The Daily Roundup for Feb 3

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Raven Symone the NOH8 Campaign!

Raven Symone got dolled up recently to lend her support to the NOH8 capaign and marriage equality. And in her pics.....Raven looks gorgeous!
And if you like the photo of Raven in the furry hat, it is available for purchase. The campaign tweeted,

@MissRavenSymone poses for @NOH8Campaign http://t.co/tLCtdfJh #NOH8WorldWide #AllLove”

Follow the link to support the cause!

Vanity Fair's 2012 Hollywood cover revealed

Katniss’ prep team is going to have a lot to live up to after this. The Hunger Games star Jennifer Lawrence, embodying an old-school Hollywood look, is just one of the 11 actresses to go very va-va-voom for Vanity Fair (alliteration is fun!) and its 2012 Hollywood issue. Also gracing the cover alongside Lawrence is Albert Nobbs actress Mia Wasikowska making her second appearance, the ubiquitous and unreasonably beautiful Best Supporting Actress nominee Jessica Chastain, and Best Actress nominee Rooney Mara, who undergoes quite the transformation from the sexy-grungy Girl With the Dragon Tattoo to a nearly unrecognizable hybrid of Isabella Rossellini and Judy Davis’ character in The Break-Up.

The other female stars featured in the issue (which has Q&A’s with Lawrence, Wasikowska, Chastain, and Mara) include 2011 breakout stars Martha Marcy May Marlene‘s Elizabeth Olsen, Abduction‘s Lily Collins, The Descendants‘ Shailene Woodley, Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol‘s Paula Patton, Like Crazy‘s Felicity Jones, Pariah‘s Adepero Oduye, and Another Earth‘s Brit Marling.

Of course, there’s one element of the “20s and 30s boudoir feel” that isn’t sitting pretty with everyone. As Jezebel noted, VF once again placed their few women of color (here Patton and Oduye) on the inside of the foldout cover (something, as the site points out, they’ve done in years past).

A sign of things in Hollywood or a misstep from VF? Only time will tell.

Big Fendi vs Debra Antney; Over who really found Nicki Minaj!

Also Big Fendi Speaks On Discovering Nicki Minaj & Being Owed Money By Young Money
Big Fendi has a lot to get off his chest as he speaks to The Come Up DVD about there being no loyalty in the game. No hating, but just real talk as the man who discovered Nicki Minaj and Jamal "Gravy" Wollard speaks on a few salt in his wounds.

“I changed her name, I changed her image. Me and Nicki Minaj was arguing because I wanted her to be the sex symbol and talk about Pu%%%y and get Niccas open and she told me I was disgracing her name... But she still talking about Pu##&y and A$$$, A$$$$, A$$$$.”

Fendi also speaks about Waka Flocka's mom, Debra Antney, who he brought into the camp to manage Nicki and her being shady and how she brainwashed his artist as she became a "New Nicky.” He also states that he's the reason Nicki Minaj is with Young Money and was promised to be compensated by Young Money President Cortez Bryant, but the money never materialized.

He also sheds light on him owning the name Dirty Money and licensing the name to Diddy and Gravy wanting to be Biggie. Director Jordan Tower is also exposed for his alleged shadiness as Fendi declares, "Ain't no loyalty in this ish, F#CK everybody."…

But hold your horses. Wacka Flocka’s Mom wasted no time in blasting this dude for his ridiculous rants and here’s what she had to say.
“If Fendi in fact had an issue with me or my associates Nicki Minaj or Brian “Baby” Williams, making a video is not the proper forum to start a conversation. Just for the record Fendi did not discover Nicki Minaj, Bow Legged Lou and Anthony of the legendary group Full Force actually discovered Nicki Minaj. So let’s be clear on one thing, Full Force birth her, I raised her and YMCMB married her and now she is a grown woman.”

Looks like dude is trying to peddle his DVD so why not throw a little salt to up his sales anyway right? Funny part of the interview is that Antney said she would even buy one of the DVD’s if he needs the money that bad. Well one thing is for certain, she is not shy for words.

Rihanna splashes out on Marilyn Monroe artwork worth $65,000

It's a hard life, being so rich you don't know what to do with your money.
But Rihanna has found a worthy cause for hers - after she bought a portrait of Marilyn Monroe which retails at $65,000.
The Russian Roulette singer reportedly purchased the five sq ft picture of the original blonde bombshell from a bespoke artwork company called Gemstone Creative.
The extravagant star is believed to 'identify' with the Gentlemen Prefer Blondes actress because she feels the same pressures of fame.
The portrait, which constantly changes colour and 'sends rainbows of light round the room', took four months to complete at Claire's Yorkshire studio.

