Thanks all those who entered the Mary J. Blige 'Growing Pains' + iMaingo give-away. The correct answer to the question:

Which of the following isn't the name of a Mary J. Blige album?

c) Mary J.

The winner (who has also been notified via email) is....


Darryn Kinney (Age 14) - Carson, California

Congratulations.

Remember to keep it locked on That Grape Juice for upcoming competitions...

Labels: Competition

Jay-Z was joined by a host of stars to celebrate the opening of the Las Vegas arm of his 40/40 nightclub. Attendee's included Beyonce, of course, Solange, Mary J. Blige, Tichina Arnold, Al Sharpton, Joe Jackson and Robin Thicke. Check out pics from the event below:

{Click pics to enlarge}

Labels: Beyonce, Jay Z

Janet Jackson has hit the promo trail in support of her forthcoming album 'Discipline' (due February 26th 2008); the pop superstar features in upscale magazine Prestige Hong Kong. Check out pics from the the great Mark Liddell shoot below. You can read Janet's interview - in which she speaks on growing up a Jackson, life offstage with boyfriend Jermaine Dupri, her new album and more - by clicking here.

What do you think of the cover /pics?

Labels: Janet Jackson

Rapper Trina shot the video for her new single 'Single Again' this past Friday at a mansion Coconut Grove, Florida . Expect the vid to consist of various scenes; including a wedding, pool and club. It appears there's truth to the stories of Trina's new deal with EMI (in partnership with Slip-N-Slide) being worth a lot of money; the vid (and it's budget) looks to be Trina's best yet. 'Single Again' will be the first single to be lifted from Trina's forthcoming album 'Still Da Baddest' - due February 12th 2008.

Labels: Trina

Surprisingly Jennifer Lopez is to release yet another single from her certified flop album 'Brave'. The album's title track will serve as the CD's third official single, with the video - directed by Michael Haussman - having been filmed already. Considering the huge losses her label have undoubtedly made off the album, I can't understand why they are allowing her to churn out more singles - especially when the album sucks.

Your thoughts?

Labels: Jennifer Lopez

I know the guy in the crowd was wrong, but come on now. Trey ain't but 100 pounds lol. One of these days one of these artists is gonna get their a**es kicked in a situation like this. I can see a lawsuit coming on from this one.

Your thoughts?

Labels: Trey Songz

In a recent interview with the Atlanta-Journal Constitution, R&B star Usher detailed plans he has for a collaboration between himself, T-Pain and the King of Pop Michael Jackson. Speaking of the song, the 'Yeah' singer said:

“It’s been created, but it’s not recorded," Usher explained to the newspaper. "And as long as Michael is open to it, hey, anything goes.”

Elaborating more his forthcoming album, he added:

I’ve been diligently working on creating a masterpiece," he said of the project. "It’s going to be out first or maybe the second quarter. I see the second quarter of next year. And there will be a video and single out at the top of the year. … I think [Atlanta producer] Polow Da Don is going to have the first one. I think that’s going to be the single 'Love In The Club.'”

An Usher - MJ collaboration sounds like an interesting concept. Why T-Pain is being thrown into the mix is beyond me. Yes, he's the 'it' artist of the moment, but for how long will that be? Anyway, you can hear a snippet of the single likely to be the first from Usher's album, by clicking here. Sounds pretty good to me.

Labels: Michael Jackson, Usher

Following a tumultuous year for Brandy, it was confirmed yesterday that the R&B star will not have to face charges regarding the crash she was involved in that a killed another driver. The singer's high-powered attorney Blair Berk released the following statement to TMZ after the news was announced:

“We are extremely pleased that after a more thorough and extensive investigation by authorities, the Los Angeles City Attorney has determined that Brandy Norwood should not be charged with any crime whatsoever relating to the accident back in 2006.”

She continued, “These past 12 months have posed an extraordinary hardship for Brandy and her family, who have been unfairly forced to live under a cloud of suspicion initially caused by the ill-advised and premature press release sent out by the California Highway Patrol accusing Brandy of wrongdoing before the police investigation was even finished. However, Brandy continues to be mindful that she was so fortunate to be uninjured in this accident and there was a life lost that should be remembered.”

I'm glad this whole mess is over with. Now she can move on with her life.

Any thoughts?

Labels: Brandy

Whoa! She nailed it. The song is one of my all-time favourite Diana Ross tracks and Yolanda really brought the house down with it. Great stuff.

