Mary is preparing to release her eighth studio CD, “Growing Pains” Geffen Records has announced. The album, which includes Blige’s Top 10 single “Just Fine” is set to drop Dec. 18. “Growing Pains” also features guest appearances by Ludacris and Usher, and production by The Neptunes, Johnta Austin, Ne-Yo, Stargate, Bryan-Michael Cox, Dre and Vidal, Tricky, The Dream and Sean Garrett.
“…My fans are going to get a sense of what my state of mind is and how I view the world, And, hopefully, most of all, they are going to hear just the sincere honesty and love that I have for them. ‘Growing Pains’ represents accepting that there’s pain that goes along with growing and change. No pain, no gain…”
-> Mary J. Blige – Till The Morning (Neptunes) (MP3)
Lupe Fiasco Plans To Quit After 3rd Album !
The rapper says two more albums “his forthcoming The Cool and his last one, L.U.P.End” and he’s done recording music. There might be a couple more projects after his “so-called final album.” According to the rapper, there may be “a couple concept records” and, “god-willing,” an album from the highly anticipated supergroup, Child Rebel Soldiers, a collaborative effort between Lupe, Kanye West and Pharrell Williams. But with CRS, it all comes down to scheduling, he admitted.
“…Everyone’s focused on something else at the moment. We’re trying to find two or three weeks to sit down and hammer it out. We’re all kindred spirits, let’s get together and unify that and see what happens…”
* ballerstatus.com
Pharrell’s Louis Vuitton Jewelry !
Pharrell has been working on his jewelry line with Louis Vuitton for almost 2 years now and it is finally going to be released this January. There will be a launch event in Paris next month and Pharrell has started to work on the promotion according to bbcicecream.com
* bbcicecream.com
The BBC/IceCream Articles !
Next to the new Manhattan outlet of Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream is an antique store that is going out of business. “Lost our Lease!” and “Everything 60% Off!” is written in giant letters in almost every window “…I don’t want to grow too big, I’m a student in the game, and Nigo has shown me a lot, and I’ve learned a lot from Marc Jacobs. The two things that sort of ties those two characters together is that it’s quality first – quality over quantity…”
* nytimes.com
* nypost.com
* eurweb.com
Madonna’s Album Listening Party !
Madonna dictated what tracks would be played and specifically said they were not being played in any order. She said she had just finished mixing the album a few days ago. She played “Candyshop” then “4 Minutes To Save The World” first. She then had a vote on which one would be the first single. She said many times throughout the session that the first single has yet ot be decided. She is all about “Candy Shop” and looked upset and surprised there was a better reaction to “4 Minutes To Save The World”.
“4 Minutes To Save The World” is like a dancey “Hey You”. It goes something like “Hey girl, save the world…”. “The Beat Goes On” sounds NOTHING like the demo we heard. As we told you, it features Kanyes West. Madonna said it’s not a single. Madonna made the song out to seem like a joke. Finally, Madonna said there are thirteen tracks, but she only played 10 songs.
Madonna Denies Album Title “Licorice”
Madonna’s publicist has denied reports relating to her new album title and release date. Internet reports yesterday said that according to Sirius Satellite Radio, the singer’s eleventh album will be called ‘Licorice’ and that it will be released in April. But in an email to Reuters today, Madonna’s publicist Liz Rosenberg said “…Sirius does not know what they are talking about, Wrong title. Release date wrong etc…”
* nme.com
* drownedmadonna.com
There is a Video Response by Pusha T. to Lil’ Wayne’s Complex Article and a Preview of a We Got It 4 Cheap 3 Record.
* virb.com
Snoop Dogg has been nominated for a Grammy for Best Rap Collaboration for “I Wanna Love You” with Akon. Congrats !