Hey yall. Sorry for the late afternoon post, but I was working really, REALLY hard today at the J-O-B, proud to say :)

It's official. There will be a Paranormal Activity 2! Lol ok this movie...I remember going to see it with my friends, and honestly, I was cracking up at it the whole time and making my comments, as I tend to do with each and every movie I see. I wasn't even kinda freaked til at the very end, but it was still a very entertaining movie. For those of you who don't know the story, it was about this woman Katie who had this demon inside her, and her husband Micah. The demon has been haunting Katie since she was a kid, which she fails to tell Micah LOL I wouldn't have even married her if I knew all that. So basically they record what all goes on in their house at night with the demon, and it's some freaky stuff. And it's said to be true. At the end, Katie ends up killing Micah, throwing his body at the camera LOL and creeping up slowly to the camera, showing her demon possessed face. And now they are making a second one, and I'm definitely going to go see it!

Paranormal Activity 2 Teaser Trailer


Even though it might be kinda stupid and not even remotely scary, it will definitely entertain me cuz I was dying laughing at the first one. Plus I want to see what happens to the baby and the dog!!! LOL Lord forgive me, I'm evil. It's slated to be released in October. Who's going to see it?

PEACE.

Ok, keeping my BET Awards theme today going...here are some of my favorite moments from last night's show! Watch the videos after the jump.




Nia Long and Larenz Tate-Love Jones Flashback Larenz had me about to fall out...mmm.




Eminem's Performance Got Keyshia and B.O.B. in there, but it was mainly for Eminem. Dude SLAUGHTERED!



Drake's performance with Young Jeezy Why? Cuz he's amazing. PERIOD.



Chris Brown's Tribute to MJ Finally!!!



Patti LaBelle's Tribute To Prince-"Purple Rain"
Patti's awesome, plus I loved her kicking off them shoes!!!!


There were several other moments I liked, but these were my top five!

PEACE.


SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!

I had to do it. I had to write a review for the BET Awards 2010 for a number of reasons. One, it was the 10th year anniversary of the show. Two, the show was so much of a mess last year, I had give my opinion on whether this year's was better or not (cuz there's always the chance of it getting worse, sad to say). Three, the show had some great (and somewhat iffy) nominations that I had to give my two cents on. So this post goes into detail about performances, awards won, outfits, and everything. I literally had my laptop open the whole time typing on all of this (and tweeting lol Twitter was crazy last night yall). It's a real long post, but worth the read...



The BET Awards pre-show started off the night (or the afternoon over in LA). It was....ok. Of course, Terrence J and Rocsi hosted. Yeah. Point blank period, I miss AJ and Free. (Was I the only one excited to see a glimpse of Free only to be completely disappointed? Only heard her voice). Nick Cannon was wack with his interviews, too. Personally, I think everybody was done with him after Wild'N Out. Now he's known to the world as Mariah's husband.

The performances were cool, but it didn't excite me much. It never really does. One of the performances that I was kind of disappointed with was Miss Dondria's. Now, I love this girl. My co-worker had me watching some of her videos on YouTube that got her discovered, and I think that she has real talent. However, I didn't like that she did her, I guess, "You're The One" remix? with Jermaine Dupri. I like the original version, and that's the version playing on the radio, so she ought to have performed that one. I still love her though. And Soulja Boy performed. TWICE. I don't like either song that he was on ("All The Way Turnt Up"/"Pretty Boy Swag"), so I changed my channel to Bridezillas for a second.


And outfits? What the hell was Rocsi wearing?! Matter of fact, I didn't understand what was going on through several people's minds when they were dressing for the Red Carpet. Gucci Mane wearing all black, Debra Lee (president and CEO of BET Holdings, Inc) wearing that disastrous pink getup, and Rocsi with that ugly denim mess that didn't even flow. And Nicki Minaj, I understood the symbolism with her outfit (the Wilma Flintstone look) A friend explained on Twitter that it symbolized Bedrock going platinum. Nicki, I'm happy for you and Young Money, BUT STILL!!!!!! I appreciate Nicki's style because it's unique, and a lot of times, it looks good. Better than it would be if other people tried it. But no. That was just too much. Too too much. But it's Nicki, so I figured there would be some crazy looking wig. I liked the dress though. Now some people rocked it. Taraji. MY GIRL! Loved her outfit. It was classy. T.I. looked sharp in his little suit too. But overall, people either did too much with their outfits all together, or weren't dressed for the weather. Yall know it's hot in Cali!

