Patty Jackson The 411
I’ve got good news about singer Barry White. The maestro of love is headed home from the hospital. Seven weeks ago Barry suffered from a stroke. He has high blood pressure and he went into a coma. Doctors were worried about Barry because he has a lot of health problems. Barry is still undergoing dialysis and he still needs a kidney transplant. Barry’s children are now being tested to see if they can give their dad a kidney. If you would like to send your wishes to Barry you can do so at the following email address.
Jesusgarber@caprica.com Jesus Garber is a close friend of Barry’s and a music industry vet. He will make sure that Barry receives all his correspondence.
Authorities in New York are investigating the shooting death of Rap Pioneer Jam Master Jay. Jam Master Jays real name was Jason Mizell, he was 37 years old and he leaves to mourn a wife and three kids. Jam Master Jay had just finished a tour with Aerosmith and Kid Rock. According to authorities Jam Master Jay was working with a new female group at a recording studio in Queens, when two men were let in and one of them shot Jam Master Jay in the head. He died at the scene.
So What’s up with Whitney Houston this week? Well her new Album Just Whitney is already on the internet. Someone leaked the album which isn’t due to hit stores until Nov. 26th. Some of the cuts leaked out include a song she does with Santana and a duet she does with her husband Bobby Brown. I hear the folks at Arista were not upset about the leak because they were not crazy about the lp which I hear is just average. Meanwhile, in other Whitney news, she and Bobby have been listed as suspects for making death threats against one of her father’s business associates. According to a police report Whitney and Bobby threatened this man’s life. Whitney’s dad, John Houston, is suing his daughter for non payment of management services and the police think the death threats may be linked to this.
Fire officials in Detroit are investigating a mysterious fire that destroyed a mansion owned by Aretha Franklin. Aretha did not live in this 800 thousand dollar mansion but she used it to store boxes and furniture. The mansion was destroyed when the walls and floors collapsed. Aretha was in Texas at the time of the fire.
Lionel Richie is having a hard time with his oldest daughter. Nicole Richie could be facing criminal charges in New York following a fight that left a guy with a cut face. According to reports Nicole got into a fight with a rich guy. Nicole cut his face with a cocktail glass. She jabbed the glass in his face. His vision is blurred and he had to get stitches. There’s still no word on what caused the fight but friends say Lionel can’t control his daughter. She’s out of control with her partying and drinking. Nicole is Lionel’s oldest daughter. Nicole was adopted by Lionel and his first wife Brenda Richie. Remember Brenda? She’s the one who opened a can of whip ass on Lionel when she caught him cheating on her. Brenda also beat up his girlfriend. This same woman ended up marrying Lionel Richie. The big question now is can Lionel keep his daughter out of jail.
The National Association of Cosmetologist have filed a 60 million dollar lawsuit against the Rev. Jesse Jackson and The Rev Al Sharpton. The lawsuit stems from their demands from MGM to edit out scenes they didn’t like and found offensive. Jesse and Al threatened the studio with a boycott for scenes deriding Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks and Jesse Jackson. The NAC represents over 50 thousand barbers and beauticians and they say the threat and other remarks created a negative sentiment about the profession resulting in the loss of business. The movie Barbershop has grossed 71 million dollars at the box office.
R Kelly is back to making explicit music. R Kelly’s new song is called Ignition and one of the more interesting lines include ‘I want to stick my key in your ignition’. What happened to Heaven I Need A Hug. R Kelly is due back in court on Nov. 21st . He’s facing 21 counts of child pornography, stemming from a video allegedly showing him having sex with a 14 year old girl.
Rapper/Singer Missy Elliott is losing weight and she looks great. Missy says she had to lose weight because she was in danger with her high blood pressure. Missy says she is now working out. Her new lp, Under Construction, comes out on the 12th and it features the hit single Work It.
I hear June Pointer of the Pointers Sisters is back in rehab. June has not been able to overcome her drug addiction. June was supposed to participate in a music special for ABC with her sisters Ruth and Anita, but she couldn’t make it so her niece had to take her place.
Toni Braxton lashes out in the new issue of Vibe Magazine. Toni accuses rapper Jay z and his fiance Beyonce of stealing one of her song ideas. She says they are taking food out of her baby’s mouth and she criticizes Jennifer Lopez. Toni says Jennifer is a good actress but she is new to the singing world. Toni says she can judge because she has six Grammy awards under her belt. Toni is due to give birth to her second child next spring. Her new song ‘Hit The Freeway’ is slowly climbing up the charts. Is Toni lashing out because no one is feeling her new song? Toni has joined the long list of singers who feel they must have a rapper on their songs. The only real singer who can pull this off is Faith Evans. Most female artists do this to cover up the fact that they can’t sing.
So what’s up with Jennifer Lopez this week? Well J-Lo has been caught on camera. While filming a music video, J-Lo was caught acting naughty. The music video was filmed in a restaurant, J-Lo was on one side and a bridal shower party was on the other side. Members of the bridal shower party were filming the shower and they caught J-Lo shoving her hands down her boyfriend’s pants. The boyfriend of course is Actor Ben Affleck. While she was shoving her hands down his pants she gave him a big squeeze and he broke out in a big grin. Meanwhile J-Lo’s clothing line is expanding. J-Lo’s clothing line will now include plus sizes.
Supermodel Tyra Banks will serve as a judge and as an executive producer for a new reality series on UPN, Looking for Supermodels.