Despite less than a decade in the spotlight, Lady Gaga has ascended to a status that eludes so many: icon.
“I’m getting a little tired of your broken promithes promithes” – Queen Kiely Williams, 2000.
As September nears, so too does the start of the infamous Q4.
That tried and true window where campaigns are kicked off with a view to capitalise on the generous buying climate of the Holidays. Promotional platforms are plentiful and the potential for revenue maximisation is a very real reality for record labels.
It’s also a time during which fans begin to raise hopeful eyebrows at their faves who’ve promised new projects but have yet to deliver.
Historically, it’s proven that many of these LPs don’t arrive on time – or even at all.
However, we can only wait with bated breath. While we do, grab some tea and biscuits and join us below as we countdown 5 albums we want to see before the year’s end!
TV One are looking to make a splash in the daytime talk arena.
Today the network announced the launch of a multi-day panel show named ‘Sister Circle’ – and a features a few familiar faces.
Should ‘The View,’ ‘The Real,’ and ‘Wendy Williams’ be worried?
‘Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough’ has taken on a whole new meaning for Quincy Jones.
For, a Los Angeles judge has just handed down a surprise ruling in his case against the Michael Jackson Estate.
Details below…
Joseline Hernandez has had enough.
The reality star saw her feud with ‘Love & Hip-Hop’ creator Mona Scott Young spill onto social media and eventually back onto the show’s finale.
As seen on the climax of the VH1 series, Hernandez “quit” and a history of her “problematic” behaviour was broadcast.
Irked by this, the 29-year-old stopped by The Breakfast Club today to tell her side of the story.
Renown for her fiery persona, the star showed an altogether more demure side when she broke down in tears over her depiction.
Remarkably though, she appeared open to the idea of joining the much rumored (and clearly “happening”) ‘Love & Hip-Hop: Miami.’ Especially now that she has lives there again.
Watch Joseline talk about a whole lot after the jump…
Queen of Pop Madonna has earned the title of ‘royal b*tch’ from the staunchest supporters of her biggest contemporaries over the years.
Most recently dominating headlines for a resurfaced letter that saw her refer to Whitney Houston as ‘horribly mediocre’ (click here to read more if you missed it), she not only infuriated the ‘I Will Always Love You’ singer’s stans, but also added them to a long list of fan groups who have penciled her name atop their hitlist. A list that features the likes of Lady Gaga, Prince, Michael and Janet Jackson, Cher, Mariah Carey, and many more, Madge’s mouth has certainly incited no shortage of fury over her nearly 4 decade long career.
Now, for this week’s “Top 5,” That Grape Juice looks back at her top 5 feuds. Look below to see if your favorite made the cut:
In our quest to bring you a behind the scenes look at those who “make the magic happen,” the latest instalment of our ‘Meets The Makers’ feature spotlights Chokolate team.
Launched by Caroline Khouri and Guido Fabris, the agency has a multi-dimensional focus and has been instrumental in casting and creative direction for the likes of Beyonce, Jennifer Lopez, and Paula Abdul.
Boasting a wealth of knowledge and know-how, the pair have an impressive résumé – and it’s continuing to grow.
Read below as they reflect on their journey and drop a number of noteworthy gems for those looking to break into the industry.
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That Grape Juice: The Chokolate journey has been an amazing one. Tell us a little bit about how and why you formed the idea?
Caroline: We both came from a creative background, I was into dance and casting and Guido was into acting and production. When we met we got on really well and we just knew that we could do big things if we merged our skills together. We always dreamed big! We felt we were stuck at a certain level at the previous company we were working at and there was no room for progression or sharing of ideas, so we decided to set up shop on our own so we could have more freedom and do things our own way. We both have a passion for entertainment – whether that’s live shows, films, tv, music we love it all.
Why the Chokolate name?
Guido: Well we both love chocolate and we just thought it would be a memorable name rather than initials that you can never remember. Also chocolate isn’t something you’d automatically associate with fitness and dancers and models which we also liked, we wanted to stand out and be different.
Caroline: The K is a nod to my last name, there was nothing we could play on Guido’s name so he missed out haha.
Also with a name like that you can lend it to anything you want, Chokolate Films, Chokolate Productions, Chokolate Records, so on and so forth.
In embarking on the path, who were your influences respectively?
Guido: Well, business-wise, Richard Branson and his Virgin brand is what we had in mind. He ventures into all different kinds of areas with the name Virgin. Caroline calls me MegaloG because I want to build a Chokolate Empire.
Also the founder of Diesel jeans Renzo Rosso has always been a great influence for me, as he created a super successful brand from scratch. Plus he’s from my home town Vicenza, in Italy.
Campaigns like ‘Only the Brave’ and ‘Be Stupid’ for instance were/are very inspirational for us; I think we were always daring and pioneered into fields that our competitors are not interested in, that’s the niche market we love to explore and develop.
