Hazlewood's had some good reviews for his weekly show on Radio 2 in the past but this documentary was really incredible, and demonstrates public service broadcasting - make that broadcasting - at its best.

影片中講到年輕人的電玩文化，Wyclef懷克裏夫主演遊戲中的英雄並由10歲大的小男孩在“現實世界”裏操控。而 SUN則扮演競速賽車中決心製造破壞的狠心反派角色。

身著具有未來風格的黑色緊身連身衣，頂著一頭帶有鮮紅色挑染的黑髮及由著名化妝大師 Billy B 所化的大膽臉妝，SUN 看起來非常的美麗驚人又合乎所扮演的角色—像是真人版性感又邪惡的漫畫人物！

First let me start by apologizing for taking so long to get you guys Part II of the Sam Sparro story.

Frankly, I blame the drugs.

(And Hillary Clinton).

That being said, buckle up for the longest post of all time. But I'm throwing in links to all the songs, as well as a few pictures to make up for it. Okay, here we go.........

So I realize that giving up Sparro's excellent first single, "Black and Gold," as an introduction to his music is a little like having sex on the first date -- I gave up the goods without making you work for them. But as is often the case after people have sex on the first date, I wasn't merely placated or satisfied by hearing "Black and Gold," rather my appetite was whetted, and I was left wanting more. (Um, more Sam Sparro, that is). If anything, "Black and Gold" succeeded in roping me into the house of mirrors that is Sam Sparro. Now, I was trapped.

But how does the rest of his first album hold up in comparison to its lead single? Does it pale or do the other tracks back it up? Exactly what kind of music does this kid make anyway? And what of the God references? Was "Black and Gold" a one shot deal that just happened to be about Sparro's search for God? Or would I discover the world's first "Electro-soul spoof-disco-pop mixed with religious-funk-house" album, with lyrics wrought with religious references and questions at every turn? Because while I like to consider myself as having an eclectic and wide-ranging musical taste -- and with apologies to the elder Mr. Falson -- Christian Rock just isn't among my preferred genres, nor do I plan on making it one.

Well the truth is, Sparro's self-titled album is, not surprisingly, much like he is -- it's a true reflection of himself. Not an exact reflection, that isn't what I mean. But an honest reflection, a real one. Shrouded in mixed signals yet entirely open to interpretation. Questioning, yes, but only in his authoritative and ever-urgent voice. Bouncing from one genre to another, with only ambiguous connections in between. Serious and introspective in one moment, then bubbly and ridiculous in the next. A God-fearing man of faith who also happens to smoke mad weed. Maybe. Who hides his pain behind fun, friendly, and sometimes silly dance tracks. In other words, Sam Sparro the album and Sam Sparro the man are both, well.....consistently inconsistent. Complex and confusing. Unsurprisingly surprising. (Now how's that for confusion?)

But that isn't to say there's no meat left on the album's bones after "Black and Gold." True, it is quite easily the best track on Sparro's album -- I'll tell you that right up front. But that's largely due to its accessibility. The track just somehow works, and you don't even have to think about why. And though three different listeners might put "Black and Gold" in three different genres of music, none of the three would find themselves saying, "What the fuck am I listening to?"

While they might still be good, the same cannot necessarily be said for the rest of the tracks on Sparro's album. The only constant variable (yeah, I just wrote that on purpose) on the album is its production value: extremely high. Every single track, no matter how good or bad, and regardless of the genre, is well done by Sparro and his production partner, Jesse Rogg (along with some help from Richard X and Paul Epworth). Given how many different styles Sparro covers, this is really an impressive feat of knob turning and button pushing. Plus, the kid can really write. So let's start with some stuff I liked.

Sam Sparro opens with (what else?) a track called "Too Many Questions," a funky mash-up of Kraftwerk-esque electronic sounds, a thumping beat with a Bootsy Collins baseline, and Jamiroquai keys. And of course, too many goddamn questions in that strong, but slightly nasal voice of hiss. It's almost as if Sparro is preparing us for what's to come:

All I have is too many questions / Is there something someone forgot to mention to me? / But I walk on without hesitation to my unknown own destination / With a music-like syncopation / And explore my own imagination.

Interestingly, however, while it sounds to me like Sparro is still wondering about his life, his death, and his destiny, unlike on "Black and Gold" he's no longer scared of what he might find out. Instead, he's meeting his "maker" head-on. Though he does ask pleadingly, Why do old habits die so hard God knows I try and try... But which habits is Sparro referring to? His attempts to find God? His homosexuality? His weed smoking? (More on that one later). Whatever the case may be, Sparro sure isn't sharing. At least not overtly. Yet the scariest part about "Too Many Questions" has nothing to do with Gods, Gays, or weed. It's the realization just one song into the album that Sam Sparro sounds a lot like Stevie Wonder.

Woah.

"Too Many Questions"

But before you can even begin to wrap your head around what you think you're hearing, Sparro hits you with "21st Century Life," an uptempo Abba-meets-electro style discofest with a horn section thrown in for good measure, which I actually kind of dig. It also prominently features the familiar "double clap" sample from Patrice Rushen's 1982 hit "Forget Me Nots." (You might also recognize the sample from Will Smith's "Men In Black" theme song, which pretty much ganked Rushen's entire beat, not just the hand claps). But Sparro can't help but throw a monkey wrench into an otherwise simple song about growing up: Now I'm not a little boy, I'm in the 21st Century / Well you might think we've come a really long way, but there's still no equality / I watch the news on my computer screen, talk about buying my weed out of a vending machine / You tell me I'm free, but how can I be when you're always watching me on the CCTV?

I understand the lack of equality bit -- it is the 21st century and there is still a shameful amount of inequality everywhere we turn, especially for a gay man in America. But what's this about vending machine weed from a prospective God guy? The one who feels he's not free and always being watched? (And who's watching exactly? Is it God again? Or has Sparro simply spent too much time in London?) This obviously doesn't exactly add up neatly, so maybe Sparro's really not so worried about his religious beliefs after all. And either way, you're still looking at a fun song, as long as you don't try to dissect it for meaning.

"21st Century Life"

Significantly better, however, is "Sick," a straight up (well, maybe not so straight, but still...) 80s dance banger, with a cleverly familiar-sounding synthy hook and the requisite dance floor-friendly 80s-era drums. Seriously, if you like 80s music you'll love this track. And if you don't, you'll hate it. Because it sounds as if it came out in 1987. But the chorus is what elevates the song to potentially anthemic heights: It's a sick sick world, I'll be your medicine / Come on take me take me, I'll make you feel better. And Sparro is damn convincing too. You don't know what Sparro wants you to take exactly, but you sure as hell want to find out.

Yet it's lines like, Darlin' rest your head, I'll make you a believer...(in what?) or, Make sure you take me with you when you go into the unknown...(who's me? Sparro? And uhh, which unknown is this?) that leave me wondering what Sparro's talking about, despite the fact that my head still just won't stop swiveling to that beat. I can't help but wonder if he's talking about himself and his music, or Jesus and the Church. In other words, who, or what is "The Medicine?" Of course the thing is, I'm not entirely convinced Sparro himself knows either. I think there's a lot of stuff bouncing around in his head, and it doesn't always come out organized or motivated by one particular idea, but by a lifetime of feelings and emotions.

"Sick"

Similarly well written and well done, is "Pocket," a very rich sounding and more downtempo track that prominently showcases some of Sparro's vocal prowess and strong song-writing abilities. (He can clearly write seriously when he wants to). "Pocket" is about friendship and loyalty, and, unfortunately, about keeping your guard up when it comes to maintaining friendships. Sparro's bridge and chorus are killer, as is his delivery of both, which will stay with you long after the song has ended:

And if you don't know that by now then I feel quite sorry for you, I'm sorry for you / Yeah the people that you keep around, well you learn from them and they learn from you...

