Keepingitreal

Whitney Houston Million Dollar Bill

 

CLICK HERE TO HEAR "MILLION DOLLAR BILL!"

Artist: Whitney Houston Title: Million Dollar Bill Label: Arista Records Total Tracks: 1 External Release 08-07-2009 Artist Website: www.whitneyhouston.com

Real Housewives of ATL - More Drama

K-Fed's Belly May Make Him Rich

Call it turning lemons into sugar-free lemonade.A pleasantly plump Kevin Federline has reportedly been offered a seven-figure deal to endorse a new weight loss product, reports RadarOnline.com.The full-figured former Mr. Spears has been waddling around town lately—and has reportedly been ordered to shed 45 pounds for an upcoming reality-TV series.Federline, whose glory days as a fit and firm back-up dancer for Britney Spears are far behind him, is considering a deal with the company EP-2 (Extreme Physical Performance) that would bring him $2.5 million. EP2online.com offers a variety of fat-burning tools, including ones with names like "Musclepump" and "Andritest," which claims to be "clinically-proven to jack testerone levels faster" than other musclebuilding agents.While Federline’s rep has yet to confirm the deal, a representative for EP2 said, "Yes, we’re trying to do a deal with him, but nothing has been confirmed yet."In the meantime, Federline is also trying to trim the fat the old-fashioned way: diet and exercise. To gear up for his upcoming VH1 reality show, which is said to feature his girlfriend Victoria Prince and his two children by Spears, Sean Preston and Jayden James, Federline has adopted a strict high-protein diet. He’s also hired trainer to the stars Chris Cormier.Cormier said he’s restricted K-Fed’s chowing down to egg whites, salmon, chicken and steamed vegetables. Said Cormier, "I put Kevin on a diet plan that consists of eating 6 meals a day, every three hours. It speeds up your body’s metabolism and you start burning fat fast."He’s apparently enjoying a last hurrah, though, as he was recently spotted in Vegas’ Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Pool—with fries and soda in hand. He spent the day lounging with his girlfriend poolside and later sipped Grey Goose cocktails at the night club, Wasted Space.Someone should tell K-Fed that just because it’s Grey Goose, it doesn’t mean he’ll lose the beer belly.  SOURCE: POPEATER

Second professor accuses police of bias

A second black Harvard professor accused the Cambridge police of racism yesterday in wrongfully arresting him outside his home nearly three years ago. S. Allen Counter, a prominent Harvard Medical School professor and head of the Harvard Foundation for Intercultural and Race Relations, spoke about his arrest on assault and battery charges in an editorial published yesterday with The Bay State Banner. The disclosure follows last month’s high-profile arrest of renowned African-American scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. Counter’s attorney, Ozell Hudson Jr., told the Globe yesterday that Counter is considering his legal options over the manner he says he was treated after he complied with a request to step outside his house in December 2006 when police arrived to investigate a call by his former wife. She reported to police that Counter had tried to push their teenage daughter out of a moving car during an argument. (Continue Reading…)

New LisaRaye Reality Series on TV One

LisaRaye, the beautiful, outspoken star of film and television and First Lady of the Turks and Caicos, is moving forward with her new life, and TV One will be there to capture the unvarnished journey in a new reality series slated to go into production this fall. TV One announced the new series at the summer meeting of the Television Critics Association. To be filmed in Los Angeles and the Turks and Caicos, the new reality series will follow the star of TV One’s All of Us as she works to fully re-establish her critically acclaimed acting career, while balancing a far-flung and complex personal life. The half-hour, eight episode series is slated to premiere in spring 2010. (Continue Reading…)

Sonia Sotomayor won confirmation Thursday as the nation's first Hispanic Supreme Court justice.

