Tag Archives: Kanye West

BET Awards 12 is #1 Awards Show on Cable, Drawing 7.4 Million Viewers

Live from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on Sunday, July 1st, BET Awards 12 kicked off with a bang when G.O.O.D. Music artists Kanye West , 2 Chainz, Big Sean, and Pusha T exploded onto the stage for a medley of their hits “Mercy” and “Cold” before a one-of-a-kind freestyle from Kanye West that officially jumpstarted this year’s “Too Big To Miss” show.  Box office superstar and BET Awards 12 host Samuel L. Jackson was joined on stage by award-winning director Spike Lee for a hilarious parody of  “N***s in Paris” that had Jay-Z and Kanye West cracking up in the front row. 

In honor of the untimely passing of music icon Whitney Houston, BET Awards 12 pulled together an unprecedented pairing of today’s divas, family members, friends, and cast mates for an emotional tribute that even brought BET Awards 12 double-winner Beyonce to tears.  The incomparable Mariah Carey opened the In Memoriam celebration with a trio of stories, speaking about meeting her friend at the Grammys, working together on their Oscar-winning duet, “When You Believe” from the Prince of Egypt soundtrack and the last time they saw each other—laughing together in Paris in the fall. 

Paying tribute to Whitney Houston’s undeniable gospel roots—both spiritually and vocally, Monica took to the stage to sing “I Love The Lord.”  Monica’s “The Boy Is Mine” duet partner, Brandy, lifted the mood with up-tempo favorites “I’m Your Baby Tonight” and “I Want To Dance With Somebody.” Gary Houston, Whitney’s brother, sang “Where You Are,” a touching prelude to their mother’s performance of “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” Cissy Houston dedicated her performance to her late daughter and brought the audience to tears with her emotional rendition of the song.  Cissy Houston’s performance was followed by a heartfelt and memory-filled account from Whitney’s “Waiting to Exhale” co-stars Angela Bassett, Lela Rochon, and Loretta Devine.  Chaka Khan helped the crowd—including Soulja Boy—dry their eyes with an upbeat performance of “I’m Every Woman” that got the already standing room only crowd dancing in celebration of the late singer’s life.

Other moving In Memoriam tributes included Valerie Simpson ‘s love-filled performance to her late husband, Nick Ashford , Chante Moore singing “Love to Love You Baby” and “Bad Girls” to tribute Donna Summer , and special moments spotlighting the entertainment industry and world’s loss of Dick Clark, Hal Jackson, Heavy D, Etta James , Vesta, Robin Gibb , Don Cornelius , MCA, and Chuck Brown .

R&B crooner D’Angelo returned to the television stage for the first time in 12 years for a special medley of his sultry hit “Untitled (How Does It Feel)” and a new track, “Sugar Daddy.”  Actor, comedian and BET Awards 11 host, Kevin Hart, introduced a special performance from MMG featuring Rick Ross that showcased Wale, Rick Ross and DJ Sam’s “Bag of Money” and “So Sophisticated” before being joined by Meek Mill on “Black Magic.”  Closing out the show were Tyga and Ca$h Out performing their hit “Rack City” and “Ca$hing Out.”

Other notable performances included Usher’s sensual single “Climax,” Nicki Minaj’s booty popping rendition of “Champion” and “Beez in the Trap” with 2 Chainz, Melanie Fiona ‘s “Wrong Side of a Love Song,” Chris Brown ‘s zombie ballet medley of “Don’t Wake Me Up” and “Turn Up The Music,” and BET Music Matters newcomers Charles Perry and Jannah Bell .  BET’s Sunday Best judge Yolanda Adams , Season 4 winner Amber Bullock , Season 2 winner Y’Anna Crawley , and Season 2 1st runner-up Jessica Reedy also took to the stage for a crowd-pleasing rendition of The Clark Sisters’ hit, “You Brought the Sunshine.”

After a special tribute performance of their classics “Can’t Get Over You,” “Joy and Pain,” and “Happy Feelin’s” by Joe, Tyrese, and Faith Evans, respectively, Maze featuring Frankie Beverly were honored with the Cadillac Lifetime Achievement Award by presenter Tyler Perry .  Dr. Reverent Al Sharpton was honored by BET Networks Chairman/CEO Debra L. Lee with the Humanitarian Award presented by State Farm for his tireless work to bring justice to the underrepresented and marginalized.  The BET Awards 12 Shine A Light recipients were David A. Boone and Vy Higginsen.

