The great thing about Kanye West is that he’s either severely hot or cold about something. Lukewarm just ain’t his thing! So it was no surprise that the man-diva got a little pissed when Entertainment Weekly grade his recent tour a B+ - a grade I would  have killed for in grade school/high school/college/life. Kanye went for the mag’s jugular on his blog, writing, “Ya’ll rated my album sh*tty and now ya’ll come to the show and give it a B+. What’s a B+ mean? I’m an extremist. It’s either pass or fail! A+ or F-! You know what, f*ck you and the whole f*cking staff!!!”

He then also called them “f*cking trash.” Damn. I rate that rant a A+! Later he calmed down a bit in a post about his Houston show that went awry. “Unfortunately for certain media outlets, you will never be able 2 ‘Michael Jackson’ me,” he wrote. “That means 2 make it seem like everything I do is so weird or out of place… they always try 2 make it seem like everything is about my ego! That joke is getting old.”

It is? Cuz we’re still laughing.


Tags: Kanye West Hip Hop, Music

Word on the virtual street is that Kanye West has dumped his fiancee Alexis Phifer, telling his lady love, “I just don’t think it is going to work out anymore.” Apparently not. The couple have been together on and off since 2002 after they met when Alexis was working as an assistant to Kanye’s stylist. He proposed in 2006, and the two were reportedly working on the rapper’s new fashion line - called Pastelle - together. We’re sad to see this cute couple split, but we’re even sadder to hear how Kanye kicked her to the curb: the super-rich star had the nerve to ask for her engagement ring back!


Tags: Kanye West Hip Hop, Music

Tommy Lee got up to a different kind of mischief in the skies recently. Undoubtedly already a member of the Mile High Club, Mr. Lee commissioned the first ever tattoo administered at a high altitude. The Motley Crue drummer had a peacock tattooed on his thigh for the entirety of a five hour flight. Ouch.

With this, and the recent news that Fall Out Boy were attempting to play a concert on every continent to get into the Guinness Book of World Records, it got us thinking about some of the other records that celebs have already set, whether Guinness acknowledges them or not.

Mariah Carey — Shortest Skirts Worn on Stage

Paula Abdul — Most Unintelligible Sentences Strung Together During a Live Television Broadcast

Britney Spears — Most Hours Spent Driving Around In A Car (officials have to check, but Spears is suspected to have logged the circumference of the earth three times in mileage)

Heidi Montag & Spencer Pratt — Most Shameless and Exploitive Usage of Children, Animals and Holidays for Self-Promotion

Kanye West — Most Humble Artist


Tags: Britney Spears Kanye West Mariah Carey Pete Wentz Tommy Lee Paula Abdul Music

TMZ got their hands on Kanye West’s rider for his most recent concert tour, and his demands are, well, exactly what’d you expect. You can enjoy the entire 23 pages here, but why not just let us pick out the gems for you?

- There must be a masseuse at each show. Obvi. Big egos make for big back pains.

- A Connect Four game, if possible (The gang travels with one, but ya know - in case Kanye forgets it on his tour bus) .

- An entertainment center with an XBox 360, Playstation III and Guitar Hero. Fun!

- One bottle each of Hennessey, Sky or Absolut Vodka, Patron Tequila, plus six packs of Heineken and Stella Artois beer.

All food must be healthy and organic - NO fried food will be served. NONE! Kanye’s body is too precious for such things (alcohol excluded).


Tags: Kanye West Hip Hop, Music

There’s been a whole lot of neon in pop culture lately. First, Kanye West collaborated with Daft Punk on “Stronger,” made a video that combined the look of Akira with the narrative of Guns N’ Roses’ “Estranged,” and then showed up to the Grammys wearing a jacket that was literally so flashy it was designed to light up. Then Rihanna – who will appear on Kanye’s Glow in the Dark Tour — played the Brit Awards fronting new-rave darlings the Klaxons. Now comes French DJ duo Justice’s new video (for “DVNO,” above). It’s the best video we’ve seen since the last time Justice released a video (for “D.A.N.C.E.”). Enjoy the outer-spaciness, kids. After the jump, watch Rihanna playing “Umbrella” at a rave that looks like it was thrown by wayward cast members from Tron.

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Tags: Kanye West Rihanna Justice Daft Punk Klaxons Music

* Amy Winehouse has been a denied a visa and will not be attending this Sunday’s Grammy Awards. The singer, who recently entered rehab and was planning on attending the ceremony, will perform via satellite. “I’m really sorry I can’t be there but I appreciate that I’m being given a second chance via satellite,” Amy told UsWeekly.

* Hayley Williams and her band Paramore are headed to the Grammys, but don’t think they’ll forsake their punk roots and go glam for the event: “We’ve never worked with a stylist before, so this is a different world from what we’re used to. We don’t want to abandon our background — like I come out there wearing a gown. We’re going to have fun with it.” Williams thinks the band, up for the Best New Artist Grammy, has a shot at winning. “It’s possible we could win — we made it this far.”

* Kanye West, up for eight nominations at Sunday night’s award show, is planning an emotional tribute to his mother, who died this past November due to complications from plastic surgery. Ye will perform “Stronger” and “Hey Mama.”

* After paying tribute to ’80s smashes by New Order and Michael Jackson on his year’s multi-single-spawning release Good Girl Gone Bad, Rihanna will perform with The Time, who you might remember as Prince’s musical competition in Purple Rain. The band, formerly led by Morris Day, will be reuniting for the occasion. Let’s hope they do “Umbrella,” (originally written for a certain out-of-control pop star).

Be back here on Sunday night at 8 p.m., where we’ll be dishing on all the performances.


Tags: Amy Winehouse Kanye West Rihanna Paramore grammys, Music

Each year the act of predicting which artists will take home a Grammy becomes one of pop music’s great guessing games. Someone picks a category, and everyone becomes a pundit. That includes us. We want your comments, too. Do you think our choices are right? Watch the show with us this Sunday night, and join our LIVE BLOG commentary right here at 8 pm.

RECORD OF THE YEAR

Beyonce: “Irreplaceable”
This screed about how the value of self-important men begins with a set of instructions: “To the left, to the left/ Everything you own in a box to the left.” Wonder how Jay-Z took that line?

Foo Fighters: “The Pretender”
Moderate rock, Dave Grohl-style: loud, passionate, dynamic, classic, and prog. Don’t forget the mildly rousing refrain of “Who are you?” But, sorry, it’s still boring.

Rihanna: “Umbrella”
Barbados’ answer to Madonna returned with a Jerry Bruckheimer-sized blockbuster of a disc, and this song, which stuck in our heads for the entire summer, was the centerpiece.

Justin Timberlake: “What Goes Around . . . Comes Around”
When coupled with Timbaland’s production, Justin’s soft-pop R&B added up to a great big rock opera.

Amy Winehouse: “Rehab”
They tried to make her go to rehab; she said no, no, no. Then she said yes, got some help in London, was denied a U.S. entry visa, and can’t perform at the Grammys. Too bad, since the song so thoroughly sums up the problems of 2007.

SHOULD WIN: “Rehab”
WILL WIN: “Umbrella”

BEST HIP-HOP ALBUM

Common: Finding Forever
Half hard, half hippie. Working the poetic tip, he keeps his political and philosophical ideas up front. Kanye’s production, even when it’s florid, does a great job of selling ‘em.

Nas: Hip-Hop Is Dead
Big indictment from the Queens MC, but Nas is nothing if not a provocateur. Though it’s not a home run, it’s gripping. And that flow of his can still make your jaw drop.

Jay-Z: Kingdom Come
Jigga bounced back, and there were lots of sharp moments, but it also felt like the true glory days of this mic fiend are gone. The American Gangster soundtrack is way stronger.

TI: T.I. vs T.I.P.
Yep, Mr. Split Personality may have been at war with himself, but that tension provided for revealing glimpse into the king of Dirty South’s psyche.

Kanye West: Graduation
Haughty is as haughty does. Hip-hop’s most reliable MC hasn’t given up on positioning himself as hip-hop’s most successful MC. But his bluster has oodles of creativity behind it, no question.

SHOULD WIN: Graduation
WILL WIN: Graduation

“Best New Artist” category after the jump.

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Tags: Amy Winehouse Beyonce Common Jay-Z Justin Timberlake Kanye West Madonna Nas Rihanna Foo Fighters Music

After days of dropping hints, Kanye West has revealed he’s hitting the road on his “Glow In The Dark” tour. Ye showed off his Tron-like transformation in his tour poster on his blog last night, but failed to include tour dates. Also traveling with the College Dropout are Rihanna, Lupe Fiasco and N.E.R.D. This isn’t the first time Kanye’s gotten together with Lupe and Pharrell — the trio formed a rap supergroup this past summer, releasing a single under the name the Child Rebel Soldiers. Hopefully they’ll find some time to work on the rumored album.


Tags: Kanye West Rihanna Lupe Fiasco N.E.R.D.

This picture has been popping up all over the web today and there’s a good reason: it’s seriously adorable. Say what you will about Kanye West’s ego and Beyonce’s Beyonce-ness, but if this pic of the pair playing Connect Four at Jay-Z’s 40/40 club in Vegas doesn’t melt your icy heart, I don’t know what will. Apparently Beyonce kicked his ass nine times in a row, too! Kanye posted the pics on his blog and wrote that he played the game for hours on his European tour as it helped him “zone out.” It may not be traditional grief healing methods, but whatever works, right? [KanyeUniversity]


Tags: Beyonce Kanye West Hip Hop, Movies, Music

Two of the music world’s biggest stars, Kanye West and 50 Cent, went at it old school in a battle of words over whose new album - both of which dropped on September 11th - would sell more records. The guys threatened a televised debate over whose album was better, and 50 even claimed that he’d retire from making albums if Kanye beat him with a bestseller, saying “They would like to see Kanye West give me a problem, because I’ve worked myself into a space where I’ve become the favorite. Everybody roots [for] the underdog when he goes against the favorite.” In the end, Kanye kicked Fiddy’s ass, but not before a Rolling Stone cover of the two cemented their feud as a fan favorite. And even though 50 eventually called it out as a stunt, their battle brought some of the fun, the spunk and the street back to an industry saturated with songs about bling, boobs and Bentleys.

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Kanye West Artist Info
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Tags: 50 Cent Kanye West Best of 2007, Hip Hop, Music

The 50th Grammy Award nominees were announced this morning in Los Angeles, with tabloid fodder Amy Winehouse and Kanye West snagging nominations in multiple categories — Winehouse received six, while West garnered eight. Below are a few of the folks who will be duking it out on February 10th for the golden gramophone in two of the biggest categories.

Nominees for Album Of The Year:

Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, Foo Fighters
These Days, Vince Gill
River: The Joni Letters, Herbie Hancock
Graduation, Kanye West
Back To Black, Amy Winehouse

Nominees for Record Of The Year:

“Irreplaceable,” Beyoncé
“The Pretender,” Foo Fighters
“Umbrella,” Rihanna Featuring Jay-Z
“What Goes Around…Comes Around,” Justin Timberlake
“Rehab,” Amy Winehouse

For the full list of this year’s nominees, go here.


Tags: Amy Winehouse Justin Timberlake Kanye West Foo Fighters Vince Gill Herbie Hancock grammys, Music