Step into the lives of an LGBT street gang in the movie ‘Check It’.

Introduced to the world at last year’s Tribeca Film Festival, the movie was spotted by the polarising Louis C.K. who took it under his wing by breathing new life into it and bagging himself an executive-producer credit in the process.

 Dana Flor, Toby Oppenheimer and Steve Buscemi stand as its original creatives and now join C.K. to unlock its story via a new trailer.

C.K. had this to say about it:

It knocked me right over. It was an amazing emotional ride. It was funny and moving, I learned a lot and it gave me a lot to think about after. They started this gang to protect each other. They made a family where they didn’t have one. It’s not an easy film. It takes on life right where the rubber hits the road. What made me love it was just the kids themselves. They are like any kids, like anyone’s children. They are trying to cope against terrible odds, they are funny and full of hope and life. Their lives are difficult and complex. They are very generous in sharing this with the filmmakers and you, if you watch the film.

Press play below…

Your thoughts?

Thanks to a little help from friends Rihanna, Drake, Beyonce, Justin Bieber, Nicki Minaj, Alicia Keys, and many more, DJ Khaled‘s scored ‘another one.’

That’s right, not even a year after landing his first Billboard 200 chart-topper, ‘Major Key,’ Khaled’s latest album – ‘Grateful’ – has made major moves in its own right by following suit.  As we previously reported, the ‘Wild Thoughts’-supported set was on course to move 135-150,000k SPS its first week (with 40-50,000 of that figure made up of pure sales).

Now, after a week of conflicting reports and close calls with its nearest competitor, Imagine Dragon‘s latest, ‘Grateful’ has not only emerged the victor in the chart battle but has also given the ‘We the Best’ beau the best first week sum of his career to date.

Via Billboard:

The set — which was released on June 23 through We the Best/Epic Records — earned 149,000 equivalent album units in the week ending June 29, according to Nielsen Music. Of that sum, 50,000 were in traditional album sales.

The new album is powered by streams, as it logged a robust 81,000 SEA units — the largest SEA haul for an album since the May 27-dated list, when Kendrick Lamar’s DAMN. tallied 86,000 SEA units in its fourth week on the list. (Grateful’s 81,000 SEA units equates to 121.19 million on-demand audio streams for the collected tracks on the album during the tracking week.)

‘Grateful’ marks the DJ’s seventh top 10-charting effort; his first set to enter the chart’s topmost dectet was 2007’s ‘We the Best’ (which debuted and peaked at No. 8).

Congratz are in order to Khaled!

Your thoughts?

With top ten singles and R&B chart-topping albums to their credit, B2K easily rank as one of the (if not the) most successful Black boy band of the 2000s before their unexpected breakup in 2004.

And, while each of the group’s members has managed to keep his name in headlines since the mid-2000s to varying degrees of success, any mention of “B2K as a group” has mostly been related to drama and/or some jaw-dropping allegations.

Well, that’s set to change if a recent conversation involving Raz is to be believed:

(more…)

For many, the Brazilian superstar Gretchen is the face of many a retweet-pulling social media meme.

Now, after dominating her market for decades, the star receives what may be her biggest international look thanks to Katy Perry and Nicki Minaj.

How so?

They’ve made her the star of their ‘Swish Swish’ lyric video!

Watch below…

The full clip is yet to be released.

Unfamiliar with Gretchen’s work?

Your thoughts?

Rihanna is a very busy girl.

When she isn’t ruling the charts with ‘Wild Thoughts’, the Pop purveyor can be found promoting her new movie ‘Valerian and the city of a Thousand Planets.’

Check out her discuss her role in the Luc Besson production below…

The movie impacts theatres on July 21st and also stars Ethan Hawke, Cara Delevingne and Clive Owen. Their performances are backed by director Besson and his $200 million + budget.

Peep the latest trailer….

Your thoughts?

Following a blazing performance at the BET Awards, a reunited and rejuvenated Xscape made their triumphant return to the live circuit last night at the Essence Music Festival.