Representing the cast of Quentin Tarantino’s “Django,” and to present the trailer for their upcoming film, which co-stars BET Awards 12 host Samuel L. Jackson were “Scandal” star Kerry Washington and Oscar-winner Jamie Foxx.  Other BET Awards 12 presenters included Taraji P. Henson, Elle Varner, Cedric The Entertainer, Meagan Good, Laz Alonso, and many more.

In addition to all of these spectacular moments, the full list of BET Awards 12 winners are:

Best Female R&B Artist: Beyonce

Best Male R&B Artist: Chris Brown

Best Group: The Throne (Jay-Z and Kanye West)

Best Collaboration: Wale featuring Miguel

Best Male Hip Hop Artist: Drake

Best Female Hip Hop Artist: Nicki Minaj

Video of the Year: “Otis” The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West) featuring Otis Redding

Video Director of the Year: Beyonce and Alan Ferguson

Best New Artist: Big Sean

Best Gospel: Yolanda Adams

Best Actress: Viola Davis

Best Actor: Kevin Hart

YoungStars Award: Diggy

Best Movie: The Help

Subway Sportswoman of the Year: Serena Williams

Subway Sportsman of the Year: Kevin Durant

Coca-Cola Viewers Choice Award: Mindless Behavior

Fandemonium Award: Chris Brown

Centric Award: Common

Best International Act: Africa: Sarkodie (Ghana) and Wizkid (Nigeria)

Best International Act: UK: Wrench 32

Photos from BET.com

Kanye West Changes Title of “Theraflu” to “Way Too Cold” Feat. DJ Khaled

Last week, Kanye West lit up the airwaves with a surprise Funkmaster Flex exclusive of his incendiary new track “Theraflu” through New York’s Hot 97. Within hours, the track and its vivid, revealing, personal lyrics had taken over the blogosphere, streets and clubs, inciting a firestorm in the press, both on and offline. Praised by fans and attacked by detractors, “Theraflu” ignited controversy the way only a new Kanye West track can.

Today, Kanye announces the creative decision to title the track ‘Way Too Cold’ feat. DJ Khaled.

Whether it’s been through his pioneering lifestyle blog, his unabashed, frequently controversial twitter feed, or his wildly popular “G.O.O.D. Fridays” download series, Kanye West has always used the online space – perhaps as well as any artist of his era – to give fans access to his creative world. Now, in an effort to bring his fans the freshest, most undiluted version of his music, Kanye will offer “Way Too Cold” for sale through his website kanyewest.com. This direct digital offering marks a first for West. The track will also be made available to all digital retailers and services.

The release of “Way Too Cold” only heightened the thirst for “Mercy,” the first track off of the upcoming G.O.O.D. Music project. On Thursday evening, ClearChannel stations nationwide were given a first pass at “Mercy,” resulting in hundreds of plays nationwide before the track dropped exclusively on iTunes at 12:01 Friday morning…G.O.O.D. Friday.

“Mercy” – featuring G.O.O.D. Music labelmates Big Sean and Pusha T, along with an all-star assist from 2 Chainz, arguably the hottest new artist coming out of the South – is the first single from the hotly anticipated G.O.O.D. Music album, which will see its release this summer. The project will mark the second official release through G.O.O.D. Music’s new venture with Def Jam Recordings, to be followed this year by Big Sean’s sophomore effort, Kanye West’s next solo album, and future releases from Pusha T, Q-Tip and many more.

Stay tuned for further details on the G.O.O.D. Music album in coming weeks, as well as info on the label’s burgeoning roster of talent, helmed by one of music’s greatest forces, Kanye West.

Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show Airs Nov. 29‏

The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show features the Victoria’s Secret Angels in the annual holiday lingerie runway show, which will include musical performances by Grammy Award-winning artists, Kanye West, Jay Z, Maroon 5 and Nicki Minaj, pink carpet interviews with celebrities, model profiles and a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the world’s most celebrated fashion show.

