August 24, 2011

Unsubstantiated Rumor Alert: Did Rihanna and J. Cole Make A Sex Tape Together?

Remember when Robyn “Rihanna” Fenty was an innocent girl standing underneath an umbrella, before she was hollering at a “Rude Boy” to join her in some “S&M” on her “California King Bed”? Yeah, our memories of those days are getting fuzzier, too, especially if the rumors of a new Rihanna/J. Cole sex tape are true!

“We have seen it and we do not know what we are going to do with it yet,” said a rep from the Hustler empire told Radar Online. Odd J. Cole didn’t mention it when he played us his album last week, but the 26-year-old protege of Jay-Z will certainly benefit from this tabloid circus since Cole World: The Sideline Story drops next month.

Rihanna is, unfortunately, no stranger to scandal, accustomed to fending off rumors of secretly dating mentor Jay-Z and canoodling with Drake, not to mention having to endure the embarrassment caused when naked photos she sent to then-boyfriend Chris Brown were leaked. Like many stars in the public eye, the Barbadian pop star wears a target on her back for this kind of negative attention, and her music, as we jokingly alluded to in the beginning of this post, might make it easier to assume that the sex tape exists. But in all fairness, just because her songs can be boldly sexual in nature doesn’t mean we should jump to conclusions, even when taking into account that the Roc Nation-managed artists have toured together and are known to be friendly. Developing!

Hustler Insist They Have a Rihanna and J-Cole Sex Tape [Radar]

Tags: , , J. Cole, Drake, Chris Brown, Rihanna, Jay-Z

August 5, 2011

Chris Brown Drops New Mixtape, Showcases Controversial Rap Skills

Drake does it. Trey does it. Why can’t Breezy do it too? After releasing his “Real Hip Hop Sh*t” viral video series, it seems Chris Brown is continuing his crusade to head in a more-rapping, less-singing direction on his new mixtape, Boy in Detention. When the R&B singer first tried his hand at the skill that is a very distant cousin of his native genre, the track was met with mixed reviews. Then, in June, he came with a second installment of the series, spitting verses about his appreciation of female affection.

Fast forward to a few weeks ago, and Brown released “#3″ and “#4″ of the series’ clips, respectively and consecutively, this time backed by beats from well-respected hip hop producer 9th Wonder. After his hugely successful Today Show performance, you’d think Brown would be in good spirits, but content-wise, those two tracks were a bit more aggro than the first two. Addressing his many critics, both old and new, “Real Hip Hop Sh*t #3″ specifically called out TMZ, and many people speculated that both songs were also cross-examining negative comments from Fox News’ O’Reilly Factorcoverage from NBC’s concert.

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Tags: , , David Banner, Big K.R.I.T., 9th Wonder, Wiz Khalifa, Drake, Justin Bieber, Chris Brown, Kanye West

July 27, 2011

Like An Interpreter, Tinie Tempah Drops Gems on UK Hip Hop and Lists His Stateside Favorites

On Tuesday, we shared some of Tinie Tempah’s thoughts on mentally transitioning from the UK to the US as an up-and-coming artist in the hectic world of hip-hop. Because the London native goes back and forth across the pond so frequently, we also asked Tinie to give us a cheat sheet of sorts, helping to get us looped-in to the who’s who of British rap. Check out his list of personal favorites below, because after all, you never know if one of these guys might be next.

GIGGS (IF YOU LIKE: Gucci Mane)
“Definitely be on the lookout for Giggs, he’s doing his thing,” preached Tinie. After collaborating with B.o.B and a slew of other big-name British rappers, Giggs continues spitting coke-rap bars for days. Style-wise, Tinie compared him to both Young Jeezy and Gucci; embodying the hustler image, Giggs served a two-year bid for a gun charge back in 2003, but inked with XL Recordings (see: M.I.A., Tyler, The Creator, Dizzee Rascal) to distribute his third solo LP next year off of self-made label, SN1 Entertainment.

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Tags: , Diddy - Dirty Money, Tyler, The Creator, Waka Flocka Flame, Plan B, J. Cole, Big Sean, Tinie Tempah, Rick Ross, Wiz Khalifa, B.o.B, Drake, Gucci Mane, Nicki Minaj, Dizzee Rascal, Chris Brown, M.I.A., Lupe Fiasco, Lil Wayne, Young Jeezy, Kanye West, Fabolous

July 18, 2011

Song Of The Summer Countdown: Katy Perry And Adele Are Neck And Neck At Summer’s Halfway Point


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This marks our eighth week of charting this year’s Song Of The Summer contenders, and it’s been quite the race so far. Adele‘s unstoppable behemoth, “Rolling In The Deep,” has been at the top of the charts for five of those weeks, and Katy Perry‘s “Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)” has held the top spot for three of ‘em. However, it’s Perry’s jubilant anthem about the joys of getting blackout drunk that has all of the momentum in its favor after grabbing the top spot in our VH1 Top 20 Video Countdown for the first time this week.

