Whats Buzzing in the Streets – Page 61

Snoop Dogg

Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, television personality, entrepreneur, and actor. His music career began in 1992 when he was discovered by Dr. Dre and featured on Dre’s solo debut, “Deep Cover”, and then on Dre’s solo debut album, The Chronic. He has since sold over 23 million albums in the United States and 35 million albums worldwide.

Snoop’s debut album, Doggystyle, produced by Dr. Dre, was released in 1993 by Death Row Records. “Hyped” or influenced by Snoop’s featuring on The Chronic, the album debuted at number one on both the Billboard 200 and Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. Selling almost a million copies in the first week of its release, Doggystyle became certified 4× platinum in 1994 and spawned several hit singles, including “What’s My Name?” and “Gin & Juice”. In 1994 Snoop released a soundtrack on Death Row Records for the short film Murder Was the Case, starring himself. His second album, Tha Doggfather (1996), also debuted at number one on both charts, with “Snoop’s Upside Ya Head” as the lead single. The album was certified double platinum in 1997.

After leaving Death Row Records, Snoop signed with No Limit Records, where he recorded his next three albums, Da Game Is to Be Sold, Not to Be Told (1998), No Limit Top Dogg (1999), and Tha Last Meal (2000). Snoop then signed with Priority/Capitol/EMI Records in 2002, where he released Paid tha Cost to Be da Boss. He then signed with Geffen Records in 2004 for his next three albums, R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta): The Masterpiece, Tha Blue Carpet Treatment, and Ego Trippin’. Malice ‘n Wonderland (2009), and Doggumentary (2011) were released on Priority. Snoop Dogg has starred in motion pictures and hosted several television shows, including Doggy Fizzle Televizzle, Snoop Dogg’s Father Hood, and Dogg After Dark. He also coaches a youth football league and high school football team. In September 2009 Snoop was hired by EMI as the chairman of a reactivated Priority Records.

In 2012, after a trip to Jamaica, Snoop announced a conversion to Rastafarianism and a new alias, Snoop Lion. As Snoop Lion he released a reggae album, Reincarnated, and a documentary film of the same name, about his Jamaican experience, in early 2013. His 13th studio album, Bush, was released in May 2015 and marked a return of the Snoop Dogg name. His 14th solo studio album, Coolaid, was released in July 2016. Snoop has 17 Grammy nominations without a win. In March 2016, the night before WrestleMania 32 in Arlington, Texas, he was inducted into the celebrity wing of the WWE Hall of Fame, having made several appearances for the company, including as Master of Ceremonies during a match at WrestleMania XXIV. In 2018, he released his first gospel album, Bible of Love.

Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. was born in Long Beach, California, the second of three sons. He was named after his stepfather, Calvin Cordozar Broadus Sr. His mother is Beverly Broadus (née Tate). His father, Vernell Varnado, was a Vietnam veteran, singer, and mail carrier who was frequently absent from his life. As a boy, Broadus’ parents nicknamed him “Snoopy” because of his appearance but usually addressed him as Calvin at home. His mother and stepfather divorced in 1975. When he was very young, Broadus began singing and playing piano at Golgotha Trinity Baptist Church. In sixth grade, he began rapping. Broadus’s father left the family when he was three months old. A DNA test read by George Lopez on Lopez Tonight revealed Broadus to be of 71% African, 23% Native American, and 6% European descent.

As a teenager, Broadus frequently ran into trouble with the law. He was a member of the Rollin’ 20 Crips gang in the Eastside area of Long Beach, although he stated in 1993 that he never joined a gang. Shortly after graduating from high school, he was arrested for possession of cocaine, and for the next three years was frequently in and out of prison (including Wayside Jail).With his cousins Nate Dogg and Lil’ ½ Dead and friend Warren G, Snoop recorded homemade tapes as a group called 213, named after the Long Beach area code. One of his early solo freestyles over En Vogue’s “Hold On” made it to a mixtape that was heard by influential producer Dr. Dre, who called to invite him to an audition. Former N.W.A associate The D.O.C. taught him how to structure his lyrics and separate the thematics into verses, hooks, and chorus.

Snoop’s debut album, Doggystyle, produced by Dr. Dre and released in 1993 through Death Row Records, debuted at number one on both the Billboard 200 and Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. Selling almost a million copies in the first week of its release, Doggystyle became certified 4× platinum in 1994 and spawned several hit singles, including “What’s My Name?” and “Gin & Juice”. In 1994 Snoop released a soundtrack on Death Row Records for the short film Murder Was the Case, starring himself. His second album Tha Doggfather (1996), also debuted at number one on both charts with “Snoop’s Upside Ya Head”, as the lead single. The album was certified double platinum in 1997.

After leaving Death Row Records, Snoop signed with No Limit Records, where he recorded his next three albums. Da Game Is to Be Sold, Not to Be Told (1998), No Limit Top Dogg (1999), and Tha Last Meal (2000). Snoop then signed with Priority/Capitol/EMI Records in 2002, where he released Paid tha Cost to Be da Boss. He then signed with Geffen Records in 2004 for his next three albums R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta): The Masterpiece, Tha Blue Carpet Treatment, and Ego Trippin’. Malice ‘n Wonderland (2009), and Doggumentary (2011), were released on Priority. Snoop Dogg has starred in motion pictures and hosted several television shows, including Doggy Fizzle Televizzle, Snoop Dogg’s Father Hood, and Dogg After Dark. He also coaches a youth football league and high school football team. In September 2009, Snoop was hired by EMI as the chairman of a reactivated Priority Records.

In 2012, after a trip to Jamaica, Snoop announced a conversion to the Rastafari movement and a new alias, Snoop Lion. Under the new moniker, he released a reggae album, Reincarnated, and a documentary film of the same name, of his Jamaican experience, in early 2013. His fourteenth solo studio album, Coolaid, was released in July 2016. Snoop holds the dubious distinction of having 17 Grammy nominations without a win. In March 2016, the night before WrestleMania 32 in Arlington, Texas, Snoop was inducted into the celebrity wing of the WWE Hall of Fame, having made several appearances for the company, including as Master of Ceremonies during a match at WrestleMania XXIV

Snoop’s debut album, Doggystyle, was released in 1993 under Death Row Records, debuting at number one on both the Billboard 200 and Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. Selling almost a million copies in the first week of its release, Doggystyle became certified 4× platinum in 1994 and spawned several hit singles, including “What’s My Name?” and “Gin & Juice”. In 1994, Snoop released a soundtrack on Death Row Records for the short film Murder Was The Case, starring himself. His second album Tha Doggfather (1996), also debuted at number one on both charts with “Snoop’s Upside Ya Head”, as the lead single. The album was certified double platinum in 1997.

After leaving Death Row, Snoop signed with No Limit Records, where he recorded his next three albums. Da Game Is to Be Sold, Not to Be Told (1998), No Limit Top Dogg (1999), and Tha Last Meal (2000). Snoop then signed with Priority/Capitol/EMI Records in 2002, where he released Paid tha Cost to Be da Boss. He then signed with Geffen Records in 2004 for his next three albums R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta): The Masterpiece, Tha Blue Carpet Treatment, and Ego Trippin’. Malice ‘n Wonderland (2009) and Doggumentary (2011), were released on Priority. Snoop Dogg has starred in motion pictures and hosted several television shows including, Doggy Fizzle Televizzle, Snoop Dogg’s Father Hood and Dogg After Dark. He also coaches a youth football league and high school football team. In September 2009, Snoop was hired by EMI as the chairman of a reactivated Priority Records.

Snoop Dogg was born in Long Beach, California, the second of three sons. He was named Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. after his stepfather, Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Sr. (December 10, 1948 – November 9, 1985, Los Angeles). His mother is Beverly Broadus (née Tate; born April 27, 1951, McComb, Mississippi). His father, Vernall Varnado (born December 13, 1949, Magnolia, Mississippi), was a Vietnam veteran, singer, and mail carrier who was said to be frequently absent from his life. As a boy, his parents nicknamed him “Snoopy” because of his appearance, but they usually addressed him as Calvin at home. His mother and stepfather divorced in 1975.

