Happy birthday

Rapper DMC (Run DMC) 52

Rapper Waka Flocka Flame 30

Remembering singer Vicki Sue Robinson (May 31, 1954-April 27,2000)

Singer Mariah Carey continues her promotional tour. The songstress has been making appearances on several talk shows to promote her forthcoming E! docu-series “Mariah’s World”, and yesterday she made an appearance on ‘Live With Kelly” to discuss her new reality show, changes to her Las Vegas residency and her latest headline grabbing parties. It was pajama day so Carey conducted the interview in a green lingerie ensemble. Kelly and her guest co-host actor Jussie Smollett even played “Humming With The Host”, where the two hummed one of Carey’s hits and she had to guess the song. Two weeks ago, Carey visited WWHL for a  jovial interview. Singer KeKe Wyatt packs her powerhouse vocals on her latest #KeKeCovers installment, creating a paradise for listeners with her amazing voice. Previously, Wyatt had covered “I’m Going Down” by Mary J. Blige/Rose Royce, “I Will Always Love You” by Whitney Houston, “Love On Top” by Beyoncé, “Diamonds” by Rhianna, “Oui” by Jeremih and “Diamonds And Pearls” by Prince. KeKe Wyatt’s latest single “Rated Love” is available on iTunes. Former “America’s Got Talent” inaugural winner Bianca Ryan is still an ambitious individual achieving success ten years later, not only singing, but songwriting and acting as well. Her journey has been one filled with many peaks and valleys, but the singer says she wouldn’t have it any other way. She began her career in the arts at an early age by taping dancing at the age of three and she also won numerous talent shows for dance in tap, ballet and jazz. Although she became known for her vocal prowess, singing wasn’t her first passion. The love for singing was inspired by her father, a guitarist and singer who toured with gospel artists. She is currently working on an EP that she hopes to release some time this year. She describes the EP as one having songs that will inspire and motivate people. Producer/arranger/conductor Quincy Jones once said Ryan would be the next revolution in the music industry. She’s well on her way and no doubt, the best is yet to come. The Golden State Warriors lit up the Orale Arena in Oakland last night as they defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder. As Steph Curry and company advance to the NBA Finals to take on Labron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, several notables reacted to the victory, a straight game three win for GSW who bounced back after a losing streak against OKC at the start of the series. Rapper Big Sean, DJ Premiere, singer Peebles and rapper Lil B The Basegod are among those who tweeted responses to last night’s win. Earlier this month, news broke of a super group featuring three fourths of the group Rage Against The Machine, along with Public Enemy’s Chuck D, and Cypress  Hill’s B Real. Today, Prophets of Rage formally announced it’s existence along with its first show. The new band will make its live debut at the Whiskey A Go Go in Los Angeles. Tickets go on sale at 10:00 local time and can be purchased at the venue’s box office. Following an opening set from Public Enemy’s DJ Lord, the show is scheduled for a 9:30 pm start time. Proceeds from the show will go to PATH, a California based family of anti-homeless agencies. The Rage members on board, which include guitarist Tom Morello, bassist Tim Commerford and drummer Brad Wilk, will perform songs from their band’s own catalog along with Public Enemy’s and Cypress Hill’s, in a addition to new music. They’ve enlisted the rallying cry #MakeAmericaRageAgain.

Happy birthday

Remembering singer/rapper Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes (May 27, 1971-April 25, 2002-TLC)

Rapper/actor Andre “Andre 3000” Benjamin (Outkast) 41

Rapper Jadakiss 41

If fans thought that former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham would retire from music after the girl group disbanded in 2000, they’re wrong, and there are receipts to prove it. Earlier this month, several demos of an unfinished solo project from 2003 titled “Come Together” went viral. The project was produced by Damon Dash, for whom she modeled the urban wear line Rock-A-Wear. Dash told the BBC News at the time that if Rock-A-Fella could make Beckham hot they could make anyone hot. Well, it appears that Dash really didn’t have that much faith in her after all. Now, 13 years later, fans get an opportunity to hear what they worked on, and it’s interesting. Since she’s currently working as a fashion designer, Beckham more than likely didn’t want the tracks released. At any rate, a her foray into R&B/Hip Hop was a bold step. Following the release of his single “Lake By The Ocean” in April, Maxwell has revealed the cover art for his next studio effort, “blackSUMMER’Snight”, the album from which the track is taken. The cover photo shows the singer clad in a black suit covering his face against a white, brick background. “blackSUMMER’S night”, Maxwell’s first new music in seven years,  will be released on July 1, right after his BET Awards performance on June 26 and in time for his performance at the 2016 Essence Music Festival. In the meantime, Maxwell and his leading lady take a dip in the visual for the single. The Philip
Andleman directed clip finds Maxwell serenading his special lady, who totes jugs of water in the sweltering heat of Haiti and Dominican Republic. Maxwell has described the visual as a love story about finding joy after having gone through struggle and betrayal. It’s certainly worth watching.  Just as Chance the Rapper’s latest studio effort “Coloring Book” is set to hit all music streaming services today, the Chicago MC is celebrating the release of a new music video for the single “No Problem”, his collaboration with 2 Chainz and Lil Wayne. Chance directed the clip with Skim Nasty, and received support from a few more friends as well. DJ Khaled, Young Thug, Boosie Badazz and King Louie all make cameo appearances in the high spirited visual. “Coloring Book” was released exclusively for streaming on Apple Music on May 12. In a tweet announcing the video, Chance also indicated that tickets would be coming soon as well. Brooklyn rapper Troy Ave grabbed  headlines yesterday after being arrested for reckless endangerment, menacing, possession of a weapon and attempted murder stemming from the deadly Irving Plaza shooting that occurred at a T.I . headlined concert on Wednesday evening. News of the rapper ‘s arrest circulated after the New York Police Department released footage of a male suspect firing a gun in the concert hall’s backstage area, with some reports suggesting that the suspect in the video looked like the 30-year-old MC. The shootout left three injured, including Troy Ave, and left the MC’s bodyguard, Ronald McPhatter dead. While Troy Ave has been buzzing around the industry for a few years now, his recent arrest has brought him more attention than his catalog. Here’s hoping he uses this experience to become a better person.