Claire, who was commissioned to produce the piece by Gemstone Creative, made the 13 stone piece with 100 per cent Swarovski crystals and told The Sun: 'I tried to show the glitter of the public life and then the sadness in Marilyn's eyes.
'Because of who Rihanna is, everything had to be done through her interior decorators, but they told me afterwards she loved it.'

Despite lavishly splashing out on her wall hanging, and forking out even more money to ship it to her Beverly Hills mansion, the 23-year-old RnB pop princess insists she is living the 'thug life'.
Rihanna is actually living the high life and is set to front her own talent show to discover a new fashion designer.
She said: 'I've always had a great love of fashion.

'It's a constant source of inspiration and is a big reason why I've grown into the artist I am today.
'I am excited to follow the journey of our aspiring contestants and see how their individuality influences their efforts.'

Firts Lady Michelle Obama for More Magazine

Michelle Obama graces the February 2012 cover of More Magazine. Check out a couple of excerpts below:

On her nickname FLOTUS: “They call me FLOTUS, for first lady of the United States…And there are many times when FLOTUS and POTUS feel like characters.”

On her mentoring program in the White House: “It’s very personal. I mean, growing up the way that I did — kid from the South Side (of Chicago), going to public schools — the more my career developed, I realized how much I didn’t see, how little exposure I had to opportunities.”

Billboard Reveals the 2012 Power 100

Billboard found something else that Irving Azoff, executive chairman of Live Nation, can sit atop: In the January 28 issue of the magazine, Billboard unveils the Power 100, a ranking of the most powerful people in the music business.

Azoff's position on the Power 100 reflects a general trend in power, away from record labels and over to the management and touring side of the business. Of the 100 slots, 23 were filled by those in management or the touring business, compared to 21 record labels.

"Ultimately the artists are in control," noted one top entertainment attorney, speaking in consultation to the creation of the list. "So whoever most influences the artist has the power. But the label role has diminished as they no longer can provide the established artists with as much cash as they used to."
Rankings were determined by a combination of key factors including market share, exclusive Billboard chart data/boxscore information, and revenue. A team of 15 top Billboard editors then analyzed the value of these metrics to produce the final results. The list is U.S. based. As well, the Power 100 puts a premium on the top decision makers at each company. So, for example, the strong position of Interscope's Jimmy Iovine's is an argument against a high position for the number-two at that company, Steve Berman, who still makes the list.
The list boasts six artists, each of whom cracked the business ranking for specific reasons. "We couldn't weigh the power of an artist's fanbase against the power an executive has, or this would have simply been an artist list," says Bill Werde, Billboard's editorial director. "Our Moneymakers list is our artist list. But certain artists were able to break through to the Power 100 based purely on their business success or innovations."

Artists on the Power 100 include Jay-Z and Beyonce as a power couple, Taylor Swift, U2, Jon Bon Jovi and Lady Gaga.

The rapidly changing music business is represented by the diversity of the remaining slots on the Power 100. There are 10 executives in television or movies (who either book artists or curate music for their productions); nine radio-industry executives and seven music-publishing executives (eight, including David Israelite of the National Music Publishers Association).
The list also includes executives from six digital service providers, from webcasters like Pandora to digital download stores like iTunes; five companies that use music for branding purposes and provide tour and artist sponsorship opportunities like Coca Cola, Chevrolet and AMEX; and five trade groups, like the RIAA and A2IM. There are also four lawyers, and two venture capitalists who invest in music-related companies.

Azoff's placement at the top of the list is due to his command of the biggest concert-promotion company, the largest ticketing company and the largest artist-management firm in the world. Since live performances are the main revenue source for artists, the touring industry is well represented on the list.

In the year ended 2010, Live Nation posted sales of $5.06 billion in revenue, up 21% from the prior year's total of $4.2 billion. That increase is almost entirely due to the merger with Ticketmaster that brought Azoff -- a veteran music industry executive with a long resume that includes running major record labels and artist-management firms -- into the company. But in 2011, going up against the merger numbers, Live Nation is still up 9.75% to $4.2 billion, up another 9.75% from $3.83 billion.

Azoff's power reflects the changing dynamic in the music business. As he said in the Q&A that appears in the issue, "It's all about the artist and those they empower to execute their business plans."