WASHINGTON (Aug. 6) - Sonia Sotomayor won confirmation Thursday as the nation's first Hispanic Supreme Court justice, a history-making Senate vote that capped a summer-long debate heavy with ethnic politics and hints of high court fights to come. The third woman in court history, she'll be sworn in Saturday as the 111th justice and the first nominated by a Democrat in 15 years.With her Senate confirmation Thursday, Sonia Sotomayor, 55, is due to become the first Hispanic member of the Supreme Court. She's scheduled to be sworn in on Saturday.The Senate vote was 68-31 to confirm Sotomayor, President Barack Obama's first Supreme Court nominee, with Democrats unanimously behind her but most Republicans lining up in a show of opposition both for her and for the president's standards for a justice. The 55-year-old daughter of Puerto Rican parents was raised in a South Bronx housing project and educated in the Ivy League before rising to the highest legal echelons, spending the past 17 years as a federal judge. She watched the vote on TV at a federal courthouse in New York City, among friends and colleagues.>Republicans argued she'd bring personal bias and a liberal agenda to the bench. But Democrats praised Sotomayor as an extraordinarily qualified mainstream moderate and touted her elevation to the court as a milestone in the nation's journey toward greater equality and a reaffirmation of the American dream. Obama, the nation's first black president, praised the Senate's vote as "breaking another barrier and moving us yet another step closer to a more perfect union." He planned to welcome Sotomayor at the White House next week. Minutes before the vote, Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., the Judiciary Committee chairman, called it one for the ages. "Years from now ... we will remember this time when we crossed paths with the quintessentially American journey of Sonia Sotomayor."Senators took the rare step of assembling at their desks for the vote, rising from their seats to call out "aye" or "nay." The longest-serving senator, 91-year-old Robert Byrd of West Virginia who has been in frail health following a long hospitalization, was brought in in a wheelchair to vote in Sotomayor's favor. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., suffering from brain cancer, was the only senator absent. Sotomayor replaces retiring Justice David Souter, a liberal named by a Republican president, and she is not expected to alter the court's ideological split. Still, Republicans and Democrats were deeply at odds over confirming Sotomayor, and the battle over her nomination highlighted profound philosophical disagreements that will shape future fights over the court's makeup as Obama looks to another likely vacancy — perhaps more than one — while he's in the White House. In the final tally, nine Republicans joined majority Democrats and the Senate's two independents to support Sotomayor's confirmation. They included the Senate's few GOP moderates and its lone Hispanic Republican, retiring Sen. Mel Martinez of Florida, as well as conservative Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, the party's third-ranking leader. SOURCE: AOL NEWS

CHART TOPPING ARTIST PITBULL READIES RELEASE OF BRAND NEW ALBUM, REBELUTION, ON AUGUST 31ST

(New York - August 4, 2009) – Chart-topping entertainer Pitbull makes his highly anticipated return to the mic with the debut of his new solo LP, Rebelution.  After dominating the charts for five solid months with his single “I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho),” which peaked at #2 on Billboard’s Hot 100 Chart and has sold 1.6 million digital singles, the infectious song remains in the top 10 on the Top 40 Charts.  Joining it is Pitbull’s latest, “Hotel Room Service,” which currently holds the #6 position on the Rhythmic charts.  Rebelution, which will be released through Pitbull’s Mr. 305 imprint via Polo Grounds Music/J/RCA Music Group, will hit shelves and online on August 31st.

 

Boasting production from beatmakers such as Play N Skillz, Clinton Sparks and Grammy Award winning Jim Jonsin and featuring guests T-Pain, Akon, Lil Jon, Trick Daddy and Slim of 112, Pitbull will stake his claim as one of the best emcees in the game, showcasing his undeniable lyrical skills throughout the album’s entirety.  While the official first single, “Hotel Room Service,” makes its way up the charts, the accompanying music video, directed by David Rousseau, made its debut on August 3rd on MTV Hits.

 

As he readies for the long awaited release of Rebelution, Pitbull is also celebrating his three Teen Choice Award nominations for Best Rap Artist, Best Rap/Hip Hop Track and Best Summer Song for “I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho).” These nominations come on the heels of his winning the Billboard Latin Music Award for “Latin Digital Download Artist of the Year” for his hit single “Krazy.”

