Image Source: WENN.com

Things just might not be looking up for Chris Brown in one aspect after all.

A couple of months ago, we told you about the police chief who resigned after he allegedly signed off on faulty community service hours performed by Chris Brown.  Well, his lawyer and the prosecutor met with a judge on Friday to discuss the next steps in what is turning out to be a messy situation.

CNN reports that Brown sat in the courtroom while  prosecutor Jackie Lacy and Mark Geragos, Brown’s lawyer, sat behind closed doors with Judge James Brandlin to discuss the evidence which claims Brown’s hours were not accurately met.  When the meeting was done, the judge told Brown that he would have to come back to court on June 10th because the lawyers needed more time to sift through additional discovery in his case.

Geragos seems outraged at these claims. So much so that he has asked the judge to punish the district attorneys handling the case and call for a contempt of court hearing for filing false documents.  He says this whole situation is not just false but “it is fraudulent.”

Geragos  says the prosecutors are “torturing” his client.

Despite the serious allegations, the district attorney’s office is asking that he restart his 1,400 hours of community service, not jail time.  She also wants him to be supervised in Los Angeles, where the star currently lives, and nowhere else.

Hopefully, this situation will be resolve with the correct ruling, no matter which side wins.

On a positive note, Brown’s new song “Fine China” has been getting major buzz and putting him in a really good musical place in his life.

STMC/WENN.com

Can I say that I’m pretty impressed with all the black faces that have been popping up on Saturday Night Live as of late? Now if we could just get some more black female faces on their stages then we’d be all set.

But anywho, one of our favorite crooners, Miguel, has been picked to perform on the show on April 13, and it’s safe to say that when you get that call to perform on the show, you’re becoming a mainstream darling. Miguel will be the musical guest to Vince Vaughn, as the actor will be returning to host the show for a second time in his career, a few days before your taxes are due (just thought I’d slip that reminder in there…). We don’t know which songs the singer will tackle for his two performances, but I’m betting “Adorn” will be the first one he does. As for the second…it might be “Do You…,” but if not, what jam would you like to see him perform from his new album, Kaleidoscope?

Speaking of Miguel, TMZ caught up with him in Los Angeles while he was coming from The Grove for an “Extra” taping to give him his props for his awesome Grammy performance of “Adorn” alongside Wiz Khalifa. But they also wanted to ask him why when Frank Ocean won the award they were battling for at the show, Best Urban Contemporary Album, why he didn’t stand up when it was clear everyone around him was trying to give his fellow singer a standing ovation. We all know Chris Brown didn’t stand, though that was expected seeing as how they physically fought weeks before the ceremony. But Miguel said he wasn’t trying to stand because he’s mad competitive.”I’m competitive but congratulations to Frank though!” But ironically, when asked if he could do it again, would he have stood, homeboy turned as he walked away and without any though said “NO.”

Hell, I can’t say I would either. It’s already hard losing in front of everybody if you feel your work is better than the winner’s, but then you have the camera all in your face too!? No thanks. But on the topic of when you should stand, it’s kind of like doing so in church, don’t jump to your feet unless you’re really feeling it. Even if the people around you are standing and making you feel like a Negative Nancy.

I know, I’m random.

Will you watch Miguel perform on April 13 on SNL?

While Wale was somewhere talking to MTV about why he didn’t appreciate Kelly Clarkson’s comments about Miguel and his performance at the Grammys on February 10 (“Miguel, I don’t know who the hell you are, but we need to sing together. I mean, good God. That was the sexiest damn thing I’ve ever seen.”), Miguel was somewhere NOT tripping, and in fact, hobnobbing with his idols and soaking in the success of his Grammy night. Billboard magazine crowned him the Breakout Star of the whole star-studded evening after he captured everyone’s attention and admiration with his stripped down performance of “Adorn” with Wiz Khalifa. It was so well-received that sales for the single were at their highest thanks to a 229 percent increase. Plus, he won best R&B song for the track.

Billboard caught up with the singer a few days later to speak on how his performance in the aisle came to life (which some thought was a downgrade *cough* Wale *cough*), breaking down whether he did or didn’t work with Beyoncé recently, touring with Alicia Keys soon, and why his popular song “P**y is Mine” from Kaleidoscope Dream had his girlfriend giving the side eye. Here are a few highlights:

When asked about how his last-minute performance came to life and how he ended up in the aisles and not on the stage, and he says that in the end, his performance placement was genius:

“A week-and-a-half out we knew that we could perform. I wanted to make an intimate thing but I had a bigger vision about the crowd. I got to tip my hat to [telecast producer] Ken Ehrlich-he really had the vision. I did want it to be a stripped-down performance, and it really was genius of him to put us in the aisle.”

