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Relationships can be tough. Realizing who to take that next step and build a lasting marriage with can be even tougher. We women want our prince charming and we want him to need us as much as we need him. And in this era, needs aren’t based around the emotional or physical so much as the cha-ching! I was at a get-together with a few of my girlfriends the other night and each of them made a list of the 5 things the man they’d marry needs to have: A good job and money were the top 2 things on each list.

Now let me be the first to say a woman should look for a goal-orientated man with something to offer, but I have to be honest, only three out of the seven friends who asked for this had a decent job/career of their own. The others? Well let’s just say they’re still trying to find themselves. Me, on the other hand, I’ve been on the opposite end of the spectrum, involved in more than one situation where my contribution to a man was way more than his contribution to me.

So where can we find the balance ladies? How can we look for prince charming without putting too much significance on his pockets? Or be an independent woman without playing someone’s mama? When we don’t want to be gold diggers (although it is important to have a man who can provide) and we don’t want to be sugar mamas (although we want to provide for the one we love as well), where can we find the happy medium? The balance all lies in building together, not what you came into the relationship with but what you  both plan to achieve in the union. Here are a few inspiring couples who show us just where the healthy balance lies:

The world of fame guarantees that all of your personal business will be aired out; it’s the simple downside to a life that’s decorated with the finer things. Even so, many celebrities, for years, have managed to keep small nuggets of knowledge about their past and personal lives from the public for long stints of time before that info is unearthed. We learned as much from Janet Jackson’s secret marriage.

So, in the interest of discovery, here’s a list of little known, but more fun facts about some of your favorite celebrities.

PNP/ WENN.com

Jamie Foxx

As a 2nd grader, Django Unchained star, Jamie Foxx was so talented at telling jokes, his teacher used him as a reward for the hard work and cooperation of her students. If the class behaved, Jamie would entertain them.

Source: WENN

Feelings were mixed when Do The Right Thing director, Spike Lee spoke out against Quentin Tarantino’s latest blockbuster Django Unchained. No one was in complete shock that Lee openly admitted that he couldn’t get with the slavery revenge flick, as he is known for being quite outspoken and opinionated. But, his reasoning behind not supporting the film shocked many. Lee claimed that he refused to even see the Quentin Tarantino directed film because it would be “disrespectful” to his “ancestors” in an interview with Vibe. Most people simply wrote the comments off as Spike being Spike and some even publicly defended Tarantino against the Red Hook Summer director. The most interesting rebuttal came from Luther Campbell of the infamous 2 Live Crew. The Florida native went completely off on Spike, giving him a complete mouthful for his Django comments in an opinion piece for the Miami NewTimes and let’s just say he was not above name calling.

First, he implied that Spike’s sole reason for disliking the film was because he didn’t direct it and that  he is envious because Tarantino is a better director:

“Lee needs to get over himself. He’s upset because Tarantino makes better movies. The man who put Malcolm X on the big screen is Hollywood’s resident house negro; a bougie activist who wants to tell his fellow white auteurs how they can and can’t depict African Americans.”

“Lee could never pull off a movie like this. When he’s not being an A$$ from his court side seats during New York Knicks games, he’s making bull crap films that most African Americans cannot relate to.”

He then defended Tarantino’s heavy n-word usage in the film, stating that it was somewhat necessary to make the movie realistic:

“He complains that Tarantino uses “n*****” too much (100 times) in Django Unchained, but show me a white man in the 1800s who wasn’t dropping n-bombs left and right.”

And finally, he called Lee out as a “Uncle Tom” and compared him Sam Jackson’s character in Django Unchained:

“Spike is upset because Samuel L. Jackson’s character in the movie is just like him: a conniving and scheming Uncle Tom.”

If you’ve had the privilege of seeing the movie or even a preview of it, you know how much of an insult this is.

Do you agree with Luke? Is Spike Lee being a hater?

Jazmine Denise is a news writer for Madame Noire. Follow her on Twitter @jazminedenise

Source: WENN

From The Grio

Since the December 14th Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting political figures and activists have called for immediate action on gun control. They believe that stricter laws on gun control could have stopped this tragedy and can prevent others in the future.

Actor Samuel L. Jackson does not agree.

“I don’t think it’s about more gun control,” Jackson said in an interview with the Los Angeles Times. “I grew up in the South with guns everywhere and we never shot anyone. This [shooting] is about people who aren’t taught the value of life.”

He feels that parents and role models who instill a positive foundation in children can have more of an effect than legislation.

Jackson co-stars in the upcoming film Django Unchained alongside Oscar winner Jamie Foxx as a slave-turned-bounty hunter and Kerry Washington who plays Foxx’s wife in the film.

Django Unchained has received strong praise from film critics. And the film has already received five Golden Globe nominations, but the violence in the film has stirred up considerable controversy.

In the wake of the tragic shooting deaths of 20 children in Newtown, Connecticut, the timing for such a brutal film makes many uneasy.

Read more at The Grio

Source: Shutterstock

From StyleBlazer

For some actors, being given the chance to star in a film is the dream of a lifetime, though some actors have had the opportunity to play a lead role in a movie and declined the offer. Here are 14 actors who were offered a lead role but said “no thanks!”

With notable alumni in every field from politics to education, Morehouse College is a historically black all- men’s located in Atlanta, Georgia. Consistently ranking in the top five of HBCU’s in America each year, here are 10 famous brothers who attended Morehouse College.

