Nelson is no longer a Bad Boy Records artist, I've confirmed with a source at the label. No further details were given.

Video Static reports that a video for "Letter to B.I.G." has been shot. The director is Va$tie and the production company is Triggerhappy. The Smoking Section has some behind the scenes photos.

Update: Just to be clear, this report isn't new, it's from January 19. A version of the video did leak online, but no official version has been released, as of yet.

There's a supposedly new T.I. track that was "leaked" in the last day or so called "Better Than This." Some websites are saying that this track was produced by Diddy. Adding credence to this claim is that, on the track, T.I. shouts out Diddy and/or Bad Boy several times.

Curious, I reached out to someone at the label and they told me that the track was not produced by Diddy, but by Richard "Younglord" Frierson, formerly one of The Hitmen. The track is also a "few years" old.

Speculation on my part, but listening to it closely, I get the feeling that this may have been a reference vocal. Or, at least the first verse and maybe the third. A reference vocal is when one artist performs the track, how it should flow, how words should be formed, etc. for another artist, as a suggestion of how the song should be structured.

The reason I say this is because of the Diddy/Bad Boy shout outs and the fact that T.I. raps, "why, 'cause their name ain't Diddy like this," on the first chorus. Thinking about it, a few years ago might place it around the time where Diddy was working on "Press Play." Frierson produced the lead single to the album, "Come to Me." We know that T.I. was working with Diddy on the album and recorded in the booth, thanks to a YouTube clip on the Bad Boy Records channel. While he did write on "Wanna Move," which was featured on the album, perhaps this was something that they worked on, as well.

Via Theo.

As we reported on Thursday, Diddy released a video where he talked about Lil' Kim's displeasure with her portrayal in "Notorious." In the video, he says:


The emphasis is mine. People are taking "Don't believe what you saw in the movie" as sort of condemnation of the movie's accuracy, but the line that follows it is a qualifying statement. With this sort of movie, some of it isn't going to be true. That's just the way it is - it is based, for the most part, on memories and, in some cases, second hand memories, stories that one person told another. And in those cases, they didn't even get the whole story. So, it's probably mostly true, but it's not all true.

And the same goes for Kim's part. Some of it, a lot of it... may be true, but it wasn't only what Kim was about - it wasn't the whole story of Lil' Kim because this wasn't a Lil' Kim movie, it was a Biggie movie. That's what was said in the video. MTV News' Jayson Rodriguez nails it, in his report, saying that "Puff and D-Roc agree that Kim's portrayal in the movie was incomplete." That's exactly what I take away from this.

Tom Patti, a glass artist based out of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, filed a lawsuit in US District Court in Springfield, Massachusetts on Wednesday, claiming that the plastic bottle mount that holds the Sean John Unforgivable fragrance bottle is in violation of his copyrighted work, a pair of glass sculptures that he produced in the 1980s.

This, according to Jonathan Saltzman of the Boston Globe, who notes the lawsuits defendants as Diddy and the supposed designers of the holder, James Gager and Johan Liden. Saltzman sought comment from all three, with Diddy's rep offering no comment and the designers being unreachable.


The article features a side by side comparison of the Unforgivable holder and one of the sculptures and, to be honest, I see where there is a similarity, but only in vague ways that would not imply any sort of infringement or, perhaps, even influence. You can't trademark "gray box with lines" and if I put the two boxes side by side, that is the only similarity I see. Check out Patti's work and now look at the Sean John bottle holder.

The Sean John cradle is different in that the lines themselves are noticeably different. They are also on all sides and the bottle does not have the bulge that appears in the Patti sculpture. The Sean John bottle also has a different level of translucence and is more open ended.

For a legally minded opinion, I spoke with Jonathan Bailey, a copyright and plagiarism consultant who authors PlagiarismToday, a blog aimed at discussing and analyzing news and issues related to plagiarism and copyright infringement. I co-host the Copyright 2.0 Show alongside Jonathan.

"Though I agree that there are some similarities between the two products. I feel that there are more than enough differences to distinguish them and the similarities most likely can not be copyrighted at all," he said. "I sympathize with the sculptor in that he feels his work was misused, but I think the law is against him on this one. Typically, on these types of derivative work cases, I tend to "bet" on it not being a derivative as the bar for these things is set pretty high and it's a hard measure to meet on the best of cases."

Here is the press release from the futon critic:

According to a bulletin from her MySpace, Janelle Monae will be performing in West Hollywood, CA on February 7 at Skybar at Mondrian. It's located at 8440 Sunset Boulevard. To RSVP or book a table, e-mail skybarla [at] morganshotelgroup [dot] com.

Dawn Richard has broken the silence on the Danity Kane situation, speaking to MTV News' Jocelyn Vena.

She revealed that all five girls were invited back to the new season of Making the Band 4, to see if something could be worked out. Of the five, only Dawn and Aundrea Fimbres showed.


In another portion of the interview, Dawn says that she wanted the original group. "Even if we weren't the best of friends, the business worked," she said. "That's how I felt." But, can a group have longevity if there is infighting?

"I thought we all came in this to be a part of it," she adds later. "Even with all the trials and tribulations, I thought the big common dream was - tunnel vision - was music. And I felt that maybe that's not everybody's heart. Like everybody else has maybe other goals and dreams that are maybe before that. And I'm OK with that, but I wish I would have known that because maybe I wouldn't have put everything into it."

Speaking of Diddy, Richard commented:


Dawn again denied rumors of a solo career, saying that she has just been writing. Though, she says, "... maybe there will be, if I stay true and keep hustling, because Puff only hangs with people who break their necks and bend over backwards for their craft. So, I don't even think he's on that tip, yet. He just wants to see how great I can be at what he tells me to be great at."

Dawn had similar messages in an interview with INSIDE BLACK HOLLYWOOD. Shannon recently taped an interview with PIX 11 TV in New York, but didn't mention that she hadn't attended Making the Band 4 filming. MTV News reports on that, as well.

MTV News has also posted several clips from Dawn's interview, online. You can check them out below:

» Read More

Fox Searchlight has released some clip montages from "Notorious." If you are like me, and you no theater like you is carrying "Notorious" (the closest one to me is 61 miles away), you'll enjoy these.

ABC News' Luchina Fisher reports on speculation that Joaquin Phoenix's reported foray into rap is a hoax. It cites an EW.com quote from an anonymous former co-worker who says that Phoenix told him this was so. Diddy was mentioned in the article, in this passage:

Human Nature Magazine has a politically centric feature on Diddy.

Check out the video below for a video blog from Diddy featuring D-Roc, a good friend of Biggie's who was recently released from prison.

Diddy speaks on Lil' Kim's displeasure with her portrayal in "Notorious." Basically, he says that there is more to Kim than what was shown in the movie.

"Don't believe what you saw in the movie," he said. "It wasn't just about that. She was with us. That was our queen, she'll always be the queen. She got every right to feel that way."

Toward the end of the video, Diddy and D-Roc riff on people who are making things up, without elaborating. "Let me tell you something," D-Roc said, gesturing toward Diddy. "This man right here don't owe nobody nothing."

"I owe my fans everything, man," Diddy added. "I love y'all, I appreciate y'all."

"That's right," D-Roc agreed. "That's the only people he owe."


I think this ranks as one of my favorite Diddy blogs. Good to see.

Here are Bad Boy's positions on the most recent Billboard U.S. album and single charts, released today. "Notorious" and Biggie remain heavy on the charts while "Lost" continues it's slow, but steady growth.

Albums

The Billboard 200

9. "Notorious: Music From and Inspired by The Original Motion Picture" by Various Artists (down from 4).

Billboard Comprehensive Albums

9. "Notorious: Music From and Inspired by The Original Motion Picture" by Various Artists (down from 4).
125. "Ready to Die" by The Notorious B.I.G. (up from 130).
150. "Life After Death" by The Notorious B.I.G. (up from 151).
154. "Greatest Hits" by The Notorious B.I.G. (down from 127).

Top Pop Catalog

14. "Ready to Die" by The Notorious B.I.G. (up from 17).
22. "Life After Death" by The Notorious B.I.G. (a new high, up from 24).
24. "Greatest Hits" by The Notorious B.I.G. (down from 16).

Top Digital Albums

13. "Notorious: Music From and Inspired by The Original Motion Picture" by Various Artists (down from 2).

» Read More

According to his MySpace, Ness will be performing in Hyannis, MA on February 6 and Upper Darby, PA on February 7.

In Hyannis, he'll be performing at Pufferbellies, located at 183 Iyannough Road, Route 28. The show starts at 9:30 PM. It costs $20 and you have to be 18 or older. In Upper Darby, he'll be at Lounge 69 at 7049 Terminal Square. It's $15 (or more at the door). No show time or age requirement is mentioned. For more info, please see the fliers.

rolling out has features with Gorilla Zoe and Russell "Block" Spencer, briefly discussing President Obama and the Inauguration.

The video below shows Diddy working on a track in the studio. It sounds like the vocals on the track he's working on feature Dawn Richard of Danity Kane.

Following up on a previous report, the premiere for StarMaker, Diddy's newest reality show on MTV, has been pushed back to sometime in February, from it's original January 26 date, according to an official at the label.

StarMaker will not be premiering on January 26, as had been reported previously. This is according to MTV's schedule. It is unclear, at this time, if the show has been pushed back, put on hiatus or something else.

I just wanted to mention that the free music that is being offered when you pre-order "Dancing With the Devil" (read more about the book) from the book's website contains two tracks that Curry says were produced by Mario Winans. They are "Shysty" and "Lay Your Troubles Down."

"I'm a Lover," a new track from Cassie, is now in our audio player. Please let me know what you think about it, in the comments.

Update: In the comments, Laurel pointed out that the track playing as "I'm a Lover," was "Me & U." My apologies for this. It has now been corrected. Thanks, Laurel.

Our audio player has a new track from Elephant Man: "Balance Pon It."

Jon Caramanica of The Scotsman has a nice feature on "Notorious."

At the start of February, former Bad Boy rapper Mark Curry will release his tell all book, "Dancing With the Devil." From the book's site:


The full title is "Dancing With the Devil: How Puff Burned the Bad Boys of Hiphop." I've heard whisperings of this before, but never anything I could actually report on. Now that there is something concrete, I have to mention it, even though there is a serious lack of credibility concerning this book. Let's start with the cover:


The shadow with horns is a nice touch, as is the ball and chain. Seriously? This cover is incredibly tacky and, to me, looks like the type of material that you'd see from a tabloid or a shock jock. You can't judge a book by it's cover... except when you can.

Most people will see this book and won't know who Mark Curry is and maybe that's the point. Here's a formula that has been repeated many times over: 1. Sign to a record label with a highly visible CEO. 2. Become unhappy. 3. Leave. 4. Say bad things about aforementioned visible CEO. 5. People WILL write about you and you WILL get attention. Or, hey, just skip all five steps, pass go, collect $200 and just say something bad about Diddy's business practices - it's the cool thing to do, like peeing your pants! ("Billy Madison" reference, for those that haven't seen that movie). So, if that's the aim, the idea is that people will give him attention through the project. Like I'm doing here. It bugs me that I am participating in it, but I have to because I wouldn't be doing my job, otherwise, and maybe that is what Curry is banking on.

The only reason pretty much anyone knows who Mark Curry is... is because of Diddy. The only reason Mark Curry has any experiences to write a book about is... because of Diddy. The only reason anyone will buy this book is... because of Diddy. Really, Diddy is featured more on his own website than he is. A story like Curry's, one of not releasing an album, not achieving any solo success, is not unique. It's the norm. Most artists who sign to labels do not achieve solo success. That's just the way it is.

But, what strikes me the most is Curry's bio, which features a grossly exaggerated statement of the role Curry had in Diddy's success, going so far as complete untruth. It says, "He wrote most of Diddy’s first hit singles... He wrote many of the hits that made Sean “Puffy” Combs one of the richest men alive." No way. Unless Curry is going to claim that he didn't receive proper credit on some songs, these statements are both tremendously inaccurate. I've reviewed the liner notes for all 5 of Diddy's albums. Here are the songs that Curry is credited on as a co-writer (not the only writer, but as a co-writer):

» Read More

MTV News' Jayson Rodriguez reports on the welcome home party thrown at Imperial in New York City on Thursday night. Diddy was in the house, along with Swizz Beats, members of the Junior M.A.F.I.A. and more. Good to see.

On a related note, D-Roc's production company, RocDarling Films, has a new Biggie documentary coming out on January 27 called "Biggie Smalls: Rap Phenomenon.". You can find out a little more on the film's website. You can pre-order it on Amazon.com.

As a follow up to the excerpt they released earlier this month, you can now read XXLmag.com's full interview with Black Rob. In it, B.R. explains how he is still loyal to Bad Boy and cool with Diddy, though he is unsure of his situation. Once he gets out, he says he'll figure out what is going on at Bad Boy, but either way, he plans to get back to recording.

Rob has issues to work out, though. In the interview, he admits to being addicted to the adrenaline caused by "robbing people, or getting on the mic doing it or fighting somebody," calling it "better than any drug I ever had." Very scary. Damaging to his career, but more importantly, to his freedom. The interview closes with:


The problem is, it's hard to believe him at this point. Don't get me wrong, I like Rob a lot, as an artist and I like how he handled himself in this interview, but can you really invest money behind him into a new project? If Bad Boy does it, I'll be right in line to buy the album, but if they don't... you can't blame them. It's sad, but Rob is kind of ill right now. I hope he gets better and gets back on track.

Via Benjamin Chesna.

More drama...

Our audio player features two new songs from Elephant Man, "God Bless" and "Wine Up Pon Mi." "God Bless" uses the instrumental from Kanye West's current hit, "Heartless," with Elephant Man mirroring West's sound in parts.

The purported The Lox diss can now be heard in our audio player. Again, I dig the track, but anyone suggesting it's aimed at The Lox is just speculating. In any case, I am trying to see if I can find out anything else about the track.

As you may recall, Yung Joc was featured on the album version of Bobby Valentino's "Beep." The song has now been given the remix treatment, with Ludacris, Lil' Wayne and Lil' Kim added to the track (although there is also a version without Luda, too). Listen at DJbooth.net.

At the start of this month, I reported that Yung Joc had joined T-Pain for the remix to Jamie Foxx's "Blame It." There is now an "Extended Remix" and, in addition to Joc and Pain, it features N.O.R.E., Busta Rhymes, Freeway and Lil' Wayne.

According to a message from her Twitter profile, Jordan McCoy's next single will be "I Decide." This is a cover of a Lindsay Lohan song of the same title, released in August of 2004 on the soundtrack for "The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement". It was written and executive produced by Diane Warren and produced by Peter Stengaard for Studio D Productions.

Via BBB reader Adam at idolforums.com, who doesn't really like the single choice and, as such, is no longer a professional Jordan McCoy fan. Kidding! :)

Joey Guerra of the Houston Chronicle has an interview with Jamal Woolard (whose stage name, as a rapper, is Gravy), focused mostly on "Notorious." But, he also slips this in:


The man plays Biggie and now has Diddy on his album? I could see that as being both really cool and eerie.

In addition to the album details revealed in his new bio, a review of Gorilla Zoe's "Don't Feed Da Animals" in XXL Magazine provides us with some additional information. It mentions:

"Talk Back" featuring Roxy Reynolds
"I Got It" (produced by Drumma Boy)
"Helluva Life"
"Hood Clap"

Add this with what we already know:

"Man I"
"Money I Spend" (produced by The Runners)
"Lost"
"Dope Boy"

And you are likely seeing a majority of the final track listing. I would also think that it would be likely that "Waddle" and "On The Corner" would make the album. Speculation on my part, but other potential tracks would include "I'm Dumb" and the remix to "Lost."

Head over to DJbooth.net for a new remix of "Lost" featuring Jim Jones. There are some slight differences (like the audio track dropping at the end of Wayne's verse), but it's basically the same track as the already released remix that had just Wayne (listen), but with a heavily distorted Jim Jones. Gorilla Zoe has the opening verse, Jones takes the second spot and then Wayne's verse is moved to third, replacing Zoe's original third verse.

Jawn Murray of Black Voices reports that Mario Winans, and his longtime girlfriend Joy, wed on January 10 in New Jersey. Congratulations to the two of them.

Edwin Ortiz of HipHopDX relays a story told to him by Michael Keith, formerly of 112. Keith described how Biggie used his clout (at the time) to ensure that the group got to perform the entire length of their show at an event, when the promoter was aiming to cut it short.

Check out the promotion video below, for the National CARES Mentoring Movement. Diddy appears in the clip, at the :20, :25 and :42 second marks.


Via The Celebrity Truth.

MTV News' Jayson Rodriguez also has a quick quote from Diddy, who was interviewed (jokingly) by Jay-Z, who was doing some reporting for the HOT 97 radio station, based out of New York City.

Usmagazine.com reports that Diddy is featured, among with many others, in a video pledging service to President Obama. The video was put together by Katalyst Media, which was founded by Ashton Kutcher, a friend of Diddy's. Watch it below. Diddy appears at 2:30, 3:43 and 4:01.


The video is in promotion of usaservice.org, a website aimed at encourages citizens to participate in community service initiatives.

Via Jocelyn Vena.

Here are Bad Boy's positions on the most recent Billboard U.S. album and single charts, released yesterday. Biggie is all over the place this week, thanks to the release of "Notorious." Congratulations to everyone involved. Meanwhile, Gorilla Zoe's "Lost" continues to gain ground, moving to 89 on the Hot 100.

Albums

The Billboard 200

4. "Notorious: Music From and Inspired by The Original Motion Picture" by Various Artists ("Hot Shot Debut").

