Buju Banton Pleads Not Guilty to Drug Charges

Reggae star Buju Banton pleaded not guilty to drug charges on Thursday (Jan. 7) during his arraignment in Florida, following his arrest in December for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine.
The singer's lawyer, David Oscar Markus, has reportedly requested that Banton be transported back to Tampa, Florida where the indictment was filed. He also stated that they had no plans to strike a deal with the DEA, because Banton is innocent.
"We will be going to trial," Markus explained. "He did not commit the crimes he's charged with. He was not in any conspiracy."
Banton is currently being held in federal custody without bail. He did not seek bail during his arraignment.
"There should be a presumption of innocence. Instead there is a presumption of guilt in immigration," Markus explained.
The 36-year-old reggae singer (real name: Mark Anthony Myrie) was picked up by the DEA in December after he allegedly attempted to buy over five kilos of cocaine from an undercover officer in Sarasota, Florida.

KEYSHA SHOCKED OVER ENGAGEMENT

"Heaven Sent" singer Keyshia Cole was reportedly shocked when longtime boyfriend and pro NBA athlete Daniel Gibson proposed over New Year's.
"When he asked her to marry him, she was flabbergasted," a rep for Cole told US. "He presented her with the ring and her mouth dropped in amazement. It's too beautiful for words."
News of Cole's engagement broke Tuesday, January 5, after weeks of rumors surrounding a baby bump and ultimate confirmation that the Grammy nominee was indeed pregnant.
While Cole remains mum and "surprised" over the fact that she will likely walk down the aisle in the near future, her rep confirms she "has an incredible ring."

Blu 3 doing fine on MTV

Looks like Blu3's fading career is on the verge of coming back. Their song "Where You Are" in which they feature Radio and Weasel is moving up the charts on the popular MTV Base Charts.

Having been number 1 in East Africa and Uganda for close to two months, now it is the first Ugandan Video to ever appear on the MTV Base African Chart. It first entered the charts three weeks back, where it was at number 9 moved to number 6, 4 and now it is at number 2.

"It will be the first Ugandan song to reach number 1 in Africa, "a music expert predicted.

Bow Wow Apologizes for Driving Drunk on New Years

Don’t drink and tweet. Newly signed Young Money rapper Bow Wow made the gossip pages today for some questionable Twitter messages during his New Year’s night out on the town in Miami.

According to New York’s Daily News, the young rap vet took to his Twitter account early New Year’s morning to announce that he was driving drunk around Miami with Akon and Chris Brown.

“Face numb im whippin the lambo,” he wrote. “Tispy as fuck.” Adding, “Im fucked up!!! Ohhhh damn. Y i drive the lambo. Chris might have to drive after next spot.”

Bow Weezie has since erased the criminally threatening messages, posting an admission of guilt to his followers. “Apologize for that tweet,” he said. “it was stupid and immature. not a way i want to kick my #2010 year off. i got too much good stuff lined up. my bad.”

The Ohio-born rapper has not been hit with any charges.

ARTISTE SPOTLIGHT

She is one of the Kenyan top names in the music industry; she has pierced the hip-hop scene in Kenya and Norway like no other lady performer has done. STL has made heads turn and has continued to prove that her rapping skills are not a mistake but a good mix of talent and hard work.

Most music fans in Kenya relate to her song Taking it back released 2007 in which she featured song bird and rapper Michelle. This was her second release in East Africa after the song Happy in 2006.

STL born Stella Mwangi was born in Kenya but is based in Norway. Her family moved to Norway in 1991 where she started writing lyrics from the age of 8 and rapping when she was about 11years old. Towards the end of the 90’s STL in a group called Rise produced an album called Maroon and from there her journey to great heights started. With the group Rise, STL performed for Nelson Mandela when he toured Norway for an AIDS campaign.

The track Taking it back was a hit in East Africa that made her scoop the best promising artist of the year in the 2006 Kisima Awards .This was after missing five nominations in Chaguo La teeniz Awards .Since then she has managed to rake fans across East Africa where rap is not considered a ladies territory.

Stumping her "authority" further, STL was nominated for best new act in the MTV Mama Awards that were held in Kenya on October 2009.Although she did not walk home with the prize it sure was a good show for an artist who is fairly new to the music industry and in a genre that is not popular with the lady singers in East Africa .She was nominated alongside Nigerians M.I and Bigiano,Tanzanian Shaa and Rhythmic Element of south AfricaOn the African scene STL has managed to work with various artistes. The list includes Osman, Kubaff, Kantai,Wagable and Michelle. STL has shared stage with big names that tour Norway.

