We didn’t think it would happen but it has. Amerie finally managed her very first TV performance to promote new album ‘In Love & War’, which was released this week. Amerie took to the stage on Wendy Williams to perform her second single ‘Heard Em All’. Watch the performance below:

I liked it.

Amerie has never been much of a technical dancer so she did what she could with the limited choreography. I liked the end part when she was wildly thrashing around that gorgeous (and very real) hair of hers (Beyonce will be proud).

Now about her poor promotion. I feel bad for her because this was meant to be her week, and she got totally eclipsed by label mate Rihanna(not that I’m complaining because I’m loving it, but I don’t agree that Amerie had to suffer in the process).

It’s such a lowdown dirty shame that today is Thursday and we’ve only seen one televised performance. I know Amerie isn’t pleased with Def Jam especially since her album was late for itunes availability (she complained about this on her Twitter). ‘In Love & War’ is in my top 5 for best R&B album of the year and sadly, I just can’t see her getting good first week sales.

Meanwhile, check out her ‘Complex’ spread:

Hotness. That first picture is absolute fire.

Another new promo photo for Rihanna’s new album ‘Rated R’ surfaced today. The vibrant picture was shot by famed photographer Ellen von Unwerth who also photographed her dark-natured black and white album cover. Peep the fierce new photo below:

Picture source.
At last I can say there’s colour and some light at the end of her musical tunnel. All of this darkness was getting a bit much. Meanwhile, I’ve posted her ‘Glamour’ spread after the jump and…

I look at these drop dead gorgeous photos which were shot by Matthias Vriens-McGrath and then I look at the new promo video for her Good Morning America interview (inside), and I have to say how horrible the blonde mullet looks. In promo shots (like the one above), it doesn’t look that bad. With a considerate amount of airbrushing, anything can look like perfection. But once you see unairbrushed visuals, it’s messy.

Usually, her wacky hair styles are ones that she can pull off flawlessly. Yet, folk would be appointing us to the nearest mental institution should we be audacious enough to attempt them. Not even Rihanna can grace her stylish magic on such a disastrous look.

Ditch! Now!

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Rihanna opens up to ‘Glamour Magazine’, in which she addresses the night she was brutally assaulted by ex-boyfriend Chris Brown, domestic violence itself, her new album, ‘Rated R’, edginess in style, and her delight at being honored by ‘Glamour’ with ‘Glamour Woman of the Year’. The gorgeous singer will be accoladed with the title next week at an NYC ceremony. An interesting quote that may struck a chord is that, after she was left bloody and bruised, she woke up the next morning feeling as as if she had just stepped into the shoes of Ms Spears.

I wish I could wake up as Britney Spears.

Of course, without the negative drama and aching pressures. But then I wouldn’t be Britney Spears would I? That’s why I got to give it to these big name celebs. They cannot catch a break especially when all their business is out on front street and in the full media glare of the public. I value my privacy more than anything.

The money and popularity is just one side of it but the other side lies dark territory. So after reading this very interview, I have to commend Rihanna for managing to stay grounded (much of that she credits to her mother) and not allowing herself to unravel in light of her media hell (the assault, the leaked photo, people putting pressure on her to ditch Breezy and more).

I’m not even sure if I could carry all that on my shoulders at just 21. Click here to read the interview in full. Or alternatively…

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X Factor champ Alexandra Burke poses in a high fashion spread for the latest issue of Wonderland magazine. Check out a couple of pictures from the recent photoshoot below:

I’m not one to mince my words, but this is not a very good photoshoot. The poses and awkward facial expressions look very contrived and the make-up is hideous. Although, high fashion may not be Ms Burke’s strong point, at least she still has the ability to deliver us with some rousing performances from time to time, sucky music or not.

Chris Brown has been prepping for his comeback over the last couple of months and everything looks set in place. New album ‘Graffiti’ has been recorded and is set for a Dec 15th release. Plus, he has shot the music videos for his two dual singles ‘Crawl’ and ‘I Can Transform Ya’. As well as releasing new music, he is also doing a 15-date ‘Fan Appreciation’ tour next month. The videos are expected to premiere any day now. Whilst we wait, here is a new promo photo:

C. Breezy is getting his grown and sexy on, and it has just been announced that CB will be headlining the 13th Annual Best Buddies Miami Gala on Watson Island on Nov 20th. Read More.

Alicia Keys has pushed back her new album ‘The Element of Freedom’, from Dec 1st to Dec 15th, which also means she’ll be going head to head with not just Mary J Blige but Chris Brown as well. Her latest new single ‘Doesn’t Mean Anything’ has been underperforming badly so the extra time will allow her to plug her next single ‘Try Sleeping With a Broken Heart’. Meanwhile, here’s a glimpse of the first promotional picture taken from her new album. Check it out below:

Click image for larger view…
She looks lovely in the promo but I’m not really surprised her latest song is tanking. It does sound like a watered down remix to ‘No One’. I want soulful Alicia back from her debut and ‘Diary’ era. First week sales will be interesting because Mary and Alicia are two of the more successful acts in R&B who often sell big in the first week. Chris Brown is the underdog because his new song ‘I Can Transform Ya’ has done much better than Alicia and Mary’s put together which is why they both had to push back their albums. Interesting.

