PATTY JACKSON'S 4-1-1
Week of June 23rd, 2008

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The 8th Annual BET Awards will re-air Friday at 7:30. If you missed it, you will catch many musical surprises including the re-emergence of Maxwell during the Al Green tribute. The reunion of En Vogue, SWV and TLC and spectacular performances by Ne-Yo and Chris Brown. D.L. Hughley served as host for the evening. He was a little dry for my taste, but he was better than previous host Damon Wayans. Remember that awful night. Some of the highlights of the Afterparty included an obnoxious Sean “Diddy” Combs with jump off, Singer Cassie. Toni Braxton showed up. Despite her health issues with her heart, Toni looked fabulous. Lisa Raye was also in the house. She is no longer wearing her wedding ring, which signals that her marriage to the Prime Minister of the Turks and Caicos Islands is really over. Lisa Raye was feeling no pain at the afterparties, she had to be held up all night by Actor/Dancer Darrin Henson from Soul Food fame. Guests were surprised by her behavior. She was quite loud and boisterous. Obviously she had too much to drink. Keyshia Cole’s family was also showing out. No one could miss the Coles with their profanity laced conversations. Despite a sex tape and a hit single, Brandy’s little brother Ray J still gets no respect. He was denied access to the official Afterparty for the awards. He had to stay outside and mingle with the crowd. One big question of the night was the number of no shows including Mary J. Blige and Mariah Carey. Two other notable absences were Denzel Washington and Halle Berry. They both won big awards and failed to show up. Missy Elliott was also a no-show, despite winning best female rap artist. Infamous no shows were the downfall of The Soul Train Awards. Let’s hope this doesn’t happen to The BET Awards.

The bets are in for how long Nariah will last. Bettors say six months because Mariah Carey is too demanding. Her hubby, Nick Cannon, waits on her hand and foot. His friends wonder how he can stand it. Is the money that good? Her friends say Nick is like a puppy and gets no respect. “Whipped Nick” is his nickname among her friends. He’s spending her money, but she treats him like a servant. Will Nick ever man up?

Shaquille O’Neal let his true feelings be known about former teammate Kobe Bryant. They don’t like each other, and now everyone knows. In a recent freestyle rap, Shaq dissed Bryant big time, claiming Bryant will never win a championship without him. And, that Bryant’s snitching led to Shaq’s marriage breakup. O’Neal feels Bryant was the reason he was allowed to leave the Lakers organization. Bryant wanted to be the star on the team, and demanded that Shaq be traded. When Bryant was facing charges of rape in Colorado, he talked about life as a ball player and admitted that all the players have wives and girlfriends, including Shaq. Shaq never forgave Bryant for that. Shaq has won a championship without Bryant the first year he joined the Miami Heat. Bryant has not been so lucky. Despite winning the league’s MVP this year, his team was walloped by the Celtics during the NBA Finals. Shaq’s words have come back to haunt him. He was recently named an honorary member of the Maricopa County Police Department in Phoenix Arizona. He currently plays center for the Suns. When word got out about Shaq’s profanity filled rant about Bryant, the head of the police department took back their honor to have Shaq on the force, and they have asked him to turn in his badge and gun.

Janet Jackson wants to put a muzzle on boyfriend, Producer Jermaine Dupri. She couldn’t believe her ears when he announced that they would be starting family after her world tour. Jackson was like Wait! Not so fast! I need to get my career back on track! Since teaming up Dupri, she has not had the music success she is used to. Her album sales for her latest CD, Discipline, were so bad, she won’t be able to tour Europe as originally planned. Jackson has not been happy, and she is doing her best to salvage her career. She is planning to launch a lingerie line, and she just signed a deal with MTV to do a reality show. In the show, Jackson will be mentoring young singers and dancers, all leading up to her tour. Jackson will be in Philly on October 2nd. With her career in peril, the last thing she is thinking about is a baby. Big brother Michael is also planning to go into the clothing business with a new clothing line.

It’s going to be a super size wedding for American Idol Winner Ruben Studdard. Big Rube is getting married this weekend in Alabama. The bridal party is huge. He will be accompanied by 20 groomsmen.

Jill Scott is also planning a trip down the aisle. Scott recently announced her engagement to Drummer Jon Roberts. He is the young drummer who plays in her band. This will be the second marriage for Scott. She divorced her first husband last year. Scott says the time is right to start a new. Jill says she’s in love and is looking forward to starting a family.

