OK, we all know that Prince is a bit of a nutter. In fact, that may be an understatement; the purple-loving pop-sensation can be downright weird from time to time. But his latest tirade against fans online is downright strange — even for Prince.
CNN is reporting that lawyers acting on behalf of the 49-year-old star are seeking to have all pictures of Prince, along with album covers and song lyrics removed from the Internet. In particular, Prince’s lawyers are going after three Internet fan sites, by issuing cease and desist letters warning the site’s owners to provide “details of the means by which you propose to compensate our client…”
Has Prince finally and completely lost his freaking mind? It certainly seems like it. After all, he has now sicked his legal “watchdogs” on his own fans — the people that love and adore him so much that they spend a great deal of time energy and money maintaining web sites in his honor without any compensation whatsoever. Talk about ingratitude!
The music industry in general has had a tough time coming to terms with the Internet and the emergence of a worldwide connected culture. But some stars seem to have much more trouble with it than others: remember all that nonsense with Metallica versus Napster back in the 90s?
But these days, most big shots in the music industry have mostly adjusted to the realities of the online world, and try to take advantage of the power of the Internet to promote their music, rather than pushing against it.
For example, Radiohead recently released their latest album online as a series of MP3 files on their web site. And in a show of faith in their diehard fans, the band did not use any sort of digital media protection with the MP3s. While this may not have been the greatest financial move short-term, it went a long way toward endearing the UK indie group to its fans.
Seen in this light, what Prince is now attempting to do online seems like a huge slap in the face to his fan base. To begin with, there is no way that Prince or any other pop star can possibly remove all of their images, album covers or song lyrics online. Perhaps Prince hasn’t noticed it, but the Internet is a pretty big place.
But despite Prince’s latest move being absolutely futile, it’s also shortsighted and bound to have an adverse effect on his relationship with his fans. In fact, several Prince message boards and fan sites have now formed a coalition to fight back against the pop star. Prince may be about to learn the hard way that squabbling with your biggest fans is simply bad for business.
Michael Jackson is out of the closet, so to speak. Well, maybe I should say he is out of hiding. He has given his first public interview in years with Ebony magazine, and it will be released on newsstands this Monday, November 12, 2007. You may be surprised at how laid back Michael Jackson sounds when answering questions based upon his reputation, his success, and his opinions regarding the future of the music industry.
He says that he simply ignores all of the rumors and trash talk that has plagued his career for nearly a decade and says that he is grateful for the musical successes that he has accomplished throughout his career. One thing is certain, no matter what your personal opinion is of Michael Jackson, he is an American Icon that has broken many musical records and is believed to have sold over 750 million records, making him the best selling musical artist of all times.
In addition, Michael Jackson has received thirteen Grammys, numerous NAACP Image Awards, received the Key to the City of Buffalo, numerous Bilboard awards, numerous Music Video Awards, and has even received multiple spots in the Guinness World Records. His Guinness World Records include being the Most Successful Entertainer of All Time, the Youngest Vocalist to Top the US Singles Charts, and many more.
However, it will undoubtedly be the 2003 interview that people will always remember Michael Jackson for and his subsequent arrest and trial for child molestation. Though he was found not guilty on all charges the shadow of doubt will continue to haunt his career forever. Yet, Michael just simply states that he ignores the rumors and the comments and focuses on his life and raising his three children.
Professionally speaking, there are many people who feel that Michael Jackson is a musical genius and there is talk that he is collaborating on a project with Kanye West that will be recorded soon. If there is one thing that is certain in Michael Jackson’s life it is his gift for making music that touches the heart of humankind. In fact, in the interview his answer to the question, “What makes music universal?” is profound and shows that Michael Jackson truly understands the musical fibers that connects humanity across continental divides. I won’t tell you his answer; I will let you read it in the article for yourself. But if you are or ever were a fan of Michael Jackson or just interested in hearing what he has been up to in the past years, especially since the trial, you may want to read this magazine interview.
Michael Jackson graces the cover and reports are that there were no meltdowns or hysterical scenes, such as were recently displayed by Britney Spears. In fact, Ebony staff members are reported to have said that Michael Jackson was exceptionally sweet to everyone involved in the interview. There is also a section in the interview that addresses rumors and myths regarding Michael Jackson. Most of these rumors relate to his personal life as well as his musical career. Finally, the cover is called, Michael Jackson 25 years after Thriller. And if I do say so myself they did an excellent job airbrushing the magazine cover. It is definitely the best picture I’ve seen of Michael Jackson in 25 years.
If anyone understands the pain and shame that comes from physical and sexual abuse, it is Oprah Winfrey. Oprah Winfrey has put up her own money to catch predators, frequently speaks before legislators to appeal on behalf of children, and started a school for underprivileged girls in Africa. That’s why the news of alleged physical and sexual abuse in the past weeks at Oprah’s school for girls comes as an utter shock.
Allegations have come forth in Oprah’s school, The Leadership Academy for Girls that states that some of the women headmistresses inappropriately touched and beat the girls. One girl ran away from the school and told authorities of the abuse that was taking place. Oprah Winfrey has been horrified over the allegations and has publicly apologized to the parents of the girls who attend the school. She has also flown to South Africa several times in the past week to deal with the allegations.
There is no doubt that this comes as a devastating blow to Oprah. Oprah is to be commended for overseeing the problem first hand and for attending the school. One can only assume that if these allegations are proved true that Oprah is going to be overwhelmed with the reality of what happened to the girls that she has invested so much in.
Oprah has publicly apologized to both the students and their parents and has even gone so far as to give her home phone number and her email address to the students so that they may contact her at any time. News media is reporting that the parents do not blame Oprah Winfrey for the abuse; they feel that she truly cares for the children. Oprah even goes so far as calling the students of the all girl school her daughters.
So far, two headmistresses (or matrons as they are called) have been suspended and the principal of the school has been placed on paid administrative lead. The girls have stated that the principal did not act in their best interest and failed to do anything about the abuse.
It should be of no surprise that Oprah would visit the school and address the girls’ needs on such a personal level. She has also hired a special team of American investigators, as well as a team from South Africa, who will investigate the allegations. Oprah has also made available professional psychological services to assist the young girls through the trauma and abuse that they had endured.
Many people are voicing their opinions stating that they think that Oprah will try to cover up any allegations due to the fact that she has the money to accomplish whatever she sets her mind to.
I disagree completely. I don’t think there is any subject that Oprah is more passionate about, than the safety and well being of children. I believe that if the allegations are proved true, Oprah will see to it that the children who were involved will be made financial restitution and there will be no cover-ups taking place. I believe Oprah will make sure that the perpetrators will never be in a position to harm children again.
You would think that the paparazzi would learn that it might be best to invest in a good camera with a zoom lens, rather than to continually chase Miss Spears alongside her vehicle while she’s driving. Britney has been followed going to the tanning salon, coming out of court, attending her parenting classes, and even going to the hair salon to don the modernized Sinead O’Connor hair trend. Britney is a musical enigma and the photographers simply won’t leave her alone to the demise of Chris Crocker’s desperate pleas.
If you recall, just last week Britney inadvertently stopped her car over a photographer’s foot as he was trying to get photos of her driving in her pumpkin decked out car. And in a surprising coincidence, Britney’s lawyer will enter a “not guilty” plea for her current case of driving without a license. The charge is a misdemeanor and unfortunately for Britney, the incident was caught on videotape. Britney hit a parked car and was recorded leaving the scene of the crime. Fortunately, the paparazzi were there filming to ensure that Britney was held accountable and paid her debt to society. Britney has made a settlement with the owner of the car and it is believed that the additional charges of “hit and run” will be dropped.
The part about all of this that I find interesting is that her lawyer, Michael Flanagan intends to plead “not guilty” to driving without a valid license. It seems to me that you either have a valid license or you don’t. I am very intrigued how this will play out. I know that it has been reported that she obtained her license back at the beginning of October, but the accident occurred in August. I’ve yet to hear of drivers licenses being retroactive, so time will tell how well her lawyer’s strategy works. With all of the accidents that she has been finding herself in lately, it may not be a bad idea to add driving classes to the other classes that she is being required to take. However, it really amazes me that she is pleading not guilty to driving without a valid license when the media knows that she lived in LA for ten years without a valid California license.
The paparazzi are obsessed with Miss Spears and they’ve known that she hasn’t had a license for quite some time. In fact, it is stated that one of the reasons that she lost custody of her children is because she didn’t get her drivers license as ordered by the judge. It is clearly obvious that Britney can’t drive. Any photographer who refuses to leave Britney alone and places him or herself in harms way by jumping in front of, chasing behind, or running alongside her vehicle deserves what they get.
It’s been a bad run for Britney Spears these days. She’s lost the right to see her children, has probably the most publicized nervous breakdown of anyone in history, and just settled for a hit and run accident. Well, in what appears to be another “brit and run” incident, Britney Spears reportedly ran over the foot of a paparazzi photographer who was chasing her down. It kind of makes you wonder when things will begin to change for Britney, doesn’t it?
Partying in Hollywood is nothing new. It’s been the subject of lurid tales and scandals since the first “talkie” movies graced the silver screen. What is new is the fact that celebrities are being held accountable for their actions and actually doing jail time. It seems that Robert Downey Jr. was the first major celebrity to continually make his appearance known throughout L.A.’s county jail system, but with the likes of Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, and Nicole Ritchie making jail stints you would think that maybe celebrities would get the message and begin to clean up their act. Well, maybe a few of them, but obviously, Britney isn’t listening.
When news reporters caught up with Miss Shears, I’m sorry, Miss Spears, as she was leaving the courthouse, she announced to the cameras, “Where’s the party?” Britney has continually been photographed around town, getting tanned, bronzed, lips plumped, and now, “Oops, she did it again” another accident with her car.
In Britney’s defense, we can probably assume that the paparazzi (a TMZ staff photographer) was a little bit too close to her car, trying to take more pictures of the one time former, Queen of Pop, and probably quite frankly deserved to have his foot run over. Paparazzi are continually harassing celebrities and obviously, anyone who attempts to get that close to Britney Spears while behind the wheel deserves what they get.
The Paparazzi are notorious for being involved in hit and run accidents. In fact, just days after Halle Berry announced that she was pregnant, she crashed her car in an attempt to outrun the paparazzi that were following her. She just released the story in an interview and stated how her thoughts turned instantly to her unborn child, and would he or she be safe after being jolted due to the crash. Then, she tells how the paparazzi who were involved in the accident, were still on the scene, taking pictures of her car as it was towed away.
Unfortunately, for Britney this incident will just be filed as another one of her infamous scandals. It will be interesting to see how the press runs with this story. In all reality, this may be one of the few cases where Britney was actually justified in her actions. We know that the paparazzi have been causing celebrities to jump over the edge for many years now. Sean Penn got into a brawl with camera wielding paparazzi back in 85, and not too long ago, husband of supermodel, Heidi Klum, and singer, Seal lost all restraint when eight photographers followed him and his wife. It also isn’t the first time that Britney has had her share of run-ins with the paparazzi. At least this time Britney didn’t use an umbrella, she simply ran over his foot.
Unless you’ve been living in a cave these past few months, you will already know that pop singer Britney Spears has been on a bit of a downward spiral of late. Following her divorce from Kevin Federline, the former Mouseketeer has gone through a rehab stay, a disastrous comeback performance at the MTV video music awards, and now has lost custody of her two young children. I guess it’s true, when it rains it pours.
Celebrities are coming out on both sides of the Britney downturn, but these days the former pop princess seems more like the punchline of a joke, than a bona fide pop star. But I can’t help but wonder if all the Britney bashing is justified, or is this is just another example of building up a pop-culture icon, only so we can tear them back down again?
Talent-wise, Britney Spears has never been a remarkable singer; but she was always known as a good dancer, and at least a competent performer. This perception was damaged recently by an inexplicably bad performance at the MTV video music awards.
The singer came onstage amid an over-sized dance troupe, looking slightly the worst for wear. There was rampant speculation at the VMA awards that Britney appeared to be heavily medicated, and her lackluster performance only added fuel to this rumor. At one point, the singer was carried by two backup dancers down a single step to the front of the stage. She seemed very uneasy on her feet, as if she may have been off-balance or disoriented in some way.
Britney’s recent trip to rehab, and consequent appearance in the tabloids partying at many different celebrity hotspots, has led to the widespread perception that she may have a serious drug problem. After the performance at the VMA awards, many fans are beginning to suspect the rumors are true.
But it is Britney’s recent court custody battle that has captured headlines in the past few weeks, resulting in her losing full custody of her two boys. While anyone would suspect that this would be a devastating blow to the pop singer, surprisingly, Britney was photographed partying with friends at various nightclubs in the week following her court battle, confusing many of her fans, and leading to a widespread belief that perhaps the singer is, in fact, too immature to be a responsible mother to her children.
Where Britney goes from here is anyone’s guess, but for the moment at least, it appears that trouble is piling on the 25-year-old pop singer from every angle.
In March 2007, Chris Rock (actor and comedian) was issued a lawsuit notice regarding paternity of a 13 year old boy. The paternity lawsuit that would benefit the plaintiff could award them a good amount of child support as well as medical coverage and attorney fees. Kali Bowyer and her son, Jordan, were forced to withdraw the lawsuit after finding out from court officials that it was outside of their jurisdiction due to Chris Rock being a resident of New Jersey. Kali Bowyer told a local newspaper that on the advice of her attorney, she will refile her paternity lawsuit in New York, closer to where Chris Rock and his family live. Bowyer also claims that she isn’t just coming out of the woodwork and being a gold digger; she has been trying to prove that Chris Rock is her son’s father since 1994. There have also been reports that Jordan Bowyer, alleged son of Chris Rock, has suffered from seizures recently and is undergoing tests for epilepsy. Kali Bowyer also states that she is interested in learning more about the biological history of her son so he can be medically treated properly.
In a surprising turn of events, Chris Rock requested that the issue proceed in the Georgia courts. According to Chris Rock he “desires to contribute to the support, maintenance, and education” of the 13 year old Jordan Bowyer if it can be proven that he is indeed the father. Chris Rock has two young children with his wife of ten years, Malaak. Known for being one of the more family oriented celebrities, Chris Rock’s request to proceed with the paternity test wasn’t quite as much of a shock as some would think. Chris Rock has publicly mentioned how thankful he was to grow up in the ghettos with his father, which most people in that situation could not say. He attributes his strong family relationship growing up with his success in the entertainment industry. Julius Rock, Chris’ father and hero, died in 1989 after an ulcer surgery which left Rock very saddened and depressed.
Bowyer’s New York attorney, Brett Kimmel, said “She is looking forward to establishing that Mr. Rock is the father of their son and bringing the case to a swift conclusion.” Her attorney also declined to answer questions about Kali Bowyer and Chris Rock’s possible relationship over 13 years ago. She told a local paper that they “were friends and spent time together.”
Chris Rock has been pretty active in the television and movie world lately while he directed and starred in the film I Think I Love My Wife and the television show Everybody Hates Chris which is loosely based on his childhood experiences. Chris Rock and his wife, Malaak, have recently been the target of tabloids stating that they were considering divorce. Rock and his wife dispute this claim and have had to further argue that his move “I Think I Love My Wife” has nothing to do with their marriage.
About
The official blog of Romow News & Media Directory. We deliver you the latest breaking news online.
Comments