 

Selling over a million albums throughout his career, Pitbull has proved that he has true staying power.  He is fresh off of his first ever Jimmy Kimmel Live performance and currently has two songs on iTunes Hot 100 and 11 songs on iTunes Latino Hot 100, indicating that his fans are eagerly awaiting his next offering.

 

Pitbull will kick-off his worldwide Rebelution Tour at the Harrah’s Casino in Valley Center, CA on September 18th with a final show on October 23rd at the Fillmore in Charlotte, NC, after which he will embark internationally through Canada and Europe through the end of November.  For cities and dates, please log on to www.planetpit.com. 

 

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Today's Papers: Journalists Are Free at Last

All the papers give top billing to North Korea pardoning the two detained American journalists after former President Bill Clinton met with dictator Kim Jong Il in Pyongyang. Euna Lee and Laura Ling of Current TV, who had been sentenced to 12 years of hard labor, left North Korea this morning with Clinton on a private jet. USA Today and the Wall Street Journal report that the two journalists were told in July that they would be set free if Clinton visited North Korea. The journalists told their families, who then got in touch with the administration. The New York Times says it was Clinton's vice president, Al Gore, co-founder of Current TV, who asked the former president to take the trip 10 days ago. The Washington Post says the administration's first choice for the trip was Gore, but North Korea rejected that suggestion.

Although White House officials took pains to emphasize that Clinton traveled to North Korea as a private citizen, everyone notes that the administration did make sure that the journalists would be released if the former president made the trip. The Los Angeles Times declares that the pardon "may have reopened the channels of communication between the Obama administration and the secretive regime." North Korean state media reported that Clinton "expressed words of sincere apology to Kim Jong Il for the hostile acts committed by the two American journalists" and also conveyed a message from President Obama about the need to improve relations between the two countries. Administration officials denied that Clinton apologized, and insisted he didn't relay a message from Obama.

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Obama Officials: Taxes may rise to pay for Healthcare

Two of President Barack Obama's economic heavyweights said middle-class taxes might have to go up to pare budget deficits or to pay for the proposed overhaul of the nation's health care system.The tough talk from Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and National Economic Council Director Lawrence Summers on Sunday capped a week that brought rare good news for the economy: The worst recession in the United States since World War II could be on the verge of ending. Even so, officials appeared willing to extend unemployment benefits. Geithner and Summers both sidestepped questions on Obama's intentions about taxes. Geithner said the White House was not ready to rule out a tax hike to reduce the federal deficit; Summers said Obama's proposed health care overhaul needs funding from somewhere. "There is a lot that can happen over time," Summers said, adding that the administration believes "it is never a good idea to absolutely rule things out, no matter what." During his presidential campaign, Obama repeatedly pledged "you will not see any of your taxes increase one single dime." But the simple reality remains that his ambitious overhaul of how Americans receive health care — promised without increasing the federal deficit — must be paid for. "If we want an economy that's going to grow in the future, people have to understand we have to bring those deficits down. And it's going to be difficult, hard for us to do. And the path to that is through health care reform," Geithner said. "We're not at the point yet where we're going to make a judgment about what it's going to take." On Friday, a report detailed the economy dipped only slightly in the second quarter of this year — falling at a 1 percent annual pace, better than expected. The government report permitted optimism that the economic downturn is approaching its end. The president cautioned against instant turnaround, though. "Well as I've said, I think we maybe are beginning to see the end of the recession but it's still going to be some time before we are seeing companies hiring again, that's usually the last thing that happens," Obama said in an interview with Univision that aired on Sunday.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/08/02/national/w102746D39.DTL#ixzz0NJdl8TV9

U.S. ruling: State must cut prison population

(08-04) 21:12 PDT -- A federal court panel ordered California on Tuesday to reduce the population of its bulging prisons by 40,000 over the next two years to meet constitutional standards for inmate health care and said it could be done without releasing dangerous prisoners to the streets.

"The convergence of tough-on-crime policies and an unwillingness to expend the necessary funds to support the population growth has brought California's prisons to the breaking point," the three-judge panel said. Unless the courts intervene, the panel said, inmates will continue to suffer and die needlessly because prisons lack the space and the staff to treat them.

