Alicia Keys feels “more womanly” since becoming a mother

The 30-year-old singer – who has a nine-month-old son Egypt with husband Swizz Beatz – has found parenthood has made her more content and “connected” with herself.

She said: “It’s about becoming more centred in myself. Having the baby has connected me to a deep, more womanly place.” Alicia also described her marriage to Swizz – whose real name is Kasseem Dean – as “very equal”.

She said: “We have a very equal relationship. Equal is my favourite word.” The ‘Empire State of Mind’ hitmaker is upset about the sexualisation of pop music, and was astonished at the sight she was greeted by at her goddaughter’s recent birthday party.

She explained: “There were little girls emulating the dance moves they’d seen on TV, like six-year-old strippers. “I’m going to have to teach my son by example.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

Motherhood has given Alicia Keys a “reason in life”

The ‘Empire State of Mind’ hitmaker – who has an eight-month-old son, Egypt, with husband Swizz Beatz – says becoming a mum has changed her life in a “fun” way.

She explained: “Motherhood is heaven. It’s so purposeful and such fun. I feel much wiser in the choices I make. I have a reason in life I never had before.”

Alicia’s new outlook on life is a far cry from when the 30-year-old singer first found success and she admitted her fame was “scary” to begin with.

She told the Daily Mail newspaper: “I suddenly found myself doing tours, TV shows and flying every day.

“Everyone wanted a piece of me and that was scary. Being from New York, I covered that up.”

Now with a successful career and a happy personal life, Alicia is looking to the future and first on the agenda is a collaboration with Kings of Leon.

She said: “For a while I’ve wanted to do something with Kings of Leon. I definitely want to do it – I’m just waiting for the right moment.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

Lea Michele is to perform at next month’s Super Bowl

The ‘Glee’ actress – who plays Rachel Berry in the musical TV show – will sing ‘America the Beautiful’ before the NFL showpiece game on February 6 in Arlington, Texas.

The 24-year-old star joins Faith Hill, Queen Latifah, Alicia Keys, Mary J. Blige, Marc Anthony, Ray Charles and Vicki Carr as the only artists to perform the song at the prestigious match.

As well as Lea, earlier this week it was revealed Christina Aguilera will sing the national anthem ahead of the match between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Green Bay Packers.

In a statement released by the NFL, Christina said: “I have been performing the anthem since I was seven years old and I must say the Super Bowl is a dream come true. I am really excited to be part of such an iconic event.”

Black Eyed Peas will perform during the halftime interval and the ‘I Gotta Feeling’ hitmakers have also joined forces with Sports Illustrated magazine to host a star-studded bash for the event.

Singer Fergie - who is part owner of the Miami Dolphins – said: “As an NFL owner and a football fan, I cannot be more excited to join forces with Sports Illustrated for the hottest party of the season. It will be the kick-off to an amazing weekend in Dallas and we can’t wait to get it started.”

The game will attract a star-studded audience as well as one of the biggest TV audiences of the year.

Source: BANG Showbiz

Alicia Keys, Lady Gaga and Justin Timberlake are giving up twitter

The stars are signing off from all social media platforms, and will not return until an AIDS charity – Keep a Child Alive, which is spearheaded by Alicia – has raised $1 million.

For the campaign, the stars have filmed “last tweet and testament” videos and will appear in adverts showing them lying in coffins to represent their ‘digital deaths’.

Alicia will also be joined by her husband Swizz Beatz, Kim and Khloe Kardashian, Usher, Jennifer Hudson, Ryan Seacrest, Elijah Wood, Serena Williams in the campaign, which will start on Wednesday (01.12.10), which is World AIDS Day.

Alicia said no one she has approached had turned her down, explaining: “Once I got people on the phone and I was able to paint the concept for them, everybody was in.”

Leigh Blake, who is president and co-founder of the charity, added: “We’re trying to sort of make the remark: Why do we care so much about the death of one celebrity as opposed to millions and millions of people dying in the place that we’re all from?”

Almost all the stars involved have over a million followers on micro-blogging site twitter, with Gaga alone having 7.2 million.