Caroline: Although it’s intended for us to be brave and to not be scared to do things differently, we did make some stupid mistakes but we learned! I always wanted to have a dance studio, I remember reading Debbie Moore’s book about how she started Pineapple Studios while Guido was reading Branson’s book. So we did end up building a dance studio from scratch and opened an office in West London. Otherwise we didn’t really have anyone from our business that we looked up to, we had to learn a lot on the way. The friends we thought we had in ‘the business’ didn’t end up helping us at all. So we did everything on our own.
Let’s discuss your relationship with Frank Gatson. How and when did you meet him?
Guido: That’s a funny story. We were booked on the MTV Awards in 2008 in Liverpool; we were looking after the creative director and all the dancers on the show and we knew that in order to grow we needed a big American choreographer on our books. An agent in the US suggested we look at Frank Gatson since he’d be at the show.
Caroline: We were new so we didn’t know who he was at the time, we just knew that he looked after Beyonce who I was obsessed back then, I told Guido if we could work with her I could die happy.
Guido: After the show was done, I saw a man hanging around her team so I went up to him and asked if he knew where Frank Gatson was and he answered “I am Frank Gatson” and proceeded to walk away, I started following him and explaining who I was and what we did but he didn’t seem too bothered. I gave him my card and he quickly left and that was that. We followed up with a phone call and invited him to come to London to meet with us, and crazily enough after a few months of stalking, he agreed; he admitted he didn’t like agents but liked us and the rest is history!
You’ve worked on a number of Beyonce related projects – what’s it like being a part of her process? What don’t we see that people would be intrigued by?
There were 2 very different eras to Beyonce; we were there when Mathew Knowles was in charge and we were helping on the surface and it was light and fun. And then when she started managing herself and we were more deeply involved. I think everyone knows this now, but she really never stops working. The process is very difficult. It’s a lot of work, there are changes happening until the last minute all in the search to make the show better or the end product the best it can be, whatever it is. There’s no complacency, you can’t be lazy, you have to be on top of it at all times. So much work and preparation goes into that 3 min performance.
Beyond Bey, you’ve worked with huge names such as Jennifer Lopez, Paula Abdul, Macy Gray, and Kelly Rowland. Which project/s have been the most rewarding?
The longer projects are more satisfying because so much work goes into them and then after the sweat and tears you can see the final product and the audience reacting positively to what you’ve worked so hard on. Probably the Jennifer Lopez NYE concert at Caesars and the Graphics for Paula’s tour and Beyonce’s ‘Run the World’ because of all the people we had to cast and it was part of a long campaign. Also Chris Grant’s music video because it was our first Chokolate production. Working with the genius Macy Gray as her Creative Directors and Directors is also very rewarding and gratifying, also her ‘White Man’ video has been nominated for the “Hollywood International Moving Pictures Film Festival 2017”.
What would you say are the biggest misconceptions about show-business?
That it’s very glamorous and that we’re always at parties and it’s easy and always fun. People believe everything they read in the papers when a lot is set up and PR constructed . It makes you a little cynical. The reality is that you have to sacrifice a lot to get to where you want to be. As soon as you book a holiday, work comes in and you have to let your friends and family down constantly. But for all the backstabbing and awful people you meet you also meet the most amazing people and keep them close and you get to travel the world and see things you would never see and in the end the good outweighs the bad. Other people may look at what we do and think we’re masochists but you work in showbiz because you love it otherwise you wouldn’t survive!
As an agency active in the fields of casting, creative direction, and choreography, you’ve covered a lot of ground. What’s next on the agenda for Chokolate?
Well we’ve done Chokolate Vision and Chokolate Records so maybe Chokolate Films next? Our dream is to make a comedy movie. We love working on our own projects, they’re much more satisfying and fun. When you come up with an idea/concept and you see it come to life, that’s the best feeling in the world!
A proper Chokolate production that encompasses all our services is the ideal so the director, choreographer, make up, dancers, stage, graphics etc thats the aim.
Who’ve you yet to work with that dream to?
Caroline: It would be nice to a do another biggie like Madonna or Cher! Or Gaga, Bruno Mars or like Daft Punk. Although if I could do something with Larry David or Melissa McCarthy it would fulfill another side for me away from the music world.
Guido: Same as Caroline plus I’d love to add Sophia Loren, Martin Scorsese, Danny De Vito, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Jonah Hill, Ryan Gosling, Damien Chazelle, Morgan Freeman, Samuel L. Jackson, Laura Pausini, Eros Ramazzotti.
And the list goes on and on.
What drives you?
Caroline: It’s like there’s a feeling inside that something big is coming and I can’t stop until I get there. I’m always looking for the next big thing.
Also any negativity from anyone else or lack of belief makes you want to succeed even more.
Guido: The will to do something great and meaningful through the channel of entertainment, at the end of the day Showbiz is an amazing, powerful and artistic way to express ourselves, to communicate something to the world.
Having worked with the best, what advice would you give to rising stars hoping to make a major mark?
