish to do music at a later date then obviously that's something we can consider. She has a flexible career with which she can do whatever she wants to.”

Fashion Career

In 2000, Beckham made a guest appearance on the catwalk for Maria Grachvogel.

In 2004, Beckham designed a fashion line for Rock and Republic called "VB Rocks," consisting mainly of jeans for the high end of the market (retailing at approximately $300 in the U.S.) The line was successful, and Beckham contributed further lines, including children's and men's wear, for the Spring/Autumn of 2006. She has also worked on a range of women's clothes including shirts and skirts. The clothing features a logo of a crown with the letters "VB." In September 2006, Beckham stopped working with Rock and Republic to launch her own jeans label following the success of her VB denim range for Rock and Republic. The new line of Beckham’s jeans collection is called DVB Style.

Beckham was briefly the face of Rocawear, and has for or a number of years produced a range of handbags and jewelry in association with the Japanese store Samantha Thavasa. In July 2006, Beckham released a line of sunglasses (which she had been seen wearing at the World Cup games). The range is currently available at Harrods in London and in exclusive stores in Paris and Dubai. In September 2006, “Intimately Beckham,” a his-and-hers fragrance line in association with Coty the world's largest fragrance house, was launched.

Book Career

Beckham has written an autobiography, entitled Learning to Fly (the title was taken from a line in a song from the musical Fame, which Beckham adored as a child). The book was the 3rd best selling non-fiction title of 2001 (total United Kingdom sales stand at more than 500,000 copies), and has been translated into several languages.

Victoria is widely believed to have told a Spanish journalist in 2005 that "I've never read a book in my life." Although often used to criticize and ridicule Beckham, this 'quote' was actually a mistranslation from the original Spanish in which the interview was printed - she actually stated she never had time to finish reading a book because she was always running around after her children.

Her second book, a non-fiction fashion book titled That Extra Half an Inch: Hair, Heels and Everything In Between, was published on October 30, 2006. It was co-written by Hadley Freeman, deputy fashion editor of the Guardian and a contributing editor of Vogue and includes photography by Mario Testino, Annie Leibovitz and Steven Meisel.

On the Sunday Times Book Charts, the book stood at # 2.

Television

In August 2006, former Spice Girls manager Simon Fuller announced that he was developing a television fashion show for Victoria, and on February 28, 2007, Victoria announced that she is working on a reality show that will document her move to Los Angeles from London. She signed a deal with NBC for six episodes of a half-hour unscripted series. The series, which may air as early as this summer, will be produced by Simon Fuller.

Personal Life and Media Attention

Beckham began dating English footballer David Beckham of the famous team Manchester United, in 1997. Their relationship immediately attracted a great deal of media interest. They were married at Luttrellstown Castle, Ireland on July 4, 1999; the wedding attracted tremendous media coverage. Beckham's teammate Gary Neville was the best man, and the couple's son, Brooklyn, then four months old, was the ring bearer. The media were kept away from the ceremony, as the Beckhams had an exclusive deal with OK! magazine, but newspapers were still able to obtain photographs showing them sitting on golden thrones. Employed for the wedding reception was 437 staff, which was estimated to have cost £500,000. The Beckhams, who came to be known in the United Kingdom as "Posh and Becks," had three sons together: Brooklyn Joseph Beckham (born March 4, 1999), Romeo James Beckham (September 1, 2002) and Cruz David Beckham (20 February 2005).

During the 2006 World Cup, Beckham was seen by the press as the leading "WAG" (as the wives and girlfriends of the England team came to be dubbed). In September 2006, amid speculation that Beckham was pregnant with the couple's fourth child, she dispelled the rumors by revealing that she is currently using the Pill, though in the same interview she also mentioned her hope that when the time is right she will have a daughter.

Beckham often generates criticism for her weight and very thin physique; people consider her to be a poor role model for the younger generations of woman who are expected to live up to an unachievable standard. Many news outlets have claimed that she is too skinny, and that she may have an eating disorder; however, in December 2006 on the BBC Radio program "Gordon Ramsay's Perfect Christmas Lunch," she stated that she is disciplined in what she eats and tries to eat healthily with lots of of fruits, vegetables, and fish.

In October of 2006, Beckham admitted that having three children and then losing so much weight afterwards has left a rather unsightly legacy on her tummy. "I've got so much saggy skin on my stomach," she says. While despite the efforts of airbrushing experts - working on a recent poster advertising the couple's new fragrance - to make us think otherwise, she actually has "no bum at all." Beckham added: "I might fit into jeans but, trust me, I look really awful naked."

However, in January of 2007 it was reported that Playboy was offering to do a spread of her for the men’s magazine. According to British paper, The Times, Hugh Hefner is eager to have Beckham pose naked for Playboy magazine, saying "She should do a pictorial with us. We’ve got big plans for her. I think she’s going to fit in fine."

She was also repeatedly falsely accused of wearing real fur and almost became a target for PETA. She had a number of faux fur outfits recreated from designs she had seen at a Roberto Cavalli fashion show. After realizing their mistake, PETA are now praising the singer for her leading example. Yvonne Taylor from PETA says, "Victoria has let PETA know that not only is she supportive of its high-profile anti-fur campaigns, she has pledged never to work with fur in any of her own fashion collections."

Charity Work and Activism

The Beckhams also threw a party which raised £2 million in May of 2006. The couple invited their celebrity friends and acquaintances to a “Full Length and Fabulous” charity party last weekend, and raised £2 million for UNICEF in the process.

Conceived as a party to usher in the soccer World Cup, the event boasted a guest list that included Robbie Williams, P. Diddy, Kate Moss, Sarah Ferguson, top football players and others. Guests bid on items ranging from a £300,000 limited edition Bentley car to a meal cooked by Ozzy Osbourne— the latter was snapped up by a businessman for £62,000.

In late December of 2006, the Beckhams were in the news for their altruism when they bought a wheelchair for 13-year-old schoolboy, Ollie Rycraft, a UK schoolboy fighting a fourth brain tumor who desperately needed a new life-changing wheelchair. It was reported that Ollie’s mother Debbie told how she was apparently overwhelmed when she answered a phone call from Victoria Beckham’s mum Jackie Adams; “When she said that David and Victoria would like to buy Ollie the wheelchair I burst into floods of tears,” she said. “At first I thought it was a joke but then when the news sunk in I just sobbed ‘thank you’ down the phone.”

A letter from Ollie’s physiotherapist Kate Mills had brought the courageous youngster’s struggle to the couple’s attention: “I wrote and told them what Ollie had been through and within two weeks I received a call from Victoria’s mum to say they would fund the wheelchair and organise everything,” said Kate. A delighted Ollie expressed his gratitude to the famous couple, saying, “I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the wheelchair because it helps me to get around and be independent [...] I might be a Chelsea fan but I think David Beckham is great and a really good player.”

A spokesman for the Beckhams said they donated the money through their own children’s charity, but said that they prefer not to comment on individual cases as the work was not done for publicity reasons. “The Beckhams’ children’s charity provides mobility equipment for children that need it –– they do it as and when they can and also do charity work for other charities such as the NSPCC and UNICEF,” he said. “The fund is a small but significant part of the charity work they do.”

Beckham created a charm for Cancer Research UK’s “Charms for Charity” campaign, and also supports several other charities, including Cancer Research UK, Elton John AIDS Foundation, Meningitis Trust, National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, Prince's Trust and UNICEF.

The Fray

2007-03-13T17:58:00.000-07:00

The Fray

The Fray (born 2002) was formed by schoolmates Isaac Slade and Joe King as a four-piece piano, rock band in the sleepy sprawl of America's Mile-High City, Denver, Colorado. Their melodic pop-rock songs and soaring vocals resonate with their tales of hopefulness and heartache. On their debute album, How to Save a Life released in 2005, they found a hit with their first single from that album of the same name, which charted the #3 of the Billboard Hot 100 and was a top 5 single in Canada, Australia, Ireland, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. The song also fit right in with the theme of the hit television drama, “Grey’s Anatomy,” on ABC and became the song for the show's title sequence.

The Fray also found national success with the song "Over My Head (Cable Car)," which became a top ten hit in the United States. How to Save a Life was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America and was also certified platinum in New Zealand and Australia.

Composition

The Fray was formed in 2002, and currently consists of Isaac Slade the lead vocalist and pianist, Joe King on guitar and vocals, Dave Welsh on guitar, and Ben Wysocki on drums and percussion. They have no official bassist, but recently have been touring with bassist Jimmy Stofer, also a member of the bands Dualistics and The Commentary. While many critics compare the band to Coldplay, the band lists its main influences as U2, Better Than Ezra and Counting Crows. Although the band draws comparisons to Christian rock groups, they state that they "don't call [themselves] a Christian band.”

Early Life

All the boys in the band were consummate musicians. A pianist from an early age, King competed in the local recital circuit before dropping piano altogether and picking up the guitar in junior high. "The coolest guys in my eighth grade class all played guitar," confides King. "I wanted to fit in." Slade began singing when he was eight, but temporary voice problems led him to discover the piano at age 11. After regaining his vocal abilities a year later, he continued studying piano and learned guitar in high school. "I wrote my first song at 16," explains Slade, "which is when I first picked up the guitar." Wysocki began taking drum lessons in the sixth grade, but only after having endured piano lessons at his parents' request; and Welsh grew up in a musical household, and struggled with piano and saxophone before settling on guitar at age 12.

In the spring of 2002, schoolmates Isaac Slade and Joe King met up in a local Guitar Center. They soon began regular two-man jam sessions that led to writing songs and devising a style pitched between the arena-friendly style of U2 and the rock bands like Coldplay. Slade and King later added Zach Johnson and Slade's brother Caleb to the band. Johnson left the band to attend an art school in New York. Wysocki, a former band mate of Isaac Slade, then became the drummer for The Fray. The bittersweet relationship between the brothers became the inspiration for "Over My Head (Cable Car).” Since Caleb's departure, The Fray has not used a bassist on a permanent basis. Later, Welsh, who was another former band mate of Slade and Wysocki, was added to the band.

The band chose their name, The Fray, from a suggestion bowl that was placed at a graduation party for Caleb Slade. The members of the band first claimed that they found the name suitable because they frequently quarreled over the composition of the lyrics in their songs. However, they have since stated that the band is usually on good terms while composing music, and acknowledges contributions from all of its members.

Movement and Reason: 2002 - 2005

In 2002, the band released Movement EP, a collection of four songs. Very few copies were pressed, and it is currently unavailable for purchase. The next year, they released Reason EP to some local critical acclaim, and earned a loyal grassroots following through impressive area gigs and the support of local radio which led a listen-driven campaign to get the band a record contract. With strong word-of-mouth, the band won "Best New Band" honors from Denver's Westword magazine.

Despite these rave reviews, the band struggled to launch a single. Denver radio station KTCL rejected eight of their songs before the band decided to submit "Cable Car." The song found airplay on a KTCL radio show highlighting local bands, and the radio station received a large number of requests for it soon thereafter. "Cable Car" eventually became one of the stations top thirty most played songs of 2004, helping the band's popularity to grow locally.

Later that year, the band was voted "Best New Band" by Denver readers of Westword. Epic records found out about the band through Westword's original article, which had the interest of A&R man Daniel Davis. Epic Records officially signed the band on December 17, 2004, and released their debut album, How to Save a Life, in September 2005. The band changed the name of "Cable Car" to "Over My Head (Cable Car)," and by the end of 2005, it had become KTCL's most played song of the year. Adding even more fame to the song it was included on the soundtrack for the film Stealth.

In July 2005, The Fray opened for Weezer for ten concerts. At the conclusion of the Weezer tour, the band opened for Ben Folds for twelve shows. The Fray headlined their own tour in January 2006, playing with Mat Kearney and Cary Brothers.

"Over My Head (Cable Car)" became a top 40 hit on the Modern Rock Tracks chart in late 2005. It lasted three weeks on the chart and peaked at position #37. The single gained airplay nationally, entering the Billboard Hot 100 charts on the issue marked February 25, 2006. Fourteen weeks later it reached its peak position at #8 on the Hot 100 chart. The song found success on the Billboard Adult Top 40 chart, where it reached the #2 position. The single also saw airplay on some Christian radio stations and spent several weeks on the R&R Christian charts, where it peaked at #27.

In January of 2004, The Fray were “no-namers” trying to find gigs. However, by December, they were getting radio pick-up and playing sold-out shows at 500-capacity venues.

How to Save a Life: 2005 – 2007

While "Cable Car" was rising on the charts the song "How to Save a Life" was featured on a second season episode of the television drama, “Grey's Anatomy” and during a fifth season episode of “Scrubs” with Zach Braff. Despite not having been originally released as a single, "How to Save a Life" entered the Hot 100 chart on the issue marked April 15, 2006. The song was promptly released as the band's second single. On August 18, 2006, ABC announced that the song would be used for the main advertising promotion for the season premiere of “Grey's Anatomy.” Only weeks after this promotion started, the song became The Fray's second top forty hit in the United States. The song reached the top three of the Hot 100 chart, surpassing the peak position of "Over My Head (Cable Car)", and has sold over one million downloads.

To promote the album, The Fray have performed on several popular television shows including “The Tonight Show,” “The Late Show with David Letterman” and “Rove Live in Australia.” They also released a live album, Live at the Electric Factory, on July 18, 2006. The concert was recorded on May 21, 2006 at the Electric Factory in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The digital download of the album is available on iTunes, Napster, and orders for a CD version of the album are available through the band's official website as well as select independent music stores. On September 19, they re-released How to Save a Life as a CD/DVD set with exclusive content including a documentary on the making of the album.

