After pushing TLC & Usher to Pop royal status in the 90s the record executive LA Reid set out to do the same with fresh faces as the head of Def Jam in 2005.

Joining him in his mission was the rapper turned exec Jay-Z who, keen to replicate the solo success of his then-girlfriend Beyonce and a ‘Goodies‘-supplying starlet named Ciara– picked up two new artists named Teairra Mari and Rihanna.

The rest as they say is history.

Now, Reid has revealed that Rihanna may not have been treated as a priority at the label if not for moves Beyonce made to support her behind the scenes.

Read below…

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With its star-studded cast featuring the likes of Queen Latifah, Mary J. Blige, Ne-Yo, rapper Common, David Allen Grier, and ‘Orange is the New Black‘s Uzo Aduba, NBC’s highly anticipated live remake of the 70s classic ‘The Wiz’ whizzed right on by all of the competition to top Nielsen’s ratings last night.

Matching its critical acclaim with blockbuster numbers, the soulful musical – the third of NBC’s live remakes – has given the broadcast network its highest Thursday night ratings in 2 years!

Curious to know how many tuned in to watch Dorothy and her crew ease on down the road?  We thought you’d be. Ease on down under the jump and get the numbers:

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The 58th Annual Grammy Awards will take place on February 15th 2016 and will air live from Los Angeles’ Staples Centre armed with appearances by the likes of Bruno Mars, Taylor Swift and ‘Hotline Bling’ mastermind Drake.

Today, before its official nominations are unveiled on December 7th, the ceremony’s submission list has surfaced, revealing which artists and projects have been submitted by their representatives with hopes of nabbing nominations for them in categories that are relevant to them.

Some of the names you can expect to find below?

Beyonce

Janet Jackson

Rihanna

Lana Del Rey

Jazmine Sullivan

Rita Ora

Ciara

Read below…

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Timeless Disney classics like ‘Can You Feel the Love Tonight’ (‘Lion King’), ‘Colors of the Wind’ (‘Pocahontas’), ‘A Whole New World’ (‘Aladdin’), and more are set to get a 2015 remake from a crop of today’s top pop and R&B stars courtesy of the forthcoming compilation album titled ‘We Love Disney.’

Calling on the likes of Ariana Grande, Jessie J, Ne-Yo, Jason Derulo, and Gwen Stefani, the new album – helmed by legendary producer David Foster – is set for release October 30th.

But, before you can get your hands on the new new, tuck in below to get the full track list and see who else will be tackling your fave Disney classics:

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Readers of That Grape Juice know what avid music lovers we are – especially of hits past.

So, just as our retrospective features ‘From the Vault’ and ‘TGJ Replay’  allow us the chance to re-spin the gems and jams of yesterday of one artist, our newest feature Chart Rewind – a variation of our current Retro Rewind assay – accedes salutes to an entire era of music history.

Now, let’s press play on ‘Disturbia,’ a #1 stunner from serial Barbadian hitmaker Rihanna.

Found on the re-release of her 2007 ‘Good Girl Gone Bad’ project,  this week in 2008 the song’s ascension to the summit came as part of a summer long ‘musical chairs’ that saw she, gal pal Katy Perry, and rapper Lil Wayne consistently trade spots at the top and in other parts of the top 10.

Fans may remember after she enjoyed a brief run at #1 with her Ne-Yo-penned hit ‘Take a Bow,’ the song quickly bowed out of the top spot to be replaced by Wayne’s ‘Lollipop’ (which was quickly kissed goodbye by Perry’s ‘I Kissed A Girl’).

Songbird Perry, on the other hand, wasn’t so quick to give up her time on the perch:

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In news that can only be classified as tragic, Bobbi Kristina – daughter of late pop icon Whitney Houston – reportedly expired tonight at the young age of 22.

Krissy, as she was affectionately called by her Grammy award winning mother, had been in a comatose state for seven months before passing away at an Atlanta hospice care center.

Since the story broke, fans and fellow celebrities alike have been pouring out condolences for the Houston and Brown family.  See some of your favorite stars’ weigh in on the tragic news:

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Welcome back to TGJ Replay!

Designed much like our ‘Retro Rewind’ and ‘From the Vault’ features, ‘Replay’ is That Grape Juice‘s newest reflective segment to act as a written quest to re-spin the gems and jams of yesterday. Unlike its TGJ retrospective predecessors, ‘Replay’ looks to dust off and showcase entire albums (and eras) from a library of pop and Urban pop music hits.

Now, as her faithful #Navy await official news on the release of “R8” – the eighth full length studio album from music’s leading bad gal Rihanna, we pon de replay with an ode to her sophomore effort ‘A Girl Like Me.’

“Everything on this album is from a female’s perspective.  This album is very personal to me and everything’s coming from my point of view…” – Rihanna, 2006

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BET are turning all the way up for the 15th anniversary of the BET Awards.

This Sunday sees the annual extravaganza aptly air live from LA Live at the Nokia Theater, with a line-up that continues to grow more titillating by the day.

For, it has been announced that a slew of new names have joined the list of already confirmed performers set to rock the stage in just 48 hours.

Details below…

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1) Beyonce – Resentment

2) Fifth Harmony – Everlasting Love

3) Ne-Yo – Coming With You

4)  Ciara – Dance Like We’re Making Love

5) Joe – All The Things

What are Your Top 5 Songs of The Moment?

Lil Wayne’s feud with Young Thug has reached a new low.

For, the latter has been linked to a shooting that threatened to end the Young Money royal’s life.

A serious matter below…

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2015’s first and second quarter have already delivered some of R&B’s most anticipated offerings.  From Jazmine Sullivan and Ciara to Ne-Yo and Jamie Foxx, Urban music lovers have been granted no shortage of gems to add to their collections.

Now, from the looks of things, the third and fourth quarters are looking to follow suit. With new album announcements coming from the likes of Janet Jackson, Brandy, Monica, Tamar Braxton, Toni Braxton, Ashanti, Chrisette Michele, and more, tuck in below to see what else is new from Melanie Fiona, Jussie Smollett, Ginuwine, and Floetry…

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Jennifer Hudson and Brandy look like they’ll have some Grammy winning company on season 2 of FOX’s breakaway hit ‘Empire’ in the form of Alicia Keys and Lenny Kravitz.

Get the details below:

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