Rihanna Tops Billboard Hot 100 Rihanna’s latest single has rocketed to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, making history in the process. Check out the report via Billboard:

The song’s bump is the second-best leap to No. 1 in Hot 100 history, trailing only Maroon 5’s 64-1 jump with “Makes Me Wonder” last May. Coincidentally, Rihanna is featured on the band’s “If I Never See Your Face Again” which will debut tomorrow at No. 57. With the lofty digital take, Rihanna now owns two of the top three opening week download tallies in chart history. Mariah Carey’s “Touch My Body” set the mark with 286,000 last month, surpassing the 277,000 moved by Rihanna’s “Umbrella” when it debuted in the June 9, 2007 issue. “Take a Bow” is one of four new songs on an expanded CD/DVD edition of Rihanna’s “Good Girl Gone Bad” album, due June 17 via Def Jam.

Call me a hater or whatever, but that is some garbage right there. Simple as. It’s very disheartening to see an artist put out any old rubbish (and ‘Take A Bow’ is rubbish IMO), and hit the top if the charts. In all fairness to Rihanna, even the best artists have had wack songs perform very well; but it’s getting a little worrying when the top spot seems to be occupied by whoever’s ‘shove (insert artist name) down your throat…till you like it’ promo team did the best job. SMH…


Does ‘Take A Bow’ deserve to be #1?
Nelly's 'Brass Knuckles' Pushed BackWord has it that Nelly’s latest LP ‘Brass Knuckles’ has been pushed back yet again. The St. Louis native had been set to release the album on June 24th, following a series of unmet release dates prior. The record is now slated to hit stores on August 19th. It’s worth noting that ‘Brass Knuckles’ was set to compete with efforts by The Game, G-Unit as well as Ne-Yo which were set to drop on the same date – yet all have been delayed.
I’m guessing the label are going for the 2 single approach, having already released ‘Party People’ (which seems to have peaked at #40 on the Billboard Hot 100). Here’s hoping all these push-backs don’t reach the stupendous levels seen last year by the likes of Mya, Mario etc.

Any thoughts?
R&B star and American Idol (Season 3) winner Fantasia returned to the Idol stage yesterday to perform on the elimination show. Sporting a new highlight red ‘do, she gave a rousing performance of ‘Bore Me (Yawn) from her self-titled sophomore set. Check it out:

For all her hollering and ‘church wailing’, I must say that Fantasia ‘brought it’ and then some. Even with the song not really being catered to that audience, she still managed to engage the studio audience. Definitely anticipating the new album. Good stuff.

What do you think of the performance?

G-Unit - 'T.O.S.' CoverOur friends over at RapUp.com, revealed the official album art for G-Unit’s forthcoming album ‘Terminate On Site (T.O.S) ‘.
Kinda off-topic, but is anyone actually still checking for 50 and G-Unit? It’s the 106 & park interview (from a few days ago) that did it for me; 50 certainly isn’t as hot of a commodity as he once was and Banks and Yayo seem content in playing second fiddle. Something about them seems so…pathetic.

Your thoughts?
BET Awards 2008 Nominations AnnouncedThe nominations for the 2008 BET Awards were announced yesterday (May 15th).
Rapper T-Pain leads the pack with 5 nominations. Kanye West and Keyshia Cole received three nominations a piece. While Mary J. Blige, Alicia Keys, and Flo Rida received two each.
The UK’s own Estelle received a nomination in the Best New Artist category.
Confirmed performers for the June 24th ceremony include Mariah Carey, Usher, Lil’ Wayne, Mary J. Blige and Nelly.

Granted T-Pain’s success is undeniable, it says a lot about the industry when he is leading the field among artists whose talent far outweigh his.

Your thoughts?

Review up shortly…

In the meanwhile…

What do you think of the video?

Check out this video that surfaced recently of BET 106 & Park host Rocsi laying into 50 Cent, when questioned about the ’50 Cent vs Kanye’ chart battle :

I’m kinda taken a-back by her the looseness of her comments. Can’t say I disagree, though LOL. Anyway, peep Rocsi interviewing 50 and the G-Unit yesterday on 106 & Park:

Interesting contrast LMAO…

Any thoughts?

Janet At Alexander McQueen LaunchTaking a break from tour rehearsal, Janet Jackson made an appearance at the flagship store launch of Alexander McQueen Boutique in Los Angeles yesterday. Different is definitely the word for this ensemble, but I must say Ms. Jackson did pull it off rather well.

What do you think of the pic?

Newly married diva Mariah Carey stopped by the Ellen Degeneres Show earlier this week to talk about her much-publicized marriage to Nick Cannon. I guess this is legit as it’s going to get – straight from the horses mouth.

Any thoughts?

Ciara Gets Conceptual On 'Fantasy Ride'Billboard.com have revealed some very interesting details about Ciara forthcoming studio album ‘Fantasy Ride’:

R&B singer Ciara has slated her third album, “Fantasy Ride,” for a September release via Jive. Rather than one standard CD, the music will be spread across three separately packaged discs, bundled together, each with five to six songs catering to a different theme.

The first disc is called “Groove City” and will contain sensual songs like “Promise,” while the second disc is called “Crunktown” and includes tracks akin to Ciara’s 2004 introductory single, “Goodies.” Finally, the up-tempo “Kingdom of Dance” will showcase Ciara’s house-leaning, freestyle-tinged cuts.

Producer Tricky Stewart, who crafted Rihanna’s “Umbrella,” is co-executive-producing the project along with Ciara. Danja is helming both “Crunktown” and “Kingdom of Dance,” while “Groove City” is led by Tricky and Jasper.

An official single will drop in June, according to the label.

Now that’s what I’m talking about! Despite Ciara being immensely talented, I oft wonder how she’d be able to take it to the next level artistically and leave a lasting impression Ala the Beyonce’s and co etc. This, her latest venture, really seems to be her real ‘evolution’.


Your thoughts?
Diddy & Cassie: Is It Official?
I guess the 2 year mystery as to how exactly Cassie secured her record deal has been solved – granted the majority of us knew already. Check out the Bad Boy mogul and the talent challenged ‘singer’ snapped looking very couple-like in New York’s Central Park…on Mother’s Day. Kim Porter, where are you?
Diddy & Cassie: Is It Official?

Your thoughts?

Ashanti - 'Body On Me' (Full) (ft. Nelly & Akon) With the snippet of Ashanti’s latest single ‘Body On Me’ making the rounds earlier this week, it was inevitable that the full version of the cut would surface not long after. Put simply, the track is a winner IMO and has ‘summer hit’ written all over it. My only gripe is that, with just one verse and backing vocals, Ashanti sounds like a feature artist on her own song. Still, this has me more than amped for ‘The Declaration’s’ June 3rd release date.
Update: Confirmed to have been mixed by a fan with the Nelly & Akon version floating around.

Hit or Miss?

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