Critics have said that the album is full of “stick-in-your-head hooks, bright guitars and eloquent narratives of personal relationships that together seem custom-made for top-forty radio or your favorite teenage television drama.” The title track “How to Save a Life,” addressed Slade's work mentoring a crack-addicted teen, who also happened to be a musician. "I wrote the song about how there's no formula for bringing somebody out of that," he says. "Life is this organic risk, this give-and-take. You could lose your life – you never know."

How to Save a Life also appearantly has its tales of love lost, like with the track "Vienna": "Actually," Slade admits, "'Vienna' was a break-up song I wrote before [this girl] and I even started dating. It's the tragedy of 'this might not work.'"

As of January 8, 2007, their debut album has sold over 2 million copies in the United States, and has been certified Double Platinum by the RIAA. The single "Over My Head (Cable Car)" has sold 1.3 million digital tracks, and the single "How to Save a Life" has sold over 1,225,502. The Fray won all three awards in the digital category at the 2006 Billboard Music Awards, including digital album and digital songs artist of the year. They also performed "How to Save a Life" at the event. On December 7, 2006, the band was nominated for two Grammy Awards: Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal ("Over My Head (Cable Car)") and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal ("How to Save a Life").

The band released a live cover of John Lennon and Yoko Ono's “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” to iTunes as a 2006 Christmas single. The song debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at #50, due to a large number of digital downloads. This marks the first time this song has charted on the Hot 100.

Sublime

2007-03-13T17:29:00.001-07:00

Sublime

Sublime (born 1988, though some say 1986) was a native Long Beach, California, dub, punk, funk, reggae and hip hop band that broke down all musical barriers over their short-lived existance. Consisting of three members: Bradley Nowell (vocals and guitar), Bud Gaugh (drums), and Eric Wilson (bass guitar), the band released just two albums during its first seven years, finally achieving major mainstream success with their self-titled, third album and their hit single, “What I Got.”

Tragically, a month before Sublime's third album gained national recognition, Nowell the singer and soul of the band, died of a heroin overdose; subsequently, the group disbanded. However, Sublime's music continues to live on through their fans, defining a generation. Nowell's passing was more than just unfortunate to his friends and family, but it was a loss to the entire music industry along the same lines of the other great musicians whose lives were cut short, including Kurt Cobain, Jimmy Hendrix and Janis Joplin.

Even after Nowell's death, Sublime's music continues to influence musicians and delight fans worldwide; they have gone on to sell 8 million albums to a fanbase that tragically lost a voice of a generation.

Early Life

Formed in 1988, vocalist/guitarist Bradley Nowell, bassist Eric Wilson, and drummer Bud Gaugh played their first gig on the 4th of July in 1988 at a small Long Beach club (a show which sparked the infamous Peninsula Riot). The group began aggressively touring around the area with an increasingly substantial following, especially among the surf/skate beach crowd. After four years of concentrating strictly on live shows, Sublime's first album 40 Oz. to Freedom was recorded in 1992. The LP was released on Skunk Records – the label formed by Nowell and Sublime’s manager, Miguel – and sold at shows, but it did not really take off until Los Angeles rock radio station, KROQ began playing the single "Date Rape" two years after its initial release.

Mostly due to this radio exposure, Sublime signed to MCA for 1994's Robbin' the Hood, which revealed an experimental ethic more in keeping with cut-and-paste dub than the well-tuned rage of the California punk revival. The album performed well on college radio and set the stage for the breakout success of their third album, which was to be entitled "Killin' It." On May 25, 1996, however, Nowell was found in a San Francisco hotel room, dead of a heroin overdose, and the band decided to scrap the original title, and still continue on with the release of the album under the self-title, Sublime.

Nolan proved to be the heart, soul and poetic mind of the group, and the band collapsed after his death, but the album was still slated for a July release. On the strength of the alternative radio hit “What I Got,” the album was certified gold by the end of 1996. Reviews of the Sublime album said that “The trio does have a surprising grace in its unabashedly traditionalist fusion of Californian hardcore punk, light hip-hop, and reggae. Switching between bracing hardcore and slow, sexy reggae numbers, Sublime display supple, muscular versatility and, on occasion, a gift for ingratiatingly catchy hooks, as on the hit single “What I Got.’”

“What I Got” reached #1 on the Billboard Modern Rock Chart in 1996 and #11 on the Mainstream Rock Chart. Another single from the Sublime album, “Wrong Way,” reached #3 in 1997 on the Billboard Modern Rock Chart.

A number of posthumous releases followed, among them 1997's Second-Hand Smoke, 1998's Stand by Your Van, and Sublime Acoustic: Bradley Nowell & Friends. A 3-CD/1-DVD box set of demos, rarities, and live recording, called Everything Under the Sun, was released on November 14, 2006.

In addition, the album Doin’ Time reached #87 on the 1998 Billboard Hot 100 in 1998.

Documentary: Bittersweet Success

A Documentary emblemizing Sublime, and Bradley Nowell was made in 1998. Even though the group’s reign was tragically cut short, drummer Bud Gaugh, bassist Eric Wilson, and late singer/guitarist Brad Nowell provided more than enough grist in their tenure as kings of ska-punk for a documentary – so much, in fact, that the final edit posed some interesting issues for Sublime documentary director, Josh Fischel: “Oh yeah!" Fischel laughed when he was asked if anything was caught on film for the recently released Stories, Tales, Lies, & Exaggerations that absolutely, positively could not be shown in the final edit. He continued, choosing his words carefully, "There's actually some highly illegal activity that I couldn't put in there!" Considering that a bowl and bag rest in Bud's lap during one interview sequence, the question is raised if the "activity" he's referring to would come with a stiffer sentence. "Uh-huh. Yeah, yeah," he answers and then quickly changes course. "I did have to do some convincing to get the whole Denny's story in there, too," Fischel said, referring to the band's revenge on the eatery that allegedly gave them bad attitudes along with bad service.

Aside from editing out the antics of the rock 'n' roll lifestyle, Fischel faced his biggest challenge when it came to addressing the subject of Nowell's heroin overdose. "There was a lot of stuff with people talking about Brad's death. Bud [gave] a very graphic account of the night Brad died," Fischel recalled. "For a while it was in there. And I just thought, people don't need to hear this. Everyone knows how a heroin addict dies, or has some idea. Everyone's seen Trainspotting (referring to the graphic scene in which a man tries to detox from heroine).

"I have a lot of responsibility here," Fischel said, looking back at the consideration that shaped much of the film's final version. "This [film] is really how Jake, Brad's son, is going to remember his dad. The only way he's going to be able to see his dad as a musician and truly who he was is through this documentary and whatever other documentaries people make in the future. I just wanted to present him with an honest account, as much as I can, of who his dad was professionally. Because of the nature of Sublime, it spilled over into the personal, too. There's certain stuff that Brad's dad and son and wife don't need to hear."

In the end, a story involving the youngest member of the Sublime family, Jakob Nowell, influenced the direction of Fischel's film the most. "It started from a story that Troy, Brad's wife, had told me," Fischel said, recounting the incident that served as the determining factor in establishing Stories' tone. "She told me at Jakob's birthday party last year, a bunch of kids were there talking about what their daddy does or what their mommy does. Some kid [asked] Jake, 'What does your daddy do?' And some little girl turned around and said Jake doesn't have a daddy. He did drugs and he died. And then Jake turned to the little girl and said, 'I do too have a daddy -- he's in my heart.' After hearing that I was like, my God, he needs to know who his dad was."

Fischel and his film definitely show the many sides of Bud, Eric and Brad and the family affair that was Sublime. But in the end, Fischel saw his commitment to his late friend and a little boy as his ultimate responsibility. "So many people are going to tell Jake so many different things throughout his life," he said. "I tried to present Brad in as honest of a way as possible, without trying to lean too hard either way. You can definitely tell Brad had some problems and he didn't always handle things the best way. But at the same time he had a great heart and really loved the people around him."

Tribute Album

In late December 2004, Spearhead, Camper Van Beethoven and Ozomatli were named as some of the artists contributing tracks to the Sublime tribute album, Look At All the Love We've Found, which came out in the summer of 2005. Along with MC Gift of Gab, Spearhead take on "What I Got," Sublime's signature hit. "I decided to do the song because I am a fan," explained Spearhead's Michael Franti. "There was a sincerity about Brad's voice and lyrics that I always identified with. It is such a tragedy when there is a band that has as much promise as Sublime, and it gets cut off so short. I remember feeling the same way about Nirvana." Camper, who will cover "Garden Grove," got involved because Sublime had covered one of their songs. "There is a cover of 'Eye of Fatima' that's essentially Brad Nowell by himself on acoustic guitar," said bassist Victor Krummenacher. "It was a nice nod in our direction, and I thought that since Brad had enough respect to cover Camper, being part of this tribute album was more than fitting."

References

Wikipedia/Sublime
John Bush, All Music Guide
Sublime Movie Honors Nowell's Memory by Steve Gdula
Sublime Tribute Album Due: Spearhead, Camper, Ozomatli show their "Love" by Greg Prato

My Chemical Romance

2007-03-13T15:41:00.000-07:00

My Chemical Romance

My Chemical Romance (born 2001) also goes by the shortened My Chem, MCR or The Black Parade. This alternative rock band, formed about a week after the September 11th attacks, and came into prominence with their 2004 album, Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge, and the single, “I’m Not Okay.” They have since gone onto create several hits in the alternative rock music scene, and devise their most ambitious album yet, entitled The Black Parade, with its first single “Welcome to the Black Parade” grabbing from musical influences, like Queen, David Bowie, and The Misfits. The band consists of Gerard Way (lead vocals), Ray Toro (lead guitar, backing vocals), Frank Iero (rhythm guitar, backing vocals), Mikey Way (bass) and Bob Bryar (drums). Bassist Mikey Way coined the band's name from a book entitled Ecstasy: Three Tales of Chemical Romance, by Irvine Welsh. Based in New Jersey, My Chemical Romance is classified as alternative pop/rock and punk-pop band that has been compared to Thursday and, to a lesser degree, Cursive; and their music has been described as loud, fast, hyper, and aggressive and a favorite for screaming fans everywhere.

Early Career: 2001 - 2002

The band was formed in New Jersey by front man Gerard Way and ex-drummer Matt Pelissier around a week after September 11, 2001 attacks. Gerard had witnessed the planes crashing into the World Trade Center, and it subsequently influenced his life to the extent that he decided to start a band. Gerard wrote the song "Skylines and Turnstiles" to express his feelings about September 11th and shortly thereafter, Ray Toro was called up and asked to join the band because ,at the time, Gerard could not both sing and play the guitar at the same time.

The first recording sessions were done in Matt's attic, where the songs "Our Lady of Sorrows" (then called "Bring More Knives") and "Cubicles" were recorded. Mikey Way, the younger brother of Gerard, loved the demo so much that he decided to join the band.

My Chemical Romance was signed with Eyeball Records and played in the same room as Pencey Prep and Thursday. It was there that the band met Frank Iero, the lead vocalist and guitarist for Pencey Prep. After Pencey Prep broke up in 2001 or 2002, Frank became a guitarist for My Chemical Romance, just days before the band's debut album was recorded.

Three months after the formation of the band they recorded their debut album, I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love, subsequently released in 2002 on Eyeball Records. Despite only joining the band a few days before the album recording sessions began, Frank Iero played guitar on two of the tracks, one of them being "Early Sunsets Over Monroeville." The album was described as dark as it is introspective and cathartic; Mikey Way has been quoted as saying that the band's lyrics were a great way for him to deal with the problems he had been going through (which included severe depression, drug/alcohol abuse, and a serious illness in his family).

Breakout: 2003 - 2005

In 2003, the band signed a deal with Reprise Records. Following a tour with Avenged Sevenfold the band began work on their second album, entitled Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge. Released in 2004, the album went platinum within a year. The band released three singles from the album: "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)," "Helena" and "The Ghost of You."

It was during this time that the band replaced their drummer, Matt Pelissier with Bob Bryar, after they went to Japan in July 2004. The true nature of Pelissier's departure was due to an argument with band member Ray Toro or as a result of mistakes made by the drummer during live performances.

At the start of 2005, the band was directly supported on the first ever Taste of Chaos Tour, and was also the opening act for Green Day on the American Idiot Tour. Later that year MCR co-headlined and headlined their own tour with Alkaline Trio and Reggie and the Full Effect, around the United States.

That same year My Chemical Romance and The Used collaborated on a cover of the David Bowie and Queen classic "Under Pressure," which was released as a benefit single on iTunes and other Internet outlets. This collaboration obviously influenced the bands upcoming projects as seen by the release of their next album.

Life on the Murder Scene: Summer 2006

On March 21, 2006, a 2 DVD/1 CD set entitled Life on the Murder Scene was released. It includes one DVD chronicling the band's history, and a second DVD with music videos, the making of their videos and a couple of live performances. An unauthorized biography DVD Things That Make You Go MMM! was also released, on June 27, 2006. The DVD does not actually feature any My Chemical Romance music clips or performances, but contains interviews with those who knew the band before much of their fame.

The band started recording their third studio album on April 10, 2006 with Rob Cavallo, producer of many of Green Day's albums. It was originally thought to be titled The Rise and Fall of My Chemical Romance, but in an interview with Kerrang! magazine Gerard Way suggested this was just the album's working title, stating "It was never the title of the album, more a spoof, or joke."