At the moment, everyone who isn’t named either Adele or Katy Perry is currently playing for third place, but that’s a tight race, too. Pitbull and LMFAO each continue to hold strong with their club-friendly megahits, while Lady Gaga‘s “The Edge Of Glory” makes its highest appearance on the charts so far this summer, despite its video being widely panned as being too underwhelming and not up to snuff with the rest of Gaga’s video canon. It’s also worth noting that OneRepublic‘s “Good Life” would also find itself in the running for the top prize, if not for a total lack of traction on YouTube and LastFM.

One last note: Rebecca Black‘s follow-up to “Friday”—a song which might just be the most popular (and hated) song of 2011 so far—is scheduled to be released at 8 p.m. this evening. We should know in less than 24 hours time whether this song has got what it takes to make a late summer run at #1.

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Tags: , , , Hot Chelle Rae, Foster the People, Pitbull, Rebecca Black, Bruno Mars, Nicki Minaj, Jason Derulo, Katy Perry, Lmfao, Adele, Lady Gaga, OneRepublic, Chris Brown, Lil Wayne, Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears, Beyonce

July 15, 2011

Tuned In: Chris Brown Might Have Broken The Today Show Attendance Record

Sporting a handsome suit and a shiny pink bow tie, Chris Brown took to the stage this morning before upwards of 18,000 fans (!), performing “Forever” (video above), “She Ain’t You” (video below) and “I Can Transform Ya” on NBC’s TODAY in New York City. While a string of recent controversies seem to follow the troubled young singer, the large audience may serve as a band-aid step in the right direction.

NBC stated on their site that the show was “one of their biggest concert events ever,” but OK Magazine is reporting that this concert was, in fact, the largest in TODAY history, beating out pop force of nature Lady Gaga. However, Jezebel claims that 20,000 Little Monsters showed up to watch their Mother Monster perform, so

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Tags: , , , Chris Brown

July 12, 2011

VH1′s Top 100 Videos of 2011 … So Far

As we parallel park into July and officially hit the curb of this year’s halfway point, it’s time to take a quick look back at what the past six months have taught us. Not conventional life lessons, however; we’re talking about stuff that’s a little bit less intense and also involves YOU! That’s right, in the first installment of our Top 100 Videos of 2011… So Far, we’re spilling the beans on the #100-51 most clicked-and-viewed videos on VH1.com. You’ll see that this piñata-like list of content contains tasty treats and slippery surprises alike! We’ve got brand-new videos that just recently launched, some VH1 Classic leaning clips (hey there, Megadeth), repeat offenders, and of course, effervescent, essential vids from the music video cannon. So take a look at the first fifty videos below and don’t forget to come back later this week as we continue on our quest to discover what artist snags the #1 spot!

100. Jack Johnson, “From The Clouds”
99. Chris Brown, “Deuces”
98. Ke$ha, “Tik Tok”
97. Bruno Mars, “The Other Side”
96. Beyoncé, “Video Phone (Extended Remix)”
95. Usher, “OMG”
94. B.o.B, “Airplanes”
93. Taylor Swift, “Mine”
92. Sara Bareilles, “King Of Anything”
91. John Legend & The Roots, “Wake Up Everybody”

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Tags: , , , You Oughta Know, Megadeath, Super Stereo, Augustana, Pitbull, Raphael Saadiq, Weird Al Yankovic, Arcade Fire, Mumford & Sons, John Legend & The Roots, Duran Duran, B.o.B, Willow Smith, Mike Posner, Lissie, Christina Perri, Trey Songz, Fantasia, Bruno Mars, Jack Johnson, Train, Ke$ha, Katy Perry, Adam Lambert, Death Cab For Cutie, Adele, David Cook, Chris Brown, a-ha, Josh Groban, Sara Bareilles, Taylor Swift, Shakira, Foo Fighters, Steven Tyler, Usher, Linkin Park, Kings of Leon, James Blunt, Dr. Dre, Britney Spears, Beyonce

June 6, 2011

2011 Song of the Summer Countdown: Adele Continues To Roll Deep


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Welcome to Week Two of VH1′s Song of the Summer countdown. Each and every Monday from now until Labor Day, we’ll be utilizing today’s most advanced data collection techniques Microsoft Excel to chart the competition of what will become THE song that people will think of when they remember the summer of 2011.

