I apologize for the serious delay in these recaps! A lot of things going on last week, but here is the recap for last week's episode of Battle of the Seasons (Jersey Shore one will be up soon too).

Picking up from last episode, the remaining four teams (Vegas, Cancun, San Diego and Brooklyn) leaves Turkey behind and heads to Namibia, Africa, to fight to keep their spot in the finale! Two people are for sure going home, so the teams are definitely nervous! The house in Africa is SICK! Later, they all get a clue from TJ saying: "Tomorrow's your last shot to make it into the final! Good luck!" The challenge is definitely important for Brooklyn to win because they know they will be thrown into the Arena if they don't, since Cancun and San Diego are in alliance with each other).


The next day, the teams play "Sling Shot." The game is complete with a four-wheeler, a ramp, and of course, water. The teams all have to assign a driver and a jumper (teams of four will assign two to go twice). The driver will take off with the jumper in tow, who will then be launched off of the ramp into the water, and swim as fast as they can to the dock to ring a bell. Then the jumper will swim back in to swim to shore and cross the finish line. With the teams of four, their times will be averaged.

Vegas surprisingly kills it first, setting the tone for the other competitors. Dustin is extremely winded and sick from swimming, so it's probably going to be harder than anyone thought! It's definitely not the easiest challenge. San Diego's four-wheeler stalls, which makes it a farther swim for Frank, unfortunately. The team that lost with a trip right into the Arena is Cancun, with San Diego falling not too far in front of them. The Power Team going into the finals is Las Vegas, which nobody expected! They win their first challenge, and the most important one to win at that!

The high from Trishelle and Dustin's win is short-lived, however, when TJ makes them pick the second team to head in right there on the spot! No surprise, they pick San Diego to go against Cancun, and pick them to play Strategy. With that decision, Brooklyn also makes it into the finals! It's a great way to break up the Arena. It's clear that Frank and Ashley need to prove themselves in the Arena, so they will most likely be going in. Back at the house, Sam makes fun of Frank's major fail at the Challenge, which, of course, pisses him off.

Surprisingly, Sarah gives Jonna advice for the Arena, hoping that Cancun will send two members of San Diego home so that Brooklyn will be the only team left with four people. Jonna and Derek face Ashley and Frank in "Knot So Fast" for the final Arena. Instead of there being domes, the challenge uses pyramids. First, the teams will tangle their pyramid with rope as best as they can, and then switch pyramids to solve the other team's. It sucks for Zach to watch because he's a part of Team San Diego, but still has feelings for Jonna and wants her to do well too. Vegas and Brooklyn of course are yelling advice at Cancun so they can send home Frank and Ashley. However, San Diego pull it out, sending Jonna and Derek home. TJ congratulates the remaining teams of gaining their spots in the finals.

Back at the house, the teams get new gear for the finals the next day, showing that this challenge is going to be a tough one! Trishelle and Chet talk about their team's weaknesses, and contemplate what will happen in the Challenge. Everyone's nervous, because there's no telling what will happen! The next day, the teams all head out to the desert. There's four planes and three helicopters up ahead, which puts everyone into suspense about what they're getting into! TJ introduces the challengetelling them them that they will be jumping out of those planes from 10,000 feet to start things off, exciting some team members and terrifying others! They will all have to dig deep to make it to the finish line to win any money!

Image via MTV

6:00:00 AM

By now, everyone knows of the tragedy that happened in Newtown, Connecticut. A shooting spree by a mentally ill gunman happened at Sandy Hook Elementary School, killing 20 children (ages range from 5-10, though no names have yet been released) as well as 6 adults (including the school principal and psychologist). The gunman also killed his mother beforehand, and apparently took his own life. More details are forthcoming.

I have been struggling with this all day yesterday and now. Even as I type, I am flipping channels to hear more on this tragedy. Forgive me for not getting up the recap posts that I needed to. They will be up hopefully later today, but this is far more important to me right now. Prayers go up to the families of these victims, especially these 20 little babies, as well as the people of Newtown who are struggling to come to grips with this. Prayers to President Obama, Congress, and our other officials who need to take ACTION on developing some type of stricter plan on gun control in this country. This world is highly unpredictable. Shocked, disgusted, and saddened.

8:30:00 AM

I've been blessed to do many spotlights of upcoming artists, producers, designers, etc.,  since the blog started, and will always continue to do so! (Email me for your feature!)