By changing parole practices and releasing some low-risk inmates to local custody, treatment programs or electronic monitoring, the prison population can be reduced "without a meaningful adverse impact on public safety," the judges said.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's administration immediately announced that it would appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The state needs to reduce prison crowding on its own, by lowering the inmate population and building more prisons, but "we just don't think the federal courts should be ordering us to take those steps," state Corrections Secretary Matthew Cate said.

Don Specter, a lawyer for prisoners who sued the state over health care, said the ruling allows California to "finally fix the horrible problems caused by prison overcrowding, and do so in a way that will not harm public safety but will make us all safer."

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/08/05/MN1P193TJK.DTL&tsp=1#ixzz0NJcKhXVJ

Real Housewifes ATL: Mother's Approval

Naomi Sims, 61, Pioneering Cover Girl, Is Dead

Naomi Sims, whose appearance as the first black model on the cover of Ladies’ Home Journal in November 1968 was a consummate moment of the Black is Beautiful movement, and who went on to design successful collections of wigs and cosmetics for black women under her name, died Saturday in Newark. She was 61 and lived in Newark.

She died of cancer, said her son, Bob Findlay. Ms. Sims is sometimes referred to as the first black supermodel. “Naomi was the first,” the designer Halston told The New York Times in 1974. “She was the great ambassador for all black people. She broke down all the social barriers.”

Ms. Sims often said childhood insecurities and a painful upbringing — living in foster homes, towering over her classmates and living in a largely poor white neighborhood in Pittsburgh — had inspired her to strive to become “somebody really important” at a time when cultural perceptions of black Americans were being challenged by the civil rights movement and a renewed stress on racial pride.

When Ms. Sims arrived in New York on a scholarship to attend the Fashion Institute of Technology in 1966, there was very little interest in fashion for black models and only a handful who had been successful, like Dorothea Towles Church, who starred in the couture shows in 1950s Paris, and Donyale Luna, who was named Vogue’s model of the year in 1966.

In need of money, Ms. Sims, with her heart-shaped face and long limbs, was encouraged by classmates and counselors to give it a try. But every agency she approached turned her down, some telling her that her skin was too dark.

Undeterred, Ms. Sims decided to approach photographers herself. Gosta Peterson, a photographer for The Times, agreed to photograph her for the cover of its August 1967 fashion supplement, then called Fashions of The Times.

Jackson's Mom Breaks Her Silence

Speaking out for the first time since the death of her son, Katherine Jackson says she definitely thinks that there was some sort of foul play involved in Michael Jackson's passing. In an interview on 'Geraldo at Large,' (via ETOnline), Jackson told Geraldo Rivera that she doesn't believe the King of Pop died naturally. "All I know is that my son is dead, and I don't think he just died of natural causes or whatever," she said.

Katherine, who is now the primary guardian of Jackson's three children, says that the kids "are doing fine." She also used her airtime to clear up any doubts about her husband and his parenting abilities, given that Prince Michael, Paris and Prince Michael II now live with them. I don't know why they're saying he's not being allowed in the house. My husband's never done nothing of the sort that they trying to say he did 39 years ago. I don't understand that, and I just believe it's something that they cooked up," she said. SOURCE: POP EATER

NEW MUSIC: MARY J. BLIGE - “STRONGER“

♫ Mary J. Blige - Stronger

♫ ALTERNATE LINK ♫

As we reported earlier, Mary J. Blige has revealed the title of her new album,Stronger. Well, check out the title track above featuring singer Chris Brown on vocals. He reportedly co-wrote the song as well. “Stronger” was co-produced by Hit Boy for Surf Club and Polow Da Don. Mary’s 9th studio album will hits stores on November 24th via Geffen Records and will feature productions from Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins, Tricky Stewart & The Dream, as we all as long-time friend and contributor, Bryan-Michael Cox.The song is also featured in the upcoming Lebron James Basketball documentary,MORE THAN GAME (in select theaters on October 2nd).