Ja Rule has been laying low these past few years; with little heard from him since the release of his last album R.U.L.E in 2004. However, the rapper is readying his latest LP ‘The Mirror’ for a September 25th release. This new track, Body’, is slated to be the first single from the CD. Produced by 7 Aurelius (Ashanti’s ‘Only U’) and Irv Gotti, ‘Body’ is a typical Ja Rule song – he’s singing on the hook. I’m really feeling this, though; it has a cool summer vibe to it. Many have written Ja off since his feud with 50 Cent a few years back; with 50’s career waning, I’m left wondering:

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I always felt ‘LoveStoned’ was one of the better tracks from Justin Timberlake’s sophomore effort ‘Future Sex/Love Sounds’. However the video is just not cutting it. Sub-par at best, the vid comes across as cheap and rushed. Maybe after the big-budget videos for ‘SexyBack’ and ‘What Goes Around’, the label didn’t have much (funds) to work with? Whatever the case, this is a disappointment.

What do you think of the video?

There seems to be no stopping R&B star Rihanna. The singer’s mega-hit ‘Umbrella’ remains on top of the official UK singles chart and her LP ‘Good Girl Gone Bad’ debuted at #1 on the album chart. This marks the first time the singer has had #1’s on either chart.

It seems all that promo has paid off; Rihanna, 19, has been all over Europe in recent weeks. Even if the album isn’t selling as well in the US, I have a feeling she’ll do very well over here. The new musical direction she has taken on is very much what’s ‘hot’ over here right now. The confirmed 2nd single, ‘Shut Up & Drive’, should further cement her place as a viable artist here.

R&B singer and burgeoning Broadway star, Fantasia performed at the 61st Annual Tony Awards last night. Singing ‘I’m Here’ from the Tony-nominated Broadway show ‘The Color Purple’, Fantasia absolutely nailed it. Each time I see her perform the song, she tops the last.

What did you think of the performance?

The video for Ali & Gipp’s new single ‘Almost Made Ya’ premiered today. I’ve been liking this Jermaine Dupri-produced song for some time now and it’s great that it finally got the video treatment. Though it’s pretty standard, the video is decent and LeToya is looking on-point – as usual. Be on the lookout for new albums by both Ali & Gipp as well as LeToya in the months ahead.

What do you think of the video?

This new Kanye West track ‘Bittersweet’ has me anticipating his upcoming ‘Graduation’ album even more. The melodic mid-tempo is a collaboration between Kanye and Pop Rock artist John Mayer. I’m really liking the laidback vibe the song has to it and having John Mayer on the hook works surprisingly well. It’s not the first time Kanye has stepped out of the box with his feature artists – Maroon 5’s Adam Levine joined Kanye on their 2005 hit ‘Heard Em Say’. ‘Bittersweet’ is taken from Kanye’s third album ‘Graduation’ which hits stores August 21st.

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