Excited to introduce you all to another great artist! Rapper Hollywood calls his hometown of Brooklyn the "recipe" to his music and life, repping his city to the fullest! He got his start in music at a young age, participating in his school choir, singing for a few groups, and even had a role in A Christmas Carol on Broadway! However, he started getting serious about rapping in about ninth or tenth grade, eventually getting into battling. "Older dudes on my block used to rhyme, and one day, a few of us younger cats were just sucked in," the rapper says. "We chose sides and joined the battles." He battled everyone anywhere from the lunchroom between classes to around his block. "Guess once I started, I just couldn't stop," Hollywood laughs.

Hollywood eventually took his music to the next level, developing East Brook Familia in 2010 to promote his career as well as the careers of several rising artists. The group is made up of close friends of his that have been together since childhood. "As part of a graduation requirement, I had to make a business plan, so I used us," Hollywood says. (The rapper holds a bachelor of science degree from Hampton University, and a master's degree in Business Administration from the Metropolitan College of New York. Everybody should have a Plan B). "A group of dudes pushing to promote what we feel is real rap, [but] nowadays EBF is more than just us. All of our supporters are part of the family." he claims.

Inspired by classic and timeless rappers like Biggie, Jay-Z, Fabolous, and Lupe, Hollywood released his first mixtape, 24:7, in November 2010, which was seemingly effortless from the rapper. "There wasn't really any thought process behind it. I had a bunch of random tracks on my laptop. I picked my favorite seven, came up with a mixtape name, cover art, and there you go!" he admitted.



However, his upcoming mixtape,  HBO Vol. 1: My Eastside Story, is completely different. With "HBO" standing for Hollywood's Brooklynz Own, the mixtape will show growth from 24:7. "I wanted this mixtape to be a story, a movie," Hollywood says of the project. "My goal was for everything from the track names to the transitions from track to track to have a movie feel." The mixtape, the first of a three part series, was recorded at Hall of Fame Studios, the studio were Jam Master Jay was killed back in 2002. Audio engineer Teardropz worked with the rapper on the entire project, giving it a better sound with better equipment than 24:7, Hollywood admits. While there's no vocal features, two tracks ("Who I Be" and "Dutchess and Hennessy") features the talent of musician Lawrence "Strings" Williams, who plays bass and electric guitar on the songs. EBF, of course, has been crucial in this upcoming release, promoting it heavily (A listening party is set for December 21 at Hall of Fame Studios on Merrick and Jamaica Ave. in Queens from 8 p.m. to midnight. If you're in the NY area or can make it up there, definitely check it out!)


In terms of his next steps for a career, Hollywood plans to get on the road, and wants to get into college tours with EBF. What does he think separates him from other rappers? He unapologetically does him, and is not the typical rapper one might expect. "I rap. I'm educated. I smoke weed. I sing in church. I love God. I love music," Hollywood claims. "This is me. I'm comfortable with it." He is clearly using the gifts God gave him to create incredible music for listeners!

You can tell from listening to even one of his songs that Hollywood is not only talented, but HUNGRY for this. I stress hunger in this industry because sometimes it's seriously lacking and you can tell through an artist's lyrics, promotion, and overall growth (or lack thereof). We at JWWWD support him because he's like us: he does and says exactly what he wants with his music. So check him out and support! Hollywood is definitely going to be an artist around for a while!

You can connect with Hollywood on his official website, EBF's website, Facebook, Twitter, Soundcloud, and YouTube! And be sure to check out his mixtape, available now! 

7:01:00 AM

Can't believe that the cast of Jersey Shore is about to close the Shore House down for good! Just a few more episodes left! Picking up from last week, at Snooki's baby shower, Vinny goes outside to talk to Jionni man to man about their issues. Jionni has forgiven Vinny for hooking up with Snooki a day after their breakup, but doesn't like the "I'm the father" jokes that Vinny has made in the past. Vinny sincerely apologizes, and Jionni has more respect for him now that they had that talk. And now Vinny gets an invite to the wedding!

When the guys come back in, the guests play baby games and opens up all of the gifts for Snooki. During the shower, Jenni tells Jionni that he better come around more often for his pregnant fiancee  and take care of her. Snooki is so happy about the whole shower, but when Mike tries to talk to her, of course, she gives him the cold shoulder. He knows that eventually he will have to man up and talk to her about the problem.