The pre-show did have its good moments though. Favorite moment was Monica's win for the Centric Award, even though she should have been nominated for Best Female R&B Artist, but I guess Still Standing came out too late. Next Year!!!! (*fingers crossed*) It was good to see the cast of The Game too!!! They made their presence known, and announced that new episodes of the game were coming in January!!!! THANK GOD UP ABOVE!!! But ummm...was I the only one who noticed Brittany's outfit was cut up a little too much and a little too low on the hips cuz you could see....the outfit was heading down...ok. Moving right along.

Now to the main event. Kanye West opened the show with "Power," performing on top of a volcano with weather changes going on in the background. I like the song, and it was real good to see Kanye back. And opening too? Good move BET. Then Miss Queen Latifah took the stage and went on people in song lol (yall hear her go on Wayne and Drake? All in fun lol). Then she took it back to her hip hop roots and did a little verse on Drake's "Over." It was a hot opening to me, and I loved her as hostess.

Something different that BET did that I really liked were the kid pics of all of the nominees. Saw Miss Beyoncé as a little baby awww, and Drake with his jacked up fro, but he was still cute. The first award of the evening, the Best Female R&B Artist award, went to Miss Alicia Keys (who looked good with her baby bump btw). I thought that Beyoncé would take it, but as long as one of them won, I was good. Did yall see how Swizzy brought his son, too? And how the boy had said on the red carpet that one of the performers he was looking forward to the most was Alicia. Awww moment LOL bet Mashonda was mad. Ehhh...this whole Alicia/Mashonda/Swizzy drama. People calling Miss Keys a homewrecker and all that. Bah. If the home was all that together in the first place, Alicia wouldn't have got him HELLO! But I digress....

Am I the only one noticed that the BET AWARDS show did very little handing out of actual awards? I was looking forward to Best Actress, Best New Artist, and a few others, only to have to look up some of them on Wikipedia smh Full list of winners in the post below this one. Had to put them in a different post. This one is long enough.

Young Money was in the building last night. Drake took home Best Male Hip Hop Artist which I was happy with. Honestly, that man's lyrics really move me. He speaks on everything from success to love to family. I love him. Young Money took home the award for Best Group, which no one saw, but it did happen. Congrats to them. Now...here's my issue. Nicki Minaj took home the Best New Artist Award AND the Best Female Hip Hop Artist Award. I take issue. I knew it was going to happen because of her popularity and style. I have to admit, I'm slow to hop on her train, but I made it. However, I feel that with these awards, she should've won one or the other but not both. Best Female Hip Hop Artist in my sight was a fluke anyways. For one, with the nominees, we ain't seen Missy and Kim come out with anything new for quite some time, and I don't know who this Rasheeda chick is, sorry. Apparently, she's done quite a few records, but if no one knows you then why are you in this category? So of course, Nicki was going to win. But if the nominees hadn't really done much this year, why have the award in the first place? Upping the drama between Kim and Nicki I guess. What Nicki did deserve to win, which I had to force myself to admit because of of my love for Wale, was Best New Artist. Nicki has made a name for herself this year. No one can deny that. And I'm a little excited for her album.

Side note cuz I had to throw it in here somewhere...did yall see Nia Long and Larenz Tate...LOVE JONES!!!! Larenz is sooo sexy. Ok. I'm done.

Performances, for the most part, were hot. T.I. tore up the stage with "Yeah You Know" from Takers, showing everybody that the King is back!!! Alicia Keys performed a medley of songs. "No One", "Sleeping With A Broken Heart", among others. Wish she wouldn't have been moving like that with that baby inside her though. Eminem's performance KILLED!!!!!!! Diddy's was dead. Too much fog and mike issues. T.I. killed his verse, but you couldn't hear Nicki (at all that night, no matter what mike she used)


