Come Dancing With 50 Cent And Nicolas Cage
Rihanna Gets Rescued SOS Style.
What's the most unexpected way to come back from a smash debut single that mined an island vibe? How about sampling a 25-year-old new-wave classic? Even if you weren't born in 1981 when Soft Cell released "Tainted Love," you're bound to recognize the synthy sample underneath Rihanna's new single, "S.O.S." With lyrics like "S.O.S. please someone help me/ It's not healthy for me to feel this/ Y.O.U. are making this hard/ You got me tossing and turning I can't sleep at night," the first song from her second album, A Girl Like Me (due April 25), is a cry for help.
"I can't wait," she said about the album's release. "I'm very, very excited about that. 'S.O.S.' is all about being rescued from this crazy feeling that this guy gives me. So I call out for help." Rihanna looks anything but out of control in the song's video, a classic dance-off scenario set amid flashing lights and a high school locker room. Nike has tapped the song to help launch a new clothing line inspired by dance, putting a version of the "S.O.S." video at www.nikewomen.com
Come Dancing With 50 Cent And Nicolas Cage
Rapper will play an imprisoned boxer coached by Cage's pro-turned-volunteer trainer. 50 Cent hasn't given up on his Hollywood dreams just because fans didn't exactly pack theaters for his acting debut in "Get Rich or Die Tryin'." The rapper has signed on to star opposite Nicolas Cage in the boxing flick "The Dance." According to Variety magazine, the film will centre on the real-life story of prison boxing coach Billy "The Kid" Roth.
The movie is based on "The Dance - The Billy Roth Story," a 2003 documentary on Roth executive produced by Cage, with an eye toward developing a feature film on the trainer. Roth was a successful boxer who went on to spend more than 40 years as a volunteer boxing coach in Louisiana state prisons. Cage will take on the title role, while 50 is slated to play an inmate Roth believes has enough talent to be a contender, if only he wasn't serving a life sentence.
Gnarls Barkley Makes UK Chart History
Crazy is the first ever download only chart topper having shot straight to the top of the UK singles chart with Crazy – a week ahead of its official release. The heavily-hyped track, a collaboration between Cee-Lo (Goodie Mob) and DJ Danger Mouse (Gorillaz producer) is the first single to reach No.1 in the UK solely from downloads, with a CD version only hitting shops this week. Last week’s winner, Ne-Yo, crawls in second.
Mary J. Blige Wants Kanye West
Mary J. Blige is in search of inspiration for a new album. With her most recent work getting rave reviews, Mary is touching the sky. Therefore, it's fitting that she would pick Kanye West as a future collaborator. MTV has reported that Mary is seeking some help from Kanye for a new record.
"I would love to work with Kanye, and I would love to have him even do a rhyme on one of my joints," she said of West who is currently in the lab with Common.
Sure, Mary enjoys Kanye's beats and his flows. However, the singer is also drawn to his personality.
"That's something that I would love to do — I just love his work. What I'm feeling about Kanye is that he does not go against what's in his heart, and you can tell — from the way his videos look and the way his music sounds — he absolutely follows what is in his heart. Not many rap records get under your rib cage because people don't choose the right songs, but Kanye does, and he chooses the right topics. And he's not frontin' for the world: He's Kanye, and you gotta respect that," she added.
Pras Michel Plays A True Refugee on $1 A Day
Pras Michel of The Fugees is presently filming "First Night," a documentary in which he's living on a $1 per day budget in Los Angeles. The film captures the Grammy Award winning rapper posing as a homeless man in Los Angeles. "The dollar a day didn't get me much at all," Pras told New York's Daily News. "You have to hustle, steal, shoplift or prostitute yourself. I chose panhandling. People gave me the worst looks. Like I was invisible and at the same time the worst person on Earth."
Pras, who phoned into NY's Daily News to share his experience, said he only earned $8 after seven hours of begging, adding that he wasn't able to access a Hollywood restaurant to buy food. Furthermore, Pras, carrying a hidden camera, witnessed homeless people defecating on the sidewalk during the afternoon and taking heroine near a Los Angeles Police Department station.
"I slept in the rain. My tent was stolen. I experienced how these people live," Pras offered. “People aren't going to understand what it was like until they see it," Pras stressed. "Human beings should not be sleeping among rats."
Pharrell Rocks Out With Velvet Revolver, Solo Set Further Delayed?
Pharrell Williams has been tapped to work with rock band Velvet Revolver for their forthcoming sophomore album. According to billboard.com, in addition to producing for the group, word is Pharrell, one-half of The Neptunes, is working on "Happy," a song slated to appear on Velvet Revolver frontman Scott Weiland's sophomore solo effort. Pharrell has ventured out of hip-hop in the past, producing for groups like No Doubt,
Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake
In related news, Pharrell's In My Mind has yet to lock in a release date. The set was initially slated to drop in November of last year before being pushed back to a February due date. A spokesperson revealed to the music business website that Pha-Real is still working on the album. Slim Thug, Jay-Z, Snoop Dogg, Nas and Ludacris are all expected to join Williams in the studio in the coming weeks.
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