Tune-in CBS on November 29th at 9 p.m. (central) to see the Angels with their custom designed outfits, wings and staggering 6-inch heels by famed shoe Designer Giuseppe Zanotti. The “It’s Showtime” themed production show features 6 sections and the $2.5 Million Fantasy Treasure Bra worn by Miranda Kerr. The bra features nearly 3,400 gems including an astounding 142 carats of diamonds in addition to pearls, citrines and aquamarines set on a Gorgeous Push-up Bra.

Victoria’s Secret invites you to Tweet with, #VSFashionShow, the official hashtag of the 2011 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. Plus, see additional coverage at Facebook.com/VictoriasSecret and www.VictoriasSecret.com/FashionShow.

Kanye West Headlining Call of Duty® XP

In his first public performance since the release of his fifth #1 album, the global smash “Watch the Throne,” Kanye West is set to close Call of Duty® XP , the only full-immersion fan experience for Call of Duty® gamers. West will take the stage at 8PM on Saturday, September 3rd, capping an impressive roster of firsts for casual and hardcore Call of Duty fans alike, including the world premiere of Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare® 3 multiplayer, the first public hands-on with the title, the finals of the Call of Duty® $1 Million tournament sponsored by Xbox 360®, Call of Duty-inspired live action-experiences and much more.

Call of Duty XP will take place at the Call of Duty compound in Playa Vista, located at 5600 Campus Center Dr., Los Angeles, Calif., 90094.  Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) will donate 100% of the sales to The Call of Duty Endowment, a non-profit, public benefit corporation that seeks to help returning soldiers transition back to civilian life, find work and establish careers. For more information about Call of Duty XP, please visit www.callofduty.com/xp.

2011 ESSENCE Music Festival Announces Additions to Line-Up

Multi-platinum superstar Jennifer Hudson will make her debut Festival performance, joined by R&B/Funk icon Chaka Khan and the reunion of New Edition at the 2011 Essence Music Festival celebrating the “Roots of R&B” July 1, 2 and 3 in New Orleans.

In addition, Kem, Miguel, Naughty By Nature, Doug E. Fresh, Marsha Ambrosius, Mavis Staples, Eric Benet, Vanessa Bell Armstrong, Trin-i-tee 5:7 and Brian Courtney Wilson have been added to the previously announced line-up, which includes Kanye West, Mary J. Blige, Trey Songz, Jill Scott, Charlie Wilson, Boyz II Men, Fantasia, George Clinton, Macy Gray and more.

Now in its 17th year, the ultimate destination for entertainment and inspiration hosted over 400,000 attendees last year. What began in 1995 as a one-time event to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of ESSENCE magazine has now grown into one of the country’s “Top 10 Leading Brand Events” by Advertising Age.  

The Festival is the nation’s largest annual gathering of African-American music and culture.  Throughout its history, the Festival has featured an array of performers including Alicia Keys, Al Green, Aretha Franklin, Beyonce, Chaka Khan, Destiny’s Child, Earth, Wind & Fire, Gladys Knight, LL Cool J, Jamie Foxx, John Legend, The Isley Brothers, Lionel Richie, Luther Vandross, Maxwell, The O’Jays, Prince, Stevie Wonder, Toni Braxton, Patti LaBelle and Yolanda Adams, among others.

For information about ticket sales, accommodations and the latest news about the Essence Music Festival, visit http://www.essence.com/festival or become a fan of 2011 Essence Music Festival on Facebook.

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Kanye West Stay in School Event

The Kanye West Foundation held its 3rd Annual “Stay in School” event June 8th at Farragut Career Academy in Chicago, IL. 

West, along with fellow Chicago hip hop artists Common and Lupe Fiasco, Chicago Public Schools CEO Ron Huberman, Kanye West Foundation CEO Joseph Collins, Farragut Principal Theresa Plascenica and others announced this year, Chicago Public School students with improved grades, attendance and behavior will be rewarded with in school appearances by West, Common and Fiasco.

Students from Farragut, John Marshall Metropolitan and Percy L. Julian high schools were treated to performances from the hip hop stars later that day. Last year the foundation awarded 3,000 CPS students with tickets to a Kanye West concert at the Chicago Theatre.

The mission of the foundation is to help combat the dropout problem in schools throughout the U.S. by partnering with community organizations to provide under-served youth access to music programs that will enable them to unleash their creative ability and reach their full potential.

Photo by Raymond Boyd