When he was very young, Broadus began singing and playing piano at the Golgotha Trinity Baptist Church. In sixth grade, he began rapping. He attended Long Beach Polytechnic High School as a member of the class of 1989.

As a teenager, Snoop Dogg frequently ran into trouble with the law. He was a member of the Rollin’ 20 Crips gang in the Eastside of Long Beach, although he stated in 1993 that he never joined a gang. Shortly after graduating from high school, he was arrested for possession of cocaine, and for the following three years, was frequently in and out of prison (including Wayside Jail). Snoop, along with his cousins Nate Dogg and Lil’ ½ Dead, and friend Warren G, recorded homemade tapes as a group called 213, named after the Long Beach area code at the time. One of his early solo freestyles over En Vogue’s “Hold On” had made it to a mixtape which was heard by influential producer Dr. Dre, who phoned to invite him to an audition. Former N.W.A member The D.O.C. taught him how to structure his lyrics and separate the thematics into verses, hooks and chorus.

Broadus has been an active entrepreneur and investor. In 2009, he was appointed creative chairman of Priority Records.

In April 2015, Broadus became a minority investor in his first investment venture Eaze, a California-based weed delivery startup that promises to deliver medical marijuana to persons doorstep in less than 10 minutes.

In October 2015, Broadus launched his new digital media business, Merry Jane, that focuses on news about marijuana. “Merry Jane is cannabis 2.0,” he said in a promotional video for the media source. “A crossroads of pot culture, business, politics, health.”

In November 2015, Broadus announced his new brand of cannabis products Leafs By Snoop. The line of branded products includes marijuana flowers, concentrates and edibles. “Leafs By Snoop is truly the first mainstream cannabis brand in the world and proud to be a pioneer,” Snoop Dogg said. “LBS is blazing a trail for the industry.” In such a way, Broadus became the first major celebrity to brand and market a line of legal marijuana products.

Broadus and his brand manager Nick Adler released an app, Snoopify that lets users plaster stickers of Snoop’s face, joints or a walrus hat on photos. Adler built the app in May after discovering stickers in Japan. The app currently generates $30,000 in weekly sales.

On March 30, 2016, Broadus was reported to purchase the famed soul food restaurant chain Roscoe’s House of Chicken and Waffles out of bankruptcy.

FemCon 2018

On October 20, 2018 FemCon was held at the Watson Hotel in New York City. For those of you that don’t know what it is, FemCon is the Female Empowerment Music Conference. It is a convention held annually for women in the hip hop industry. The event was organized by none other than D.J. Tariq. He is the founder of the F.A.M.E. Academy and has made a substantial contribution to the hip hop culture. This was my first time attending the event and I was in awe. The event was hosted by Ms. Lissa who brought her awesome personality to the convention and kept the crowd entertained. The D.J. for the evening was the legendary D.J Jazzy Joyce. She kept the crowd moving with a dope selection of the finest hip hop instrumentals. During the conference there were two panels that gave insight to the attendees about how to be successful in the industry. There were a variety of people on the panel including a marketing agent, an entertainment lawyer, an author, and a public relations person. On the second panel was the infamous Ma Barker who slayed on the billboard charts for several weeks while being an independent artist as well as a member of the hip hop group The Five Deadly Venom. Some tips given to those looking to come into the industry was to never sign anything without running it passed an entertainment lawyer. Another awesome tip was to not release music or perform in front of people to avoid them stealing your music or copying your style. The class roared with laughter when it was suggested to never send any music to Quincy Jones. This was an awesome night with plenty of networking opportunities and some really cool vendors selling everything from Michelle Obama hand bags to books. Everyone who ever thought about being involved in the entertainment industry would benefit from attending FemCon.

Written by Regina Alston

Birds of a Feather 2

Over the weekend, Grammy Award-Winning producer Zaytoven held a private screening at IMI Studio in NYC for his new film, Birds of a Feather 2. Zaytoven stars as himself in the film opposite Kash Doll, who plays the widow of an old friend trying to extort Zaytoven. Legendary music executive Tom Silverman was in attendance as well as upcoming artist, Young Prophit.

While at the screening, Zaytoven spoke about his venture into the business side of music by recently joining the Creators Advisory Board for Tracklib, the world’s first and only online crate-digging and music sample clearance service.

“I am where I am today because somebody opened up their studio to me and gave me the opportunity to play around with instruments, to create,” said Zaytoven. “I’m blessed to be given the chance to pay it forward through a platform like Tracklib, which is giving aspiring musicians and producers the chance to experiment with different samples and define their sound.”

Zaytoven has joined Erick Sermon, Prince Paul, and Drumma Boy as a leading advocate for Tracklib’s one-of-a-kind system for searching full tracks by popular artists, sampling them, and then licensing the resulting songs in only minutes.

Birds of a Feather II is scheduled to be released on October 31st this year. The must see movie is starring Atlanta’s very own hip hop sensation Zaytoven. Al Nuke is a director, actor, producer and writer with a style that embraces the best of hip hop culture. He brought Birds of a Feather to Netflix in 2012. In the movie rapper/actor Zaytoven talks about the music industry. It’s real! This movie is what the streets need. It is the perfect combination of drama, suspense and life lessons. Nuke has captured the essence of the independent film making. The movie feature a slew of hip hop artist from Atlanta and New York. You can catch Birds of a Feather II streaming on Amazon Prime and all other major streaming outlets. We rate this movie five stars. You will not be disappointed.

Written by Regina Alston.

Keyshia Cole

Keyshia Cole (born October 15, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, businesswoman and television personality. She was born in Oakland, California, and her career began when she met MC Hammer at the age of twelve and later met rapper Tupac Shakur. At the age of eighteen she moved to Los Angeles and was later introduced to A&M Records. She released her debut album, The Way It Is (2005), which spawned five singles: “Never”, “I Changed My Mind”, “(I Just Want It) To Be Over”, “I Should Have Cheated”, and “Love”. It was certified gold within 17 weeks, and then platinum just eight weeks later. The album stayed on the charts for over a year, eventually selling over 1.6 million copies.

Cole released her second album Just Like You (2007), the album debuted and peaked at number two on the Billboard 200. It was nominated for Best Contemporary R&B Album at the 50th Grammy Awards. The album has been certified platinum in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America, and has sold 1.7 million copies in the U.S. A Different Me is Cole’s third album, released in 2008. The album debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 with first week sales of 322,000, the highest of Cole’s career. The album has been certified platinum by the RIAA.

Calling All Hearts is Cole’s fourth album, released on December 21, 2010 in the United States by Geffen Records. The album debuted and peaked at number nine on the Billboard 200, with first week sales of 129,000. The album has sold 400,000 copies in the U.S. as of November 2012. Cole’s fifth album Woman to Woman (2012) debuted at number ten on the Billboard 200, with first week sales of 96,000, lower than her last effort. The album has sold 329,000 copies in the U.S. as of September 2013. Cole’s sixth album Point of No Return (2014) was released on October 7, 2014, and had unsuccessful sales, selling less than 45,000 copies and being Cole’s lowest-selling album to date.

Besides music Cole has ventured into reality television, she signed to a record breaking reality/documentary series Keyshia Cole: The Way It Is which aired on BET from 2006 until 2008, giving viewers a closer look into Cole’s career and family life with her biological mother and sister. Her second reality show, Family First premiered on October 9, 2012. Her third reality show Keyshia Cole: All In premiered on February 24, 2015.

Keyshia Cole was born on October 15, 1981 in Oakland, California. She was born to Francine “Frankie” Lons and later adopted at age two by family friends Leon and Yvonne Cole, changing her last name to Cole. Along with her brother Sean (also known as Nutt-So), Cole was first introduced into the music industry at age twelve, when she met and recorded with MC Hammer. She later formed a friendship with Tupac Shakur, who promised to help her start her singing career, asking her to write a hook on his upcoming project, the night he died unexpectedly. Cole moved to Los Angeles at 18 to pursue a music career. During this time, Cole collaborated with artists from her native Bay Area, among them D’Wayne Wiggings of Tony Toni Tone and Messy Marv. In 2002, she was introduced to A&M Records A&R Ron Fair. After hearing an unfinished version of her single “Love”, which would eventually become her first platinum single, he signed her and began mentoring her.