Leigh added: “I have a feeling that Gaga is going to raise it all by herself.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

Alicia Keys (born January 25, 1981), is an American recording artist, musician and actress. She was raised by a single mother in the Hell’s Kitchen area of Manhattan in New York City. At age seven, Keys began to play classical music on the piano. Alicia attended Professional Performing Arts School and graduated at 16 as valedictorian. She later attended Columbia University before dropping out to pursue her music career. Alicia released her debut album with J Records, having had previous record deals first with Columbia and then Arista Records.

Alicia’s debut album, Songs in A Minor, was a commercial success, selling over 12 million copies worldwide. She became the best-selling new artist and best-selling R&B artist of 2001. The album earned Keys five Grammy Awards in 2002, including Best New Artist and Song of the Year for “Fallin’”. Her second studio album, The Diary of Alicia Keys, was released in 2003 and was also another success worldwide, selling eight million copies. The album garnered her an additional four Grammy Awards in 2005. Later that year, she released her first live album, Unplugged, which debuted at number one in the United States. She became the first female to have an MTV Unplugged album to debut at number one and the highest since Nirvana in 1994.

Alicia made guest appearances on several television series in the following years, beginning with Charmed. She made her film debut in Smokin’ Aces and went on to appear in The Nanny Diaries in 2007. Her third studio album, As I Am, was released in the same year and sold six million copies worldwide, earning Keys an additional three Grammy Awards. The following year, Alicia appeared in The Secret Life of Bees, which earned her a nomination at the NAACP Image Awards. She released her fourth album, The Element of Freedom, in December 2009, which became Keys’ first chart-topping album in the United Kingdom. Throughout her career, Keys has won numerous awards and has sold over 30 million albums worldwide. Billboard magazine named her the top R&B artist of the 2000–2009 decade, establishing herself as one of the best-selling artists of her time.

Source: Wikipedia

Black Entertainment Television (BET) Awards 2010 nominations:

Best Female R&B Artist:

Beyonce Knowles
Mary J. Blige
Melanie Fiona
Alicia Keys
Rihanna

Best Male R&B Artist:

Chris Brown
Raheem DeVaughn
Maxwell
Trey Songz
Usher

Best Gospel:

The Anointed Pace Sisters
Kirk Franklin Presents Artists United For Haiti
Tamela Mann
Marvin Sapp
Vickie Winans

Best Female Hip-Hop Artist:

Ester Dean
Lil Kim
Nicki Minaj
Rasheeda
Trina

Best Male Hip-Hop Artist:

B.o.B.
Drake
Fabolous
Jay-Z
Ludacris

Best Group:

Black Eyed Peas
Clipse
Diddy-Dirty Money
New Boyz
Young Money

Best New Artist:

Justin Bieber
Melanie Fiona
Nicki Minaj
Wale
Young Money

Best Collaboration:

Beyonce Knowles f/ Lady Gaga – ‘Video Phone’
B.o.B. f/ Bruno Mars – ‘Nothin’ On You’
Drake & Trey Songz – ‘Successful’
Drake f/ Lil Wayne, Kanye West & Eminem – ‘Forever’
Jay-Z & Alicia Keys – ‘Empire State of Mind’
Trey Songz f/ Fabolous – ‘Say Aah’

Video of the Year:

Beyonce f/ Lady Gaga – ‘Video Phone’
B.o.B. f/ Bruno Mars – ‘Nothin’ On You’
Melanie Fiona – ‘It Kills Me’
Jay-Z & Alicia Keys – ‘Empire State of Mind’
Jay-Z, Rihanna & Kanye West – ‘Run This Town’

Video Director of the Year:

Benny Boom
Gil Green
Anthony Mandler
Chris Robinson
Hype Williams

Best Actress:

Taraji P. Henson
Regina King
Mo’Nique
Zoe Saldana
Gabourey Sidibe

Best Actor:

Quinton Aaron
Don Cheadle
Idris Elba
Jamie Foxx
Denzel Washington

Young Stars Award:

Selena Gomez
Lil JJ
Keke Palmer
Willow Smith
Tyler James Williams

Best Movie:

‘Avatar’
‘Law Abiding Citizen’
‘Michael Jackson’s This Is It’
‘Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire’
‘The Blindside’

Subway Sportswoman of the Year:

Tamika Catchings
Vanessa James
Candace Parker
Serena Williams
Venus Williams

Subway Sportsman of the Year:

Carmelo Anthony
Usain Bolt
Kobe Bryant
LeBron James
Tiger Woods

Viewers Choice Nominees:

Beyonce Knowles – ‘Sweet Dreams’
Jay-Z & Alicia Keys – ‘Empire State of Mind’
Monica – ‘Everything To Me’
Rihanna f/ Young Jeezy – ‘Hard’
Trey Songz f/ Fabolous – ‘Say Aah’
Young Money (Lil Wayne, Gudda Gudda, Nicki Minaj, Jae Millz, Drake, Tyga) f/ Lloyd – ‘Bedrock’

Centric Award:

Melanie Fiona
Maxwell
Chrisette Michele
Monica
Sade

Best International Act:

Kojo Antwi (Ghana)
Chipmunk (UK)
Dizzee Rascal (UK)
Estelle (UK)
Hip Hop Pantsula (HHP) (South Africa)
K’NAAN (Somalia)
M.I. (Nigeria)
P-Square (Nigeria)
Corinne Bailey Rae (UK)
Sade (UK)

Justin Bieber has been nominated for a Black Entertainment Television (BET) award.

The 16-year-old singer’s speedy rise to super-stardom, aided by R&B star Usher, has earned him a nod in the Best New Artist category at the upcoming ceremony, because he’s thought of as a “crossover” artist.

Stephen Hill, BET’s President of Music Programming and Specials, said: “Bieber has crossed the colour boundaries the same way that hip-hop has crossed the boundaries the other way for a number of years. He’s had rhythm in his music. He makes the type of music our audience likes.”

The awards – which generally only recognise black entertainers, singers, actors and athletes – will see Justin battle it out against fellow rising stars Nicki Minaj, B.o.B, Young Money and Melanie Fiona.

Rapper Jay-Z has the most nominations with five and will compete with wife Beyonce Knowles for Video of the Year, Best Collaboration and the Viewers’ Choice accolade.

Other nominees include Alicia Keys, Rihanna and Kanye West.

Queen Latifah is set to present the ceremony which will air live on June 27 from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

Black Entertainment Television (BET) Awards 2010 nominations:

Best Female R&B Artist:

Beyonce Knowles

Mary J. Blige

Melanie Fiona

Alicia Keys

Rihanna

Best Male R&B Artist:

Chris Brown

Raheem DeVaughn

Maxwell

Trey Songz

Usher

Best Gospel:

The Anointed Pace Sisters

Kirk Franklin Presents Artists United For Haiti

Tamela Mann

Marvin Sapp

Vickie Winans

Best Female Hip-Hop Artist:

Ester Dean

Lil Kim

Nicki Minaj

Rasheeda

Trina

Best Male Hip-Hop Artist:

B.o.B.

Drake

Fabolous

Jay-Z

Ludacris

Best Group:

Black Eyed Peas

Clipse

Diddy-Dirty Money

New Boyz

Young Money

Best New Artist:

Justin Bieber

Melanie Fiona

Nicki Minaj

Wale

Young Money

Best Collaboration:

Beyonce Knowles f/ Lady Gaga – ‘Video Phone’

B.o.B. f/ Bruno Mars – ‘Nothin’ On You’

Drake & Trey Songz – ‘Successful’

Drake f/ Lil Wayne, Kanye West & Eminem – ‘Forever’

Jay-Z & Alicia Keys – ‘Empire State of Mind’

Trey Songz f/ Fabolous – ‘Say Aah’

Video of the Year:

Beyonce f/ Lady Gaga – ‘Video Phone’

B.o.B. f/ Bruno Mars – ‘Nothin’ On You’

Melanie Fiona – ‘It Kills Me’

Jay-Z & Alicia Keys – ‘Empire State of Mind’

Jay-Z, Rihanna & Kanye West – ‘Run This Town’

Video Director of the Year:

Benny Boom

Gil Green

Anthony Mandler

Chris Robinson

Hype Williams

Best Actress:

Taraji P. Henson

Regina King

Mo’Nique

Zoe Saldana

Gabourey Sidibe

Best Actor:

Quinton Aaron

Don Cheadle

Idris Elba

Jamie Foxx

Denzel Washington

Young Stars Award:

Selena Gomez

Lil JJ

Keke Palmer

Willow Smith

Tyler James Williams

Best Movie:

‘Avatar’

‘Law Abiding Citizen’

‘Michael Jackson’s This Is It’

‘Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire’

‘The Blindside’

Subway Sportswoman of the Year:

Tamika Catchings

Vanessa James

Candace Parker

Serena Williams

Venus Williams

Subway Sportsman of the Year:

Carmelo Anthony

Usain Bolt

Kobe Bryant

LeBron James

Tiger Woods

Viewers Choice Nominees:

Beyonce Knowles – ‘Sweet Dreams’

Jay-Z & Alicia Keys – ‘Empire State of Mind’

Monica – ‘Everything To Me’

Rihanna f/ Young Jeezy – ‘Hard’

Trey Songz f/ Fabolous – ‘Say Aah’

Young Money (Lil Wayne, Gudda Gudda, Nicki Minaj, Jae Millz, Drake, Tyga) f/ Lloyd – ‘Bedrock’

Centric Award:

Melanie Fiona

Maxwell

Chrisette Michele

Monica

Sade

Best International Act:

Kojo Antwi (Ghana)

Chipmunk (UK)

Dizzee Rascal (UK)

Estelle (UK)

Hip Hop Pantsula (HHP) (South Africa)

K’NAAN (Somalia)

M.I. (Nigeria)

P-Square (Nigeria)

Corinne Bailey Rae (UK)

Sade (UK)

Source: BANG Showbiz

Alicia Keys thinks starting a family will be “the most beautiful experience” she will ever have.

The ‘Doesn’t Mean Anything’ singer – who got engaged to music producer Swizz Beats in January – can’t wait to settle down and become a mother but admits there are lots of things she wants to do with her career first.

She said: “I absolutely am very interested in starting a family. It is one of the most beautiful experiences to have in this life and I am looking forward to it when it is my time.

“I have a lot of things I still want to do. As far as retirement goes, I just wanted to have the ability, if I so choose, to be able to do so. But I fell that I am just getting started.”

In 2007, the 29-year-old beauty appeared in ‘Smokin’ Aces’ and ‘The Nanny Diaries’, before working on the movie ‘The Secret Life of Bees’ in 2008.

Alicia would love to explore more acting possibilities and is desperate to write her own musical theatre production.

She explained: “I love acting and producing, and I am developing some ideas for TV and film, and also for Broadway. I am excited about that. I really want to create a new musical. I think it’s time.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

Madonna’s boyfriend feels “like a married man”.

Brazilian model Jesus Luz – who has been in a relationship with the ‘4 Minutes’ singer for around 15 months – feels like he has a complete family of his own since he started dating the 51-year-old star, who has four children, Lourdes, 13, Rocco, nine, Mercy, five, and four-year-old David.

The 23-year-old hunk told Brazil’s RG Vogue magazine: “I consider myself a married man. I have a family. At my age, my father was also married. My mother gave birth to me when she was 15.”

While Jesus also admitted in the interview that he can’t help but get jealous of the attention Madonna receives, it seems he is not the only one.

It has been claimed the ‘Celebration’ singer banned her boyfriend from partying with Lindsay Lohan at the VIP Room nightspot in Paris, France recently.

A source told the Daily Mirror newspaper: “Lindsay got her people to phone the club to try and hang out with him. She knew he was hosting a night there with Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz.

“But when Madonna’s people heard, they put a block on it. Jesus wasn’t one to argue, he didn’t want to upset Madonna and was just there to work. Lindsay had to make to with a night in her hotel.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

The ‘Empire State of Mind’ singer – who is rumoured to be engaged to DJ Swizz Beatz – says she’s been lucky with the relationships she’s had and has always gone for strong and confident men.

She said: “I’ve never dated a ton of people, I’ve always been a one-guy kind of girl, but I have to say that I’ve always been lucky with love, blessed with it. Overall I haven’t had any terrible relationships – apart from a couple of little stupid ones when I was younger, but at that age you kinda can’t help it.

“But I’ve always had really great guys in my life, you know? They’ve been very stable men as well. I need a guy who is strong-minded, not intimidated by me – I don’t like those kind of guys.”

