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TilaTequila

Mon, 20 Apr 2009 00:02:59 -0700

Tila Tequila has 3,804,903 friends

Tila Nguyen (pronounced /tiːˈlɑː ˈnʊjɪn/) (born Thien Thanh Thi Nguyen October 24, 1981), better known by her stage name Tila Tequila, is an American model, entertainer, and singer residing in West Hollywood, California. She is known for her appearances in Stuff, Maxim, Time, Penthouse, her role as host of the Fuse TV show Pants-Off Dance-Off and her position as the most popular artist on MySpace (according to page views) as of April 2006. She was raised in Houston, Texas. Her MTV show A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila premiered on October 9, 2007.

Early life

Nguyen was born in Singapore, where her family had emigrated from Vietnam after the Vietnam War. When Nguyen was a year old, she and her family moved to Alief, a suburb of Houston, where they lived, until they were admitted to a gated community run by a strict Buddhist temple. The family left the community when Nguyen was eight.

As soon as she entered middle school, Nguyen developed a tomboy attitude and got in fights. Her behavior eventually got her sent to a boarding school for six months before being transferred to another school. As soon as she reached high school, she used her sister's identification card to enter nightclubs, where she began recreational drug use and joined a gang. In an interview with Import Tuner, Nguyen said she had been searching for a sense of identity: "I was really confused then, 'cause at first I thought I was black, then I thought I was Hispanic and joined a cholo gang". Later she made some friends outside the gang who briefly helped turn her life around, however her past caught up with her, and she fled to Queens, New York at the age of 16.

Modeling and acting

Nguyen's career began at the age of 18 when she was discovered at the Sharpstown Mall by a Playboy scout and was offered a chance to model nude for the magazine. She did a test shoot,[8] then eventually moved to Southern California and was featured as Playboy’s Cyber Girl of the week on April 22, 2002, and soon thereafter she became the first Asian Cyber Girl of the Month. A few more pictorals for the magazine followed.

Nguyen gained further popularity through the import racing scene. She has been featured on the cover of Import Tuner magazine, at car shows such as Hot Import Nights, and in the video game Street Racing Syndicate. In 2003, she was a contestant on VH1's Surviving Nugent, a reality TV show where participants performed compromising tasks and stunts for rock star Ted Nugent. She was also the most frequent host on the first season of Fuse TV's dance show, Pants-Off Dance-Off, on which a group of contestants strip to music videos. Tila has also previously worked with VH1 as a commentator on WebJunks's 40 Greatest Internet Superstars.

Nguyen was featured on the cover of the April 2006 issue of Stuff magazine; in the interview, she claimed that her nickname "Tila Tequila" came about when she experimented with alcohol in middle school and had a severe allergic reaction. She was later included in Stuff’s 100 Sexiest Women Online. She appeared on the August 2006 Maxim UK cover, was named #88 in their Hot 100 List, and also appeared in the December 2007 issue.

Nguyen made an appearance as one of the 12 strangers in the first game on the April 6, 2007 episode of NBC's game show Identity. Her identity was that she has "over one million MySpace friends," a number which, as of that date, stood at 1,771,920. On March 4, 2007 Nguyen made a cameo appearance on the show "War At Home." She also appeared in as a Hooters Girl in the 2007 film I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry.

A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila

On March 26, 2007, Nguyen announced in her MySpace blog that she would be filming a reality show for VH1. Filming started in May 2007, but the show was moved to VH1's sister network MTV that summer. On October 9, 2007, A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila aired on MTV. The program is a bisexual-themed reality dating show where 16 straight men and 16 lesbian women compete for Tila's affections, the twist being that the contestants were not aware of Nguyen's bisexuality until the end of the first episode. The ten-episode series is produced by 495 Productions and MTV.

The show was at the heart of a heated online debate between Nguyen and conservative Christians after an article appeared on The Christian Post on September 13, 2007. After seeing the article, Nguyen wrote an impassioned response in her blog on September 28, 2007, criticizing churches for "bashing" the gay community while thanking God for saving her life.

Tila's Hot Spot and other business ventures

In 2001 Nguyen started up her website entitled "Tila's Hot Spot". Originally it was a website featuring her information, quotes, blog, and pictorials including content that required adult verification and a monthly payment fee to view.Later the site format was revamped by TAJ Designs Inc. to feature all-ages content and information to promote her current career, business ventures, personal information, and a premium membership section including videos, non-nude picture galleries, blogs, and chat sessions.

During 2005 Nguyen launched Tilafashion.com, a site featuring her custom line of clothing for men and women originally using the slogan "So hot you'll just want to take it all off!" In 2006 Tila created a website entitled "Tila Zone," which features content to use on Myspace and other social networking websites including layouts, widgets, and clipart.

Music career

Nguyen used modeling as a stepping stone for other ventures. At age 20, she acted on her interest in rock music and started looking for bands willing to have her join. She eventually assembled a band called Beyond Betty Jean, for which she was singer and songwriter. Following the breakup of Beyond Betty Jean, Nguyen started working in recording studios to sharpen her vocal skills and write music.[9] Nguyen became the lead singer of a band called Jealousy, which has released songs over the Internet. Jealousy has appeared on MySpace Records' inaugural compilation album, released through MySpace Records and Interscope.

A major turn in Nguyen's music career occurred during the April 24, 2006 taping of MTV's Total Request Live. In an interview with the TRL VJs, will.i.am announced that Nguyen was signed to the Will.I.Am music group, a record label under A&M Records. Despite her major-label signing, Nguyen independently released her first single "I Love U" through iTunes on February 27, 2007, justifying the independent release through her desire to become famous by herself. "I Love U" made its way to the top of the ITunes charts within 24 hours. She shot a music video for the song, which is available for free after the song is downloaded. A preview for the video debuted on February 14, 2007 on her MySpace page. The video has also been released via mobile phones. On March 6, 2007, Tila's video was the #1 most downloaded on Apple's iTunes. In March 2007, Washington-based record label The Saturday Team released an EP called Sex, by Tila Tequila. On July 27, 2007, Italian website MusicBlob revealed that The Saturday Team and distributor Icon Music Entertainment Services sued Tila over breaching her contract related to the album.

Bibliographic details for "Tila Tequila"

* Page name: Tila Tequila
* Author: Wikipedia contributors
* Publisher: Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
* Date of last revision: 19 January 2008 06:08 UTC
* Date retrieved: 21 January 2008 14:27 UTC
* Permanent link: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tila_Tequila&oldid=185371433
* Page Version ID: 185371433

Bobbi Billard

Sun, 19 Apr 2009 12:30:08 -0700

unverified estimate friends 1,200,000

Barbara "Bobbi" Billard (born December 12, 1975 in Austin, Texas) is a female bikini, lingerie, fitness, and glamour model, actress, and former professional wrestler. She is currently running a show called (Bobbi Billard Live!) at nowlive.com, nowlive.com/Bobbi Billard on Sundays at 6pm PST / 9pm EST. Bobbi Billard is also choosing one person, guy or girl, to kiss her in a scene of a major motion picture (LiveMansion: The Movie). Go to http://www.livemansion.com/signupBobbiBillard.aspx for more details.

Acting Career

Bobbi recently had a part in her first feature film: Fox Searchlight Pictures Phat Girlz starring Mo'Nique. Bobbi just filmed Ice Scream (The ReMix), which is a ten year anniversary remake of the original film that had a bit of a cult following. She plays the character "Vicki" in the movie. More info on this movie can be found at http://www.icescreamthemovie.com/

She is also cast in Crush Entertainment's upcoming reality film, "Live Mansion: The Movie" where a character has been created specifically for her. In addition to that, Bobbi is scheduled to shoot four other movies between now and the beginning of next year.

Modeling Career

Bobbi Billard is one of the top print and Internet models in the United States.

Bobbi is America Online/Netscape/CompuServe Men's No. 1 Internet model, a title she has held for several years at Top Ten Internet Models. She is also popular on MySpace with over 1 million friends, putting her at No. 4 in the world for total popularity amongst the anyone on the site. Her friend count is located here at her official myspace profile.

Bobbi has been featured in several productions throughout her career, including a feature spot in the Diet Dr Pepper "Green Baywatch" commercial, which aired during Super Bowl XXXIII. She has appeared in Muscular Development magazine cover and features, Muscle Mag, American Curves, as well as on the popular Benchwarmer trading cards. Bobbi made a music video appearances in Blues Traveler, "Girl Inside My Head", Kottonmouth Kings, "King Klick", Yung Berg "Sexy Lady", and Fireball "What I Want" with Bob Sinclar. She recently appeared on the cover of People Magazine Australia and was featured inside the issue as one of the top 20 internet babes. In the same month, she was featured in Esquire (magazine) Turkey.

Bobbi has had a run as a celebrity nightclub host across the country. Bobbi has hosted seven events at Las Vegas nightclubs and hot spots in six months, including parties at Body English nightclub inside the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Jet nightclub inside The Mirage, TAO nightclub inside The Venetian, Seamless nightclub's New Year's Eve bash and the Wet Grooves music festival at the Hard Rock.

One special note: Bobbi was one of three female celebrities to host New Year's Eve events, with the other two being Britney Spears (Pure nightclub) and Pamela Anderson (TAO nightclub).

