Mariah In The Studio With Timbaland

It appears Mariah Carey finally got the memo that she needs to switch it up with this new album of hers; the singer confirmed on her Twitter page today that she is in the studio with hit-maker Timbaland. Though little else is known about her as-yet untitled 12th studio album, Carey, 39, has gone on record to say she is eyeing an August release for the LP.
Having really disappointed last go round with ‘E=MC2’, I’m really hoping Mariah delivers this go round; and hooking up with Timbaland, who – correct me if wrong – she hasn’t worked with before, is definitely a step in the right direction.
Randomness: I assure you all that the Ciara interview will be up anyime now. While there is just reason for the delay, which I’ll be updating you guys on shortly, I understand that folk will only react to what they know. Which at this point is that it hasn’t been posted yet! LOL. Be on the look-out for news on some MAJOR changes coming to That Grape Juice soon.
Your thoughts?
Pop superstar Janet Jackson recently celebrated her 43rd birthday. To commemorate the occasion, the singer’s hitmaker boyfriend Jermaine Durpi got the above tattoo, which stretches right down his torso.
Wow…
Your thoughts?

Michael Jackson and his team today released an exclusive video of the selection process for the dancers for his upcoming ‘This Is It’ comeback shows in London, as well as early rehearsal footage. A real interesting watch, I must say. Roll on July 8th!
Your thoughts?

Jamie Foxx performed his current chart-topper ‘Blame It’ on The Ellen Degeneres Show today. 
While the performance itself was kinda blah (and a lil’ weird at times, with Jamie’s twirling around and running LOL), I’m loving the song. Evidently, many others do too; ‘Blame It’ recently broke TLC’s record with ‘No Scrubs’ for the longest period spent at the top of the Rhythmic / Urban chart – 12 weeks. 
What do you think of the performance?
Yung Joc Takes Bay Boy To Court
All is not well with Yung Joc and his label of 3 years, Bad Boy; the ‘It’s Goin’ Down’ rapper is taking the Diddy-helmed label to court over mishandled finances. Peep the report below via our friends over at Rap-Up.com
Yung Joc is no longer staying quiet when it comes to his business dealings with Sean “Diddy” Combs’ Bad Boy Records. Last week in New York City, the Georgia native told Rap-Up.com that he plans to take the label to court after executives attempted to coerce him into signing documents.
“[They’re] giving me ultimatums about signing agreements or they won’t put out my album, just like that,” Joc reveals.
Now that the rapper, most noted for his 2006 smash “It’s Goin’ Down,” has gone public with the news of the court proceedings, he’s airing out Bad Boy’s dirty laundry. “They owe me some things,” he says. “It’s a big situation. I’m paying for royalties, I’m paying for advances.”
His frustrations with the label arose when he repeatedly received questions from concerned fans pondering his next album release. “I figured, maybe if I shine some light on it, then someone will see what the fuck I’m going through,” Joc admits. “I’m tired of my fans saying, ‘When’s your album coming?’ and I keep telling them, ‘It’s coming soon.’ ’Cause it makes people feel like you ain’t got nothing, like you searchin’. And I got records that’s ready to go right now.”
Yung Joc signed to Bad Boy in 2006 with the help of Block Enterprises founder Russell “Block” Spencer. Joc went on to release two albums under the Bad Boy imprint, New Joc City and Hustlenomics.
His third effort, titled Mr. Robinson’s Neighborhood, is set for release this year on his label, Swagg Team Entertainment, an imprint under the Jive Records umbrella.
This comes as both a surprise and not so surprising. Not surprising in that artists have been screaming for the longest time about the shadyness of their deals over at Bad Boy (See: 112, Total, Danity Kane), yet it’s surprising as Joc seems to be one of the few to actually do something about it – so publicly as well. It’ll be interesting to see how this one unfolds…
Your thoughts?

Soulful songstress Teedra Moses recently hit London for live show. While over here, SoulCulture.co.uk sat down with the singer, who opened up about the bankruptcy of her former label TVT, the status of her new album (it’s good news!) and much much more. Check out the interview above.
I really am salivating for a new Teedra album; ‘Complex Simplicity’ epitomises ‘the business’ and is a must-have for any R&B fan. Here’s hoping Ms. Moses’ new material delivers the goods…
Your thoughts? 

R&B songstress Jazmine Sullivan released her Grammy nominated LP ‘Fearless’ internationally this week. Peep her rendition of Seal’s classic ‘Kiss From A Rose’ during a promotional spot on France’s Taratata show. 
Awesome performance! I really enoyed this; not over-done and complimenting to her vocals, as well as musical style overall. 
What do you think of the performance?

Jade Ewen, the UK’s entry for the Eurovision Song Contest took to the stage a few moments ago, giving her rendition of the Andrew Lloyd-Webber composed ‘My Time’. 
While I hope she does win, I must say I think Jade is head and shoulders above the contest and should, in reality, be competing with the likes of Alexandra and co on the charts as opposed to this tacky contest. That said, the cliche ballad has grown on me and Jade knocked it out of the park with her performance. 
Check back in this post to see how Jade fared in the scores…
What do you think of the song / performance?

Interview coming in the next couple of days

A radiant looking Jennifer Hudson appeared on the Today Show…today LOL. The Grammy and Oscar winner stopped by to promote her tour with Robin Thicke as well as her debut self-titled LP. Aside from Jennifer’s great-as-usual performances, which you can see below, the interview with the show’s host Matt Lauer was real interesting. Interesting in that it was unnerving and totally uncalled for; despite Jennifer’s best efforts to move on to another topic, Lauer was adamant on talking about the well-documented tragedy which struck the Hudson’s last October. What an a**! Anyway, peep the performances below:


Your thoughts?
We’ve received official word from LeToya Luckett’s team that ‘She Ain’t Got Sh!t’ on me is the album’s next single. Click here to listen to the song, if you’ve not heard it yet…
I’m glad they went with this; it’s the best I’ve heard from LeToya’s new material thus far.
In other LeToya news, check out Ms. Luckett belting out the US national anthem at the Lakers vs Rockets basketball game last week: 

Wow. She did great; her voice really has matured a lot.

Your thoughts?



American Idol winner Jordin Sparks returned to the show which propelled her to stardom last night to perform ‘Battlefield’, the lead single from her as-yet-untitled sophomore album. 
As one that has never really been big on Jordin, I must say she gave a great performance; she’s definitely matured as a live performer. Good stuff.
What do you think of the song / performance?
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