Beyonce & Jay-Z Sign Marriage LicenceWhile Beyonce and Jay-Z continue to remain tight-lipped about their much-talked about wedding two weeks ago, the pair made a very public declaration of their union. This past Friday the pair finally signed their marriage licence – before it expired, according to PEOPLE.com:

Scarsdale Town Clerk Donna Conkling tells PEOPLE the license – which lists the wedding date as April 4 – was received on Friday afternoon. The couple applied for the license just three days before the ceremony.

Interesting. It’s a bit puzzling as to why they left it so long to sign the document – which usually is signed at the actual ceremony….

Any thoughts?

Janet Tour to Kick Off September 11th In news that will, no doubt, please Janet Jackson’s army of fans, the Pop superstar has confirmed to E! Online that her much-anticipated world tour will start on September 11th. According to the ‘Feedback’ singer, promotion for the her album ‘Discipline’ is on-going, with tour rehearsal commencing in a months time. {Source}
While it’s great to see Janet pressing on with promotion and the tour, I sure as hell hope that Def Jam/her people have some plan in place to help shift some more units of the record. After all, healthy album sales, for the most part, equal good ticket sales.

Will you be checking for Janet’s tour?
Fergie Preps 'Dutchess' Re-ReleaseAccording to MTV, Fergie is set to re-release her multi-Platinum smash ‘The Dutchess’. Boasting several new tracks including her collaboration with Nelly, ‘Party People’, as well as ‘Labels & Love’ – the theme of the much-anticipated ‘Sex In The City’ movie, the revamped LP will hit stores on May 27th.
In response to the question of why she decided to re-issue the record, the Black Eyed Peas front-woman was surprisingly candid with her explanation:

That’s what everyone’s doing nowadays, I hear,” she laughed. “The label came to me and said this would be a good idea, and I thought, ‘Well, OK, if this is another way for me to put out these songs that I’ve been wanting people to hear, then great.’ The music business is changing, and this repackage thing is a new way for people to put out songs that they want people to hear, so I’m cool with it.”

Well, at least she was honest. It still baffles me as to why the label would re-issue an almost 2 year old album. Surely everyone who wanted it the first time has it already?

Your thoughts?

Ciara - 'Supernatural' (Snippet) With R&B star Ciara hard at work on her third studio album tentatively titled ‘Fantasy Ride’, a snippet of one of the supposedly featured track has surfaced. Though the smooth mid-tempo ‘Supernatural’ isn’t a bad effort, it certainly leaves a lot to be desired. It’ll be interesting to see what the album, due out in the Autumn, will have on offer – material better than this I should hope.

Hit or Miss?

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Rapper Khia recently made an appearance of VH1 reality show ‘Miss Rap Supreme’ – as a contestant. The show pits new female MC’s against each other, who battle it out for the $100,000 prize money. What Khia was doing on this is beyond me, but check out the hilarity below:

Khia’s Elimination

LMAO at Miss Cherry letting Khia know exactly what she is – a one hit wonder. SMH…

Your thoughts?

As many of you know, the That Grape Juice Facebook Group launched last month. Be it at work, school, college, wherever; I’m sure many of you – like myself – spend countless hours on Facebook. Yes, it’s overly addictive lol.
Combine your daily Urban Pop Culture fix with social networking and come be a part of the ever-growing That Grape Juice Facebook community. Along with the hundreds who have already joined, you’ll be the first to get word on upcoming interviews, competitions and much more. The discussion board/wall will also give you the chance to interact with other ‘Grape Juice readers moreso now than ever before.
It’s an open group, so anyone can join – invite your friends too!
Kanye & Alexis Call It QuitsFollowing mounting speculation, Kanye West’s fiancée Alexis Phifer has confirmed that she and the rapper have, indeed, ended their relationship. The pair had been engaged for a year and a half, having dated on and off since 2002. Check out the report via PEOPLE.com:

“It’s always sad when things like this end, and we remain friends,” Phifer tells PEOPLE. “I wish him the best in his future and all of his endeavors. He’s one of the most talented people I’ve ever met.”

Phifer was spotted on the red carpet sans her engagement ring at an “Evenings in Vogue” event on Thursday night in New York, where her clothing line, Ghita, was featured.

“They’d been having problems,” a pal of West’s says. “Kanye is really focused on his show; he’s putting everything into the show right now. Alexis is a nice girl, but Kanye has been going through a rough time. They hit a rough patch and for now they’ve split.”

According to the friend, Phifer and West, both 30, had been spending less time together in the last few weeks as the Grammy-winning star prepared for his nationwide “Glow in the Dark” tour. “I haven’t seen [Alexis] around at all the last few times I’ve seen him recently,” the friend added.

Another one bites the dust…

Your thoughts?

Mariah Carey Lines Up 'Love Story' In an interview New York’s Hot 97 radio station today, Mariah Carey confirmed that ‘Love Story’ will likely serve as the third single from ‘E=MC²’. Elaborating further, she revealed actor Nick Cannon will both feature in the clip for current single’ Bye Bye’ as well as that of ‘Love Story’, citing a storyline tie-in similar to ‘It’s Like That’ and ‘We Belong Together’ from the ‘Mimi’ record.

Having dropped the light mid-tempo in the form of ‘Touch My Body’ and now the ballad ‘Bye Bye’, the most logical move IMO would be to release club banger ‘Migrate’ next. Granted there’s a strong likelihood that the track will at some point receive the single treatment (according to Mariah), delaying what will inevitably be a hit, especially in favour of ‘Love Story’ doesn’t make much sense to me.

Your thoughts?

Teairra Mari - 'No No No'Former ‘Princess of The Roc’ Teairra Mari is currently prepping her Interscope debut for a summer 2008 release. In the meanwhile, the album’s first single ‘No No No’ has surfaced (via YBF). Though hardly groundbreaking, I’m liking this. The gritty hard-hitting production, as well Teairra’s flow make for a real solid track; her runs toward the end really highlight her growth vocally. Good stuff.


Hit or Miss?
 

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Check out this sneak peek of Alicia Keys on the set of the video for ‘Teenage Love Affair’ – third single from her multi-Platinum effort ‘As I Am’:

The vid looks as if it’ll be her most interesting in a while, concept-wise. Be on the lookout for the full premiere, as it should be anytime from now.

Any thoughts?

Nas - 'Be A N*gger Too'While rapper Nas continues to prep his controversial LP ‘N*gger’ for release on July 1st, a cut from the much-anticipated set has surfaced. ‘Be A N*gger Too’ serves as the first indicator as to what to expect from the album. I know what I’m thinking about this all, but I’m real interested in hearing your take on the song/album’s concept etc.

Hit or Miss?
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Our friends over at The Most Access caught up with the ladies of Cherish on the set of their new video ‘Amnesia’. Check it out:

While the song has grown on me a little more, the video looks set to be a bore. I’m also finding it hard to ignore the striking similarities between this and the clip for their single ‘Unappreciated’. Cherish’s new album ‘The Truth’ hits stores on May 3rd.

Your thoughts?

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