Alicia also revealed her joy at reconciling with her father, after being estranged for several years, and is now forming a relationship with her half-brother.

She told You magazine: “He is 18 and the sweetest, handsomest person on earth. I never felt like I was lacking anything when my father wasn’t there during my childhood – thanks to my mother and grandmother, I felt I had everything. And I think my reconciliation with my father has just been a matter of growing up. There was never any malice on any side and I understand life better now, that nothing is cut-and-dried.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

The hunky singer is a huge fan of the R‘n’B beauty for her musical talents and her jaw-dropping good looks.

He said: “Alicia Keys is incredible. She has the whole package – amazing voice, incredible writing talents and she’s such a good performer. She’s cute too.

“She did a secret show in December and I was totally wowed by her. I am definitely going to see her live again later this year.”

JB – who this week won two prestigious BRIT awards along with his bandmates Aston Merrygold, Marvin Humes and Oritse Williams – also revealed his beauty secret for attracting the ladies, body lotion.

He said: “I use Kiehl’s body cream twice-a-day, every day without fail. It’s really important to moisturise and keep your body nice and soft, it has a really nice vanilla smell as well, too, so it does two jobs at once.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

The rapper and wife Beyonce Knowles flew their closest friends – including Oprah Winfrey, Kanye West, Alicia Keys, Mary J Blige, Kate Hudson and Ne-Yo – out to the Dominican Republic, paying for their private jet travel and luxury suites themselves.

The bash, held last Friday (04.12.09), had a ‘Scarface’ theme, with the venue decked out like the home of Tony Montana, and partygoers were treated to Dom Perignon champagne and caviar.

The hosting couple’s parents were the guests of honour at the party, which was held in a villa at the resort of Casa de Campo.

However, the rapper – real name Shawn Carter – made sure he continued to be the centre of attention, performing his hit ‘Empire State of Mind’ with Alicia Keys and P. Diddy.

Following a touching video display of messages from his friends, Jay-z saw the evening come to a climax with a big fireworks display at midnight, with synchronized swimmers dancing alongside in the villa’s pool.

The following day, guests were treated to a brunch barbecue – with Beyonce showing off her culinary skills behind the grill, before a group of revellers took to the seas on a private yacht.

Source: BANG Showbiz

The ‘Girlfriend’ singer almost quit the music industry when her grandmother passed away in 2006 but has learned to channel her emotions use them to create a “new sound” for her latest LP ‘The Element of Freedom’.

She explained: “I found more freedom. Before, I thought I could only show the strong side of me. Now there’s a mixture of strong and delicate. A new sound, a new emotion. That’s a lot of who I am right now.

“In the past, I was locking myself in the studio because I thought it was the only way to create music. This was a more casual way to do it.

“The tour will take me all over the world for a year and I can’t wait to play these songs.”

In 2006, the 28-year-old songstress almost suffered a breakdown after her grandmother passed away. She took a three-week holiday in Egypt to grieve for her loss before she released ‘As I Am’ a year later.

She explained to Britain’s Daily Star newspaper: “With the last album, I was really trying to find myself and I was feeling extremely overworked. I was also starting to understand that I was dealing with certain people in business that were not really for me and they all had their intentions and thoughts. I was snappy, I was nasty, I was mean, losing my grandmother during that time as well. Everything felt like it could all just tumble down at once.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

The ‘Empire State of Mind’ rapper has been signed up to star at the 2010 ceremony where he will perform a medley of his biggest hits and a duet with a surprise artist – believed to be his wife Beyonce Knowles, Alicia Keys or Coldplay frontman Chris Martin.

A source told Britain’s The Sun newspaper: “Jay-Z is confirmed as one of the key performers. In weak years there have been problems securing the big international artists. But knowing Jay-Z was there will help to secure other big acts.”

It has already been revealed ‘Bodies’ star Robbie Williams will close the awards show after being receiving Outstanding Contribution To Music prize, for his work with Take That and as a solo star.

Robbie has already won more BRITs than any other artist and will be presented his 16th honour at the event which takes place at London’s Earls Court Exhibition Centre on February 16 2010.

British comedian Peter Kay has also been signed up to host the ceremony.