Cole’s debut single, “Never”, featuring Eve, was released on March 23, 2004 to promote the soundtrack to the film Barbershop 2: Back in Business. The single failed to chart, but it eventually became the closing track on her debut album, The Way It Is. On November 9, 2004, Cole released her first single from The Way It Is entitled “I Changed My Mind” featuring Kanye West. The radio remix, featuring rapper Shyne reached #71 in the US. Her second single from the album, “(I Just Want It) To Be Over”, was released on April 5, 2005 and reached number one on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 (101). Cole completed her debut album in early 2005. In anticipation of her debut album, Cole and DJ Green Lantern released a mix tape entitled Team Invasion Presents Keyshia Cole in June 2005 featuring remixes of hip-hop instrumentals and snippets of songs from her album. It featured appearances by Remy Ma, Fat Joe, and Ghostface Killah. The Way It Is was released on June 21, 2005. It debuted at number six on the Billboard 200, selling 89,000 copies in the first week of release. It has since sold 1,600,000 copies, receiving a platinum certification from the RIAA. The third single from the album, “I Should Have Cheated” was released on August 3, 2005, and reached number thirty on the Hot 100. The fourth single, “Love was released on January 6, 2006 and reached nineteen on the Hot 100 and number three on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. It has been certified platinum by the RIAA and is regarded as Cole’s “breakthrough single”.

Cole began work on the second album in early 2006. She was featured on the single “Last Night” by Diddy from his album Press Play which also ended up being on her second LP. The recording of the album was documented on the second season of her reality TV show Keyshia Cole: The Way It Is. Cole released her second album, Just Like You on September 25, 2007. The album debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 281,000 copies in its first week. After four months of release, the album was certified platinum by the RIAA, just like her debut, and has gone to sell 1.7 million copies in the US alone. Preceded by the number one hit single “Let It Go” featuring Missy Elliott & Lil’ Kim, “Let It Go” has sold over one million copies in the U.S. and has been certified platinum by the RIAA. The second single “Shoulda Let You Go” featuring Amina Harris, fared well on charts peaking at number seven on the US R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. The album’s final single Heaven Sent, followed in the previous singles success. “Heaven Sent” is Cole’s third number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs from Just Like You. It peaked at number one for nine consecutive weeks. It charted on the U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs chart for 55 weeks. On the Billboard Hot 100, it has peaked at number 28. The album’s third single ‘I Remember,’ reached number one on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and peaked at number 24 on the Billboard Hot 100. Cole received a variety of nominations for the album including four Grammys, Best Contemporary R&B Album, and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration at the 2008 Grammy Awards and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B Song at the 2009 Grammy Awards.

Cole was also featured on Jahiem’s single “I’ve Changed”, from his album The Makings of a Man and Keith Sweat’s Love You Better, which was featured on his album Just Me and the soundtrack to Why Did I Get Married?. Additionally, Cole was scheduled to make a cameo on Missy Elliott’s upcoming album, Block Party. In early to mid-2008, Cole made several guest appearances on songs such as “I Got a Thang for You” with rapper Trina, “Boyfriend/Girlfriend” with Atlanta hip-hop group C-Side, and “Game’s Pain” with west-coast native The Game. The third season of Keyshia Cole: The Way It Is premiered in October 2008 on BET. The 10 episode season followed up the last season following Keyshia’s family and giving a look into her third studio album, A Different Me. The series concluded on December 16, 2008.

Cole released A Different Me on December 16, 2008. It debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200, selling 322,000 copies in its first week. The album has gone to sell over 1,020,000 copies in the US, and has received a platinum certification from the RIAA. The album was preceded by lead single “Playa Cardz Right”, with a post-humorous feature from Oakland-native and past mentor, Tupac Shakur. It was released on October 28, 2008 and reached #63 on the Hot 100. The second single from the album, “You Complete Me”, was released to radio in December 2008 and reached #62 on the Hot 100. Cole released the third and final single from the album, “Trust”, a duet with Monica, on May 5, 2009 and reached #5 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. To promote the album and single, Cole embarked on her very first headlining tour, A Different Me Tour in summer 2009. Throughout this time, Cole was featured as the cover artist on several magazines such as the March 2009 issue of Vibe, WordUp!, the Summer 2009 final double-cover issue of King, and the June issue of Sister 2 Sister with her mother Yvonne Cole. With more collaborations along the way with Keri Hilson on her debut LP R. Kelly’s single “Number One” along with T-Pain, and Gucci Mane on his on LP The State vs Radric Davis, she began work on her fourth studio album.

Three months after the birth of her son, on June 27, 2010, she returned to the music industry, filling in for Hayley Williams to sing the chorus to B.o.B’s “Airplanes (Part II)”, featuring Eminem during the 2010 BET Awards. Over a year after Cole announced the beginning production of her fourth studio album, she released her first single, “I Ain’t Thru”, featuring YMCMB (Young Money) rap star, Nicki Minaj, on October 15, 2010, her birthday. Although not a big hit on the charts and later revealed as a regret as a single choice by Cole, fans loved the single and viewed it as a great comeback along with credits. Her fourth studio album, Calling All Hearts was released on December 21, 2010, featuring collaborations from Timbaland, Nicki Minaj, Tank, and Faith Evans. It also featured Cole’s mother Dr. Yvonne Cole on a gospel track inspired by Faith as well. With opening sales of 128,000 copies, she released Imani Entertainment as her management, shortly after. She performed the promotional single, “Long Way Down” on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Wendy Williams Show, and 106 & Park, in which a 30-minute concert by her was performed. In February 2011, Cole released her second single from Calling All Hearts, “Take Me Away”, to urban radio as a fan choice. Cole performed the single on January 19, 2011 on Conan. The single’s video, directed by Taj Stansberry, premiered on VEVO on April 18, 2011 and was also released on 106 & Park later that day. The song has since then peaked on the Billboard US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs at #27.

On January 17, 2011, Cole tweeted “Would like for u guys to know that Manny Halley is no longer my management.” followed by “Someone said if the people around u won’t change, change the people around you.” This happened shortly after the decline of opening week sales of Cole’s album Calling All Hearts. She also disclosed that recent business disagreements also played part in their departure. This is Cole’s first album to be released without Halley, as he was with her at the beginning of her career.

Cole started development on her fifth studio album shortly after she came out with her fourth album (Calling All Hearts). Cole began production on the project working first with writers Ester Dean and Betty Wright. She also collaborated with producers Boi-1da, Cool & Dre, Bangladesh, J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, Toxic, Mave, and Earl Powell. This is her first project to be released without A&R Executive Ron Fair. Her fifth studio album, Woman to Woman was released on November 19, 2012. The album debuted at number ten on the Billboard 200 selling 96,000 copies in its first week in the United States, becoming Cole’s fifth consecutive top ten album. In its second week, the album rose to number three, where it sold 37,100 copies. In its third week, the album fell two spots to number five, selling 28,600 copies. The lead single from Woman to Woman , “Enough of No Love”, featuring YMCMB rapper and past collaborator, Lil Wayne was sent to radio and released for digital download on July 3, 2012. The song was written by Redd Stylez and Cole, and was produced by Harmony with a mid-tempo R&B production. It peaked at number seven on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Chart. On August 9, 2012, the song debuted at number 94 on the Billboard Hot 100 where it ultimately peaked at number 84. The second single, “Trust and Believe” was released for digital download on October 22, 2012 and again on November 13, 2012. On October 24, it was ranked the number one added song to Urban radio of the week. “I Choose You” was released as the third single during August 2013. Cole embarked on her third headlining concert tour, in support of her fifth studio album, Woman to Woman. Visiting North America and Europe the tour will have 27 total dates. Singer Chrisette Michele was the supporting act for the North American leg.

In September 2013, Cole returned to the studio and began recording her sixth studio album. On October 2, 2013 it was confirmed that Keyshia Cole & her former manager Manny Halley had resolved their differences & Halley is currently managing Keyshia Cole again. The lead single from Cole’s sixth studio album, “Next Time (Won’t Give My Heart Away)” was released as a digital download, on March 31, 2014, and officially impacted U.S. Rhyhtmic radio on April 1, 2014. In March 2014, Cole revealed the title of her sixth studio album to be Point of No Return. “Rick James”, featuring rapper Juicy J, was released alongside “Next Time (Won’t Give My Heart Away)” as a digital download in March 2014, while “She” followed as the third single from the album on July 8, 2014. The album was released on October 7, 2014.