Bobbi has also hosted events in Columbus, Ohio, where she opened Karma Nightclub in December. More recently, Bobbi was the headlining model for two Super Bowl parties at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida.

Bobbi was the featured model of five models to host the "Poppin' Bottles with Models" event with Academy Award-winner Jamie Foxx. Bobbi was also one of the six models who co-hosted Diddy's Annual Super Bowl White Party featuring P Diddy, R. Kelly, Missy Elliott, American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino and several NFL stars in Florida for the weekend of Super Bowl festitivies. Bobbi also handled the radio advertising spots as well for the Jamie Foxx event, which aired in Florida during Super Bowl week.

Wrestling Career

Bobbi entered the world of professional wrestling in the now defunct California-based WOW promotion. Using the name "Summer," Billard was given the gimmick of a Baywatch-like lifeguard along with a tag team partner named Sandy. The duo had several tag team matches together and were unsuccessful in the WOW Tag Team Title Tournament. At WOW Unleashed, the team fought to a draw with Farrah and Paradise.

Billard signed with WWE in late 2003, and entered into their developmental territory, Ohio Valley Wrestling. She received training from Ivory and Jacqueline. In the summer of 2004, she and fellow model turned wrestler LaTasha Marzolla, were released after getting injured. Billard suffered a serious neck injury while working for WWE which abruptly ended her wrestling career. In July of 2004, Billard underwent a two level fusion neck surgery (paid for by WWE) with the same doctor (Dr. Lloyd Youngblood) that operated on Stone Cold Steve Austin and Lita. She has since made a full recovery but has retired from the wrestling business completely.

Billard's last job was for a TV show ("Nu Wrestling") in Italy in which she worked a tour as a valet.

Bibliographic details for "Bobbi Billard"

* Page name: Bobbi Billard
* Author: Wikipedia contributors
* Publisher: Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
* Date of last revision: 5 October 2007 22:01 UTC
* Date retrieved: 16 October 2007 23:50 UTC
* Permanent link: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bobbi_Billard&oldid=162546176
* Page Version ID: 162546176

Hilary Duff

Sun, 14 Sep 2008 17:49:46 -0700

Hilary Duff has 558,671 friends.

Hilary Erhard Duff (born September 28, 1987) is an American actress, pop singer-songwriter and entrepreneur. After working in local theater plays and television commercials in her childhood, Duff gained fame for playing the title role in the television series Lizzie McGuire. Duff went on to have a film career; her most commercially successful movies include Cheaper by the Dozen (2003), The Lizzie McGuire Movie (2003), and A Cinderella Story (2004).

Duff has expanded her repertoire into pop music, with four RIAA certified Platinum albums and over thirteen million albums sold worldwide. Her first studio album, Metamorphosis (2003), was certified triple platinum and she followed it up with two more platinum albums, Hilary Duff (2004) and Most Wanted (2005). Duff's last studio album, Dignity, was released in April 2007 and was certified Gold in August 2007.

She has also launched a clothing line, "Stuff by Hilary Duff", and two exclusive perfume collections with Elizabeth Arden. Duff and her mother were listed as producers for the movie Material Girls, As of August 2008[update], her upcoming films include animated comedy Foodfight!, and independent films Greta and Safety Glass.

Early life and career

Duff was born in Houston, Texas. She is the second child of Susan Colleen (née Cobb), a homemaker and film producer, and husband Robert Erhard Duff, a partner in a chain of convenience stores, who resides at the family home in Houston to maintain the family's convenience store business. She has an elder sister, Haylie Duff, who is also an actress/singer. Duff's mother encouraged Hilary to take up acting classes alongside her elder sister, Haylie, which resulted in both girls winning roles in various local theater productions. At the ages of eight and six, respectively, the Duff sisters participated in the ballet, The Nutcracker Suite with Columbus BalletMet in San Antonio. The siblings became more enthusiastic about the idea of choosing acting as a profession, and eventually relocated to California with their mother. Duff's father stayed at the family home in Houston to take care of their business. After several years of auditions and meetings, the Duff sisters were cast in various television commercials.

Bibliographic details for "Hilary Duff"

* Page name: Hilary Duff
* Author: Wikipedia contributors
* Publisher: Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
* Date of last revision: 14 September 2008 03:31 UTC
* Date retrieved: 15 September 2008 01:17 UTC
* Permanent link: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hilary_Duff&oldid=238283645
* Primary contributors: View the list (subject to extremely long replication lag)
* Page Version ID: 238283645

Somaya Reece

Thu, 17 Apr 2008 01:13:36 -0700

Somaya Reece has 610,120 friends.

First thing is FIRST I am NOT A MODEL. I am an actress n artist. I take my career extremely seriously I am DEAD SERIOUS about what I do this is not a game to me. Without any Hollywood connections, I have been making it happen on my own! I have turned down 2 big record deals Any type of modeling I do now is to promote my music, major ad campaigns or my music sponsorships I have NEVER aspired to be a model. I enjoy a variety of music I am genre color blind, Leo Dan, The Cure, Pharcyde, Biggie, Billy Holiday, Missy Elliot, Gwen, J Lo, El General, Bee Gees etc etc.....

Somaya Reece "official BIOGRAPHY" for media purposes.

While this sort of success alone is enough for most people, Somaya's insatiable need to pursue new avenues of interest also has her currently in the production stage of her first musical effort. With her highly anticipated album on the horizon, the response towards her has been overwhelming. Her "celebrity" presence has been viewed in combination by over

200,000,000 million. In both the www.MySpace.com almost 610,000 fans and and www.Yahoo.com network.

Somaya Reece Music debut single "mira mi pum pum" had over 3.3 MILLION SPINS in 10.5 weeks, new Song "no stopping me" has 165,000 spins in 2.5 weeks and now the latest single her official "new music" debut is in the MILLION. Somaya's myspace page and music holds over 25,000-65,000 unique daily hits in combination with myspace and i meem.

Breaking underground and web history. Setting new records amongst all established Platinum selling artists on many of todays top music websites. All meanwhile holding her spot in the Top 5 ranked and a fluctuating NUM. 1 spot as a Top Ranked song on www.i meem.com with 25,000-65,000 daily plays and strong 10,000-25,000 daily plays on www.myspace.com

Due to her undeniable success on myspace. Her profile has shot up the myspace charts putter her as NUM 25 in the TOP 100 music profiles.

Holding a strong worldwide loyal fan base of over 1/2 a MILLION friends on her myspace account and 3,000-5,000 friend requests a day. Her self promotion as an independent artist has grown to show an accomplishment that has opened up leads to extensive features in music articles, commercials, endorsements, features on music websites including a full distribution deal offered by Itunes and major label record deals Somaya is a hot commodity and said to be the next JLO and late Selena. Somaya Reece was due to be one of the few artists to do this on Itunes without a major record label to move her music in such masses as her own self promotion has done. This all came to a halt when her music was heard by record labels and then began making generous offers of a record deal. While deals are in the works, she says she plans to help influence all of today's pop culture and young entrepreneurs of the world! Her plan of attack "staying true to who I am will help my mission in world domination"!

Somaya Reece is a "featured and top ranked artist" of all time! Beating out major record label artists such as Akon, Beyonce, Fergie, Shakira etc etc....

Word of her music leaked into the media, causing an overwhelming response to begin work on her album. Resulting in a hefty management deal, and rating her the number 1 hottest Latina in music by Maxim magazine. The addition of music to her already extraordinary resume secured this "triple threat" a deal with iTunes.

While having slowly built an at home recording studio. Built with all professional equipment found at any of today's elite recording studios used to record major lablel artists. She continues to work with billboard charting producers and artists in some of today's most popular producers in music. Music producers such as Scoop Deville, The Pharmacy, Trilogy and others due to be announced soon. Somaya's music is destined to make a mark.

Furthermore, she is set to grace the cover of several internationally recognized music magazines, Somaya Reece enters into an elite circle of established artists featured by them. As if that news is not substantial in its own right, she takes it a step further as being the first woman to grace the cover of some of the publications in the history of the magazines. Distributed in Canada, Europe, and the United States, readers are in for a true delight as the feature delves into the true beauty and talent behind this captivating woman.

How does she find time to do it all? In her own words according to Somaya it involves "proper time management, and a good head on my shoulders. I never stop believing that with my inner fuel I can achieve every goal I set for myself. Granted, nothing in life is ever promised, but success simply does not come without hard work. It is also important to recognize those who have made it possible for one to be successful through their guidance and great advice. This includes colleagues, but most importantly family, as without my family I would be nowhere.

When I was a child living in South Central I would sing in church, rap on the streets and was involved in many musical and dance after school programs, theatre, chorus and played the violin. She began music in 4th grade upon joining her violin and chorus class in school. My dream was to become a great actress and musician. When I was ready to educate myself I began to take theatre in college (UCLA) as becoming a successful musician, actress was my dream that is now turned reality. I started out from the bottom and worked my way to where I am today and I continue to do that now. My career took off after 5 years of self promoting, tears, disappointments, highs, and lows. But I hung in there and never stopped believing in myself! Even when others didn't believe I kept on trucking.

Despite what some would consider extremely humble beginnings, she now posses the confidences of professional, personal, and spiritual security to attack the entertainment industry like a force that is not to be reckoned with.

