2012 April

Keshia Knight Pulliam (Rudy) CELEBRATES Her Birthday With Miguel And LeToya Luckett

April 9, 2012 By Madam Prezident Leave a Comment

Keshia Knight Pulliam turns 33 today. And she celebrated with LeToya Luckett and Miguel in Atlanta over the weekend. See the party pics inside….

Former “Cosby” kid Keshia Knight Pulliam, who recently starred on Tyler Perry‘s “House of Payne,” is extragrown now. She recently celebrated her 33rd birthday at Compound in Atlanta with good friends Miguel and LeToya Luckett.

Keshia wore an ice-skating inspired silver dress with mesh cutouts and multi-colored Louboutin booties.

She arrived with her cute little brother JP.

The birthday girl tweeted,

Thank u all for the birthday wishes! I have had an incredibly blessed 33 years & I am excited for all that’s in store for the next 33+ years.

R&B crooner Miguel showed up to give out birthday wishes.

Keshia’s BFF LeToya Luckett looks pretty too.

We all have a birthday pic like this…..looks like Keshia was feeling it!

Her other BFF, designer Danielle Premone, also chilled at the party. Fab times.

Pics: ATLPics.net

Filed Under: Black Celebrity Gossip, Black Gossip Tagged With: Atlanta, Cosby, Ice skating, Keshia, Keshia Knight Pulliam, Letoya Luckett, Tyler Perry, Tyler Perry's House of Payne

Lil Wayne Baby Mama Toya & Her Man MempHitz Has a New Wal-Mart Clothing Line

April 9, 2012 By Madam Prezident Leave a Comment

According to Theybf:

MempHitz, the rapper/producer husband of reality star Toya Wright, recently talked about his upcoming projects and expanding his brand with his music, a new clothing line at Wal-Mart and a reality show called “The Mistresses.” Yeah, the one we were all in shock was actually happening. Get the deets inside…..

Cutie MempHitz recently chatted with Its Only Entertainment where he confirmed that new reality show we previously posted about, ”The Mistresses,” a clothing line from both himself and his wife (who he romantically gushes about) at Wal-Mart, and he dished on his upcoming artists and how he plans to reach billionaire status. Here are the highlights:

IOE: You went through the whole process of interning, being the coffee boy and running errands that you didn’t want to do and didn’t go to school for, but you didn’t give up. What advice do you have for an intern who wishes to follow in your footsteps?

Memphitz: I would tell them that if its really what they want to do they will stick through whatever they got to stick through to get there. The way they do whatever job they’re doing is being watched everyday. How hard they go, how passionate they are about the smallest of things, it’s being seen. You’re being graded whether you know you’re being graded or not. You can’t go in there with this time frame in your head of how long its going to be before you should be popping. It varies, you just have to be willing to be humbled enough to stick in there to do what it takes until you get that opportunity. First, you have to know when that opportunity shows its face because all opportunities aren’t blatant opportunities. You have to do what you have to do and do what your told. You should always be sharpening your blades for when that opportunity comes for you to play something that you heard or play something that you think is hot. Nobody likes an intern that playing is music that nobody asked them to play. I would just be known for being around hotness because you have to know that one day if its meant for you its for you, that opportunity will show its face and you just need to be ready. Don’t rush it. Be ready for it when it knocks on your door.

IOE: Now lets talk about the married life. You are still a newlywed in a sense. How is married life working out with your busy schedule?

Memphitz: It’s pretty cool, I love being married. It focuses me. I’ve never been this focused. When I wasn’t married, I was focused but a certain percentage of my focus was on things that is not on my mind now like the girls and things that come with the business. But now that I’m married I’m just so focused. My wife knows how this business works already so it’s like she knows how my life works and she understands my life and she knows the things I’m encountered with at times. At the same time, she has my back and I love her for that. I wouldn’t trade her for the world. I really look at her as a blessing from God, like shes a gift to me and it’s something I cherish.

IOE: That’s so sweet! How do you both handle being in the spotlight?

Memphitz: We both know the entertainment business so we both know what it is. We both come from a background of entertainment whether directly or indirectly so when we get home we’re best friends. We’ve been friends since we met. She’ll go her way and I’ll go mine and we meet when we’re at home. We talk all the time.