So keep your friends close, and your enemies in your pocket / Yeah keep your friends close, and your enemies in your pocket / Well you just might start to melt them down and they'll come around / So keep your friends close and your enemies in you pocket.

Sounds like the perfect new theme song for MTV's lonely ratings monster, The Hills, if you ask me. Or at least for one of those awkward fade out moments where the two main bitches characters, "accidentally" run into each other at the same club. Yeah, it'd be perfect. (You paying attention to this, Liz Gateley??) In fact, looking back on my own four-year stint in the City of Angels (I never saw any), I wish I'd had Sparro's "Pocket" in my own while I was there.

"Pocket"

Though perhaps slightly less somber, but still certainly somewhat sad, "Sally," is an uptempo ode to a stripper, in which Sparro pleads with her to abandon her profession while hinting at how she got there in the first place. Sure, this kind of record been done before ("Perfect Gentleman" by Wyclef Jean comes to mind, as does "Patricia the Stripper" by Chris DeBurg -- if your mind is truly as musically warped as mine). But never before has it been so much.....fun?

As it is, "Sally" would be a hit record for Justin Timberlake or maybe even for Robin Thicke -- not that either one would ever have the courage to make a song quite like this. But they'd be commended for making a "socially-conscious" track that also moved the masses en radio and dance floor alike. And their live performances (I can only imagine the "Sallys" they would have on stage with them) would be lauded in tour reviews. But alas, Sam Sparro is not JT nor is he Robin Thicke. And not even Debi Mazar's super-publicist-bitch, the "Shauna Roberts" character from Entourage could change that.

"Sally" is a brilliantly produced bouncy dance track, which sounds like a somewhat unlikely combination of Quincy Jones-produced Michael Jackson (in other words, the good shit), 1980s and 90s Freestyle (an underrated and largely unknown, if not slightly cheesy, brand of dance music/Latin hip hop made popular primarily in New York and Miami through artists like Judy Torres, George Lamond, and Rockell), and modern-era synth-pop. And that's exactly why you'd never catch Timberlake's or Thicke's footprints anywhere near this record. Too much kitsch for them. Fine. But my god that shit works.

Sparro's lyrics to "Sally" are excellently written and quite catchy -- though again the chorus steals the show. Yet given what sometimes seems to be some kind of religious double-speak, it's hard not to wonder if Sparro's pleas with Sally to stop stripping are at least in some way form of proselytizing. But I don't think that's the case here. Thankfully, the lyrics are largely devoid of any "believer"-type vocabulary, and instead focus on Sparro's sincere efforts to convince Sally -- a girl with both "thick caramel thighs" and "beautiful green eyes," but also a checkered past with a possibly abusive father ("And I get so red hot mad, thinking about that dirty old man," Sparro sings forcefully) -- to come down off the pole.

Sally why you wanna do that? / I ain't gonna hurt 'cha -- I ain't your daddy / Sally you ain't gotta do that / Need someone to love ya -- not like your daddy.....pleads the heavily synth-backed chorus. Conjuring images of Flashdance, Striptease, and Showgirls all rolled into one seedy, smoky, strip-club scene.....big hair, tiny spandex outfits, cheap strobe lights, leering patrons, a scuffed black stage, and an eighteen year-old girl with thirty-eight year-old eyes teetering in Lucite heels atop it.

And whaddya know, a socially-conscious track with a nice message that should not only move the masses, but get 'em singing too. It's even got a little bit of a "Smooth Criminal" feel to it. And that's always a good thing.

"Sally"

But as much as I'd like to leave well enough alone and stop right here (you'd probably like me too, wouldn't you?), Sam Sparro is far from a perfect album. For each of the songs I've written so laudably about above there is an either lame, lousy, or downright ridiculous song to match up with it. Lucky for us, (and him), however, Sparro cops to this reality himself, and doesn't put up some kind of high-brow indie musician-cum-artist fight (I can't stand those), so I won't go into as much detail here.

In the same interview cited in Part I of this article with British music website Noise Makes Enemies, Sparro says, "What actually excites me most about the record are some of the off kilter funk tracks like one called 'Cling Wrap' and another called 'Cut Me Loose' -- they're just pure ridiculousness." While I agree they're ridiculous, I think Sparro leaves out a few others, namely "Recycle It!," "Cottonmouth," and "Hot Mess," which, if it actually had the words "hot" and "mess" in the chorus would have a chance at becoming a hit song based solely on the fact that people seem to really like using that expression.

"Recycle It" is a rather inconsequential track, as it's more of an interlude than an actual song. It consists of Sparro naming, in a French accent no less, items to be recycled ("aluminum...plastic bottles...sneakers...computer...shoe boxes..." -- you get the idea) over a beat-boxed beat. It's absurd. And clearly it's meant to be. At least it doesn't last long.

"Recycle It"

"Cottonmouth," on the other hand is equally absurd, yet unfortunately I'm afraid it's clearly much more serious. (Not including the video). In fact, it's here that Sparro seems to want to trot out his story-telling ability, on a slow motion, almost lazy beat, over which Sparro lazily drawls and slurs, describing smoking what must have been a lot of weed, and then getting "cottonmouth" aka "dry mouth."

It was just an ordinary afternoon, I was sitting in the park / Trying to forget all of my blues, I want a little somethin' to spark.....I Forgot my world while I fell awake, didn't have a single care / Then I noticed somethin' very wrong, I was so parched I could not sing this song / Cottonmouth, Cottonmouth / You're so damn dry......I need some H2O, down my throat / I need some H2O, down my throat.....

"Cottonmouth"

This song is in no way fun or funny -- as often drug songs are -- it just takes seems to take it self too seriously, and is far too deliberate. Nor does it seem to fit in with the rest of Sparro's album. After the strength, both vocal and subjective, of songs like "Black and Gold" and "Sally," a track like "Cottonmouth" just doesn't seem like the Sam Sparro you want to listen to. The same goes for "Clingwrap," which takes the absurdity to a whole new level. On the surface it's a fun and simple track more reminiscent of New Edition circa "Mr. Telephone Man" than anything housey or electro, about needing some space in a relationship -- You see I went outside just to take a stroll, and when I came back I had ten missed calls...from you. But the chorus literally makes me cringe:

Oh you must've thought I was your snack, because you're sticking to me like clingwrap / Oh you must've thought I was your snack, because you're sticking to me like clingwrap / Scooby do be do be do do....

Seriously?

"Clingwrap"

And it's a shame because, like every other song on Sam Sparro, the beat -- funky, bouncy, with harmonizing horn sections -- and overall production is great. It's just that the lyrics are so silly, it actually impedes the listener from appreciating Sparro's natural vocal and arranging skills that are otherwise omnipotent. It's like spoof funk. And operating much on the same "spoof funk" plane is Sparro's "Cut Me Loose," which basically steals the intro them from Midnight Star's classic, "No Parking on the Dancefloor," and then transitions into a rather bizarre souped-up Techno/Electro amalgamation of elements from Gap Band's "You Dropped a Bomb On Me" and The Whispers' "Rock Steady." (Not too cool). And the faux-funk lyrics.....

When I hear that bass start-a-bumpin' / Me and my whole body get to jumpin' / Smack my neck my back and shake my rump and / Just cut it loose (loose!) just cut it loose (hey hey).....Nothin' cuts me loose like the music / I cut a rug up all night long and I hear my favorite song / Nothin' cuts me loose like the music, said cut me loose, just cut me loose.....

Come on, Sam. You're better than that.

