Happy Friday, young world. It’s been a whole five days and
things still keep keeping on. Whether it’s flood waters seriously threatening
residents of Fargo, North Dakota, Obama fighting critics while revealing his
plans to overcome the financial crisis or the continued saga surrounding that
damn Octomom, we made it through in one piece.
R.I.P. to Motown Records drummer Uriel Jones, who died
Tuesday (March 24) after complications from heart disease. Congratulations to
Bruce Willis, who married his girlfriend, model/actress Emma Heming on Saturday
(March 21). Shout out to Harrison Ford, who finally popped the question to
longtime girlfriend Calista Flockhart, legendary Motown singing group The
Miracles, who recently received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and the
sounding boards for taking life one day at a time.
Here’s the lowdown…the Last Word for the week ending March
27, 2009
1. Timbaland Files Jealous Lawsuit Against Record Label
When it comes to achieving success, jealousy is a mother.
Even the most loyal friends can turn on each other if one blows up quicker than
those he or she came up with. But getting it from a record label is just…well,
here’s the story:
TMZ reports Timbaland is suing his label, Blackground
Records, amid claims that the label is jealous of his success as a producer. So
much so that Timbaland believes Blackground is intentionally making moves to
blackball him by contacting various labels and giving them a gang of reason as
to why they shouldn’t hire Mr. Mosley to construct beats for whatever project
they want him for.
Prior to producing for everybody from Duran Duran to Madonna
to Jay-Z and Justin Timberlake, Timbaland says he never heard anything negative
from Blackground when he initially decided to go from “performer” to “producer.”
The lawsuit, which was filed Wednesday (March 25) in Federal District Court,
further accuses Blackground of shorting Timbaland out of lots of money.
The beatmaker is seeking a release from his contract with
the label as well as unspecified damages. And we wonder why our legal system is
so messed up. But then again, stranger things have caused people to bring their
business to a courtroom near you. It truly makes you wonder…
2. Kim Kardashian Makes Hustler’s P### Spoof List
Looks like the ghost of Kim Kardashian’s p### past is coming
back to bite her. TMZ.com reports that the former Dancing With the Stars contestant and her family are very upset about a new
Kardashian-inspired p### video that’s coming out. The film, titled Keeping
it Up For the KardASSians, is a XXX spoof
of the clan’s#### E! reality show, Keeping Up With the Kardashians.
As a result, the Kardashians are “taking legal action”
against Hustler Entertainment and E! Entertainment is also considering taking
the company to task in light of the “whistly theme song” sounding similarly to
the one used on the reality show.
And if you’re still looking for more on Kim, she’s speaking
out about pictures of her from Complex
magazine. The photos, which came from a cover shoot for the publication, show
the future Mrs. Reggie Bush before the Photoshop revisions and after.
According to Kardashian, the pics are not that big of a
deal.
“So what: I have a little cellulite. What curvy girl
doesn’t?” the celebutante wrote on a blog on her official website, adding that
she was preparing for her fitness DVD at the time of the Complex photo shoot. “How many people do you think are
Photoshopped? It happens all the time!”
All the talk about the photos has inspired Kim to work out
even harder at the gym, which she sees as a good thing.
“I’m proud of my body and my curves and this picture coming
out is probably helpful for everyone to see that just because I am on the cover
of a magazine doesn’t mean I’m perfect.”
We know you’re not perfect Kim. You got flaws like everybody
else. How else could you explain grabbing a few headlines for doing nothing but
hanging out and being beautiful? So be proud of your curves and be proud that Hustler thought enough of you to do a freaky parody. After
all, it’s not easy perfecting the art of not being perfect.
3. Isaiah Washington Takes Delinquent Steps Towards
Homelessness
It’s one thing to get kicked off a hit TV show. It’s another
to get kicked out of your home. But leave it to Isaiah Washington to find
common ground between the two.
Media sources report that the former Grey’s Anatomy star and his wife, Jenisa, are facing the real
possibility of being homeless. The couple was served with a three-day notice
that was posted on their Venice, Calif. home by their landlord.
At the heart of all of this are allegations that the
Washingtons owe $100,000 in rent. Court documents filed Tuesday (March 24) in
Los Angeles Superior Court by Sandalwood Properties state the Washingtons
haven’t paid rent on their $20,000 a month residence since November. The couple
entered into a leasing agreement with the company on April 1, 2008 to purchase
the canal front property for $3,650,000. According to TMZ, Isaiah was having a
dispute with his financial guy and told his landlord he was in the process of
getting his money back so he could pay his rent.
The notice, which was posted Tuesday, stated the couple has
three days to pay what they owe or move out of the home. A hearing on the
matter is set for May 13. E! News reports that Sandalwood Properties is seeking
attorney’s fees and damages at a rate of $3,333.33 per day for each day after
April 1 that the family remains in the residence.
Apparently Isaiah has lived up to his namesake and has only
a pocket full of Washingtons for his troubles. What he needs to do is make
friends with Uncle Benjamin or find out whose face is on the G-note. Let’s hope
Mr. Washington doesn’t resort to standing on corner with a sign saying “I Will
Act for Shelter.” Or at least a value meal at the local eatery.
