NOW this we've got to see! Justin Timberlake is going to get *NSYNC with his feminine side on national TV. Don't laugh, it's all for a gay old episode of Will & Grace. Execs wrote the gender-bending script especially for Britney Spears' ex, 22, who gets all weepy and sensitive in his new video, Cry Me a River. He'll play a scheming gay gigolo who steals the heart of flamboyant Jack, played by Sean Hayes, and swindles him out of his money. Producers of the NBC series promise that Justin's gay friends are gonna love it. And his favorite charity will be happy, too. The hottie plans to donate his cool $50,000 paycheck from the show to an AIDS organization

Nelly to buy into Truck team
Associated Press


DARLINGTON, S.C. -- It's getting hot in NASCAR.

Grammy award-winning rapper Nelly will buy into a Craftsman Truck team starting at Darlington Raceway on March 14.

The deal to purchase part of Billy Ballew Motorsports will last the rest of the season, Nelly's representative, Michael Warmack, told The Associated Press by phone Tuesday. The truck will sport a new paint scheme and feature Nelly's Vokal clothing label. It will be unveiled in time for the Darlington 200 truck event.

"We've kind of been running on stealth mode for the last few weeks," Warmack said.


Nelly is buying into the truck currently driven by Andy Houston.


Nelly, born Cornell Haynes, released his CD "Nellyville" with the infectious single "Hot in Herre" last year.

The hit earned him a Grammy for best male rap solo performance. He also won for best rap/sung collaboration for "Dilemma," featuring Kelly Rowland. Nelly had a hit with "Ride Wit Me," off the 2001 Grammy nominated album "Country Grammar" that included the catchy phrase "Hey, must be the money!"

Warmack will be the point-man for the Atlanta-based Vokal Racing Team, and said the group eventually will look for a minority driver. For now, Warmack said they will continue with Ballew's driver, NASCAR truck veteran Andy Houston, at the 1.366-mile superspeedway.

Warmack said plans came together last month at Daytona International Speedway. Darlington Raceway spokeswoman Cathy Mock said her office got a call about security and protection for an appearance next week by the platinum-selling artist.

Warmack was hopeful Nelly would be at NASCAR's oldest superspeedway to debut the truck and watch the race.

"Nelly is a race fan, he's been one for a long time," Warmack said. "We're very excited about him becoming a team owner."

NASCAR manager for diversity affairs Dora Taylor said Nelly, who is black, and his people talked to her about the sport's diversity issues.

"They had heard we were good and wanted to find out for themselves," she said.

Rob Copeland, NASCAR's managing director of business communications, said Nelly had another reason for joining -- to win.

"They want to compete and in the end, that's what it's all about," Copeland said.

Several prominent blacks have tried -- and failed -- to make a dent in NASCAR.

Julius Erving, Jackie Joyner-Kersee and Willy T. Ribbs are among the few blacks who have tried either to drive or to own cars. None have had much success. It has been nearly 40 years since Wendell Scott became the first and only black man to win a race in NASCAR's top series.

Taylor is in her second year trying to change that. There is only one black driver, Bill Lester in the truck series, on NASCAR's top three circuits.

Nelly would certainly introduce stock cars to an audience rarely seen in the pits. It's hard to think of two things more different than hip-hop and NASCAR.

"You have to remember, hip-hop has become a crossover sensation," Taylor said.

It takes somewhere between $1.5 million and $3 million to run a Craftsman Truck team. Nelly is spending "enough to go racing a few years," Warmack said, but would not elaborate.

"He thinks he can help bring more minorities to this sport," Warmack said. "We're happy we can be a part of this with NASCAR."

Nelly and Neckcar
 

I don't understand why Nelly would want to associate himself with a sport where they still have people who wave Confederate flags in the open. Sorry, the left-turn-only circuit has little appeal to this corner.

4-1-1 ENTERTAINMENT FOR THE WEEK OF
MARCH 3, 2003

Singer Brian McKnight is living the single life. Brian is no longer with his wife. Brian also has a new manager. He recently got rid of his longtime manager. Why is Brian making changes in his life he was married to his wife forever? Will they reconcile? Brian has a new album coming out on March 25th called U-Turn featuring the lead single 'Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda. On the new album Brian teams up with Rapper Nelly, Carl Thomas, Tyreese and Joe.

Did you have a chance to see the Soul Train Awards? It was horrible, how did the Singer Amerie who gave a horrible performance win over Heather Headly, a Tony Award Winner, and India Aire? The pace of the show was boring thank goodness for LL Cool J (he was a big honoree) he took off his shirt and livened things up. Musiq and Ashanti were the nights big winner. Paula Abdul was one of the presenters, her new skinny look is aging her. She is too skinny. Paula has had weight issues for years and now she is sporting the super skinny look, which is not flattering for her.

Gladys Knight recently opened up to Jet Magazine about her life. Gladys talked about being married to a younger man (she's 58 he's 45). She also talked about being in show biz for 50 years and how she dealt with her son's death. Gladys has the No. 1 show in Las Vegas and she seems very happy. Gladys says her young hubby is everything she prayed for. Gladys also talked about former husband Les Brown the Motivational Speaker. Gladys said when she married Les Brown she realized he was the kind of man she didn't want. When Les left Gladys he didn't tell her to her face, he sent her a letter via Federal Express (what a coward!).

Forbes Magazine recently named Oprah Winfrey the First African American Female Billionaire. Oprah has also revived her Famous Book Club. She is only going to deal with the classics. Oprah is also coming to Philly. Oprah will be here on Nov. 18th at the Kimmel Center. Oprah is getting the Marion Anderson Award.
Unfortunately all was not good for Oprah this week. Oprah's half sister Patricia Lloyd died. Patricia was 43 and for years she battled drug abuse. Oprah used to pay for her rehab until Patricia betrayed her. Oprah and Patricia have the same mother and in the 90's Patricia went to the National Enquirer and gave them the scoop on Oprah's childhood. Patricia revealed how Oprah had a baby at the age of 14 but the baby died shortly after childbirth. Oprah was hurt by her half sisters betrayal and she cut off all contact with her.

Dionne Warwick says when she caught with Marijuana last May she was framed. Dionne says the marijuana was planted. Dionne says she doesn't do drugs, she doesn't take aspirins. Those drug charges were dropped after Dionne agreed to a plea bargain and drug counseling. If she was innocent why did she agree to a plea bargain?

What was Puff Daddy doing with the President's daughters? Puffy, P-Diddy (whatever his name is this week) was at a club called Butter in New York. Puffy was dancing with the Bush Twins Jenna and Barbara on the floor. The party was hot as Naomi Campbell, Jay Z, Angela Bassett and Fred Durst looked on.

Our condolences go out to Singer Stephanie Mills. Stephanie recently lost her mother.

Jill Scott has been named Spokesperson for the Coca-Cola Apollo Theatre Academy Program. This is a Youth-Mentor program that focuses on careers in the entertainment industry.

Brian needs to go back to the OLD WAY -- First 3 CDs. I am sick of these artists collaborating with rappers. I have not bought a CD since ANYTIME.

He was cheating on his wife for years. So JULIE congrats for finally leaving him.

Him and Professor Ogilvie both look like Pound Puppies.

Sanaa & Omar (nooo!)
 

As I was reading this months Honey magazine, I ran across an article on Omar Epps and he said that his relationship with Sanaa has been over and he was dating again. Why do alll the cute couples break up? Hopefully it is for the best.

Re: Sanaa & Omar (nooo!)
 

:( on one hand
but
:D happy on another. . .

more :( than :D but hey . . .

by the way I like how you did your screenname as an acronym.

Could the Sopranos be over????
 

From AOL.com

NEW YORK (March 8) - Fans of HBO's popular drama "The Sopranos" may have to "fuhgeddabout" another season after James Gandolfini, the actor who plays the family patriarch, filed a lawsuit seeking a release from his contract.

But viewers shouldn't count out "The Sopranos" just yet. A source close to Gandolfini said the actor believes he is underpaid relative to other small-screen stars, and that he would like to return for a fifth season if a deal can be reached.

"This suit is really about Jim (Gandolfini) being paid fair market value, like other stars of network television shows, and he expects it to be settled in a friendly way," the source said.

Gandolfini, a two-time Emmy award winner for his portrayal of conflicted mob boss Tony Soprano, alleged in a suit filed in California that HBO violated a clause in his contract when it failed to notify him of a $20 million deal it struck with David Chase, the show's creator.

"This is nothing more than a further renegotiation tactic by an actor in a binding contract," said HBO spokesman Quentin Schaffer.

An end to "The Sopranos," which broke records for a cable show last year by pulling in 13.4 million viewers for its premiere, would be a huge blow to HBO, the subscription cable channel owned by AOL Time Warner .

"The Sopranos" is HBO's most popular show, and it paved the way for a string of HBO hits such as "Six Feet Under" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm." The show's fifth season was scheduled to begin shooting in April, a spokesman said.

Gandolfini receives about $400,000 an episode under a deal renegotiated after the first season of "The Sopranos," according to Variety, roughly in line with stars like Martin Sheen of NBC's "The West Wing" but far below the $1.6 million per episode paid to Kelsey Grammer for NBC's "Frasier."

Network television shows generate advertising revenue, while commercial-free HBO derives its revenue solely from subscriptions. HBO's business model makes it difficult to calculate exactly how much "The Sopranos" -- and Gandolfini -- are worth.

"Unfortunately there's no way to quantify it," HBO spokesman Schaffer said of the show. "But we know it's valuable."

Several other actors on "The Sopranos," including Michael Imperioli, who plays Christopher Moltisanti; Tony Sirico, who plays Paulie Walnuts; and Jamie Lynn-Sigler, who plays Meadow Soprano, have recently renegotiated their contracts in recent months, according to reports in industry trade publications.