Her discography since the year 2004 includes songs like Happy(2006),Taking it Back(2007),Radio Tuning(2008),The dreamer(2008)She got it (2009) and Go Getta(2009).

Other songs include songs "Crazy", "Feeling Love" and "Swing", which she wrote with The DNC and were picked by the Position Music and Choice Tracks as a soundtrack for the films Save the last dance, American pie, Redline and the series; CSI (New York) , Las Vegas, Ghost whisperer, Scrubs, American Top Model and Army Wives.

To listen to an interview with STL, please visit

Rihanna beats Chris Brown

Though it wasn’t an official soundscan battle, Rihanna’s “Rated R” album has officially trumped Chris Brown’s “Graffiti” LPReleased two weeks ahead, Rihanna’s “Rated R” landed safely at the no. 4 slot on the Billboard 200 chart— selling an impressive 181,000 copies in its first seven days in stores. The album was supported with numerous appearances, several singles that included visuals and two album release shows held in London and New York City.
Chris’ “Graffiti” opus, which hit retailers the same day as Snoop Dogg’s “Malice N Wonderland,” Gucci Mane’s “The State Vs Radric Davis,” and The Clipse’s “Til The Casket Drops,” came in at no. 7 on Billboard 200 moving a solid 102,000 copies. Though breaking 100k is an impressive feat in today’s economy, Brown’s labeled shipped 400,000 copies of the project— indicating that only 40 percent of the albums were bought.
Earlier in the week, Chris complained that major retail outlets were blackballing his project by not stocking the set on their shelves. In response, a representative from Wal-Mart revealed that they in fact are carrying the CD, but it’s just not moving as expected.
"Not only am I carrying it, I am over carrying it, because it isn't selling," said the head of purchasing at one large chain. "I wish I could return it."

Young Buck Disses 50 Cent on New Track

Young Buck has finally crossed the line. While he’s addressed being ousted from G-Unit in songs before, “Steroidz,” a song released onto the internet this weekend, marks the first time Buck launches a full-fledged attack on his former boss, 50 Cent.In the song’s first verse, Buck alleges that Fif has been paying Hot 97 DJ Funkmaster Flex, implying some form of payola before touching on his recording contract.
“My contract’s f***ed up and yours is too/the next 10 years, you is Jimmy’s h*e, dude/you Eminem’s slave/belong to [Dr.] Dre/think if they tried to hold yo *ss back from getting paid,” he asks.
Buck also accuses 50 of taking steroids and having relations with XXL Magazine’s Editor-In-Chief to get the publication's front coverBuck and 50 had a falling out back in 2008. The Nashville rapper started drifting away from the camp when he mentioned making friends with Lil Wayne and Jadakiss— two rappers who were at feuding with 50 at the time. The conflict reached new heights when Fif released a conversation in which a crying Buck begged to come back to his crew.

50 Cent Looks Back on 'Get Rich Or Die Tryin''

With the close of the decade fastly approaching, there is no shortage of “best of” lists reviewing top achievements throughout the pop culture landscape. But when it comes to most noteworthy music of the ‘00’s, one album that has been showing up on just about everyone’s list is 50 Cent’s 2003 debut Get Rich Or Die Tryin’. The seminal release, which has to date sold over 12 million copies worldwide, transformed the troubled Curtis Jackson, a former Queens, New York drug dealer and local mixtape favorite, into one of the biggest musical acts on the planet.
Propelled by the hypnotic Dr. Dre-produced anthem “In da Club” and the backing of hip-hop’s paramount seller Eminem (50 was the first artist signed to Em’s Shady Records, which released the project jointly with Dre’s Aftermath Records), Get Rich represented more than just a commercial triumph. It was a cultural landmark that gave East Coast street rap a fresh platform, opening up a new world for the unlikely entertainment mogul.
Looking back on the album, 50 Cent has a more personal attachment to Get Rich or Die Tryin’.
“With Get Rich I had so much to prove on that album,” recalls the rapper who dropped his fourth studio album, Before I Self Destruct, in November. “Everything had to be perfect in my head. I wanted to make sure that everything I said captured my true feelings at that time. I just felt like it was God’s plan to be where I was at. My mind frame at that point was the music. Anything that would have come in my way at that point I would have removed it the best way I know how. The ‘hood teaches you to do it in a way that’s not sensible.”