Source: WENN

Spike Lee

The Emmy award winning director is a part of a legacy of Morehouse men, as his father and grandfather both graduated before him. Enrolling in 1976, Spike entered college with no idea about what he wanted to major in. He returned after one summer wanting to become a filmmaker, and eventually received his bachelor’s degree in mass communications. His films have helped launched the careers of some of our favorite black actors and actresses.

Source: The New York Times

From The Grio

Outspoken and frequently foul-mouthed actor Samuel L. Jackson recently took to Twitter to lament the fact that Tropical Storm Isaac will likely hit the coast of New Orleans instead of the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida.

“Unfair Shyte: GOP spared by Issac [sic]! NOLA prolly F**ked Again! Not understanding God’s plan!” Jackson wrote Monday afternoon.

Several of Jackson’s followers slammed his unabashedly partisan remarks as distasteful.

Still, according to Entertainment Weekly, Jackson’s “unfair” tweet has been “retweeted 983 times and marked as a favorite 236 times as of this morning.”

See how Samuel responded to the criticism on The Grio.

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Source: Justjared.com

The 2012 BET Music Awards are coming up in a little more than a month and the network has just announced the nominees in each of their categories along with a few details about the show. This year’s ceremony will be hosted by Samuel L. Jackson which means there should be some good laughs, and performances are expected by Chris Brown and Nicki Minaj. The network is also bringing back it’s Best International Act: Africa award for the second year in a row, and Maze featuring Frankie Beverly will receive the Cadillac Lifetime Achievement Honor. The full list of nominees in the music categories are:

Best International Act: Africa

Camp Mulla (Kenya)

Ice Prince (Nigeria)

Lira (South Africa)

Mokobe (Mali)

Sarkodie (Ghana)

Wizkid (Nigeria)

Best Female R&B Artist

Marsha Ambrosius

Beyoncé

Mary J. Blige

Melanie Fiona

Rihanna

Best Male R&B Artist

Chris Brown

Bruno Mars

Miguel

Trey Songz

Usher

Best Male Hip-Hop Artist

Big Sean

Drake

J. Cole

Lil Wayne

Rick Ross

Young Jeezy

Best Female Hip-Hop Artist

Nicki Minaj

Diamond

Trina

Brianna Perry

Best Group

Bad Meets Evil

Diddy-Dirty Money

Maybach Music Group

Mindless Behavior

The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West)

Best New Artist

A$AP Rocky

Big Sean

Diggy

Future

Meek Mill

Best Collaboration

Beyoncé ft./ J. Cole – “Party””

Big Sean ft./ Kanye West & Roscoe Dash – “Marvin & Chardonnay”

DJ Khaled ft./ Drake, Rick Ross, and Lil Wayne – “I’m On One”

Drake ft./ Lil Wayne and Tyga – “The Motto”

The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West) ft./ Otis Redding – “Otis”

Wale ft./ Miguel – “Lotus Flower Bomb”

Video of the Year

Beyoncé – “Countdown”

Beyoncé – “Love on Top”

The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West) – “Ni**as in Paris”

The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West) – “Otis”

Usher – “Climax”

Video Director of the Year

Beyoncé and Alan Ferguson

Benny Boom

Chris Brown and Godfrey Tabarez

Kanye West

Hype Williams

Best Gospel

Yolanda Adams

Kim Burrell

James Fortune & FIYA

Fred Hammond

Trin-I-Tee 5:7

YoungStars Award

Astro

Diggy

Jacob Latimore

Keke Palmer

Willow Smith

Viewers’ Choice Award

Drake ft./ Lil Wayne & Tyga – “The Motto”

Beyoncé – “Love on Top”

Chris Brown – “Turn Up the Music”

Mindless Behavior – “Hello”

The Throne ft./ Otis Redding – “Otis”

Wale ft./ Miguel – “Lotus Flower Bomb”

Centric Award

Common

Estelle

Robert Glasper

Robin Thicke

Tyrese

Best International Act: U.K.

Estelle

Labrinth

Emeli Sande

Sway

Wretch 32

Last year’s awards show drew 7.7 million viewers on BET and I’m sure the network is trying to top that this year. The ceremony airs July 1 from the Los Angeles Shrine Auditorium. Will you watch?

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

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Well, there you have it. Leave it up to Samuel L. to give you the realness.

According to the New York Post, Jackson said,

“I voted for Barack because he was black. Cause that’s why other folks vote for other people — because they look like them.”

While some may view Jackson’s comments as ignorant, I know he’s not the only one, even if some folk never admit it.

See how Jackson expounded upon his declaration at Black Voices.com.

Do you know anyone or are you someone who voted for President Obama because he’s a black man?

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Katori Hall’s play, The Mountaintop, opens on Broadway this month to great acclaim having already won an Oliver Award in London; and the buzz surrounding Samuel J. Jackson and Angela Bassett’s performances hasn’t stopped. (Check out the video after the jump of Ms. Bassett performing a piece from the play on “The Gayle King Show.”)

What inspired a 30-year-old woman who didn’t live through the civil rights movement to retell the story of the night before Martin Luther King, Jr.’s assassination? Hall told Elle that her mother, who was a teenager at the time of MLK’s death, was forbidden to attend Dr. King’s “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech for fear of violence. Now she’s able to bring that experience to her and many others 43 years later. Read on for more details of the interview from Elle: