Celebrities Attend 2013 Soul Train Music Awards The 2013 Soul Train Music Awards were held last night in Las Vegas and a host of Black Hollywood notables were on hand for the festivities, with the ladies stepping out to strut their stuff to the max as usual. Entertainment industry PYTs like Ashanti, Keisha Knight Pulliam and Chrisette Michelle.. along with semi-new comers Sevyn Streeter, Bridget Kelly and a green-haired Lil Mama all gave the cameras a glimpse at their get ups… while industry veterans like Toni Braxton, Vivica Fox, Gladys Knight and Chaka Khan gracefully showed the young ones how it was done on the red carpet. Hit the flip to check out their looks next, along with more pics from carpet including actress Malinda Williams, Charli Baltimore, The Braxtons, Faith Evans, Janelle Monae, Trayvon Martin’s mother Sybrina Fulton and more.
Oprah, we were starting to get scared for you too. Oprah Winfrey Says She Was On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown Tyler deserves a humanitarian of the year award, because without him performing a captain save a ho with “The Haves And Have Nots,” Oprah would have had that nervous breakdown. According to The Toronto Sun Media mogul Oprah Winfrey forced herself to take a step back from her heavy workload last summer after realizing she was on the brink of a nervous breakdown as she struggled to turn her TV network into a success. The TV icon walked away from her hit talk show in May, 2011, after 25 years at the top, to focus on the launch of the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) with bosses from cable company Discovery Communications. However, the channel struggled to attract viewers in its first year on air and Winfrey was forced to take a serious look at reshuffling its programming line-up in order to appeal to audiences. The superstar admits she was really feeling the pressure to turn OWN’s fortunes around, but it was only when she interviewed Jason Russell, the man behind the high-profile KONY 2012 campaign, about his emotional breakdown which led to his bizarre naked rant and arrest last year, that she recognized she was experiencing similar mental issues. She tells People magazine, “Jason was talking about having a nervous breakdown, and I was thinking, ‘I have those symptoms’.” Winfrey’s breaking point came just days later as she headed into the OWN headquarters in Los Angeles to record voice-overs for her shows: “I remember closing my eyes while I was reading. I thought, ‘I cannot have another thing enter my brain.’ I needed to pull back.” She confesses the harsh press criticism of her network hit her hard, and she credits her longterm partner, Stedman Graham, with helping her soldier on to overcome the disappointing start. She says, “After 25 years of being number one, I had become accustomed to success. I didn’t expect failure. I was tested and I had to dig deep. The schadenfreude (pleasure from misfortune of others) was very painful for me, because I had never experienced it. “(Graham) was amazing. He said, ‘You can’t eve think about quitting. You have been in cruise control. It’s gonna turn around, but you’ve gotta do the work.’” Now that OWN is a success, will you be tuning in?
Hopefully this show gives BET programming the lift it’s been looking for… We gotta say we’re actually excited to check out “Apollo Live” tonight . It’s been four years since production of Showtime At The Apollo ceased, but BET is staging a revival of the popular show in the form of Apollo Live with its broadcast premiere on November 29th at 8p/7c. Birthplace of legends and home of future stars, The Apollo Theater shines anew for the next generation. Brought to you by the brilliant creative trio and executive producers Jamie Foxx, Marcus King, and Don Weiner who put a fresh spin on the classic “Amateur Night” variety show, Apollo Live is both a talent showcase and a singing competition. And there’s some serious talent in the judges seats with the legendary Gladys Knight, veteran emcee Doug E. Fresh, and New Edition’s Michael Bivins as judges. Hosted by comedian Tony Rock, Apollo Live promises to entertain with a bevy of special guest appearances and performances. Will you be watching? Do you have a favorite Apollo memory? Don’t forget to tune in at 8pm/7c on Thursdays on BET!