Hands down, my favorite performance was Chris Brown's tribute to Michael Jackson. Jermaine Jackson introduced the performance by saying that there was one tribute that we have yet to see. Dag on right!!!! CB should've performed last year. PERIOD. I don't care about this mess with Rihanna. He did it. He apologized. He's dealing with the consequences he was dealt. LET IT GO. Rihanna's moved on. Why can't we do the same? He ain't hit yall. TEAM BREEZY!!!!!! lol ok I'm back. Chris just straight killed it! From beginning to end. From "The Way You Make Me Feel" to "Smooth Criminal" From his walk on the stage to his moonwalk (Take notes, Mr. Jamie Foxx). And the most touching part was his break down in the middle of singing "Man In The Mirror." People can say that it was a publicity stunt and all that, but it's obvious how much MJ had an impact on Chris. You can see it in every single one of his performances. Can't nobody tell me that that was a show. I also think that part of the breakdown may have come from him being happy to be back on stage after a trying year, and realizing that his mistake cost him. BUT I'M HAPPY HE GOT TO PERFORM!!!!!

Drake performed as well, and yall know I love him. People got on his actual performance, and get on his performing skills overall, but lyrics are all I need to be impressed. And Drake impresses me. I could go on that whole performing vs. lyrics thing, but this post is long enough. Time to wrap up. There were also performances from El Debarge, Tyrese, Kirk Franklin and company (dedicate to Haiti), which were nice. Tyrese took me there too yall. Not gonna fake. MMMMM....



The night wrapped up with John Legend winning the Humanitarian Award and Prince, the Lifetime Achievement Award. I never really knew about all of the ways that John has served, but it's amazing for him to have done all of this. People can let the fortune and fame get to their head, and don't even think about giving back. Prince sat back on his tribute. I don't think he was into them until Alicia and Patti took the stage and killed! Lol I love Patti! Yall see her kick off them shoes doing "Purple Rain?!" As only Patti could do lol.

And then the performance with DJ Khaled and all them...yadda yadda. "All I do is win win win...Everybody hands go up!" Ok we got you. And the night was over. And I must say that I quite enjoyed myself. It was 50 million times better than last year's, and it was the best one that I have seen in quite some time. So congratulations BET for getting your act together and doing better. I look forward to the day when I go for myself, cuz uh I'm going yall! Gonna interview people for a magazine, I SPEAK IT NOW!!!! lol hope yall enjoyed my review. Sorry for the length. It's the writer in me.

PEACE.


SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!
Happy Monday yall! I'm actually energetic today. This morning's posts are dedicated to the BET Awards 2010! I liked it a lot. The show was the best I've seen it be in a long time, probably since Miss Mo'Nique. Others may disagree on that opinion, but I'm sure we all can agree that it was better than last year's mess! So congrats BET for getting on people's good sides again :)

I had to post the full list of winners from last night's awards, because they only announced what six? Leaving me disappointed because some of the main categories I wanted to hear, I had to look up online smh. But here goes the full list. (I talk about some of them more in my review)

Best Female R&B Artist-Alicia Keys (As long as it was her or Beyoncé, I was good)
Best Male R&B Artist-Trey Songz (Yuppppppp! I must admit he did his thing this year)
Best Gospel-Marvin Sapp
Best Female Hip Hop Artist-Nicki Minaj (Hmmm...)
Best Male Hip Hop Artist-Drake (I truly do love this man...listening to him as I type this post)
Best Group-Young Money (We knew that. Look who they were up against anyway...)
Best New Artist-Nicki Minaj (Best Female Hip Hop AND Best New Artist? I will discuss in my review...)
Best Collaboration-Jay-Z & Alicia Keys – Empire State of Mind
Video of the Year-Beyoncé f/ Lady Gaga – Video Phone (Go Bey!!! I wish she would have been there)
Video Director of the Year-Hype Williams
Best Actress-Mo’Nique (I figured)
Best Actor-Idris Elba (Man is FINE!!!!)
YoungStars Award-Keke Palmer
Best Movie-Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire
Fandemonium Award-Chris Brown (YAYYYYYYY!!!! TEAM BREEZY!!!!!)
Subway Sportswoman of the Year-Serena Williams (Serena done won like 6 out of 10 years...)
Subway Sportsman of the Year-LeBron James (This is LeBron's fifth....time to switch it up perhaps BET?)
Viewers Choice-Rihanna f/ Young Jeezy – Hard (No RiRi? Figures...love her and all but I wasn't all that pressed to see her.)
Centric Award-Monica (LOVE HER!!!!)
Best International Act-Dizzee Rascal (UK) (Idk who you are but congrats!)

PEACE.

A few days late with this post, but I figured I would be writing it soon enough after seeing all of these pics with Ne-Yo and his girlfriend Monyetta Shaw. During a photoshoot to promote his upcoming album Libra Scale, Ne-Yo told Ebony magazine that he is indeed expecting his first child.

“I am 30 and I do have my first child on the way, and I’m very, very, very excited about that,” he admitted. The baby is reportedly due in January of next year. “It’s a New Year’s baby and I’m just in a really good place right now," Ne-yo said.

Congrats Ne-Yo! I'm sure you will be a great father! Can't wait for September 21 (the release date for Libra Scale). I need new material from Ne-Yo badly...


PEACE.

I was gonna put this video up yesterday when it came out, but I wanted to dedicate all of yesterday to MJ on the blog, so I passed. But here is the video for Fantasia's latest single, "Bittersweet," which is the first single off her upcoming third album, Back To Me. The video features Washington Redskins receiver Devin Thomas as her leading man (football players getting a lot of roles in music vids lately). In the video, Fantasia recalls memories with her old lover Devin. I like the song a lot, and I think that this new album is going to be a great one. The CD's release is set for August 10.

Bittersweet-Fantasia


PEACE.

Wow, it's hard to believe it's been a year already. A year ago today, we lost one of the greatest, if not THE greatest, artists of all time in Michael Jackson. Today, I just want to remember his music, and his legacy, not get bogged down in what's going on with his family, or any other issues. Matter of fact, I started my morning blasting his music as I rode into work. So here goes some of my favorite videos by him.

Watch the videos after the jump!




BLAME IT ON THE BOOGIE-JACKSON FIVE
LOL this is my jam!


THE FULL THRILLER SHORT MOVIE-MICHAEL JACKSON Oh my goodness...swear the first time I saw this when I was a little kid, I was scared to death!!! Had a few nightmares, not gonna lie but I love it now!


WILL YOU BE THERE-MICHAEL JACKSON (FROM THE FREE WILLY SOUNDTRACK) Probably my favorite song by him...I know not one of his biggest hits, but the song is crazy beautiful...


THEY DON'T CARE ABOUT US-MICHAEL JACKSON This song has two music videos to it, but I chose the one shot in Brazil because I loved the spirit of the people that came out! This song is special to me, because it talks about the injustices of our system in America, injustices that I think people like to ignore. Shows how


YOU ROCK MY WORLD-MICHAEL JACKSON (from his 30th anniversary celebration) Swear I LOVED this performance! LMAO at Usher trying to dance circles around MJ, almost tripped him up! LOL all in a good time and respect, but boy you already know he got you beat!!! And Chris Tucker is a FOOL! LOL


Those are just a few of my favorite videos. I could go on and on. "Remember The Time," "Ease on Down the Road" with Diana Ross, and so many more songs. What's your favorite Michael Jackson song or memory? I have a bunch. One of the top was that anniversary celebration man. Seeing him and his brothers perform, even if it was only on TV, was exciting for me! This man gave his all in everything he did, and since he stepped on the scene, the music industry has never been the same. RIP Michael...you are surely missed.

PEACE.

Hey yall....got some pics for you today. Here are some photos from Monica's upcoming video for "Love All Over Me" off of her album Still Standing. I love that song!!!! I couldn't find the premiere date for the video, but as soon as I do, I will let you know. The video features LA Laker Shannon Brown as her leading man, and Maino's in it too, I see. And it looks like it's a wedding theme! Can't wait to see it! Love Monica!!!!!



See more pictures and listen to the song after the jump!











PEACE.
Hey yall, been looking for the embed code for this vid that I actually could access at work (stupid govt. security) and I finally found it on YouTube. It's Sean Garrett featuring Nicki Minaj in "Get It All." The first time I ever heard Sean was on "Break Up" with Mario and Gucci Mane. He's pretty talented, and apparently is has been a part of producing and writing for several artists, including Usher, CB, Britney Spears and Teairra Mari. I didn't know all that...and he's only been working in the industry for seven years! That's huge.

Catchy song, cutesy video, taking it back to the high school days. Wasn't feeling that rap at the beginning all that much, but other than that, it's an all right song. And man...Nicki's everywhere. Like EVERYWHERE. I wonder how much she charges, cuz with all this hype around her, she could make hella money off just her collaborations alone.



PEACE.

Good morning people! Today is a very special day in my book. A year ago today, I came up with the idea of In The Spotlight, just to have a little side project for myself. Matter of fact, I'm sitting at the exact desk where it all began :) Like I have told different people, Spotlight was started out of complete boredom, and just gave me something to do during slow days at work. But it's turned into much more than just a little side project. I have done interviews with upcoming artists, developed connections with a few PR people, and reported on some of the hottest entertainment news out now! This blog has become a big part of my life. I'm even going to be using it on my resume, so I can hopefully stand out when I apply for internships and jobs. Spotlight means the world to me, and I actually stuck with it!

I thank all of you who read Spotlight on a pretty regular basis. I know I can fall off at times with the posts because of busyness or straight laziness, but it feels good knowing that people actually read and follow them. Like I said, this started as just a little side project, so to have even a smallest inkling of a loyal fan base meant a lot to me. I'm proud of how the blog has grown, and I thank all of you for getting it to where it is today. Spotlight may not be at the level of Perez or MediaTakeOut, but it's certain at a higher level than I originally thought it would be, and I know that it will continue to grow slowly but surely, especially with you guys behind me. So thanks again for all of the support and love! Love you guys! I'll be back with some news posts later...


PEACE.

Good morning all...Happy Monday. And to all the fathers, I hope you had a great Father's Day! I'm back....

Well, I can tell you upfront that I am not a strong supporter of the new Toy Story movie. Honestly, Toy Story was probably one of my least favorite Disney movies growing up. I watched it and it was ok, but it wasn't anywhere near the level of say, The Lion King, or Pocahontas. So I definitely didn't feel like they needed to make a third movie, especially 11 years after the sequel. But it seems other people don't share the same sentiments LOL

According to Access Hollywood, Toy Story 3 became the #1 movie with $109 million grossed after its opening weekend, topping The Karate Kid, which has now made $106 million total. With these sales, Toy Story 3 became the best debut for a film from Disney’s Pixar Animation, topping The Incredibles at $70.5 million. The movie took in an additional $44.8 million overseas, giving it a worldwide total of $153.8 million. Well....congrats Disney-Pixar. Apparently, the plot was good enough to still keep people interested after 11 years. Maybe I will go see it...probably not though lol.

So in looking at the list of movies that Disney made on Wikipedia, I found out that they are also making sequels to Cars and Monsters Inc.!!! Again, years after the fact, but hey, I actually really liked those movies so that would be cool to see. Also Disney, for your consideration, if you're going to start doing all of these sequels, can you think about doing one for The Incredibles and Ratatouille? The kid in me would appreciate it.

PEACE.



Hey yall, HAPPY FRIDAY!!!! Sorry for the two days off. I was at a conference and had no internet access, but I'm back now :)

According to Access Hollywood, Ugly Betty actress America Ferrera is engaged to her longtime boyfriend filmmaker Ryan Piers Williams! The couple met before Ugly Betty began, and had been dating for several years before getting engaged!

Congrats guys! I know absolutely nothing about Ryan lol but I love America! I remember first seeing her in Gotta Kick It Up on Disney, and I have loved everything that I have seen her in since then. And she's GORGEOUS! I wish them both the best!

PEACE.



Morning readers! First I would like to say to all of you that if you haven't already picked up Drake's album Thank Me Later ( I MEAN, ACTUALLY BUY IT! THIS ONE IS WORTH THE MONEY...ONLY $9.99 ON iTUNES!), then yall need to get on it! Just thought I might throw that out there...now back to the post!

Aundrea Fimbres was probably my second favorite member of Danity Kane after D. Woods. I miss that group a lot. Seriously broke my heart when they broke up, but then again they were under Bad Boy soooo....that was kinda expected out the gate lol BUT STILL! Ugh...anyways, Aundrea has moved on. Here is her new song "Brush You Off." It was leaked a couple of weeks ago, but I just heard it this morning, so I had to spotlight it. Don't have any details for an upcoming album. This is probably just promotional single or what have you. It's an all right track. Not the greatest I've ever heard, but at least it's a start for her in making a name for herself outside of Danity Kane. Listen below...