“I look forward to the future and all of its exciting promise." -Somaya Reece

Profile Views: 13,131,452

Bob Marley

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 19:19:57 -0700

Bob Marley has 474,401 friends.

Robert "Bob" Nesta Marley OM (February 6, 1945 – May 11, 1981) was a Jamaican singer, songwriter, guitarist, and activist. He is the most widely known performer of reggae music. A faithful Rastafari, Marley is regarded by many as a prophet of the religion.

Marley is best known for his reggae songs, which include the hits "I Shot the Sheriff", "No Woman, No Cry", "Three Little Birds", "Exodus", "Could You Be Loved", "Jammin", "Redemption Song", and "One Love".[2] His posthumous compilation album Legend (1984) is the best-selling reggae album ever, with sales of more than 12 million copies.

Early life and career

Marley was born in the small village of Nine Mile in Saint Ann Parish, Jamaica as Nesta Robert Marley. A Jamaican passport official would later swap his first and middle names. His father, Norval Sinclair Marley, (born in 1895), was a white Jamaican of English descent, who lived in Liverpool. Norval was a Marine officer and captain, as well as a plantation overseer, when he married Cedella Booker, a black Jamaican then eighteen years old. Norval provided financial support for his wife and child, but seldom saw them, as he was often away on trips. In 1955, when Marley was 10 years old, his father died of a heart attack at age 60. Marley suffered racial prejudice as a youth, because of his mixed racial origins,[4] and faced questions about his own racial identity throughout his life. He once reflected:

I don't have prejudice against himself. My father was a white and my mother was black. Them call me half-caste or whatever. Me don't dip on nobody's side. Me don't dip on the black man's side nor the white man's side. Me dip on God's side, the one who create me and cause me to come from black and white.

Marley and his mother moved to Kingston's Trenchtown slum after Norval's death. He was forced to learn self-defense, as he became the target of bullying because of his racial makeup and small stature (5'4" or 163 cm tall)[citation needed]. He gained a reputation for his physical strength, which earned him the nickname "Tuff Gong".

Marley became friends with Neville "Bunny" Livingston (later known as Bunny Wailer), with whom he started to play music. He left school at the age of 14 and started as an apprentice at a local welder's shop. In his free time, he and Livingston made music with Joe Higgs, a local singer and devout Rastafari. It was at a jam session with Higgs and Livingston that Marley met Peter McIntosh (later known as Peter Tosh), who had similar musical ambitions.

In 1962, Marley recorded his first two singles, "Judge Not" and "One Cup of Coffee", with local music producer Leslie Kong. These songs, released on the Beverley's label under the pseudonym of Bobby Martell,[5] attracted little attention. The songs were later re-released on the box set, Songs of Freedom, a posthumous collection of Marley's work.

Musical career

The Wailers

Main article: The Wailers (reggae band)

Wikinews has related news:
Vivien Goldman: An interview with Bob Marley's biographer

In 1963, Bob Marley, Bunny Livingston, Peter McIntosh, Junior Braithwaite, Beverley Kelso, and Cherry Smith formed a ska and rocksteady group, calling themselves "The Teenagers". They later changed their name to "The Wailing Rudeboys", then to "The Wailing Wailers", at which point they were discovered by record producer Coxsone Dodd, and finally to "The Wailers". By 1966, Braithwaite, Kelso, and Smith had left The Wailers, leaving the core trio of Marley, Livingston, and McIntosh.

In 1966, Marley married Rita Anderson, and moved near his mother's residence in Wilmington, Delaware in the United States for a short time, during which he worked as a DuPont lab assistant and on the assembly line at a Chrysler plant, under the alias Donald Marley.[6] Upon returning to Jamaica, Marley became a member of the Rastafari movement, and started to wear his trademark dreadlocks (see the religion section for more on Marley's religious views).

After a conflict with Dodd, Marley and his band teamed up with Lee "Scratch" Perry and his studio band, The Upsetters. Although the alliance lasted less than a year, they recorded what many consider The Wailers' finest work. Marley and Perry split after a dispute regarding the assignment of recording rights, but they would remain friends and work together again.

Between 1968 and 1972, Bob and Rita Marley, Peter McIntosh and Bunny Livingston re-cut some old tracks with JAD Records in Kingston and London in an attempt to commercialize The Wailers' sound. Livingston later asserted that these songs "should never be released on an album … they were just demos for record companies to listen to."

The Wailers' first album, Catch A Fire, was released worldwide in 1973, and sold well. It was followed a year later by Burnin', which included the songs "Get Up, Stand Up" and "I Shot The Sheriff". Eric Clapton made a hit cover of "I Shot the Sheriff" in 1974, raising Marley's international profile.

The Wailers broke up in 1974 with each of the three main members going on to pursue solo careers. The reason for the breakup is shrouded in conjecture; some believe that there were disagreements amongst Livingston, McIntosh, and Marley concerning performances, while others claim that Livingston and McIntosh simply preferred solo work. McIntosh began recording under the name Peter Tosh, and Livingston continued as Bunny Wailer.

Bob Marley & The Wailers

Main article: Bob Marley & The Wailers‎

Despite the breakup, Marley continued recording as "Bob Marley & The Wailers". His new backing band included brothers Carlton and Aston "Family Man" Barrett on drums and bass respectively, Junior Marvin and Al Anderson on lead guitar, Tyrone Downie and Earl "Wya" Lindo on keyboards, and Alvin "Seeco" Patterson on percussion. The "I Threes", consisting of Judy Mowatt, Marcia Griffiths, and Marley's wife, Rita, provided backing vocals.

In 1975, Marley had his international breakthrough with his first hit outside Jamaica, "No Woman, No Cry," from the Natty Dread album. This was followed by his breakthrough album in the US, Rastaman Vibration (1976), which spent four weeks on the Billboard charts Top Ten.

In December 1976, two days before "Smile Jamaica", a free concert organized by the Jamaican Prime Minister Michael Manley in an attempt to ease tension between two warring political groups, Marley, his wife, and manager Don Taylor were wounded in an assault by unknown gunmen inside Marley's home. Taylor and Marley's wife sustained serious injuries, but later made full recoveries. Bob Marley received serious injuries in the chest and arm. The shooting was thought to have been politically motivated, as many felt the concert was really a support rally for Manley. Nonetheless, the concert proceeded, and an injured Marley performed as scheduled.
Bob Marley Live a painting by Steve Brogdon 1992
Bob Marley Live a painting by Steve Brogdon 1992

Marley left Jamaica at the end of 1976 for England, where he recorded his Exodus and Kaya albums. Exodus stayed on the British album charts for 56 consecutive weeks. It included four UK hit singles: "Exodus", "Waiting In Vain", "Jamming", "One Love", and a rendition of Curtis Mayfield's hit, "People Get Ready". It was here that he was arrested and received a conviction for possession of a small quantity of cannabis while traveling in London.

In 1978, Marley performed at another political concert in Jamaica, the One Love Peace Concert, again in an effort to calm warring parties. Near the end of the performance, by Marley's request, Manley and his political rival, Edward Seaga, joined each other on stage and shook hands.

Babylon by Bus, a double live album with 13 tracks, was released in 1978 to critical acclaim. This album, and specifically the final track "Jammin'" with the audience in a frenzy, captured the intensity of Marley's live performances.

Survival, a defiant and politically charged album, was released in 1979. Tracks such as "Zimbabwe", "Africa Unite", "Wake Up and Live", and "Survival" reflected Marley's support for the struggles of Africans. His appearance at the Amandla Festival in Boston in July 1979 showed his strong opposition to South African apartheid, which he already had shown in his song "War" in 1976. In early 1980, he was invited to perform at the April 17 celebration of Zimbabwe's Independence Day.

Uprising (1980) was Bob Marley's final studio album, and is one of his most religious productions, including "Redemption Song" and "Forever Loving Jah". It was in "Redemption Song" that Marley sang the famous lyric,
“ Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery
None but ourselves can free our minds… ”

Confrontation, released posthumously in 1983, contained unreleased material recorded during Marley's lifetime, including the hit "Buffalo Soldier" and new mixes of singles previously only available in Jamaica.

Later years

Cancer diagnosis

In July 1977, Marley was found to have malignant melanoma in a soccer wound on his right hallux (big toe). Marley refused amputation, because of the Rastafari belief that the body must be "whole":
“ Rasta no abide amputation. I don't allow a man to be dismantled. ”

—From the biography Catch a Fire

Marley may have seen medical doctors as samfai (tricksters, deceivers). True to this belief Marley went against all surgical possibilities and sought out other means that would not break his religious beliefs. He also refused to register a will, based on the Rastafari belief that writing a will is acknowledging death as inevitable, thus disregarding the everlasting (or everliving, as Rastas say) character of life.

Collapse and treatment

The cancer then metastasized to Marley's brain, lungs, liver, and stomach. After playing two shows at Madison Square Garden as part of his fall 1980 Uprising Tour, he collapsed while jogging in NYC's Central Park. The remainder of the tour was subsequently cancelled.

Bob Marley played his final concert at the Stanley Theater in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on September 23, 1980. The live version of "Redemption Song" on Songs of Freedom was recorded at this show.[7] Marley afterwards sought medical help from Munich specialist Josef Issels, but his cancer had already progressed to the terminal stage.