If you believe in what you’re doing and you know in your heart that it’s all you want to do then you just have to keep going and not give up, be persistent. We know it sounds cliche, but there were so many times we felt like giving up but just kept pushing through and by doing that it got us to the next step and step after that.
To any artists out there, we’d say work hard, don’t think it’s magically going to come to you. You have to put the work in. Be nice to people! When you find someone you work well with that you trust, keep them close to you because they’re rare. Surround yourself with talented people who want the same things. Don’t let other people’s words keep you down, if you don’t believe in yourself no one else will.
Network too! Trust your instincts and sometimes you have to take a detour to get to the final destination.
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Want to reach out to team Chokolate?
Click here to drop them a line on Twitter!
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Blac Chyna has landed the upper hand in her game of one-upmanship with former boo Rob Kardashian.
As widely reported, the exes became embroiled in a shocking social media exchange last week which saw Rob expose intimate images of the socialite.
Allegedly fearing for her safety, Chyna lawyered up and went to court today to secure a restraining order against Rob as well as an injunction to prevent him releasing what team calls “revenge porn.”
Said requests were granted moments ago and the reality star took to the steps of the courthouse with her attorney to express her gratitude to the judge. Check it out:
The spectacle surrounding all of this defines disgusting. But it’s hardly surprising given the parties involved.
Our thoughts are with their daughter Dream, who is ultimately the only innocent party in the narrative.
Social media is becoming like the WWE Royal Rumble these days. Case in point the ‘Love & Hip-Hop: Instagram’ exchange between Joseline Hernandez and K. Michelle.
As reported, the reality stars and former friends have been trading insults over an issue that ironically wasn’t with one another. [Hernandez has beef with TV exec Mona Scott Young.]
However, that hasn’t stopped the pair from going “there” and beyond. From children to drug use, the draggings have left no stone unturned. And it’s still going on.
Picking up where K left off, Hernandez hit back with…
As well as…
K responded with…
Sigh.
It’s been an uphill battle for Iggy Azalea in her quest for a comeback hit.
Indeed, despite a smudge of buzz, nothing has “stuck” – a fact fans have been blaming on her team.
Wherever the issue lay, it’s led many to believe her sophomore album ‘Digital Distortion’ will be dead on arrival.
And, according to the rapper herself, that’s exactly what’ll be happening as she confirmed that her label will be releasing no further songs from the project.
The revelation came on Twitter in a series of responses to concerned supporters:
So, in essence, the LP is coming but without any more singles pre-or-post release.
Put simply, it sounds like a literal case of fulfilling a contractual obligation.
In a way we feel for Iggy because the music – love her or loathe her – has not been bad. Indeed, in the case of ‘Switch’ especially, she’s actually been bringing the hotness.
What’s more, the promotion – though seemingly plentiful – rarely felt strategized. Like, why has she been performing songs with no lyric or music video? It’s all rather…odd.
Still, the reality is that the music business is exactly that – a business.
Hence, if the label are not making a return on their investment and don’t foresee that ever happening, then it’s logical why they’d throw the album out without much fanfare.
The lesson for Iggy to chew and swallow is that, as an artist, she has to create her own buzz and likability by any means necessary. Because in today’s climate that’s almost as – if not more – important than the material she’s churning out.
Despite starring on ‘The Real Housewives Of Atlanta’ for five years, Kenya Moore was not a wife. Nor had she ever been.
Last month saw that change when the former Miss USA winner secretly wed businessman Marc Daly in St. Lucia.
The news shocked many as Moore had spent much of her time on season 9 of the ‘Housewives’ back-and-forthing with former flame Matt Jordan.
Now, with filming of season 10 underway, the 46-year-old took a break from taping to attend a relationship panel at the 2017 Essence Festival in New Orleans.
Doing away with her usual theatrics, a more subdued Moore waxed honest about her doubts about ever finding “the one: and even admitted that she begun to internalize some of the taunting she received from her cast-mates.
Check out the insightful sit-down below…
It’d be cool to see more of “this” Kenya on the show, but the reality (ironically) is that that isn’t what makes great TV.
What no doubt will though is the reaction of NeNe Leakes and co, who are already dissecting the legitimacy Kenya’s nuptials.
‘The Real Housewives Of Atlanta’ returns to screens this Fall.
First thing’s first; Iggy Azalea has proven time after time that she’s the realest (often to her detriment). Never really one to mince words, the ‘Team’ rapstress to Twitter to console concerned fans who expected her long-awaited sophomore album, ‘Digital Distortion,’ to drop tomorrow (June 30).
As we reported here, Azalea prematurely announced the set’s official release date in late May before retracting the statement a week later. Now, just one day before its previously announced premiere, the ‘Bounce’ beauty dealt fans a crushing blow by not only informing them she’s unsure when (or if) the album will drop, but also revealed its third single – ‘Switch’ (featuring Anitta) – will not receive official video treatment.
This, after the song has been promoted on a number of television and radio outlets as well as its accompanying visual teased on social media.
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