On August 3, 2006, the band finished shooting the videos for their first two singles from the album, "Welcome to the Black Parade" and "Famous Last Words," which were released in early 2007. The video for “Welcome to the Black Parade” was directed by Sam Bayer, director of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and Green Day's “American Idiot” videos. The video for “Welcome to the Black Parade” features the group singing the epic, symphonic, Queen-esque song on a parade float surrounded by a wasteland.

During the shoot for "Famous Last Words", band members Gerard Way and Bob Bryar were injured. Way suffered torn ligaments in his ankle and Bryar a burn to the leg which caused a severe staph infection that needed constant monitoring in hospital. Consequently the band was forced to cancel a few tour dates. While these injuries were reported by several news agencies to have been the result of a car accident, a statement released by the band on their website and MySpace page has confirmed that these injuries occurred on the set of the video.

Course not everything is always good times: when they played the main stage at the 2006 Reading and Leeds Festival— the largest show they have ever played in the United Kingdom, according to issue 221 of Alternative Press, they followed Slayer and were not received warmly by the crowd at Reading, as the band was subjected to heavy bottling. Large sections of the audience threw bacon, tangerines, golf balls, and bottles filled with urine at the group as they played.

The Black Parade: August 2006 – Present

On August 22, 2006, the band played a special one-off show at the 1800-capacity London Hammersmith Palais. The show sold out in 15 minutes prompting tickets being sold on eBay well over the tickets' face value. The name of the album they promoted was announced and 20 people dressed in black capes with their faces obscured paraded around Hammersmith, followed by a large group of fans and street team members with signs saying "The Black Parade." Later during the show the album title and the United Kingdom release date were confirmed. Prior to the band taking the stage it was announced that My Chemical Romance were unable to play, but they would be replaced by "The Black Parade." After initial crowd hostility it became clear the band were simply performing under a pseudonym in keeping with the theme of the album. When the set began, the backdrop art displayed the words "The Black Parade."

The concept album uses Pink Floyd's The Wall, The Beatles's Sgt. Pepper and Queen's A Night at the Opera as touchstones; with the guidance of producer Rob Cavallo, MCR holed up in a haunted monastery in Los Angeles to create a twisted, heroic and ultimately hopeful concept album about a cancer patient who discovers a will to live and love, after getting a sneak peek at death.

On September 2, 2006, My Chemical Romance posted "Welcome to the Black Parade" on their MySpace page and their PureVolume page. It can also be heard on their official website. "Welcome to the Black Parade" had its first radio airing on September 11, 2006. On September 26, 2006 the "Welcome to the Black Parade" music video was released in the United Kingdom and on September 27 in the United States. The album was described by All Music Guide as “darkly conceptual and highly ambitious” and added that the first single’s (“Welcome to The Black Parade’s”) “elaborate accompanying video looked and sounded like the result of Tim Burton directing Queen.”

On October 12, 2006, My Chemical Romance made a rare in-store performance to 500 fans at Virgin Megastores on London's Oxford Street. In order to get wristbands for the event, many fans slept outside the shop the previous night. British band Towers of London caused trouble at the event when the Towers guitarist, Dirk Tourette, allegedly flicked a cigarette butt at Bob Bryar while he was performing.

"Welcome to the Black Parade" reached number one on October 15, 2006, on the United Kingdom Singles Chart, giving them their first number one. October 21, 2006 marked their first appearance on “Saturday Night Live” as the musical guests where they played "Welcome to the Black Parade" and "Cancer."

The Black Parade was released on October 23, 2006 in the United Kingdom and on October 24 in the United States. The record went Platinum by early 2007.

My Chemical Romance played six dates from January 19 to February 4, 2007, in the world renowned Big Day Out festival in Australia and New Zealand. They were billed alongside Tool, Muse, The Killers, and Jet.

Gerard Way commented that the band would be returning to New Zealand at the 2007 Big Day Out in Auckland.

In Kerrang! magazine, issue 1138, My Chemical Romance won the following categories in the 2006 poll: Best Band, Worst Band, Best Album (The Black Parade), Worst Album (The Black Parade), Best Track ("Welcome to the Black Parade"), Best Video ("Welcome to the Black Parade"), Best Live Show, Best Thing About 2006, Worst Thing About 2006, Hero of 2006 (Gerard Way), Villain of 2006 (Gerard Way), and Sexiest Male (Gerard Way). In issue 1139, Kerrang! rated The Black Parade as the 4th Greatest Album of 2006.

In Rolling Stone magazine's ranking of the top 50 albums of 2006, The Black Parade was voted the 20th best album of the year.

Recently, My Chemical Romance performed "Famous Last Words" on top of the Pontiac Building on MTV's New Year's Special. Another notable detail from this performance is Gerard Way's newly dyed (still short) black hair.

The United States headlining tour The Black Parade started on February 22, 2007. The band is currently on tour with Special Guest Rise Against, who in July came out with their album The Sufferer and The Witness. They will tour the United Kingdom with Thursday at the end of March.

On April 2nd 2007, My Chemical Romance will release "I Don't Love You" as their third single off The Black Parade album. In May, My Chemical Romance is scheduled to headline the first day of New Jersey's annual rock festival, The Bamboozle. The band has headlined the festival in past years. The band will be announcing a new leg of the tour on Monday, February 19, 2007 that will include dates in Canada in May. They are also confirmed to play at Oxegen '07 in Ireland in July.

On February 22nd, 2007, at the first concert of The Black Parade World Tour in Manchester, New Hampshire, My Chemical Romance announced the addition of Reggie and the Full Effect front man James Dewees, who will play Keyboards/Synth on the tour. Dewees is formerly of The Get Up Kids, and most recently played in a similar capacity with New Found Glory.

My Chemical Romance will be headlining Friday night of the Download Festival in 2007. This was an unpopular decision by the festival organizers as fans of the festival did not feel the band fitted in to a rock/metal festival, the official announcement received thousands of negative responses criticizing the choice.

My Chemical Romance won the award for "Best International Band" at the 2007 NME Awards. Gerard also won the "Hero of the Year" award.

Musical Style

The band's music has been described variously by the media as "alternative rock," "emo," "emocore," "nu-punk," "pop punk," "post-hardcore," and "punk revival." The band themselves described their music as simply "rock" or "violent, dangerous pop" on their official website, as well as rejecting the term "emo" to describe their style. But another source quotes Gerard stating they are “What-else-ya-got-emo.”

My Chemical Romance cite their main influences as Queen, Thursday, Iron Maiden, The Misfits, Pink Floyd, and Morrissey/The Smiths. Geoff Rickly, the lead singer of Thursday, has also compared them to Ink & Dagger. Growing up, they were also very influenced by horror films and comic books, and therefore their music, lyrics, and image all have overt elements of fantasy, storytelling, horror, and theatricality.

Fan Base

My Chemical Romance was initially lauded as a band with a strong "grassroots" or "cult" following. It was among the first bands to achieve prominence by offering free downloads through PureVolume and the social networking site MySpace, where MCR gathered its first few thousand fans. The band has clearly grown well beyond those initial numbers, expanding their fan base beyond the typical fans of their musical style and direction, partially helped by the more mainstream sound of their 2004 album, Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge. MCR are sometimes maligned by the "grassroots" fans for the expanded fan base, due to attracting fans they claim are "teeny boppers", after the release of Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge. Due to the increased amount of new fans, some of the old fanbase considers the band a "sellout" and the new MCR fans "posers." The fans are particularly vocal on online forums.

Media Attention and Controversy

Many of My Chemical Romance's music videos are 'horror film' based. Due to this, MCR are often criticized for their appearance being “Emo,” which is a reference to the music and style culture that are classified as “emotional.”

The band Guttermouth was supposedly removed from the 2004 Warped Tour for insulting My Chemical Romance, stating that the band were more concerned about their clothing and making money, rather than the artistic merits of the music they make. This is denied by Guttermouth, who claim they left of their own accord and not due to a complaint by My Chemical Romance.

In October 2006, the British Indie Rock band Kasabian criticized My Chemical Romance, labeling them "clowns" and "Emo kids" who "don't have anything positive to say" and "should get out more and try and have a good time instead." However, with the reception of their 2006 album, they have proven that they might just have something positive to contribute after all.

The Used is known to have both a personal and a professional relationship with My Chemical Romance. My Chemical Romance and The Used have covered "Under Pressure" (originally by David Bowie and Queen) in concert on multiple occasions. Bert also sings on the track "You Know What They Do To Guys Like Us In Prison," off of My Chemical Romance's Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge. Critics, however, have often criticized this relationship saying that My Chemical Romance used their relationship with The Used to gain a more international and wider audience. However, on My Chemical Romance's DVD, Life On The Murder Scene, the band's manager, Brian Schecter, stated that he introduced the two bands to each other, as he had once been The Used's tour manager.

In recent months, however, the two lead singers of both bands seem to have had a fallout due to disagreements over the addition of "Under Pressure" to In Love and Death.

In an interview with Blender, Way talks about the last time he and Bert McCracken crossed paths, during the San Diego stop of Warped Tour 2005. "It was really unfortunate," says Way. "We were about to take the stage and he was standing with a megaphone trying to get kids not to watch us. We just hit the feedback and drowned him out."

Scarlett Johansson

2007-03-09T04:50:00.000-08:00

Scarlett Johansson

Scarlett Johansson (born November 22, 1984) is world renowned for being not only a beauty, but one of the most talented actresses of her young generation. She rose to fame with her role in 1998's The Horse Whisperer and subsequently gained critical acclaim for her roles in Ghost World, Lost in Translation and Girl with a Pearl Earring, the latter two earning her Golden Globe Award nominations in 2003. She has been named 2006's "most beautiful" and "sexiest" woman alive by Esquire, FHM, respectively, and topped all the other lists out their.

Early Life

Johansson was born in New York City to Karsten Johansson, a Danish architect, and Melanie Sloan, who comes from a Bronx-bred Jewish American family. Her mother and met Karsten Johansson while living in Denmark with Scarlett Johansson's maternal grandmother, Dorothy, a former bookkeeper and schoolteacher. Her paternal grandfather, Ejner Johansson, was a screenwriter and director. Johansson has an older sister, Vanessa, who is also an actress; an older brother, Adrian; a twin brother, Hunter, also an actor; and a half-brother, Christian. She is of Polish/Danish descent.

As might be expected of an acting prodigy, Johansson had an unusually early interest in performing: she wanted to be an actress since age 3, and was acting professionally when she was only 8 years old. After taking classes at the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute for Young People, Johansson made her stage debut in the early 1990s in the off-Broadway production of Sophistry, alongside Ethan Hawke.

Career

Johansson began her acting career in 1994 starring as "Laura Nelson" in North. In 1998, the acclaimed film The Horse Whisperer (1998) brought Johansson critical praise and worldwide recognition. Following the film's success, she starred in many other films including the critically acclaimed cult film Ghost World (2001) and then the hit Sofia Coppola film Lost in Translation (2003) with Bill Murray in which she again stunned critics. Later on, she appeared in Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003).

She won the "Upstream Prize" for Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival for her performance as Charlotte in Lost in Translation. The same year, she was nominated for two best actress awards at the Golden Globes, one for drama (Girl with a Pearl Earring) and one for comedy (Lost in Translation). She was also nominated for best actress for both films at the BAFTAs, and won best actress for Lost in Translation.

Johansson was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in June of 2004. In the same year, she starred in the films The Perfect Score, In Good Company and A Love Song for Bobby Long, the last of which earned her a third Golden Globe Award nomination. Johansson was involved for a short time with the film Mission: Impossible III, but was not officially cast because of scheduling conflicts, although a falling out with the film's star, Tom Cruise, had been both widely reported and publicly denied. She was replaced by Keri Russell.

In July 2005, Johansson starred with Ewan McGregor in the Michael Bay-directed The Island, making her debut as a female lead in a mainstream action film. She drew attention to both the film and herself when she proposed to appear topless in the film's sex scene, but director Bay disapproved, wanting to keep the film at a PG-13 rating. She said that working on the film, she “came home and I thought I was going to die. I was in agony. I had muscles that had atrophied. I couldn't run any longer and it was only the first day. But, actually, Ewan was in the same boat. He had black and blue marks all over him. So, it wasn't so bad since someone else was in agony."

In the same year, she starred in the Woody Allen-directed drama Match Point, which opened in December. Johansson received her fourth Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress for the role but lost to Rachel Weisz. Johansson's next film, Scoop, another collaboration with Woody Allen, was released on 28 July 2006. The same year, she appeared in director Brian De Palma's The Black Dahlia, a film noir shot in Los Angeles and Bulgaria. Johansson has noted that she was a fan of De Palma and had wanted to work with him on the film, despite her belief that she was "physically wrong" for the part. Her reviews were mixed: CNN.com positively noted that Johansson "takes to the pulpy period atmosphere as if it were oxygen," whereas another reviewer referred to Johansson as "miscast."

Johansson's most recent role was in the thriller The Prestige, which opened on October 20, 2006. She has also completed filming on the yet be released film version of The Nanny Diaries along side Alicia Keys, and has been cast opposite Natalie Portman and Eric Bana in The Other Boleyn Girl, playing Mary Boleyn, the sister of Portman's character. Filming is scheduled to begin in London in October 2006 for a 2007 release. Johansson will also play the title character Mary, Queen of Scots, in a film scheduled to begin production by the end of summer 2007.

