Trying to Get My Black Bruce Willis :P.diddy

Posted by admin on May 4th, 2008

diddyThat’s what Diddy told People this week while celebrating getting his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

We’ve been constantly impressed by shape-shifting entrepreneur Diddy as he’s moved from multi-named record producer to hip-hop star to party monster to fashion designer to actor and several other things we’ve probably forgotten.

And now, we salute his ambition to put in all the hard work necessary to become a movie star. He seems to be able to do it all. Our only qualm is with him getting racial all up in our facial, though he’s clearly having fun with the idea. Because, pigmentation aside, being the next Diddy is a doozy in its own right.

Besides, we have a sneaking suspicion that Bruce Willis may want to be the black Bruce Willis. And he’s got first dibs.

Ferrell, Aniston film videos for Myanmar campaign

Posted by admin on May 2nd, 2008

capt7165f0756edb4804bbaa7af1b3cb4b65people_celeb_campaign_for_myanmar_nyet214.jpgWill Ferrell, Jennifer Aniston and Ellen Page are among those lending their celebrity status to a new campaign focusing attention on Myanmar’s military-run government.

jim Carrey previously filmed a public service announcement to raise awareness about the Southeast Asian country, also known as Burma, and human-rights leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been confined by the government for 12 of the last 18 years.

But starting Thursday, the message will be on a much larger scale. A video will be released each day in May starring Ferrell, Aniston, Page, Sarah Silverman, Sylvester Stallone, Anjelica Huston, Woody Harrelson and Judd Apatow, among others.

The celebs appear solo or in scenes together on behalf of the Human Rights Action Center and the U.S. Campaign for Burma.

The spots are more like short films than PSAs, and will be blasted across the Internet on sites such as YouTube and MySpace, Jeremy Woodrum, co-founder of the U.S. Campaign for Burma, said this week.

In Ferrell’s bit, he nods to an unseen person when he correctly pronounces the name of Suu Kyi, who’s under long-term house arrest. In rare serious mode, he concludes: “Every now and again, a single person or event captures the imagination and inspiration of the world. This moment belongs to Burma, and to Aung San Suu Kyi. Please honor her courage, honor your compassion and let this month be the month you join an effort to change the world.”

Suu Kyi received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991 for her nonviolent efforts to overturn the regime led by Senior Gen. Than Shwe. Suu Kyi’s political party won the last general election in 1990 but was never allowed to take power. Myanmar has been under military rule since 1962.

The country captured world attention when Buddhist monks last September began leading the biggest anti-government protests in two decades. At least 31 people were killed and thousands more were detained when military rulers cracked down on the peaceful demonstrations.

Organizers of the celebrity video campaign used their showbiz connections to bring in Ferrell and company.

Woodrum said the spots could possibly influence Myanmar’s government leaders who recognize the famous faces: “When stars speak out, it undermines the military’s authority in a different kind of way than when political leaders do, and it gives support and hope to the opposition.”

The campaign kicked off Thursday, the same day President Bush froze the assets of state-owned companies in Myanmar that prop up the nation’s military junta, which has been condemned by the international community for suppressing pro-democracy dissidents.

Sexiest woman of the world 2008,Megan fox

Posted by admin on April 25th, 2008

Sexiest Woman of world for 2007,Megan foxMegan Fox is the sexiest woman in the world — at least according to FHM magazine. The “Transformers” co-star tops FHM’s annual 100 Sexiest Women in the World poll of FHM readers. The 21-year-old model-actress beat out the likes of Angelina Jolie (No. 12), Rihanna (No. 14), Kim Kardashian (No. 17), Paris Hilton (No. 77) and last year’s champion, Jessica Alba (No. 3).Fox debuted on the annual list in 2006 at No. 68 and ranked at No. 65 in 2007. Joining her in the top 10 this year are — in descending order — Jessica Biel, Alba, Elisha Cuthbert, Scarlett Johansson, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Hilary Duff, Tricia Helfer, Blake Lively and Kate Beckinsale. Britney Spears came in last place at No. 100.