Death and posthumous reputation

While flying home from Germany to Jamaica for his final days, Marley became ill, and landed in Miami for immediate medical attention. He died at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital in Miami, Florida on the morning of May 11, 1981 at the age of 36. The spread of melanoma to his lungs and brain caused his death. His final words to his son Ziggy were "Money can't buy life."[8] Marley received a state funeral in Jamaica on May 21, 1981 which combined elements of Ethiopian Orthodoxy and Rastafari tradition. He was buried in a crypt near his birthplace with his Gibson Les Paul, a soccer ball, a Cannabis bud, a ring that he wore every day that was given to him by the Prince Asfa Wossen of Ethiopia (eldest son of HIM), and a Bible. A month before his death, he was awarded the Jamaican Order of Merit.

Bob Marley's music has continuously grown in popularity in the years since his death, providing a stream of revenue for his estate and affording him a mythical status in 20th century music history. He remains enormously popular and well-known all over the world, particularly so in Africa. Marley was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. Time magazine chose Bob Marley & The Wailers' Exodus as the greatest album of the 20th century.

In 2001, the same year that Marley was posthumously awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, a feature-length documentary about his life, Rebel Music, was nominated for Best Long Form Music Video documentary at the Grammys. It won various other awards. With contributions from Rita, the Wailers, and Marley's lovers and children, it also tells much of the story in his own words.

In 2004, a cover of "Three Little Birds" by Ziggy Marley and Sean Paul was used as the title song for the film Shark Tale. Oscar (Will Smith) attempts to sing it, and a jellyfish (Ziggy) zaps him.

In Summer 2006, the City of New York renamed a portion of Church Avenue from Remsen Avenue to East 98th Street in the East Flatbush section of Brooklyn "Bob Marley Boulevard".[9]

In the 2007 film I Am Legend, also starring Will Smith as a survivor of a deadly virus that almost wipes out the human race, Smith's character, Dr. Robert Neville, cites Bob Marley as an influence on his life philosophy. Neville's respect for Marley comes out of Marley's belief that violence and racism could be fought with music and love. Dr. Robert Neville sings the lyrics to "Three Little Birds" and "I Shot the Sheriff" throughout the film. "Redemption Song" is used as the theme during the closing credits.

Religion

Bob Marley was a member of the Rastafari movement, whose culture was a key element in the development of reggae. Bob Marley became the leading proponent of the Rastafari, taking their music out of the socially deprived areas of Jamaica and onto the international music scene.

Now considered a "Rasta" legend, Marley's adoption of the characteristic Rastafari dreadlocks, famous use of cannabis as a sacred sacrament, and an ital food diet, which were an integral part of his persona. He is said to have entered every performance proclaiming the divinity of Jah Rastafari.[citation needed]

Many of Marley's songs contained Biblical references, sometimes using wordplay to fuse activism and religion, as in "Revolution" and "Revelation":
“ Revelation reveals the truth … ”
“ It takes a revolution to make a solution … ”

He was criticized for singing
“ and I feel like bombing a church … ”
“ now that you know that the preacher is lying … ”

on the song "Talkin' Blues" on the Natty Dread album.

Bob Marley was baptized by the Archbishop of the Ethiopian Orthodox Christian Church in Kingston, Jamaica on November 4, 1980. [10][11]

Wife and children

Bob Marley had 13 children: three with his wife Rita, two adopted from Rita's previous relationships, and the remaining eight with separate women.[12] His children are, in order of birth:

1. Imani Carole, born May 22, 1963, to Cheryl Murray;
2. Sharon, born November 23, 1964, to Rita in previous relationship;
3. Cedella born August 23, 1967, to Rita;
4. David "Ziggy", born October 17, 1968, to Rita;
5. Stephen, born April 20, 1972, to Rita;
6. Robert "Robbie", born May 16, 1972, to Pat Williams;
7. Rohan, born May 19, 1972, to Janet Hunt;
8. Karen, born 1973 to Janet Bowen;
9. Stephanie, born August 17, 1974; according to Cedella Booker she was the daughter of Rita and a man called Ital with whom Rita had an affair; nonetheless she was acknowledged as Bob's daughter;
10. Julian, born June 4, 1975, to Lucy Pounder;
11. Ky-Mani, born February 26, 1976, to Anita Belnavis;
12. Damian, born July 21, 1978, to Cindy Breakspeare;
Makeda, born May 30, 1981, to Yvette Crichton.

Discography

For a detailed listing of albums by Bob Marley & the Wailers, see Bob Marley and the Wailers discography.

Tours

* Apr–Jul 1973: Catch a Fire Tour (England, USA)
* Oct–Nov 1973: Burnin' Tour (USA, England)
* Jun–Jul 1975: Natty Dread Tour (USA, Canada, England)
* Apr–Jul 1976: Rastaman Vibration Tour (USA, Canada, Germany, Sweden, Netherlands, France, England, Wales)
* May–Jun 1977: Exodus Tour (France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, England)
* May–Aug 1978: Kaya Tour (USA, Canada, England, France, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Netherlands, Belgium)
* Apr–May 1979: Babylon by Bus Tour (Japan, New Zealand, Australia, Hawaii)
* Oct–Dec 1979: Survival Tour (USA, Canada, Trinidad/Tobago, Bahamas)
* May–Sep 1980: Uprising Tour (Switzerland, Germany, France, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales, USA)

Awards and honors
Marley's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Marley's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

* 1976: Band of the Year (Rolling Stone)
* June 1978: Awarded the Peace Medal of the Third World from the United Nations
* February 1981: Awarded Jamaica's third highest honor, the Jamaican Order of Merit
* March 1994: Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
* 1999: Album of the Century for Exodus (Time Magazine)
* February 2001: A star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
* February 2001: Awarded Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award
* 2004: Rolling Stone Magazine ranked him #11 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.[13]
* "One Love" named song of the millennium by The BBC
* Voted as one of the greatest lyricists of all time by a BBC poll.[14]
* 2007 A plaque dedicated to him by Nubian Jak community trust and supported by Her Majesties Foreign Office.

Film adaptation

In February 2008, renowned director Martin Scorsese announced to produce a documentary movie on Marley, similar to his documentary Shine a Light on The Rolling Stones. The film is set to be released on February 6, 2010, what would have been Marley's 65th birthday.[15]

In March 2008, The Weinstein Company announced its plans to produce a biopic of Bob Marley, based on the book No Woman No Cry: My Life With Bob Marley by Rita Marley. The projects will be theatrically released sometime in late 2009. Rita stated there had been numerous offers and creative teams who tried to purchase the film rights of the book, but they didn't satisfy her. Rudy Langlais will produce the script by Lizzie Borden and Rita Marley will exec produce.[16]

Sound samples

* "Simmer Down" (help·info) (1964)

See also

* Bob Marley Museum
* Aston "Family Man" Barrett
* Junior Marvin
* Al Anderson

Notes

1. ^ EMP|SFM: 2007 Pop Conference Bios/Abstracts
2. ^ a b "Bob Marley," Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2006
3. ^ Doug Miller, "Concert Series: 'No Woman, No Cry'", BobMarley.com, February 26, 2007
4. ^ UVM.edu
5. ^ The Beverley Label and Leslie Kong: Music Business at bobmarley.com
6. ^ Timothy White, Bob Marley: 1945-1981, Rolling Stone, June 25, 1981
7. ^ http://www.bobmarley.com/songs/songs.cgi?redemption
8. ^ Steffens, Roger. Bob Marley Chronology 1945-1981. Retrieved on 2006-10-26.
9. ^ Brooklyn Street Renamed Bob Marley Boulevard
10. ^ The Ethiopian Orthodox Church & Bob Marley's Baptism And The Church. Jamaicans.com.
11. ^ Bob Marley's Baptism in Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Rastafarispeaks.com.
12. ^ Dixon, Meredith."Lovers and Children of the Natural Mystic: The Story of Bob Marley, Women and their Children" The Dread Library (Accessed 21 June 2007)
13. ^ The Immortals: The First Fifty. Rolling Stone Issue 946. Rolling Stone.
14. ^ "Who is the greatest lyricist of all time", BBC, May 23, 2001
15. ^ Winter Miller. "Scorsese to make Marley documentary", Ireland On-Line, 2008-02-17. Retrieved on 2008-03-06.
16. ^ Winter Miller. "Weinstein Co. options Marley", Variety, 2008-03-03. Retrieved on 2008-03-03.