Billboard Comprehensive Albums

4. "Notorious: Music From and Inspired by The Original Motion Picture" by Various Artists ("Hot Shot Debut").
127. "Greatest Hits" by The Notorious B.I.G. (re-entry).
130. "Ready to Die" by The Notorious B.I.G. (re-entry).
151. "Life After Death" by The Notorious B.I.G. (re-entry).

Top Pop Catalog

16. "Greatest Hits" by The Notorious B.I.G. ("Hot Shot Debut").
17. "Ready to Die" by The Notorious B.I.G. (re-entry).
24. "Life After Death" by The Notorious B.I.G. (re-entry, a new high).

Top Digital Albums

2. "Notorious: Music From and Inspired by The Original Motion Picture" by Various Artists (debut).

Top Soundtracks

1. "Notorious: Music From and Inspired by The Original Motion Picture" by Various Artists (debut).

» Read More

Bad Boy has released a new bio for Gorilla Zoe, in anticipation of his album being released in March. In it, the album is referred to as "Don't Feed Da Animals," rather than "Don't Feed the Animals," so I guess that's the title. It also mentions "Man I" and "Money I Spend," as tracks that will be featured. "Money I Spend" was produced by The Runners. Here is the full bio:

» Read More

Bad Boy has announced that "Notorious: Music From and Inspired by The Original Motion Picture," will enter The Billboard 200 at #4, selling 43,000 copies in it's first week. From the press release:

From a press release issued yesterday by Bad Boy:

Continuing the "Remembering Biggie" promotional web video series for "Notorious" and the soundtrack to the film, new videos featuring Juelz Santana, Lamar Odom and Un Kasa have been released.

Juelz Santana


Lamar Odom


Un Kasa

Rapping over the instrumental from Jadakiss' "Letter to B.I.G.," Lil' Cease has written his own letter. You can listen to it at XXLmag.com. Instead of Faith Evans, it features a male voice singing, but it is unclear who this is. At the end of the track, Cease says that Busta Rhymes inspired him to do the track, which features an overall positive message. I don't like it as much as Jadakiss', but it's still enjoyable.

Via BBB reader Theo.

BBB reader Theo mentioned that some websites have been posting an old Diddy track called "F*** Y'all N*****" as a "new" leak and saying that it was supposedly a diss aimed at The Lox, it was produced by Kanye West and written by Shyne. This is all kind of funny to me and it is also news to me.

This is not a new "leak." This track was leaked years ago, on a mixtape and quite possibly elsewhere before that. I first heard it years ago. I like it, it's a cool track. Aimed at The Lox? Eh... not that I would say. Nothing specifically is said to them, so you can only guess. He does mention them in the song, but it is in the context of other people talking about him, where he says:


Produced by Kanye West? Written by Shyne? I can only wonder: where did this come from? I'm interested to know the source of this information because this has never been said before, to my knowledge, so I'd like to know who leaked an already leaked track and then claimed this. Right now, I regard this all as untrue rumor. I e-mailed someone at Bad Boy to see what they could find out and I'll report back if there is anything to say.

As an aside, Clinton Sparks took the verses from this track in order to release "Run This City," from his first album, "Maybe You Been Brainwashed." But, the verses came from "F*** Y'all N*****," and not the other way around.

Via Theo.

I'm sure this was rather obvious at this point, but just in case anyone was looking out for it, there will be no Janelle Monae album released on Tuesday, January 20. It is unclear what the release date of her full length LP album will be, at this point. As always, we'll stay on top of it and will report when we hear something.

Our audio player has a new track from Elephant Man, "Swagga (Show Dem)."

Adam Tschorn of the Los Angeles Times has a fragrance and fashion centric interview with Diddy.

News24 reports that Diddy will join Whitney Houston and Jazmine Sullivan on the slate for Clive Davis' pre-Grammy party at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on February 7.

Joy Sewing of The Houston Chronicle has a great interview with Derek Luke. Probably the best part isn't in the text version, but in the extra audio clips featured on the lower left hand of the site.

In one, Luke shares what Diddy told him about the Bad Boy company name and how it came about. "It was inspired by this vision he had about these school children in New York, crossing the street," Luke said. "It was one little kid pointing his finger and looking at something totally different, start going opposite of where the other kids were going. They called him a "bad boy" and he says, that's where I got the vision for Bad Boy 'cause it was the kid, he was a bad boy, but he was really pointing somewhere else 'cause he was trying to go against the grain." In the very next clip, he also has an interesting story about Diddy having to leave the set because of the film hitting him a little too hard.

As reported at the top of the year, Lil' Kim is not happy with how she is portrayed in the new "Notorious" movie, despite the fact that she hadn't seen the film before making the remarks. The screenplay for the movie was co-written by Cheo Hodari Coker and Reggie Rock Bythewood. Now, speaking to MTV News, the two writers have come out in defense of the film, including a possible explanation.\

On his blog, mix engineer Ken Lewis shares some Marina Chello album details. Lewis says that he has been hired to mix her entire album.

At this stage, they have mixed four songs. Lewis identifies her first two singles as "What's Done is Done" and "Sideline." Although he is not certain, Lewis believes that the former was produced by Mario Winans and Harve Pierre and was written by Adam Messenger and Naseri. He also says that she has a "few songs" produced by Surefire Music Group.

MTV News has a video feature, really a series of videos, highlighting some of the trademarks of The Notorious B.I.G. - things and places that are often or, at least, sometimes tied to him. Shaheem Reid, Lil' Cease, Jamal Woolard, Voletta Wallace and Diddy all participate. Unfortunately, two of the videos (The Country House and The Rolex Watch) do not work. Here are the rest:

Intro


The Jesus Piece


The Religious Tattoo

» Read More

From MTV News' Shaheem Reid:

Borys Kit of The Hollywood Reporter reports that retired actor Joaquin Phoenix has decided that he'd like to try his hand as a rap album. More interesting is that they say that the album will be produced by Diddy. Casey Affleck, a friend of Phoenix, will record his transition for a documentary.

Via Rolling Stone.

As can be expected with the release of "Notorious,", there are a lot of cast and crew interviews that are now being released. Here are some of the ones that have caught my eye.

CinemeBlend.com interviews Anthony Mackie, Derek Luke and Voletta Wallace; Examiner.com has interviews with Derek Luke, Anthony Mackie, Antonique Smith and Naturi Naughton and Angela Bassett and Voletta Wallace; BallerStatus.com interviews George Tillman, Jr. and Jamal Woolard; SOHH.com interviews Naturi Naughton; and TheaterMania.com interviews Antonique Smith.

Steven Roberts of MTV News highlights the fact that the first MTV News of Barack Obama ever conducted was done by none other than Diddy. See a clip from the interview below.

Gorilla Zoe's MySpace has scans from the rapper's feature in The Bristol Observer.

Glenn Gamboa of Newsday, Matt Pais of Metromix Los Angeles and Roger Moore of the Oshkosh Northwestern have reviews of "Notorious." Overall, positive.

Ryan Seals of the Greensboro News Record reports that gunshots were fired at Grand 18 Four Seasons Station Theatre in Greensboro, NC, before a showing of "Notorious." A man was shot in the abdomen and 700 people are estimated to have been evacuated. The weird thing is that Jamal Woolard, who plays The Notorious B.I.G. in the film, was in attendance. Future showings of the film have been suspended "indefinitely."

Via BBB reader Brandan via /Film.

The day is finally here. We've covered it every step of the away and today, "Notorious" finally makes it's theatrical debut. I can't wait to see it (though I may have to for a while!) But, once you've seen it, please come back to this entry and let us know what you thought! Either way, a big congratulations to everyone involved in the project.

I thought that I would pass along this article that Ciroc released today, written by Jeffrey Best of Best Events. He provides 10 tips for entertaining guests at your home.

» Read More

Here are Bad Boy's positions on the most recent Billboard U.S. album and single charts, released today. It's a good week for Bad Boy as "Notorious" brings Biggie back and "Lost" finally breaks into the big chart, the Hot 100.

Albums

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Catalog Albums

3. "Ready to Die" by The Notorious B.I.G. (up from 13).
8. "Greatest Hits" by The Notorious B.I.G. (a new high, up from 20).
10. "Life After Death" by The Notorious B.I.G. (re-entry).

Songs

The Billboard Hot 100

93. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (debut).

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs

37. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (up from 39).

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay

37. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (up from 39).

Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles

25. "Letter to B.I.G." by Jadakiss (unchanged).

Hot Rap Tracks

10. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (a new high, up from 11).

Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop

24. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (up from 25).

Rhythmic Top 40

29. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (up from 31).

Following up on parts 1 and 2, Diddy released the final two videos of the set of four released last night on DiddyTV. In the third, he talks about Biggie and 2Pac's relationship and in the fourth, he campaigns for "Notorious" to receive consideration for the major awards that are given to films. The final video says that part 5 is coming soon.

As we reported earlier this evening, Diddy released parts 1 and 2 of a 4 part series on DiddyTV this evening, discussing Biggie's passing and how it affected it and how Biggie wasn't supposed to be in Los Angeles on the night he was killed, sharing a telephone conversation that the two shared. It's very deep, very interesting stuff. In some ways, it's tough to watch.


As an aside, in the second video, Diddy mentions how this could be "probably be in [his] book." It's unclear if there is a book upcoming. Personally, I think he was just speaking freely in a "that might happen some day" sort of fashion, rather than as any sort of definite project. Still, you never know.

According to a source at the label, beginning at 8 PM ET tonight, DiddyTV will be posting video blogs from Diddy where he will discuss what happened in Los Angeles, 2Pac, Biggie's passing and more. Diddy has never really gone into great deal on these things, so it will be very interesting to watch. Four videos will be posted in all, throughout the night.

In honor of the release of "Notorious," Jordan McCoy covered the Biggie tribute "I'll Be Missing You."

Here is the production information for the new tracks included on the "Notorious" soundtrack, as well as the executive producer credits.

Executive Producers: Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, Voletta Wallace, Mark Pitts and The Notorious B.I.G.
Co-Executive Producers: Harve "Joe Hooker" Pierre, Faith Evans and Wayne Barrow.

"Brooklyn Go Hard"
Produced by Kanye West. Co-Produced by Plain Pat.

"Letter to B.I.G."
Produced by Needlz for Dry Rain Ent./Grindstone, Inc.

"One More Chance/The Legacy Remix"
Produced by Sean "Puffy" Combs for Bad Boy Entertainment, Inc. and Rashad Smith for Tumblin' Dice Productions, Inc.

"The Notorious Theme"
Composed by Danny Elfman.

"Microphone Murderer"
Produced by The Hitman DJ 50 Gran for OGB Productions. Associate Producer: DJ Mr. Cee.

"Guaranteed Raw"
Produced by The Hitman DJ 50 Gran for OGB Productions. Associate Producer: DJ Mr. Cee.

"Love No Ho"
Produced by The Hitman DJ 50 Gran for OGB Productions. Associate Producer: DJ Mr. Cee.

In the iTunes store, if you click "Music" on the left menu and then "Celebrity Playlists" in "MORE in Music," you'll be able to select "The Cast From Notorious." On this page, you can see playlists provided by Derek Luke (who plays Diddy), Jamal Woolard (Biggie), Anthony Mackie (2Pac), Naturi Naughton (Lil' Kim), Antonique Smith (Faith Evans) and C.J. Wallace (young Biggie).

This video begins the "Diddy Biggie Blog" series on the NotoriousTV YouTube channel. It's unclear how long this series will last, but it is seemingly tied to the promotion of the film. Personally, I thought this was one of the more interesting video blogs that Diddy has done. Just the personal sentiment and, really, it's easy to emphasize with someone who is watching a tragedy like this, one that they were involved in, play out. I think that this is a film that will evoke a lot of sadness and no sadness will be greater than the sadness had by those who were close to him.

The soundtrack to "Notorious," the Biggie biopic due out this Friday, has been released on Bad Boy Records today. This album marks the second soundtrack that Bad Boy has released, following 2003's "Bad Boys II: The Soundtrack." Besides the standard retail version of the album, there is also a DVD exclusive at Target stores and a bonus iTunes version with music videos.

In addition to music from previously release Biggie albums, the soundtrack also features new music from Jay-Z (the lead single, "Brooklyn Go Hard," featuring Santogold) and Jadakiss ("Letter to B.I.G." featuring Faith Evans) and a remixed version of the Biggie classic, "One More Chance/Stay With Me (Remix)" that features Biggie's son, C.J., rapping alongside his father. Perhaps, though, the coolest thing about the release is the inclusion of Biggie's three track demo tape, with rough cuts titled "Microphone Murderer," "Guaranteed Raw" and "Love No Ho." You can listen to all of these tracks in our audio player.

Buy it on Amazon.com.

Here is the album's cover and track listing:



1. "Notorious Thugs" featuring Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
2. "Hypnotize"
3. "Notorious" featuring Lil' Kim and Diddy
4. "Juicy"
5. "Party & Bulls***"
6. "Warning"
7. "One More Chance/Stay With Me (Remix)" featuring Faith Evans
8. "Brooklyn Go Hard" by Jay-Z featuring Santogold
9. "Letter to B.I.G." by Jadakiss featuring Faith Evans
10. "Kick in the Door"
11. "What's Beef"
12. "The World Is Filled" featuring Diddy and Too Short
13. "One More Chance/The Legacy (Remix)" featuring C.J. Wallace and Faith Evams
14. "The Notorious Theme" composed by Danny Elfman
15. "Microphone Murderer"
16. "Guaranteed Raw"
17. "Love No Ho"

Jordan McCoy's debut EP album is available today. It's a digital only release, so there isn't a physical CD copy available. You'll only find it at online music sellers, like iTunes, Amazon.com and others. Here is the cover and track listing for the album:


1. "Next Ex Boyfriend"
2. "I Decide"
3. "Just Watch Me"
4. "I Get Weak"
5. "Rock N Roll Girl"

Related: video promos and song credits.

Elizabeth Dinh of WFTS-TV has the details on Diddy's three night Super Bowl party experience in Tampa, running from January 29 through 31.

In addition to a normal version with a digital booklet, iTunes will be selling a bonus music videos version, which will include the videos for "Hold Ya Head," "Mo Money Mo Problems," "Nasty Girl," "One More Chance" and "Spit Your Game." This version will go for $13.99, versus the normal version rate of $9.99.

For those into movie scores, you can listen to a sample of "The Notorious Theme" by Danny Elfman at Amazon.com. The full version will be included on the film's soundtrack.

Jawn Murray of Black Voices has an interview with Derek Luke on his role as Diddy in "Notorious."

The Associated Press reports that Diddy will be a presenter at the 66th annual Golden Globe Awards. They will air live tonight, January 11, at 8 PM ET on NBC.

Cool clip. Check out the accompanying article on MTV, as well.

This is pretty cool to watch. Definitely check it out. In the clip, Biggie clowns a bit on Red Hot Lover Tone and Lord Finesse. Warning: explicit content.

Hunter Pecunia revealed on her MySpace that she has decided to leave Dream. She did not provide any further information.

Meanwhile, Jordan McCoy's MySpace introduced a new member: Imaj. She joins McCoy, Danielle Keaton and Lindsay Taylor.

XXLmag.com spoke with Black Rob from prison, asking him about his present situation with Bad Boy.

"I haven’t heard from these dudes," he told them. "They might’ve took me off the Bad Boy website or whatever but I haven’t heard from anyone telling me what the deal is. So until I get a piece of paper saying that I’m no longer a Bad Boy artist, I’m still reppin’ that flag. I’m a team player man."

Rob believes that he is approximately 90 days from release, but the XXLmag.com's Elan Mancini is careful to note that he has no official release date as of now.

Via Baller Status.

Here are Bad Boy's positions on the most recent Billboard U.S. album and single charts, released last Thursday. "Lost" loses a bit, but Biggie is welcomed back to the charts and "Letter to B.I.G." shows up in one, too.

Albums

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Catalog Albums

13. "Ready to Die" by The Notorious B.I.G. (re-entry).
20. "Greatest Hits" by The Notorious B.I.G. (debut).

Songs

Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles

2. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (down from 1).

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs

39. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (down from 37).
100. "Brooklyn Go Hard" by Jay-Z (down from 90)

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay

39. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (down from 37).

Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles

25. "Letter to B.I.G." by Jadakiss (debut).

Hot Rap Tracks

11. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (unchanged).
24. "Brooklyn Go Hard" by Jay-Z (down from 20)

Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop

25. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (down from 24).

Rhythmic Top 40

31. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (down from 28).

On their website, Best Buy has posted a track listing for "Energy God: The Very of Best Elephant Man." They refer to it as "Energy...The Very of Best Elephant Man," however. Here is the track listing:

The nominees for The 40th NAACP Image Awards have been announced and "A Raisin in the Sun" picked up 7 nominations in 4 categories. They are as follows:


Congratulations to everyone involved.

Essence's Charreah Jackson has an interview with Voletta Wallace, relating to the theatrical release of "Notorious."


Via A+E Interactive.

Marina Chello's MySpace has a pair of new tracks from the singer. They are "Sideline" and "What's Done is Done."

Elephant Man's MySpace audio player has an audio promotion for "Energy God: The Very Best of Elephant Man."

Biggie's MySpace blog shares some upcoming screening dates for "Notorious." Here they are:

MTV News' Jayson Rodriguez reports from the after party for the premiere of "Notorious."

Over on the Black Judah MySpace, you can listen to "Say Yeah," featuring Elephant Man. United Reggae reports that Elephant Man will appear on the "Roots World Order," the upcoming album from Black Judah, on the Teflonblood label. It's unlcear if "Say Yeah" is the appearance.