In February 2015, Cole revealed to Rap-Up TV that following the release of Point of No Return, she was contractually free from Interscope and was intending on moving forward as an independent recording artist. She also confirmed work on her seventh studio album, confirming she was ten tracks in, stating: “I don’t know which direction I wanna go in. I don’t know if I want it to be more fun, I don’t know if I want it to be more heartfelt or if I want it upbeat, medium to slow. I’m just recording and recording and recording.”

In July 2006, Cole premiered her 6 episode docu-series, titled Keyshia Cole: The Way It Is, on BET. With record breaking views, the show viewed Cole’s life as an artist, daughter, and sister, performing, visiting her home town, and starting production on her next album.

In mid-July 2011, Cole tweeted that she, her husband Daniel, and James DeBose will be launching a new reality TV show, entitled “Keyshia & Daniel: Family First”. Shooting of the show began during the Summer of 2011. During the 8 episode docu-series, Cole will be crafting her follow up to Calling All Hearts. “I just kind of lay out all my emotions then we start from there” says Cole. “I usually work with big name producers and stuff like once all from my heart and soul is out that I need to get out.” Aside from a look into the making of her new album, currently titled Woman to Woman, Cole and her husband, Daniel, re-wed during taping. The first episode of the show aired on BET on October 9, 2012 with 2.9 million viewers. In November 2014, BET confirmed that Keyshia Cole is back with her third reality TV show Keyshia Cole: All In; which was originally slated to premiere during Fall 2014, but aired on February 24, 2015, just in time for her 7th studio album.

Cole announced that she was teaming up with fashion designer Steve Madden to create her own shoe collection, specifically high heels, wedges, and boots. “I am super excited to collaborate with Steve Madden.”, stated Cole. “It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a long time. I love his style and I think we came up with an amazing vibrant collection. We have something for every fashion diva!”

Cole grew up listening to mentor Tupac Shakur. Cole cites Mary J. Blige as one of her biggest musical inspirations, she also cites R&B singers Brandy and Monica. In an interview, Cole spoke about artists from the 1980s that influenced her. “Anita Baker, her voice is incredible and her lyrics are deep. Really listen to them.” Cole proclaims. “Big Daddy Kane, the original… you can’t think Brooklyn or door knockers and not think Big Daddy Kane, smooth operator: One of hip-hop’s pioneers. LL Cool J, one of the first Mc’s to really dissect lyrics and turn them inside out; and he made it sexy! MC Lyte, The female MC that rhymes in such a way that you don’t care if she was male or female…her voice tone is crazy, and her lyrical game bananas.Queen Latifah, She represented the strong female MC, she showed us and taught us about flow and lyrical dexterity. Kid ‘n Play, They showed you how to take your rap game to the next level…movies!”

In May 2009, Cole began dating former NBA player Daniel Gibson. They were engaged on January 1, 2010. On March 2, 2010, they welcomed their first child, Daniel Hiram Gibson, Jr. (DJ), into the world. They wed on May 21, 2011 and renewed their vows in September 2011 in Hawaii. “My husband wanted me to have my dream wedding so he flew all of our family members here. He’s giving me something I will never forget! Amazing,” Cole said. The entire wedding weekend was filmed and aired on their new BET reality TV series Keyshia and Daniel: Family First, on October 9 and 16, 2012. On March 21, 2014 during an interview Keyshia Cole announced and confirmed that she and Gibson had broken up, but they have not yet filed for divorce. As of April 2017, Cole has announced that she and Gibson are divorcing.

In May 2016, she met her biological father, Virgil Hunter, who is a well known boxing trainer.

Bruno Mars

Peter Gene Hernandez (born October 8, 1985), professionally known by his stage name Bruno Mars, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, voice actor and choreographer. Born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii by a family of musicians, Mars began making music at a young age and performed in various musical venues in his hometown throughout his childhood. He graduated from high school and moved to Los Angeles to pursue a musical career. Mars produced songs for other artists, co-founding the production team The Smeezingtons.

Mars had an unsuccessful stint with Motown Records, but then signed with Atlantic in 2009. He became recognized as a solo artist after lending his vocals to the songs “Nothin’ on You” by B.o.B, and “Billionaire” by Travie McCoy, which were worldwide successes, and for which he co-wrote the hooks. His debut studio album, Doo-Wops & Hooligans (2010), was anchored by the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart-topping singles “Just the Way You Are” and “Grenade”, as well as the number-five single “The Lazy Song”. His second album, Unorthodox Jukebox, was released in 2012, peaked at number one in the United States. The album spawned the international singles “Locked Out of Heaven”, “When I Was Your Man” and “Treasure”.

Mars has received many awards and nominations, including two Grammy Awards and was named one of Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world, in 2011. In December 2013, he was named “Artist of the Year” by Billboard and ranked number one on the Forbes 30 under 30 list. Throughout his singing career, he has sold over 100 million singles and albums, making him one of the world’s best-selling artists of all time. However, as a performer, writer and producer his total sales surpass 130 million singles. Five of his singles are counted among the best-selling singles of all time. Mars is now regarded as one of the most successful solo artists in the world, landing 5 number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100 since his career launched in 2010, faster than any male singer since Elvis Presley. In total, he has had six number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100.

Mars is known for his stage performances and retro showmanship. He is accompanied by his band, The Hooligans, which besides playing a variety of instruments such as electric guitar, bass, piano, keyboards, drums and horns, also serves as dancers and background singers. On stage, Mars is able to sing, dance and play a wild range of musical styles, including R&B, reggae, soul and funk music.

Bruno Mars was born Peter Gene Hernandez on October 8, 1985, in Honolulu, Hawaii, and was raised in the Waikiki neighborhood of Honolulu. He is the son of Peter Hernandez and Bernadette “Bernie” San Pedro Bayot (b. August 14, 1957, Manila, d. June 1, 2013, Honolulu). His father is of half Puerto Rican and half Ashkenazi Jewish descent, and is originally from Brooklyn, New York. Mars’ mother emigrated to Hawaii from the Philippines as a child, and was of Filipino descent. His parents met while performing in a show, where his mother was a hula dancer and his father played percussion. At the age of two, he was nicknamed “Bruno” by his father, because of his resemblance to professional wrestler Bruno Sammartino.

Mars is one of six children and came from a musical family who exposed him to a diverse mix of reggae, rock, hip hop, and R&B. In addition to being a dancer, his mother was a singer and his father used his musical ability to perform Little Richard rock and roll music. Mars’ uncle was an Elvis impersonator, and encouraged three-year-old Mars to perform on stage as well. Mars also performed songs by artists such as Michael Jackson, The Isley Brothers, and The Temptations. At age four, Mars began performing five days a week with his family’s band, The Love Notes, in which he became known on the island for his impersonation of Presley. In 1990, Mars was featured in MidWeek as “Little Elvis”, going on to have a cameo in the film Honeymoon in Vegas in 1992.

His time spent impersonating Presley had a major impact on Mars’ musical evolution and performing techniques. He later began playing guitar after drawing inspiration from Jimi Hendrix. In 2010, he also acknowledged his Hawaiian roots and musical family as an influence, explaining, “Growing up in Hawaii made me the man I am. I used to do a lot of shows in Hawaii with my father’s band. Everybody in my family sings, everyone plays instruments…I’ve just been surrounded by it.” When he attended at President Theodore Roosevelt High School he performed in a group called The School Boys. In 2003, shortly after graduating from President Theodore Roosevelt High School at the age of 17, Mars moved to Los Angeles, California, to pursue a musical career. He adopted his stage name from the nickname his father gave him, adding “Mars” at the end because “I felt like I didn’t have [any] pizzazz, and a lot of girls say I’m out of this world, so I was like I guess I’m from Mars.”