"Cut Me Loose"

And on "Hot Mess," he is. Mostly. This is the least-worst of the not-so-great songs, if that makes any sense. The song's got a nice idea: tell girls (or guys) they're beautiful and amazing the way they are, to eschew the temptation plastic surgery, ignore material things, and what others think. It's also got a great title, "Hot Mess," a phrase that it appears every girl I know enjoys using. (It's also the name of a monthly gay night at The War Room in Seattle. Thanks, Google!) Yet it's only uttered once throughout the entire track, which is really too bad in my opinion, as Sparro might have had an instant hit on his hands were "hot mess" to appear in the chorus.

Also too bad is that despite its funky opening and Sparro's excellent falsetto, "Hot Mess" quickly transitions into a mediocre Disco song that wouldn't have made the cut on Larry Levan's decks at the Paradise Garage or David Mancuso's at The Loft. Though I like some of its lyrics -- Sparro really can write -- the track doesn't have the same power, force, and urgency that's found on the majority of the album. Sparro comes on strong in the intro: I know you fancy yourself as a sexy bitch, it's in the way that you walk / Do you kiss your mother with those expensive lips? But backs off in favor of the good old uplifting chorus: But you need it, don't cha baby? / No you're nothin' without their gazes / They don't love you, they are strangers / Look how far you have come you're amazin', you're amazin'!

And I really wish he hadn't done that -- a track called "Hot Mess" should have lyrics about sexy bitches and expensive lips, not be a Feel-Good Donna Summer Disco Anthem.

"Hot Mess"

Now you might have noticed that I haven't mentioned anything about Sparro's possible attachment to Christianity/Religion/God in a while. That's not an accident. It's because he hasn't either. Sure you can view songs like "Sally," "Sick," or "Hot Mess" as positively-messaged and uplifting -- songs about right and wrong, helping friends, and learning to love yourself. I do. But the "Overt/Covert" game of pseudo-religious references, though fun, can't be played all the way through Sam Sparro. And as you can plainly see by some of the songs (think "Cottonmouth") and some of the lyrics (I know you fancy yourself as a sexy bitch), Sparro ain't no saint. And I'm cool with that. In fact, I'm happy about it.

I'm glad I can listen to Sam Sparro and just enjoy his album for what it is. A new, fun, and interesting first-effort by a quirk-filled, intriguing artist who seems to do whatever the fuck he wants. And I'm in favor of that. I'm no longer worried that I'm accidentally listening to a quiet Christian musician with a secret right-wing religious agenda, that's for damn sure. And I've learned that while "Black and Gold" really is a damn good song that everyone who hears it seems to get something out of, Sparro's got plenty of fodder for those who liked what they heard and want to hear more. I'm still amazed at the range of genres Sparro is able to cover more than adequately on his first album, and how well his voice takes to each and every one of them. I love that he's not afraid to experiment with his music, and maybe even his image. That takes both courage and imagination.

I think what Sparro may find, however, is that the average American listener doesn't have the courage or imagination, let alone both, to fully appreciate his music and his attitude. In fact, I'm afraid the average American listener doesn't have the courage or imagination to even give Sparro's music a chance -- forget about fully appreciating it. It's too gay, it's too weird, it's too European, it's too silly, it's not popular enough, it's too 70s, it's too 80s, it's too progressive, it's too.....different. That's what they'll say. But I hope I'm wrong. Because I think all that stuff is great. At least it's clear he's being appreciated across the pond based on the great success of "Black and Gold," and hopefully his Sam Sparro album sales will prove equally strong.

So what is Sam Sparro? Is he complex or just confused?

I think I'll let him answer that -- in ten words or less.

"I'm half pensive and serious and half ridiculous and silly," he says, explaining it all.

Well then. That was easy.

- Jonathan

Sam Sparro's Official Website

Sam Sparro's Official MySpace

thanks GFY

If I was President
I’d get elected on Friday
Assassinated on Saturday
Buried on Sunday
If I was president,
If I was president
An old man told me
Instead of spending
Billions on the war
We can use some of that money
In the ghetto
I know some so poor
When it rains that’s when they shower
Screaming fight the power
That’s when the vulture devours

…Gotta love Wyclef.

Values and stances aside, If elected who would get assasinated, Barack Obama or Hilary Clinton? America has shown a history of assassinating anyone with even the slightest inclination of promoting positive change. Everyone from Abe Lincoln and JFK to MLKJ and Malcolm X have been subject to the burden of progress so would Obama or Clinton be any different? They’re both minorities and arguably radical in their pursuit for presidency; so would they too be at risk? Sadly, Dave Chappelle was right in a hilariously twisted way when he said he’d never want to be the first Black president. As much as he’d like to see a Black president, America isn’t ready for one and the first would get assassinated. Instead, he’d want to be the second Black president and have “a Mexican” for a vice president and enemies would go for him instead. Honestly, America isn’t ready for a female president either, quite frankly America isn’t ready for a president that actually gets things accomplished. It would mean that everyone would have to start getting involved in the electoral process and live up to the values and constitution of the United States and we’re much too lazy for that “nonsense.” Screw an ideology, I want my six figures, house on the hill and that sexy ass iphone. Elections are approaching and its apparent that no one is ready, its kind of scary, intimidating maybe but we’d be lying if we didn’t admit we’re on the edge of our seats waiting to see what happens. Besides, it’d give the media a break from covering the illegitimate children of porn stars and forceful thrusts of Senegalese falsetto vocalists.

Tell the children the truth, the truth
Columbus didn’t discover America
Tell them the truth,
The truth, Yeah
Tell them about Marcus Garvey
Tell the children the truth, yeah
The Truth
Tell them about Martin Luther King
Tell them the truth
The truth
Tell them about JFK…

Leona Lewis:

One of my favorites, Rapper and Actress Eve:

50 Cent and his entourage:

50 Cent and Kim Kardashian:

Khloe and Kim Kardashian:

Host Wyclef Jean and some sexy models:

Julilette Lewis who also performed with her band:

British Rapper Dizee Rascal:

Misha Barton who apparently didn't speak to anyone and only whispered the word, WILLOW. WTF?

e

Big Winners of the night, The Veronica's. I hope they won some food, they looked waaaaay too thin!

Ladies and gentlemen, Wyclef Jean

Well, there was at least one woman to whom he took a shine in Sydney yesterday.

The hip hop king crowned Video Hits co-host Fuzzy Agolley his queen for the day after the pair met up during an MTV preview interview.

Jean, who will host the annual trophy show at Carriage Works on Saturday night, requested a kiss from the former model - and she obliged.

After asking Fuzzy about her nationality (she's Chinese and Ghanaian), Jean told the TV beauty she was "the perfect brew, I would like to bottle you up".

When Fuzzy mentioned her musical talents on the guitar, he got hip to the beat and said he'd love to get her into the studio some time.

50 Cent looking mash up at Sydney airport. 

Wyclef Jean

Rapper/actress Eve

Wyclef Jean wears tighty-whities. He can play the guitar with his mouth with the kind of dexterity that makes me think his wife is a very happy woman. He sweats like a pig, climbs like a monkey and will possibly one day regret having called Aadesh Srivastava his brutha from another mutha. Srivastava tried to teach Wyclef how to pronounce "balle balle" and "shava shava" because what's a hip hop star who can't get his bhangra lingo right?

While waiting three and a half hours for Wyclef Jean to get onto the stage at Hard Rock Cafe, I began wondering whether Nirpal Singh Dhaliwal may be right, after all, about the world getting Indianised rather than India becoming Americanised. Wyclef was supposed to take the stage at 9.15. His audience started crowding the bar from 7.15. At 10 o' clock there was no sign of the man. It would be an hour before he started leaping about the stage.

