According to various sourcesthe, “Word on the street is that LA Reid, and Dream are out at Def Jam as executives. Vin Vivendi, a french international media conglomerate, with activities in music, television, film, and telecommunications, is cleaning house, and Dream as well as LA Reid are out due to disappointing sales figures and exuberant spending. After several years it’s clear that dog won’t hunt.”
Antonio “L.A.” Reid (born June 7, 1956) is a three-time Grammy Award-winning American[c record executive, songwriter, and record producer, best known as the co-founder of LaFace Records. He is responsible for signing and helping bring Mariah Carey, P!nk, Justin Bieber, Avril Lavigne, Toni Braxton, TLC, Usher, Ciara, OutKast, and Dido to multi-platinum album sales.
He was the Chairman and CEO ofIsland Def Jam Music Group and President and CEO ofHitco Music Publishing, based in Atlanta.
The-Dream, is an American R&B and pop singer-songwriter and record producer.
The-Dream met R&B producer Laney Stewart in 2001, who helped him sign a publishing deal. He spent two years working on Nivea‘s second album ‘Complicated’, and continued to write and produce with Christopher “Tricky” Stewart, Laney‘s brother. Together, The-Dream and Tricky produced Rihanna’s 2007 hit “Umbrella” and Beyoncé‘s “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)”, which boosted The-Dream‘s music career. He signed a deal with Def Jam Records in 2007, and released his debut studio album ‘Love Hate’ later that year. In March 2009, The-Dream released his second album ‘Love vs. Money‘. In June 2010, The-Dream released his third album titled ‘Love King’.
This news has not yet been confirmed, however, as soon as a confirmation is made you will be immediately informed.
Sunday night marked the 2010 BET Awards, hosted by Queen Latifah, and an all-star roster of celebrities presented, performed, and took home top honors.
Between Prince‘s Lifetime achievement award and Queen Latifah running the show, there was plenty of royalty at last night’s 10th anniversary of the BET Awards. But in the midst of the performances of accolades, the stage was also set for a few big names to make their comebacks.
Jermaine Jackson announced the first return of the evening when he introduced the tribute to his late brother, thanking everyone for their love and support over the past year. He added, “There is one tribute performance we have yet to see…here he is.”
Chris Brown was poised behind the curtain, looking like the silhouette of Michael Jackson himself. Once he came out, there was a palpable moment of tension so strong, it could almost be felt through the TV.
Brown crotch-grabbed and moon-walked his way like a pro through the Michael Jackson songs as a supportive audience cheered him on.
But then the opening bars from “Man in the Mirror” began to play, and we all braced for the irony of the words. Brown got through about one line of the song before his voice started to quiver with tears. After a few heartfelt efforts to regain composure, Brown fell to his knees sobbing and completely gave up trying to sing as the backup track took over.
But Brown wasn’t the only one returning to the stage: Kanye West opened the show on top of a mountain – literally – as he performed his latest single, “Power.” T.I gave an upbeat performance that had the whole crowd moving, and El DeBarge was also a surprising treat as he performed a new song from his upcoming album and a medley of his R&B hits.
Queen Latifah kept the show flowing as she changed outfits about 500 times, and Alicia Keys also had a good night. She won Best Female R&B artist, Best Collaboration for her work with Jay-Z in “Empire State of Mind,” and also fit in two performances: a medley set of her own songs early on in the program, and then she joined in the Prince tribute.
But probably the best Prince performance of the night came from the one and only Patti LaBelle, who sang “Purple Rain” like we’ve never heard it before. LaBelle flicked her shoes off into the audience where Prince picked one of them up and gestured in respect to the diva.
LaBelle came back and joined Chaka Khan on stage to formally present Prince with his Lifetime Achievement Award.
Overwhelmed by the amount of praise coming from the audience, Prince asked everyone to sit down and said he was “speechless.” He started by thanking Jehovah, and then remarked on the future of music. “I do believe the future is in good hands, there is so much talent here,” he said.
Then Prince offered some words of wisdom to the young talent in the room. “I was pretty wild in my younger days and you don’t have to do what I did and you don’t have to make the mistakes I made,” he said. “Thank you for a wonderful night tonight, I’ll never forget it as long I live.”
Trey Songz took home Best Male R&B Artist and Drake won Best Male Hip Hop Artist. Nicki Minaj received the award for Best Female Hip Hop Artist and thanked the female rappers who paved the way for her.
Rihanna received the coveted Viewer’s Choice Award for “Hard,” but was not there to accept it. Also not there to accept Awards were Beyonce’ and Lady Gaga, who won Video of the Year for their collaboration in “Video Phone,” and Jay-Z was absent from the show as well.
Chris Brown had the last word, at least for the night. After his Jackson tribute, he was announced as the surprise winner of BET’s Fandemonium award, a prize determined by fan votes, beating out apparent favorites like Justin Bieber, Trey Songz and Nicki Minaj.
Stepping to the stage to receive his trophy, Brown gave a quick acceptance speech. “I let you all down before, but I won’t do it again,” he said. “I promise you.”
Here’s a breakdown of all the winners…
Winners included:
Viewers’ Choice: Rihanna (not at awards ceremony)
Best Female R&B Artist: Alicia Keys
Best Male R&B Artist: Trey Songz
Best Female Hip Hop Artist: Nicki Minaj
Best Male Hip Hop Artist: Drake
Best New Artist: Nicki Minaj
Best Group: Young Money
Video of the Year: Beyonce and Lady Gaga for “Video Phone” (not at awards ceremony)
Best Actress: Mo’Nique
Best Actor: Idris Elba
Best Movie: Precious
Sportsman of the Year: Lebron James
Sportswoman of the Year: Serena Williams
Prince also won a Lifetime achievement award and John Legend won a humanitarian award.
The show’s top performances were given by Chris Brown, who paid tribute to Michael Jackson and ended sobbing on stage during “Man In The Mirror,” and Patti LaBelle’s cover of “Purple Rain” in honor of Prince.
Below is a video from Chris Brown’s Michael Jackson Tribute:
Alicia Keys Tribute to Prince:
Source: CNN, BET, YOUTUBE
~ “Alicia Keys’ performance had me at the edge of my seat when she climbed on top of her piano. I was so nervous that she wouldn’t fall, even Prince looked nervous. As for Chris Brown, I was so excited to see him perform, and hear how the crowd cheered him on. It was one of the best performances I saw. He really knows how to break down Michael Jackson’s moves. Welcome back Chris Brown.”
Sixth-grader Greyson Michael Chance [Bieber who?] performs a chick-magnetized version of Lady Gaga’s “Paparazzi” in a pit of lip-biting, face-touching young women. lol.
Police in Sydney cancelled Bieber’s performance after a swarm of teenagers surged toward the venue in a frenzy! Ten girls had to be pulled from the crowd. Eight girls were taken to the hospital. One out the eight had fractured her knee cap, but most of them hyperventilated.
The commotion reportedly began because the doors were supposed to open at 5:00pm, but instead they opened at 3:00pm, leaving fans to believe the teen icon had arrived early. Police have stated that the station was prepared, but the frenzy got out of control. Many of the teenages were there without parents.
M.I.A.’s Violent Video Banned from YouTube
Due to graphic violence, you will not be able to find M.I.A‘s new video on YouTube.
Sources say M.I.A. tweeted this morning about her new single, “Born Free” being banned from YouTube.
“F*ck UMG who won’t show it on YouTube!” M.I.A. tweeted.
Then she later clarified that UMG was not at fault. The video was unveiled this morning on the singer’s official website.
JNEL & J. Magazine 