IOE: You and Toya are great role models for other couples. How do you keep your marriage so strong and what advice you have for other couples?

Memphitz: Times aren’t always good in relationships because u can’t expect perfection- that just doesn’t exist on this planet. I would say just try to stay friends and stay dating. Dating is a big part of it. All the stuff I did before we were married, I try my best to do those tihings now. So every once and while try and do something that you used to do when you were dating. Try and stay dating even though its not dating anymore because you have taken it a little further, it’s still fun to date each other every once and a while. You’re going to have your ups and downs. That’s to be expected. Anyone who says they are always on the ups is a lie. That’s not real. Just keep dating. That’s all I can really tell you. If the two of you are really meant for each other it wont be so hard to keep dating

IOE: Aside from being an A&R and discovering new music talent, what are some of the other business ventures you are currently working on?

Memphitz: Right now, I have a reality show I’m working on called “The Mistresses”. That’s just one of many shows that I have that’s kind of attacking certain issues in life but at the same time there is a lesson to be caught inside of them. There’s a lesson to be caught in the string of shows I am about to do although it may be ugly in the beginning, there are lessons to be learned. My wife and I just did a deal with Ampro Hair products so that’s something we’ve been working on. Walmart just offered to put our clothing lines in their stores starting July 1st for the going back to school season. She’s working on her line and I am working on mine. Signing Key Swag to Interscope Records right now. I don’t want to put too much on myself, but im working towards a billion dollars. Like I always speak billions! I wouldn’t mind 1.5 billions dollars! I will get to the moon.

Check out the full interview over at IOE.

Filed Under: Black Celebrity Gossip, Black Gossip Tagged With: Dating, Interscope Records, MempHitz, Mistresses, Reality television, toya, Wal-Mart, walmart

Meet Childhood Rihanna

April 9, 2012 By Madam Prezident 1 Comment

She’s now one of the world’s sexiest pop stars – but Rihanna was once just an adorable little girl with pigtails.

This exclusive new childhood photo shows the star in a cute pink shirt aged about four with her younger brother Rorrey, who is aged about two in the photo.

Rihanna’s family album: The pop star aged four with her younger brother Rorrey outside their home in Bridgetown, Barbados

Happy snaps: Rihanna aged 13 and right, at a carnival in Barbados

Wild: Rihanna is now known for her raunchy image

The pair are standing outside their family home in Bridgetown, Barbados, with their parents Ronald Fenty and Monica Braithwaite sitting behind them, back in 1992.

Another unseen snap of a young Rihanna shows the S&M singer aged about nine, with her younger cousin Noelle. Noelle now frequently travels the globe with Rihanna while she tours.

Speaking about her memories of the young Rihanna, Noelle’s older sister, Nicola Alleyne, who used to babysit them both, said: ‘I just remember her curly hair and beautiful eyes. She was a really determined person.

‘When she set herself on something she would just do it. She’s stubborn and sticks to her guns She’s just a very likeable person. She’s very faithful to her old friends.

‘When I see how hard she works I’m amazed. I don’t have the stamina to work as hard as she does. She’s really down to earth and sweet.’

Nicola, who runs a clothes store in Bridgetown, added: ‘She used to come and help out her mother at her store selling clothes and she used to come and help sell with us when she was about 11 or 12.’

Another cousin Amanda Thompson, of Bridgetown, Barbados, added: ‘I used to platt her hair. I used to platt everyone’s hair in the family. Rihanna would never stay quite for 10 seconds. She was special then and she’s special now.’

BFFs: Rihanna, pictured here aged nine with her younger cousin Noella, who now travels the globe with the star on tour

Filed Under: Black Celebrity Gossip, Black Gossip Tagged With: Barbados, Bridgetown, Caribbean, Celebrity, chris brown, Government, Pop music, rihanna

No grand jury for George Zimmerman: What does it mean?