Shortly after moving to Los Angeles, Mars signed to Motown Records in 2004, in a deal that “went nowhere” and a conversation with Will.i.am’s management which turned out fruitless. However, Mars’ experience with Motown proved to be beneficial to his career when he met songwriter and producer Philip Lawrence, who was also signed to the label. After Mars was dropped by Universal Motown, less than a year of being signed, he stayed in Los Angeles and landed a music publishing deal in 2005 with Steve Lindsey and Cameron Strang at Westside Independent.

During Mars’ career beginnings, Lindsey, who showed Jeff Bhasker and Mars the ins and outs of writing pop music, acted as a mentor to Mars and helped him to hone his craft. Bhasker, who had met Mars through Mike Lynn (the A&R at Dr Dre’s Aftermath Entertainment who first heard Mars’ demo tape through his sister and flew him to LA), explained: “He’d mentor us, and kind of give us lectures as to what a hit pop song is, because you can have talent and music ability, but understanding what makes a hit pop song is a whole other discipline.” Steve Lindsey was responsible for “[holding] Bruno Mars back for five years while they learned an extensive catalog of hit music.” Meanwhile, Mars played cover songs in a band, around Los Angeles, with Bhasker and Eric Hernandez, Mars’ brother, who is now the drummer of “The Hooligans”.

When Lawrence was first told he should meet Mars he was reluctant to do so, since he didn’t even have money for bus fare. Keith Harris, drummer for The Black Eyed Peas, told him, “Whatever it costs you to get out here, I’ll reimburse you.” Lawrence responded, “Just give me five dollars back for the bus.” The pair began collaborating, writing songs for Mars, but they received many rejections from labels. On the verge of giving up, they received a call from Brandon Creed, then seeking songs for a reunited Menudo. He liked their song “Lost”, which was written for Mars. The duo didn’t want to give the song away, but when they were offered $20,000 for the song they agreed. The sale of this song allowed them to continue working, and Mars and Lawrence decided that they would write and produce songs together for other artists.

In 2006, Lawrence introduced Mars to his future A&R manager at Atlantic Records, Aaron Bay-Schuck. After hearing him play a couple of songs on the guitar, Bay-Schuck wanted to sign him immediately, but it took about three years for Atlantic records to finally sign Mars to the label, because Atlantic felt that it was too early and that Mars still needed development as an artist.

Before becoming a successful solo artist, Mars was an acknowledged music producer, writing songs for Alexandra Burke, Travie McCoy, Adam Levine, Brandy, Sean Kingston, and Flo Rida. He also co-wrote the Sugababes’ hit song “Get Sexy” and provided backing vocals on their album Sweet 7. His first musical appearance as a singer was in Far East Movement’s second studio album Animal, featured on the track “3D”. He was also featured on pastor and hip hop artist Jaeson Ma’s debut single “Love” in August 2009. He reached prominence as a solo artist after being featured on and co-writing B.o.B’s “Nothin’ on You” and Travie McCoy’s “Billionaire”; both songs peaked within the top ten of many charts worldwide.He spoken of them, “I think those songs weren’t meant to be full-sung songs. If I’d sung all of “Nothin’ on You”, it might’ve sounded like some ’90s R&B.” Following this success, Mars released his debut extended play (EP), titled It’s Better If You Don’t Understand, on May 11, 2010. The EP peaked at the 99th position on the Billboard 200 and produced one single, “The Other Side”, featuring singers Cee Lo Green and B.o.B. Mars collaborated with Green once more in August 2010 by co-writing his single “Fuck You”.

After serving as guest vocalist on B.o.B’s and Travies McCoy’s singles, Mars released “Just the Way You Are” on July 19, 2010. The song was the lead single from his debut studio album, Doo-Wops & Hooligans, and reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in September as well as several other charts worldwide. The song holds the record of the longest-reigning debut format, spending twenty weeks atop Adult Contemporary. He also released two digital singles—”Liquor Store Blues” featuring Damian Marley and “Grenade” to promote the album, before confirming “Grenade” as the album’s second single, in September 28, 2010. “Grenade” reached number one on Billboard in December and has also seen successful international chart performance.Released digitally on October 4 and physically on October 5, 2010, the album debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, selling 55,000 copies. It received generally positive reviews from music critics, and has since sold six million copies globally. In February 2012, “The Lazy Song” was released as the album’s third single. It became the album’s third consecutive top five on the Hot 100, peaking on number four on October 23, 2010.

“Marry You” followed as the fourth single from Doo-Wops & Hooligans on August 22, 2011. Although it wasn’t released as a single in the United States, it peaked at number 85 on the Hot 100 on January 15, 2011 due to strong digital sales, since then it has sold 2,2 million digital copies. In November, “Count On Me” was released as the album’s fifth single in Australia and New Zealand. Additionally, it was announced on Mars’ website, he recorded and co-wrote a new song titled “It Will Rain” for The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. The song was released for purchase via iTunes on September 27, 2011. It peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100. During this period, he appeared on a number of collaborative singles, including “Lighters”, a duet with Bad Meets Evil released on July 5, 2011. “Mirror”, released on September 13, 2011, with Lil Wayne and “Young, Wild & Free” with Wiz Khalifa and Snoop Dogg, from the Mac & Devin Go to High School soundtrack, was available for purchase on October 11, 2011. The songs peaked at number four, sixteen and seven at the Billboard Hot 100, respectively.

On September 19, 2010, Mars was arrested in Las Vegas at the Hard Rock Casino for possession of cocaine. When talking to a police officer, Mars reportedly declared that what he did was “foolish” and that “he has never used drugs before”. Mars pled guilty to felony drug possession, and in return for his plea, he was told that the charges would be erased from his criminal record as long as he stayed out of trouble for a year, paid a $2,000 fine, did 200 hours of community service and completed a drug counseling course. Nevertheless, during a cover story for GQ magazine in 2013, Mars said “I was young, man! I was in f—ing Vegas…I wasn’t thinking”, he further added “I was given a number one record and I’m out doing dumb sh–“. Mars confessed that he lied to the authorities about having done cocaine before, saying “I don’t know where that came from”, adding “I was really intoxicated. I was really drunk. So a lot of that is a big blur, and I try every day to forget and keep pushing.”

He opened for Maroon 5 on the fall leg of the Hands All Over Tour starting October 6, 2010 and co-headlined with McCoy on a European tour starting October 18, 2010. From November 16, 2010, to January 28, 2012, Mars embarked on the The Doo-Wops & Hooligans Tour in support of Doo-Wops & Hooligans, after turning down multiple offers to open for famous pop artists on arena tours, since the goal was to build a fan base by performing gigs at smaller, more intimate venues.

On February 13, 2011, Mars won his first Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, having received six nominations; Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for “Nothin’ on You”, Record of the Year for “Nothin’ on You” and “Fuck You”, Song of the Year for “Fuck You”, and Producer of the Year, Non-Classical at the 53rd Grammy Awards. At the 54th Grammy Awards, Mars was nominated in six different categories; Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album for Doo-Wops & Hooligans, Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance for “Grenade”, and Producer of the Year, Non-Classical. However, Adele won all the categories he was nominated and ended up by losing to Paul Epworth for Producer of the Year.

On March 22, 2012, it was announced that Mars had signed a worldwide publishing deal with BMG Chrysalis US. In September 2012, when interviewed by Billboard, Mars stated that the album would be more musically varied and refused to “pick a lane”, adding “I listen to a lot of music, and I want to have the freedom and luxury to walk into a studio and say, ‘Today I want to do a hip-hop, R&B, soul or rock record.'” He announced the album title Unorthodox Jukebox along with the ten songs which would make the final cut of the album and the title of the first single, “Locked out of Heaven”, which was released on October 1, 2012. The lead single from Unorthodox Jukebox reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and Canada and charted in the top ten in several countries worldwide.

