Source: WENN

From Your Tango

On Feb. 6, Bob Marley would have turned 68. Although he passed away at just 36 in 1981, the music legend is rumored to have fathered 11 children, many out of wedlock. According to his website, three women carried Bob’s children in 1972: His wife Rita Marley, who gave birth to their son Stephen in April, Pat Williams who gave birth less than one month later, and Janet Hunt, who also delivered a son just three days after Pat.

Read more on Bob’s approach to relationships on YourTango

From affairs to a rape accusation, go behind Bob Marley’s scandalous and overly-sexual life.

WENN.com

Every year there are plenty of odes to some of the world’s most prominent people. This past year it was Abraham Lincoln. It was Alfred Hitchcock. It was Margaret Thatcher. But who should be next to have their life story told on the silver screen? Madame Noire makes its picks for 15 legends who deserve some cinematic recognition.

Source: AP Images

I usually never watch the Grammys and honestly wasn’t planning on doing so last night. But when my friend asked me if I was going to participate in the festivities at brunch, I decided since I was avoiding the cold, to check it out. The show itself had high and low moments. It wasn’t fabulous but it certainly wasn’t the most boring thing I’ve seen. So, whether you missed it or want to relive it, check out the most memorable moments. The asterisks represent high points of the night.

Hollywood has become so large and diverse that we oftentimes take for granted the fact that some of our favorite men were not made, born, or even bred in the US. Many come from England, others from Africa, some from the Caribbean, others from Continental Europe and still some from neighboring Canada. So let’s pause and take a closer look at some of the international fellas who are doing their thing all over the world. And really, when you get right down to it, what’s not to love about hot accents, exotic homelands, and multilingual abilities? I know, nothing. Click through!

Source: WENN

Idris Elba

Born Idrissa Akuna Elba in the East Ham district of London, England, Idris Elba is the son of a Sierra Leonean father and a Ghanaian mother. Taught to work hard, Elba mastered the art of DJ’ing while working for an uncle’s wedding DJ business, then working for himself on the London nightclub circuit. For a time, Elba followed in his father’s footsteps and took a job as a factory worker in an East London suburb. But Elba’s passion for music and, eventually, theater just wouldn’t quit, and by the mid 90’s he landed his first role on British TV. Since then, Elba has enjoyed massive success in British and American television, movies, and music, to all of our delight. We just love this fine, and somehow still single, man!

AP Photo/Ira Mark Gostin

They may have passed away, but their music lives on — and continues to make money. Forbes has released their annual list of the musicians who earned the most since death, “The Top-Earning Dead Musicians of 2012.” And, it comes to no surprise the number one artist for the 2012 list is the King of Pop. Michael Jackson is still the world’s best-paid musician, living or dead. His estate made a whopping $145 million in 2012, the third straight year of nine-figure earnings for Jackson.

Michael Jackson’s estate raked in revenues from the work of other artists (through Jackson’s 50 percent stake in the Sony/ATV publishing catalog) and his own material (the Mijac Music catalog). But the large revenue stream is the Michael Jackson Immortal World Tour, which is a joint venture with Cirque Du Soleil. The production grossed an amazing $160 million during its first leg, making it the most successful tour in North America during the first half of 2012.

The other King, the King of Rock ‘N Roll, Elvis Presley came in second with $55 million.

The King of Reggae Bob Marley took the third spot on the list with $17 million. During the past 20 years, according to Forbes, Marley has sold more than 75 million albums. Two deals put Marley in the third place: the Marley beverage company, Marleys Mellow Mood (home to the “relaxation drink” of the same name) and House of Marley (producer of eco-friendly audio and lifestyle products).

Rounding out the list were a couple of Beatles — John Lennon and George Harrison along with composer Richard Rodgers.

Some might wonder why Whitney Houston didn’t make the list. “Though the singer signed a $100 million record deal in 2001, she still hasn’t earned back the $30-$40 million advance she received as part of the deal, and didn’t leave behind much in the way of unreleased material,” reports Forbes. Also not on the list are Jimi Hendrix and Tupac Shakur, who both earned more than $3 million but not enough to be on the list.