April 9, 2012 By Madam Prezident Leave a Comment

The Florida prosecutor investigating Trayvon Martin’s shooting death sets the nation abuzz by nixing a grand jury hearing the day before it was to convene

So much for trial by jury. Angela Corey, the Florida special prosecutor handling the Trayvon Martin case, had planned a grand jury hearing for Tuesday to decide whether to charge neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman in the shooting death of the unarmed 17-year-old. But on Monday, she changed her mind — just a day before the hearing. By doing so, Corey effectively crowned herself as the only person who will decide whether to charge Zimmerman, who claims he acted in self-defense. What impact will this have on the polarizing investigation? Here’s what you should know:

Why was the prosecutor allowed to skip the grand jury?
Only in the instance of first-degree murder cases does Florida law require that a grand jury decide whether charges should be filed. Corey has a reputation for avoiding grand juries unless she mustconvene one, and Martin’s shooting doesn’t qualify as a first-degree murder since it apparently wasn’t premeditated. The law simply doesn’t require a grand jury.

SEE MORE: George Zimmerman: What we know about Trayvon Martin’s killer

Is Zimmerman less likely to be charged now?
Many analysts believe Zimmerman is now more likely to be charged. Corey “may have feared that a grand jury would have refused to indict based on the evidence,” says Doug Mataconis at Outside the Beltway, “which would have been politically troublesome to say the least.” Indeed, I bet “she thinks she has enough evidence to bring charges without a grand jury indictment,” says Pat Cunningham at the Rockford Register Star. “Don’t be surprised if charges are brought before the end of the week.”

Where is Zimmerman now?
Zimmerman has been in hiding since Martin’s death became a national story. His Sanford, Fla., neighborhood, where the shooting took place, has become somewhat dangerous for Zimmerman thanks to protests demanding the 28-year-old’s arrest. Zimmerman has, however, said through his lawyers that if he is charged, he will turn himself in.

Filed Under: Black Celebrity Gossip, Black Gossip Tagged With: Angela Corey, Corey, Florida, Grand jury, Murder, Special prosecutor, Trayvon Martin, Zimmerman

Lamar Odom No Longer Playing for Dallas Mavericks

April 9, 2012 By Madam Prezident Leave a Comment

Credit: Christian Petersen/Getty Images

Where will Lamar Odom end up next?

The 32-year-old NBA player announced he will no longer be playing for the Dallas Mavericks Monday, despite joining the team just four months ago. “The Mavericks and I have mutually agreed that it’s in the best interest of both parties for me to step away from the team,” Odom told ESPN in a statement.

“I’m sorry that things didn’t work out better for both of us, but I wish the Mavs’ organization, my teammates and Dallas fans nothing but continued success in the defense of their championship.”

Wow!!!

Filed Under: Black Celebrity Gossip, Black Gossip Tagged With: Dallas Maverick, ESPN, lamar odom, Los Angeles Lakers, Mavericks, Mavs, National Basketball Association, nba

Grey’s Anatomy Shonda Rhimes Adopts 2nd Baby Girl

April 8, 2012 By Madam Prezident Leave a Comment

Television’s most sought-after writer and showrunner, Shonda Rhimes, has adopted a second daughter, reports US Weekly.

In 2002, the Black Women in Hollywood honoree adopted her first daughter, Harper. At the time, she revealed to Oprah that 9/11 changed her life and that she wanted to become a mother. “So I was sitting in the middle of nowhere, watching the whole thing unfold on CNN,” Rhimes recalls. “When I finally turned off the television, I thought, ‘Well, if the world’s going to end, what are all the things I’ve ever wanted to do?’ I went home and hired an adoption attorney.”

Tens years later, Rhimes felt the desire to bring home another bundle of joy. Rhimes confirmed that in February she adopted Emerson Pearl. “Emerson is incredibly mellow,” says the Scandal creator. “We’re just doing a lot of bonding right now. This is a happy time – I feel so lucky.”

Despite her crazy schedule and running three shows, Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice and now Scandal, Rhimes says her little family is enjoying this precious time together.

Filed Under: Black Athletes, Black Celebrity Gossip Tagged With: Adoption, CNN, greys anatomy, Hollywood, Private Practice, Rhimes, Scandal, Shonda Rhimes

Gay Mormon students at BYU come out in Web video

April 8, 2012 By Madam Prezident Leave a Comment

Students from a strict Mormon college that prohibits “homosexual behavior” have launched a Webvideo aimed at reassuring other gay and lesbian youth struggling with their faith and sexual orientation.