He also discussed how “Adorn” almost became a deep cut on his EP last year, until his A&R said he should release it as a single:

“In late 2011 I was like, “I’m going to put out a series of micro EPs.” I just knew I wanted to put out free music and make it very quality vs. quantity, very personal. Make the whole thing a personal creative process from the artwork to the painting to the design to the production and writing-just for the people who discover music like I do online or my favorite blogs. We put out the first one at the top of February of 2012, and “Adorn” was on that and it got quite a buzz. It got a great response and Mark Pitts, my A&R, was convinced that it should be a single and I was excited, but I was like, “Are you sure this could work?” He was like, “Man, that s**t is going to kill.” And he was right.”

Out of all the love songs and jams on Kaleidoscope Dream, Miguel was asked what influence his girlfriend had on them, and what she thought of ‘em. One song in particular didn’t necessarily light her fire off the top, but the meaning behind it is pretty beautiful:

“P**y Is Mine” was not her favorite song. That whole song was freestyle. What makes it interesting is the juxtaposition of ego and vulnerability. It’s kind of rolled in this vulnerability, wanting to claim it — “Tell me that it’s mine” — but it’s also out of this vulnerable need: “I want to feel I’m the only one in this moment.” I’ve really been there. It felt like such an honest moment.”

Lastly, Miguel opened up about the rumor that he was working with Beyoncéon her next album after he snapped a pic with the singer and put it on his Instagram. While that time in the studio together never really happened, he would love it:

Have I worked with Beyonce? [laughs] I was really nervous to ask her, that was all, I just asked her to take a photo with me and she was really sweet about it. That’s all I can say. I’ve honestly never worked with Beyonce. It would be awesome, though, I would love that.

Check out the full interview at Billboard.com and pick up the newest issue to run your fingers through it.

Source: WENN

Out of all the songs Frank Ocean could have performed on the Grammys, he choose “Forrest Gump.”

I’m not a huge fan of Ocean but I do like him. However, it is becoming increasingly harder and harder to defend him from the growing and legitimate chorus of folks, who wonder what the big deal is about him? I mean damn Ocean, you have tracks like “Pyramids” – okay, maybe that song might have been too long for a performance. However there is also “Sweet Life,” “Pilot Jones” and even “Super Rich Kids,” which to me has super crossover appeal. But Forrest Gump? Sorry, that was just a poor song choice – for the Grammys as well as the Channel Orange album.

And unfortunately for Ocean bad song choices like “Forrest Gump” is yielding himself to some very stiff criticism about if he is deserving of all the praises he has received in the industry. In the article, Is the Frank Ocean coronation premature?” Noel Murray writes:

“Full disclosure: I think Channel Orange is a good album, but I don’t think it’s a great one. It didn’t make my Top 15 albums list of 2012, nor did any song from it make my “Top 40 songs from albums not on my Top 15” list. I spent much of last year trying to love Channel Orange, but the record never took hold. I’m a fan of vintage pop and R&B, and generally like hearing people work within the traditions of the old while courting the cutting-edge, as Frank Ocean does. But while several songs from Channel Orange hit that sweet spot for me—in particular “Sweet Life,” which best exemplifies Ocean’s gift for wistful scene-setting—too much of the album sounds sketchy to me. I don’t think Ocean is a strong vocalist, and I think many of his observations about wealth, sex, and drugs are thuddingly obvious, however well-written.”

This is not the first article as of late, which has asked the same question. In the article, Frank Ocean is Boring: The Year Lifeless Music Found Critical Praise, Chris Chafin says that Ocean has “drained the sexiness and excitement out of R&B.” He writes,

“Channel Orange is listless in the extreme. On several tracks, Ocean seems barely to be keeping himself awake behind the microphone. That’s when you can actually hear his voice, which is often buried under layers of production. It’s hard to tell if this is intentional, or if Ocean is just unable to muster the strength to sing louder than his beats, no matter how much his producers turn them down.”