The women from MTV’s “The Hills” duke it out on the list with Heidi Montag (No. 44) beating out Audrina Patridge (No. 80) and Lauren Conrad (No. 95). Current “Dancing with the Stars” contestant Shannon Elizabeth (No. 46) returned to the ranking after being absent last year, joining professional dancers Cheryl Burke (No. 40) and Karina Smirnoff (No. 78).

FHM said nearly 9 million votes were cast for the 14th edition of the annual poll.

R&B singer Ne-Yo “bored” by urban music

Posted by admin on April 19th, 2008

2008_04_19t022300_450x300_us_neyo.jpgAs he prepares to release his third album in as many years, R&B singer/songwriter Ne-Yo says he is “a little bored” with urban music.The genre has served him well, to be sure. His first two albums have both been certified platinum, and he has co-written such monster hits as Beyonce’s “Irreplaceable,” which spent 10 weeks atop the Hot 100 singles chart in 2006.

But “Year of the Gentleman,” due June 24 from Def Jam, finds the 28-year-old Arkansas native — real name Shaffer Smith — venturing into “more worldly” territory.

“There’s some stuff on there that sounds like something the Beatles might’ve done,” Ne-Yo told Billboard. “There’s some stuff on there that sounds like something Billy Joel might’ve done. I can’t do just straight urban music no more, because to be completely honest with you, I’m a little bored with it. I’m just moving with what music excites me now.”

An early preview does indeed indicate something a little different from traditional R&B: “Closer” is a Stargate-produced club track with pulsing strobe-light synths and a high-energy house beat that calls to mind Rihanna’s “Don’t Stop the Music.”

“So You Can Cry” sports a mellow, easy-listening vibe, with Ne-Yo making a priceless rhyme of “pity party” and “calamari.” Guitars and cymbals figure prominently in “What’s the Matter,” which Ne-Yo likens to “a Beatles-style rock record.”

But will the little girls understand? Def Jam wants to expand Ne-Yo’s audience beyond its core of 16- to 24-year-old females.

“The records he’s written don’t just speak to young black girls,” says Ashaunna Ayars, Def Jam’s VP of marketing. “We’re trying to build an adult audience that appreciates his music as well.”

Part of the strategy involves Ne-Yo opening for Alicia Keys on her two-month North American tour, which begins Saturday in Hampton, Va.

“That partnership gets him in front of the more mature fan base we’re after,” Ayars says.

But Ne-Yo is anxious about overdoing the stylistic experimentation.

“My worry is that I’ll do something that’s so far left of what I’ve already done that it’s going to go over my fans’ heads. I pray that my fans are smarter than that.”

And he hopes they will understand that if he keeps writing songs like “So Sick” or “Sexy Love” or “Because of You,” both he and they will eventually get bored.

“So Sick” — a song that slyly predicted its own inescapability on the radio — reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was drawn from his 2006 debut “In My Own Words,” which has sold more than 1.5 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. His follow-up, “Because of You,” has sold 935,000 copies since its release last May.

He says he always envisaged the third album would mark a musical departure, and was expecting “to chill for a minute and really take some time to figure out what I wanted that to be. Fortunately, it didn’t take me that long, which is why the album’s coming out now.”

“iCarly” star has eye on iPods

Posted by admin on April 18th, 2008

2008_04_18t024841_299x450_us_icarly.jpgMiranda Cosgrove, the star of Nickelodeon’s “iCarly,” has her sights set on conquering the music world.The tween TV sensation sings four songs on the album “iCarly Playlist,” which is due in stores on June 10 via Columbia Records. The project is part of a venture between the kids cable channel and Columbia’s Sony Music Label Group parent.

The remaining 10 tracks — all by such teen-friendly Sony artists as Good Charlotte and Avril Lavigne — were chosen to represent “songs that would appear on Carly’s iPod,” Sony Music Label Group chairman Rob Stringer said.

One of the Cosgrove tunes is the series’ theme song, “Leave It All to Me,” which recently charted on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.

“ICarly,” in which Cosgrove plays a teenager who produces Webcasts from her attic, is the No. 3-ranked program on broadcast and cable TV in kids 6-11 and tweens 9-14, behind Fox’s “American Idol” and Nick’s “Zoey 101” according to Nielsen Media Research.

Cosgrove, 14, might be known to older folks for her role as a David Geffen wannabe in the Jack Black comedy “School of Rock.”