What do you think of the performance?

Labels: Diana Ross, Yolanda Adams

R&B star LeToya's sophomore album has been confirmed for a June 10th 2008 release. The news may come as somewhat of a disappointment to her fans, as the singer has been quoted as saying that the album was set to drop at the start of 2008. Interestingly the album is listed as being released under Virgin Records; however it's doubtful there's much to that as LeToya's label Capitol and Virgin recently merged. {Source}

Labels: LeToya

Mary J. Blige made a huge impact on the Billboard 200 album chart with her eighth studio album 'Growing Pains'. The Queen of Hip-Hop/Soul sold through an impressive 629,000 copies of the LP - the follow-up to her 2005 multi platinum effort 'The Breakthrough'. Despite this, Blige charted at #2 - unable to oust Josh Groban's 'Noel' album from the top spot (which sold 757,000 in it's third week of release).

Labels: Mary J. Blige

The way I see it, either he's a complete idiot or there's more to it (e.g. money, threats etc). Did you notice how he doesn't look into the camera. Whatever the case, the damage seems to have been done; his claims have verified the rumors that have been swirling around since the group were still together. It'll be interesting to see where this whole saga ends up at.

*Update*

MTV.com have just posted the following update regarding the story:

The truce between Raz and Stokes doesn’t appear to have been extended to Ricardo. After MTV reported on the apology, Ricardo told MTV News that he stands by all the original allegations and is not recanting his story. He said he hasn’t spoken to his younger brother in more than a day — which he said was unusual for the siblings and predicted that Raz will “come back around,” suggesting that the apology might not have been his brother’s idea.

Your thoughts?

Labels: B2K, Raz-B

R&B star Ciara was among those who performed in honor of Diana Ross at the Kennedy Center Honors show which aired yesterday on CBS. The 22 year old singer performed a medley of Ross' classics 'I'm Coming Out' and 'Upside Down'. Not an obvious choice for the tribute, I thought Ciara did pretty well.

What do you think of the performance?

Labels: Ciara

In light of the controversy surrounding Chris Stokes in the last couple of days, R&B singer Omarion - who is managed by Stokes - has released a statement, via his publicist, condemning the claims. Check it out below:

"I want to be on the record as saying that "Raz B" Thorton and Ricardo Thorton are lying regarding Chris Stokes. Chris is a father figure to myself, and many others in the industry. He's guided us, helped raised us and is nothing more than an inspiration and someone I respect to and look up to. I have spent countless hours, days, weeks and months with the man since the age of 5 and have never once seen him behave inappropriately. He's married to my aunt and I know this man very well. I stand behind him with no question whatsoever.

I have grown up around Chris and this is crazy to me. These people have damaged me, and my reputation and I won't stand silent and will do all within my means to speak the truth about this matter".

Labels: Omarion

Yawn. Sorry, but nothing John Legend has put out from his sleep-inducing sophomore album 'Once Again' has managed to keep my attention long enough. Case example, this his latest video for new single 'Show Me'. I must say that the vid, which was filmed in Tanzania back in October, is kinda different - yet it's still a bore to me.

What do you think of the video?

Labels: John Legend

Danity Kane member Dawn Richard posted a blog on her official site recently, updating fans on the status of the group's new project(s):

I'm home guys!!!!!! just finished the show........and the album...It is soooooo sick....You guys will be surprised at how much DK has grown....The show is gonna be something!!!!!! It's a making the band you have never seen before! so stay tuned!

DK IS BACK BABY
2008 IS GONNA BE OURS FOR THE TAKING!

As previously reported, the girls will be starring in the new season of Making The Band, with the guys from the last season (including Donnie - apparently). It'll be interesting to see how the show will work this time around.

Labels: Danity Kane

Things seem to be taking an unexpected turn in the Brandy-car accident episode. According to TMZ, Brandy may actually be a victim and not the one in the wrong. Check out their report below:

TMZ has learned the hang-up in deciding whether to file vehicular manslaughter charges against Brandy is that Brandy may have been a victim, not a culprit.

A CHP source tells TMZ the woman who died in the car accident involving Brandy actually struck the vehicle in front of her before Brandy made any contact. The law enforcement source says Awatef Aboudihaj, the woman who died, struck the car in front of her -- which was going 65 mph, and then slammed on her brakes. We're told the sudden stop caused Brandy to hit the dead woman's car.