Further reading

* Farley, Christopher (2007). Before the Legend: The Rise of Bob Marley, Amistad Press ISBN 0060539925
* Goldman, Vivien (2006). The Book of Exodus: The Making and Meaning of Bob Marley and the Wailers' Album of the Century, Aurum Press ISBN 1845132106
* Henke, James (2006). Marley Legend: An Illustrated Life of Bob Marley, Simon & Schuster Ltd ISBN 0743285514
* Marley, Rita; Jones, Hettie (2004) No Woman No Cry: My Life with Bob Marley Hyperion Books ISBN 0786887559
* Masouri, John (2007) Wailing Blues: The Story of Bob Marley's "Wailers" Wise Publications ISBN 1846096898
* White, Timothy (2006). Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley Owl Books ISBN 0805080864

External links
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:
Bob Marley
Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Bob Marley

* Official Bob Marley website
* The Bob Marley Foundation
* Bob Marley Fan Site
* Biblical References in Bob Marleys lyrics
* Bob Marley at Rollingstone
* Transcript of Haile Selassie's 1963 speech addressed to the United Nations, which was made into Marley's famous song "War".
* Marley elected one of the greatest songwriters BBC News, 23 May, 2001
* Roots, Rock, Remixed, first officially approved Bob Marley remix album
* Bob Marley quotes and lyrics
* Thirdfield Bob Marley Community Forums (Unofficial)
* BobMarleyMagazine Bob Marley Magazine (Unofficial)
* Some Wailers Vinyls Release
* Bob Marley, Exodus Tour, 1977: a selection of photographs by Kate Simon
* Bob Marley and the Wailers discography at MusicBrainz

Bibliographic details for "Bob Marley"

* Page name: Bob Marley
* Author: Wikipedia contributors
* Publisher: Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
* Date of last revision: 10 April 2008 11:53 UTC
* Date retrieved: 10 April 2008 17:58 UTC
* Permanent link: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bob_Marley&oldid=204673095
* Page Version ID: 204673095

Nelly Furtado

Wed, 26 Mar 2008 19:17:30 -0700

Nelly Furtado has 441,260 friends.

Nelly Kim Furtado (born December 2, 1978) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, record producer, and instrumentalist, who also holds Portuguese citizenship.

Furtado came to fame in 2000 with the release of her debut album Whoa, Nelly!, which featured her breakthrough Grammy Award-winning single "I'm like a Bird". After becoming a mother and releasing the less commercially successful Folklore (2003), she returned to prominence in 2006 with the release of Loose and its hit singles "Promiscuous", "Maneater", "Say It Right", and "All Good Things (Come to an End)".

Furtado is known for experimenting with different instruments, sounds, genres, languages, and vocal styles. This diversity has been influenced by her wide-ranging musical taste and her interest in different cultures.

Biography

Ethnic background

Nelly Furtado was born in the Canadian city of Victoria, British Columbia to Portuguese immigrants from the Azores, Maria Manuela and António José Furtado. Her parents were born on São Miguel Island and immigrated to Canada in the late 1960s. Furtado has a strong connection with Portugal. At age four she began performing and singing in Portuguese.

Early years

Nelly Furtado was named after Soviet gymnast Nellie Kim. Raised in a Roman Catholic home, Furtado first sang at the age of four when she performed a duet with her mother at a church on Portugal Day. Although remaining unclear about her religious beliefs, she still affirms a belief in God, the Ten Commandments, and in avoiding the Seven Sins. She began playing instruments at the age of nine, learning the trombone, ukulele and, in later years, the guitar and keyboards. At the age of twelve, she began writing songs, and as a teenager, she performed in a Portuguese marching band. Furtado has acknowledged her family as the source of her strong work ethic; she spent eight summers working as a chambermaid with her mother, who was a housekeeper in Victoria. She has stated that coming from a working class background has shaped her identity in a positive way.

The first musicians Furtado interacted with were underground rappers and DJs.[8] During a visit to Toronto the summer after eleventh grade, Furtado met Tallis Newkirk, member of the hip hop group Plains of Fascination. She contributed vocals to their 1996 album, Join the Ranks, on the track "Waitin' 4 the Streets".[9] After graduating from Mount Douglas Secondary School in 1996, she moved to Toronto. The following year, she formed Nelstar, a trip hop duo with Newkirk. Ultimately, Furtado felt the trip-hop style of the duo was "too segregated" and believed it did not represent her personality or allow her to showcase her vocal ability.[9] She left the group and planned to move back home.

Before moving, however, she performed at the 1997 Honey Jam, an "all-female urban" talent show.[9][10] Her performance attracted the attention of The Philosopher Kings singer Gerald Eaton (aka Jarvis Church), who then approached her to write with him. He and fellow Kings member Brian West helped Furtado produce a demo. She left Toronto, but returned again to record more material with Eaton and West. The material recorded during these sessions led to her 1999 record deal with DreamWorks Records.[3] Furtado's first single, "Party's Just Begun (Again)", was released that year on the Brokedown Palace: Music from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack.

Personal life

On September 20, 2003 in Toronto, Furtado gave birth to a daughter, Nevis, whose father is DJ Jasper Gahunia. Furtado and Gahunia, who had been good friends for several years, remained together for four years until their breakup in 2005. Furtado told Blender magazine that they continue to be good friends and jointly share responsibility of raising Nevis.[32]

In June 2006, in an interview with Genre magazine, when asked if she had "ever felt an attraction to women", Furtado replied "Absolutely. Women are beautiful and sexy."[33] Some considered this an announcement of bisexuality,[34] but in August 2006, she confirmed that she was "straight, but very open-minded".[35] In November 2006, Furtado revealed that she once turned down US$500,000 to pose unclothed in Playboy.[36]

In July 2007, it was reported that Furtado is engaged to Cuban sound engineer, Demacio "Demo" Castellón, who worked with her on Loose.[37]

Influences

During her teenage years, Furtado embraced many musical genres, listening heavily to mainstream R&B, hip hop, alternative hip hop, drum and bass, trip hop, world music (including Portuguese fado, Brazilian bossa nova, and Indian music), and a variety of others.[2] Her influences have included Jeff Buckley, Janet Jackson, Oasis, Caetano Veloso, Esthero, Amalia Rodrigues, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Cornershop, TLC, Mary J. Blige, Digable Planets, De La Soul, Radiohead, Madonna, The Smashing Pumpkins, The Verve, U2, Enya, Mariah Carey and Beck.[2][3]

Furtado's music has also been influenced by her current residence, Toronto, which she calls "the most multicultural city in the entire world" and a place where she "can be any culture". Regarding Toronto's cultural diversity, she has said that she did not have to wait for the Internet revolution to learn about world music; she began listening to it at the age of five and continues to discover new genres.
“ I always know there's a new genre left to discover. For me, it's like a metaphor for life. I feel like if you can get down with any style of music, you can get down with any style of person. So it's fun for me—I get to expose my fans to different vibes and they, in turn, open their minds too. I'm always undergoing mind-opening. ”

Acting career

Furtado began acting in school plays in middle school. She appeared on the episode "Some Buried Bones" of CSI: NY as Ava Brandt, a master-thief and victim of domestic abuse. She also guest starred on an episode of the day time soap opera One Life to Live, on which she performed some of her songs in a local club with Saukrates. Furtado participated in the hit Portuguese soap opera Floribella.

She had stated in an interviews on Planète Rap, a French radio station, that she has taken up acting classes when she is in Toronto and also had been working on a movie which has been postponed.[38]

Philanthropy

For World AIDS Day in 2006, Furtado, Enrique Iglesias, Kanye West, Kelly Rowland, Snoop Dogg and Kelly Clarkson teamed up with MTV, BET, and Nike to perform at an AIDS awareness concert in South Africa.[39] Furtado also hosted a program about AIDS on MTV, which also featured celebrity guests Alicia Keys and Justin Timberlake.[40]

Bibliographic details for "Nelly Furtado"

* Page name: Nelly Furtado
* Author: Wikipedia contributors
* Publisher: Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
* Date of last revision: 27 March 2008 14:23 UTC
* Date retrieved: 27 March 2008 15:01 UTC
* Permanent link: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nelly_Furtado&oldid=201325386
* Page Version ID: 201325386

Usher

Fri, 14 Mar 2008 06:11:07 -0700

Usher has 257,650 friends.

Usher Raymond IV (born October 14, 1978), known simply by his first name Usher, is an American R&B and pop singer and actor who rose to fame in the mid-late 1990s. To date, he has sold approximately 30 million albums worldwide and has won five Grammy Awards. Usher is also a part owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers National Basketball Association franchise. He also has his own record label, US Records.

Early life

Usher was born in Dallas, Texas, the son of Jonetta Patton (née O'Neal) and Usher Terry Raymond III.[2] He spent the majority of his young life in Chattanooga, Tennessee. As a child, he joined his local church choir where he discovered his ability to sing. As early as junior high school, Usher successfully entered local talent shows. Usher's family moved to Atlanta, Georgia, in the belief that the city would provide greater opportunities for showcasing his talent. While in Atlanta, Usher attended the North Springs Charter School of Arts and Sciences.

Music career

At age thirteen, Raymond competed on Star Search, where he was spotted by an A&R representative from LaFace Records, who arranged an audition for him with L.A. Reid. A contract with the company soon followed. Usher was introduced on "Call Me A Mack," a song he recorded for the soundtrack album to the John Singleton film, Poetic Justice.

1994-1995: Usher (Debut album)

On August 30, 1994, LaFace released Usher’s self-titled debut album. Sean “P Diddy” Combs produced several of the tracks and co-executive produced the album. Usher peaked at number twenty-five on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and was accompanied by three singles: “Can U Get Wit It,” “Think Of You,” and “The Many Ways.”

After graduating from high school, Usher continued to hone his skills as a stage performer and laid the groundwork for his second album. He also appeared on "Let's Straighten It Out", a 1995 duet with fellow Atlanta teen recording artist Monica; and on "Dreamin’", from Rhythm of the Games, LaFace's 1996 Olympic Games benefit album.

1997-1998: My Way

Usher developed a friendship with Jermaine Dupri, with whom he co-wrote and produced several tracks for his second album, My Way, released on September 16, 1997. The lead-off single, “You Make Me Wanna” was serviced to radio that summer and hit number one in its second week out—the same week that the album was released. “You Make Me Wanna” stayed on top of the R&B/Hip-Hop track charts for a total of 11 weeks (the longest-charting R&B hit in more than 3 years) and at #2 on the Pop charts for 7 weeks (second only to Elton John’s “Candle In the Wind.”) The single remained on the R&B chart for an unprecedented 71 weeks and became Usher's first platinum single. The albums second single, “Nice & Slow,” was released in November, and in January 1998 peaked at #1 on the Hot 100 Singles Chart for two weeks, as well as #1 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart for eight weeks. The following summer, the album's eponymous single title track peaked #2 pop/#4 R&B.

In the closing months of 1997, Usher embarked on a series of tour engagements including a spot on Puffy's No Way Out tour, dates with Mary J. Blige, and the opening spot on Janet Jackson’s The Velvet Rope tour. My Way was certified 6x platinum in the United States. Usher received his first Grammy Award nomination as Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for "You Make Me Wanna," which was also nominated for a Soul Train Music Award as ‘Best Male R&B/Soul Single.’

Usher made his acting debut on the UPN television series Moesha, which resulted in a recurring role on the series and subsequently his first film role in 1998's The Faculty. Usher’s extracurricular activities outside of the recording studio gathered momentum over the following year as he was cast in the daytime drama The Bold and the Beautiful and was seen in the family series Promised Land. He completed two more films, She's All That, and his first starring role in Light It Up. He also appeared in the Disney TV movie "Geppetto" with Drew Carey. Usher also became involved community activities: he served as national spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Transportation's “Get Big On Safety” campaign, and appeared on NBC’s NBA Inside Stuff. He also participated in the NBA "Stay In School" program and performed at several of the franchise's jamborees.

Raymond’s first concert album, Live was released in 1999—which featured appearances by Lil' Kim, Jagged Edge, Trey Lorenz, Shanice, Twista and Manuel Seal, and was RIAA-certified Gold.

2001-2002: 8701

Usher’s third studio album, originally titled All About U, was slated to be released in early 2001. The first single, “Pop Ya Collar” (co-written and produced by Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs), was released in late 2000 and became a #2 hit in the UK—but underperformed in America. The album was subsequently pushed back and retooled after select tracks were later leaked to the radio and Internet, and garnered a largely cold public response.

After having revised the album, it was renamed 8701 (named for the years of his career at that point [1987-2001], and for its release date of August 7, 2001, or 8/7/01). The first two singles "U Remind Me" and "U Got It Bad" each topped the U.S. Hot 100 singles chart for four and six weeks respectively in the summer and fall. In early 2002, "U Don't Have to Call," also went top five pop. The albums final single, "U-Turn" was released outside of America, and became a top twenty hit in Australia and the U.K.. 8701 was certified 4x platinum, selling more than seven million copies worldwide.

In February 2002, Usher won a Grammy for ‘Best Male R&B Vocal Performance’ for “U Remind Me.” The next year, he won the same award for "U Don't Have to Call," making Usher the only artist aside from Luther Vandross, more than a decade before, and Stevie Wonder (in the 1970s) to win this award consecutively.

In summer 2002, Usher contributed vocals to P. Diddy's "I Need a Girl, Part I." The year closed out with a trio of TV series appearances, all in November, on The Twilight Zone, 7th Heaven, Moesha , and American Dreams (in which Usher portrayed Marvin Gaye).

2004-2005: Confessions

Confessions, Usher’s fourth studio album, was released on March 23, 2004—just as its first single, "Yeah!" was in its sixth week at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and fifth week on top of the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart. The album's 1.1 million unit first week sales was the highest first week numbers ever scanned by a male R&B artist in Soundscan’s 13-year history (breaking R. Kelly's record of 540k for TP-2.com back in 2000).

The album’s second and third singles: "Burn" and "Confessions Part II" also topped Billboard's Hot 100 singles charts, the former for eight weeks. Usher became the third lead artist in pop music history (but the first solo artist) to have three singles inside the Hot 100's top 10 since The Beatles in 1964, and the Bee Gees in 1978. In September 2004, "My Boo," a duet with singer Alicia Keys (which was included on a Special Edition, released a half year after the original version), also peaked at number one and gave him a total of twenty-eight weeks on top of the U.S. charts that year. In December, the album's final single "Caught Up" peaked at number eight on the Hot 100. Confessions became the most successful album of the year; certified diamond in America, topping the world charts for several weeks and as of 2008 it sold more than 15 million copies all over the globe. After "Caught Up" Raymond released another single "Redlight" which is also shown on the Special Edition album.

Usher was recognized with numerous awards, including two MTV Video Music Awards for "Best Male Video and "Best Dance Video", three World Music Awards (“Best Male Artist,” “Best Male Pop Artist” and “Best R&B Artist“), two Source Hip-Hop Music Awards (“Male R&B Artist of the Year” and “R&B/Rap Collaboration of the Year,” a Nordic Music Award, three Radio Music Awards, four American Music Awards, eleven Billboard Music Awards and two more MTV Europe Music Awards. At the 47th annual Grammy Awards ceremony in 2005, Usher won three awards, including: “R&B Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals” (for “My Boo” with Alicia Keys), “Rap/Sung Collaboration” (for “Yeah!”) and “Contemporary R&B Album” (for Confessions).

In spring 2005, Usher scored a #3 Hot 100 hit as a featured vocalist on Lil' Jon's "Lovers and Friends." In November 2005, Usher starred as a disc jockey named Darrell in the Lions Gate film, In the Mix.

2006-present: Current career activity

On August 22, 2006, Usher took over the role of Billy Flynn in the long-running Broadway musical Chicago. Critical response to his overall performance were mixed. Usher is currently recording his fifth studio album. The album was due for release in November 2007 but was delayed to March 4, 2008. In June, an album was leaked onto the internet, claiming to be the singer's new album; it is however just a bootleg compilation of his previously unreleased material. In 2007, Usher also collaborated with R. Kelly on the track "Same Girl," for Kelly’s album, Double Up. He was also featured in a remix version of Omarion's Ice Box.Usher also appeared on the track " Shakedown " on Mary J.Blige 's new album " Growing Pains ". Usher is putting the finishing touches on his fifth studio album titled Here I Stand, scheduled to be released on June 8, 2008 according to his myspace page .

Personal life

Usher is the godson of performer Ben Vereen. In June 2007, Usher announced that he and his fiancée Tameka Foster were expecting a baby boy in the fall of 2007. This would be the first child for Usher, and the fourth for the recently divorced Foster. The coupled planned to be wed on July 28, 2007, at record executive LA Reid's home in the Hamptons, but the wedding was abruptly cancelled. On August 3, 2007, Usher and Foster were married in a quiet ceremony in his lawyer's office in Atlanta. In September 2007, Usher placed his Atlanta home in Country Club of the South on the market for an asking price of $1.95 million.

Usher is a supporter of Presidential candidate, Barack Obama. Usher made a speech at Obama's political rally on September 20, 2007 at the Georgia World Congress Center.

Tameka gave birth to a son, Usher Raymond V, on November 26, 2007.

Usher's father, Usher Raymond III, passed away on January 18, 2008.

Bibliographic details for "Usher (entertainer)"

* Page name: Usher (entertainer)
* Author: Wikipedia contributors
* Publisher: Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
* Date of last revision: 8 March 2008 22:59 UTC
* Date retrieved: 14 March 2008 13:18 UTC
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Britney Spears

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 07:33:38 -0700

Britney Spears has 373,692 friends.

Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American pop music singer, songwriter, dancer, actress, and author. Spears has sold over 83 million records worldwide according to Zomba Label Group. and has sold over 75 million albums worldwide. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) ranks her as the eighth best-selling female artist in American music history, having sold 31 million albums in the U.S.

Spears is best known for her studio albums, music videos, and songs, such as "...Baby One More Time", "Oops!... I Did It Again", "I'm a Slave 4 U", "Toxic", for which she won a Grammy Award, and "Gimme More". In January 1999, Spears released her first studio album ...Baby One More Time, followed closely by the 2000 studio album Oops!... I Did It Again. Her third album Britney was released in November 2001, followed by a fourth album In The Zone in November 2003. The collection Greatest Hits: My Prerogative was released in November 2004. Her fifth album entitled Blackout is scheduled to be released worldwide in November 2007.

Spears's fame in the music industry has led her to experiment with other forms of media, including film and reality television. As an actress, she is most noted for her starring role in the 2002 movie Crossroads. Spears has also made guest appearances in various other movies and television programs. Her success as a singer led her to several high-profile advertising deals and endorsements including her own perfume line.

Spears's personal life has gained much attention from the media. In particular, her marriage to back-up dancer Kevin Federline and the birth of their two children, Sean Preston and Jayden James. The couple's divorce in November 2006 was highly publicized and has been followed by a legal battle for custody of their sons. The events of her life closely following the divorce has also been the subject of media scrutiny.

Bibliographic details for "Britney Spears"

* Page name: Britney Spears
* Author: Wikipedia contributors
* Publisher: Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
* Date of last revision: 7 October 2007 07:00 UTC
* Date retrieved: 7 October 2007 14:32 UTC
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Snoop Dogg

Tue, 4 Mar 2008 07:16:18 -0800

Snoop Dogg has 552,000 friends.

Cordozar Calvin Broadus, Jr. (born October 20, 1971), better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg), is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Snoop is best known as an MC in the West Coast hip hop scene, and for being one of producer Dr. Dre's most notable protégés. His catch phrase is "-izzle." That style of slang was invented by Frankie Smith and The Gap Band in the early eighties, and popularized in part by fellow rapper E-40.

His mother nicknamed him "Snoopy" as a child because of the way he dressed and because of his love of the cartoon Peanuts; he took the stage name Snoop Doggy Dogg when he began recording. He changed his name to Snoop Dogg in 1998, when he left his original record label Death Row Records and signed with No Limit Records.

Biography

Early life

Snoop Dogg began performing at an early age in church. He was playing piano at age five and doing plays. He credits this experience with helping him be comfortable performing in front of people and losing stage fright. Snoop Dogg attended Long Beach Polytechnic High School, and was later convicted for cocaine trafficking. (Snoop mentioned in his reality show, "Snoop Dogg's Father Hood", that his uncle was influential in his family moving to Los Angeles from Southern Mississippi, proving the rarely mentioned rumor that he was originally from there). Snoop Dogg was a member of a local Crips gang in Long Beach. Snoop Dogg's conviction caused him to be in and out of prison for the first three years after he graduated from high school. Snoop thus followed up on the homemade rap tapes that he had made with his cousin Nate Dogg and best friend Warren G (stepbrother of Dr. Dre of N.W.A.). Originally, Snoop's and Nate's cousin Lil' 1/2 Dead was also part of the group, called 213, named after the Long Beach area code at the time. This was largely in homage to Richie Rich's group 415, which was named for the (then) area code of Oakland, California (now the area code of San Francisco and its northern neighbor Marin County). One of his early solo freestyle over En Vogue's "Hold on" had made it to a mixtape, which was heard by Dr. Dre, who phoned to invite him to an audition. Later N.W.A. member D.O.C. taught him how to structure his lyrics and separate the tematics into verses, hooks and chorus . Several of his cousins also became hip hop artists and Aftermath collaborators, including RBX, Joe Cool, and his cousins, Nate Dogg and Daz Dillinger. He's also the nephew of Soul/Gospel singer Willie Norwood and cousin of his R&B singing children Ray J and Brandy and he recently released "Smokin Trees" with Ray J and a duet with Brandy was pre-recorded for Tha Blue Carpet Treatment, but was not part of the album.[8]

Death Row Records Years (1992-98)

Dr. Dre began collaborating with Snoop Dogg, first on the theme song of the feature film Deep Cover, and then on Dr. Dre's debut solo album The Chronic with the other members of his former starting group, Tha Dogg Pound. Snoop Dogg's contribution to The Chronic was considerable; the rapper's rhymes were as present as Dr. Dre's. The huge success of Snoop Dogg's debut Doggystyle was partially due to this intense exposure.

While recording Doggystyle with Dr. Dre in August 1993, Snoop Dogg was arrested in connection with the death of Phillip Woldermarian, a member of a rival gang who was fired at and killed in a gang fight. Snoop Dogg was defended by David Kenner, with his bodyguard McKinley Lee, while Sean Abrams (accompanying member in the jeep) was defended by Johnnie Cochran.[9] Both Snoop Dogg and McKinley Lee were acquitted; Lee was acquitted on grounds of self-defense, but Snoop Dogg remained entangled in the legal battles around the case for three years. His video "2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted" with Tupac Shakur chronicled the difficulties each rapper was dealing with as a result of their unrelated but concurrent criminal prosecutions.

The Doggystyle album was released in November 1993 on Death Row Records and became the first debut album ever to enter the charts at #1, helping to fuel the ascendance of West Coast "g-funk" rap. The singles "Who Am I (What's My Name)?" and "Gin and Juice" reached the top ten most-played songs in the United States, and the album stayed on the Billboard charts for several months. Gangsta rap became the center of arguments for censorship and labeling, with Snoop Dogg often used as an example of violent and misogynistic musicians.

Doggystyle, much like The Chronic, featured a host of rappers signed to or affiliated with the Death Row label including Daz Dillinger, Kurupt, Nate Dogg and others. In 1995 Snoop Dogg and the Dogg Pound were featured on the Los Angeles Based hip-hop show "Street Vibe '95".

A short film about Snoop Dogg's murder trial called Murder Was the Case, was released in 1994, along with an accompanying soundtrack. However, by the time Snoop Dogg's second album, Tha Doggfather, was released in November 1996, the price of imitating (or sometimes just living) the "gangsta" life had become very evident. Among the many notable rap industry deaths and convictions were the death of Snoop Dogg's friend and label-mate Tupac Shakur and the racketeering indictment of Death Row co-founder Suge Knight. Dr. Dre had left Death Row earlier in 1996 due to a contract dispute, so Snoop Dogg co-produced Tha Doggfather with Daz Dillinger and DJ Pooh.

This album featured a distinct change of style as compared to Doggystyle. While the album sold reasonably well, it was not as successful, and it was widely believed that its quality suffered from Dr. Dre's lack of involvement. However, Tha Doggfather had a somewhat softer approach to the G-funk style, and Snoop Dogg used a less energetic and more charismatic type of rhyming style, which would be more widely incorporated and exercised later on in his career.

In the immediate aftermath of Dr. Dre's withdrawal from Death Row Records, realizing that he was subject to an iron clad time-based contract (i.e., that Death Row practically owned anything he produced for a number of years), Snoop Dogg refused to produce any more tracks for Suge Knight, other than the insulting "Fuck Death Row", until his contract expired.

Post-Death Row (1998-2003)

Upon leaving Death Row Records Snoop was approached by a number of record labels. He eventually signed a contract with Master P's No Limit Records. No Limit was quite popular at the time, as Southern Hip Hop was going through a revival and beginning to dominate the charts in a way which had not been seen since Florida rap dominated the charts in the early 1990s, thanks to 2 Live Crew and Luke. Snoop shortened his name from Snoop Doggy Dogg to Snoop Dogg, and received a great deal of criticism for signing to the label.

Da Game Is to Be Sold, Not to Be Told was the first album Snoop released at No Limit released in 1998. It received negative reviews, yet still sold well. Snoop put his stamp of the now ubiquitous "Dirty South" sound on this album. Similar to the group focus of Death Row Records, many other No Limit Records artists appeared on the album, and it was produced mostly in-house by Beats By The Pound. Snoop's next effort, No Limit Top Doggreleased in 1999 would re-unite Snoop with his mentor Dr. Dre for some highlight tracks and see a return to the G-funk style of his Death Row days; it proved to be a success in both ratings and sales, as the album embraced both old and new styles of West Coast hip hop along with assorted guests from the No Limit roster. Snoop Dogg followed this up with his last album on No Limit Records 2000's Tha Last Meal, which built upon the mixture of styles on No He also collaborated again with his old friends Nate Dogg and Warren G as part of 213. They released an album The Hard Way in 2004, which featured the single "Groupie Luv", and reached #4 in the U.S. Billboard 200 album charts.

Snoop Dogg released an autobiography in 2001 titled Tha Doggfather: The Times, Trials, and Hardcore Truths of Snoop Dogg, co-written with Davin Seay. In 2002, Snoop announced that he was giving up women and drugs. Later that year he released the album Paid tha Cost to Be da Bo$$, on Capitol Records which featured the hit singles and videos "From tha Chuuuch to da Palace" and "Beautiful" featuring guest vocals by Pharrell Williams.

On May 21, 2004, Snoop Dogg filed for divorce from his wife Shante Broadus, citing irreconcilable differences and seeking joint custody of their three children, Corde, Cordell, and Cori; they have since reconciled. At the age of 30, Snoop claimed that he gave up smoking weed, although many of his run-ins with the law since have found him in possession of marijuana.

Geffen Years (2004-present)

In 2004, Snoop signed to Geffen Records/Star Trak Entertainment both of which are distributed through Interscope Records; Star Trak was headed by the Neptunes, who produced several tracks for Snoop's 2004 release R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta): The Masterpiece. "Drop It Like It's Hot" (featuring Pharrell), the first single released from the album, was a hit and became Snoop Dogg's first single to reach number one. His third release was "Signs", featuring Justin Timberlake & Charlie Wilson, which entered the UK chart at #2. This was his highest entry ever in the UK chart. The album sold very well, and most of its singles were heavily played on radio and television.

Snoop Dogg's latest music is being featured on West Coast rap albums such as Laugh Now, Cry Later by Ice Cube and Cali Iz Active by Tha Dogg Pound. He is featured on 2 tracks from Cube's album including the single "Go to Church", and several tracks on Cali Iz Active. Also, his latest song, "Real Talk", was leaked over the Internet in the summer of 2006 and a video was later released on the Internet. "Real Talk" is a dedication to Tookie Williams and a diss to Arnold Schwarzenegger. His two other new songs are "Keep Bouncing" by Too $hort, Snoop Dogg & will.i.am; and "Gangsta Walk" by Coolio & Snoop Dogg.