PEACE.



Hello again people...exhausted from the day's work (or really just lack of sleep), but I had to get this one post up.

I had another opportunity to talk to another upcoming artist named SK (SPOTLIGHT'S MOVING YALL!!!!). SK, whose nickname simply comes from his initials, is an upcoming rapper, songwriter, and producer and hails from Detroit. He got started in music by playing the keyboard in church. He and his brother eventually saved up for a keyboard and SK eventually started making his own beats and rhymes. He's been rapping for around 13, 14 years. When asked what he enjoyed the most about making music, SK said, "The feeling of expression and creativity." He also believed his music is teaching people about different aspects of life that they may not get the chance to see, especially the people in his area. "A lot of people in Detroit don't really go anywhere. They stay where they are," SK said. "The main focus in me making a song is to make something deep that everyone will feel." Which is sooooo refreshing to hear, because the rap game is full of party records, which is all well and good, but it's nice to hear records that actually have meaning, you know?



SK's biggest influences on his music include his family and Mr. Stevie Wonder (who don't love Stevie?!) His recent project was his cd The Breach, released this past December. He released the CD on Digstation, which allows independent artists to list and sell their music on the site and gain 100% of the profits. SK admits that being an independent artist has its benefits. "A lot of labels want to suppress creativity. I'd rather be not so rich and be able to have things I want [regarding music choices] than to be tied down." Which again is very true.

SK is now working toward creating his own studio that can create radio quality tracks. He is also performing a couple of times a month at clubs around Detroit, and is planning on branching out to clubs in other areas as well. When asked where he wanted to be in 5-10 years, he said that he would like to be a part of a label, or perhaps even start his own. If he is able to start his own label, he would like to have 5-10 artists making hip hop and R&B tracks.

I can see him doing it for real. I've bought The Breach, and it's really good! You can buy The Breach on SK's Digstation page. Promise you won't be disappointed. I have included some of my favorite tracks below. So listen, enjoy, and SUPPORT. SK, I enjoyed my conversation with you, and wish you well in the future!


Lost Tribe-SK | Musicians Available


Love Connection-SK | Upload Music



Party Wit Me-SK | Music Codes

PEACE.




T.I.'s back! And above is his album cover for his upcoming album King Uncaged, released about an hour ago. The lion looks photoshopped in lol, but it's still a nice album cover. T.I.'s dressed sharp as usual, and his throne is firmly in place (Show some of these wack freshman and sophomores how it's done?! PLEASE!!!)

The album is set to drop September 28 and features the singles "Yeah You Know (Takers)" and "Got Your Back" featuring Keri Hilson. You can preorder the album at Tip's website TrapMuzik.com now, or even purchase a premium or deluxe version of the CD, which includes a bunch of exclusive stuff! I personally ain't doing all of that deluxe stuff, but umm...yall can go for it if you want to lol But I definitely will be BUYING Tip's first release since he got out. Excited to hear it!

PEACE.



Happy Monday guys. To my workers, the weekend will be back again soon. To the people at home probably sleeping while I write this, I HATE YOU just so you know :) On to the post...

According to SingersRoom, my new favorite site for everything entertainment, Mary J. Blige is taking up a new venture, joining up with designer Catherine Malandrino. The pair worked earlier this year on designing charitable t-shirts (pictured) and have decided to launch a fashion show to showcase different styles, including leather jackets and tops. The show will benefit FFAWN (Foundation for the Achievement of Women Now).

The show will take place tomorrow June 15 at New York's Museum of Modern Art. The event is nowhere near cheap, with a $1000 a ticket price tag. However, the cost will help cover college tuition for thirty graduates at the Women's Academy of Excellence in the Bronx, so it's going to a good cause.

This is definitely a good look Mary! Congrats on branching out! Hopefully, there will be some pictures out. If so, I will try to get them up here.

