Sunday March 3rd, 2002

New CD's this week:

You could say it's been a good week for the new releases.First there is the new Montell
Jordan album, we also have new Motown artist Sharissa, All 4 One delivered a new set,
90's group Tony! Toni! Tone! comes with a live album called The Tonyies - Live @
Chocolate City and last but certainly not least a british release: Beverley Knight whose
album includes a duet with Musiq Soulchild.

Short news stories this week:

DJ Clue Remixes Glenn Lewis's 'Don't You Forget it'

Producer, artist, mix-tape king, and executive DJ Clue has just remixed the hit single
"Don't You Forget it" by Canadian R&B sensation Glenn Lewis. The original version of
the song currently sits at Number 35 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Don't You Forget it"
was written by Lewis and originally produced by Andre Harris, the man behind the recent
success of Musiq Soulchild and Jill Scott. The remix includes a new '80s-flavored track
produced by DJ Clue and a rap verse by talented newcomer Paul Cain.
Lewis's debut set, World Outside My Window, is due out March 19 on Epic Records.
Some of the songs on the set include: "Lonely," "Beautiful Eyes," "It's Not Fair," "Take
You High," "Never Too Late," "This Love," and "Simple Things."

Alicia Keys big winner at 44th Grammy awards

Alicia Keys won five total awards, including the best new artist Grammy, along with best
R&B album for the acclaimed J Records set "Songs in A Minor." Her single "Fallin'," a
former Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 track that she performed during the ceremony, won the
best song, best R&B song, and best female R&B vocal performance awards. "I dedicate
this to just thinking out the box... to just bein' yourself," Keys said from the podium as
she accepted the best R&B album trophy.
Other awards in the R&B, Dance and Rap field went to Usher, Destiny's Child, Janet
Jackson Missy Elliott, Outkast, Eve and Gladys Knight

Song of the Year: "Fallin'," Alicia Keys (Alicia Keys).
New Artist: Alicia Keys.
R&B Album: "Songs in A Minor," Alicia Keys.
Dance Recording: "All For You," Janet Jackson.
Female R&B Vocal Performance: "Fallin'," Alicia Keys.
Male R&B Vocal Performance: "U Remind Me," Usher.
R&B Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocal: "Survivor," Destiny's Child.
R&B Song: "Fallin'," Alicia Keys (Alicia Keys).
Traditional R&B Album: "At Last," Gladys Knight.
Rap Solo Performance: "Get Ur Freak On," Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott.
Rap Performance by a Duo or Group: "Ms. Jackson," OutKast.
Rap/Sung Collaboration: "Let Me Blow Ya Mind," Eve Featuring Gwen Stefani.

112 Leaves Bad Boy For Def Jam

Label rosters in the urban world don't come much better than that of Def Jam/Def Soul,
which boasts an artist lineup including Jay-Z, Ja Rule, Ludacris, and Musiq (formerly
Musiq Soulchild). The label is rumored to be considering signing Mariah Carey. And
now Def Jam/Def Soul has just enlisted 112 to the ranks, a spokesperson for the
R&B/hip-hop quartet confirmed Friday (February 22).
The platinum-plus group, which toured with Janet Jackson last summer, was previously
signed to Sean "P. Diddy" Combs's Bad Boy label, distributed by Arista Records.
As previously reported in January, P. Diddy discussed completing his deal with Arista.
"I'm finishing my deal with Arista, and I'm about to be a free agent," he said backstage at
the American Music Awards. "It's about to be as if Michael Jordan was, you know,
available. And we are really going to see how that thing goes down."
It is not clear if 112's departure is a result of P. Diddy's search for a new distributor. But
the group left Bad Boy several months ago, according to the group's spokesperson.
Spokespersons for Arista and Bad Boy did not reply to the item by press time.

P. Diddy Upset By 112's Talks With Def Jam

Sean "P. Diddy" Combs is upset that his group 112 is working to join the ranks of Def
Jam Records. Though a spokesperson for the R&B quartet confirmed that the group has
inked a deal with the label home to Ja Rule, Jay-Z, and Ludacris, a representative for top
Island Def Jam executive Lyor Cohen said the matter is not yet resolved.
"The band contacted Island Def Jam about signing," the representative told the
Associated Press. "We expect this situation to be resolved very quickly."
When Combs arrived to the NAACP Image Awards Saturday (February 24) in Universal
City, California, he declined to speak to press. However, Combs told the Associated
Press that he is upset. "This kind of behavior is disgraceful and I feel betrayed," Combs
said.
A spokesperson for Arista Records, parent company for Combs's Bad Boy label, said that
the label does not comment on pending litigation.