Snoop Dogg's 2006 release, Tha Blue Carpet Treatment, did well on its first week, debuting at #5, which has been his highest since 2000's The Last Meal. The album, and the second single "That's That Shit" featuring R. Kelly have been received good critical response so far. In the album, he collaborated in a video with E-40 and other West Coast rappers for his single "Candy (Drippin' Like Water)", the first Snoop Dogg song to contain elements of the hyphy sound from E-40.

In July 2007, Snoop Dogg also made history by becoming the first artist to release a track as a ringtone prior to its release as a single, "It's The D.O.G.". Currently Snoop Dogg is working with producer JT the Bigga Figga on a documentary DVD entitled Mandatory Business, which will feature the likes of Russell Simmons, Spike Lee, Xzibit, Young Buck and 50 Cent. There will also be a soundtrack released for the documentary. On 7 July 2007 Snoop Dogg performed at the German leg of Live Earth in Hamburg.

Snoop Dogg had renewed his vows with his longtime wife Shante Broadus.

On Screen

In 2000, Snoop (as "Michael J. Corleone") directed Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle, a pornographic film produced by Hustler. This film, combining hip-hop with X-rated material, was a huge success and won "Top Selling Release of the Year" at the 2002 AVN Awards. Driven by this success, Snoop directed Snoop Dogg's Hustlaz: Diary of a Pimp in 2002 (this time using the nickname "Snoop Scorsese").

In 2002, Snoop hosted, starred in, and produced his own MTV sketch comedy show entitled Doggy Fizzle Televizzle.

Perhaps in conjunction with his entry into the x-rated world, Snoop claimed in a 2006 interview with Rolling Stone magazine that unlike other hip hop artists who've superficially adopted the pimp persona, he was an actual professional pimp in 2003 and 2004, saying "That shit was my natural calling and once I got involved with it, it became fun. It was like shootin' layups for me. I was makin' 'em every time." He goes on to say that upon the advice on some of the other pimps he knew, he eventually gave up pimping to spend more time with his family.[16]

Snoop founded his own production company, Snoopadelic Films, in 2005. Their debut film was Boss'n Up, a film inspired by R&G starring Lil Jon and Trina.

In 2004, Snoop appeared on the Showtime series The L Word as the character "Slim Daddy", a portmanteau of Slim Shady and Puff Daddy. He also notably played the drug dealer-turned-informant character of Huggy Bear, in the 2004 remake film of the 1970s TV-series of the same name, Starsky & Hutch. He appeared as himself in an episode of the Showtime series "Weeds," and made an appearance on the hit TV shows Entourage and Monk in July 2007. In 1998 Snoop had a cameo appearance in the film Half Baked as the "Scavenger Smoker."

In December 2007, his reality show Snoop Dogg's Father Hood premiered on the E! channel.

Snoop Dogg is the latest celebrity to join the ultra-exclusive league, which is an official extension of the NBA. The league features A-listers like Will Ferrell, rapper Ice Cube, Sacha Baron Cohen, Leonardo DiCaprio, Don Cheadle, Ashton Kutcher and others. The league features 16 teams and even distributes awards similar to the ones NBA players receive, including replica NBA Championship rings.

Legal issues

* On August 25, 1993, Snoop Dogg was arrested on suspicion of being an accomplice in the killing of reputed gang member Philip Woldemariam in Woodbine Park in the Palms district of West Los Angeles. Broadus' bodyguard actually pulled the trigger and claimed self-defense at the trial. Both were acquitted.

* A woman named Kylie Bell claimed that she was drugged and sexually assaulted by Broadus and four others. In December 2004, one month before Bell filed her suit against him, Snoop sued her, accusing her of extortion. Bell eventually dropped her lawsuit, and Snoop dropped his US$5 million countersuit against her. Snoop's publicist said "absolutely no money" was paid by the rapper in reaching a settlement.

* On April 26, 2006, Snoop Dogg and members of his entourage were arrested being turned away from British Airways' first class lounge. Snoop and his party were not allowed to enter the lounge because some of the entourage were flying first class, other members of the party were flying economy class. After the group was escorted outside, they vandalized a duty-free shop by throwing whiskey bottles. Seven police officers were injured in the fracas. After a night in prison, Snoop Dogg and the other men were released on bail on April 27, but he was unable to perform at the Premier Foods People's Concert in Johannesburg on the same day. As part of his bail conditions, he had to return to the police station in May. The group has been banned by British Airways for "the foreseeable future."

* On May 11, when Snoop Dogg appeared at a London police station, he was cautioned for affray under Section 4 of the Public Order Act for use of threatening words or behavior . On May 15, the Home Office decided that Snoop Dogg should be denied entry to the UK for the foreseeable future due to the fracas at Heathrow as well as his previous convictions in the United States for drugs and firearms offenses.

* Snoop Dogg, Tha Dogg Pound, and The Game have been sued for assaulting a fan on stage at a May 2005 Auburn concert at the White River Amphitheatre. The accuser claims he was beaten by the artists' entourage while he was running up to touch Snoop. He alleges that he reacted to an "open invite" to come on stage. Before he could, Snoop’s bodyguards grabbed him and he was beaten unconscious by crew people, including the rapper and producer Soopafly. Snoop and The Game were included in the suit for not intervening to hold the fight. The lawsuit focuses on a pecuniary claim of $22 million in punitive and compensatory damages, battery, negligence, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

* On September 27, 2006, Snoop Dogg was detained at John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California by airport security, after airport screeners found a collapsible police baton in Snoop's carry-on bag. The baton was confiscated but Snoop was allowed to board the flight. He has been charged with various weapons violations stemming from this incident. When arrested, he told deputies the baton was a prop for a movie. Bail was set at $150,000, which Snoop has paid.

* Snoop Dogg was arrested again on October 26, 2006 at Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, California while parked in a passenger loading zone. Approached by airport security for a traffic infraction, he was found in possession of marijuana and a firearm, according to a police statement. He was transported to Burbank Police Department Jail, booked, and released on $35,000 bond. He faced firearm and drug possession charges on 12 December at Burbank Superior Court.[27]

* He was again arrested on November 29, 2006, after performing on The Tonight Show, for possession of marijuana and a firearm.

* Snoop Dogg was arrested again on March 12, 2007 at 1:25 a.m CET after performing in a concert with P.Diddy in Stockholm's Globe Arena, Sweden. Snoop Dogg was arrested along with a woman after the pair reportedly "reeked" of marijuana. They were arrested and released 4 hours later after providing a urine sample. Pending results on urine will determine whether charges will be pressed. However the rapper denied all charges.

* Snoop Dogg's visa request to enter the United Kingdom was rejected by local authorities because of the Heathrow incident on March 24, 2007. A concert at London's Wembley Arena on March 27 went ahead with Diddy (with whom he toured Europe) and the rest of the show. However the decision affected four more British performances in Cardiff, Manchester, Nottingham and Glasgow and Budapest (due to rescheduling).

* On April 12, 2007, Snoop Dogg was sentenced to five years of probation for gun and drug charges. He is expected to continue touring.

* On April 26, 2007, the Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship banned him from entering the country on character grounds, citing his prior criminal convictions. He had been scheduled to appear at the MTV Australia Video Music Awards on April 29, 2007. The ban was not lifted and Snoop Dogg was not able to attend. MTV Australia currently has a petition going to get him Australian citizenship.

* Snoop Dogg's many legal issues forced San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom to withdraw his plan to issue a proclamation to the rapper.

Chris Crocker

Tue, 19 Feb 2008 06:38:53 -0800

Chris Crocker has 263,084 friends.

Chris Crocker (born December 1987) is an openly gay Tennessee-based YouTube and MySpace personality and self-described edutainer who produces and acts in transgressive videos. According to Crocker, safety concerns over death threats he has received have forced him to keep his identity and exact location private. His work consists mainly of short-form self-directed "monologues about life" shot in his grandparents' home. As of October 2007, Crocker's videos have received a combined 34.9 million plays on MySpace, and his vlog channel on YouTube is the 15th most viewed of all time in all categories, with over 42 million views.

Although he has produced dozens of videos, Crocker gained international notoriety from his viral video tearfully defending Britney Spears's "lackluster MTV comeback" with over four million views in two days. The video received international media attention, as well as generating death threats for the androgynous teenager.

Crocker's detractors and critics have accused him of melodramatics, histrionics, and using Spears' personal shortcomings to bolster his own fame. Others have accused Crocker of acting in the "Leave Britney Alone" video, although he insisted that it was a genuine "blog from the heart" on a September 20, 2007 appearance on the Maury Povich show. Psychologist Kevin Leman noted that voyeuristic fascination with celebrity "says that we live in a morally corrupt society" and Crocker is a good example of the narcissistic look-at-me generation of attention-seeking mongers.

On September 18, 2007, Variety revealed that Crocker has signed a development deal with 44 Blue Productions to star in a documentary-style reality television show.

On October 5, 2007, TMZ.com reported that Crocker was being sued by Onch Movement Jewlery for 1 million dollars, for fraud and breach of contract.

Bibliographic details for "Chris Crocker (Internet celebrity)"

* Page name: Chris Crocker (Internet celebrity)
* Author: Wikipedia contributors
* Publisher: Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
* Date of last revision: 7 October 2007 07:21 UTC
* Date retrieved: 7 October 2007 13:51 UTC
* Permanent link: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chris_Crocker_%28Internet_celebrity%29&oldid=162821228
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