Justin Bieber gets dramatic in the just-released sneak peek at his upcoming video for “As Long As You Love Me.” Featuring an extended scene of acting, sans music, the video opens with the 18-year old sensation speaking with the father of his girlfriend, played by actor Michael Madsen. He’s being told not to contact the love of his life, but come on. Do you really think that will stop The Biebs? “Here it is,” Bieber Tweeted upon the release. “The rest of the video hits this coming WEDNESDAY…it is INSANE!” Justin Bieber Video Sneak Peek Fortunately, Justin stopped himself from using any four-letter words while sending that Tweet.
Music legend Gladys Knight appeared on The Talk yesterday and it didn’t take long for the conversation to turn to the Jackson family and its ongoing drama. Knight especially focused on the recent Paris Jackson versus Janet Jackson feud, with allegedly led to police being called to the scene and included the 14-year old cursing off her aunt . “Paris is 14? How old is Janet? Who’s the one to try to direct the other one here?” the singer asked, adding: “If [Paris] called me that, she would have no teeth … That’s how we were brought up. You respect your elders.” Watch the clip below and react: Do you agree with Knight?
Gladys Knight earned the lowest scores on Motown night, while Jaleel White and Jenkins each earned a pair of 10s. By Kelley L. Carter Derek Hough and Maria Menounos Photo: ABC Monday night’s telecast of “Dancing With the Stars” opened with R&B legend Smokey Robinson crooning his Motown hit “Tears of a Clown.” Then Martha Reeves came in singing her hit with the Vandellas “Dancing in the Streets.” Then came the (current lineup of the) Temptations singing their classic hit “Get Ready.” And Motown founder Berry Gordy was in the audience, to boot. It was the perfect way to intro Motown night — this week’s theme — for the popular ABC dance reality competition. This week’s scores included bonus points for a group cha-cha dance marathon. At the top of the pack this week were Katherine Jenkins and Mark Ballas. The opera singer once again impressed judges with her moves. She and Ballas danced to the Temptations’ “I Can’t Get Next to You,” and the judges thought she continued to deliver. Her prize? She earned a pair of 10s in her initial score for an almost perfect score. “Tonight, girlfriend, you let it loose. That was amazing!” judge Carrie Ann Inaba said. 29/30 + 10 = 39. Here’s how the others fared: Jaleel White and Kym Johnson The former child actor jumped right back near the top of the leaderboard. He danced the cha-cha to “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg,” and the judges found his movements to be sharp and filled with attitude “You’re back!” head judge Len Goodman told him. He also was rewarded with a pair of 10s from the judges. 29/30 + 8 = 37 William Levy and Cheryl Burke The Latin soap opera star danced the rumba, and judges loved the steam that came from the pair. Their ending was over-the-top sexual (they were laid out on top of one another on the dance floor), and the judges — and the live audience, gauging from the screams and hooting and hollering — enjoyed it thoroughly. “William! Absolute and utter filth. And I loved every minute of it!” judge Bruno Tonioli said. “On behalf of all of the women out there, I thank you,” Inaba said. Goodman thought it was a bit on the raunchy side. 27/30 + 9 = 36 Donald Driver and Peta Murgatroyd The football star danced the foxtrot to a Temptations track, and the judges were impressed by his showmanship. “Donald, you are a showman! Confidence! Power! Your performances get better and better. You should be in the theater,” Tonioli said. 27/30 + 7 = 34 Melissa Gilbert and Maks Chmerkovskiy The actress danced the Viennese waltz to Robinson’s lush hit “Ooo Baby, Baby,” and judges thought her lines were beautiful. “I see poetry starting to happen in your movements. I see the artistry there,” Inaba told her. 24/30 + 6= 30. Maria Menounos and Derek Hough The TV journalist danced the foxtrot to a Reeves’ hit, and even though she made a few missteps, judges thought she pulled it off quite nicely. “You lost your footing, but you caught up quite brilliantly,” Tonioli told her. 26/30 + 4 = 30. Roshon Fegan and Chelsie Hightower The Disney star danced to a Robinson hit, and the judges thought his moves were more suitable for a hip-hop dance — his specialty — than the ballroom. Goodman said that the execution of his routine was “clipped and jerky.” “In general, I thought your moments were a bit over-exaggerated tonight and it made it hard for me to watch,” Inaba said. 23/50 + 5= 28. Gladys Knight and Tristan McManus The soul legend took the stage first — kind of fitting, considering she recorded with the Detroit label — and she performed the rumba. Judges thought her routine was passionate and said her star quality was undeniable. They thought her rumba should have been a bit steamier and noted how she lost it a bit at the end. “You’re not the best dancer, but I’ll tell you what you are … Gladys, you are the most charismatic dancer, I’m telling you. It is so appealing,” head judge Len Goodman said. “It’s just easy like Sunday morning!” 21/30 + 3 = 24.