Unorthodox Jukebox was released on December 11, 2012, and debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 with sales of 192,000. The album eventually peaked at number one on the Billboard 200, almost three months after its release. The album also charted number one in Switzerland and in United Kingdom, becoming the fastest selling album by a solo artist in 2012 in the UK. “When I Was Your Man”, was released as the second single from Unorthodox Jukebox on January 15, 2013, and peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, making Elvis Presley the only male who has reached five number one singles on the Hot 100 more quickly than Mars, and reached the top ten of fifteen countries. The third single “Treasure” peaked at number 5 in the United States and had less commercial success worldwide than the previous two. On May 24, 2013, Major Lazer released “Bubble Butt” as the fourth single from their album Free the Universe which featured Tyga, Mystic and Mars on the vocals, becoming Major Lazer’s most successful single to date in the US. In late 2013, “Gorilla” and “Young Girls” followed as the album’s fourth and fifth singles, and reached the top 35 on the Hot 100.

Mars began his second headlining tour, The Moonshine Jungle Tour, on June 22, 2013. It started in North America, and continued through Europe and Oceania, before concluding it in North America on October 18, 2014, as part of the eight shows at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas to perform between December 2013 and October 2014. On September 8, 2013, NFL announced that Mars would headline the performance at the Super Bowl XLVIII halftime show on February 2, 2014. During the performance he was joined by Red Hot Chili Peppers as a musical guest on the platform. It was the first Super Bowl halftime headlined by a performer under 30 and of Puerto Rican descent. The show is now the second most watched halftime show in the history of the Super Bowl, drawing a record rating of 115.3 million viewers, only surpassed by Katy Perry’s Halftime Show, who had 3.2 million more viewers.

At the 56th Grammy Awards, Mars won the award of Best Pop Vocal Album for Unorthodox Jukebox and his single “Locked out of Heaven” was nominated for Record of the Year and Song of the Year, while “When I Was Your Man” earned a nomination for Best Pop Solo Performance. Aside from his music career, Mars reprised his role as Roberto in Rio 2, which was released in theaters on March 20, 2014. Like its predecessor, Rio 2 was a financial success and panned by critics. In October 2014, Mark Ronson announced that he would release a new single on November 10, 2014, titled “Uptown Funk”, featuring Mars’ vocals. The song was a commercial success reaching number one in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and Billboard Hot 100 along with several other countries. According to Billboard Mars was the twelfth richest musician of 2013, with earnings of $18,839,681. In December 2013, he was named “Artist of the Year” by Billboard and ranked number one on the 2014 Forbes list “30 under 30”, a tally of the brightest stars in 15 different fields under the age of 30. In addition, he was thirteenth on the 2014 list for “The World’s Most Powerful Celebrities” with estimated earnings of $60 million.

After ending the Moonshine Jungle Tour, Mars began working on his third studio album. He wrote on his Facebook “Now it’s time to start writing chapter 3”. The artist hadn’t come up with a date for the release, stating “Until it’s done”, adding “It’s gotta be just as good if not better”. Previously, the singer-songwriter was interviewed by that’s Shanghai and gave some details of the new album, confirming Mark Ronson and Jeff Bhasker as producers. He further added, “I want to write better songs, I want to put on better shows, I want to make better music videos. I want my next album to be better than the first and the second”, explaining the writing process of his songs “I don’t sit down and think, ‘I’m going to write a song’, Inspiration hits me always unexpectedly: on a plane, when I’m out or just before I go to bed. An idea will suddenly come to my mind, and sometimes I manage to turn it into lyrics the next day. Sometimes it’ll take me one year to get something real out of it. You can’t force creativeness”. Ronson, in an interview granted to Digital Spy, confessed he and Mars haven’t reunited in the studio since working on “Uptown Funk”.

After ending the Moonshine Jungle Tour, Mars began working on his third studio album, 24K Magic. He wrote on his Facebook page: “Now it’s time to start writing chapter 3”. The artist had not come up with a date for the release, stating: “Until it’s done … It’s gotta be just as good if not better”. On March 25, 2015, the singer-songwriter was interviewed by that’s Shanghai magazine and provided some details of the new album, confirming Mark Ronson and Jeff Bhasker as producers. He added: “I want to write better songs, I want to put on better shows, I want to make better music videos. I want my next album to be better than the first and the second”. In the same year, Mars was involved in the composition of “All I Ask”, a track from Adele’s third studio album, 25.

On December 2, 2015, it was announced that Coldplay would be headlining the Super Bowl 50 halftime show on February 7, 2016. Mars and Beyoncé were guest acts, tying with Justin Timberlake and Nelly for appearing twice on the Super Bowl halftime. They are only surpassed by Gloria Estefan, with three appearances. Nielsen ratings confirmed the halftime show was watched by 111.9 million viewers, becoming one of the most watched in its history. At the 2016 Grammy Awards, Ronson and Mars’ single, “Uptown Funk”, won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Solo Collaboration and Record of the Year. In the same year, the singer was in the studio with his band’s bass player Jamareo Artis, engineer Charles Moniz, singer-songwriter Andrew Wyatt and EDM DJ Skrillex. Moniz confirmed the album was close to being finished and Artis claimed it was set to be released in 2016. The album was to be issued in March, but Mars’ appearance at the Super Bowl halftime show led the release to be postponed several months. At that time seven songs were already recorded. On May, it was reported that Mars and his manager, Brendon Creed, had split after nine years working together, on the same month the singer starred in the second season of Jane the Virgin as a musical guest.

“24K Magic” was released as the lead single from 24K Magic on October 7, 2016. It was promoted with his performance on Saturday Night Live and peaked at number four in the United States. In addition, it reached the top spot in Belgium, France and New Zealand. On 17 November, CBS announced an interview segment on “60 Minutes”, presented by Lara Logan, in which Mars talked about his new album and humble roots. This was his first television appearance in four years and went for broadcast on 20 November, coinciding with the release of 24K Magic, on November 18, 2016. The album received positive reviews from critics and debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 chart. “That’s What I Like” was released as the second single on January 30, 2017 and reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. However, it was less successful in international markets than the previous single. “Versace on the Floor” was chosen as the third single from 24K Magic. The album version was issued to American radios, while a remix version with David Guetta was released internationally. It reached the top 35 of the Hot 100.

Mars’ third headlining tour, the 24K Magic World Tour, began in March 2017. On September 10, 2017, Us Weekly announced plans for a TV special by Mars at the Apollo Theater in New York. Later, on September 12, Mars confirmed that he would be starring in his first primetime TV special concert titled Bruno Mars: 24K Magic Live at the Apollo, a one-hour special, to be aired by CBS on November 29 2017. The show was produced by Fulwell 73 Productions, alongside with Ben Winston and Mars as co-producers.

On February 26, 2014, it was announced that Mars had partnered with the Hawai’i Community Foundation and the GRAMMY Foundation to establish a GRAMMY Camp Scholarship Fund, in order to support the next generation of music makers with funds to provide financial assistance for qualified needs-based applicants from Hawaii. On September 27, 2017, Mars expanded his camp scholarship in order to include applicants from all over the United States. The singer established the partnership in honor of his mother.

Mars’ donated $100,000 (US) to the orphans of Bantay Bata, who were among the victims of Typhoon Haiyan, in order to raise the morale of those who lost their families and homes. Mars performed at the Make It Right gala, whose campaign goal is to “help build homes for people in need.” He also performed at the Robin Hood Foundation’s 2014 annual benefit in New York, whose goal is to “fight poverty in New York City by supporting more than 200 nonprofits with financial and technical assistance.” A day before a concert in the Philippines the singer donated $100,000 (US) to the “Typhoon Yolanda” survivors.

In 2017, Mars donated 1 million dollars from the show at the Palace in Auburn Hills, Michigan to help the victims of the Flint water crisis. The singer participated in the “Somos Una Voz” relief initiative, created by Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony, in order to help survivors of the Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico and Mexico’s 7.1 earthquake.

Bill Cosby Sentenced 3 to 10 years

Bill Cosby has been Sentenced to prison for 3 to 10 years. Was this justice? Some are saying no. Some are saying yes. Was the jury fair? Cosby 81 is legally blind and has health issues. Fans are saying yes he is guilty and should be on house arrest. Some say let him rot in jail and remain there.Cosby lawyers are filing for an appeal. What are your views? Place answers #streetlinevideo

Will Smith

Willard Carroll Smith Jr. (born September 25, 1968) is an American actor, producer, comedian, rapper and songwriter. In April 2007, Newsweek called him “the most powerful actor in Hollywood”. Smith has been nominated for five Golden Globe Awards and two Academy Awards, and has won four Grammy Awards.