Other Works

Johansson endorsed the Calvin Klein perfume "eternity Moment" and was featured in several commercials and printed advertisements for the product. About her Calvin Klein ads, she has said "I don't know if I've got swept up. It's so shocking when you hear that Calvin Klein wants you for their new campaign. You're like, 'who me?'. I guess you have to decide where you draw the line between you saying, this is fun, pretty and fabulous, and being over-exposed." One of the commercials was featured in her 2005 film The Island.

Further establishing her position in Hollywood, she became the face and spokesperson for the French luxury brand Louis Vuitton in early 2005 and in January 2006 was named the spokesperson of L'Oreal.

In March of 2006, she topped the U.S. edition of FHM's poll of the sexiest women alive (in the UK edition Johansson was third). In May of 2006, Maxim named Johansson #6 in their Hot 100 issue, and in July of 2006, Reebok signed a deal with Johansson to co-create "Scarlett 'Hearts' Rbk," athletic footwear scheduled for a debut in the spring of 2007. Johansson will also be featured in Reebok's global women's advertising campaign, also in the spring of 2007. The company's press releases described Johansson as a "world renowned style icon" and an "inspiration for today's young women." In November 2006, Johansson was named "Sexiest Woman Alive" by Esquire magazine.

In 2006, Johansson starred in a short film directed by Bennett Miller and set to Bob Dylan's "When the Deal Goes Down...," released to promote Dylan's album, Modern Times. Between 2005 and 2006, she also sang the track "Summertime" for Unexpected Dreams - Songs from the Stars, a non-profit collection of songs recorded by Hollywood actors, and was in talks to appear in a stage version of The Sound of Music.

In October 2006, Fox News reported that Johansson has signed to record a music album with Rhino Entertainment's Atco Records, with a possible release date of Spring 2007. The album, entitled Scarlett Sings Tom Waits, will consist entirely of Johansson's cover versions of Tom Waits songs. Johansson is also the leading lady in the Justin Timberlake music video "What Goes Around Comes Around."

She has also been hand picked by Jenna Jameson to star in a biopic of the port-stars life. The adult film entertainer has said, "She's my choice, I think she's beautiful."

Personal Life

Johansson is a Democrat and campaigned for John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election. She was later quoted as saying, of George W. Bush's re-election, that "[she was] disappointed. I think it was a disappointment for a large percentage of the population." Johansson has also taken part in the anti-poverty campaign "ONE" which was organised by U2 lead singer Bono.

Johansson has previously stated that she has a connection to older men, and could not see herself dating anyone under the age of thirty. She has also noted that she does not discuss "any part" of her personal life with the press, specifying that she feels "it's nice to have everybody not know your business." However, this has not stopped Johansson from sharing "select" opinions and personal details. Johansson's ex-boyfriend (and member of the band Steel Train), Jack Antonoff, has included negative lyrics that refer to Johansson in his band's song "Better Love." Antonoff also references Johansson in the song "2 O'clock." She has been linked to many famous men, including Derek Jeter, Benicio Del Toro (whom she supposedly had a lacivious encounter with in an elevator), Jared Leto, and a long term relationship with The Black Dahlia co-star Josh Hartnett. The pair dated for around two years until the end of 2006, with Josh citing their busy professional lives as the reason for the split.

In early 2007 she was linked to international pop superstar Justin Timberlake after starring in the music video, "What Goes Around Comes Around."

Johansson has repeatedly said that she does not believe in monogamy or monandry, and that it is not human nature to be with just one person but "contrary to popular belief... [she is] not promiscuous" and she works "really hard" when she is in a relationship "to make it work in a monogamous way." Though, she has said that she doesn’t “think human beings are monogamous by nature. It's difficult - you have to put a lot of effort into a relationship. I think it's hard for actors to date each other because they are so damn moody. You are away from people constantly and having a relationship that is strictly by phone, it is miserable. Or if you say to him/her, 'Hey, (even though) I am doing a very sexy scene with this very sexy girl/boy, I love you and I'm going to be thinking of you when I am rolling around in bed with this person!'"
She gets tested for HIV twice a year, and has specified that she feels "it's part of being a decent human" and that she finds it "disgusting" and "irresponsible" when people do not do so.

Johansson has claimed to be addicted to swiss cheese, saying: "My greatest vice is cheese. Nothing else reigns over my life." She has criticized the media and Hollywood for promoting an image that causes unhealthy diets and eating disorders among women, saying that she thinks "that being ultra-thin is not sexy at all. Women shouldn't be forced to conform to unrealistic and unhealthy body images that the media promote."

When asked about her current religious affiliation, Johansson has answered: "That's a very personal question. I would rather not answer". She has, however, specified that she celebrates "Chrismakkuh," a "little of both" Hanukkah and Christmas. She has noted that she dislikes it when celebrities thank God or Jesus in their award acceptance speeches.

Charity Work

Johansson also contributes to her fair share of charities, and in 2007 she was a no-show at Oscar parties after the ceremony after snubbing the event to visit Sri Lanka and India on a charity project. The beauty is spent 10 days in the South Asia region as part of a trip organized by international aid agency Oxfam.

Oxfam executive director Jeremy Hobbs says, "By supporting Oxfam, Scarlett is taking a stand alongside millions of people globally who are working to overcome poverty. Her support is crucial in helping to show how the smallest donation to Oxfam can mean the world of difference to a poor community."

Heidi Klum

2007-03-09T03:43:00.000-08:00

Heidi Klum

Heidi Klum (born June 1, 1973) has gone on from being simply being your run-of-the-mill world renowned supermodel, to being an international icon as an actress, television presenter, fashion designer, television producer, and singer.

A beauty who has graced the cover of hundreds of magazines over her career, most notably a fixture for Victoria’s Secret, has also become known as “The Body” modeling in Sports Illustrated, Vogue, Elle, and several others. She has also turned her notoriety and love of fashion into a hit reality television show in “Project Runway,” and there is no sign of slowing; with a singing career, a clothing line and a family with singer/songwriter Seal, this wunder-model has the world at her fingertips.

Early Life

Klum was born on June 1, 1973, in Bergische Gladbach, a small city in Cologne, Germany. Practically destined to be a fashion model, Heidi's father, Gunther, worked for a cosmetics company, while her mother, Erna, was a hairdresser. In 1991, while she was still in high school, and fairing quite well in mathematics and art, Heidi was encouraged by her friend to participate in a modeling competition. Although Heidi was reluctant at first, she finally gave in.

Klum was discovered when she participated in the Model '92 competition, organized by Petra magazine and a New York modeling agency. The competition received 250,000 resumes from girls wishing to participate in the grueling selection process. As the winner of the Model '92 competition, Heidi appeared in the Petrol catalog and was offered a three-year modeling contract with Metropolitan worth $300,000. However, she passed on the offer in order to finish high school.

Less than a year later, she was studying to be a fashion designer when she decided to drop it to pursue a modeling career. After a couple of modeling opportunities in Paris and Milan, Heidi crossed the Atlantic to come to the United States in 1993. She first landed in Miami, and soon made the trek to New York City.

Modeling Career

With patience and effort, the work offers started to pour in for Heidi. She appeared in many print advertisements, including for Bonne Bell (which Denise Richards also modeled for), Finesse, Gerry Weber, Givenchy's Amarige, and INC.

In 1996, Heidi founded Heidi Klum GmbH, helped design the firm's trademarked logo and secured the copyright to her name. By 1997, Heidi was snatched from regular model status and thrown into the supermodel ranks of Tyra Banks, Helena Christensen and Stephanie Seymour. That year marked Heidi's first runway walk and the beginning of a long relationship with Victoria's Secret.

While Heidi appeared on the covers of such magazines as Bride's, Cosmopolitan, Self, Glamour, and Mademoiselle, none could live up to the recognition Heidi received as 1998's Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition cover girl, an honor that models Vendela, Elle MacPherson and Tyra Banks had previously claimed. Heidi was the first German model to take the Sports Illustrated cover and she maintained a mutually beneficial relationship with the publication for years.

Heidi's newfound superstardom allowed her to launch her very own swimsuit calendar in 2000. The inaugural calendar was shot on location in St. Barts by renowned photographer Antoine Verglas. A year later, People magazine finally recognized Heidi as one of the world's 50 Most Beautiful People. She has since been honored by ranking high on various "sexiest women" lists, such as FHM's, Maxim's, and AskMen.com's Most Desirable Women list.

Heidi is signed with Elite Model Management, which is or has been home to Alessandra Ambrosio, Gisele Bundchen and Claudia Schiffer, and she continues to model. Although Heidi has achieved a powerful name in the industry – Forbes ranked her among the 100 Most Powerful Celebrities in 2003. Though she is still obligated not to change her physical appearance by her contract, and she also has insured her legs for two million dollars.

Modeling and Acting

As an actress, Heidi's parts have been relatively small and she often appears as herself. Nonetheless, she's a welcome addition to any screen and has appeared in such television shows as "Spin City," "CSI: Miami" and "Sex and the City," in which she shared the runway with Sarah Jessica Parker. She had a role as an ill-tempered hair model in the movie Blow Dry, played a giantess in the movie Ella Enchanted and was cast as Ursula Andress in The Life and Death of Peter Sellers.

She can also been seen in the films 54 (1998) and The Devil Wears Prada (2006).

"Project Runway"

In December of 2004, she became the host and judge of the reality show “Project Runway” on the U.S. cable television channel Bravo, in which fashion designers compete for the opportunity to show their line at New York Fashion Week and receive money to launch their own fashion line. She also received Emmy Award nominations for the show for the first and second seasons.

Clothing, Designing and Perfume

Klum's own clothing lines (including one for infants) were featured in the German mail-order catalog "Otto." She also has designed shoes for Birkenstock, jewelry for Mouawad, and swimsuits - featured in the 2002 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue - that, for a limited time, were available for sale through her personal website. Her Mouawad jewelry collection debuted on the cable shopping network QVC on September 14, 2006, and 14 of the 16 styles sold out after only 35 minutes.

She also produced two own fragrances, called "Heidi Klum" and "Me", which are currently available for sale through her own website.

Germany's Next Top Model

Klum hosts the show, "Germany's Next Top Model," which is a German reality television show which pits contestants against each other in a variety of competitions to determine who will win a modeling contract with IMG. It was co-produced by supermodel Tyra Banks. The show has renewed for its second season in Fall 2006.

Other Media Opportunities

Klum is an artist and has had several of her paintings appear in various art magazines in the U.S. On September 27, 2002 she dedicated a sculpture she painted called "Dogs with Butterflies" to commemorate the role of rescue dogs in the aftermath of September 11. She has also had a rose named after her, known as the "Heidi Klum rose."

Klum is featured in the 2004 James Bond video game Everything or Nothing, where she plays a villain Dr. Katya Nadanova.

Klum has also appeared in several music videos, including Jamiroquai's video "Love Foolosophy" from their album A Funk Odyssey, and Kelis's "Young, Fresh N' New," off her second album Wanderland.

In November 2006, Heidi released her debut single as a singer "Wonderland," which was written for a series of television advertisements for the German retailer "Douglas," Proceeds from the single were given to a children's charity in her hometown of Bergisch Gladbach.

Personal Life

Heidi also married her first husband, hairstylist Ric Pipino, in 1997. The couple divorced in 2002 and Heidi hit the dating scene. She has been romantically linked to Red Hot Chili Peppers frontman Anthony Kiedis, Renault's Formula One owner Flavio Briatore, with whom she had her first child in 2004, and Philip Zevenbergen. In 2005, she happily settled down and wed Grammy-winning British soul singer Seal. The couple has produced two sons, Henry and Johan, since their union. Klum gave birth to their son, Henry Günther Ademola Dashtu Samuel, in Los Angeles on September 12, 2005. On November 22, 2006, in Los Angeles, Heidi gave birth to their second son, Johan Riley Fyodor Taiwo Samuel. Seal is also helping her raise her first child, and even in the earlier stages of their relationship, Klum said Seal treated Leni as if she was his own child.

Klum and Seal were wed on May 10, 2005, on a beach in Mexico. Klum wore a Vera Wang wedding dress.

Heidi Klum is well-known for her down-to-earth personality and her quirky sense of humor (she yodeled on "The Late Show with David Letterman" and performed a pregnant dance on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show"), but her wholesome family values may surprise some. She has listed quality time with her family as her greatest hobby, among her many other interests, such as jazz and ballet dancing, traveling, painting, skiing, and listening to music. Her favorite musical artists include James Brown, Moby, Dido, U2, and Nikki Costa.

Charity Work and Activism

Klum participates in several charities including working on behalf of such organizations as the American Red Cross (as part of its Celebrity Cabinet) and the Elizabeth Glazer Pediatric AIDS Foundation.

Ciara

2007-03-09T03:23:00.000-08:00

Ciara

Ciara (born Ciara Princess Harris on October 25, 1985) knew early on that she wanted to be a songstress, and went from forming her own group Hearsay when she was still in her early teens all the way to working with big Hip-Hop and R&B stars such as Ludacris, Missy Elliot, will.i.am and many others. Dubbed the "First Lady of Crunk & B" by the producer who should know, Lil Jon, this Grammy Award-winning American singer, songwriter, dancer, record producer, and occasional actress burst onto the scene with the never-gonna-get-it single "Goodies," the breathy "answer song" to Petey Pablo's "Freek-a-Leek." The album Goodies was released on September 28, 2004. It produced three top three singles, sold 2.6 million in the U.S., over three million worldwide, and earned various awards and nominations.