PEACE




Ok, so there's this unsigned group that's huge on YouTube named Ahmir! They do covers of popular songs, and have a few of their own that they post up on YouTube. My friend got me hooked on them earlier in the year. So I saw their cover of Drake's "Find Your Love" that they posted yesterday. I swear, I love them. Their voices...mmmmm...THEIR VOICES! I might have to start posting them from time to time for yall. Check out the cover below!

"Find Your Love"-Ahmir (Drake Cover)


PEACE.


After his incident at the MTV Video Music Awards last year (not even gonna go there, yall already know lol), Kanye West is set to make his first major performance since then at this year's BET Awards, according to SingersRoom. The network made the announcement Wednesday. "While West received much backlash and criticism following the VMAs, BET decided to give the multifaceted performer a spot in music history during its 10 year anniversary special," a BET representative said. "Viewers can anticipate a dynamic comeback performance."



Other performers include Ludacris, Rick Ross, Drake, Trey Songz, Nicki Minaj, T.I., and Diddy/Dirty Money. BET tell me that there are going to be other performers! While I love hip hop, there can't just be only ONE R&B singer performing at the BET Awards! I ain't even gonna count Dirty Money--I'm still a little bitter towards Dawn and I don't even know that other girl's name still lol. Hopefully there are other performances. BET, you should add in Monica, since yall wanna deny her a nomination in the Best Female R&B Category (WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT ABOUT?!) Or Chris Brown? But I guess yall ain't over that whole mess just yet SMH.

Glad to know that Kanye is performing though. He is real talented. Can't deny that. Mad cocky, but real talented. Hopefully there won't be any outbursts on June 27. Cuz part of me can see him walking up on that stage if Justin Bieber wins ("Hey yo Justin, Ima let you finish but...").

PEACE.


Good afternoon readers! Hope everything is good with yall. For today, I got another upcoming artist to spotlight!

Ok, so a friend of mine has decided to get in the rap game, and I had to spotlight him. I heard that he was trying to rap, but honestly I didn't even give it a second thought UNTIL I HEARD SOME OF HIS STUFF! Boy got flow...I know him as Dionte Barnum, but throughout the country, he will become known by his stage name SMASH ADAMS. Read more on him and hear some of his tracks after the jump!


Smash is originally from D.C. (DMV where yall at?!), but now stays and works on rapping down in Georgia. He got his name from the popular Nickelodeon Doug. Doug's agent alter ego Smash Adams? I had to take it back to remember that one LOL but it clicks. Smash started rapping for fun, just a little thing to do on the side with friends, until he met a friend of his girlfriend's who encouraged him to try to make something of his rhymes. Smash didn't know about that at first, but eventually gave in. "I didn't want to be another statistic. You know, another black man trying to be a rapper, {LOL TRUE!!!} but I gave it a shot." And he fell in love with it.

His biggest inspirations in the rap game are Biggie (because "he spoke the truth," Smash said) and Lil Wayne (because "he raps about things people don't think about"). He himself loves that he gets to be creative with his rhymes and likes coming up with ideas that nobody has ever done before. And listening to some of his tracks, he definitely doesn't lack skill and I see him going places.

In fact, his latest single "Shut Em Down," created under the underground label YSZ Entertainment (Young Saint Zone, named for the leader of the label Young Saint) and featuring another upcoming rapper Esquire is already being played in NY clubs. "Esquire's cousin is a DJ in New York and he got him to play it. He told us people went crazy!" Smash said. See? Going places...

Right now, Smash is working on developing connects in the game to help further his career. I am also the first to report that Smash is dropping two mixtapes in the near future {EXCLUSIVE!!!! LOL}. He is working on a solo mixtape entitled Lethal Weapon, and Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, a dual mixtape with Esquire. Remember the name people: SMASH ADAMS. Sure to be rocking to him soon! And I can say "I knew him when!" Keep doing your thing! Check out his tracks "Awesome" and "Shut Em Down" below!


Awesome-Smash Adams / Young Saint


Shut Em Down-Smash Adams / Esquire / DB

PEACE


WATCH LADY GAGA'S OFFICIAL VIDEO FOR HER SONG "ALEJANDRO" BELOW! Gaga shows her creative side as always! I'm starting to fall in love with her style. At first, I thought it was all a little much, but there's no such thing as too much creativity and eccentrics, especially not with Gaga!

"Alejandro"-Lady Gaga



PEACE.