Janelle Monae will be performing in the Hip Hop 101: Music and Arts Festival in Los Angeles on February 21. You can get tickets on their website.

Via AHN.

MTV News spoke with Aubrey O'Day about potential future involvement in "Making the Band." Here's a clip from the interview:

Check out MTV's report from the "Notorious" premiere. A lot of people came out in support and video clips from the red carpet are included. They also have a photo gallery.

MTV Newsroom's Shaheem Reid reports on Voletta and C.J. Wallace's opening of the NASDAQ stock exchange on Thursday (pictures are included).

Access Hollywood talked with Derek Luke, about his work on "Notorious."

The Notorious B.I.G.'s MySpace has scans from a great "Notorious" feature in the February issue of Vibe Magazine. Well worth reading.

Last week, reports of a magazine interview indicated that Lil' Kim was unhappy with her portrayal in the "Notorious" movie." Faith Evans has responded, to MTV News.

You can listen to the entire soundtrack to "Notorious" on Biggie's MySpace, with the exception of Danny Elfman's "The Notorious Theme."

Target stores will feature an exclusive version of the "Notorious" soundtrack, due out January 13. It will include a documentary DVD titled "Remembering Christopher Wallace," which will have never before seen, private interviews with Voletta Wallace, Biggie's mom, as well as his kids, T'Yanna and C.J. For more, check out the press release below.

» Read More

Diddy's Twitter revealed that he will be appearing on BET's 106 & Park today at 6 PM ET. Most likely, it has to do with "Notorious."

Jordan McCoy had Imaj as a guest on for her most recently acoustic cover, Taylor Swift's "Breathe."

Check out "Hood Rich" by Gorilla Zoe on his MySpace. It bears some similarities to "Hood Figga." Let me know what you think of it.

Bad Boy Blog reader Stephanie pointed me to the video interview below, where Aubrey O'Day says, "I'm working on my solo album right now. But, we don't know what's really gonna happen with the future of Danity Kane and Making the Band, so that's kind of still up in the air and, you know, while that's in the works, I'm definitely working on my solo album."


I don't know that I read much into this, but I thought that it was worth mentioning. With reality TV, you never know, but I would expect her to be out of the group because, personally, I don't feel that everything that happened on the last season of Making the Band was contrived for TV. But, we'll see.

Jamal Woolard (who plays The Notorious B.I.G.) and Antonique Smith (who plays Faith Evans) spoke with SOHH.com about getting into character for their roles in "Notorious," which will be in theaters on January 16.

Updating a report earlier today, I have confirmed that the release date for Day26's sophomore album is March 31, according to a source with knowledge of the schedule.

Our audio player has a new track from Day26, titled "So Good." What do you think of it? Please let me know in the comments.

In a bulletin sent from his MySpace, Willie of Day26 revealed that the next Day26 album is slated for a March 31 release. As far as I know, this is the first time that a specific day has been mentioned. I've reached out to the label for confirmation.

Shaheem Reid and Jayson Rodriguez of MTV has a neat feature where they asked a number of DJs what tracks they would put on a Biggie dream mixtape, in honor of the upcoming release of "Notorious."

Reid also went on a tour of Brooklyn with Lil' Cease and Jamal Woolard, who plays Biggie in the film. Check out some clips from the tour below.

From The Jamaica Observer's interview with Shaggy:

Newsweek's Allison Samuels has a review of "Notorious."

Leighton Levy of the Jamaica Gleaner reports from Saturday's Shaggy charity concert in Jamaica. Sounds like it went well.

The Providence Journal has an interview with Graehme Field, who won an internship at Sean John.

From the press release:

Here's a promo video for Jordan McCoy's upcoming EP release:


As a bonus, here's one created by BBB reader Adam (tikiadam on YouTube), endorsed by Jordan:

Wow, check this out for a serious blast from the past. I've never seen this before. It's a EPK (electronic press kit) for Mase's debut album, "Harlem World."

Our audio player has Yung Joc's latest: "Ooh Yeah" featuring Slim (of 112) and Hot Stylz.

Black Star News has an interview with Edwin Freeman, who plays Mister Cee in "Notorious."

Danity Kane's Dawn Richard is featured on the cover of the latest issue of Amour Creole. There are some pictures posted on the homepage of their website, as well.

Dawn Richard's MySpace has a new track: "Falls Away."

Yesterday, the New York Post's Page Six (gossip section) reported quoted an "insider" as follows:


Diddy's publicist, Keesha Johnson, was quick to dismiss these reports to E! Online, saying:


Diddy has a brief comment in the article, as well.

Update: The video has now been deleted. Probably for the best.

Bleh, this just leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Let me explain why.

Some people are going to take this as some sort of shot at Diddy or Bad Boy. Maybe it is. Honestly, I'm not sure how to take it, other than to say that they shouldn't have done it.

When I interviewed Day26 last year, some of Que's comments rubbed me the wrong way because his sense of entitlement was a little misplaced. Sense of entitlement is an ugly thing, but when you are a member of a group that has just released it's first album, it's even worse. I get the same feeling here. Just because you would love to be on one of the video show countdowns doesn't mean you will be or should be and doesn't mean that it is anyone's "fault" but your own. There are a lot of artists out there that would love to be.

He says he'd like to meet the President (I'm going to assume he means President-Elect Obama), which would be one of the parts people will feel is directed at Diddy, who campaigned for Obama a bit. Lots of people would like to meet President-Elect Obama. Diddy has done some things with the President because he's Diddy, CEO of Bad Boy and Sean John, multi-platinum selling artist, award winner, actor, designer and so on. Que is a member of Day26, a group that has released one album. Let's not get it twisted here. I like Day26, I'm a fan of Day26. But, just because I'm a fan of Day26 doesn't mean I think they deserve the same level of attention as a megastar. Even if you believe that he's aiming that at Diddy, you also have to realize that Que is one year into this game. Diddy is about 20.