Ciara's second album, Ciara: The Evolution, was released on December 5, 2006. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, selling more than 338,000 copies, which is 213,000 more than Ciara's debut album Goodies, which debuted at number three. It has spawned two top-twenty singles.

Early Life

The only child of Jackie Harris and Carlton Harris, a member of the United States Army, Ciara was born in Austin, Texas, but she grew up on an army bases in Germany, New York, Utah, California, Arizona, and Nevada. She is of Creole, German and Irish heritage. During her teens, Ciara and her family settled in Atlanta. A cheerleader in high school, she graduated from Riverdale High School in Atlanta in 2003.

Ciara said that watching Destiny's Child perform on a television program while staying home from school inspired her to pursue a career in music. Ciara joined a girl group called Hearsay and worked on her songwriting. The group recorded demos, but began to have differences and eventually, she left the group, got a publishing deal, and found a "musical soulmate" when she met producer Jazze Pha. After Ciara graduated from Riverdale High School she was signed by LaFace Records by executive L.A. Reid with the help of Jazze Pha. She began production on her debut album. Ciara co-wrote a demo with songwriter Sean Garrett, who was co-writer of Usher’s international hit “Yeah!”

Goodies: 2004 – 2005

Ciara wrote most of her 2004 debut album Goodies. The album became a commercial success in the U.S., selling 2.63 million copies. The following year, Goodies received an international release, but success was limited, although the singles were worldwide hits. Ciara’s debut single, "Goodies" reached number one in United States and United Kingdom. The second and third single "1, 2 Step" featuring Missy Elliott and "Oh" featuring Ludacris were top five singles in both countries. "And I," the fourth single, did poorly compared to the first three releases. The song peaked at ninety-six on the Billboard Hot 100. In July 2005, Ciara released her DVD of music videos, documentaries, and commentaries entitled Goodies: The Videos & More.

In the summer of 2005, during the success of Goodies, Ciara was featured on hit singles by hip-hop artists. She appeared on Missy Elliott's "Lose Control" from her album The Cookbook and Bow Wow’s "Like You" from his album Wanted, which both peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100.

In December 2005, Ciara went on tour with Gwen Stefani on her Harajuku Lovers Tour and other pop sensations Bow Wow and Chris Brown for the "Holladay Jam," which stopped at big cities such as New York, Washington D.C., and Atlanta. She also received Grammy nominations for Best New Artist, Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for "1, 2 Step," Best Rap Song and Best Short Form Music Video for “Lose Control.”

Good friends with music artist Bow Wow, she was accompanied by him to the MTV Video Music Awards in 2005.

Then Ciara slowly began production on her second album.

Ciara: The Evolution: 2006 – Present

Ciara started 2006 by winning her first Grammy Award for Missy Elliott's "Lose Control." It won Best Short Form Music Video on February 8, 2006. In April 2006, Ciara was featured on Field Mob’s Billboard top ten single "So What." The following month, she made acting debut in the MTV Films production All You've Got, also starring Adrienne Bailon and Efren Ramirez. The summer of 2006, Ciara completed her second album, after the release of the Step Up soundtrack single "Get Up" featuring Chamillionaire.

Ciara's second studio album, Ciara: The Evolution was released on December 5, 2006. Production included hitmakers such as, Jazze Pha, Rodney Jerkins, Pharrell, Bryan Michael Cox, will.i.am and many others. The album is about Ciara's personal growth after two years in the public eye still at the tender age of only 21. She co-wrote and co-produced most of the songs. The official first single "Promise," produced by Atlanta producer Polow Da Don, became a Billboard top twenty single.

In October 2006, Ciara went on a seventeen city club tour until December, which she previewed new music from the album. In the December 23 issue of Billboard magazine, Ciara: The Evolution debuted at number one selling over 338,000 copies, which is 213,000 more than Ciara’s debut album Goodies. The album has been certified platinum by the RIAA. The second single from Ciara: The Evolution, the first single in Europe and Asia, "Like a Boy," was released on February 13, 2007 in the U.S. and will be released in the UK on April 9, 2007.

Acting Career

In May 2006, Ciara made her acting debut in the MTV Films coming-of-age film All You've Got, as Becca Watley, the queen bee of a high school volleyball team: the Little Madonnas. The film was released on DVD May 23, 2006.

Ciara hopes to shoot another film after her summer tour.

Halle Berry

2007-03-09T02:40:00.000-08:00

Halle Berry

Halle Maria Berry (born August 14, 1966[1] in Cleveland, Ohio) is a multi-racial Emmy and Golden Globe award winning actress, who became the first black actresses to win an Academy Awards for her role in Monster's Ball. This former fashion model and beauty queen has graced the silver screen in over 30 films, and has gone onto become on of Hollywood’s most notable film actresses, beginning with starring as a crack addict in Spike Lee’s Jungle Fever in 1991 and continuing all the way to an Oscar win, and Storm in the multi-million X-Men franchise. With a heafty resume, and only more to come, this beauty will never stop being one of the reigning queens of the cinema.

Early Life

The daughter of Judith Ann Hawkins, an English Liverpudlian, and Jerome J. Berry, who was African American, Berry's parents selected her first name from that of Halle's Department Store, which was then a local landmark in her birthplace of Cleveland, Ohio. Berry's maternal grandmother, Nellie Dicken, was born in Sawley, Derbyshire, England, while her maternal grandfather, Earl Ellsworth Hawkins, was born in Ohio. Berry's parents divorced when she was four years old and she subsequently was raised by her mother, a psychiatric nurse. Her father was an orderly in the same psychiatric ward where her mother worked. Berry has an older sister, Heidi who was born seven years before her. In 1989, Berry was diagnosed with diabetes mellitus type 1.

Berry was a popular student at Bedford High School and was a cheerleader, honor society member, editor of the school newspaper, class president and prom queen. In high school, she worked in the children's department at Higbee's Department store. She subsequently attended Cuyahoga Community College.

Before becoming an actress, she entered several beauty contests, winning Miss Ohio USA and Miss Teen All-American. Other entries include Miss USA (first runner-up in 1986 to Christy Fichtner of Texas, the second of the Texas Aces), and sixth place in Miss World 1986. In the Miss USA 1986 pageant interview competition, she said she hoped to become an entertainer, or to have something to do with the media or newspaper. Her interview was awarded the highest score by the judges.

Early Career

In the late 1980s, she went to Chicago, to pursue a modeling career as well as acting. One of her first acting projects was a television series for local cable by Gordon Lake Productions called "Chicago Force."

Berry auditioned for a role in an updated "Charlie's Angels" television series by producer Aaron Spelling. Though she did not receive the role, she impressed Spelling and he encouraged her to continue acting.

In 1989, Berry landed the role of Emily Franklin in the short-lived ABC television series "Living Dolls" (a spin-off of Who's the Boss?).

Notable Acting Career

Halle got her first big break in 1991 when Spike Lee cast her as a crack-addicted woman in Jungle Fever, co-starring Samuel L. Jackson. Halle was so determined to execute the role perfectly that she actually interviewed real addicts and stopped bathing 10 days before filming the racially charged film.

Her first co-starring role was in the film Strictly Business. In 1992, she won a starring role as a career woman who falls for Eddie Murphy in the romantic comedy Boomerang. That same year, Berry caught the public's attention as a headstrong biracial slave in the television adaptation of Queen: The Story of an American Family, based on the book by Alex Haley. Another early role Berry played was the sultry secretary in the live action Flintstones movie as "Sharon Stone," in a part rumored to have been intended for Sharon Stone (Berry would later co-star alongside Stone in Catwoman).

Then, in 1995 Berry showed she could handle more serious fare when she portrayed a former drug addict struggling to regain custody of her son in Losing Isaiah, holding her own opposite powerhouse co-star Jessica Lange.

In 1996, she played the role of Sandra Beecher in Race the Sun, and co-starred along side Kurt Russell in Executive Decision. She originally turned down the role, however she conceded when she was offered $1 million salary for the film – that was her first $1 million role.

Berry received praise for her role as an intelligent woman raised by activists who gives an older politician Warren Beatty a new lease on life in Bulworth (1998) and as the singer Zola Taylor, and one of the three wives of pop singer Frankie Lymon, in the unfortunately overlooked biopic Why Do Fools Fall in Love in 1998.

In 1999, Berry portrayed the first black woman to be nominated for a Best Actress Academy Award in the HBO biopic Introducing Dorothy Dandridge. Berry's performance as Dandridge was recognized with several awards, including an Emmy and Golden Globe. S he also served as one of the producers of the project.

Berry went onto portrayed the mutant Storm in the movie adaptation of the popular comic book series X-Men (2000) and its successful sequels X2: X-Men United (2003) and X-Men: The Last Stand (2006). Berry's portrayal of Storm in the X-Men films has provoked some criticism. Some fans of the character of Storm refer to Berry as "HalleStorm" or "movie Storm". Furthermore, there was a rumor that Berry had said that because of a lack of roles for black actors, she was "reduced to" playing a comic book character. B erry and co-star Ian McKellen maintain that she was misquoted.

She also went onto make headlines when she was allegedly paid a $500,000 bonus to reveal her breasts in a scene in 2001's hacker film, Swordfish.

In late 2001, Berry appeared as Leticia Musgrove, the wife of an executed murderer, in the film Monster's Ball. Her performance was awarded prizes from groups like the National Board of Review and the Screen Actors Guild. The role also earned her an Academy Award for Best Actress in which she made history by becoming the first black woman to earn a Best Actress Academy Award. However, the role did come with its faire share of controversy: Angela Bassett stated in Newsweek that she declined the role of Leticia saying that "Film is forever. It's about putting something out there you can be proud of 10 years later." Later Berry would tell Vogue that "I haven't spoken to her about it. I don't know what she said, what she meant, if she said it, if she didn't....It didn't really affect me in the way it affected a lot of other people." Finally in 2006, Bassett told the Times that she spoke with Berry and that "She was hurt, but not only did it hurt her, it hurt me. We talked it through."

As Bond Girl, Jinx, in the 2002 blockbuster Die Another Day, she famously re-created the scene from Dr. No, bursting from the surf to be greeted by James Bond, as Ursula Andress did 40 years earlier in a bikini with a knife strapped to her side. On April 10, 2002, she received an injury on the set of Die Another Day: Halle was hurt on location in Cadiz, Spain while shooting an action sequence that involved Pierce Brosnan firing on a helicopter being flown by Rick Yune.

Also, in late 2003, Berry starred in the psychological thriller Gothika opposite Robert Downey Jr.

However, her roles did not always come with praise, and in her next lead role in the film Catwoman, she was awarded a "worst actress" Razzie award in 2005, which she accepted in person with a sense of humor and recognition that "to be at the top, you must experience the rock bottom."

She has become one of the highest paid actresses in Hollywood, commanding $14 million each for Gothika and Catwoman.

Berry's next performance was for television, where she appeared in the Oprah Winfrey produced ABC telepic Their Eyes Were Watching God (2005), an adaptation of the popular Zora Neale Hurston novel in which Berry played Janie Crawford, an iconoclastic, free-spirited woman whose unconventional mores regarding relationships upset her 1920s contemporaries in her small community. Meanwhile, she voiced the character of Cappy, one of the many mechanical beings in the animated feature, Robots (2005).

In 2004, she was named one of the "50 Most Beautiful People" in People magazine, and was voted as #7 on the "Top 100 Sexiest Women 2004" by FHM magazine.

In 2005, she was named again one of the "50 Most Beautiful People" by People magazine, named #1 on BET's "All Shades of Fine: The 25 Hottest Women of the Past 25 Years, named #41 on the Maxim magazine Hot 100 of 2005 list, and #5 in FHM's "100 Sexiest Women in the World 2005" special supplement. She was also named #6 in FHM magazine's "100 Sexiest Women in the World 2006" supplement.

In 2006, she filmed the thriller Perfect Stranger with Bruce Willis and recently wrapped shooting Things We Lost in the Fire with Benicio Del Toro. She is also set to star in Class Act, based on the real life story of a teacher whose students helped her run for political office.

Other Media Opportunities

Berry is also making a transition to behind the scenes work in film and television. She is working with author Angela Nissel to executive produce a comedy series based on Nissel's two memoirs, The Broke Diaries and Mixed: My Life in Black and White.

Berry has served many years as the face of Revlon cosmetics and was recently named the new face of Versace.

Media Attention Personal Life

Berry has stated that her self-identification is a result of the ignorance of her peers and her mother's influence. She is quoted as saying, "I was raised by my white mother and every day of my life I have always been aware of the fact that I am bi-racial. However, growing up I was aware that even though my mother was white, I did not look or 'feel' very white myself... If people would just learn to look at everyone equally and stop trying to label one another the issue of what we are all made of would be null and void...We are all members of the same race, the human race!"

In February 2000, she was involved in a car accident when she struck another vehicle after running a red light and left the scene before the police arrived. Berry, who had sustained a head injury, later stated she had no recollection of the accident and pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge. She paid a fine, made restitution to the other driver, performed community services, and was placed on three years’ probation.

Berry has been married twice. Her first marriage in 1992 to pro baseball player David Justice ended in divorce in 1996. David played with the Atlanta Braves and had experienced a measure of fame as the team rose to national attention in the early 1990s. They found it difficult to maintain their relationship when he was playing baseball and she was filming elsewhere. Her second marriage in 2001 to musician Eric Benét resulted in a 2004 separation and 2005 divorce. It has been reported that Benet is a sex addict, and his infidelity was the main cause for their split. In 2004, after their separation, Berry stated "I want love, and I will find it, hopefully."