In the late 1980s, Smith achieved modest fame as a rapper under the name The Fresh Prince. In 1990, his popularity increased dramatically when he starred in the NBC television series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, which ran for six seasons until 1996. After the series ended, Smith transitioned from television to film, and has gone on to star in numerous blockbuster films. He is the only actor to have eight consecutive films gross over $100 million in the domestic box office, eleven consecutive films gross over $150 million internationally, and eight consecutive films in which he starred, open at the number one spot in the domestic box office tally.

Smith has been ranked as the most bankable star worldwide by Forbes. As of 2014, 17 of the 21 films in which he has had leading roles have accumulated worldwide gross earnings of over $100 million each, five taking in over $500 million each in global box office receipts. As of 2016, his films have grossed $7.5 billion at the global box office. For his performances as boxer Muhammad Ali in Ali (2001) and stockbroker Chris Gardner in The Pursuit of Happyness (2006), Smith received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actor.

Smith was born on September 25, 1968 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Caroline (Bright), a Philadelphia school board administrator, and Willard Carroll Smith Sr., U.S. Air Force veteran and refrigeration engineer. He grew up in West Philadelphia’s Wynnefield neighborhood, and was raised Baptist. He has an elder sister named Pamela and two younger siblings, twins Harry and Ellen. Smith attended Our Lady of Lourdes, a private Catholic elementary school in Philadelphia. His parents separated when he was 13, but did not actually divorce until around 2000.

Smith attended Overbrook High School. While it has been widely reported that Smith turned down a scholarship to attend the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), he never applied to college because he “wanted to rap.” Smith says he was admitted to a “pre-engineering [summer] program” at MIT for high school students, but he did not attend. According to Smith, “My mother, who worked for the School Board of Philadelphia, had a friend who was the admissions officer at MIT. I had pretty high SAT scores and they needed black kids, so I probably could have gotten in. But I had no intention of going to college.

T.I.

Clifford Joseph Harris Jr. (born September 25, 1980), known professionally as T.I. and Tip (often stylized as TIP or T.I.P.), is an American rapper and actor from Atlanta, Georgia. Harris signed his first major-label record deal in 1999, with Arista subsidiary LaFace. In 2001, Harris formed the Southern hip hop group P$C, alongside his longtime friends and fellow Atlanta-based rappers. Upon being released from Arista, Harris signed to Atlantic and subsequently became the co-chief executive officer (CEO) of his own label imprint, Grand Hustle Records, which he launched in 2003. Harris is also perhaps best known as one of the artists who popularized the hip hop subgenre trap music, along with Young Jeezy and Gucci Mane.

Harris has released nine studio albums, with seven of them reaching the top five of the US Billboard 200 chart. Throughout his career, Harris has also released several highly successful singles, including “Bring Em Out”, “Whatever You Like”, “Live Your Life” (featuring Rihanna), “Dead and Gone” (featuring Justin Timberlake), “Ball” (featuring Lil Wayne) and “No Mediocre” (featuring Iggy Azalea). Harris began to gain major recognition in 2003, following his first high-profile feature, on fellow Atlanta-based rapper Bone Crusher’s hit single, “Never Scared”. Harris earned more prominence with the release of Trap Muzik (2003), which includes the Top 40 hits, “Rubber Band Man” and “Let’s Get Away”. The next year, Harris appeared on Destiny’s Child’s international hit, “Soldier”, alongside Lil Wayne. His subsequent albums, King and T.I. vs. T.I.P., generated high record sales and were supported by popular singles, such as “What You Know” and “Big Shit Poppin'”, respectively.

Harris’ sixth album, Paper Trail (2008), became his most successful project, with the album being certified gold for first-week sales of over 500,000 copies in the United States, additionally making it his third consecutive number one album. In 2013, Harris was featured on Robin Thicke’s hit single “Blurred Lines”, alongside Pharrell Williams, which peaked at number one on several major music charts. In November 2013, Harris announced that he had signed with Columbia Records, after his 10-year contract with Atlantic came to an end. He released his Columbia Records debut, Paperwork, in October 2014. In February 2016, Harris announced he signed a distribution deal with Roc Nation, to release his tenth album. Harris has won three Grammy Awards, namely Best Rap Solo Performance, Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration.

Harris has served two terms in county jail, twice for probation violations and a federal prison bid for a U.S. federal weapons charge. While serving 11 months in prison, he released his seventh studio album, No Mercy (2010). Harris has also had a successful acting career, starring in the films ATL, Takers, Get Hard, Identity Thief, and Ant-Man. He is also a published author, having written two novels Power & Beauty (2011) and Trouble & Triumph (2012), both of which were released to moderate success. Harris has also starred in the American reality television series T.I.’s Road to Redemption and T.I. & Tiny: The Family Hustle. In 2009, Billboard ranked him as the 27th Artist of the 2000s decade.

Kashif

Kashif Saleem, previously Michael Jones (December 26, 1956 – September 25, 2016), was an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, record producer, artist, composer, author, director and educator from New York City. Kashif first taught himself to play a $3 song flute at age seven and later the piano in the basement of his church. At age 15, Kashif joined B. T. Express and performed on stages around the world. He studied Islam and changed his name from Michael Jones to Kashif, which means discoverer and inventor. He crafted his own distinctive sound and later signed with Arista Records enjoying success as a solo artist.

Together with Stevie Wonder, he was considered a pioneer in urban music thanks to his specific synthesizer technology approach and the introduction of MIDI in his production.

Kashif was born Michael Jones on December 26, 1956, in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City. (Some media outlets have listed his year of birth as 1959.) His only connection to his birth family is his birth certificate, which indicates that his biological mother was incarcerated when he was four months old. He was immediately put in foster care. He was constantly abused physically and mentally by his foster parents, and at the age of six, he moved into a more stable foster home. His introduction to music came in the form of a $3.00 song flute when he was in elementary school. He was instantly hooked and insisted on playing his flute all throughout the school day. His teacher encouraged him and delivered on her promise that she would help to enroll him at a junior high school that had a great music program. That is where he first learned to play trumpet, piano, flute, saxophone, and tuba. By age 12, with the mentoring of his junior high school music teacher (Robert Wedlaw) he had mastered several musical instruments and began performing in some of New York’s finest night clubs (Copacabana (nightclub) and Lloyd Price’s Turntable).

In 1974, at the age of 17, Kashif was recruited as a keyboard player and vocalist to join the funk band B. T. Express, whose credits included the hits “Express” and “Do It (‘Til You’re Satisfied)”, among others. Seeking a more challenging musical assignment in 1978, Kashif exited B. T. Express and landed a job as a keyboardist for R&B musician Stephanie Mills.

In 1983, Kashif signed with Arista Records as a solo artist and continued with hits like “I Just Gotta Have You (Lover Turn Me On)”, “Stone Love”, “Help Yourself to My Love”, and the Grammy-nominated instrumental “The Mood”. In 1984, his second album, Send Me Your Love resulted in two Grammy nominations, “Edgartown Groove”, featuring Al Jarreau, and the instrumental “Call Me Tonight” along with the hits “Baby Don’t Break Your Baby’s Heart” and “Are You the Woman”. Introduced to Arista by Milton Allen, its artist development director in 1983, his self-titled debut album Kashif (1983) spawned the hits “I Just Gotta Have You (Lover Turn Me On)”, “Stone Love”, “Help Yourself to My Love”, and “Say Something Love”. With this release, Kashif was well received as an innovator in music, as R&B artists were only beginning to experiment with synthesizers and other electronic instruments. He is said to have been Arista Records’ attempt to respond to Warner Bros. Records’ Prince.

In 1981 Kashif wrote and produced the hit “I’m in Love” for Evelyn “Champagne” King, which was a shift in sound from King’s “Shame” to a minimalist becoming Kashif’s signature sound. The song revitalized King’s career and branded Kashif as one of the most sought-after producers of the day. Over the next ten years, he created hits including “So Fine” for Howard Johnson, “Love Come Down”, “Betcha She Don’t Love You”, and “Back to Love”, among many others.