Source: BANG Showbiz

The late ‘Thriller’ singer’s brother Jermaine Jackson paid tribute to the star when accepting the prizes for Favourite Soul/ R’n’B Artist, Favourite Pop/Rock Male Vocalist, Favourite Pop/Rock Album and Favourite Soul/R’n’B Album for his ‘Number Ones’ greatest hits compilation, praising his life philosophy.

Wearing a single white glove in tribute to Michael, Jermaine said: “It’s not just about the winnings, the awards. It’s mainly the message. The message Michael had will live on forever. He saw good in everyone. Start with love and let’s love each other.”

Michael’s wins took him to a record-breaking total of 23 AMAs for his career, however, he failed to win Artist of the Year, the only other category he was nominated in.

The honour went instead to ‘Love Story’ singer Taylor Swift, who was amazed to be handed five accolades, including Favourite Pop/Rock Female Artist, Favourite Adult-Contemporary Artist, Favourite Country Album for ‘Fearless’ and Favourite Country Female Artist.

After being named Artist of the Year, she said in a video acceptance speech from London: “To even be mentioned in a category with Michael Jackson is an unimaginable honour. I’m sending my love to the Jackson family.”

Black Eyed Peas were named Favourite Soul/ R’n’B Group and Favourite Pop/Rock Group and wowed the audience at Los Angeles’ Nokia Theatre with a rendition of their hits ‘I Got A Feeling’ and ‘Boom Boom Pow’, backed by dancers wearing outfits made of stereo speakers.

Janet Jackson had opened the show with a medley of her greatest hits, while Lady Gaga’s performance also proved a talking point.

The ‘Poker Face’ singer, wearing a spectacular headdress and vest filled with lights, performed songs from her new album, ‘The Fame Monster’, and used her microphone to break into a glass case containing a grand piano. As she started to play, the instrument caught fire.

Other performers included Whitney Houston, Alicia Keys and Jay-Z, and Jennifer Lopez, who fell over mid-way through her tricky dance routine.

American Music Awards 2009 full list of winners:

Artist of the Year: Taylor Swift

Pop/Rock:

Favourite Male Artist: Michael Jackson

Favourite Female Artist: Taylor Swift

Favourite Band, Duo or Group: The Black Eyed Peas

Favourite Album: ‘Number Ones’, Michael Jackson

Country:

Favourite Male Artist: Keith Urban

Favourite Female Artist: Taylor Swift

Favourite Band, Duo or Group: Rascal Flatts

Favourite Album: ‘Fearless’, Taylor Swift

Soul/ R’n’B:

Favourite Male Artist: Michael Jackson

Favourite Female Artist: Beyonce Knowles

Favourite Band, Duo or Group: The Black Eyed Peas

Favourite Album: ‘Number Ones’, Michael Jackson

Rap/ Hip Hop:

Favourite Male Artist: Jay-Z

Favourite Album: ‘Blueprint 3’, Jay-Z

Adult Contemporary:

Favourite Artist: Taylor Swift

Latin Music:

Favourite Artist: Aventura

Alternative Rock:

Favourite Artist: Green Day

Contemporary Inspirational:

Favourite Artist: Mary Mary

Soundtracks:

Favourite Album: Twilight Soundtrack

T-Mobile Breakthrough Artist: Gloriana

Source: BANG Showbiz

The ‘I Look To You’ singer – who has won a staggering 21 AMAs from 37 nominations – will be handed the International Artist Award at the star-studded ceremony later this month and will perform her new single ‘I Didn’t Know My Own Strength’.

AMA producer Larry Klein said: “We’re honoured to have Whitney Houston back on the AMA stage after 10 years.

“She has won the most AMAs of any female artist in history and is without a doubt an international superstar so it’s only fitting we honour her with the International Artist Award this year at such an important time in her career.”

The International Artist Award has only been presented seven times in the awards’ 36-year history.

Previous recipients include Michael Jackson, Rod Stewart, Led Zeppelin, Bee Gees, Aerosmith, Madonna and Beyonce Knowles.

Other stars to perform at this year’s AMAs at Los Angeles’ Nokia Theatre include Rihanna, Shakira, Jay-Z, Alicia Keys, Jennifer Lopez and The Black Eyed Peas.

Source: BANG Showbiz