What's more, L.A. County Coroner spokesperson Captain Ed Winter tells TMZ that toxicology reports show Aboudihaj had "slight traces" of marijuana in her system at the time of the crash.

The L.A. City Attorney has until the end of the business day on Friday to decide whether to file criminal charges against Brandy -- that's when the one-year statute of limitations runs out. Sources tell TMZ there is significant division in the City Attorney's office, and a decision still has not been made. The problem for the City Attorney: if they file manslaughter charges, they have to prove Brandy did something negligent -- and we're told that could be difficult if not impossible.

Labels: Brandy

After a disappointing debut on the charts last week (#11 with 107,146 copies sold), 'Face Off' - the collaborative album by Bow Wow and Omarion - doesn't look to be doing all that great. Still, a second single in the form of 'Hey Baby (Jump Off) has been released - the video for which premiered today. Put simply, neither the song or the video are anything other than 'ok'. If anything, this is a step-back from their decent-yet-forgettable 'Girlfriend' release IMO.

What do you think of the video?

Labels: Bow Wow, Omarion

Our friend DJB over at BBC 1Xtra - one of the UK's premier Urban radio stations - recently caught up with R&B star Kelly Rowland. The 'Like This' singer spoke in detail on a number of things including the 'Ms. Kelly' re-release, the initial lack of support her label gave her, working with Gym Class Heroes and her 2008 tour plans. It was a great interview and should kinda come as good news for Kelly fans; the label really seem to be behind the project this time around.

What better time to announce than now; DJB will be joining the That Grape Juice team early 2008 as a contributor. Keep it locked on That Grape Juice for that in the weeks ahead.

Your thoughts?

Labels: Kelly Rowland

Revelations, revelations, revelations. This video has been doing the rounds on the blog scene for the last few days. Former B2K member Raz-B has come forward accusing his cousin and former manager Chris Stokes of molestation. Somehow Marques Houston works into the equation too. See the shocking video below:

There's more; Raz-B's brother Ricky Romance has also accused Stokes, claiming that he forced them to take showers with other boys and molested him too. Stokes is also accused of 'unfair business and personal practices' for requesting sexual favours from them. Check out the vid below:

Chris Stokes has since issued a press release denying the claims levelled against him:

“The accusations that Demario “Raz B” Thorton and Ricardo Thorton have made are vehemently false and hold no merit. I have recently stopped financially supporting both individuals along with assisting them with their criminal and legal matters which leads me to believe they are resentful and looking to benefit financially from this. My family is my first priority and the reason why I have been so supportive of them. In bringing these false claims, they have not only slandered me, they have also put me in a position to ensure that the truth is known and I will take all legal routes to protect myself, my family and my four children," said Chris Stokes, CEO of The Ultimate Group.

"It’s also quite ironic that these statements were made only 2 weeks after they were denied admittance by a venue for an event I hosted in Beverly Hills," added Stokes.

Only those involved can know what truthfully went down; still I always knew something BOGUS was up with Chris Stokes etc.

Any thoughts?

Labels: B2K, Raz-B

As of January 1st, Def Jam will longer be presided over by Jay-Z; the rapper confirmed that he will be stepping down from his President role at the label. Check out the rapper's statement below:

“I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have served as President of such a culturally-defining label as Def Jam over the last three years,” Jay-Z said in a statement. “During that time, I’ve had the pleasure of working with many of the world’s most dynamic artists and many of the most dedicated and talented executives in the music business today, including Antonio “L.A.” Reid. But now it’s time for me to take on new challenges.”

Jay-Z, born Shawn Carter, took over as President of Def Jam in 2005. Under his guidance, the rapper signed his former rival Nas to Def Jam and oversaw the release of hit records by Kanye West, Rihanna and Ne-Yo.

Island Def Jam Music Group Chairman Antonio “L.A.” Reid said that Jay-Z felt it was time to take on “different challenges in his life.”

Jay-Z will continue running and recording for his Roc-A-Fella imprint, which is distributed by the Island Def Jam Music Group. The mogul is rumored to be making a transition to the urban division of Sony Records with Rick Rubin. {Read full article}

Labels: Jay Z

Ciara premiered the video for her new single 'That's Right' today as a special Christmas gift to her fans. Can't say I'm a fan of the song, but the video turned out pretty good. Monica makes a cameo in the vid too.

What do you think of the video?

Labels: Ciara