His other albums include Send Me Your Love and Condition of the Heart. On the album Love Changes, Exposé provided background vocals. 1989’s Kashif included the cover of the Four Tops’ hit “Ain’t No Woman (Like the One I’ve Got)”, “Baby Don’t Break Your Baby’s Heart”, and “Are You the Woman”.

Kashif can be heard on releases by Kenny G, George Benson, Evelyn “Champagne” King, Johnny Kemp, Melba Moore, Dionne Warwick, Giorge Pettus, Stacy Lattisaw, Meli’sa Morgan, Exposé, The Wootens, Freda Payne, Whitney Houston, and others. His Grammy nominations are for the instrumentals “The Mood”, “Call Me Tonight”, “Edgartown Groove” featuring Al Jarreau.

In 1985, he received another Grammy nomination for another instrumental entitled “The Movie Song”. He also wrote and produced “Inside Love” for his musical idol, George Benson. It was during this time that he met and launched the career of then unknown Kenny G with “Hi How Ya Doin” and “Nighttime in Tribeca”.

In 1985, Kashif teamed up with then newcomer, Whitney Houston. The result was the hit “You Give Good Love”. Kashif also produced and was her duet partner on “Thinking About You”, a single track from Houston’s 17-million selling (30 million until current day) debut album. The album became the bestselling debut album by a female artist. Kashif also produced “Where You Are” on Houston’s second project, the result, a 15-million selling (25 million until current day) album entitled Whitney.

In 1987, he produced “Love Changes”, a chart topper in which Me’lisa Morgan was his duet partner and that name was taken from his bestselling album, which had the same name. The track also appears on Meli’sa Morgan’s album Good Love. Also contained on that album was another duet that yielded yet another international hit, the song “Reservations For Two” with Dionne Warwick. Between 1987 and 1989, Kashif continued to churn out the hits for Jermaine Jackson, The Stylistics, Melba Moore, George Benson, Stacy Lattisaw, and many others.

In 1996, with an invitation from the UCLA Extension program, Kashif created “Contemporary Record Production With Kashif”. He also wrote and self-published the book “Everything You’d Better Know About The Record Industry”; it has sold over 375,000 copies worldwide.

In 2000, Kashif produced the theme song for the Para-Olympics, and wrote and produced “Brooklyn Breezes” for R&B great Will Downing. He also co-produced along with George Duke the Duke Ellington Tribute CD for The Duke Ellington Foundation. On November 14, 2004, Kashif was inducted into the R&B Hall of Fame as a “Living Legend”. That year Janet Jackson’s hit “R&B Junkie” used a sample of “I’m in Love” written and produced by Kashif.

Growing up in the foster care system inspired Kashif to lend his time and energy to help find ways to improve the lives of the more than 518,000 young people who are in foster care every day in America. In 2006, he created and founded Team iCare Foundation and produced the very first Walk/Run for Foster Care at the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, California. The result was 247 individuals signed up to become foster parents. He also created the Mentorship Dinner Cruise for youth in foster care, an event where 200 youth went on a cruise in Marina Del Rey, California and were paired with 250 professionals in various industries for the purpose of creating mentoring relationships.

Kashif received community awards from the California State Senate, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Los Angeles Mayor, Antonio Villariagosa, all five Los Angeles County members of the Board of Supervisors, the Los Angeles County Children & Family Services and others. In 2006, Kashif founded Kashif University, which was located on the campus of Morningside High School in Inglewood California. It is an integrated education and arts training program for at-risk-youth ages 8–18.

Kashif also wrote, directed, and produced commercials and corporate films for Hyundai Motors America, Casey Family Programs, UPS, St. Joseph Health System, Patten Academy, and many others. He produced and directed a ten-part documentary series entitled “The History of R&B Music and Its Influence on World Culture” for worldwide distribution.

Kashif died of a massive heart attack on September 25, 2016.

Freda Payne

Freda Charcilia Payne (born September 19, 1942) is an American singer and actress. Payne is best known for career in music during the mid–1960s through the mid–1980s. Her most notable record is her 1970 hit single, “Band of Gold”. Payne was also an actress in musicals and film, as well as the host of a TV talk show. Payne is the older sister of Scherrie Payne, a former singer with the American vocal group The Supremes.

From Detroit, Michigan, she is the older sister of Scherrie Payne, the final lead singer in the Motown act The Supremes. Freda Charcilia Payne grew up listening to different jazz singers such as Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday, which helped her develop a taste for music. As a teenager, she attended the Institute of Musical Arts; she soon began singing radio commercial jingles and won many local TV and radio talent shows. Her voice caught the attention of Berry Gordy and Duke Ellington. However, her mother wanted her to finish school first. In 1963, she moved to New York City and worked with Quincy Jones, Pearl Bailey, Bill Cosby and others. During that same year, her debut album, After the Lights Go Down Low and Much More!!!, was released. Three years later, she released How Do You Say I Don’t Love You Anymore.

She also made occasional guest appearances on the “Merv Griffin” and “Johnny Carson” shows. She added theatrical credits to her repertoire; as an understudy with Leslie Uggams for the Broadway show Hallelujah Baby in 1967 and she appeared with the Equity Theatre in a production of Lost in the Stars. In 1969, Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Edward Holland, Jr., persuaded her to sign with them. During that same year, she released, “Unhooked Generation”. Shortly thereafter, songwriters Edythe Wayne and Ron Dunbar offered her a song entitled “Band of Gold”. Almost immediately, in early 1970, the song became an instant pop smash; it also gave Payne her first gold record. Other singles included “Deeper and Deeper”, “You Brought the Joy”, and the Vietnam protest song “Bring the Boys Home” (#12, 1971; her second gold record). Her other Invictus albums were Contact (1971), The Best of Freda Payne (1972, a compilation which included four new, unissued songs), and her last Invictus album Reaching Out (1973).

In 1973, being dissatisfied with her royalties (which were very low to begin with), she left Invictus and recorded albums for ABC/Dunhill and Capitol, but she never found the commercial success she had with Invictus. Payne was formerly married to singer Gregory Abbott in 1976, and had a son, Gregory Abbott, Jr. (born 1978). In 1981, she briefly hosted her own talk show “Today’s Black Woman” and also found work acting in different movies, Broadway, and other theatre productions throughout the eighties. She also had a relationship with Edmund Sylvers who had written and produced her 1982 single ‘In Motion.

Although she was concentrating more on acting by that time, she never gave up music; in 1982, she recorded a single entitled “In Motion” for the Sutra label in New York, and in 1986, she recorded a remake of her hit “Band of Gold” with Belinda Carlisle. In 1990, she recorded three songs for Ian Levine’s UK Motorcity label: another remake of “Band of Gold”, “Memories and Souvenirs”, and “Only Minutes Away”. In the mid-nineties, she released three albums for Dove Music: I Hate Barney (1995, a comedy album), An Evening With Freda Payne: Live, and her first (and only) Christmas album Christmas With Freda and Friends (both 1996). She also continued her acting career appearing in movies like Private Obsession (1995), Ragdoll (1999), The Nutty Professor II: The Klumps (2000), and Fire & Ice (made-for-TV, 2001). In early 2001, she released a new album (of jazz, pop, and R&B molded into one) called Come See About Me for the Volt label (the title track is a remake of the Supremes’ hit). In early 2003, she performed a show called “Love & Payne” with Darlene Love at Feinstein’s at the Regency in New York City and at the Cinegrill in the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles getting excellent reviews. During the early part of the 21st century, the following compilations of her music were released: Lost in Love (which includes nine of her post-Invictus recordings), Band of Gold: The Best of Freda Payne (both 2000), Unhooked Generation: The Complete Invictus Recordings (2001, the best compilation of her Invictus songs ever made), and The Best of Freda Payne: Ten Best Series (2002, another collection of her Invictus songs).

In 2009, she appeared on American Idol and sang “Band of Gold”. In 2010, Payne joined Kanye West, Jordin Sparks, Jennifer Hudson, Barbra Streisand and many more on We Are The World for Haiti Relief. In 2011 Payne recorded a duet, “Saving A Life”, with British pop star Sir Cliff Richard for inclusion on his “Soulicious” album. She also joined Richard on his “Soulicious” tour of the UK in October of the same year.