As of 2006, she is currently dating Canadian supermodel Gabriel Aubry, who is nine years her junior. The couple met at a Versace photoshoot. After six months with Aubry, she stated in an interview "I'm really happy in my personal life, which is a novelty to me. You know I'm not the girl that has the best relationships".

Berry recently revealed to Extra that she plans to adopt children. "I will adopt if it doesn't happen for me naturally", she said. "I will definitely adopt. And I probably will adopt even if it does happen naturally." It has since been speculated that Aubry, who lived in five foster families between the ages of 3 and 18, possibly inspired Berry's interest in adoption. Later, she stated "I never want to be married again. I guess you could say I have bad taste in men. But I no longer feel the need to be someone's wife. I don't feel like I need to be validated by being in a marriage."

When speaking on the subject of having her own biological child, Berry has recently indicated that she has given thought to Aubry being the father, but that it is too early for that level of commitment involving a biological child between them. She stated that they both share the same feelings against the need to be married, and she indicated this to be one of she and Aubry's many strong bonds with one another. She stated that both feel the need to commit to one person emotionally and physically, but neither feels the obligation to marry in order to make that commitment official.

Charity Work and Activism

Being a diabetic herself, Berry became the first celebrity ambassador for the Diabetes Aware campaign. She also supports Clothes Off Our Back, Diabetes Aware, Entertainment Industry Foundation, Jenesse Center, and Make-A-Wish Foundation.

The Pussycat Dolls

2007-03-09T01:09:00.001-08:00

The Pussycat Dolls

The Pussycat Dolls (born 1993) are a sultry Burlesque troupe cum award-winning and Grammy Award-nominated American all-female music group. The Dolls began their adventure into the limelight as a burlesque dance troupe based in Los Angeles, and expanded to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. The group, which was founded by choreographer Robin Antin in 1993, released its first single in 2004. The group is one of the most commercially successful new acts to appear in 2005, and has gone on to sell over 5 million records worldwide. They are also known for their multiracial backgrounds including Filipino, Hawaiian, Black, Mexican, French, Israeli, Indonesian, Dutch, Russian, Polish and Irish heritages.

With their hit single “Don’t Cha” and a slew of other media opportunities, including video games, primetime and movie appearances and more records to produce, these ladies have successfully made the transition from stage dancers to international pop stars.

The Burlesque Begins: 1993 – 2003

The "life story" of the Pussycat Dolls is really the story of a number of talented women. The group was founded by Robin Antin, a respected Hollywood choreographer who turned a lifelong passion for dance into a lucrative career. In 1993, the 32-year-old dancer got some girlfriends together, and within two years the collective began putting on burlesque shows in Los Angeles venues.

Christina Applegate, an early "guest" Doll and former star of TV's Married... with Children, encouraged Antin to have the troupe perform at Johnny Depp's Viper Room in 1995. Depp was so impressed when he saw them rehearse that he asked the Dolls to perform there on a weekly basis. During the early years, Carmen Electra was the group's lead performer, and her presence gave the troupe a double dose of sex appeal and celebrity notoriety. But the host of other singers and dancers that formed part of the Pussycat Dolls over the years (more than 25 of them, including Ashley Roberts, Carmit Bachar, Jessica Sutta, Kimberly Wyatt, Melody Thornton, Nicole Scherzinger, Carmen Electra, Cyia Batten, Erica Gudis, Kasey Campbell, Kaya Jones, Kiva Dawson, Lindsay Allen, Nadine Ellis, Rachel Sterling, Staci Flood) were no less impressive.

The troupe's first performance was in 1995. During this period they performed with numerous guest vocalists, with a repertoire of '50s and '60s pop standards and dressed in lingerie and/or old-fashioned pin-up costumes.

They secured a Thursday night residency at The Viper Room, where they stayed from 1995 to 2001. In June 1999 Playboy ran a Pussycat Dolls pictorial, featuring at least contemporary members Kasey Campbell, Kiva Dawson, Erica Gudis and Lindsley Allen. In 2002 they moved to the club, The Roxy, in Los Angeles. The group became internationally popular and was featured in magazines, television specials for MTV and VH1, ad campaigns, and movies. Some of the Dolls appeared in the 2003 film Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle dancing to "The Pink Panther Theme."

Throughout the mid- to late '90s, The Pussycat Dolls sold out a series of shows at the Roxy, served as the opening act at a Jane's Addiction concert and played the annual Elton John/InStyle Oscar party. It wasn't long before a whole bevy of celebrities wanted to suit up with The Pussycat Dolls and strut their stuff. " I get the most famous people coming up to me begging to know how they can appear with us," Carmen Electra revealed at the time.
Among the troupe's guest performers during this period were Christina Aguilera, Charlize Theron, Gwen Stefani, Britney Spears, and Brittany Murphy. In addition, Big names like Dave Navarro, Marilyn Manson, Leonardo DiCaprio, Heather Graham, David Spade, Gene Simmons, and Hugh Hefner were all seen attending Pussycat Dolls shows.

Carmen Electra was the group's lead performer for many of their shows. She said "I was part of the Dolls for two years and did every show with them...but financially, I couldn't become part of their new music project...It was a financial sacrifice I couldn't make." She did, however, make a cameo appearance in the music video for "Don't Cha."

With the involvement of music producers Jimmy Iovine and Ron Fair, The Pussycat Dolls were re-cast, transformed into an Pop/R&B recording group, and signed up as employees of Iovine's label Interscope Records.

Mainstream Appeal: 2003 – present

In 2003, Robin Antin decided to totally reinvent the Pussycat Dolls. She held open auditions to form a new troupe that would take the group into a different musical direction.

The new Dolls were Nicole Scherzinger, a native of Honolulu who had become the lead singer of the band Eden's Crush after winning "TV's Popstars: USA Competition"; Carmit Bachar, who had performed on tour with Beyonce, with Ricky Martin as his "La Vida Loca" girl and with Janet Jackson during her infamous Super Bowl halftime show; Melody Thornton; Kimberly Wyatt; Jessica Sutta; and finally, Ashley Roberts, who got her start dancing for Aaron Carter.

In September and October 2004, the soundtrack CDs for the films Shark Tale and Shall We Dance? were released, each containing one track by the Dolls. "Sway" from Shall We Dance? also became their first single and first music video.

In 2005, The Pussycat Dolls released their debut album PCD. It debuted at #5 on the Billboard 200, selling about 100,000 copies, and has spawned seven singles. The second single "Don't Cha" (with Busta Rhymes), a cover of the moderate hit Tori Alamaze single, became their first major hit. The follow-up, "Stickwitu", became the group's first U.S. # 1 Billboard Pop Radio hit. It went on to sell well over 3 million digital downloads and CDs worldwide and became their second #1 single in a row in the UK. The third single, "Beep", featured Black Eyed Peas lead rapper will.i.am. They recently released their latest single, "Buttons", featuring Snoop Dogg which followed the success of the previous singles and went straight into the top 3 on the UK singles chart, #3.

The group's final single from the album is the high-tempo club track "Wait A Minute" and was released in the United States on August 2006; "I Don't Need a Man" will be released in Canada (the video was premiered on MuchOnDemand September 14th, 2006), the UK and Ireland, and "Sway" will be released as the 5th single in Continental Europe. The 5th single in Australia and New Zealand is also "I Don't Need A Man".

In parallel to the Dolls as a recording R&B act, in April 2005 a resident live show commenced at the "Pussycat Dolls Lounge" adjacent to Pure Nightclub in Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas. This show contains eight "cast members" who continue the burlesque-style show which began in L.A. in 1995. In 2006 the cast included vocalist Jamie Preston. The venue is operated by Pure Management Group, Robin Antin has some involvement, but it is unclear whether Interscope also have a financial interest. The Dolls recording group have made occasional appearances. "Special guests" have included: Eva Longoria (April 2005); Nicolette Sheridan (Feb 2006); Pamela Anderson (April 2006); and Denise Richards (June 2006).

The Pussycat Dolls have been accused of being a group where only one member sings (Scherzinger) while the rest are just eye candy. However, Thornton and Bachar both have solo spots, with Thornton interjecting melismatic vocal runs on numerous tracks.

The Pussycat Dolls are proving to be a recognized female group as MTV Hits (UK) marks them as #1 in Top 10 Female Groups (July 2006) beating #2 Destiny's Child and #7 Spice Girls. Furthermore, securing #1 in VH1's (UK) 'Top 20 Sexiest' #2 in TMF's Ultimate 20 Women in Pop (August 2006) and #6 in TMF's Girls of R&B countdown.

The group won a Billboard Music Award for "Don't Cha" the (Ralphi Rosario Mix) as Hot Dance Music/Club Play Single of the Year. The song was also nominated for Top-Selling Single of the Year and Top-Selling Dance Single of the Year.

At the SXSW music conference in 2006, Interscope lawyer Darryl Franklin said, during a panel discussion, that the contract with the group is unique in that its members are actually salaried employees of the record label and, by design, completely interchangeable. This means that in addition to CD sales, the label also controls merchandise, web sites and all other commercial aspects of the group and their income, excluding song publishing.

In 2006, San Francisco-based company Doppelganger (along with Interscope Records) launched the PCD Music Lounge, an interactive website.

On August 8, 2006, after a Dolls concert in Kuala Lumpur, their concert promoter, Absolute Entertainment, was charged with flouting Malaysian decency laws. The Malay Mail quoted Culture Arts and Heritage Minister Datuk Mohamad Arif Abdul Rahman as saying: "I believe the way The Pussycat Dolls behaved onstage amounted to gross indecency". The charge was settled by paying a fine of RM5000 (US$1358 ).

In late 2006, The Pussycat Dolls were also featured in a commercial for Cingular Wireless along with Ludacris and KoRn.

On June 30th's VSpot Top 20 Countdown, the host announced that Scherzinger has written twelve new songs for the follow-up album to 2005's PCD. The Pussycat Dolls reportedly aim to start recording Double the Trouble, to be released in late 2007.

Scherzinger is working on a solo album, reportedly also due for release in 2007. She has publicly stated that although she is releasing a solo album, she is not leaving The Pussycat Dolls. Her first single is set for release in February and her album soon after.

On December 7, 2006 the group received a Grammy nomination in the Best Pop Performance By a Duo or Group category for their hit ballad "Stickwitu". Later that month, the group was selected to perform for the introduction for ABC's coverage of the NBA. In 2007, a version of "Right Now" is being used as a theme song for the NBA, the lyrics have been altered.

In November 2006 to January 2007 the Dolls toured the UK and Ireland with Rihanna as their support act.

On December 11, 2006 The Daily Mirror reported that Jimmy Iovine, with help from will.i.am, will be creating a "UK version" of the Pussycat Dolls. Contrary to early reports, Alesha Dixon will not be one of the performers in the new group.

In February 2007 www.VegasPopular.com posted news that Caesars Palace had opened a Pussycat Dolls Casino, located across from the Pussycat Dolls Lounge. It features "Dolls-style" decor and attire for the gaming staff, waitresses and dancers.

In 2007 the Dolls will be touring North America as a support act for Christina Aguilera's Back To Basics Tour, along with Danity Kane.

A Little Help From Their Friends: Music Repertoire

The Dolls' repertoire includes contemporary R&B, Pop and cover versions. The original songs are mostly written by professional songwriters and/or producers; Scherzinger is the only group member to have co-written any tracks. The covers often fit within the traditions of burlesque, cabaret and drag shows; featuring musical vamps and flirtatious choreography.

Their recorded cover versions include: "We Went As Far As We Felt Like Going" (Labelle); "Sway" (Dean Martin); "Santa Baby" (Eartha Kitt); "Feelin' Good" (Nina Simone); "Tainted Love" (Gloria Jones/Soft Cell); "Where Did Our Love Go" (The Supremes/Soft Cell); a mash-up of Donna Summer's "Hot Stuff" with Siobhan Fahey's "Bitter Pill"; "Right Now" (Mel Torme); and "Don't Cha" (Tori Alamaze).

Their live cover versions have included: "It's Oh So Quiet" (Betty Hutton/Björk); "Big Spender" (Chita Rivera/Shirley Bassey); "Fever" (Peggy Lee); "The Pink Panther Theme" (Henry Mancini); "These Boots Are Made For Walking" (Nancy Sinatra); and "Whole Lotta Love" (Led Zeppelin).

Other Media Adventures

In April 2006 The New York Times reported that Interscope executives are working to produce their own reality television series overseen by the producers of America's Next Top Model and McG, the director of Charlie's Angels and Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle. The show, entitled "Pussycat Dolls Present: The Search for the Next Doll" will search for a new member for the troupe. The new member will sing on the next PCD album and will tour with the group. The show premiered on The CW, on March 6, 2007.

Also, in 2006 Interscope engaged the Californian company BandMerch to distribute a range of merchandise, including clothing and other items, linked through the group's official website.

In a merchandising agreement with Interscope, in 2006 toy manufacturer Hasbro had plans for a line of dolls modelled after The Pussycat Dolls, and reportedly aimed at six to nine-year-olds. The groups "Dads and Daughters" and the "Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood" successfully lobbied the company to scrap the plan because they felt that the dolls would have been inappropriate for children, due to the overtly sexual nature of The Pussycat Dolls' songs, videos and live shows.

In addition, Interscope also negotiated a deal with Estée Lauder for a Pussycat Dolls line of cosmetics under the Stila brand.