For about three and a half hours, the gathered crowds had nothing to do. I'm quite certain not all of them were entirely sure why they were there. I'm pretty sure most people came with the mentality of "Wyclef? Why not...". I certainly did.
The only songs I know of The Fugees is "Killing me Softly". The only song I thought I knew of Wyclef's is "Gone till November" (once he started belting them out, I realised I knew a few more) which stuck in my head because I heard it in a November. Clearly, I'm not a fan so why did I spend Rs. 750 and what felt like 750 hours in a hot, loud, sweaty bar waiting to hear an artist I'm barely familiar with?

Because I've given in to the desperacy that is Mumbai. When local fare involves brainless spectacles like Shiamak Davar (a botoxed dude who dresses his students up in feathers, wears a white trenchcoat and will have you know that he believes. In what, you ask? In himself. In you. In the autistic kids he brings out to do party tricks. The barfbucket is to your right), then you will find yourself giving into the hype that if something comes from foreign shores it will be good, or at least better than what you see here. And so, you will go and watch it if it holds even the slimmest possibility of promise.

Also because I love the jokers that make up this city.

The fact is, when people get dressed for events like this, they look at themselves in the mirror and
a) check if they're looking like the back-up dancers in hip-hop videos (sometimes they do, sometimes they don't; either way they look gloriously weird because they're not in a music video but in Mumbai)
b) imagine a scenario where, like in music videos again, they're standing with a drink and this incredibly cool guy/ girl comes up to them, strikes up a conversation and by the end of the concert, there's some serious exchange of bodily fluids.
I'm told the latter happens as does wife-swapping. I just don't know anyone it's happened to. What I do know is that for three and a half hours in Hard Rock Cafe, it was the Grand Central of checking people out. The men were all dressed in what they considered proper black-man-attire. This ranged from low, baggy jeans to waistcoats and fedoras. Diamond ear studs glinted with gay abandon. Goatees dripped sweat since a fair number wore jackets. One Chinese-American gent came wearing a leather jacket. Maybe he thought it was Brokeback-Mountain night at Hard Rock. Poor baby. There was a fair smattering of white men who all looked bored, as though they weren't really interested in being there. Except, they'd arrived before I had (at 7.15) so clearly, this pseudo-European sneer was bollocks.

The number of men who seemed to find no way to reach their destination (the bar, the loo, another man) without bumping into groups of women was staggering. One friend of mine decided she would hold her ground, and firmly dammit. Which basically meant that while her feet stayed rooted to her spot, the rest of her started leaning towards me in a way that should only be seen on sappho.com. I had a far better idea - I nicked four of the feathery masks that the waiters were handing out to everyone which the bumping gents had stuffed into their back pockets.

The women showed an interesting range. I spotted two threesomes (two guys and one woman in one case and two women and one guy in another; should have seen the guy's face when the women decided to leave together, without him). One blond woman decided she would cop a feel of every guy that bumped into her. I'm not sure if it lessened the traffic in her direction but by the time Wyclef came on, she looked reasonably dispirited. Welcome to India. We don't make grope-worthy men. If they're grope-worthy, they're probably even more gay than the regular Indian man (who is to begin with about 20% gay. It's really a case of national denial that makes us retain the law that declares homosexuality illegal). A friend of mine got sandwiched, literally, between two men both of whom were wearing white shirts which made the sandwich metaphor bizarrely real. Another one got sandwiched between two wearing black suits, which initially gave her great joy because she thought one of them was really cute, except when she'd been unsandwiched, she realised they were dancing with each other. And with a familiarity that leant towards more than 20%.

Topping all this entertainment is hard. Especially when you're faced with a crowd that's been waiting as long as we had but Mr. Wyclef Jean was awesome. He came on stage with bodyguards who looked like they were random, homeless people. His bodyguards roamed around the stage moodily. He took to the microphone and said, “Bombay! Have you heard Akon?” (crowd roar) “Have you heard the Black-Eyed Peas?” (crowd roar) “Well, you heard Akon, and you heard Will. I. Am, now you’re gonna hear the real thing ‘cos Wyclef is the godfather.” (huge roar… I’m thinking, does Mario Puzo know of this?) But he lived up to his tall claims.

Wyclef threw himself into the performance, literally, even though there seemed to be quite a few occasions when it was a track rather than him doing most of the "singing" while he just added accents like "Come on!" or "Oh!" or "Bombaaay!". He kept talking to the crowd, bringing people on stage, leaping up on to the speakers (which was when we were all made privy to the kind of underwear he wears and how he wears his pants below his bottom). He told us he’s an Indian in Bombay, told us about how as a kid he wanted to grow up to the President of the United States and did a mean Caribbean accent for one of his songs. Along the way, the bassist swore at the little Indian boy on the mixing board with headphones larger than his head for lowering the level of Wyclef’s mic. That same mic came apart into three pieces a little while later.

None of this seemed to bother Wyclef. For a little less than two hours, he was all ours and his manic, pacing energy was almost enough to make you forget your own exhaustion. I say almost because it wasn’t totally enough for me. If the section of the audience that he’d flung himself upon had people like me, Mr. Wyclef would have landed with a thump on the ground. Bad enough I’d stood around getting a backache, without having to carry a big black man. However, that wasn’t what happened. A gathering of young people carried him delightedly and little girls screamed, "Wyclef, you're better than sex!" All because they just felt up his bottom. Though to be fair, it looked like a pretty fit bottom. Fitter than most of the ones they'd felt up for the past 3-odd hours. At the end of the concert, a teenaged girl climbed onto stage and groped the guitarist as well, so that he didn’t feel left out.

The music pounded so hard that you could feel the sound come at you like gusts of wind. The bass, played by a genius man with frenetic frog-like leaping skills, made sure you felt the music, literally. We were all vibrating like tuning forks because of how loud and low the bass was (when I came out, there were no stray dogs to be seen). We’ve also probably lost some of our hearing but what the heck… we lost it while having fun.

Soul Sides hosts the mp3 for the song Come Over (download), but I like neither the echo effect on her voice nor the wind chimes in that tune. And let's be clear: she's hip hop, not soul.

I do like, however, her older Lauren Hill-like songs such as 1980. And I like this song No Substitute Lover off the new album, but I feel George Michael (who is inexplicably back on tour) should get some credit for the lyrics from Faith ...

You can listen to Estelle on her MySpace or watch the video of American Boy, her and Kanye West's superhit. Her album Shine comes out in the states the end of the month (preorder/buy). In addition to Kanye, there are also tracks with Will.I.Am, Wyclef Jean, Cee-lo, and John Legend.

Of course, now there will be even more copycats. But luckily, we can still listen to real soul, funk, and R&B. Check in tomorrow for some old-school magnificence.

Young musicians, who upload their tracks to the site, will be chosen to join the stars. SonyBMG hopes that the initiative will uncover new talent that it can sign.

Hilfiger has clothed stars including Beyoncé, the Rolling Stones and Britney Spears, since the New York designer founded the company in 1984. Apax bought the Tommy Hilfiger brand, famous for its “preppie” look, for £1.6 billion in 2005.

I would prefer "China Wine" to "Kill Bill" since the latter sounds more cheena... But, I think she looks great in these videos. Anyway, hope her debut English album will be released soon, but obviously not when Madonna's album (or any other heavyweight releases his/her album).

Oh yes, you probably saw her as an assasin in Wyclef Jean's "Fast Car" MTV too:

Wait ahead: employment, money, happiness, lions, tigers and bears...

My drummer quit Friday and then joined back Sunday ... I think.

I was never quite sure if he actually quit.

Somewhere between that Friday and Sunday I did some productive things.

I organized my room, rather than put my life in order. Some critics may argue that the organized room could help the later.

I made backup DVDs of all my words documents, photographs, music and computer programs. That was kind of labor intensive.