The next morning, Mike reflects on his past problems with Snooki, and decides it's time to apologize for the things he said to Jionni and to her. He heads to her house to talk to her, and she lets him in, wanting to hear his story. He expresses his deepest apologies. However, Snooki finds it very hard to forgive him because he hurt their friendship and embarrassed Jionni and Snooki as a couple. He wants to save their friendship, because they're so close in character, and have had a lot of good times together. However, it's a lot of damage done. Snooks accepts his apology. Overall, a pretty good talk for people who haven't in over a year, but it's hard to say if there will ever be a friendship like before.

Sammi locks the guys out on the balcony while they're out talking. The guys plan to jump into pillows, right when Sam unlocks the door. Of course, the guys plan to retaliate secretly!

Later, Ronnie, Mike, and Pauly go GTL. It's kind of awkward because Paula works there still. She leaves Mike a little note. Back at the house, Vinny reads the note out loud to the house. It's clear that writing isn't exactly fundamental to her, but she admits that she misses him, and doesn't want him to give up on her. The note actually kind of touches Mike. The biggest surprise of all? Snooki is actually sitting next to him, and participating in the conversation! She's letting go of the anger towards him, realizing that he's a better person now.

That night, the house plans to go out to Aztec while Vinny, who's sick, and Snooki plan to just hang out together. Jenni stays home and goes straight to bed. Snooki and Vinny go out on their scooters and do old people impressions. Meanwhile, Mike struggles to maintain his sobriety at the bar. Paula comes, and tries to get him to hold a drink for a second, which really pisses Mike off. Paula gets annoyed and walks away, but Mike had a right to be upset. You don't give a drink to somebody who's trying to stay sober, not even for a second!  Mike continues to talk to girls while Paula awkwardly stares on. She even come up to him in the middle of a conversation yet again, which shows Mike that they probably won't be together again any time soon! A little later, Vinny and Snooki ride the scooters into the club for a quick appearance (best entrance ever!), but quickly head home. When they leave, some dude calls Snooki fat on the boardwalk, which prompts Vinny to back his scooter up and yell at the dude! I swear, people hate on this cast TOO much. It's a reality show. It's supposed to be stupid and crazy. It's entertainment!

The next day, Snooki calls up a psychic Zen Jen and calls her to prank Deena! Before though, the girls go with Snooki and Jionni to a sonogram to see little Lorenzo! He's so cute, just a little meatball! They notice that, for a baby, he's has a pretty big penis, and is even giving the middle finger in the womb! Everyone gets a laugh from that, but afterwards, Jionni is defensive when it comes to Jenni's statement at the baby shower of him not coming around enough. It's clear that that comment started a little bit of tension between them, but hey, Jenni's just looking out for her friend!

Back at the house, Pauly and Vinny plan to have a guys' night and include Jionni to get to know him better, and what his intentions are for Snooki and their baby! Snooki questions their intentions and tells them to be nice to him! The girls have their own night together. Zen Jen comes in to "bless the house," to prank Deena, who is afraid of ghosts and the supernatural. Zen Jen walks around to "feel the energy," and says she feels chills like there's a ghost in the house, even going as far to say that the ghost hangs near Deena's bed! She is definitely freaked out now!

At their get together, the guys welcome Jionni into the fold, though it's still awkward since both Vinny and Mike have hooked up with Snooki in the past. Jionni talks about his closeness with his family, and the expansion of his ATM business, which will take care of Nicole and the baby. He then starts to talk about Italy. Of course, Jionni is irritated about Mike telling him that he had sex with Nicole, but Snooki told him about the conversation they had and Mike apologizes to him. Again, Jionni gets defensive when the guys bring up him visiting Snooki more, but vows to try his best while still balancing work. In the end though, it was a good gathering, and the guys, even Mike, snag an invite to Jionni's bachelor party! That's a miracle from up above!

Only TWO (tear) more episodes of Jersey Shore EVER! Check out an all new episode next Thursday at 10 p.m. ET only on MTV!

10:11:00 AM

Battle of the Seasons is starting to get REALLY crazy! Picking up from last week, Dustin has planned to quit after Nany and Alton were eliminated at the Arena. The next morning, Chet tries to talk him out of it, and when Dustin thinks things through, he decides to stay to fight for Team Vegas. Meanwhile, Brooklyn plans to gun for Cancun and know that they need to win the next Challenge in order to stay out of the Arena.