One of the aspects that made critics take note of 50 Cent was his surprising vulnerability, a trait that you would not normally associate with a combative, controversial artist who has been involved in high profile verbal sparring with everyone from Ja Rule, Jadakiss, and Game to Kanye West, Rick Ross, and most recently, Jay-Z. But 50 insist he was just keeping it real.
“A lot of rappers don’t write about their fears or point out where they didn’t get the best of a situation,” he says. “So the first time I experimented with it was with songs like ‘Many Men.’ I’m telling folks that there is blood in my eyes and I can’t see. I’m hurt at that point. I’m vulnerable.”
Yet, after Get Rich, 50 Cent’s life would never be the same as his success spun off a multi-million dollar label (G-Unit Records); a successful G-Unit clothing line; a major film (2005’s Get Rich or Die Tryin’); and a stable of platinum acts (a crew that included Game, Lloyd Banks, and Young Buck). But even as the commercial muscle has dramatically declined for 50 Cent, the spitter insists that he is still the same hungry kid who made the music world take notice.
“That’s what people want from me…. to give them the real shit,” he says. “That’s a part of me. It’s necessary to have aggression to survive but that’s not all of me. There’s so much more.”

Rihanna Last Girl At The Bookstore, Inks Book Deal

From the stage to the bookstore, Rihanna is poised to make her literary debut in 2010.
Thanks to a deal with Rizzoli, Rihanna will release a book in June, slated to retail around $38.
While details surrounding the project, titled 'Rihanna: The Last Girl on Earth,' are limited, sources say the 144 page book will likely end up being a mixture of photographs and short words written by Rihanna and Simon Henwood.
News of Rihanna's forthcoming project with Rizzoli, follows the release of Kanye West's debut literary project, also released by Rizzoli, titled "Kanye West Glow In The Dark".

‘Avatar’ Tops Box Office For Third Weekend, Breaks $1 Billion Worldwide

James Cameron's science-fiction epic "Avatar" tops the weekend box office for the third weekend in a row, but also hit a huge mark when it pasted the $1 billion mark worldwide, only the fifth film ever to do it.
Over the weekend, "Avatar" raked in another $68.3 million, to bring its domestic total to $352.1 million, beating out all other films to make it the top movie.
The Cameron-directed 3D film opened two weekends earlier with $77-million. While that was definitely a strong start, it was far below dozens of other blockbusters that debuted as high as $158-million in their opening weekends. However, those films' numbers dipped heavily the weekends following. Not "Avatar" though, its continued strong for three weekends straight.
"It's like a runaway freight train. It just keeps doing business," Fox distribution executive Bert Livingston told the Associated Press. "Here's what's happening: I think everybody has to see 'Avatar' once. Even people who don't normally go to the movies, they've heard about it and are saying, ‘' have to see it.' Then there's those people seeing it multiple times."
"Avatar" was Cameron's first film since 1997's "Titanic," the biggest modern blockbuster with $1.8-billion worldwide.
The following list is the top 5 highest-earning movies of all-time, and "Avatar" is closing in on the #3 and #2 spots fast:
1 - "Titanic": $1.84 billion
2 - "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King": $1.12 billion
3 - "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest": $1.07 billion
4 - "Avatar": $1.02 billion
5 - "The Dark Knight": $1 billion
Finishing at #2 was Robert Downey Jr.'s crime caper, "Sherlock Holmes," bringing it $38.4 million; while third place was nabbed by "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel" with $36.6 million.
Those top three movies, as well as the #4 "It's Complicated" with $18.7 million, steered Hollywood to a big start to 2010 after a year of record revenue, of $10.6 billion domestically, surpassing the previous record of $9.7 billion in 2007, according to Hollywood.com.
Rounding out the top 5 was Sandra Bullock's "The Blind Side," a true life football drama about the Baltimore Ravens' tackle Michael Oher. It earned $12.6 million.
That wraps things up this weekend. Next weekend, look out for new releases such as the Ethan Hawke horror "Daybreakers," the romantic comedy "Leap Year," and "Youth in Revolt."
This weekend's top 10 is as follows:
1 - "Avatar," $68.3 million
2 - "Sherlock Holmes," $38.3 million
3 - "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel," $36.6 million
4 - "It's Complicated," $18.7 million
5 - "The Blind Side," $12.6 million
6 - "Up in the Air," $11.3 million
7 - "The Princess and the Frog," $10 million
8 - "Did You Hear About The Morgans?", $5.2 million
9 - "Nine," $4.2 million
10 - "Invictus," $4.1 million