Backed by a full band, Kandi, Tiny, Tamika, and LaTocha played to a sold-out crowd (with hundreds more trying to get in) and rocked the house.

Journeying through their referred catalogue, the ladies soared with hits such as ‘Understanding’ and ‘Who Can I Run To.’

Like many, we’re oh so amped for their new reality show and this elevated our excitement…

They slayed.

Vocally, the group sounded even better than their BET showing and the cohesion was undeniable.

Buzzed to see what’s to come: a new album? A tour? Whatever the case, we’re living and loving this reunion.

Your thoughts?

The Gal Gadot-fronted movie ‘Wonder Woman’ has given Warner Bros. reason to rejoice this week after its earnings spun past the $700 million mark worldwide!

The movie was directed by Patty Jenkins and forged out of a $149 million budget with a screenplay penned by Allan Heinberg and now, thanks to its stellar performances and product, has generated $700 million worldwide weeks after its June 2nd release!

Set to rise to brilliant new heights once it opens in Japan, the movie’s success will come as welcome news to the aforementioned Jenkins who was forced to face unsubstantiated claims of on-set drama before its release.

She had this to say about it:

Woah, just saw this press about WW having problems. Are they serious? This is some made up bs right here. Made up! Produce a source, anyone. You can’t because it’s entirely false. Don’t believe the hype people. Someone’s trying to spread some serious misinfo. Isn’t until you are intimately involved in these things that you realize how totally false these rumors can. Let me reassure you, zero about the movie we are making has been called a mess by anyone in the know. Fact. Real lasso of truth, time, will reveal that letter to be false soon enough. But lame something so transparent in its agenda gets traction.

It seems she was right!

 

Your thoughts?

There’s no way of getting around it…sales of Remy Ma‘s solo material are putrid.

Fortunately, the same can’t be said for her public image, elevated and revered by those who see her as the antithesis of her more commercially viable rival Nicki Minaj.

How Ma hopes to remedy this?

By baring her soul on her new album ‘ ‘7 Winters & 6 Summers’.

Speaking to press at the Essence Festival she shared:

When I was incarcerated, I could not fathom counting the time and the years that they had given me.  I was given 8 years with 5 years post-supervision, which was technically 13 years and I just couldn’t find myself counting like that.

When I left, my son was 7 years old, so to count to 8 or 13 was just like crazy to me.  So I would count based on what I saw outside my window.

Out of my little window, I would see green, which would mean it was Summer… or bare trees, which meant it was Winter.

So if it was green outside and it was like 2010, I was like… ‘just 4 more Summers to go’…

Ultimately by the time I was released, I had did 7 Winters and 6 Summers.

A release date for the album is yet to be locked in.

Will Remy have your support when her album drops?

According to sources, there’s a shake-up over at ‘The Real Housewives Of Atlanta’ and it involves Eva Marcille.

TMZ reports that producers for the show’s highly anticipated 10th season are keen on the ‘America’s Next Top Model’ winner. So much so that she’s already filming “test scenes” with a returning NeNe Leakes.

A selection of prior recruits have had suspect/non-existent ties to ATL pre-joining the show, but Eva’s connection is rock solid. The LA native has been in a long-term relationship with Atlanta based politician Michael Sterling.

The idea, production sources say, is to have her potentially replace Cynthia Bailey or Porsha Williams – two names said to be in danger of reduced roles due to a lack of storyline.

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It’s worth stressing that there have been many a lady who’ve filmed with the cast, sometimes for much of the season, only to be edited out almost entirely come airtime.

That said, Eva would make an excellent addition. At least on paper.

She’s sassy, intelligent, and has an established profile. Crucially, from a storyline standpoint, she also has a lot going on too – namely her budding acting career, a bae, a daughter, and a touch of “baby daddy drama” with Kevin McCall.

It’s a hard call establishing who she’d be a good replacement for.