Source: BlackVoices.cm

From BlackVoices.com

Following in the footsteps of Whitney Houston, Sam Cooke, Bob Marley, Sade, and Lauryn Hill is something that Melanie Fiona has always admired throughout her career. In support of Black Music Month, the Canadian-bred Grammy Award-winner opened up to the Huffington Post exclusively on the five black music icons and how they have inspired her to embark on a recording career.

“I think each one of those artists brings something very unique to their story and what their story is and what their passion is,” the 28-year-old explained. “And I think that you know it stems from great song writing and great voices really. I just think that that’s definitely what I’m inspired by.

“You know Sam Cooke and Whitney Houston I’d probably say are my two ultimate favorite favorites for voices. Bob Marley is just so…so powerful in showing that music can have a message and how that can effect and change the world. Sade; grace and class, beauty…you know, just amazing.”

Check out what Melanie Fiona had to say about Lauryn Hill as well as an exclusive performance of five tracks from her new album, “The MF Life,” on BlackVoices.com

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Source: Black Celeb Kids

If you were one of those people worried for Lauryn Hill after finding out that her ex, and the father of five of her children, Rohan, was getting married to someone else, it looks like you have nothing to be worried about. In a recent picture of the mom and her kids, she and the brood are all smiles. The two oldest individuals on the far right are Nico and Eden, Rohan’s children from a previous relationship with “ex-wife” Geraldine Khawly. The others are Sarah (the cutie with the braids), Selah (in the striped shirt), Micah (being held), John and Joshua (in the far right). Little Micah is the baby boy that Hill had last year (he isn’t Rohan’s son). These kids are too cute! And may I add, Nico and Eden look exactly alike. Kind of cool, a little creepy, but very cute. Check out a few other photos of Lauryn’s kids (and friends/family) living it up in Kingston, Jamaica, and playing around at Mystic Mountain, courtesy of BlackCelebKids.com:

Source: Black Celeb Kids

Selah - Source: Black Celeb Kids

John - Source: Black Celeb Kids

Joshua - Source: Black Celeb Kids

Source: Black Celeb Kids

And the Marley children aren’t the only ones who went on a vacation recently. Madonna and her growing family flew to Tel Aviv, Israel for her concert, and before her performance, her kids hit the beach. Her daughter, Mercy James, and son, David Banda Mwale Ciccone Ritchie, played around and seemed to have a good time while mom watched from the balcony above. Geez, I remember when these two were tiny! Time sure does fly…

Source: Just Jared

Source: Black Celeb Kids

And last but not least, Corrinne Foxx, the daughter of actor/singer Jamie Foxx, went to prom with her boyfriend recently. The 18-year-old posted this prom photo to her Twitter and now little miss thing is all grown up and looking fabulous. How adorable. Her caption: “My love <3″ Awwww!

Source: Twitter

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Source: Wire Image from the Telegraph.co.uk

Well, well, well. Look at what we have here. Rohan Marley, son of Reggae legend Bob Marley and infamous baby daddy to Lauryn Hill’s five children, is finally settling down with Brazilian supermodel Isabeli Fontana. After dating since October 2011, the couple recently got engaged and plan to marry in Ethiopia. They’ve yet to set a wedding date but Fontana told the Brazilian newspaper, Terra, ”Rohan told me that we must return to their origins so that the marriage will last forever.”

That’s interesting.

Honestly, I‘m not here to judge Rohan and his new fiancé…harshly. But I really do have one very important question. Why after dating Fontana for less than a year is Marley so ready to make it official when he and Lauryn, who were together for fifteen, were supposed to get married and have five children together, never made it down the aisle?

And before some of you start making assumptions, this really isn’t a racial thing, for me. And I hope it’s not for Marley either. If anything it’s more about being a man of honor, staying true to your word and doing right by your children. If you believe in the institution of marriage in the first place, and clearly Rohan does considering he took a good minute to divorce his first wife, then why continue to have children with a woman you have no intention of marrying? And that one’s directed at both Rohan and Lauryn too. Sometimes you have to get real with yourself.