Unfortunately I have to agree. But for every underdeveloped (or in some cases overproduced) songs like “Lost,” “Pink Matters” or “Sierra Leone,” there are some really sophisticated gems like “Monk” and “Thinking About You,” which is why I can’t totally write him off. Overall, it is a not a classic album but pretty damn solid. However, I do believe that there was a lot of undo expectations put onto Ocean, which might not have been warranted. And this might have more to do with his reception within the industry than the music itself. Originally, there was this spirit among some critics and music writers of wanting to see this kid win. He was black, male, alternative and of has a questionable sexuality. This, according to most critics and music writers, made him an enigma in a musical (i.e. black) culture, which is largely regarded as being homophobic. The Washington Post determined that he was a game changer and music veterans like Jermaine Dupri christened him the savior of R&B. Not to mention that his six Grammy nominations pretty much solidified him among the top-tier of today’s musical artists. In essence, Ocean has become the musical version of Barack Obama, sent here to challenge and progress black music forward. And he has enough fans among critics eager to sell that including Pitchfork Magazine, which gave Channel Orange a very controversial 9.5 rating.

The thing is, though, if critics and music writers really wanted to endear themselves to a more eclectic and sexually diverse version of black music, there was really no need to create a savior in Ocean as there were already black LGBTQ artists already blazing trials on the black music scene. A few weeks ago, I was chatting with this really nice woman at a sewing party I went to. While we cut the patterns for the tights we were making, she asked me if I was going to go see Big Freedia, who had a upcoming show in city. I said no because I had no idea who a Big Freedia was. She paused, perhaps trying to find a way to explain Freedia (while also gauging my level of comfort with the LGBTQ community), and then told me that Big Freedia was a transgender artist, who is very popular within the bounce hip-hop music scene. She put on some of her music for me to get just a taste. I’ve been listening rather frequently ever since.

I won’t even insult your intelligence with a poor retelling of bounce music history because as I said, I just began familiarizing myself with the genre fairly recently. However, here is a New York Times article from a few years ago and a clip from a film, which documents the rise of the genre of music that was born out of the gay slums of New Orleans and features an appearance by Mannie Fresh from the group The Hot Boyz. What’s interesting to note is that while hip-hop as a culture has been infamously perceived as unwelcoming to homosexuality, a charge that I won’t necessarily dispute, this however doesn’t mean that there has not always been artists, who have been able to maneuver through those terrains and to create a receptive space for themselves within the genre. Folks like Sylvester, Meshell Ndegeocello and Rahsaan Patterson have all been able to find audiences within the black community. Is that kind of reception the norm? No, but a large part of the major reason why is that many of the same music critics and fans, much of whom act as the gatekeepers to what ultimately becomes the next best thing in music, don’t afford the same pedestals and opportunities to be change-agents in music to these artists, which has been given to the likes of Ocean.

What makes Ocean different is that he is pretty safe and comfortable for the masses. His sexuality, while alternative to the hyper-heterosexual landscape of Hip-Hop and R&B is not as flamboyant, brash and loud as say a Big Freedia or any of her bounce music counterparts. There is no threat of black booties, whether they be from the bodies of gay, straight or otherwise, twerking it out to a Frank Ocean song. As Chafin of the Village Voice noted, he is R&B without the actual sexiness.

CTK via AP Images

Singer Chaka Khan is giving us a “Sweet Thing” to look out for just before Valentine’s Day. The 10-time Grammy winner debuted her own line of chocolates at this year’s Grammy Gift Lounge in Los Angeles. As we know Chaka has struggled with diabetes and high blood pressure and the “Chakalates,” as they are called, are delicious and healthy and contain antioxidant rich dark chocolate, known to assist in lowering blood pressure. A box sells for $36.

Not only is she dabbling with chocolates again, Black Enterprise has reported that she will also indulge in the candle business, with her “Khana Sutra” candles ($27 on her website). Not only can you listen to the tunes of Ms. Khan to get you and your “Angel” in the mood, you can smell the scent of her soy wax clean burning candles. Do these candles remind anyone else of Mama Jones’ provocative “Poom Kash” perfume line or is it just me?

Hopefully she has a good product otherwise, “Ain’t Nobody” gonna buy it. Ok that’s the last one I promise.

These products will launch in celebration of Chaka Khan’s 40^th year anniversary of her music career. She’s also celebrating her 60th birthday, leading to what she’s calling the “Chaka Khan 40-60 Anniversary Kickoff.” She has been an inspiration in the music industry and hopefully she will have great success with her products.