The next day's Challenge is called "Force Field." Two team members will share a huge inner tube in girls' and boys' heats (unless you're only a team of two, then you're by yourself!) The object of the game is to push people off the platform into the water. There is a point system: The 1st team out will receive no points. The 2nd team will get 20 points. 3rd will get 40, 4th will get 60, and the last team standing will get 80 points. If you fall down three times, you'll be disqualified.


In the girls' heat, Marie works with Brooklyn to get Vegas, Cancun and San Diego out! Sarah and Devyn end up winning for Team Brooklyn! In the boys' heat, Chet and JD falls three times disqualifying them from the game, which basically screws up the girls' win for Brooklyn moments before. Zach and Frank are the last team standing, automatically winning the Power Team for San Diego. Vegas heads straight to the Arena after coming in last place with points.

Back at the house, San Diego deliberates who they want to send in to face Vegas. It's abundantly clear that overall, this team doesn't think with their head at all. Sam and Zach want to send in St. Thomas, purely based off the fight that happened last week with Marie accidentally pushing Sam down. Because Frank is friends with Marie, he suggests picking the team that could take Vegas out, which could be Brooklyn. San Diego goes out to talk to Brooklyn and St. Thomas. Marie gets irritated really quick because she realizes that they're all just pawns in San Diego's minds right now.

At deliberation, San Diego chooses St. Thomas to go in against Vegas. They also choose Mental which wasn't the game that St. Thomas wanted to do. It's all stupid because if San Diego was thinking STRATEGICALLY, they would have put Brooklyn up and possibly break up their team. That would leave San Diego as being the only team left with four people, which would be a HUGE advantage to them. But that's okay! Leave my favorite team to make it to the final!

That night, the house go out to party, and Marie is over emotional on the bus. It's a little irritating, because this IS a game, and, at the end of the day, everyone is going to do what they think is best for their team and themselves. We can be friends, but I'm ultimately here for my team and to make some money. Marie GOES OFF on Frank and says that she doesn't want to be friends with him. It's just an extremely sour night. Marie continues to go off on the bus with Robb having to restrain her. Back at the house, Marie gets in Sam's face. She turns quickly to JD which gets Robb into it again. They both were just over emotional about the entire thing. It's a competition people!

That night, Vegas and St. Thomas go head to head in "Water Torture." Though Robb and Marie give it their all, ultimately, Dustin and Trishelle win the game! Back at the house, they get a clue from TJ that says that they have a huge challenge ahead of them! "The first part will be just getting there. Pack your bags you're going to Namibia!" Get your passports! The Challenge is headed to AFRICA!

Check out a new episode of Battle of the Seasons next Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET only on MTV!

Image via MTV

11:33:00 AM

Beyoncé recently revealed that fans will be able to catch an intimate look behind her life in an upcoming HBO documentary, and has dropped the teaser for the film!

The feature-length film, debuting Feb. 16, 2013, will show Beyoncé at her performances, in the studio, at home, and even gives an up-close shot of Beyoncé's baby bump when she was pregnant with daughter Blue Ivy! “HBO has a history of pushing every boundary with class and authenticity,” said she said of the film. “Some of my favorite shows are on HBO, so I am excited that my film will be part of its bold programming. This film was so personal to me, it had to have the right home.”

See the teaser below!


As a proud member of the BeyHive, of course, I'm beyond excited! Since she was with Destiny's Child, Beyoncé has notoriously been a very private artist. It was a smart move to keep private matters private, but fans always want to know as much as they can about their favorite artists! For her to be coming out with this movie is MAJOR. This film is definitely one to watch for in the entertainment biz!

12:10:00 PM

Official news from the St. James Palace! Kate Middleton and Prince William are expecting a baby!!!

Though rumored for a few days now, the news was officially announced today by the palace. "Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are very pleased to announce that The Duchess of Cambridge is expecting a baby," the palace said in a statement. "The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh, The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Harry and members of both families are delighted with the news." The statement continued: "As the pregnancy is in its very early stages, Her Royal Highness is expected to stay in hospital for several days and will require a period of rest thereafter." The duchess was admitted to King Edward VII Hospital today in central London with hyperemesis gravidarum, an acute morning sickness which requires supplementary hydration and nutrients.

Apparently, the child, whether boy or girl, will eventually be heir to the British throne according to new legislation awaiting final approval.  The baby will also be the queen's third great-grandchild.

Congrats to the Royal Family!!!

Image via Jonathan Nackstrand/AFP/Getty Images

9:14:00 AM