The video recently posted to YouTube by 22 Brigham Young University students is the first of its kind with ties to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which forbids gay sex and marriage. By posting the video, the students could face excommunication from the church and expulsion atBYU, where gay students are prohibited from touching or kissing.

The campaign is part of columnist Dan Savage’s “It Gets Better” project, which seeks to give voices and hope to bullied gay and lesbian teenagers. In the video, several BYU students confess that they considered suicide because they didn’t think they could be Mormon and gay.

“In our religion, there is a lot of misunderstanding and ugliness about homosexuality,” said Kendall Wilcox, a former BYU faculty member who produced the video and serves as an adviser to the school’s unofficial gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender support group. “We wanted to send this message that God loves you just as you are.”

The video has sent tremors through the Mormon community and represents the latest effort to reconcile the church’s conservative values with a growing acceptance toward gay relationships. The video estimates there are more than 1,800 LGBT students at BYU. It also notes that the school is consistently ranked as one of the most unfriendly campuses for those students in the nation.

A mere five years ago, BYU students weren’t allowed to discuss their sexual orientation without risking expulsion under the school’s strict honor code. A clarification in 2007 stressed that “one’s stated sexual orientation is not an Honor Code issue.”

In 2010, BYU lifted a ban on advocacy of homosexuality. That same year, students formed Understanding Same-Gender Attraction. The support group drew eight people to its first meeting. This semester more than 80 students have attended the weekly meetings on campus.

Gay students must still adhere to much stricter standards than their heterosexual classmates under the updated honor code. While premarital sex is off limits to all BYU students, straight couples are allowed to kiss and cuddle openly on campus. Gay students cannot.

The student support group is more conservative than many LGBT groups. Some members have embraced lifelong celibacy as a way to stay in the LDS church without violating its rules. One student leader is gay, but married to a woman.

Some students used the video to come out to their parents. One student recalled how she “died a little in the inside” every time she kissed a former boyfriend. “I thought eventually maybe it would be better if I died,” another student tells the camera.

BYU provides counseling to students grappling with depression, anxiety and other issues, spokeswoman Carri Jenkins said.

“Students who uphold the honor code are welcome as school members of the campus community,” she said.

Adam White, a sophomore featured in the video, said he struggled with his sexual orientation during his first year at BYU.

“It was a very dark time for me because I was just feeling so confused,” he said. “I mean, I was living in an all-male dorm, and just being in such close contact. Everything I had suppressed was coming at me.”

White took a year off of school to examine his feelings. When he returned last year, he came out on Facebook as gay.

White said he constantly thinks about transferring to a less conservative school, but hopes he can accomplish more for students like him by sharing his story.

“The ‘It Gets Better’ message is we can be open, this is not something we have to fix or change about ourselves,” White said. “This is something we can celebrate.”

The video initially drew nasty comments from some anti-Mormon and anti-gay groups. On campus, however, the reaction has largely been positive, Wilcox and White said.

Some gay activists are celebrating the video as the latest sign that the church is becoming more open to their community.

In the 1990s, LDS leaders openly fought same-sex marriage legislation nationwide and, in 2006, joined other religious denominations in asking Congress for a marriage amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Gay church members were often sent to rehabilitative therapy to “get fixed.”

But gay activists said they have made strides in recent years. A conference for LGBT Mormons was held in Salt Lake City last year and is scheduled to reconvene later this month in Washington, D.C. At the meeting, gay leaders plan to unveil an “It Gets Better” video featuring Mormon adults.

Joshua Behn, a gay activist and former BYU student who recently left the church, said he had doubts about the student video when he first heard of it.

“I was afraid it was going to be, ‘oh, you can deny your sexuality,’” he said. “But watching, they don’t make judgments about that. They are saying, ‘there are other people out there. You are not alone.’”

Randall Thacker, 39, said he “was completely closeted, completely ashamed” about his attraction to men when he graduated from BYU in 1997. A church leader sent him to therapy to change his sexual orientation.