BILLBOARD'S 2012 POWER 100 INDEX:

1. Irving Azoff

2. Coran Capshaw

3. Lucian Grainge

4. Martin Bandier

5. Doug Morris

6. Michael Rapino

7. Rob Light

8. Len Blavatnik

9. Tim Leiweke

10. Jimmy Iovine

11. Eddy Cue and Robert Kondrk

12. John Hogan

13. Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter & Beyonce Knowles

14. Lyor Cohen

15. Randy Phillips

16. Emmanuel Seuge

17. Frank Cooper

18. Barry Weiss

19. Rob Stringer and Steve Barnett

20. Arthur Fogel

21. Marc Geiger

22. Dan Mason

23. Bob Pittman

24. Roger Faxon

25. Ronald "Slim" Williams and Bryan "Birdman" Williams

26. Rio Caraeff

27. U2 and Paul McGuinness

28. Julie Greenwald and Craig Kallman

29. Daniel Ek

30. Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald

31. Lewis W. Dickey, Jr

32. Peter Grosslight

33. Charles Attal, Charlie Jones and Charlie Walker

34. Robert Greenblatt

35. Van Toffler

36. Monte Lipman

37. Antonio "L.A." Reid

38. Joel Katz

39. Mark Campana and Bob Roux

40. Tim Westergren

41. Peter Edge and Tom Corson

42. Tom Poleman

43. Chip Hooper

44. Hartwig Masuch

45. Rob Cavallo and Todd Moscowitz

46. Cliff Burnstein and Peter Mensch

47. Nathan Hubbard

48. Jay Brown

49. Evan Lamberg

50. Jon Bon Jovi

51. Lia Vollack

52. Jan Jeffries

53. Steve Bartels

54. Scott Borchetta

55. Blaise D'Sylva

56. Neil Portnow

57. Dennis Arfa

58. Cameron Strang

59. Cortez Bryant/Gee Roberson

60. Sean Parker

61. Steve Moore

62. Paul Rosenberg

63. Tifanie Van Laar

64. Ryan Seacrest

65. Robert Kyncl

66. Lorne Michaels

67. John Butcher

68. Clint Higham

69. Randy Spendlove

70. Rich Lehrfeld

71. Peter Luukko

72. John Branca

73. Melissa Lonner

74. Raul Alarcon, Jr.

75. John Frankenheimer

76. Cary Sherman

77. Larry Marcus

78. Taylor Swift

79. Kevin Mayer

80. PJ Bloom

81. James L. Dolan

82. Jesus Lopez

83. Martin Karl "Max Martin" Sandberg

84. Lady Gaga

85. Mike Dungan

86. Fred Wilson

87. Jon Platt

88. Willard Ahdritz

89. John Ivey and Alex Tear

90. Jody Gerson

91. Chris Tsakalakis

92. Nigel Lythgoe

93. Richard Busch

94. Debra Lee

95. David Israelite

96. Steve Berman

97. Rich Bengloff

98. Gary Overton

99. Daniel Glass

100. Simon Cowell

Kelly Rowland Turns Heads At Bacardi Anniversary

As an international entity, Kelly Rowland sure clocks up those airmiles.

The singer was snapped looking all flavours of fierce as she arrived at Bacardi’s 150th anniversary in Berlin, Germany.

Cory Gunz Arrested for Gun Possession in New York City

Young Money rapper Cory Gunz was taken into custody for gun possession in the Bronx, NY His father Peter Gunz confirmed to MTV News:
“The details are still sketchy, but I can confirm that he was arrested with a firearm yesterday in the Bronx. They caught him around 2 p.m. in the afternoon with a loaded gun in his knapsack. It was definitely an illegal search.”
After briefly speaking to Cory himself … Peter says the officer who arrested his son felt bad about the situation.

“I spoke to the arresting officer, and so far, what I’m hearing from him is that they got a phone call at the station saying they should look out. According to [the officer], they didn’t know he was Cory Gunz. They just saw a bunch of kids following him around.

“What I will say is that the officer that arrested Cory actually happened to be a cool dude. After arresting Cory, sitting down with him and talking, he felt bad about the situation.”

According to XXL … this just so happens to be Cory’s first offense, but in New York if an individual is found guilty of illegally carrying a loaded firearm, there is a mandatory minimum sentence of 3 and 1/2 years.
“At the end of the day, there’s a reason for everything, but at the same time, in New York, it’s mandatory jail time. To go to a precinct and see your son, your junior, in handcuffs, it’s heartbreaking. Anytime you see your child in jail, in the cell, in handcuffs, it’s very hard.
“He’s walked down some of the same paths that I walked down, but you never want to see your kids go through what you went through. This is Cory’s first offense, but sometimes they like to make an example out of rappers and people with any kind of celebrity to them.”

Hopefully Cory can get all this worked out … and learn from his boss Weezy to put the guns down!!!