In September 2006, it was reported that The Pussycat Dolls had re-recorded "Don't Cha" in Simlish for inclusion in the computer game The Sims 2 Pets, and in November 2006, it was reported that the Dolls appear in character form in the computer game Asphalt 2: Urban GT.

Fergie

2007-03-09T00:33:00.000-08:00

Fergie

Stacy Ann Ferguson (born March 27, 1975 in Whittier, California) has been singing for the masses since her inception into show business on the Disney kids’ television series “Kids Incorporated.” After hooking up with hip-hop artist will.i.am and becoming a staple in The Black Eyed Peas, she became what she is known as today: Fergie, a pop and R&B singer and songwriter, who has broken off to create an extremely successful solo career, and achieved multi-platinum solo artist status with her first solo album, The Dutchess, in 2006.

Early Life

Born in Whittier, California, and raised in nearby Hacienda Heights, Fergi’s parents are Patrick Ferguson and Terri Gore; she also has one sister, Dana, who is an actress. Ferguson attended Glen A. Wilson High School.

Ferguson began her acting career as the voice of Sally on the Saturday morning cartoon “The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show” in 1983, as well as on two television specials: “It's Flashbeagle, Charlie Brown” (1984) and “Snoopy's Getting Married, Charlie Brown” (1985).

In 1984, following a commercial for Rice Krispies, she appeared in the pilot for the long-running musical television show, “Kids Incorporated.” The show, which also starred Jennifer Love Hewitt and the girl who would become goth pop princess Martika, was a hit with Saturday morning audiences and she sang backup on it until 1989. She became the longest running original cast member of "Kids Incorporated" in 1984.

In 1986, Ferguson appeared in the horror comedy movie Monster in the Closet as well as two television specials: Kids Incorporated: Chartbusters and Kids Incorporated: Rock In the New Year. She left the spotlight in 1989 and settled down to live a normal teenager's life.

Early Music Career

Music was always her first passion and she teamed up with Stefanie Ridel and fellow “Kids Incorporated” member Renee Sandstrom to form the band Wild Orchid. In 1999, they even had their own Saturday morning show on the FOX Family Channel.

They released their first album, Wild Orchid, in 1997 on RCA and it was followed the next year with Oxygen. They scored a minor hit when the song "Declaration" was featured in an episode of Beverly Hills, 90210.

However, after completing a third album in 2001, their record label declined to release it, and she left the group shortly thereafter. Her disappointment with Wild Orchid and a lull in her career facilitated an addiction to crystal methamphetamine. Ferguson told a Glasgow paper, "I started doing ecstasy. Then I got addicted to crystal methamphetamine. My weight dropped to 90 lbs so I lied to my friends and said I was bulimic. Finally, I started going crazy." In September 2006, Ferguson talked with Time magazine about quitting her crystal meth addiction. "It was the hardest boyfriend I ever had to break up with," she says. "It's the drug that's addicting. But it's why you start doing it in the first place that's interesting. A lot of it was being a child actor; I learned to suppress feelings." She moved home for one year at the age of 25 to beat her addiction.

Black Eyed Peas and Solo Career

After quite a long stint out of the limelight, Ferguson met will.i.am of The Black Eyed Peas in 2003. They had a number of meetings after shows and before long, she was invited to join the trio in the recording studio. They recorded five songs together and the band invited her to join them permanently. Ferguson took over the lead female vocal duties for The Black Eyed Peas, replacing background singer Kim Hill, who left the group in 2000. Ferguson recorded five songs with the group before she was invited to join them permanently. Ferguson's addition to the band, which had enjoyed underground success until then, helped them quickly grow into mainstream popularity.

After two hit Black Eyed Peas albums, Ferguson began to pursue a solo career in 2006. Her first album, released on September 19, 2006, was entitled The Dutchess. The album's name is a misspelled variant of the former title of Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, with whom Ferguson shares a surname and popular nickname. The solo deal does not mean the demise of The Black Eyed Peas, as Ferguson is intending on staying with the group and alternating between the two duties.

Music on The Dutchess is similar in style to The Black Eyed Peas, as fellow Peas member will.i.am is the album's executive producer. Ferguson has had three hit songs from The Dutchess, with "London Bridge," "Fergalicious," and her current single, "Glamorous," which features Ludacris. The album peaked at #3 on the Billboard 100.

Acting Career

Though she is a musician first, she continues to explore acting opportunities. In March 2005, Ferguson was cast as Stevie Wayne (the role originated by sex symbol Adrienne Barbeau) in the update of John Carpenter's The Fog. She would later leave the role due to creative differences. While rumors surfaced that Charisma Carpenter was replacing her, Selma Blair would eventually get the part. Ferguson's departure proved to be a wise move, as the remake was a box office flop universally panned by critics and fans alike.

In July 2005, Ferguson had a guest role on the Rocket Power special, "Reggie's Big Beach Break," on Nickelodeon; she voiced a fictitious pop music star named Shaffika.

In 2006, Ferguson returned to acting, appearing in the film Poseidon, a remake of the 1972 film The Poseidon Adventure, but her role was relatively minor. Ferguson is also due to appear in the feature film Grind House with Rose McGowen.

Other Activities

Ferguson performed at the Pepsi Smash Super Bowl, along with will.i.am, Ludacris, and John Legend.

She appeared on the cover of FHM in January 2005 and was featured as #36 on Maxim's Hot 100 list for 2006.

Personal Life and Media Attention

Ferguson has come out publicly with her crystal methamphetamine addiction, saying that it was the "hardest boyfriend she ever had to break up with."

She is currently dating actor Josh Duhamel, who stars in the television show Las Vegas. Ferguson appeared in this series in an episode titled "Montecito Lancers."

In 2005, Ferguson urinated on stage during a performance at San Diego's Street Scene festival. She later commented on the incident: "I had a few drinks before the show, but I didn't think to go to the bathroom before we went onstage. We were jumping around...and my bladder just started."

Tim McGraw

2007-03-08T23:18:00.000-08:00

Tim McGraw

Tim McGraw (born Samuel Timothy Smith on May 1, 1967, in Delhi, Louisiana) is an internationally known country music star from pure country roots, who has achieved several number one hits on the country singles and album charts over his long illustrious, with total sales in excess of 25 million units. Married to country singer Faith Hill, and son of baseball player Tug McGraw, his trademark hit songs include "Indian Outlaw," "Don't Take the Girl," "Down on the Farm," "I Like It, I Love It," "It's Your Love" (featuring his wife), and "Live Like You Were Dying.”

Early Life

McGraw’s mother, a waitress named Betty Trimble (née D'Agostino) is of Italian and Irish decent, and his father Tug McGraw, a famous relief pitcher for the New York Mets and the Philadelphia Phillies was of Scots-Irish descent.

Trimble raised McGraw in Start, Louisiana. He grew up believing his birth father was Horace Smith, who was actually his step-father, until he discovered his birth certificate in his mother's closet at the age of 11, which listed his father as Frank McGraw, the professional baseball player known as Tug. It was then that his mother told him that his birth father was.

Growing up, McGraw loved to play baseball and other competitive sports. Soon after, he grew a love for music as well. However, he was no slouch in academics, and graduated as salutatorian of his high school class in 1985.

He attended Northeast Louisiana University on a baseball scholarship, where he was a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity. During this period, he learned to play guitar and would frequently perform and sing for tips. He dropped out of college in 1989 in order to head to Nashville and pursue a musical career. He was discovered busking for tips in front of a hot dog stand known as HounDogs in Nashville; known for its small stage exclusively for buskers to perform on, many Nashville noteworthies played there at one time or another.

The Beginning: 1990s

He signed with Curb Records in 1990, but it wasn't until 1992 that he had his first minor hit "Welcome to the Club" off his self-titled debut album, which failed to make much of a dent on the charts. He achieved a couple of minor hits including, "Memory Lane" and "Two Steppin Mind," off the same album in 1993.

The second album, Not a Moment Too Soon, went on to become the best selling country album in 1994. The first single, "Indian Outlaw", written by John D. Loudermilk, caused considerable controversy as critics argued that it presented Native Americans in a patronizing way. Some radio stations refused to play it, but among some Native American tribes, the song was popular; it went to the top of the playlist at the clear channel KTNN, the radio voice of the Navajo Nation. The controversy helped spur sales and the song became McGraw's first top ten country single (getting as high as #8); it also made #15 on the pop chart and went gold and silver.

His second single, the ballad "Don't Take the Girl," became his first #1 country hit (it also reached the top 20 on the pop chart and went gold); and in 1995 the album's title track was also a #1 country single. "Down on the Farm" reached number two and "Refried Dreams" reached the top 5. The album sold over 5 million copies, topping the Billboard 200 as well as the country album charts. He won Academy of Country Music awards for Album of the Year and Top New Male Vocalist in 1994.

His next album, All I Want, released in 1995, continued his run of success debuting at number one on the country charts. The album sold over two million copies and reached top 5 on the Billboard 200. "I Like It, I Love It" reached number one on the country charts as the leadoff single, while "She Never Lets It Go to Her Heart" also went to number one in 1996. "Can't Really Be Gone", "All I Want is a Life", and "Maybe We Should Just Sleep On It" were all top 5 hits.

In 1996, Tim McGraw traveled America on the Spontaneous Combustion Tour, which was the most successful country tour of that year. Faith Hill was his supporting act and the title of the tour turned out to be prophetic as the singers married October 6, 1996. The couple went onto have three daughters: Gracie Katherine born May 5, 1997, Maggie Elizabeth born August 12, 1998 and Audrey Caroline born December 6, 2001.

Tim McGraw's happy family life is in contrast with his father who had a reputation as a hell raiser. Tug McGraw once famously said: "Ninety percent I'll spend on good times, women, and Irish Whiskey. The other ten percent I'll probably waste."

Everywhere continued his golden run topping the country charts and reaching number two on the album charts in 1997. The album sold 4 million copies and its first single, "It’s Your Love", a duet with Faith Hill, became the first single in twenty years to spend six weeks on top of Billboard's country singles chart (the previous such song had been Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson's "Luckenbach, Texas" in 1977); reached #7 on the pop chart (and gained platinum status); and became the most played single in the history of the Billboard country charts. Five more singles "Everywhere," "Where the Green Grass Grows," "One of These Days," "For a Little While," and "Just to See You Smile" reached the top of the country charts from the album, with the last of these setting a new record by spending 42 weeks on the Billboard charts. The Country Music Association awarded Everywhere its Album of the Year award for 1997.

A Place in the Sun in 1999 was another huge hit topping the US pop and country album charts, and selling three million albums. It featured another four chart topping singles on the country charts including "Please Remember Me" with Patty Loveless, "Something Like That," "My Best Friend," and "My Next Thirty Years"; "Some Things Never Change" was also a big hit, reaching #7 on the country chart. During the summer of 1999, McGraw toured the US with the Dixie Chicks as the support artist as well as appearing as the headline artist at the George Strait Country Music Festival.

By the end of 1999, McGraw had supplanted Garth Brooks as the most popular country male singer in the nation, while Faith Hill was one of the most popular female country singers along with Shania Twain.

Success Continues: 2000s

In 2000, McGraw released his Greatest Hits album which again topped the charts for nine weeks. On tour he and opening act Kenny Chesney got involved in a scuffle with police officers when Chesney attempted to ride one of their horses; McGraw was later cleared of any charges. In the latter half of 2000, he and Hill went out on the Soul2Soul Tour, playing to sellout crowds in 64 venues including Madison Square Garden. It was one of the top tours of any genre in the US and the leading country tour during 2000.

Set This Circus Down was released in April of 2001 and spawned four number one country hits - "Grown Men Don't Cry," "Angry All the Time," "The Cowboy in Me," and "Unbroken." A duet with Jo Dee Messina entitled "Bring on the Rain" also topped the country charts. "Things Change" made the history as the first country song to chart from a downloaded version following his performance of the song at the CMA Awards show. After the tragedies of September 11, 2001, 2 unreleased songs were leaked to the Internet. The songs were Petra's "More Power To Ya" and Eric Clapton's "Tears In Heaven," both performed at freedom concerts.

In 2002, Tim McGraw bucked country music traditions by recording his album Tim McGraw and the Dancehall Doctors with his tour band The Dancehall Doctors in the Catskill Mountains. Unlike rock music, where it is commonplace for touring bands such as the E Street Band or Crazy Horse to play on albums with the artist they support, country albums are normally recorded with session musicians. McGraw stated on his web site that he felt he owed this to the musicians who had been an integral part of his success and to capture some of the feel of a real band. All of the Dancehall Doctors had been with McGraw since at least 1996.

Tim McGraw and the Dance Hall Doctors was released on November 26, 2002 and reached number 2 on the country charts, with "Real Good Man" reaching number one. "She's My Kind of Rain" reached number 2 in 2003 and "Red Rag Top" reached the top 5. The album also featured a cover version of Elton John's early 1970s classic "Tiny Dancer", as well as appearances by Kim Carnes on "Comfort Me" - a response to the September 11, 2001 attacks - and Don Henley and Timothy B. Schmit of The Eagles on "Illegal".

McGraw also performed the song "Wherever the Trail May Lead" for the 2004 Disney film Home on the Range.

McGraw's 2004 album Live Like You Were Dying continued his record of commercial success. The title track was a soaring ode to living life fully and in the moment, while the second single "Back When" was a paean to an easy nostalgia. "Live Like You Were Dying" spent seven nonconsecutive weeks at #1 and went on to become the biggest hit single of the year. It also became one the most awarded songs/records by winning ACM Single and Song of the Year, CMA Single and Song of the Year and a Grammy. Yet another unreleased song entitled Dear Santa was leaked in 2004 about a desperate prayer to Santa Claus to help a woman who's heart was broken by McGraw.