Beyonce will be seen in a couple of movie projects next year. Beyonce will be featured as Singer Etta James in the movie Cadillac Records, and she will be starring in the thriller Obsessed with Idris Elba. Filming is currently underway in California.

Get well wishes to Scotty of The Whispers, he recently took ill during a concert in Philadelphia.

It was a special night for New Edition at the recent Rhythm And Soul Awards. To mark 25 years in the music business, they were awarded The Golden Note Award. This prestigious honor is given to songwriters, producers, musicians and artists who have made major contributions to the music world. The guys say it was quite an honor to get the award. All six members of the group were on hand, including Bobby Brown, who appeared to be the most excited of the group. He was jumping up and down, dancing and actually kissed the award when it was handed to him. When he attempted to bump and grind on the stage, he was politely escorted off to take pictures. When the other guys were asked to comment on Brown’s behavior, they just smiled and said - That’s Bobby.

Singer Brandy is hard at work in the studio with longtime producing partner Rodney Jerkins. The album will be out early next year.

Al Roker has taken the helm of the new version of Family Feud. The new version is called Celebrity Family Feud.

Tyra Banks is gearing up for a new season of her talk show. Since winning a Daytime Emmy for Best Talk Show: Informative, she is determined to prove the haters wrong. Banks faced a lot of flak when she decided to go the talk show route, but now she feels vindicated with her recent Emmy win. Banks was very frank in her acceptance speech telling the haters to kiss her Bootyliscious behind.

After an eight year absence, Singer D’Angelo is ready to come back. He’s currently in the studio working on a new project due out early next year. D’Angelo has been teaming up with John Mayer and Raphael Saadiq of Tony Toni Tone fame. The past eight years have been rough for the singer. He was almost killed in a car accident, and he has had numerous run ins with police over his drug use.

The six-year marriage between Prophetess Juanita Bynum and Bishop Thomas Weeks is officially over. The divorce decree came down last week. Last August, the Bishop’s arrest in the beating of Bynum sent shock waves across the country. The wedding ceremony was a million dollar spectacle, but the marriage was filled with abuse, jealousy and resentment. In the beginning, Bynum vowed to save her marriage, but the scandal took a toll on everyone involved. After the infamous beating, the two remained in contact, even admitting in court that they had sexual relations since the beating incident. What will the couple do now, and will the Prophetess ever marry again?

Congrats go out to Singer/Songwriter/Producer Babyface. In addition to the upcoming birth of a new child with his girlfriend Nikki Pantenburg, he will be getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Why isn’t Actor Wesley Snipes in jail? That’s what Prosecutors want to know following Snipes’ recent conviction on tax evasion charges. Snipes was sentenced to three years in jail, but he has not started his prison sentence. He is currently free on bail as he appeals the decision. Prosecutors feel he is mocking the system and should be in jail now.

The NBC crime drama Law And Order will be featuring a fall episode featuring a reenactment of the R Kelly Child pornography trial.

Get ready for the DVD of Tyler Perry’s Meet The Browns. It arrives on Tuesday July 1st. The movie stars Angela Bassett and Rick Fox.

Condolences to the family of Ira Tucker of The Legendary Dixie Hummingbirds, Tucker passed away this past week.

The US magazine cover of Barack and Michelle Obama sold close to million copies.
Motown Records is celebrating its 50th anniversary with a 10 CD box set. The Motown Collection comes out July 1st on Time Life Music. The box set will also feature a DVD of Motown stars on The Ed Sullivan Show and lyrics to 10 songs. Billy Dee Williams will be starring in the infomercial.

::::: UPCOMING  TV & FILM EVENTS ::::::

The 5th Annual VH1 Hip Hop Honors takes place in October.

The 51st Annual Grammy Awards are set for February 8th, 2009. The show will air live on CBS

Will Smith’s new movie, Hancock, opens in theatres July 2nd.

::::: WHAT'S THE UNDERGROUND BUZZ ::::::

• This award winning Actress/Singer needs to keep a close eye on her new boyfriend. He’s only dating her for the perks. He wants to be famous, and he is willing to do whatever it takes to make that happen.

• This well known Singer is ready for his comeback. He wants to be back in the spotlight, but he is ready to tell the truth about his secret life.

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