At 32, she brings the youth appeal Porsha is loved for; while her ‘ANTM’ background makes her a natural successor to former model Cynthia.

Whatever the case, we’d love to see Eva The Diva on the ‘Housewives.’ Would you?

Your thoughts?

JAY-Z set social media alight upon the release of his new album ‘4:44’ last week.

Easily Jigga’s most truth-baring offering yet, the 10-song set saw him wax honest about his infidelity failings, family secrets, and much more.

The candidness of the LP made for immediate connections to his wife Beyonce‘s 2016 release ‘Lemonade,’ which explored similar themes – from the perspective of the wronged woman.

It also saw many sympathize with her plight and celebrate her strength, on the assumption that everything Jay rapped about was fact.

If indeed so, Mrs. Carter certainly is as strong as they come. Especially, as the executive producer of ‘4:44’ has revealed she was heavily involved in the project.

Speaking to the New York Times, No I.D said:

I always call Bey our de facto A&R. Pillow talk is the strongest conversation on the planet. Every song has to get past her ears, in my eyes. She came by a lot and played a good part in helping us get over hurdles on certain records. Of course she’s genius-level with that.

Given the content on ‘4:44,’ it is somewhat surprising to see Beyonce able to approach the record from a purely professional perspective rather than personal.

That said, as a billion dollar empire, a lot of thought clearly goes into the “Carter” brand.

Once built on the premise of “perfection,” the years since “elevator-gate” have seen a shift towards the willing projection of their flaws and fractures. The by-product f which has seen folk become even more fascinated by music’s first family.

Viewed this way, it’d almost be odd if Bey wasn’t involved in ‘4:44’ somehow. It’s their collective life story and, given their artistic chemistry and respect for one another, it figures why she’d be consulted in some capacity.

Anyway, enough of our ranting. What are…

Your thoughts?

This October, Chucky returns.

19 years removed from the arrival of ‘Child’s Play’, the iconic horror figure Chucky swings into action with his latest story ‘Cult of Chucky.’

The project will rock theatres on October 3rd and, much to the delight of the character’s fans, unlocked its very first trailer hours ago.

Ready to reunite with the dark and dangerous villain?

Watch below…

Nica Pierce has spent four years in a mental institution after members of her family were murdered, a crime she did not commit. Her psychiatrist gives her a Good Guy doll as a therapeutic tool. Soon afterwards, a new string of murders take place around the asylum, making Nica suspect that Chucky, the possessed doll behind the crimes she was accused of and whom she has concluded is a figment of her imagination, is behind her predicament. Meanwhile Andy, Chucky’s old nemesis and original child victim, comes to Nica’s aid, while dealing with Tiffany, Chucky’s former wife.

Your thoughts?

From The Vault is back this week with a hit that never was.

Join us as we journey back a decade to 2007 with Nicole Scherzinger, who was eyeing solo domination with her first single ‘Whatever U Like.’

Produced by Polow Da Don and penned by Sean Garrett (two names synonymous with countless hits during that time), the track featured rapper T.I. – who too was at the top of his game.

With all of those ingredients, one would think Nicole had cooked up chart monster, right? Wrong! ‘Like’ peaked at #4… on the Bubbling Under Hot 100. It was the first single from Nic’s equally ill-fated album debut ‘Her Name Is Nicole.’

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The single’s smoking hot video was directed by Paul Hunter and boasted a subtle spy theme. Ever arresting on camera, Scherzinger sizzled in solo dance scenes and showcased ample chemistry with T.I.

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Sadly for this tower of talent, she has never quite been able to achieve her full potential as a soloist. Nicole is the perfect example of just how uncertain and unfair the music industry can be: clearly she has the full package, yet she has never “happened” in the way anticipated.

Still, numbers (or the lack there of) can’t extinguish authentic hotness and this remains fire.

Here’s hoping Scherzy, who celebrated her 39th birthday this week, will one day someday have her “moment.”If not, there’s always a reboot of the Pussycat Dolls?

Your thoughts?