Paula Abdul, Nicole Sherzinger And Steve Jones Get The Boot From The X Factor USA

At the end of the the previous season’s The X factor USA Simon Cowell promised a bloodbath over the show‘s disappointing ratings. Now we know who has drawn the ire of Cowell and is bleeding with terminal wounds- it’s the host Steve Jones and that nasty judge Nicole Scherzinger – they are gone for sure.

But breaking news is that Paula Abdul has also gotten the axe. I liked Jones – he was a cool dude but supposedly too boring… what the heck, the entire stupid show is boring. Scherzinger I am glad to see leave – a pompous phony – Cowell can’t do worse. Scholing though is the news that Paula Abdul won’t be returning.

According to deadline.com a Simon Cowell insider says that his longtime friend and American Idol colleague Paula Abdul won’t be returning as an X Factor judge next season. The source claims that none of the three left on their own accord and that it was cleaning house day at the so-so rated show.
Jones revealed his departure on Twitter: “I wont be hosting next seasons XFactor which is a shame but I cant complain as I’ve had a great time,” he added, “Good luck to everyone on the show.”
E!Online claims to have a source that has confirmed that Scherzinger is off the show: “X Factor took a lot more of her time than she ever expected,” the source said. “She didn’t have any time really to work on her music. She was doing X Factor six days a week.”

What a crock – Cowell is allowing Scherzinger to bow out gracefully – he made her an offer she couldn’t refuse: get lost or I’ll fire you. Scherzinger’s own music – what a joke – she was a Pussycat Doll and has nothing more to offer.
At the end of last season Jones expressed a love/lust interest in Scherzinger – maybe the two will hook up now that they are no longer co-workers.

Will you miss any of these stars? Are you shocked to see Abdul leave? Who will replace Jones? Who will replace Scherzinger? And who could possibility replace Abdul?

Gabby Union for Ocean Drive Mag

Posing in bold colors, shaggy accents, furs, and a basketball, Gabby is looking fabulous in the February 2012 issue of OCEAN DRIVE Magazine. And she revealed why keeping her home in L.A. that she bought with her own money is important. But why she still hates being away from Miami.

The 39-year-old Good Deeds actress is revealing why she feels Miami is the only place she can truly be herself. And why she never thought about being a mother...but can envision it 5 years from now:

On getting sick when she's away from Miami:
"A week away is pretty much it for me. When I land in Miami, I feel like I've been holding my breath and am finally exhaling. I can breathe. I feel accepted, welcomed. I feel like I can be my true self, the woman I always aspired to be... More in Miami than any other place."

On keeping her house in California:
"[It has been] great because I have my own career and life elsewhere, I have a home I paid for with my own money, and I need to be able to nurture that as well."

On life with Dwyane Wade in Miami:
"D and I have a life together, too. I love my life in Miami, I can't imagine functioning without both, I love the design district, I love Midtown, I love what's happening downtown now. I can be at People's Bar-B-Que or Sustain or Prime One Twelve, and I'm comfortable. It's rare for me to feel that level of freedom. Miami represents joy for me."

On seeing a more diversely cast group of lead actresses:
"It's great for the other groups that are getting a chance to play more roles, and ideally, I'd like to think there were enough roles for everyone. But we are trying to get [filmmakers and producers] to consider that the doctor, a lawyer, even the lead could be an African-American woman."

On her career:
"I've been lucky; for the past year, I haven't really auditioned for anything; the parts I got were straight-up offers. I'm not so grand that I wouldn't audition. In fact, I wish I could audition more. There are a lot of people who won't give me a chance because I was in 'Bring It On' one thousand years ago. They don't think I can be more than that sassy sidekick. I guess they didn't see 'Cadillac Records' or 'Neo Ned.'"

On starting a family:
"I was never someone who thought about having kids – I mean, they're great in theory, but I never imagined having one [myself]. Maybe over the next five years I could wrap my brain around becoming a mother and what that would mean in terms of sacrifice and dedication. I don't do anything impulsively, so more toward the five years out than the one-year."

Fab pics..But some reason I get an Uppity stench about her….Maybe it’s me?

For Bow Wow's Baby Mama Hindsight is 20/20

After Bow Wow bragged on all the celebrity tail he lucked up on over the years his baby mama, Joie Chavis, offered this retrospective Tweet....

Well alrighty then....

Laz Alonso partying in da Atl!

Okay Ladies; Actor Laz Alonso was spotted getting his party on at an Atlanta area nightclub.

Alonso, who played the groom in ‘Jumping The Broom,’ partied the night away alongside lifestyle specialist/radio personality Kenny Burns…
and Lil Wayne’s manager Cortez Bryant, who may have been celebrating after recently landing at #59 on Billboard’s Power 100.