“To see the video gives me so much incredible hope for the future,” said Thacker, a gay activist in Washington, D.C. “It seems like a miracle.”

Filed Under: Black Celebrity Gossip, Black Gossip Tagged With: Brigham Young University, BYU, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Dan Savage, Honor code, LGBT, Mormon, YouTube

NEW MUZIC: Kanye West, Big Sean, Pusha T & 2 Chainz “MERCY”

April 6, 2012 By Madam Prezident Leave a Comment

The G.O.O.D. Music boys just dropped their brand new “Mercy” track a little early. It wasn’t supposed to officially drop until Friday, but earlier this evening, Kanye West, Big Sean, Pusha-T & 2 Chainz (who isn’t officially signed to G.O.O.D. Music) hit the net.

Popout

On the first track off the upcming G.O.O.D, Music compilation album, The Bronx, ATL & midwest goodfellas flow on the track about Lamborghinis, Sarah Palin, Rick James and Ms. Pac Man.

You feelin; the track?

Here’s to G.O.O.D. Friday…

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Filed Under: Black Celebrity Gossip, Black Gossip Tagged With: Big Sean, Bronx, GOOD Music, kanye west, Lamborghini, Pusha T, Rick James, Sarah Palin

Kanye & Kim Shop……REALLY KANYE?!?!!!!

April 6, 2012 By Madam Prezident Leave a Comment

Kanye may have made a whole bunch of folks happy when he released new music last night, but the Theraflu company is anything but. Check out what the cold company had to say about ‘Ye’s new “Theraflu” track, and his latest NYC adventures with Kim K….

Kim & Kanye decided to work off their lunch from earlier today by playing on the BIG piano and with the toy soldiers over at FAO Schwartz just a little while ago. Oh, and if you’re wondering why these two are all over the place with each other all of a sudden, reportedly Kim is in the midst of filming a new season of “Keeping Up With The Kardashians.” So…yeah:

The twosome were spotted having some fun in the toystore before heading over to Jeffrey’s in the Meatpacking District for some shopping:

But while ‘Ye is caught up in the media storm of hopping around town with his boo-of-the-moment, the Theraflu company is calling foul on his new track. They said in a statement today about his explicit song:

“We in no way endorse or approve of the references or use of the image and likeness of Theraflu in this manner.”

Have a feeling somebody’s gonna have to cough up some cash. Cough….get it…nevermind….

Filed Under: Black Celebrity Gossip, Black Gossip Tagged With: kanye, kanye west, Keeping Up With The Kardashians, Kim, Kim Kardashian, Kris Humphries, New York City, Theraflu

Alicia Keys looking GOOD on the Cover of VIBE MAGAZINE

April 6, 2012 By Madam Prezident Leave a Comment

Alicia Keys is VIBE Magazine’s April/May 2012 cover girl as they celebrate their 2nd Annual Global Issue. Check out her cover, plus our exclusive outtake from the issue, and an excerpt from her interview she didalongside her hubby Swizz Beatz.

Rocking her ridiculously beautiful canary diamond wedding ring, Alicia Keys is being her usual earthy yet edgy self in the new issue of VIBE magazine. In YBF’s exclusive outtake shot, Alicia rocks only a red leather jacket and a set of colorful strings in place of a shirt, and her black lipstick. She dishes on the love she shares with her husband in her first real interview in years. And yes, her man Swizz (Kasseem Dean) was a part of the interview too.

An excerpt from their cover story:

“It was the craziest thing,” says Dean, leaning forward in his chair. “We had a work lunch with some people, and I get home and look in the back pocket—”
“My credit card was in his pocket,” Keys ﬁnishes the story, eyes wide. “Why was my credit card in his pocket?”
One explanation might be that he’d grabbed it by accident when they split the check, but that would be too prosaic. They saw the credit card debacle as a sign, the ﬁrst of many. Well, second, if you count the time, 14 years ago, when they ﬁrst met and Dean tried unsuccessfully to get her number from his friend. “It wasn’t our time yet,” he says with a smile.

Check out VIBE.com for more details on their cover. The issue hits stands April 16th.

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