First, we’d actually like to thank Jay-Z for saying what everyone was thinking about The Dream’s get-up at the Grammy’s Sunday night. But truth be told, he wasn’t the only one who needed to be put on blast for his ridiculous outfit. Check out five other Grammy goers who looked like they shopped at the Swap Meet right along with him.

I have to say that does sound like a pretty valid question, though one I’m not sure needed to be asked on Twitter. But that’s what Carmen Bryan, the mother of Nas’s oldest daughter, Destiny, inquired on Sunday night during the annual Grammy award ceremony, sending out these tweets:

This year, Nas’ 2012 album,  Life is Good, was nominated for Best Rap Album, and the LP’s first single, “Daughters,” was up for two awards, one in the Best Rap Song category and another for Best Rap Performance. The latter nominations are what made Carmen speak out Sunday night, and not for the first time when it comes to Nasir or this track. When the song first debuted, Carmen lit up Twitter with comments like these bashing the song:

What a disappointment! He had nothing positive to say about our daughter and his depiction of her is false!

Destiny is extremely talented, caring and has a huge heart, none of those things were mentioned. I’m proud of her.

Maybe he just doesn’t know her like I do. My song would have been totally different!

Now all of a sudden Carmen wants her daughter to attend a ceremony with her dad who wrote a “disappointing” song about her? That’s sort of…interesting. What’s even more interesting is Nas seems to have no inkling of any drama with his child — or at least any that he’s letting on to. The night before the Grammy’s he told MTV’s Sway that he thinks his daughter is happy about the success of the track and that they’re in a good place.

“You know, she has her own style,” he said of 18-year-old Destiny. “I think she’s more happy for just the fact that her dad’s not corny,” he laughed. ‘Cause, you know, her dad could be … [it's] your parents! So I’m just lucky that we cool, that she still thinks I’m cool.”

Carmen obviously does not.

Do you think Nas was wrong to not take Destiny to the Grammys with him?

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.

Last night I desperately wanted to tweet, “has anybody seen Keyshia Cole tonight,” but I didn’t. Because I thought that would be rude. And I think before I tweet (mostly). But after seeing the foolery that was going on on Keysh’s timeline, I feel like I would have been justified saying whatever the heck I wanted. See for yourself:

Confused what the heck Keyshia Cole was on — again? So is just about every other person on Twitter who went in on her for the second Sunday in a row. I would have thought last week’s Twitter lashing would have been enough for the singer, who is soon about to fade into social media oblivion and become more popular for her tweets than her tracks, to get her act together, but she essentially invited the backlash this week.

See before that “hello” everyone was chilling, including Keyshia. Then for whatever reason — like a child who throws a tantrum in the middle of the grocery store because they aren’t being paid enough attention — she decided to rile up the masses and bring up last week’s business. And then have the nerve to ask “ya’ll still mad?” I think a better question would be “You’re still thirsty?”

And as far as her staying on people’s minds, it’s more like Michelle stays on hers. I’ve never seen someone go so far out of their way to repeatedly shade someone a week after the fact. I think @quietbut_DEADLY summed up Keyshia’s motive perfectly: “You’re tending now. Happy?” Keyshia should remember tweets don’t equal dollars. If she wants to keep eating and not go back to buying Steve Madden’s to wear on the red carpet she might wanna chill. One hundred thousand doesn’t go that far

Wenn

It’s slowly starting to look like Chris Brown needs to leave Los Angeles when the Grammys are in town.

CNN says on Saturday, the singer totaled his car while trying to escape the cameras of the paparazzi. He was on his way to a Symphonic Love Foundation event when the accident occurred.

In a statement about the accident, Brown’s rep said he was “ruthlessly pursued by the paparazzi. Further, the statement read:

“The occupants jumped out, with cameras, and aggressively approached his vehicle. In an effort to remove himself from the situation, he began to back down an alley, at which point his was cut off by two additional vehicles.”

He then crashed the black Porsche into a wall. According to the police, Brown told them he lost control of the car while he was attempting to get away from them.

Luckily, neither Brown nor anyone else was hurt  at the scene.

The paparazzi are infamous in their tactics to get the “money shot” of certain celebrities. In other cases, they know they’re part of the more annoying part of fame and use that to get under the celebs’ skin.

There is a fear that people will be right in the face of danger as the paps become more bold and even more aggressive in their tactics.

For now, it looks like Chris Brown was actually able to stay on the right side of the law.