"Gandolfini has always been extremely supportive of his fellow cast members," said a source familiar with the production. "It would seem out of character that he would want to do something to jeopardize a financially rewarding year for his fellow cast."

Gandolfini and "Sopranos" production company Brillstein-Grey were not immediately available for comment."

Re: Re: Sanaa & Omar (nooo!)
 

I kinda feel the same way - :( on one hand, but :D :D :D on the other.

SANTA MONICA, California — DMX is hanging up his collar.

The barking MC took a break on the set of his next movie, "Never Die Alone," on Wednesday to confirm rumors of his retirement from hip-hop.

"That's the truth. It's my last album," X said, referring to his upcoming fifth record, It's Not a Game.

DMX will continue to act and oversee his Bloodline Records label, but neither will be his priority.

"I'm going into the church," he said. "I wanna take some time off — you know, read my Bible and just get more into the word."

Family will also take precedence. "I got kids, and one of my children is at that stage where you have to be around. He's 8 months, and I don't wanna be a stranger to my children. That's more important to me than all this."

DMX promised to go out with a bang on It's Not a Game, which he described as even more autobiographical than his previous releases. The album is finished and will likely surface before summer, but that's about all X will reveal. "It's top-secret stuff," he said.

One thing fans can expect is a collaboration between DMX and the red-hot 50 Cent.

"He's an individual after my own heart," X said of 50. "I'm glad he's here. Once again, hip-hop was getting a little bit too slippery, a little too shiny. So it's good, it's refreshing, to have someone bring it right back to the streets."

After It's Not a Game drops, the Ruff Ryders' top dog will prep new albums from his kennel of Bloodline acts, including Bazaar Royale, Big Stan and Kashmir.

"I'm hands-on with all my artists, that's why it's called Bloodline, 'cause it comes from the dogs, you know," X explained. "It's like before you get a dog, you find out what his Bloodline is and then you know who his parents were, you know how many fights they had, you know what's in their blood, so to speak."

DMX said he may produce some of his artists' tracks, but he'll focus more on general guidance.

"I know I needed to learn a few things coming into the rap game. It's like, all right, you're a talented rapper and you write songs, but it's different putting an album together. So I try to show 'em what to do and what not to do and how far to go with it."

DMX joins a long list of rappers who are promising to retire in the coming years, including Dr. Dre, Ja Rule and Master P.


-Corey Moss

DMX
 

Right now, I can't get the lyrics to "What's My Name?" out of my mind. Since I have the unedited version within my computer, I won't share the lyrics. Not ladylike.
:D

:D :D :D :D

What's the REAL reason behind the retirements? Do they feel the need to STAD because their music isn't really selling ('specially P and X)? :confused:

http://www.djvlad.com/html/news.html



Ice Cube Disses Jesse Jackson, Samuel Jackson
Ice Cube is mad as hell and ain't gonna take it no more...In recent days he's returned to the studio to put the finishing touches on the up coming Westside Connection album. On a song called 'Lights Out', which is featured on a soundtrack called 'Ghetto, Gutta and Gansta' Cube takes swipes at actor Samuel Jackson and Reverend Jesse Jackson. Cube was responding to remarks that Samuel Jackson made a while back where he said he no longer wanted to star in movies featuring rappers unless it was Will Smith. Jackson got his start by appearing in Public Enemy's 'Night of the Living Bassheads' video. Since those controversial remarks were made rappers like Queen Latifah have been nominated for Oscar and Golden Globe awards, Mos Def was nominated for a Tony Award, Eminem received rave reviews for 8 Mile and was also nominated for an Oscar. Jackson who appeared in several movies last year including XXX and Changing Lanes got no nods whatsoever... Maybe he may want to reconsider his remarks. Cube saved his harshest remarks for Reverend Jesse Jackson who advocated a boycott of the movie 'Barbershop' for the comedic remarks fellow cast members made about Civil Rights leader Rosa Parks. In the song Cube tells Jesse to pay his child support and keep a rubber on next time he gets busy.

3/4
Jay-Z and Nas Unite for Anti-War effort
After years of beef on wax, rap rivals Jay-Z and Nas are uniting to say "no" to the United States war on Iraq. The joint "kings of New York" lent their support last week to Musicians United to Win Without War, a political action coalition formed to represent the voice of mainstream America against President Bush's preemptive war policy.

Jay and Nas are joined by musicians from every genre including Busta Rhymes, Dave Matthews, Outkast, Massive Attack, Missy Elliot, Pharoah Monche, Sonic Youth and Peter Gabriel. The coalition, made up of 32 organizations including the National Council of Churches, MoveOn.org, the NAACP, NOW, and the Sierra Club, supports tough United Nations inspections to disarm Saddam Hussein and opposes a US invasion and occupation of Iraq.

Russell Simmons, was on hand at the press conference last Thursday in New York urging music fans worldwide to protest. "Iraq's been contained for 12 years," Russell stated. "Hundreds of thousands don't have to die. Stand up, demonstrate, and have your voice heard."

clASSic.:cool: