The all-star lineup for the 2008 Essence Music Festival, held annually in New Orleans, has been announced! Kanye West, Mary J. Blige, Chris Brown, Jill Scott, Chris Rock, Morris Day and The Time, and Maze featuring Frankie Beverly are all slated to hit the stage in July for the weekend-long music festival. The festival, which takes place at the Louisiana Superdome, features three days of cultural celebrations and empowerment seminars and three nights of performances.
“This past year has been amazing for these talented performers and our audience will be thrilled to welcome them home for the ultimate Fourth of July weekend party,” said Michelle Ebanks, President, Essence Communications Inc.
The 2008 Essence Music Festival takes place from July 4th through July 6th.
Here is the Think2wice video premiere of Mary J. Blige’s single ‘Just Fine’ remix featuring Lil’ Mama from the album Growing Pains (Geffen) in stores now!
Well, not really a video premiere you could say, but it features clips from Tyler Perry’s Meet The Brown’s move in theaters March 21st! So I guess ‘Come To Me’ will be found on the movie’s soundtrack!
‘Come To Me (Peace)’ produced by Tricky Stewart will be R&B singer Mary J. Blige’s 3rd single from her latest album Growing Pains (Geffen) in stores now! If you look on Yahoo! Music’s premiere line-up ‘Come To Me’ is set to premiere February 18th so expect that to be posted on the site soon via our lovely Videographer Yardie, Lol!
Mary J. Blige – Come To Me (Peace) (webrip, y’all ain’t special – BUY the album) – page link
Jay-Z and Mary J. Blige have let the public in on a special 25-date co-headlining North American Tour, which will be entitled “Mary J. Blige & Jay-Z: Heart of the City Tour.” The tour is said to kick-off on March 22nd at the American Airlines Arena in Miami, and they have plans to touch down in Philadelphia, Boston, Baltimore, and Toronto. So far, only 10 dates have been confirmed, and more supporting acts are expected be added within the next few weeks. Tickets go on sale next Friday (February 15th) on LiveNation.com, but if you are a Citi card member, you have the option of participating in a pre-sale on February 13th via privatepass.citi.com.
Will.i.am, Quincy Jones, Omarion, Akon, Wyclef Jean, Beyonce, Mary J. Blige and Pharrell Williams talk about their influence with Michael Jackson and his Best Selling-album to date Thriller.
Beyonce, Mary J. Blige, Rihanna and Tina Turner are among the performers confirmed for the 50th Annual Grammy Awards, to be held February 10th 2008 at The Staples Center in Los Angeles.
Beyonce and Tina Turner are rumored to perform together, and the 2008 “Music Cares Person of the Year,” Aretha Franklin, will share the stage with Mary J. Blige, the Clark Sisters, Israel And New Breed, the Madison Bumblebees, and Trinity 5:7 for a gospel segment. And in a special 50th anniversary moment, Rihanna will perform with the Time, which is reuniting for the special occasion.
And here we thought steroids were just for athletes! Some of music’s biggest names like Mary J. Blige, 50 Cent, Timbaland and Wyclef Jean came up in connection with an Albany, New York based steroid investigation, The Times Union of Albany reported. They even named playwright/director Tyler Perry!
Citing unidentified sources, the report alleged that the above-mentioned music stars, along with award-winning author and producer Tyler Perry, may have received or used performance-enhancing drugs. Grammy-winning singer Blige blasted the report when reached for comment by the New York Daily News. “Mary J. Blige has never taken any performance-enhancing illegal steroids,” the singer’s spokeswoman Karynne Tencer told the News. Ken Sunshine, a spokesman for Perry, declined to comment to the Associated Press.
Law-enforcement officials have said evidence does not indicate the celebrities broke the law. For now, at least, officials are focusing on the doctors, pharmacists and clinics providing the drugs. Albany District Attorney David Soares launched his investigation into steroid trafficking last year. Soares has declined to comment on or confirm the identities of the stars who came up in the probe. His multistate investigation has focused on Signature Pharmacy of Orlando, Fla. So far, 10 defendants have pleaded guilty and some professional athletes have been linked to the probe in news reports.
Records shared with the Times Union and information from several cooperating witnesses on Long Island indicate the celebrities received prescribed human growth hormone or steroids. In some cases, aliases were used for their delivery. Former Sen. George Mitchell released his report last month on performance-enhancing drugs in baseball. Hearings are set to begin this month in Congress on the Mitchell report.
Well … I’ll be damned! The outcome of this will be quite interesting.
Mary J Blige is gracing Vibe’s latest issue. On the inside of the February 2008 edition of the magazine, she talks about losing some of her fans after her transition from “sad Mary” to “happy Mary.”
“When I took the chance to show people I can be happy, I lost a million of my fans. I was like ‘I’m gonna have to lose y’all in order for us to live, because if I keep going down this dark hole, we’re all gonna die together. I’m gonna slit my wrists or take some pills, and it’s gonna be over.”
Make sure you pick up this magazine, as it’s on stands now!
Mary J. Blige – Come To Me (Peace) (webrip, y’all ain’t special – BUY the album) – 