Michael Jackson Sets 'Heaven Can Wait' As Next Single

Michael Jackson has selected "Heaven Can Wait" as the next single from Invincible.
Previous singles from the October released include "You Rock My World," "Cry," and
"Butterflies." Unlike "Butterflies," however, Jackson does have plans to release "Heaven
Can Wait" as a commercial track available for purchase. "Heaven Can Wait" will ship to
radio stations in mid-March.

Tweet On Missy Elliott Saving Her Life, And The Real Meaning Behind 'Oops'

Missy Elliott protege Tweet hit Number Two last week on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop
Singles & Tracks chart with her debut, "Oops (Oh My)," which has sparked much
commotion for its discussion of a woman "discovering herself."
But while many have pegged the singer-songwriter as an advocate of self-stimulation,
Tweet told us that the song is actually about self-confidence: "People always think the
song is about, you know...that...but it's not to me. It's about self-love and appreciation. I
always tell people, I had a problem being the color, the dark skin color. I just wrote a
song saying, 'Stroke your ego. You might touch yourself, but just make sure you're
stroking your ego. It's not sexual at all. Just love yourself.'"
Tweet adds that the song deals with overcoming a dark period of her life, when she
experienced serious depression and considered taking her life. After being out of touch
with Missy for several years, Missy tracked her down, and offered her a gig.
Tweet spoke to us about reconnecting with Missy, whom she met when they were signed
to different groups under former Jodeci member DeVante Swing:"We lost contact for a
while, and at the time, I was kinda contemplating suicide. I hadn't spoke to Missy in like
two or three years. And I went to visit my cousin in Atlanta 'cause she said I wasn't
looking like myself. I guess she must have felt something was going down. And the
couple days I was there, Missy called out of the blue. I don't know how she got my
number. Mind you, I was contemplating suicide. And she called, she said, 'I need you to
do background vocals for my album, Miss E...So Addictive.' I was like, 'What!' I dropped
the phone like, 'I can't believe this.' I call her my guardian angel."
Tweet's album, Southern Hummingbird, is scheduled to be released April 2 on Missy's
Goldmind Inc., which is distributed by Elektra Entertainment.

Musiq Gets Rid Of The Soulchild, And Remakes A Beatles Classic

Def Soul recording artist Musiq Soulchild has shortened his name to Musiq. The artist
previewed several songs from his sophomore album, Juslisen, Thursday (February 21) at
the swank, Cicada restaurant in downtown Los Angeles. Musiq's private listening session
preceded the pre-Image Awards party for the Showtime series Soul Food. Juslisen is due
out May 7.
Musiq spoke to us about what prompted him to change his name. "I did that for a lot of
reasons," he said. "I need for people to focus on Musiq, the artist, first. And allow me to
be just that, an artist. When I feel as though I'm personifying the Soulchild-ism of it, I'll
bring it back out."
The artist, who released his debut Aijuswanaseing in 2000, remakes the Beatles'
"Something," from the group's album, Abbey Road. Musiq said that Def Jam/ Def Soul
President Kevin Liles suggested that he cover the song written by the late George
Harrison. "Me and my producer Carvin got together and said, 'Hey, we can do this. And it
came out, actually, surprisingly better than I thought it would. I didn't know how it was
going to turn out. And I'm pretty proud of myself. So hopefully when folks hear it, they'll
feel the same."
Musiq added, however, that did he didn't feel any pressures when recording the song,
considering Harrison's recent passing. "The only thing is, I didn't want to run the risk of
misrepresenting the song, if anything," Musiq said. "But no pressure. A song is a song,
and I'm going to do it to the best of my ability."
The album's first single, "Half Crazy," is expected to be serviced to radio in the coming
week.

New artist Mario Signed by Clive Davis Signed On The Spot

Mario, a 15-year-old singer signed to Clive Davis's J Records, doesn't take his shot in the
music business for granted. The artist, who is preparing to release his debut single, "Just
A Friend," is glad that he landed a private audition with Davis.
"I feel fortunate, definitely," he told us. "I see a lot of people out there that don't get a
chance to do these things. For example, the television show Pop Stars, 6,000 people just
trying to try out for a couple groups. I feel that I'm fortunate to just go on one meeting,
and have all of this happen for me."
Mario's no overnight sensation. He's been singing all of his life, and has previously
worked with Dru Hill member Jazz, who is from his hometown of Baltimore.
But when he auditioned for Davis, he admits he had the butterflies. "When I first went in
the office, I didn't know who he was," Mario told us about his meeting with Davis. "But
when I saw him, I recognized his face. When I went in the office, I sang live for him, and
he brought a couple other people in to hear me sing also, and I was really nervous. But I
got through it. He said, 'I want to sign you on the spot,' like that."
Mario's still-untitled debut is scheduled to be released in the spring, and includes songs
such as "What Your Name Is," "Braid My Hair," "Put Me On," "Chick Wit' Da Braids,"
"Could U Be," "Holla Back," and "Neva".

News 2002

News 2001