Last week, Adele‘s monster smash, “Rolling In The Deep,” captured the top spot, scoring 87 of a possible 100 points. (For a reminder on how the scoring system works, click here.) Somehow, the English songbird managed to increase her stranglehold on the #1 spot in this countdown this week, racking up 91 (!!!) points and proving that no matter what medium people use to consume music these days, they’re using it to listen to Adele.

However, lest you think that Adele has got this summer on lock only two weeks in, there are a number of new songs that cracked the charts this week for the first time: Jason Derulo‘s “Don’t Wanna Go Home,” DJ Khaled‘s superstar-laced hit “I’m On One” (which features Drake, Rick Ross and Lil Wayne), Coldplay’s “Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall” (which was just released on Friday) and Taylor Swift‘s bid for power pop domination, “The Story Of Us.” Oh yeah, and Adele’s powerful anthem of lost love, “Someone Like You,” managed to crack the Top 20, too.

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Tags: , , , Pitbull, Bruno Mars, Nicki Minaj, Jason Derulo, Ke$ha, Katy Perry, Lmfao, Adele, Lady Gaga, Chris Brown, Taylor Swift, Jennifer Lopez, Rihanna, DJ Khaled, Coldplay, Britney Spears, Beyonce

June 2, 2011

Keep An Eye On This Summer’s Hottest Jams With VH1′s 2011 Song of the Summer Countdown

According to the calendar, until the Summer Solstice occurs on June 21, we’re still firmly in the grasp of Spring. That said, pretty much everyone we know considers “summertime” to be the period of time between Memorial Day and Labor Day. To wit, this past weekend millions of Americans broke out their barbeque grills, removed their sandals from storage, and spent the long weekend soaking up the sunshine with family and friends for the first time since last summer (and, if the temperatures here in NYC were any indication, it sure as hell felt like summer with temperatures hovering in the low 90s).

One of our favorite parts about the summertime is the way that music takes on an even more omnipresent role in all of our lives. Sure, we all listen to music year-round, but during the winter months, music is generally something you only experience either inside or through earbuds. Once the summertime rolls around, though, suddenly you start hearing music blasting EVERYWHERE: rattling out from car speakers, blaring from boomboxes while you’re lounging poolside, emanating from an iPod dock when you’re chilling in the park enjoying a picnic, and even crackling through old transistor radios while you’re camping in the woods.

And each year, one song emerges from the pack to stand out as that year’s Song of the Summer. It’s not generally a title that is officially anointed by any governing board, but we here at VH1 wanted to put a little science behind the emotion that these Songs of Summer convey.

Hence, we’re excited to announce that we here at VH1 will be tracking this year’s Song of the Summer from now until Labor Day. So, you’re no doubt wondering, what artist has the lead out of the gate: Lady Gaga? Adele? Bruno Mars? Continue along to find out…

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Tags: , , , , Tinie Tempah, Pitbull, Bruno Mars, Nicki Minaj, Ke$ha, Katy Perry, Lmfao, Adele, Lady Gaga, Chris Brown, Jennifer Lopez, Rihanna, Enrique Iglesias, Britney Spears, Beyonce

June 16, 2008

Chris & Rihanna Make Sexy Juice Together

Chrianna, the golden couple of hip-hop that has yet to reveal their love to the public, were spotted snacking on Jamba Juice together on Friday. How romantic and normal! With everything fast food joint they visit, we love Chris and Rihanna more. And you know what they say – the couple that juices together, stays together! If only they’d just admit that they’re a couple.

Tags: , , , , Rihanna, Chris Brown

May 7, 2008

Chris Protects Rihanna, Attacks Photog

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Chris Brown went a little nuts protecting his precious Rihanna over the weekend, after a Florida photographer got too close with his camera. The drama took place as the couple was leaving the Kiss, Kiss crooner’s private b-day party, when Chris got pissed at the pap for snapping a pic and chased the guy away. His bodyguards also allegedly battled with the photog, and he is alleging that they knocked him to the ground and took his $3000 camera.

We’d say Chris’ defense was a little much – after all, he and Rihanna are just “friends!” But perhaps he went so ballistic because he was protecting his girlfriend. Even though they insist they’re not a couple, no one’s buying it, and Rihanna came pretty close to admitting their relationship truth in an interview with Elle. ” “We’ve always been friends,” she cooed about Chris. “But we’re very close now.”

Sure sounds like it!

Tags: , , , Rihanna, Chris Brown

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