*Sigh* I could ask questions all day but really it’s none of my business. I’ll never understand the dynamics of Rohan and Lauryn’s relationship. It’s different and unorthodox. I do hope though, that since Lauryn has had a child with another man, that the both of them have moved on from the romantic element of that relationship because we know those five children will always tie them together.

What do you think about Rohan’s engagement announcement? Do you think he’ll actually get married this time?

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Yesterday, when the video of the hologram Tupac performing at Coachella started spreading around the internet, people had one of three reactions. They thought: 1.) This is the so super cool. 2.) This is so super creepy. or 3.) This is so super creepy but still very cool. I was with the first group of people but I will admit when Pac’s hologram disintegrated into dust, I felt myself starting to get a little misty. But once I had gotten over my sadness, I thought, as soon as folks figure out how to manufacture these holograms a less expensively, money will be made.

Tupac certainly won’t be the last artist to be hologramed. And if I have any say in the matter, I’d like to see the following folks be digitally (?) resurrected. Before I enrage anybody with this list, let me preface it by saying that it is not exhaustive and I chose the following people, based on who I would want to see perform, most likely for impeccable dance moves or undeniable stage presence. If your favorite deceased artist is not on this list, please don’t snap. Just add their name to the comments section. So without further ado, let’s get to it.

Source: examiner.com

Whitney Houston 

It’s no surprise that Whitney was not a dancer. She had the type of voice that you could just listen to, no distractions needed. But just because Whitney didn’t break it down on stage, doesn’t mean that she didn’t command it There’s so much passion and conviction in her performances that it would be great to see her, even if she’s just a hologram,  again

Source: memorylane.art.officelive.com

Michael Jackson

There is a reason why the This is It became the highest grossing concert movie and documentary in the history of cinema. People, all over wanted to see Michael perform again, even if it was just him rehearsing. Not to mention, the movie was very well made.  During it’s theatrical run, the movie grossed $261 million dollars. If you had the opportunity to watch an eerily accurate depiction of Michael singing and dancing the way only he knew how, surely you wouldn’t pass it up.

Source: live.drjays.com

James Brown

There would be no Michael, as we know him, if there were no James Brown. As you can clearly see from the picture above, James did not play when it came to his stage performances. The sweat that used to pool on his forehead is enough to let you know that the man truly earned the title of the “hardest working man in show business.” Plus I would have loved to see him fling that cape off his back.

Source: rollingstone.com

Otis Redding

This may seem like a bit of a wildcard but I have some evidence that just might change your mind. Ladies and gentlemen, exhibit A.:

That’s a showman right there. Anytime you’ve got blonde, white girls looking like they’ve caught the holy ghost, that’s good stuff.

Source: Starpulse.com

Facebook is continuing its legacy of charting unprecedented territory by live-streaming the new “Marley” documentary about the life of Jamaican singer and songwriter Bob Marley on the social network the same day it premiers in theaters.

Since March of last year Facebook has offered movie rentals, but this is the first time a film that’s also headed to the cinema will be available for purchase. For $6.99 Facebook users can watch the doc without leaving their homes.

“It’s a unique opportunity for a film that’s not a blockbuster,” says Sandi Hemmerlein, General Manager of Tuff Gong Worldwide — Marley executive producer Ziggy Marley’s record label. “One of our goals is to give as many people as we can access to it.”

Streaming will be available in the U.S. and Caribbean territories including Jamaica, Puerto Rico, and the Bahamas, and considering the 38 million “likes” Bob Marley’s Facebook page has 30 years after his death, Hemmerlein said this offering makes complete sense.

“Bob Marley has such a strong presence both online and offline. He’s reached such iconic status, particularly in the years since his death,” she said.

The April 20th release date of the film is also pretty interesting, and Hemmerlein isn’t oblivious to the Marijuana reference although she says the date has more than one meaning—including being the birth date of Bob Marley’s son, Stephen.

“Obviously, it resonates with a certain fan base,” she said. “It’s a memorable date for a lot of people. It also happens to fall on Friday, which is usually when movies come out.”

For those who like to get their 4/20 on, it will be much easier to do that while watching the film from home.

Do you plan to check out “Marley” in theaters or online?

Brande Victorian is a blogger and culture writer in New York City. Follower her on Twitter at @be_vic.

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