Unless you are Jay-Z, Diddy, Beyonce, etc. you generally have some downtime between albums and that is what they are at right now. It's already been reported that Day26's second album is in the works. On the MySpace of Hen Roc, Bad Boy's National Director of Mixshow/Club Promotions, a third Danity Kane album is listed as coming soon. What is likely is that the next season of Making the Band will see clarity on the Danity Kane group situation, we'll have a new lineup and new albums from Day26 and Danity Kane, and everyone will be happy again. People can get bored during breaks and boredom can lead to idle chatter like this video.

In summation: try not to read too much into this. Take a deep breath, laugh and move on. My hope is that they are joking. Otherwise, this is all very, very tacky and in poor taste. If they are serious about having to shake cans, not having money, etc. consider the insensitivity of that, especially, as there are countless number of people far worse off than them, that don't even have a place to live, let alone designer clothing and a laptop. For every major label artist, like Que or Dawn, there are a thousand others dying for that shot, who would love to be where they are - exactly where they are. Complaining about money, while you're in the situation they are in, given our current economic state... it's just not in the best of taste. It's a disappointing move.

Via Brian Jacks.

Here's the video for "Save A Life," a new song from Shaggy that features Elephant Man, dedicated to raising money for the Bustamante Hospital for Children. Check out the Shaggy Makes a Difference Foundation website for more.


Via AceShowBiz.

Kam Williams of AFRO has a movie centric interview with Naturi Naughton, who plays Lil' Kim in "Notorious".


Later in the interview, Naughton shares her hope that Kim will be proud with her portrayal. If recent reports are to be believed, that isn't likely.

Miles Bennett at Baller Status reports on Lil' Kim's interview in the latest issue of Hip Hop Weekly, where the rapper expresses her displeasure with the "Notorious" movie.

The DC Examiner has a short interview with Gorilla Zoe.


Via SOHH.com.

With a new album on the way in February, SOHH.com has an interview with Case. The singer revealed that he had worked with Mario Winans on the set.

Yung Joc has a new song out called "Poppin" that features singer Bobby Valentino. Joc was featured on Valentino's "Beep Beep" last year (watch the video).

The Jamaica Observer reports that Elephant Man will be featured on the upcoming album by Dashboard, which will be released by Truck Back Records.

I use Last.fm to track my music listening history. It's a really cool site that can provide you with all sorts of data. For fun, I thought I'd take a look at the top Bad Boy artists and tracks, in my history, for the year 2008. This is based on the top 500 artists and top 500 tracks for the past 12 months, as that is all that Last.fm shows you.

Here are the top 25 most played tracks by or featuring a current or former Bad Boy artist:

1. "Take You There" by Donnie Klang featuring Diddy.
2. "Need A Wife" by Charlie Wilson featuring Diddy.
2. "Living in Pain" by The Notorious B.I.G. featuring 2Pac, Nas and Mary J. Blige.
4. "Hot & Wet (Remix)" by 112 featuring Chingy, Ludacris and Diddy.
4. "I Get Money (Forbes 1-2-3 Billion Dollar Remix) by 50 Cent featuring Diddy and Jay-Z.
6. "Hood Figga (Remix)" by Gorilla Zoe featuring Block, Rick Ross, Jim Jones, Yung Joc and Young Jeezy.
7. "Check Your Coat (Remix)" by O'Neal McKnight featuring Puff Daddy, Jermaine Dupri and Greg Nice.
8. "Through the Pain (She Told Me)" by Diddy featuring Mario Winans.
9. "Cheat on You" by Mase featuring Lil' Cease and Jay-Z.
9. "By Faith" by Diddy featuring Fred Hammond.
11. "Official Girl" by Cassie featuring Lil' Wayne.
11. "Damaged (Remix)" by Danity Kane featuring Fabolous.
11. "Get Buck in Here" by DJ Felli Fel featuring Diddy, Akon, Ludacris and Lil' Jon.
14. "We Fly High (Remix)" by Jim Jones featuring Diddy, T.I., Baby and Young Dro.
14. "Apologize (Remix)" by Timbaland featuring OneRepublic and Gorilla Zoe.
14. "Confessions" by 8 Ball & MJG featuring Poo Bear.
17. "Addiction" by Ryan Leslie featuring Cassie and Fabolous.
18. "Bad Girl" by Danity Kane featuring Missy Elliott.
18. "I Don't Wanna Know" by Mario Winans featuring Diddy and Enya.
20. "Got Me Going" by Day26.
21. "Goin Down Tonight (Remix)" by 112 featuring Diddy and Black Rob.
22. "Music For Love" by Mario featuring LOS.
22. "Erika Kane" by B5.
24. "When I Grow Up (Remix)" by Pussycat Dolls featuring Darkchild, Diddy, Lil' Wayne and Fatman Scoop.
25. "Through the Pain (Instrumental)" by Diddy featuring Mario Winans.
25. "30 Rocks" by 8 Ball & MJG featuring Diddy.
25. "Just One Night" by Cassie featuring Ryan Leslie.

» Read More

Here are Bad Boy's positions on the most recent Billboard U.S. album and single charts, released today. "Lost" is now just one spot out of the Hot 100. Could next week be the week that it finally breaks in?

Albums

Top Reggae Albums

11. "Let's Get Physical" by Elephant Man (down from 10).

Songs

Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles

1. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (a new high, up from 4).

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs

37. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (down from 35).
90. "Brooklyn Go Hard" by Jay-Z (down from 61)

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay

37. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (down from 35).

Hot Rap Tracks

11. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (unchanged).
20. "Brooklyn Go Hard" by Jay-Z (up from 21)

Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop

24. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (unchanged).

Rhythmic Top 40

28. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (a new high, up from 32).

Yung Joc is featured on the new remix to Jamie Foxx's "Blame It". The track also features T-Pain. Listen to it at DJBooth.net.

EURweb.com's Marie Moore spoke with Jamal "Gravy" Woolard, Angela Bassett and Voletta Wallace about "Notorious".

From the AP:


He also told The Cincinnati Enquirer:


Via Chas Rich.