With the grand premiere of Rihanna’s new single ‘Russian Roulette’ being the talk of the nation yesterday, Def Jam has undergone a massive comeback launch for Rihanna’s new album ‘Rated R’ (out on Nov 23rd). We’ve so far been hit with a promotional video which was unveiled the night before the premiere. Shortly after the song debuted, an official press release was distributed to all aspects of the media. Now you can get a glimpse of the first promotional picture taken from her new album Rated R. Check it out below:

More interestingly is that she will reportedly do a sitdown interview with Diane Sawyer on Nov 30th. Rihanna has been very silent about the day she recieved a severe battering from ex-boyfriend Chris Brown, and hopefully, the interview may shed some light on the situation. I love the promo picture. It’s hot. I’m getting a lot of Emo vibes from it as well. It appears she really is taking ‘edgy’ to newer and better heights not just image-wise but musically as well. Picture source.

Amerie revisits the 1920’s and channels Josephine Baker in a new photoshoot for Essence magazine. Here is a sneak peak look at the photoshoot below, which was taken for the November issue:

This shoot is pure vintage. Love it. Sadly, her new album ‘In Love & War’ looks like it’s going to flop when it hits stores on Nov 3rd. What’s even worse is that earlier, Billboard reported LA Reid wanting to drop Amerie from the label. If this album tanks, it’s highly unlikely she will get another album from them (example: Christina Milian and Janet Jackson). The sad thing about it is that I bet her album ends up being one of the most solid to drop this year.

Joss Stone has done a promo photoshoot for her new album ‘Colour Me Free’ and here’s the outcome. The 23-year-old has been on her promo grind performing new single ‘Free Me’ at every given opportunity. Her album will also hit US stores on October 20th and November 2nd everywhere else…

She looks radiant. I was trying to listen to her album previews on itunes this week but it would not work for me. Maybe because I don’t currently have itunes on my comp right now. But I don’t really mind. I know the album will be good. She performed half of the songs earlier this year at some of her UK gigs, which I actually posted. All of the tracks sounded very promising. Proceed to see the rest of the photoshoot.

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Leona Lewis unveiled her cover art yesterday for new album ‘Echo’. The promotional campaign continues this week with the release of these stunning new promo photos. The promo photos were taken for the new album, which will be released on Nov 16th & 17th. Click on the photos below to enjoy them in their HQ glory:

Click images for HQ…
These are gorgeous. Some of them would have been more fitting for the album cover than the sexualised image used. They look a lot more natural in comparison. I’ve also enclosed her official album tracklisting for Echo after the jump.

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Solange Knowles has done a main cover and photo spread for the latest issue of Honey magazine. The 23-year-old talks about the direction of her forthcoming album, her new look, and more in the interview which you can fully read by clicking here. Peep the cover below on the left. To get a larger view, just click on it. And here’s a tidbit excerpt of what she had to say about her new album, which is set to be released next year:

“With this record I am experimenting more with a really interesting mix of music. My describing it probably sounds crazy but I’m kind of working with tribal, Native American drums and mashing them with weird ’80s and blues. I have been exposed to so many different great forms of music. It’s definitely going to be an experimental album.

I’m still establishing the sound, but what I’m really focusing on is doing everything independently. I’ve been A&R-ing the project and staying on top of the budgets. I’ve been producing myself, and learning the backside of making the record financially because I didn’t do as much of that the last record. I really want to be in a place where I feel no pressure with my record sales.

It was never my intention to have this huge commercial success because otherwise, I would have made other kinds of records. I know how to write pop [and radio] records. I’ve written them for other people. But that isn’t the music that inspires me. It isn’t the music that I feel good about performing or that makes me want to get up and push every morning and be in 10,000 cities in one month promoting”.

‘Solange & The Hadley Street Dreams’ was such a well-produced and put-together album which sadly underperformed. It was one of my favourite albums of 2008 so I am really checkin’ for her new album. There is just something more authentic and organic about her as a recording artist. She vehemently pays attention to the music she feels passionately about rather than be manufactured into putting out artificial pop music just to cater to the masses. I also use to think she was a right bitch who lacked the professional media training, but it’s just typical Solo being real. She holds no punches and does not sugarcoat her thoughts. When she does interviews, you don’t get any fake vibes from her at all because you know that it’s 100%. I’ve actually grown to like her feisty personality. She is so different from her sister who comes across as a little too programmed. Sometimes, you don’t even know if she’s coming from a genuine place, but with Solo it’s different. Peep her high fashion spread after the jump.

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Alexandra Burke has done an exclusive photo spread for the October issue of Marie Claire. Peep the outcome below:

Aside from the pictures that I chose for the main post, I cannot say I was liking this photoshoot although it looked like she was channeling her inner-MJ. Her interview was really sympathetic, however, and now Alex is finding out that fame is not everything its cracked up to be. Many people would walk a mile to be in her shoes right now - minus the drama. Picture source.

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