4. Michael Jackson Reps Bring Farrakhan into Auction
Drama
Despite being one of the most influential singers ever,
Michael Jackson doesn’t strike most people as someone who can make good on a
physical beatdown.
Unless, of course, you’re trying to auction off “priceless and irreplaceable” items he
still has a soft spot for.
According to The Associated Press, the King of Pop sent his reps to persuade Julien’s
Auctions to cancel a planned sale of the crooner’s most prized possessions.
Items on the auction block include one of Jackson’s signature black fedoras,
two of his MTV Video Music Awards, costumes he wore on tour in the 1980s and
several crystal-encrusted gloves.
Although Jackson hired Julien’s to sell the items, he seems
to have had a change of heart. In
short, Michael wants his stuff back. By any means necessary.
Which explains why Jackson filed a lawsuit this moth,
claiming he never gave permission to sell any of the items being auctioned off.
Julien’s filed their own court documents as the company argues that until last
month, Jackson gave them permission to sell his stuff. In a sworn statement,
Julien’s president Darren Julien detailed a Feb. 9 encounter at a LA based fast
food restaurant where he says MJ’s reps warned that if he didn’t cancel the event,
the auctioneers would be in danger “from Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam.”
Julien maintains that Jackson and his business manager
“wanted to give the message to us ‘that our lives are at stake and there will
be bloodshed,’” An attorney for Jackson’s MJJ Productions countered Julien’s
statement, as he labeled the efforts as “scurrilous attacks.” The case is
scheduled to go to court on April 3, while the auction is slated to take place
April 21.
Am I crazy or does Michael really have enough pull to drag
Min. Farrakhan into this personal drama, let alone utilize the Nation to issue
a threat on his behalf? That’s like the majority of beef between rappers. Just
wanna be startin’ something.
5. Jamie Foxx Plays the Opie Card for “Blame It” Video;
Plots Return to Stand Up
With his latest hit, “Blame It,” Jamie Foxx has a
certifiable way of getting people in the mood to have a good time. So what
better way to get that point across than to have an all-star line up of cameos
for the song’s video?
And while Foxx has his share of clout, it wasn’t the Oscar
winner who ultimately lured Forest Whitaker, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Samuel L.
Jackson to join T-Pain and Quincy Jones for the video. It was none other than
Ron Howard. In fact, the actor/director’s inclusion was so significant that
Jamie made sure any potential co-stars knew that Opie was down
“I was telling Mr. Howard, ‘Listen, how about you do a music
video?’ He’s like, ‘What?’ (I said), ‘Do this music video. I got a song coming
out, I think it’s going to be the song of the year and if you do it man, I
would appreciate it.’ And he said, ‘I’ll give you my number and call me,’” Foxx
told the AP as he revealed how the
cameos came through during Barack Obama’s inauguration in January.
“I said I’m going to ask Forest Whitaker and let him know
that you’re in, so I walked over and asked Forest and I asked Samuel and Samuel
was like, ‘What! Want me to do what?’ And I was like man it would be something
fun. And then I called Jake Gyllenhaal who’s my friend, I said, ‘Man, please
come down, Ron Howard’s going to be here.’” He said, “Listen Jamie, you don’t
have to lie to me, I’ll come down. You know I don’t come out and do things but
I’ll do it for you.”
Take note if you want a big name in your music video. Play
the Opie card. It really does work. And if you’re missing Jamie the comedian,
fear not.
The entertainer is gearing up to hit the stand up circuit
again as he’s writing jokes on Obama and other items making news. “I’m working
on all of my stuff with everything that’s going on in the news, so 2010 I’ll be
ready to get out there and get them jokes cracking.”
Looks like Happy Days really are here again.
In Other Words…
* Mary J. Blige has jumped on the Tyler Perry express. The
Hip-Hop Soul queen will star alongside Oscar nominated actress Taraji P. Henson
and Stomp the Yard’s Brian White in
Perry’s upcoming film I Can Do Bad All By Myself. The feature, which hits theaters September 11, will
is based on the hit stage play of the same name and includes the ever-present
Madea.
* Congratulations to gospel artist Canton Jones, who got his
first Dove Award nomination for Urban Album of the Year. The entertainer will
have some stiff competition as he competes against fellow nominees Kierra Sheard,
Kirk Franklin, Damita, and Deitrick Haddon.
* Neither rain, nor sleet, nor snow, nor an alleged stalker
could keep Erykah Badu away from her fans at this year’s SXSW conference in
Texas. The songstress even took time out to let the public know that police
arrested the stalker last week via Twitter.
According to reports, the stalker had visited the
entertainer’s home with items such as blue shutters, a rabbit, a toucan (?!)
and a sketchbook sprawled on the grass outside the home.
Fortunately, authorities “pepper sprayed and cuffed” the
woman before anything stranger could happen. Badu ended up being late for her
show as she took time out to fill out a police report on the incident. I guess
Erykah should call Tyrone the next time somebody strange is hanging around her
neighborhood.**To get the latest AllHipHop Alternatives Features, follow us on Twitter @ www.twitter.com/AHHalternatives**