In late 2004, his unlikely duet with rapper Nelly on "Over and Over," a soft ballad of lost love, became a crossover hit. "Over and Over" brought McGraw a success he had never previously experienced on contemporary hit radio, and brought both artists success neither had previously experienced in the hot adult contemporary market. The song also spent a week at the top of the UK single charts, and was McGraw's first visit to the UK hit countdown.

In a 2004 interview, McGraw said he would like to run for public office in the future, possibly for Senate in his home state of Tennessee. In the same interview, he praised former President Bill Clinton, a somewhat unusual stance in the conservative country music industry, which used to be more Liberal with groups such as Alabama: "I love Bill Clinton. I think we should make him king. I'm talking the red robe, the turkey leg - everything."

McGraw also participated in the Live 8: The Long Walk to Justice concert series, performing along with Faith Hill at the Rome, Italy concert on July 2, 2005 as part of the effort to get G8 leaders to address the humanitarian crises in Africa. McGraw's performance of "Live Like You Were Dying" was one of the most re-played performances in Live 8 television recaps.

Throughout the 2005 NFL season McGraw sang an alternate version of "I Like It, I Love It" every week during the season. The alternate lyrics, which would be different each week, would make reference to plays during Sunday's games and the song would be played along video highlights during halftime on Monday Night Football. Ironically, he would become a minority owner of the Arena Football League's Nashville Kats that year when majority owner Bud Adams (owner of the NFL's Tennessee Titans) was awarded the expansion franchise.

In April 2006 McGraw and Hill began their 73-concert 55 city Soul2Soul II Tour 2006, again to a strong commercial acceptance. The tour was declared the top grossing tour in the history of country music grossing nearly $89 Million and selling almost 1.1 million tickets.

In July 2006, he released an underground techno remix of a Mike Jones song called "Trippin on FoFo's."

Tim McGraw received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame during ceremonies October 17, 2006. McGraw's star is located at 6901 Hollywood Boulevard near stars in the sidewalk honoring Julie Andrews, William Shatner and the late Greta Garbo. The event coincides with the release of the soundtrack to Flicka, the feature film starring McGraw. One of his co-stars, Alison Lohman, attended the ceremony that included comments from Billy Bob Thornton, McGraw's co-star in the film, Friday Night Lights.

McGraw released his eleventh album, Let It Go, on March 27, 2007. The album features two duets with wife Faith Hill, including "I Need You," which the performed as they last song of their Soul2Soul II show as well as "Shotgun Rider," another new song they performed on the tour together. The album will also feature the debut single, "Last Dollar (Fly Away)."

Hill and McGraw will return to the road with the follow-up to 2006's highly successful Soul2Soul II Tour 2006 with Soul2Soul 2007.

Both Hill And McGraw have been confirmed to take part in the Live Earth concerts on July 7th 2007

Acting

McGraw first started his acting career in a 1995 episode of "The Jeff Foxworthy Show" playing Jeff Foxworthy's rival.

In 2004 McGraw played a sheriff in Rick Schroder's independent release Black Cloud. Then in the same year, McGraw received good notices as the overbearing father of a running back in the major studio Texas high school football drama Friday Night Lights (the Dallas Observer said the role was played with "played with unexpected ferocity by country singer Tim McGraw"). The movie went on to gross over $60 million dollars worldwide. Most recently it was named one of the top 50 high school movies of all time (number 37) by Entertainment Weekly.

McGraw's first lead role is in the current Fox 2006 film Flicka, which was released in theatres October 20, 2006. He plays the father Rob in the remake of the classic book "My Friend Flicka," and costars Alison Lohman and Maria Bello. The movie debuted in the top 10 list and has grossed over 21 Million dollars at the box office. The movie is a family drama and again McGraw has achieved critical acclaim for his acting.

In addition, he serves as executive producer of the soundtrack album which was released by his record label, StyleSonic Records, in association with Curb Records and Fox 2000 films. It features the closing credit song "My Little Girl" which is the first song McGraw has recorded that he co-wrote. The song was nominated by the Broadcast Film Critics for "Best Song" in a film, and the movie was nominated in the category "Best Family Film (Live Action).

McGraw will also be appearing in the new Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner movie The Kingdom produced by Peter Berg due out in April 2007. More recently, he was tapped by Paul Haggis (Crash) for a role in his film In the Valley of Elwah.

Charity Work and Activism

McGraw and his wife took truckloads of relief items down to the Gulf area after Hurricane Katrina. They also performed a charity tour, giving all the proceeds to the Neighbor’s Keeper Foundation, a group the couple formed to help victims the disaster.

Tim played an impromptu charity concert with Kid Rock to raise money for the Red Cross.
He has also hosted a charity poker tournament to benefit the Tug McGraw Foundation and performed on a telethon to raise funds for the victims of the December 26 tsunami.

McGraw supports several charities, including the ASPCA, Andre Agassi Charitable Foundation, Angelwear, David Foster Foundation, James Redford Institute for Transplant Awareness, Live 8, MusiCares, Neighbor's Keeper Foundation, Red Cross, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, and the Tug McGraw Foundation.

Cameron Diaz

2007-03-08T22:40:00.000-08:00

Cameron Diaz

Cameron Michelle Diaz (born August 30, 1972) is one of the top-ten most coveted American actresses in the world. Busting onto the scene in that infamous red dress from her 1994 appearance in The Mask with Jim Carrey, this Golden Globe Award-nominated American actress and former fashion model, has staying power; going from stunning vixen to every man’s dream in There’s Something About Mary, to butt-kicking super-star in the Charlie’s Angels series with Drew Barrymore and Lucy Lui, since her inception into the limelight, Diaz is never far from the media’s eye.

After a long and low-profile with high-profile pop star Justin Timberlake, Diaz has been a darling of the supermarket tabloids for years, and since her inception into being a single woman, her romances have only gained her more notoriety.

One of the most sought after women in Hollywood, Diaz continued to rake in the big bucks, earning more than $10-million per movie.

Early Life

Born in San Diego, California, this second-generation Cuban-American’s father, Emilio Diaz, worked as a foreman for an oil company, and her mother, Billie Early (who has English, German and Cherokee Native American ancestry), worked as an exporting agent. Diaz attended Long Beach Polytechnic High School, where she was called "Skeletor" by her classmates because she was so thin. She was also a member of the Polyettes at Long Beach Polytechnic High School, which was the school's dance team that performed during half-time at football games.

Early Career

By her mid-teens, Cameron began attending Hollywood parties and staying out late. It was during this party phase of her life that Cameron ended up meeting Jeff Dunas at a party, and he told her that he could sign her up with the Elite modeling agency. Although Cameron was initially sceptical of his proposition, she took his card and discussed it with her family and friends.

The proposition turned out to be worthwhile, and At age 16, Diaz began her career as a fashion model and signed with Elite Model Management. After graduating from high school, she went to work in Japan and met video director Carlo de la Torre. On her return to America, she moved in with him. For the next few years, her modeling took her around the world, working for contracts with major companies. She modeled for the likes of Calvin Klein and Levi's Jeans hitting model success very early in her illustrious career. She even graced the cover of the July 1990 issue of Seventeen magazines. However, when she was just starting out, she also did some modeling for an sado-masochism type of spread, which came to light later in her career.

Career: Beginning with a Bang

At the age of 22, Diaz auditioned for The Mask, starring Jim Carrey in 1994. To her own surprise, and with no previous acting experience, she was cast as the female lead. Immediately after getting the part, she signed up for acting lessons. Over the next three years, she won roles in low-budget, independent films, such as The Last Supper in 1995, She's The One, starring Edward Burns, and Jennifer Aniston, and Feeling Minnesota, starring Keanu Reeves and Vincent D'Onofrio.

Early on she grabbed the attention of the world’s most sexy lists, and was named #13 by Empire magazine’s one of the "100 Sexiest Stars" in film history in 1995, and was chosen by People magazine as one of the "50 Most Beautiful" people in the world in 1998.

Career: Most Coveted Woman in Hollywood

She then regained mainstream success with My Best Friend's Wedding starring opposite Julia Roberts, and more notably, There's Something About Mary in 1998 where she starred opposite Ben Stiller, and became one of the most coveted actresses in Hollywood. She also went onto delve into more serious roles, with the critically acclaimed Being John Malkovich, starring John Cusack and John Malkovich, which earned her Best Supporting Actress nominations at the Golden Globes, the BAFTA Awards and the SAG Awards.

In 2001, Diaz has also starred in the hit adaptation of Charlie's Angels and its sequel, and she voiced a lead character in Shrek and its sequel, for which she earned $10 million. That same year, she won nominations for Best Supporting Actress at the Golden Globes, the SAG Awards and the AFI Awards for Vanilla Sky, starring Tom Cruise.

In 2002, Diaz was named by People magazine as one of the the "50 Most Beautiful People" in the world, and voted the 11th "Sexiest Female Movie Star" in the Australian Empire magazine as well.

She went onto star in the American epic, Gangs of New York in 2002 with Leonardo DiCaprio and Daniel Day-Lewis, and has said that this movie marked the pinnacle of her career.

In 2003, for Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, she became the second actress (after Julia Roberts) to earn $20 million for a role; though, the film underperformed at the box office.

Diaz was also mentioned regularly in British comedy series Bo' Selecta, being referred to lovingly as 'Cameron Up-Diaz', and is credited as having appeared in one episode in 2003, though in reality her appearance consisted of little more than Avid Merrion trying to give engagement rings to her and her co-stars at the London premiere of Charlie's Angels.

Maxim magazine ranked her #22 in their annual hot 100 in 2004, then she ranked #11 in 2005. In 2006 she made the top 10 by ranking in at #7.

Diaz was the host of the 2005 MTV television series Trippin'.

Future work for Diaz includes a role in Shrek the Third in 2007, where she co-stars with then-boyfriend Justin Timberlake. She was set to team up again with The Mask co-star Jim Carrey in two films Fun with Dick and Jane but she dropped out to star in In Her Shoes. She was recently set to star opposite Carrey again in A Little Game Without Consequence; however the film was shelved and filming is still yet to commence.

Personal Life and Media Attention

Diaz dated actor Matt Dillon for about three years before splitting in 1998. She then had a four-year relationship with actor/singer Jared Leto, to whom she also became engaged, from 1998 to 2002.

Diaz has been vocal in her opposition to U.S. President George W. Bush. Before 2000's election (on October 26 to be exact), Diaz (along with her Charlie's Angels co-stars, Drew Barrymore and Lucy Liu) wore a shirt that said "I WON'T VOTE FOR A SON OF A BUSH!" while promoting Charlie's Angels on MTV's Total Request Live. During an Oprah appearance before 2004's election, Diaz said

In 2004, a commercial S&M video of Diaz and another girl torturing a man leaked to the Internet. She made the video when she was 19. Diaz filed a suit against the Russian Internet site that distributed the video, but the video file is now distributed by many porn sites and Peer-to-peer (P2P) networks. In addition, in 2003 Photographer John Rutter was ordered to stand trial for attempted extortion, attempted grand theft, perjury, and forgery after trying to blackmail her with topless shots he had of her from a 1992 shoot.

Diaz also dated singer and former *NSYNC member, and international pop star, Justin Timberlake, who she met at the Kids' Choice Awards in 2003. After nearly four years together, the pair issued a joint statement on January 11, 2007, announcing they had broken up, following weeks of break-up rumors.

In October 2004, Diaz and Timberlake were in an altercation with a tabloid photographer outside a hotel. When the photographer and another man tried to photograph Diaz and Timberlake, the celebrities snatched the camera. Pictures of the incident appeared in US Weekly. Representatives for the pair claimed that they were "ambushed" and acting out of self-defense.

Diaz and Timberlake were involved in another paparazzi incident while walking out of a friend's house. The paparazzi jumped out of bushes and photographed them. He then entered his car and allegedly drove it towards Diaz, who had to jump out of the way. Diaz pressed charges against the paparazzi, whose agency supported his actions as legal and safe.

While still with Timberlake, Diaz publicly talked about dealing with stress and said her favorite way to relax is to have sex; adding "Sex is the most amazing stress reliever...I actually think it’s the best thing for everything".

Diaz received "substantial" libel damages from suing American Media Incoporated, after The National Enquirer had claimed she was cheating on her then-boyfriend Justin Timberlake.

After Diaz and Timberlake’s breakup, she was rumored to be dating surfing star, Kelly Slater.

She is real-life best friend’s with Charlie’s Angels co-star Drew Barrymore, who she gave a Rolex after her breakup with Timberlake, that was originally supposed to go to the SexyBack star.

Diaz has publicly admitted she is deeply germophobic and habitually rubs doorknobs so hard before opening doors to clean them that the original paint on the doorknobs fades afterwards. Along with her floors, she says, she washes her hands "many times" each day and uses her elbows to push open doors. "I'm not scared of germs. I'm just aware of them," Diaz says. "I'm not into other people's fluids unless I know them really well." Because of this she will only wash her face in Evian spring water.

Diaz is appearing in an ad campaign on Japanese television for SoftBank: October/November 2006. Diaz also supports small west London football club Brentford FC after visiting a Hollywood cafe owned by a Brentford supporter.

Charity Work and Activism

Diaz supports several charity organizations, including Act Green, Declare Yourself, Environmental Media Association, Make Poverty History, ONE Campaign and Racing for Kids.