Okay ladies wipes the saliva up now!...LOL

Flavor Flav's Daughter's Mugshot

Flavor Fav caught the fade from his own daughter? Word is the Public Enemy hypeman, reality show star and fried chicken slinger's daughter was arrested over the weekend for allegedly laying hands on her dad, in his own crib in Las Vegas. So of course, TMZ obtained the mugshot one 19 year-old Dazayna Drayton.

She mos definitely looks like she got the crazy eye.

Oh LORD Another Atlanta psychotic reality show called “Mistresses of Atlanta”

There is a new reality show filming in Atlanta titled "Mistresses of Atlanta".

Based on the numerous tweets from cast members, photographers, makeup artists, and clothing designers outfitting them for the show, today is Day 3 of shooting. And the above shot is from today's promo photoshoot.

Reportedly, the cast consists of one guy who goes by the twitter name of SoleHeir (above), Maliah, Model/stripper Rosee Divine, model Sarah Oliver, rapper M’Jae and singer Strings. Whoever these people are.

I've also learned that Toya's husband Memphitz is involved with the project in some way--likely producing it via his production company Do Work Ent.--as he's constantly pubbing the cast members and their promo photoshoots.
Makeup artist Latasha Wright tweeted a pic with M'Jae saying:

So I'm on set taping the Mistresses of Atlanta ooooooooooooooowwwwwwwwwwwww!!!!!!!!!

Mistresses of Atlanta these ladies r TURNED UP! @MeMpHiTz Do Work\Rebel Star the night is just beginning!

@iammaliahmichel rocked The Wright Look on this set! she killed this shoot I must @MeMpHiTz knows how to pickem!
And cast member M'Jae tweeted a recent pic with Toya and daughter Reginae on a set:

Maliah has been linked to Drake, Sean Kingston, and others and is well known for her pole skills at a strip club in Houston, as well as traveling around the country for parties and guest appearances at strip clubs. She partied with the cast recently and at Luxe Lounge in DC last weekend:

Rosee is raising a ruckus around the net for her seemingly fake assets:

Ummm....

And the rest of the “sordid” D List cast:

SoleHeir

Stringz

Sarah Oliver

And more pics from the set and recent party:

I see this is something I will not be wasting much time on but to gossip on the foolywang that comes from this.

Sanaa Lathan speaks to Ebony on her, The Best Man 2 and those Kobe comments

While promoting her new role with Pantene, Sanaa Lathan took some time out to talk to EBONY.com about her upcoming movie with Anthony Mackie, what's going on with the Best Man sequel and how she REALLY felt about those Kobe Bryant affair/pregnancy rumors. 

Here are the highlights:

EBONY.com: You recently got caught up in a nasty rumor with Kobe Bryant, that you were somehow the reason for his marriage ending after you two were seen in the same VIP section at Jay-Z and Kanye West’s Watch the Throne concert. I have to say I absolutely loved your response to the rumor on Twitter. [Sanaa tweeted: "Anybody who pays attention knows I’m not his type… Blank stare. #blackgirlsrock #dontbelievethelies"]

Sanaa: I probably shouldn’t have said that because I don’t discriminate when it comes to dating. I have dated all races and I believe you should be free to do whatever you want. But I was so annoyed because I was having such a great time at the concert and Kobe happen to be standing next to me, and then all of a sudden I was tied to his break-up. That’s absurd, and I tweeted that in the moment, and I regret it. But to each its own. It’s just funny that if it’s written people believe it, and even though I have said I have nothing to do with him, people are still saying when the baby is due?

And on the Best Man 2 status:
"Nothing has been confirmed yet regarding Best Man 2, but it is a great script that we have all read. It’s all on the studio and them deciding to do it. I know a lot of people are excited and anticipating the movie, but we all just have to cross our fingers and hopefully it will all come together. Everyone in the cast is excited and on board, and I think people will be really pleasantly entertained to see where these characters have evolved over the twelve years."

But she has another movie already in the works:

"I have Vipaka, but they are thinking about changing the title. It’s a physiological thriller with Forest Whitaker and Anthony Mackie. We shot it in New Orleans last August. It’s scary, sexy and tense. They are still editing it, so I’m not really sure when it will be out."

So everyone can lay off Sanaa and the man-eating/pregnancy rumors...at least for now. Read more over at EBONY.com.

AND FINALLY FROM “THE CRAZY PEOPLE SHOPPING AT WALMART” FILES
“Chicken & Dumplings”

You are like a hearty can of Campbell’s Soup; you think you’re

ENJOY YOUR WEEKEND ALL!!

EFREM