The 14th season of Dancing With the Stars has been almost as evenly-matched as it has been entertaining thus far. Would the sixth week be any different? Last week saw Maria Menounos and Derek Hough kiss , Melissa Gilbert return from a head injury, Chelsie Hightower almost fall out of her outfit and more. With Gavin DeGraw eliminated , eight dancers remained to vie for the Mirror Ball. Who stepped up this week and who’s going to be in jeopardy next? Coming into the sixth week, the favorites (Menounos, Donald Driver, Katherine Jenkins and William Levy) were looking to bolster their frontrunner status. The remainder of the pack (Gilbert, Roshon Fegan, Jaleel White and Gladys Knight) looked to make a move or risk elimination. How did the stars all do? We’ll be back with a full rundown soon, but in the meantime, tell us who you think was the best – and worst – on the parquet Monday in the comments. Then vote in our ongoing survey with your thoughts on the following: Of the top eight, who will win Dancing With the Stars?
Unlike the ousters of Jack Wagner and Sherri Shepherd , the fourth elimination on Dancing With the Stars was not a decision that will leave heads scratched. Just as things looked up last week for Karina Smirnoff and partner Gavin DeGraw, they once again sunk to the bottom Monday night after a 19-point samba. The second lowest DWTS scores went to Maksim Chmerkovskiy and Melissa Gilbert, with 21, with Gladys Knight and Tristan MacManus posting just 22. Which of these tandems comprised the dreaded bottom two? Melissa and Maksim and Gladys and Tristan were among the first to be declared safe. Gavin and Karina faced off with Jaleel White and Kym Johnson. Dancing for survival, the judges made their final call based purely on the quality of the performances as both couples did the cha cha side by side. And that call was a fairly easy one. Their decision was unanimous: the judges saved Jaleel and Kym, bringing DeGraw’s run on DWTS to a close. “It’s amazing just being part of the show,” an upbeat Gavin said. “Knowing Karina Smirnoff, of course, having a great mentor. And getting to reach out and know all these amazing people who are a part of this show.” Jaleel and Kym will be back next week to compete in the top eight. You tell us: With Gavin out, who will win Dancing With the Stars?
The 14th season of Dancing With the Stars, as evenly-matched as it is entertaining thus far, rolled into its fifth week Monday with the top nine going ALL out. Last week, which saw a nasty head injury to Melissa Gilbert and the elimination of Sherri Shepherd , did not lack for drama. What would this week’s act bring? A lot of strong performances from a group of engaging characters capable of some high quality dancing. for sure. They always leave you wanting more! Sadly, someone must leave each week. Who will it be this time? Coming into the fifth week, the favorites (Donald Driver, Maria Menounos, William Levy and Katherine Jenkins) looked to bolster their frontrunner status. The rest of the pack (Gilbert, Gavin DeGraw, Roshon Fegan, Jaleel White and Gladys Knight) looked to make a move. How did they do? You tell us below. Who do you think will win Dancing With the Stars?