Well, this has turned out to be a boring post so far. I hope to make some more entertaining posts on my "Shaw and Music" blog tomorrow.

Until then I will continue listing the mundane activities of this weekend.

A roommate's girlfriend got the household out into the fresh air and we played pool for a little over an hour.

Last night, I played nerdy video games (I have been in the mood lately) with some roommates while watching "The Pursuit of Happyness." The movie reminds me of a more glamorized, desperate and poor version of my childhood.

I love having a dog in the house. Thank God for the new roommate.

I need to go house hunting tomorrow -- grab up some mad real estate.

"Dollar dollar bill ya'll ..."

Today I made my band's MySpace public and friended a bunch of people. I also forced my girlfriend to make a fan group for us on Facebook.

http://www.myspace.com/iconicons

I will plug anywhere I please.

Bueno, después de toda esta explicación, hoy me queria salir un poco de la temática de siempre y hablar un poco de otro tipo de música que me gusta, hay algunas canciones que no podria definir realmente que estilo son, asi que las dejo ahi y judgad por vosotros mismos:

Wyclef Jean feat Akon, Lil' Wayne - Sweetest Girl:

G-Unit Remix - Hate It Or Love It: (video no oficial)

Carlos Santana - Into the Night ft Chad Kroger

Alicia Keys - No one

Los dos videos enlazados son porque no se podian compartir, tenian el código desahabilitado.

Bueno, espero que os hayan gustado alguna de las canciones, porque ultimamente yo no paro de escucharlas, estan bastante bien para mi gusto :razz:

¡Muchas gracias por visitarnos!

A few new ones I missed over the past couple of days...

Crooked I - "Week 52" [this is absolutely insane]

Lupe Fiasco feat. Matthew Santos - "Superstar (acoustic)"

Ayah feat. Skyzoo - "Passing Me By 2008" [new female artist from Toronto...really fresh...take a listen]

Wyclef Jean feat. Lupe Fiasco - "Fast Car (remix)"

Kidz In The Hall feat. Bun B & Talib Kweli - "Work To Do (remix)" [go Obama!]

Ludacris - "Stay Together" [Luda flips a concept and it's dope]

Emilio Rojas feat. Torae & Tiffany Paige - "Heard It All Before" [my homey from NYC, ridiculous emcee]

The Roots feat. Mos Def & Styles P - "Rising Down (HumDrum) [original version]" [shouts to Femi]

Usher feat. Young Jeezy & T.I. - "Love In This Club (remix)"

- Go, Kevin!

No matter how you look at this season it has been one of remarkable achievement for Blazer Nation. From the season ending injury of Oden to having the second youngest roster in NBA history, this year’s Blazers had every reason to pack up the season and get ready for another lottery pick. But instead this team fought tooth and nail to compete in every game. Yes, there have been some silly losses. But there have also been some amazing wins. All the while the Blazers saw their first All-Star, in Brandon Roy, they can be proud of since the days of Clyde emerge as the team leader the Blazers have been missing. LaMarcus Aldridge coming off an injury plagued first season has blossomed into an offensive threat and a second weapon on the floor in only his second year. Travis Outlaw has solidified himself has a dangerous 6^th man while James Jones has shown the Blazers have a 3 point threat off the bench. Joel Przybilla has recovered from a horrible season to put up, game after game, blue collar performances that have become his trademark. The list goes on and on of emerging stars and powerful growth of the Blazer roster that has marked this year.

More importantly, Blazermania is back. For the first time in a long time people care about the Blazers again. Like being hit with a wet blanket, one can’t help but feel a sense of excitement in the air on the streets of Portland. The Rose Garden is selling out, the media is writing positive stories and season ticket holders are coming back in droves.

So why does a .500 record matter? Yes, it would be a nice vindication of success for a young team that has worked hard all year. But hasn’t their season been vindication enough? Haven’t all the gutsy last second wins, rough but tough defensive efforts and hustle plays shown us that this team gets it? The Western Conference is a tough place to get wins, especially this season. If this team loses the rest of their games they will do so by fighting to the bitter end. Like Falcor in the Never Ending Story says, “Never give up and good luck will find you.” Nothing can erase the magic of this year, not even finishing below .500.

Enjoy !

[dailymotion id=x1wcds&v3]

Pretty Much Amazing's Listening Booth is where we get to talk about our favorite new songs! Yay!

This Is Ivy League - The Richest Kids
Is this music or is this a mere exploitation of a hyped demographic *cough* Vampire Weekend *cough*? I'm glad to say, this is music. Real. Good. Music.
[audio=http://buzzhypemedia.com/mp3s/4/ileague-ric.mp3]

Wyclef Jean - Fast Car (remix feat. Lupe Fiasco)
At first, I thought this was just a new Lupe Fiasco track. Warning to those who want to add Cool Youg Lou to your remix team: He's a verse hogger.
[audio=http://buzzhypemedia.com/mp3s/4/wyclef%20jean%20featuring%20lupe%20fiasco%20-%20fast%20car%20remix.mp3]

G-Unit - Grimey
In this new track from the upcoming G-Unit mixtape, 50 Cent confesses to being dirty, grimy, and filthy, but doesn't go on to admit himself as a tired MC.
[audio=http://buzzhypemedia.com/mp3s/4/g-unit%20-%20grimey.mp3]

R. Kelly - Hairbraider
Obviously seeking to put claims about his kinky eccentricities to rest, R. Kelly has written this song about the qualities he looks for in a good hairdresser (chief among them: superior stripping ability).
[audio=http://buzzhypemedia.com/mp3s/4/R.Kelly-Hairbraider-RGF.mp3]

And now moving onto our daily downloads. These are free and legal. So download away.

Foo Fighters - Keep The Car Running
Jens Lekman - Friday Night At The Drive-In Bingo
Athlete - Hurricane (Camp America Remix)
Justice - DANCE (Paste Black Remix)
Oh No! Oh My! - Finally Found A Home
The Fiery Furnaces - Ex-Guru
The New Pornographers - Myriad Harbour
They Might Be Giants - Careful What You Pack
The Mountain Goats - Sax Rohmer Number 1
Xiu Xiu - I Do What I Want, When I Want

FILM................................................ GROSS

1 21................................................... $15,100,000

2 Leatherheads.................................. $13,485,030 3

Nim's Island................................... $13,300,000

4 Horton Hears A Who..................... $9,100,000

5 Ruins, The..................................... $7,840,000

6 Superhero Movie........................... $5,405,000

7 Tyler Perry's Meet The Browns ..... $3,510,000

8 Drillbit Taylor................................. $3,495,000

9 Shutter............................................ $2,875,000

10 10,000 B.C................................... $2,775,000

PROJECTS ANNOUNCED

• Spyglass Entertainment has jumped into "Leap Year," preemptively buying the romantic comedy pitch from the writing team of Deborah Kaplan and Harry Elfont ("Made of Honor") in a deal worth seven figures. Project is being produced Spyglass toppers Gary Barber and Roger Birnbaum and president Jonathan Glickman along with Benderspink's Chris Bender and J.C. Spink. Benderspink's Jake Weiner will exec produce. No logline was given.

• Luminaria Films has launched production on the feature "Spoken Word" with Kuno Becker, Ruben Blades, Miguel Sandoval and Persia White starring. Blades is taking a leave of absence from his post as minister of tourism in Panama, where he's served for the past four years. "Spoken Word" is directed by Victor Nunez, whose credits include "Coastlines," "Ulee's Gold" and "Ruby in Paradise." Pic's produced by Karen Koch ("Adaptation") and Bill Conway ("Miami Vice") for their newly launched Luminaria Films. Screenplay, by Conway and Joe Ray Sandoval, is based on Sandoval's poetry as a San Francisco spoken-word artist returning to New Mexico to be with his dying father, only to find he loses his "voice" as he is sucked back in to the dysfunctional life of drugs and violence he left behind

• In its first major material deal made since Mary Parent took over as head of MGM’s worldwide motion picture group, the studio ponied up for “The Matarese Circle,” a 1979 book by Robert Ludlum. Ryan Kavanaugh’s Relativity Media will co-finance the film, and Denzel Washington is attached to star. The book sold for $3 million, with another seven-figures to be paid to screenwriters Michael Brandt and Derek Haas (“3:10 to Yuma,” the upcoming “Wanted”) Sources said the scribes’ quote is $1.25 million, but their WMA reps were asking $2.5 million for the writing job. Leverage was diminished, however, because the property was controlled by ICM, which repped the Ludlum estate and surprised everybody by closing the deal so quickly with MGM, before the scribe deals were worked out.

• Endgame Entertainment has picked up Robert Tannen’s spec “Hungry Rabbit Jumps” for Tobey Maguire to topline. Project is described as a dramatic thriller in the vein of David Fincher’s “The Game.” Endgame’s James Stern is producing alongside Maguire and Gordonstreet Pictures’ Ram Bergman. Endgame’s Wendy Japhet is executive producing. Mark Ross is overseeing for Maguire Entertainment.

PROJECT UPDATES

• Candice Bergen has signed on to co-star opposite Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway in the romantic comedy "Bride Wars" for Fox 2000 and New Regency. Story revolves around best friends (Hudson and Hathaway) who are pitted against each other when their wedding dates clash. They compete for venues, services and guests. Bergen will play Marion St. Claire, the queen of all wedding planners. Gary Winick will direct from a screenplay penned by June Diane Raphael and Casey Wilson. Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith also wrote on the project.

ACQUISITIONS/ FESTIVAL NEWS

• Los Angeles-based Alchemy Television has teamed with Germany's Tele Munchen to handle worldwide rights outside North America on the upcoming CBS cop drama "Flashpoint." Originally developed by Canadian broadcaster CTV and produced by Pink Sky Ent. and Avamar Entertainment, "Flashpoint" turns on a elite squad trained in SWAT tactics, psychology and state-of-the-art weaponry. Series toplines Enrico Colantoni ("Veronica Mars"). Tele Munchen and Alchemy are launching the 13 episode, one-hour drama at Mip TV. Alchemy specializes in big-budget miniseries, and "Flashpoint" represents its first step into the series market and its first U.S. network show.

• Discovery Enterprises Intl., the newly created international sales arm of Discovery Communications, has taken international distribution rights on Werner Herzog's feature docu, "Encounters at the End of the World." Deal completes distrib arrangements for "Encounters," a portrait of the daily lives under extreme conditions of people in Antarctica. ThinkFilm and Image Entertainment signed on earlier this month to handle North American theatrical distribution, with Image handling DVD and digital. U.S. release is skedded for June 11.

BUSINESS NEWS

• The Weinstein Co. is launching an international TV distribution division, with an adaptation of W.E.B Griffin’s bestselling, post-9/11 espionage thriller “By Order of the President” atop its slate. The Weinsteins are in negotiations to cast the lead roles of the U.S. prez and Army major Carlos Castillo, who becomes the president’s intelligence special agent. “By Order of the President” likely will be made up of three or four 90-minute episodes, following the same format as the critically lauded Brit police procedural “Prime Suspect.” Budget will be in the region of $10 million for each episode, with lensing expected to begin by this fall. The Weinstein Co.’s new TV unit makes its debut appearance at this week’s MipTV confab in Cannes, where it will handle worldwide sales outside the U.S. and U.K. for its forthcoming BBC-HBO skein “The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency.” Harvey Weinstein will attend the TV market for the first time, following the London memorial for Anthony Minghella. Minghella helmed the feature-length pilot episode of “Ladies Detective Agency,” which drew 6.3 million viewers during its Easter Sunday preem in the U.K. He and co-scribe Richard Curtis were the key drivers of the project.

• News Corp. heir Lachlan Murdoch has pulled out of a A$3.3 billion ($3 billion) deal with fellow mogul James Packer to privatize Packer’s Consolidated Media Holdings. CMH is one of Down Under’s premier media groups, and owns 25% of paybox Foxtel and 25% of PBL Media, which in turn owns the Nine Network — one of Oz’s leading free webs — among other prime Oz media assets. Early Monday morning CMH shares halted trade on the Australian Stock Exchange and soon after Murdoch’s private company, Illyria, announced it wanted out of the deal. In a letter to CMH, Illyria said it was not in a position to proceed "due to material changes in the overall transaction terms."

• In its first HD video-on-demand deal in Asia, AETN Int., the overseas division of A&E Television Networks, has inked with Korea Telecom to offer a branded HD Video On Demand version of the History channel for Korea. AETN has launched HD History channels in the U.K., U.S., Scandinavia and Central Europe. “We expect to take them out throughout Asia and Latin America over the next 12 months,” Sean Cohan, senior VP international at AETN Intl., said Sunday at Cannes Mip TV mart. Airing from summer 2008, the History HD VOD service will form part of Korea Telecom MegaTV. Launched last July, the IPTV service has rapidly built 550,000 users, offering interactive and VOD TV. Deal underscores various strategies at AETN: the switch to totally HD production; embrace of VOD for its marketing and future revenue potential; the building of an ever-wider channel portfolio to service segmenting markets.

• Setting up camp in one of the world’s strongest emerging growth markets, Disney-ABC Int. TV has closed a major, multi-year licensing deal with Russian broadcaster CTC Media, Disney announced early Monday at Cannes Mip TV mart. The Mouse House has also reupped on one of its key European accords: its free-to-air output deal with Germany’s ProSieben Sat1 Group. Disney Media Networks Latin America has announced the production of local versions of “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Brothers & Sisters” in Colombia. The CTC Media accord covers features — including the first two “Pirates of the Caribbean” pics — live action series, animated skeins — “Cars,” “The Incredibles” — and made-for TV movies. Disney held down a three-year licensing deal with CTC Media from 2004. This deal looks larger, however.One key for CTC is Disney’s collaboration in powering CTC’s timeslot dominant 2 p.m.-4 p.m. kids animated series block, which will now tap the likes of “Aladdin,” “The Little Mermaid” and “Ducktales

• Kadokawa Entertainment has secured a deal with Hong Kong library operation Celestial Pictures to handle a package of Celestial’s Shaw Bros. movies in Japan. Shaw library contains 760 classic movies made between the 1950s and 1990s, many of which have been remastered for re-release and broadcast. Deal spans distribution of horror, fantasy, action and martial arts pics across home entertainment, free- and pay-TV, video-on-demand and mobile. Celestial declined to disclose number of titles involved in the Kadokawa package. And it was unable to explain how deal would impact on relationship with King Records which has a video-only distribution agreement in Japan that remains in force. Separately, Celestial has expanded a deal with MGM Channel Central Europe covering the Shaw library’s martial arts titles on pay TV in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia. New deal is a continuation of the three year partnership that originated from the success of MGM Channel Germany’s Kung Fu Classics nights. Key titles to be distributed include martial-arts renowned masterpieces such as Chang Cheh’s “The Five Venoms,” Hu King-chun’s “Come Drink With Me,” and Liu Chia-liang’s “The 36th Chamber of Shaolin.” Hong Kong-based Celestial is a subsidiary of Malaysian satellite broadcaster Astro All Asia Networks.

• The Madison Square Garden Network has begun scheduling movies for the first time in its 38-year history, including "All the Right Moves," "Requiem for a Heavyweight" and the concert/biopic "Meat Loaf: In Search of Paradise." MSG's entertainment strategy kicked off in October 2006 when the Garden rebranded itself, extending the sports-centered operation to a combination sports-and-entertainment network. One of the key reasons for the rebranding was the disappearance of MSG Network's summer staple: the games of the New York Yankees. The Yankees org set up its own sports regional in March 2002 called the YES Network. MSG covered the loss of the Yankees for the next four years by sharing games of the New York Mets with MSG's sibling Fox Sports Net NY. But the Mets games vanished from MSG and FSNY in March 2006, turning up on a new sports network set up by the Mets and its partners Time Warner Cable and Comcast.

• Cablevision's long-neglected Fuse cabler is looking to reinvent itself, starting with an ambitious new roster of music-themed series. Recently hired programming topper Matt Farber is set to announce the net's image makeover and programming slate at Fuse's inaugural upfront event Thursday. The gathering -- which will include a perf by Wyclef Jean -- also reps the first major coming-out party for Fuse since oversight of the net shifted last year from Rainbow Media to Madison Square Garden (and Eric Sherman took over as the channel's prexy). Not only has MSG upped Fuse's programming budget, but it will also open Fuse's first-ever West Coast offices later this year.

• Spike TV has ponied up about $12 million to buy an exclusive five-year license to all 257 half-hours of "Married ...With Children" from Sony Pictures TV, to begin airing in September. The network also revealed some additional details about its previously reported purchase of updated repeats of "Unsolved Mysteries," including the fact that there'll be 175 re-edited hours of the series in the five-year exclusive contract and that the episodes will be available on Spike.com for streaming and downloading to mobile devices. Spike also said Dennis Farina will be the new "Mysteries" host. The late Robert Stack hosted the series on NBC from 1988 to 1997, on CBS in 1998 and 1999, and on Lifetime in 2000 and 2001. The network declined to discuss dollar figures, but it will pay roughly $150,000 per episode to distributor HBO, putting the total cost at about $26 million. "Mysteries" becomes available to Spike in October.

• Michigan is the latest state to enact legislation aimed at boosting local production, with Gov. Jennifer Granholm set to sign an economic stimulus package Monday that includes an aggressive film incentive program. Granholm said Michigan's program is designed to increase the number of productions filmed on location in Michigan, attract production facilities, grow industry activities that support film production, create jobs, and train workers for those jobs. She cited other states that have used incentives including Louisiana, which has seen reported annual production rise from $7 million to almost $350 million; Connecticut's production tax credit, touted as attracting 66 feature films and $400 million in film expenditures; and New Mexico, where production spending went to from $1.5 million to $476 million. The Michigan program provides a 40% refundable or transferable tax credit for producing films in Michigan, with an added 2% for films produced in "core" communities. It also provides a 25% tax credit for film and digital media infrastructure investments. Additionally, film and digital media production companies can receive job creation tax credits issued by the Michigan Economic Growth Authority; loans from the Michigan Strategic Fund for up to $15 million per qualifying productions in Michigan; loans against film production tax incentives; and participation in the capital access program established by the Michigan Strategic Fund. The law also includes a tax credit of 50% of expenditures incurred by a production company providing on-the-job training for Michigan residents.

• FremantleMedia Enterprises (FME) has inked a multiyear production deal with Singapore's Media Development Authority (MDA) that commits both partners to invest in multimedia TV projects. The deal, announced at MipTV, is expected to generate $12 million over the next two years. The two parties previously collaborated on lifestyle skein "Kylie Kwong: My China," which followed the Australian-born Chinese chef as she toured the culinary delights of the middle kingdom . Deal will see the creation of commercially branded multiplatform content with an Asian flavor for international auds.

• Wim Wenders is hitting the road with a new name for Wenders Images, his Berlin-based shingle — Neue Road Movies, in honor of the director’s now defunct original production company. Wenders’ current project, “The Palermo Shooting,” about a jaded German photographer who moves to Sicily in order to start a new life, will be the first film under the company’s new name. Senator Film is releasing “Palermo” in Germany.

INDUSTRY MOVES

• The weekend defection of agents Nick Stevens, Sharon Sheinwold and Lisa Hallerman from UTA to Endeavor has raised questions about UTA’s viability and has focused attention on the battle among talent agencies to control the lucrative film comedy arena. Hours after co-owner Stevens and partners Sheinwold and Hallerman told UTA they would be crossing Wilshire Boulevard to go to Endeavor, both agencies were dealing with the repercussions. The short-term focus was on clients, and the long-term focus will be on how UTA gets on without the trio. Also of note will be how Endeavor absorbs three strong personalities into a partnership roster that grew to 24 just weeks ago when former UTA television partner Marc Korman arrived.

• PointRoll has hired Dea Lawrence as its regional vice president of western sales. She will be responsible for the management and expansion of PointRoll's West Coast sales team, driving revenue growth and developing/maintaining relationships with advertisers and agencies. Prior to joining PointRoll, Lawrence was vice president of sales for the Variety Online group.

• Image Entertainment has restructured in the wake of founder Marty Greenwald's exit. Bill Bromiley, formerly prexy of First Look Entertainment, has been tapped chief acquisitions officer and Rick Eiberg has been upped to exec VP of operations and chief technology officer. They join David Borshell, newly named prexy of the home entertainment indie, and Image CFO Jeff Framer as exec officers of the company. Bromiley began consulting for Image on its feature films' initiative last June and joined the company in January. Eiberg, a five-year veteran of the company, previously served as senior VP of operations. In his new post, he will oversee the company's supply chain, distribution and technology.

• International film sales company Protagonist Pictures has hired Charlotte Van Weede as head of sales.Van Weede joins Protagonist from Hanway Films where she was director of sales and distribution. Previously, Van Weede was VP of international sales at Summit Intl. and, prior to that, sales director at Intermedia Films.

• Indian entertainment conglom UTV has promoted Siddharth Kapur to CEO of UTV Motion Pictures to head all its movie operations. Kapur was previously exec VP of marketing, distribution and syndication. Alpana Mishra has been elevated to chief operating officer of production, UTV Motion Pictures and will oversee film production and development for UTV Motion Pictures. Vikas Bahl has been promoted to COO of the group's second-string film development and production label UTV Spotboy Motion Pictures. Ram Mirchandani will set up a separate film development and production arm, funded by UTV Motion Pictures, which will exclusively produce films for UMP.

TECHNOLOGY/ MULTI-PLATFORM CONTENT NEWS

• Internet TV network Babelgum has announced the first project to be funded from its $15 million Digital Studio Initiative will be “Oil Sands,” a feature-length environmental doc about the threatened Athabasca Oil Sands region in Alberta, Canada. Project will look at the tensions between the indigenous population in northern Alberta and the controversial technology attempting to harness the natural resources of the Athabasca Oil Sands region. Canada has the world’s second highest proven oil reserves after Saudi Arabia. Project will be produced by Insomnia Media Group, Emmy-award winning producer Philip Alberstat and Emmy-nominee Randy Bradshaw. Leslie Iwerks (“Recycle Story”) will helm. Budget of “Oil Sands” is believed to be in the mid six figure dollars range. Project is the first to come out of Babelgum’s fund dedicated to commissioning original content. The company uses peer-to-peer technology to deliver professionally produced content, instead of the user-generated clips of sites such as YouTube.

WEBSITES TO WATCH

http://www.ourworld.com/v11

A new start-up named FlowPlay is combining virtual worlds with casual gaming to attract tweens' attention in ourWorld. For a modest $6/month users can earn "flow" to put toward virtual items such as hairstyles, clothing and furniture. The company secured $3.7 million in financing in Feb., led by Intel Capital and Ambient Sound Investments.

http://www.mtv.com/music/iwantmymusic/

MTV and Garnier Fructis are inviting emerging artists to create a profile and upload original music videos to www.iwantmymusic.mtv.com for fans to vote on. Virtual MTV also launched the Rock Your Style Lounge at www.vmtv.com allowing fans to mingle with the finalists, who will be announced on multiple MTV platforms on April 28.

http://www.kidthing.com/

Game engine creator Tocali Games reached an agreement to develop interactive properties for Advanced Brain Technologies' web 2.0 learning platform Kidthing.

SOURCES:

www.variety.com www.cynopsis.com

Listen
Fast Car (Remix feat. Lupe Fiasco) *brand new!!!*

Also make sure to check out the original version feat. Paul Simons
Fast Car (Album Version)

Οι Fugees ήταν ένα αξιέπαινο hip-hop συγκρότημα από το New Jersey που ξεκίνησε να γίνεται γνωστό στα μέσα της δεκαετίας του ’90, του οποίου το ρεπερτόριο περιελάμβανε στοιχεία soul, μουσική της Καραϊβικής και reggae. Τα μέλη του συγκροτήματος ήταν ο Wyclef Jean (ράπερ, τραγουδιστής, παραγωγός), η Lauryn Hill (ράπερ,τραγουδίστρια) και ο Pras Michel (ράπερ). To όνομα του συγκροτήματος έρχεται από τον όρο “refugee” (πρόσφυγας). Ο Jean και ο Michel έχουν ρίζες από την Αϊτή ενώ η Lauryn Hill είναι Αφροαμερικάνα. Στην ιστορία του συγκροτήματος καταγράφονται δύο άλμπουμ – όπους το ένα από τα δύο (The Score)  έγινε πολλαπλά πλατινένιο και κέρδισε Grammy πριν τη διάλυση του συγκροτήματος το 1997. Η Hill και ο Jean συνέχισαν την καριέρα τους σόλο με μεγάλη επιτυχία. Ο Michel επικεντρώθηκε σε ηχογραφήσεις soundtrack και την ηθοποιία, αν και είχε μεγάλη επιτυχία με το τραγούδι του “Ghetto Superstar.”

Ιστορία

Το τρίο κυκλοφόρησε το πρώτο του LP, Blunted on Reality το 1994. Το άλμπουμ περιελάμβανε δυο underground επιτυχίες, “Nappy Heads (Mona Lisa)” και “Vocab”, αλλά απέτυχε να ανταποκριθεί στην φήμη του στις ζωντανές εμφανίσεις του συγκροτήματος και δεν τράβηξε πολύ προσοχή.

Το The Score έγινε η μεγαλύτερη επιτυχία το 1996 και ένα από τα άλμπουμ με τις καλύτερες πωλήσεις στην ιστορία του hip-hop. Οι Fugees τράβηξαν την προσοχή με τις διασκευές τους σε παλιά και αγαπημένα κομμάτια όπως “No Woman No Cry” του Bob Marley & The Wailers και “Killing me Softly (With His Song)” από την Roberta Flack, το οποίο έγινε η μεγαλύτερη επιτυχία τους. Το άλμπουμ περιλάμβανε και μια εκ-νέου ερμηνεία των The Delfonics “Ready Or Not Here I Come”, το οποίο περιλάμβανε ένα δείγμα από το Boadicea της Enya . Οι Fugees δεν έπαψαν να επεφημούν την Enya. To συγκρότημα κέρδισε δύο Grammy το 1997 με το The Score (καλύτερο ραπ άλμπουμ) και το Killing me Softly (καλύτερη hip-hop ερμηνεία από συγκρότημα).

Το 1997 οι Fugees ξεκίνησαν σόλο καριέρα. Η Hill δούλεψε πάνω στο “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill”, o Jean έκανε παραγωγές για διάφορους καλλιτέχνες και ηχογράφησε το “The Carnical”, ο Michel με τη Mya και τον Ol’Dirty Bastard κυκλοφόρησαν το single “Ghetto Superstar” για το soundtrack της ταινίας Bulworth.

Επανασύνδεση

Οι τρεις “πρόσφυγες” συναντήθηκαν ξανά για μια live ερμηνεία στις 18 Σεπτεμβρίου του 2004 στη συναυλία που έγινε στο Bedford-Stuyvesant στο Brooklyn όπου και αναμεταδόθηκε στο Dave Chappelle’s Block Party.  H εμφάνισή τους έλαβε τις καλύτερες κριτικές.

Αργότερα οι Fugees εμφανίστηκαν στη τηλεόραση στα βραβεία μουσικής του 2005 στο κανάλι BET στις 28 Ιουνίου, όπου άνοιξαν το σόου με ένα 12λεπτο πρόγραμμα. Ανακοίνωσαν πως ετοίμαζαν νέο άλμπουμ και ένα νεό τραγούδι το “Take it Easy”  διέρρευσε στο internet κι έτσι κυκλοφόρησε ως single στις 27 Σεπτεμβρίου του 2005. Έπιασε την 40^η θέση στο Billboard R&B Chart αλλά έλαβε «φτωχές» κριτικές, λόγω της απομάκρυνσής του από τον τότε γνωστό ήχο των Fugees.

To 2005 ξεκίνησαν Ευρωπαϊκή περιοδεία, την πρώτη τους μετά την επανασύνδεση, που κράτησε από τις 30 Νοεμβρίου έως τις 20 Δεκεμβρίου και εμφανίστηκαν σε Φιλανδία, Αυστρία, Νορβηγία, Γερμανία, Ιταλία, Γαλλία, Αγγλία, Βέλγιο, Σουηδία και Σλοβακία. Αναφορές στο internet κατονόμασαν την περιοδεία ανοργάνωτη και με φτωχό ήχο.

Στις 6 Φεβρουαρίου 2006 το συγκρότημα βρέθηκε ξανά για ένα ελεύθερο σόου στο Hollywood όπου δόθηκαν δωρεάν εισητήρια σε 8.000 οπαδούς από τοπικούς ραδιοφωνικούς σταθμούς. Αργότερα μέσα στον ίδιο μήνα άλλο ένα τραγούδι κυκλοφόρησε στο internet το “Foxy”. Το τραγούδι χαρακτηρίστηκς ως η πραγματική επιστροφή των Fugees από πολλά blog. Ο Dave Chappelle, οι Fugees και άλλοι καλλιτέχνες που πήραν μέρος στην ταινία του έκαναν περιοδείες τότε σε πολλές πόλεις.

Μετά τις περιοδείες, το άλμπουμ που είχαν ανακοινώσει πως θα βγάλουν και που όλοι περίμεναν τόσο δεν ήρθε ποτέ και αποδόθηκε στις σχέσεις μεταξύ των μελών του συγκροτήματος. Στη σιάρκεια μιας συνέντευξης ο Michel επιβεβαίωσε ότι το συγκρότημα είχε “πεθάνει εντελώς”. Είπε πως η Hill είχε κάποια άλλα πράγματα να κάνει. Τον Αύγουστο του 2007 επανέλαβε τα λόγια του δηλώνοντας, “Πριν δουλέψω με τη Lauryn Hill ξανά, θα είναι πιθανότερο να δείτε τον Osama Bin Laden με το George Bush να τρώνε μαζί σε εστιατόριο συζητώντας γαι την εξωτερική πολιτική παρά να γίνει επανασύνδεση των Fugees. Θα χρειαστεί να βάλει το χέρι του ο Θεός για να της αλλάξει γνώμη, εκείνη έχει πάρει άλλη πορεία.”

Στις 4 Μαρτίου 2008, ο Jean παραδέχτηκε στο σόου του Howard Stern ότι πιστεύει πως η Hill “έπασχε από διπολική διαταραχή” και ότι “χρειάζεται φάρμακα.”

Δισκογραφία

1994 -  Blunted on Reality

1996 – The Score

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