Alicia Keys rocks a new “edgy” look as she shows up on the cover of Vibe Magazine’s April/May 2012 issue.

In the interview for Vibe’s “2nd Annual Global Issue,” the R&B singer/songwriter sits down with her husband Swizz Beatz and the two discuss how they became soul mates.

Check out the excerpt below:

“It was the craziest thing,” says Dean, leaning forward in his chair. “We had a work lunch with some people, and I get home and look in the back pocket — My credit card was in his pocket,” Keys ?nishes the story, eyes wide. “Why was my credit card in his pocket?”

One explanation might be that he’d grabbed it by accident when they split the check, but that would be too prosaic. They saw the credit card debacle as a sign, the ?rst of many. Well, second, if you count the time, 14 years ago, when they ?rst met and Dean tried unsuccessfully to get her number from his friend. “It wasn’t our time yet,” he says with a smile.

Maybe it’s the swanky lighting, the buzz from the booze or simply the glow thattends to bounce off of famous people, but now de?nitely seems to be their time. And hers, especially. At 31, Keys is among the best-selling recording artists of all time. She’s released ?ve albums, won 14 Grammys and sold more than 30 million albums worldwide.

She’s now working on her sixth album, and yet she appears relaxed, approachable, easy-breezy. Of course, she’s sort of always seemed that way, even all the way back in 2001, when she was a new artist with plenty of Harlem swag (Keys’ roots are from Hell’s Kitchen, N.Y.) promoting her ?rst album, Songs in A Minor. But let her tell it and this is the ?rst time in her life when she feels comfortable in her own skin. It’s the pay off, she says, for making dif?cult choices, personally and professionally.

“Let’s just say I’ve been very uncomfortable,” she’d said a few days earlier, curled up on a squishy red sofa in a recording studio. “I’ve been brave enough to be uncomfortable.”

[VIBE]

Check out another hot shot of Keys from the issue (courtesy of YBF) below:

And be sure to look out for the full issue when it hits newsstands on April 16th!

Kicking off a heavy promotional campaign for her upcoming album “Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded,” Nicki Minaj is featured on the cover of the February/March 2012 issue of VIBE Magazine.

See what she had to share with the mag below:

VIBE: You’ve said before that you didn’t really have fun recording Pink Friday.

Nicki Minaj: I felt like I had something to prove to everyone who said a female rapper could not make an album unless she was talking about her pussy. And so I went above and beyond to prove that I could not talk about sex and not talk about my genitalia and still have a successful album. And I proved that. And now my time for proving things to my critics is over. I don’t really need to prove anything to anyone else anymore.

Is it still hard to get your way as a woman in this industry?

It’s not hard to get your way when it’s your way or the highway. People either follow suit or they’re not around. I don’t really like the sound of that, ‘cause that sounds like a temper tantrum. I’m just very black and white when it comes to my business. There’s really no gray area. I really don’t have a lot of small talk with people I work with. It’s pretty much let’s get the job done. In the beginning, if people didn’t know me they’d probably assume I wasn’t smart or wasn’t business savvy. But once you sit and talk to me, it’s a different story.

You were heavy on the fashion scene last year around Fashion Week with Anna Wintour. Do you feel like you’ve been accepted by the fashion world?

Yeah, I realized more recently that even if it’s for a fashion magazine, I’m not gonna change who I am. When I was doing photo shoots last year, I kept on being told, “This is what we want your hair to look like and this is what we want you to look like,” and it really, really stifled my creativity. So the other day I was talking to a photographer, and he said, “You know what, I like your everyday looks so much better than when you do photo shoots for magazines.” And I was like, “So do I, you’re absolutely right.” I’d been getting more and more frustrated for a while.

But I’ve made up my mind that when you see a Nicki Minaj magazine cover from now on, it’s really going to reflect me and it’s going to be something that I creatively had a hand in, because I don’t have to do it anymore. I don’t have to do things just to please people. It’s okay to do what I love because what I love, my fans love. And they’re really the only ones that should matter. The fashion world will have to come to Nicki Minaj, as opposed to Nicki Minaj trying to go to the fashion world.

[VIBE]

T.I. is featured on the cover of the December 2011 issue of VIBE Magazine, where the Kang makes one hell of a controversial statement that has gotten the gay community all riled up:

“Man, I will say this, the funniest joke I ever heard Tracy say during a stand-up was, ‘C’mon man, I think gay people are too sensitive. If you can take a d**k, you can take a joke.’ [Cracks up laughing.] That sh*t was funny to me. And it’s kind of true.’”

While T.I. makes clear that he supports anyone’s sexual preference, he then connects, in his opinion, a current oversensitivity among gay people with a consequential and ironic offense of the First Amendment. “They’re like,‘If you have an opinion against us, we’re gonna shut you down.’ … That’s not American. If you’re gay you should have the right to be gay in peace, and if you’re against it you should have the right to be against it in peace.’”

In addition to that, the rapper also talks about being skeptical about Osama Bin Laden’s death and even gets a little defensive when questioned about why his wife Tiny didn’t take the drug charge that sent him to prison for another year

Read a few more excerpts (courtesy of VIBE) below:

T.I. on being skeptical about Osama Bin Laden’s Death:
The conversation shifts from Muammar Gaddafi’s death—which occurred five days prior—to Osama Bin Laden’s assassination to both Eastern giant’s once empowered relationship with the U.S. government. “It’s like everybody that the U.S. was besties with, years later they’re the worst person in the world,” says Tip. “My question is what character traits do they possess now that they didn’t possess when y’all were besties? What made it go astray, and who’s to say they were on the dishonest end of that?”

The politic’n doesn’t stop there. Before an article can be selected from the “Osama Bin Laden killed” search, T.I. twists his lips in sarcastic fashion and shoots, “If that really happened.”

VIBE: So you’re skeptical about the legitimacy of Osama’s death?
T.I.: Man, I’m a conspiracy theorist by nature. You can’t experience the federal penal system and not be somewhat skeptical.

T.I. on people criticizing his wife Tiny for not taking the drug charge:
“I’ma tell you, 50 Cent and anybody else, we not gonn’a have no discussion about what my ole lady should’a, would’a, couda done for anything as it pertains to me,” begins his rant. “We ain’t gonn’a do that. I’m the only one in my family that’s gonna take a lick when it pertains to the legal system. Since me, none of my other family members have seen a jail cell. Nobody. I’m the last one. The buck stops here. I feel that a person that stands behind [his woman for a criminal charge] is a coward anyway.”

VIBE: I doubt she would have gotten any time.
T.I.: She wasn’t gonna catch it period, ’cause I’m there. That wasn’t even a consideration. Even if she asked me to I would’ve been like, “Nah, you trippin’. “

So you didn’t feel you were more valuable to your family, employees and business partners on the street?
That’s a discussion between me and another man. Not with the mother of my children. Not with the nurturer of my household.

[VIBE]

For more on T.I., pick up the newest issue of VIBE when it hits newsstands December 6th!

Rap superstar Lil Wayne is the latest Hip-hop figure to grace the cover of VIBE Magazine.

Dressed in a gold-trimmed, red velour jacket and a black fedora, Weezy looks like he’s channeling late rock legend Jimi Hendrix on the cover of the October/November 2011 issue of the magazine.

Inside, the Young Money CEO candidly dishes on a number of topics, including dissing Jay-Z and the repercussions behind it, whether or not he looks at his rap protege Drake as competition, how competition is for “the old guys,” and lots more.

Read a few excerpts from the interview below:

“There’s no competition [with any artists]. Music isn’t about competition no more. All the gangster rappers are happy, all the skateboard rappers are happy, all the white rappers are happy… Everybody just happy to do music these days. There are no problems. That shit died a long time ago with them old-ass rappers. We are just making music, making money and having fun feeding our families. Competition is for the old guys.”

VIBE: You say competition is for the “old guys,” but it sounds like you’re going at Jay-Z with that line, “I got your baby money/Kidnap your bitch, get that how-much-you-love-your-lady money.” Are we looking at it the wrong way?

LIL WAYNE: I know for a fact, music is about perception. You can’t do anything but perceive what you hear. If I know that for a fact, I can never be upset about someone’s reaction to it. I’m not gonna say I don’t know what will happen before I say it [on record]. I do know what will happen. I am aware of it. It is what it is.

VIBE: So you knew the repercussions of going after Jay before anything even happened?

LIL WAYNE: Well, I’m a man. I believe as a man you should know that. Every man should know the repercussions and consequences behind whatever they do before they do it. And of course, I know there won’t be any repercussions behind what I did.

VIBE: You mentioned how humbled you were at the success of “She Will.” Drake, who wrote and performs the song’s chorus, has now become a platinum star in his own right. Do you look at the guy and say, “Wow, I helped create a monster, I have to stay on my toes”?

LIL WAYNE: I don’t look at it like that. Drake is my artist. If he wasn’t my artist, then yeah maybe. But that’s my artist. He’s not [just] a friend. We’re more than friends. It’s business. It would be impossible for it to be a competition. I mean, I’m the guy’s boss.

VIBE: Given that Cash Money artist Jay Sean is a native of the U.K., you probably have some strong feelings about the London riots and how some talking heads blamed it on hip-hop culture.

LIL WAYNE: All you could do is pray for the people that were dealing with the situation and hope for the best. As far as them blaming hip-hop, you can blame Jesus for things, so you can’t really fault anybody for blaming someone or something. All you can do is hope for the best.

VIBE recently released a hot set of pictures of Trina rocking a swimsuit and gold heels in the last install of the magazine’s “Summer of Celebs in Swimwear” for their new fall issue (on stands now).

Check out the pics below!

She already posed topless on the cover … but now you can check out more sexy outtakes from R&B diva Kelly Rowland‘s photo shoot for VIBE Magazine‘s September August/September 2011 Juice Issue!

Take a look at the smokin’ hot pics below:

[That Grape Juice, via HK Access]

Kelly Rowland bares all on the cover of the latest issue of Vibe Magazine, where the R&B singer talks about her success in Europe, splitting with Mathew Knowles and shopping for sex toys in her most revealing interview to date.

Check out the excerpts below:

VIBE: The last album didn’t do well in the States. It did better overseas, particularly in Europe. Do you feel more appreciated in Europe?
Kelly Rowland: No, not really. People still compare me to B over there. I said in an interview recently, ‘You know, if you guys would be a little bit more intelligent and ask me about myself we’ll have a much better interview.’ You can’t want a story from me and keep asking me about the past.

When you walked away from that last meeting with Mathew, did you feel an “exhale” moment?
I did, but I also felt like, ‘Oh my God, what have I done?!’ I stayed in the house for two days. I was sad. It was like a funeral. I had to deaden that situation in order to start fresh. That’s a very long time to have the same manager and the same label.

What about your personal relationship with Mathew Knowles. Do you still talk to him?
Mathew sent me flowers for my birthday!

But do you talk to him?
It’s… I respect him above anything.

Speaking of this road we’re going on… Let’s talk about the song “Motivation.” I have to admit, the song went completely over my head. I thought you were talking about working out.
[Laughs] No, honey.

When you heard the song, did you think, This may be too racy for my image?
Not at all. Every woman knows what that feels like—hopefully. But everyone doesn’t expect Kelly to sing about it. This is true. But I just loved the song so much. And yes, I can relate to it. I came into my sexuality while I was recording this album. I can walk into a sex shop now and not worry about what people would say if they saw me in there.

You really do that? Go to sex shops?
Yeah! With friends on the low. I go at the right time. Nighttime. 1 a.m. The really good ones are open that late.

Kelly Rowland’s new album “Here I Am,” featuring the hit single “Motivation” (f/ Lil Wayne) and her latest single “Lay It On Me” (f/ Big Sean), is in stores now!

And for more on Kelly, pick up VIBE Magazine’s August/September 2011 Juice Issue when it hits newsstands August 16th.

Amber Rose is mad as hell at Vibe…..

The model took to Twitter late Saturday night to lash out at the urban magazine for inaccurately printing a recent interview she did.

“Just read “my” interview in @VibeMagazine half of the story was untrue & ridiculous! F##K that Cover F##K @VibeMagazine yall wrote a bunch of negative bullshit that I never said or did. Yall don’t give a f*ck that I have a Mom & Family thats gonna read that fake ass shit I gave yall a truthful interview & Yall f##ked me. I’m so sick of keeping my mouth shut I didn’t ask for this life it was handed to me. I was nothing but nice to everyone I spoke to @ Vibe”

Here’s the full interview with Vibe below:

AMBER ON LIFE POST-KANYE:
“What am I supposed to do? Crawl up in a corner and die ‘cause I’m not with Kanye anymore? Am I supposed to go back to the strip club and not take these opportunities that I have?”

AMBER OF HER RELATIONSHIP WITH REGGIE BUSH:
“Me and Reggie [Bush] dated very briefly after Kanye…We were both each other’s rebound and we both knew that and were cool with that.”

AMBER ON WHY HER STORY IS RELATABLE:
“I don’t have rich parents and it’s a struggle. I can’t just call my dad and be like, ‘Dad, my money is a little messed up. Can you buy me a car or a house? It’s not like that for me. I feel like more people will relate to my story than the Kardashians or the Hiltons.”

AMBER ON BEING ICONIC:
“Kanye would always tell be how beautiful I was and that I was going to be iconic. He always said that, ‘Baby, you are iconic. You don’t understand what you have. I didn’t. I didn’t understand it.”

Damn….that’s gotta hurt

For the June 2011 issue of VIBE Magazine, Vibe hands out dual covers to both MMG CEO Rick Ross and professional groupie turned Hip-Hop arm candy Amber Rose. In the new issue, Amber has a whole lot to say including her past relationship with Hip Hop superstar Kanye West, former SuperBowl champion Reggie Bush, her “story”, and how she’s an “Icon.” (Yeah…right!)

Peep a few excerpts below:

ON HER RELATIONSHIP WITH KANYE WEST:
“People think me and Kanye are enemies, and we are not enemies. He wants the best for me, still. Let me say this: I still love Kanye. I will always love him as a person. I will always love him for what he’s done for me. I still always have that soft spot in my heart for him. I am not in love with him. I do not look at him in a sexual way anymore. I’m in love with someone else. I still love him as a person and want him to find happiness like I did. Everyone deserves that.”

ON LIFE POST-KANYE:
“What am I supposed to do? Crawl up in a corner and die ‘cause I’m not with Kanye anymore? Am I supposed to go back to the strip club and not take these opportunities that I have?”

ON HER RELATIONSHIP WITH REGGIE BUSH:
“Me and Reggie [Bush] dated very briefly after Kanye…We were both each other’s rebound and we both knew that and were cool with that.”

AMBER ON WHY HER STORY IS RELATABLE:
“I don’t have rich parents and it’s a struggle. I can’t just call my dad and be like, ‘Dad, my money is a little messed up. Can you buy me a car or a house? It’s not like that for me. I feel like more people will relate to my story than the Kardashians or the Hiltons.”

AMBER ON BEING ICONIC:
“Kanye would always tell be how beautiful I was and that I was going to be iconic. He always said that, ‘Baby, you are iconic. You don’t understand what you have. I didn’t. I didn’t understand it.”

“Iconic?” No. “Iconic whore?” Yes.

50 Cent doesn’t sugarcoat anything for anybody. In his April/May cover story for VIBE Magazine, the business mogul/rapper didn’t hold anything back as he broke down his rumored relationship with Chelsea Handler …. and the Twitter beef between him and Ciara.

Check out the excerpts below:

On Chelsea Handler and her confidence:
“I don’t speak to her as much as I did. Chelsea is confident. I think confidence is the sexiest thing about a person. She’s the kind of person that if you’re blessed with the opportunity to hang out with her, you’ll enjoy it. I’m not sure you’ll look at her and actually want to jump over the table and fuck her, but you might. You would leave after talking with her feeling that she is a cool person.”

On Twitter beef with Ciara:
“I could care less about trying to attack someone or bring them down in any way. I look at those scenarios like they’re actually trying to attack me. See, even if I have to assume that US Weekly said what you say. I’m sure she didn’t say that. She’s a friend. She’s been a friend. You know? And it’s like, I don’t know what to expect of people. I’ve been surprised a lot. You think you know what to expect out of people but…. I don’t know how I respond to that without being the bad guy.”

Source

Even though he’s half a dollar … 50 always keeps it 100!

50 Cent, dressed in a suit and tie while holding a briefcase, puts on his best mean mug as he poses in front of burning cars on the cover of the latest issue of Vibe Magazine. Inside VIBE‘s upcoming International issue, the rapper turned Hip-Hop mogul shares his thoughts on rappers getting face tattoos, his relationship with Chelsea Handler, his beef with Dr. Dre about his Sleek Headphones, and more.

Check out a few excerpts below:

ON DR. DRE’S REACTION TO HIS SLEEK HEADPHONES:
“I have a strong personality, a strong character. And I can be difficult to deal with at certain points because I’m vocal. If you upset Em, he’s just gonna not talk to you. You’re not going to get him in the next room you wanna get him in. With Dre, the same. He’s not comfortable with friction. That [tweet] is, “Hey look, I’m here. Is everybody still paying attention?” So they go, “Why he say that? Why he say we mad?” Then the meeting happens.”

50 ON HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH CHELSEA HANDLER:
“Chelsea is confident. I think confidence is the sexiest thing about a person. She’s the kind of person that if you’re blessed with the opportunity to hang out with her, you’ll enjoy it. I’m not sure you’ll look at her and actually want to jump over the table and fuck her, but you might. You would leave after talking with her feeling that she is a cool person.”

50 ON BEST NEW ARTIST GRAMMY RESULT:
“I think Drake got robbed. He should have got artist of the year last year [ laughs], to be real with you… He did a lot, man. I don’t believe that Drake would have been as successful or his project would have been as successful if Lil’ Wayne was home. That point where Wayne had to sit down provided a complete focus on Drake.”

50 ON RAPPERS WITH FACE TATTOOS:
“That’s the craziest thing. Not necessarily Gucci, but to tattoo your face says that there’s not a possibility that you can actually walk into a legitimate establishment without makeup covering your face every day. That does not work. It creates a separation. It says, “I’m an artist.” That’s it. That’s the statement you make when you go and tattoo your face…But know that the public will not have interest in you as an artist for life. You have to be phenomenal. Talk to the best that do it and they will tell you that it will take more than you being an artist. It takes marketing, maneuvering to generate for that long. When you got 40-year-old rappers in the game, those guys have maneuvered and survived.”

50 ON HIS INTERNATIONAL APPEAL:
I did the groundwork. I traveled. To them I’m not a myth. I’m a real person. They’ve seen me live in performances in Croatia, Kosovo, India…The same way they feel about me in New York, they feel about me in Africa and they feel about me in India. You can spin the globe and stop it wherever you want and say 50 Cent, and they know exactly who you’re talking about and they know the material. It is what it is. I don’t have the trophy case to reflect that, but I can’t eat trophies.

Source

For the full interview, grab this issue when it hits newsstands on April 5th!

Rapper T.I., currently serving an 11 month prison sentence in Arkansas for violating his probation, speaks on how his drug addiction began and more in the December 2010/January 2011 cover story for VIBE Magazine. Peep the excerpts below…

I’ve heard you mention how the good that you’ve done is easily forgotten. Do you feel that you’ve been treated unfairly?
If I place my value in the way humans treat me, then maybe. But they’re human, man?they can’t help themselves. They do that to people they know personally. So how can I expect them to treat me, only knowing me through television? They did that to Jesus. They did that to Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali. They did it to every great person you could possibly think of. When it was all good, they was with them. When things got bad, then they was against them.

But in this case things didn’t “get bad.” It’s something you did.
Let me just say this: [he sits up on the couch] If you look at a guy who came up, no pops in the house, moms on welfare, food stamps; started selling dope when he was 12, 13 years old, came up handling guns, being in shoot-outs; started going to jail when he was 15. In all of this chaos and this mischief and lawlessness, the person who was just in jail for machine guns and silencers turns his life around. And now you want to crucify him ?for what? Three pills. I mean, of course it’s wrong and unacceptable and inexcusable. No problem. But in the grand scheme of things, it’s rather petty. It’s rather petty to hold someone’s feet to the fire for something so small when they have overcame things that were so big. All that could have been going wrong?if I was riding with more guns, or if I had gotten into a shoot-out and killed somebody, then I could see that. But just think about it. I’ve gotten it down to this much.

How did you get a drug habit?
I had a lot of work done to my teeth. Oral surgery, extractions, six, seven, eight root canals. Between January to February. As soon as I got out, I had a lot of stuff done. In the joint, you eat shit that is unhealthy for you. I had fillings that fell out and stuff that had to get dealt with. Of course for the pain they gave me oxycontin and hydrocodone. And, mind you, on October 13, 2007, I had cut off everything?weed, alcohol. Then I get these pills and I start taking them for the pain at first. And then I’m like, Wait?this shit makes me feel good. And it’s legal. After the pain went away, I kept taking it. I had like five, six prescriptions. So I had, like 80 pills. Everybody else might have a drink or smoke a blunt, I took a pain pill. Times when I had 18-, 20-hour days, I’d take a pain pill. And eventually I developed?I guess?the beginning stages of dependence.

Have you talked to Eminem about addiction?
Sure. We got a record together, and we talked a lot. I asked him how he knew he was an addict. Basically if you put yourself in harm’s way… if you risk that, you’ve got to assume that there is something fundamentally wrong with your thought process.

Source

T.I.’s forthcoming album No Mercy, drops December 7th and will feature guest appearances from Kanye West, Chris Brown, Eminem, Trey Songz, Drake, Christina Aguilera and more!

Thoughts?

Soulja Boy has a song called “Shootout” and based on newly released excerpts from the rapper’s recent interview with Vibe Magazine, Soulja’s music ended up being a perfect example of life imitating art!

Soulja Boy covers the first ever digital issue of VIBE Magazine and in his feature, the 20-year-old entertainer talks about how he and his friends were involved in a shoot out at his home in Atlanta late last year. While they were in the studio recording, three thieves broke into his house and it all went down hill from there.

Continue reading to find out what “really” went down!!

“I’m thinking if I shoot this nigga, I can get that gun and shoot all these niggas at the same time,” says Soulja. “So I jumped out, shot at the dude four times and missed. He ducked down and ran. He started yelling, so I shot him like two more times,” he recalls. “Then he turned around and started running. So I popped his ass like two more times in the back, and he hit the floor.

Eventually, all three robbers fled the crib. Looking back on the situation, Soulja says Interscope Records didn’t want him discussing the shooting because of his fan base. But now that he’s an adult, he no longer wants to hold back.

“I really didn’t want nobody to know that I shot somebody,” he says appearing relieved to finally get out his account. “My label [didn't] want that out there [because] when the robbery went down I had fans like 9, 10 years old. But being that I’m 20, I don’t give a fuck no more. Ain’t nobody take shit [from me that night].”

Source: Rap Radar

So he shot someone and his label didn’t want him to tell people because of his fan base? Yeah right Soulja Boy! You ain’t shoot no damn body!!

Usher is featured on the cover of the October/November 2010 issue of VIBE Magazine, due on newsstands nationwide soon. In the issue, the Grammy Award winning R&B crooner discusses his new album Raymond v. Raymond, his divorce from Tameka Foster, supporting younger acts in the entertainment industry and more. Check out a few quotes from Usher’s upcoming VIBE issue by clicking below!

On Raymond V Raymond being a career rebound
“I don’t think it was a rebound at all. Some people in my organization felt like it was a rebound, but for me it was business as usual. Were there hard times in the process? Absolutely. I think it was the first time that doubt was ever amongst the opinions. Like, Can he do it again? Is it possible that this can happen? When you have 15 years of a legacy built, it shouldn’t be questionable with one album.”

On how long he was thinking about divorcing Tameka
“During our disagreements, that’s when I really began to contemplate marriage and if this is someone whom I’m compatible with. Anytime we had a disagreement or an argument, I began to contemplate: Wow, is this really gonna work out? I’m going through hell right now, given the fact that people have an opinion about our relationship. I can’t be unhappy at home and fighting the wars or the opinions outside… ‘You should’ve handled things this way,’ ‘I wish you would’ve said this,’ ‘You’re handling me wrong,’ ‘I don’t like the way I’m feeling about this’—it could be anything, man.”

On supporting younger acts
“There is no competition. I think that the artists that are doing great, they definitely need to have the support of the people that have [paved the road]. And that’s why I support Chris. I support Trey Songz. I support the Sammies of the world. I support the Lloyds of the world. Because this is a dying industry. This next tour represents a standard that has to be set for entertainment.”

This also marks Usher’s 3rd time covering VIBE Magazine. Click here to check out

Model/singer Cassie looks stone cold sexy in these outtakes from Vibe Magazine‘s Juice issue!!

Cassie and her Bad Boy counterparts, including the boss-man Diddy, along with Janelle Monae, Rick Ross and others, are featured on the cover of the August/September 2010 issue of Vibe Magazine (the annual “Juice” issue) and here are a few outtakes from Cassie’s solo shoot.

Check out more hot shots of Cassie getting her model on for VIBE and representing for Bad Boy below:

MORE PICS @ VIBE.COM

Rappers and frequent collaborators Eminem and Dr. Dre appear together on the alternate cover of the August/September 2010 JUICE issue of VIBE Magazine, due to hit newsstands later this month (Aug 16)! Diddy and his crew cover the other issue, which was released last week. http://gossiponthis.com/2010/07/30/diddy-fam-cover-vibe/

Check out a few excerpts from Em’s feature in the mag below:

ON BEING HAUNTED BY DEATH:

Do you think about your own death?
Yeah, I do. A lot. I think about it a lot. I try not to think about it but I do and it creeps me the fuck out. It creeps me out because they say that if I got to the hospital two hours later then I would be gone. I think about that a lot. When I lay in bed at night is when I think about it the most. It creeps me out man.

THE BEST EMINEM DISS TRACK ACCORDING TO EM:

What was the best thing someone said about you? Was there ever a hot Eminem diss?
Um, no. [Laughs.] Nah, I’m kidding. Shit, there was a couple of lines Everlast said like, “You ain’t running up on me with no empty gun.” I know that there is a lot of shit that I would have said about me.

ON BRITTANY MURPHY’S PASSING:

What were your thoughts when you heard that your 8 Mile co-star Brittany Murphy had passed?
It was crazy. It’s crazy. It’s crazy because at one point we were very close and she was a really good person. It’s crazy when you see things not just with her but just all these things that are happening in Hollywood with people in music, with people in acting . . .

. . . famous people.
Famous people. Famous people are overdosing at alarming rates and—that almost sounded like a commercial. Wow.

It sounded like a Sally Struthers commercial. “Please give to this charity.”
Right. But they are. And it’s one of those things man where you’re famous, doctors will kiss your ass because they love the celebrity. “Oh, I can call up Eminem and get him on the phone right now. Oh, hi Marshall, how are you doing? Do you need that [prescription]?” There are doctors that will give you certain things just because of who you are.

Diddy and all of his artists cover the August/September 2010 issue of VIBE Magazine, also known as the “JUICE” issue! Janelle Monae, Rick Ross and Sean John himself are holding down the front of the mag while Dawn Richard and Kalenna (from Dirty Money), along with Cassie and Red Cafe are holding down the flip side.

In the issue, Mr. Combs discusses being flattered by comments from Dr. Dre about his skills as a producer, how he felt about that guy from Nightline NBC grilling him about buying his son an expensive car, and what he thought about Lil Kim dissing Nicki Minaj.

The issue hits newsstands August 16th, but in the meantime, peep an excerpt from Diddy’s interview below:

Dr. Dre said that the last beat that floored him was “All About the Benjamins.” How does that make you feel?
It’s humbling. I was in the studio with Dre the other day. He started working on a record for me. Watching him as a producer is watching greatness. We had a lot of similar traits. It was like looking in the mirror. He would ask questions like, “How you feel about this?” People don’t really understand true producers want to know how you feel about things. We are some of the most observant people on the planet.

What happened during the Martin Bashir interview on Nightline?
There were times in the interview when I had to give him an ultimatum. The questions weren’t being handled the right way. In hindsight, when I saw him I shouldn’t had done the interview because I know the style of interview that he does . . . The whole thing about giving a Maybach to my son, that’s really like a racist question. You don’t ask White people what they buy their kids. And they buy ‘em Porsches and convertible Bentleys and it ain’t no question. It’s really a racist question and put things back in perspective with money and the way that people still look at you. And I’m not saying that consciously he’s a racist. But he probably don’t even realize that he would not ask Steve Jobs that. He would be like Steve Jobs has that money and that’s the gift his kid is supposed to get.

Are the comments from Lil’ Kim about Nicki disheartening?
When I heard her say what she said, it didn’t really affect me. I didn’t get mad at her or anything like that. I knew how she felt. I ain’t agree with it. But also I know the motivation. I know that people say, “Oh, he’s trying to get a new Lil’ Kim.” I guess people will see in time. Yeah, Nicki’s had flavored wigs on, but besides that it ain’t even the same approach to the writing.

Your thoughts?

Young Money rapper Nicki Minaj, arguably the hottest female rapper in the game right now, has a cover feature for the June/July 2010 issue of VIBE Magazine and is giving her frenemy, rapper Lil Kim, the finger in one the photoshoot outtakes. And since they couldn’t put ALL of her shots in the feature, Vibe put some of the outtakes from the shoot (sans her animated Alice in Wonderland-like friends) on their site this week. Check out the sexy pics below and peep behind-the-scenes video footage when you continue reading…

Take that Lil Kim!

Erykah Badu strips down to her birthday suit on the second cover of the June/July 2010 issue of VIBE Magazine. Yesterday we showed you Nicki Minaj‘s cover and today, Erykah is revealing secrets and getting very “skin-timate” with her cover story.

In Erykah Badu’s feature, the R&B singer talks about getting naked in her “Window Seat” music video and more. Check out what she had to say below:

“I look at some other videos. I’m not naming names, because I don’t want that to be mentioned. There is the thing with sexuality. I’m naked for 13 seconds, and these people are naked the whole time and gyrating and saying come “lick on my lollipop,” and “suck on my cinnamon roll,” and, you know, suggesting sex. People are uncomfortable with sexuality that’s not for male consumption. Could be ‘cause I did it in public too. Do you think people would have been complaining if I had on high-heel shoes?”

“I am a big fan and a supporter of [Jay Electronica's] evolution and growth as an artist. I write all his rhymes. I’m joking. [laughs] I’m always amazed and impressed with the things he comes up with. He definitely does what a partner is supposed to do, that is, evolve you.”

“I was 27 when I had Seven. I was already a vegetarian. I had been for 10 years. I had started making choices that would shape me for the rest of my life. I never thought to measure by each child. My children are six years apart. It wasn’t planned, just how the relationships rolled out. I’ve had three unorthodox marriages of sorts. I’ve had the benefit of having substantial amount of time with people, mind-building time.”

VIBE MAGAZINE

Rapper Nicki Minaj looks a lot like Alice in Wonderland on the split cover of the latest issue of Vibe Magazine (Erykah Badu has the other cover). In the June/July 2010 feature, Nicki talks about how the music game has changed for female rappers and her use of funny voices. Continue reading to see what the Young Money rapper said…

“When I grew up I saw females doing certain things, and I thought I had to do that exactly. The female rappers of my day spoke about sex a lot . . . and I thought that to have the success they got, I would have to represent the same thing. When in fact I didn’t have to represent the same thing.”

“I’m not abandoning the funny voices. I just did a crazy tribute to ODB’s ‘Shimmy Shimmy Ya. But it’s coming up more with the album. I had a teacher in elementary who would stand on her table and whisper. We’d all turn around like, ‘What is this lunatic doing?’ But she would achieve what she wanted. She wanted us to stop talking and listen. I feel like I need to mellow it down so people can hear what I have to say.”

READ MORE @ VIBE.COM

VIBE Magazine released another preview of one of two upcoming covers for their June/July issue, and this one is an outtake from Erykah Badu‘s shoot. And just like the Nicki Minaj sneak peak, this here isn’t the actual cover either. Keep checking back for both covers though!!

Young Money femcee Nicki Minaj is next in line to cover an upcoming issue of VIBE Magazine. And here is an outtake from the June/July 2010 issue. This isn’t the actual cover though, but expect for it to drop any day now.

In any event, Nicki looks hot!!

What do you think about the cover?

Trey Songz will reportedly host a youth empowerment initiative called “Songz 4 Peace” at the University of Memphis on Sunday, April 18th. S4P’s mission is to educate and empower urban youth on the importance of choices.

In addition, MTV is reporting that the 25-year-old R&B singer, who just finished a major tour alongside Jay-Z and Young Jeezy, is gearing up to release his next album this Fall!

“September 14th, new album. He’s not gonna stop,” Liles said last week during a sit-down with MTV News to promote Def Jam Rap Star. “He’s gonna keep his foot on people’s necks, and he’s going to make sure they understand that we have to redefine R&B. We have to go work hard every single day to be the best.” Liles, a record executive with Def Jam and Warner Music Group, decided to come out of the “big suite” last year to concentrate on other business ventures. He was approached by Songz to help take the singer to the next level, and their mission was accomplished. Songz’s star is its brightest ever and the hits keep coming.

Peep outtakes from Trey’s photoshoot for the April/May 2010 issue of VIBE Magazine, on stands next Tuesday (Apr 13). And read on to see what else Trey has going on, including his upcoming reality show with Jeezy and a solo tour coming up this summer.

“Every day, this kid inspires me,” Liles said. “You know, that’s one of the reasons why I got back into it, because I wasn’t going to get back into it. I said, ‘I did it. I cannot [go back].’ I felt like I was starting to have the Michael Jordan syndrome, you know what I mean? What more? I scored 40 points, and you guys still feel I ain’t doing it. It’s like I scored 90 points, I said I don’t want to be in that business, I just want to be great. But he said, ‘Kev, we need you. You know we need you.’ So I’m in it full blown with him. September 14th, he’ll be back. He’s doing a theater tour coming up in August. He’s doing the BET Awards. The “MTV Unplugged,” which is amazing, sold out Roseland by itself, 3,000 people. It’s just a blessing to work with young talent.”

And that’s not all. Songz will reportedly star alongside his ex tour-mate Young Jeezy in an upcoming reality show.

“We’ve got the Blueprint 3 [Tour experience] from the eyes of Jeezy and Trey Songz coming out,” Liles revealed. “The first show airs on BET on June 27, the night of the BET Awards. The show comes first, and then right after that, the BET Awards.”

Rapper Young Jeezy talks about “Living the Dream, and a nightmatare” in his feature on the alternate cover of the April/May 2010 issue of Vibe Magazine. Trey Songz has the other one. The issue hits stands April 13th.

R&B singer Trey Songz is on top of the world right now. And now the ladies are going to go even crazier for him as he and his naked upper-body is plastered on the cover of the upcoming April/May issue of Vibe Magazine.

Speaking on comparisons to his rival R. Kelly, Songz says you can say what you want about him!

“People say, ‘Well, I hear a lot of R. Kelly in your music.’ So what?” Songz told the magazine, which hits newsstands April 13 “R. Kelly took Aaron Hall’s whole style. Two albums straight. … You can say what you want about me.”

Rapper Young Jeezy is featured on the other cover. Stay tuned for that one! And hit up the homie Necole Bitchie‘s site to take a look at Trey in the latest issue of Complex Magazine.

R&B/pop singer Chris Brown was displaying some high fashion in his December ’09/January ’10 VIBE cover story, on stands now. Earlier this week, Vibe.com released the photos to the web, and we grabbed a few for you to check out below…

MORE PICS @ VIBE.COM

Lawd, here go Chris Brown mouthing off again. Chris … son. We know you’re mad but sometimes you’ve gotta just let stuff ride, especially when you’ve been given a second chance. Chris recently went in on VIBE Magazine, who recently featured him on the cover of their December 09/January 10 issue (on stands now). Check this out:

“I think with the whole VIBE and the rebirth, I think it is a rebirth of me and showing people the new side of me, the music side, the talent and just the changed person,” Brown told reporter Renada Romain. “I think with the actual VIBE cover, it was never supposed to be talked about like the cover they made. That wasn’t what we discussed — the shirt is actually just a plain black shirt and they stamped ‘R U Still Down’ on it, so the cover was supposed to be the rebirth cover of VIBE and the rebirth of Chris Brown. It was never supposed to be ‘Everybody Hates Chris, Everybody Loves Drake‘ like, the type of thing like that. I kinda felt a certain way when they did it like that and they kinda told me one thing and they got it in writing, one thing, but then they did it another way…I appreciate any cover, I just don’t appreciate them using my situation…”

Source:  Honey Magazine

C’mon man just be glad somebody’s putting you on their cover. From this point on you just need to accept things for what they are and charge it to the game. Give people time to vent. Stop taking every opportunity for YOUR time to vent. Geez… LOL.

Continue reading for scans of Chris in the new VIBE…

Here are some scans of Lil Wayne (and Los Angeles Laker Kobe Bryant) in the December 2009/January 2010 issue of VIBE Magazine, on stands and in circulation now.

Initial reports suggested that Wayne would be portraying Jesus Christ in a voice over role in T-Pain‘s upcoming Cartoon Network special called the “Return of Freaknik.” But TV execs have clarified his role and said that he won’t be playing the role of biblical figure Jesus Christ after all.

TV bosses have laughed off reports Lil Wayne is set to play Jesus Christ in a new animated show, insisting his character simply shares his name with the Son of God. It was recently announced the star would lend his voice to “Return of Freaknik,” a one-hour special being produced for America’s Adult Swim network by fellow rapper T-Pain.

Earlier reports suggested Wayne would play Jesus Christ, but TV bosses insist his character is an up-and-coming rapper called Jesus.
A spokesperson for the network explains, “Lil Wayne’s character is still evolving. All we can say is that he is named Jesus and not Jesus Christ.”

SCANS VIA: THE 305

Check out these scans of rapper Drake in the latest issue of Vibe Magazine. Click here to check out Drake’s cover.

The 23-year-old emcee recently spoke with MTV News and told them he was going through a personal and professional evolution.

“I’m learning about myself. That’s what my music is about,” he said recently. “I don’t necessarily know all the time who Drake is. I take it day by day and learn as much as I can about myself. As I learn, I choose to share with my fans. I’m just an artist that isn’t scared of being open.”

Drake says being in front of the camera on “Degrassi” as an adolescent has helped him open up musically.

“My journey, as far as growing into a man, is shared with the people. My whole life is like that. I grew up on TV, I’ve always become accustomed to sharing my life with the world. At least now I get to do it in my own words … so I’m not a character. I have a little more grasp on who I am. I’m more eager to share it now. Me growing into an artist is me growing into a man.”

Scans Via: The 305

Former stripper Amber Rose has definitely made a name for herself ever since she has been boo’d up with Kanye West, but don’t let that take away from her many accomplishments … like landing a full fashion spread in VIBE Magazine’s December 2009/January 2010 comeback issue (the one with Drake and Chris Brown on the alternate covers). More scans when you continue reading…

Props: The 305

VIBE Magazine is back and is kicking off their quarterly series of print issues with someone who is also going a comeback of his own: R&B/pop entertain Chris Brown, who also shares the honor with up and coming rapper Drake. This marks one of Chris Brown’s biggest covers since the February 2009 assault incident with his girlfriend at the time, fellow R&B/pop sensation Rihanna.

Brown is on the verge of releasing his third studio album Graffiti. The album hits stores next Tuesday (Dec 8th). Vibe’s tagline for Chris’ issue on their website is “Everybody Hates Chris” but will it hold true? Does everybody really case? Or have most forgiven him and will give him a second chance to make a change? We have! Have you?

Hit up Vibe.com for a behind the scenes look at the making of the issue…

CONTINUE READING

Drake is facing off with Chris Brown on the cover of the December 2009 issue of Vibe Magazine. Drake is “Unstoppable” and everybody loves him, hence Vibe’s tagline: “Everybody loves Drake.” Chris’ tagline is ironically “Everybody hates Chris.”

Hit up Vibe.com for a behind the scenes look at Drake’s cover shoot.

CONTINUE READING

It sounds like R&B/pop entertainer Chris Brown and the iconic hip-hop magazine we all know and love as VIBE Magazine are teaming up to resurrect each other. Chris will cover the magazine’s official “come back issue,” out December 8th. ]

Hip-hop newcomer Drake will also have a shot at being a part of VIBE history as he has the alternate cover of the winter issue.

In the meantime, VIBE has released this one picture of Chris and no, this is not his cover shot. That should be making its way to the front pages of all the blogs shortly though.

It look as though Vibe Magazine is going to be making a big comeback in online form, All Hip Hop reports. According to the immensely popular hip-hop site, one of the biggest hip-hop/R&B magazine’s to ever exist has been purchased by a New York City based private equity investment firm known as InterMedia Partners.

Vibe was founded by music legend Quincy Jones and media giant Time Warner back in the early 1990s, but they failed to keep up with the changing market when they were purchased by Wicks Group of Companies, which ultimately caused them to announce their sudden closure back in June 2009. But since the Vibe brand is so strong, Intermedia Partners and its portfolio company Uptown Media Group hope that a carefully strategized re-launch will bring the magazine back on top.

“Vibe is the preeminent brand in R&B and Hip-Hop. We feel privileged to purchase and resurrect such a storied brand,” explained David Koff, a Senior Partner at InterMedia Partners. “Together with the re-launch of Soul Train this fall and the rapid expansion of Uptown Magazine, a reinvigorated Vibe enables us to serve a broad spectrum of the African American audience with high quality entertainment and information.”

With its re-launch, Vibe will focus on developing a “Vibe Lifestyle Network,” which will include crossover sponsorship from various other websites and opportunities for advertising sales with the help of Blackrock Digital, which handled Vibe’s digital sales before they closed in June.

“Creating a preeminent lifestyle network anchored by two meaningful brands in the urban space is a fantastic opportunity that we had to get involved with,” Blackrock Digital president Chris Smith told AllHipHop.com. “Vibe.com has been a top performing web property for so many established advertisers, and we look forward to bringing that back to life along with key partner affiliate websites.”

Vibe.com is set to officially re-launch either in November or December 2009 with a whole new team responsible for its vision: Vibe’s vision will be Brett Wright (Uptown Magazine Co-Founder), Chris Smith (Blackrock Digital President), Parker McNaughton (Blackrock Digital), and original 1993 Vibe team members Robert Miller and Leonard Burnett.

The print version of the magazine will re-launch in 2010, but the company under its new ownership plans to devote fewer resources to print issues, instead following a quarterly format.