Happy birhday

Singer/rapper Lauryn Hill 41

Singer Jahiem 38

Singer Joel “Joey” Kibble (Take 6) 44

Singer Lenny Kravitz 52

Singer Corinne Bailey Rae seizes the  highest entry on the Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart, dated June 4, arriving at No. 3 with “The Heart Speaks In Whispers”, selling 14,000 copies in the week ending May 19, according to Nielsen Music. It’s the third studio effort for the singer/songwriter and first since 2010, when “The Sea” debuted at No. 2 (53,000 copies). Her debut self titled album peaked at No. 3 on the chart in 2007. Rae simultaneously enters the Billboard Artist 100  chart, which measures the week’s most popular across all genres, at No. 88. Fans can now stunt in the sun like Rhianna. The songstress has inked a deal with Dior to launch a line of sunglasses with futuristic frames. Inspired by the “Star Trek” character Geordi La Forge, Rhianna said in a statement that she’s always been obsessed with eyewear, and upon arriving at Dior, saw the materials available and things came together. The glasses will come in six colors: silver, pink, blue, green, and red, all of which will be very expensive. A 24-karat gold plated edition will be available for $1, 950. The “Rhianna” collection will be sold exclusively at Dior stores beginning in June. Christina Aguilera’s duet with a Whitney Houston hologram may have been axed, but that doesn’t mean the NBC series “The Voice” has been stopped. Aguilera has found another duet partner in Arianna Grande for the season 10 finale of the series. Grande opened the set with a rousing performance of her latest single “Into You” wearing a white pants suit and surrounded by male dancers, smoke, pyro, and an elaborate set. Aguilera later joined her midway through wearing a black pants suit and her army of female dancers. Both singers belted circles around one another as they stood  in a lit cube. For fans who were temped to sign up for Apple Music just to stream Chance the Rapper’s latest effort “Coloring Book”, but didn’t, there’s good news. The MC’s album will be available everywhere tomorrow. Chance confirmed the album’s Spotify release in a Reddit AMA on May 15 and again with a tweet on May 25, but fans are left to wonder if everywhere means CDs, and vinyls, or if he’ll continue his unique approach by keeping his music to mp3s and m4as. We’ll have to wait and see what transpires. Rapper Meek Mill proved he’s a glutton for Twitter punishment with his latest verses on  his and Fabulous’ remix of Fat Joe & Remy Ma’s “All The Way Up”. In the remix, Meek rehashes his initial Twitter tirade against Drake’s reported reliance on ghost writers, specifically his lines on the Drake and Meek collaboration “R.I.C.O.” Meek even references Drake’s  hometown Toronto while also giving a shout out to a fellow Philadelphia native. Let’s see where things go from here.

Happy birthday

Remembering singer Clarence Burke Jr. (May 25, 1949-May 26, 2013 The Five Stairsteps)

