In Touch magazine is officially five years old, and, although you probably don’t care at all, quite a few people (your favorite blog editor included) chose to attend their big celebration last night at NYC’s Tenjune. And I’m sure Kanye West’s special performance had nothing to do with it.
As I hinted in this morning’s Rewound, Janet Jackson was there with Jermaine Dupri, and, pardon me if I engage in a bit of exaggeration, she saved everyone in the packed club from a fiery death! Okay. Actually, she spotted a girl whose hair was on fire and put it out. So she saved the woman in question from some serious burns, which is commendable.
Check out some red carpet pics from the event after the jump, although a few people, such as Swizz Beatz, Evan Ross, Miss USA Rachel Smith, and LL Cool J aren’t pictured. The latter stood emotionless, his eyes concealed by mirrored sunglasses, during Kanye’s entire (amazing) performance. Could LL be taking out his on K.W.?
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MTV, in all of it’s infinite power, has amassed a pretty hefty collection of quotes from performers and heavyweights in the music biz about the state of R. Kelly and how they feel about the longest child pornography scandal in the history of child pornography scandals. And like, T-Pain, they aren’t really stressing it. Like, at all.
“He feels he didn’t do anything wrong, so why should it be any other way?” Swizz Beatz said. “If he did something wrong, then you go into hiding. He’s just making good music…”
“People are just like, ‘Eh,’ ” Billboard senior chart manager Raphael George said. “He seems no different than any other celebrity who’s gotten caught up in some kind of scandal.”
When asked about the situation, many people might as well have been following a script: It’s R. Kelly’s personal problem.
“I think people put away the personal life and what they see is the entertainer,” Chris Brown said. “So I differentiate between the two.”
“I’ve struggled a lot too, but I’ve made it through,” Keyshia Cole said.
“Everyone has their demons. Who doesn’t have their scandal?” Fergie asked.
I don’t mean to nitpick, but, well, quite a few people don’t have scandals, at least not on the level of R. Kelly’s. It goes to show that if you make some hyper-sexual, derogatory songs interspersed with inspirational ditties and humorous YouTube epics, America will forgive you for anything.
[MTV]
- Officials in Camden, NJ, one of the deadliest cities in America, want Swizz Beatz to denounce his “stop snitching” ways before he appears at a peace rally there. He gently explains that his song, “It’s Me Snitches,” was just a radio edit for “It’s Me Bitches.” Happy, police?[IHT]
- If your police department is being accused of rampant racism, don’t drink out of Confederate flag mug when you meet people to discuss it. This should be common sense. [HC]
- A new ad that says, “Nearly one in two African-American adults has genital herpes. Could it be you? Could it be your partner? . . . A simple blood test is the best way to know if you have it,” uses a fear tactic that concerns some health specialists, because, apparently, herpes isn’t the type of thing everyone should get tested for. [BG]
- Baltimore’s homicide rate is spiraling out of control, and the NAACP is struggling to make someone care. []
- The NAACP adds financial backing to the defense of the Jena Six. [EUR]
Look how happy Amerie is to be posing with her very own leather BET bag! Yesterday, more stars in town for the BET Awards filed into the “Backstage Creations Talent Retreat” to pick up some free electronics and bags embossed with the network logo. The only one not posing with some merchandise is Flavor Flav, but probably got the publicists didn’t think an image of him touching one of their products would make any of us plebes consider going out and buying them. Check out the rest of the pics after the jump.
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- Ellen Pompeo’s nice fiance may have been hiding a couple of drug convictions from his Grey’s Anatomy sweetheart. Ugh, why does it have to be the black guy. [Star]
- Don Imus designed this one himself. [RCLS]
- Diddy better have kept his social security number a secret from his old bodyguard. [AHH]
- First, she was baring her twins Playboy. Now she’s bearing twins. I can’t keep up. [People]
- Will Swizz Beatz be the one to revive Jennifer Lopez’s music career? [SOHH]
He may be obnoxious, but he is defintely loved. Kanye West’s 30th birthday party at the Louis Vuitton store (of course)* in NYC last night was star-studded. From Jay-Z to Mariah Carey to Fran Drescher (really, Kanye? The Nanny?), the celeb contingent showed love. Kanye, bedecked in an odd tuxedo/jean combo, loved the attention, if the pictures are any indication. Do we think that having officially been on this planet for 30 years, Kanye will finally learn the value of humility?
*as well as the other one he had at Tenjune