Singer/bassist Clifford  Archer (Atlantic Starr) 64

Singer/actress Leslie Uggams 71

Singer Mariah Carey continues to expand her brand. Her 2015 holiday film “A Christmas Melody” was quite successful, bringing in 3.9 million viewers. So much so, that the Hallmark Channel is interesting in working with the songstress on more projects. According to Deadline.com, the cable network has signed the songstress to a two-year, three picture deal, allowing Carey the creative freedom to develop, executive produce, direct and co-star in a trio of movies, creating an original song for each. One of the films will be a Valentine’s Day movie as part of the channel’s “2017 Countdown to Valentine’s Day” programming event. Along with those projects, Carey will also be planning a wedding to fiancé billionaire James Packer, which will be documented on the E! documentary “Mariah’s World” and will reportedly air this fall. For over a  month, the question has loomed regarding what would happen to the vault of Prince’s unreleased music, which includes over 50 never released music videos, songs, live jam session recordings and albums as well. The legal battle with his surviving relatives ensued over who’s the rightful heir to this treasure trove of property. Prince’s full sister, Tyka Nelson, is at the forefront of the fight. Now, according to TMZ, two new people may be legal heirs after it was revealed that Prince’s half brother, Duane Nelson Sr., had a daughter, Brianna, and granddaughter Victoria, who recently filed court documents claiming they are heirs to his fortune as well. Reportedly, both Brianna and Victoria have expressed the desire to turn Prince’s Paisley Park estate into a museum much like Elvis Pressley’s Graceland. They also want to release the contents from the vault and have the support of family members to do so. However, reports also say that Tyka isn’t on board with the idea; she’s Prince’s only full blood sibling and she’s been petitioning the court to give her a larger portion of control over his estate. Needless to say, this messy legal drama may prevent fans from hearing any new Prince music anytime soon. Rapper Kanye West is being sued by a Hungarian musician who claims West sampled  a song he wrote without permission. Gabor Presser says West’s 2013 album “Yeezus” contains a song called “New Slaves” that samples a song Presser wrote in 1969. Presser’s lawsuit was filed in Manhattan federal court. It states that one-third of “New Slaves” features a song Presser wrote while with the band Omega. He’s seeking $2.5 million. Meanwhile, the lawsuit also states that West’s managers acknowledge the sampling happening when they sent Presser a $10,000 check for the work. Presser says he never cashed the check due to concerns regarding the agreement. The lawsuit adds that “Gyongyhaju Lany” is one of Hungary’s most beloved pop songs. Neither West nor any of his representatives have responded publicly to the matter. Fat Joe Remy Ma’s “All The Way Up” gets a plus one with fellow New Yorker Jay Z joining the two on the track. The remix debuted as a Tidal exclusive during a New York Yankees game last night. Fat Joe told Billboard magazine that he turned down a lot of big names who wanted to appear on the remix, but wanted to keep it New  York. He’s excited for the city. The track shows he still has it.

Happy birthday

Singer Patti LaBelle 72

Rapper/actor Big Tyme 35

Rapper G-Eazy 27

Singer/drummer Larry Blackmon (Cameo) 60

Remembering rapper Dwight Errington Myers (Heavy D, Heavy D & The Boys) 49

Singer Cee Lo Green and comedian Russell Peters are set to compete on Spike’s “Lip Sync Battle”. Green sports the iconic Kiss make up and heavy metal garb for his performance of the Kiss anthem “Rock And Roll All Nite”. Fans can tune in on Thursday, May 26 at 10:00 p.m.ET/PT on Spike TV to watch Green display  his rocker side. It will certainly be worth watching. After a great deal of controversy, Madonna’s Prince tribute at the Billboard Music Awards drew praise from some, criticism from many others. Roots drummer Questlove, who gave the opening introduction to the highly anticipated performance, took to Twitter in light of the backlash from viewers to defend Madonna’s performance. He reminded followers that Prince’s shoes are difficult to fill, and anyone who steps up to sing any song in  his catalog should be applauded. He made several valid points. It’ll be interesting to see what BET has in store in terms of a tribute to the late musician. The “Bad Boy Family Reunion Tour” continues its trek across the country . Several dates have been added to accommodate fans eager to see Sean “P Diddy” Combs along with 112, Faith Evans and others. The tour will end on Oct. 8 in Oakland CA. Yesterday, singer Lalah  Hathaway appeared on “The Real” to perform her Grammy award wining  single “Little Ghetto Boy”, a remake of her father Donny Hathaway’s hit. In a surprise twist, rapper Snoop Dogg joined her on stage for a verse for a west coast remix along with saxophonist Terrace Martin. The performance was quite a memorable one indeed. The track “All Day” didn’t make it on to “The Life Of Pablo”, or any other album for that matter, but it still remains one of the best singles rapper Kanye West has given fans in some time. Singer Paul McCartney, a featured musician on the track, provided its melody and a whistle on the outro as well. There’s more to the back story, however. During a recent interview with John Wilson for BBC Radio 4’s Mastertapes, McCartney revealed that Oprah Winfrey advised him not to collaborate with West on the song due to West’s lyrical choices. According to McCartney, the N word is used several times in the song, with Winfrey stating that the term shouldn’t be used by Blacks either. As for his relationship with West, McCartney said the two love each other adding that West inspires him with his ideas. If the first few months of 2016 haven’t proven anything else, they’ve proven that not much has changed from the mid-nineties to the present day. Rapper Jay Z is close to the take over he spoke of a few years ago. It’ll be interesting to see what transpires later in the year.