Words By MC

Would you have guessed that Queen Latifah’s small role as Lawshawn, the tell-it-like-it-is waitress who cussed out Wesley Snipes for bringing the white girl to Sylvia’s in Spike Lee’s 1991 film Jungle Fever, would lead to a career spanning 35 movies, dozens of television roles and the official emergence of Dana Owens the actress?

Gracing the silver screen seemed like a hobby that a few of the higher ranked rappers dabbled in from time to time. But a hobby that you’re freakin’ great at becomes a lot more fun, especially when you can make six-figures or more to do it. Latifah paid her dues in House Party 2, Juice and Set It Off and eventually found herself side-by-side with Denzel Washington in The Bone Collector.

Next thing you know, the good old girl from Jersey was showing up in everything from animated comedies like Ice Age: The Meltdown with Raymond Romano to legendary musicals like Chicago with Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Richard Gere, making her a La La Land official. Not to mention her hit sitcom, “Living Single.”

Now Ms. Owens is writing her own checks as a producer signing off on movies like The Perfect Holiday and Just Wright and is set to star alongside Dolly Parton in Joyful Noise. Who would think cursing out Wesley Snipes would get you this far?

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Need proof? Take a look at the 11 stories people clicked on the most in 2011.

11. Teyana Talyor Sends Kanye West Naked Pics For His Birthday

Yeezy has gotten himself some pretty outlandish gifts but this one got everyone’s attention.

10) Did Queen Latifah & Her “Girlfriend” Breakup Over Eating Habits?

Queen Lah and her bathing suit #struggle got a lot of folks sharing this on Facebook for real.

9) T.I. In Federal Custody One Day After Being Released

It was grand opening, grand closing for T.I.’s freedom after serving an 11-month bid. Why? Because his ride home from prison wasn’t demoralizing enough for the FEDs.

8) Mariah Carey’s Sister Is An HIV Positive Prostitute

The Enquirer broke the news that Mariah Carey’s sister Alison Carey Scott was an HIV positive adult “massage therapist” who gave out happy endings to make ends meet.

7) Did LisaRaye Drag Stacey Dash By Her Hair?

Whether this was true or not Ms. Dash was gone from “Single Ladies” soon after.

6) Serena Williams Nude Pic On Twitter

Pretty much any nude pic is a traffic win but Serena Williams puts it on a whole other level. No wonder Common and Drake are beefing tofuing.

5) Beyonce Goes Out Of Her Way To Prove She’s Pregnant

The fact that Bey had to go to these lengths to prove she was pregnant is a damn shame in itself. Let that kid cook.

4) Stacey Dash Looks Hot In Runway Magazine

Even after seeing her naked in Playboy folks were scheming to see those flicks of Stacey Dash wrapped in fur.

3) NFL Players Caught Kissing?

The NFL’s darling Tim Tebow became the victim of slow-motion technology. More than half of readers polled thought this face bump with his teammate was an accident but we’re shaking our heads at the 40% of you who thought they were really getting it on!

2) Tupac Shooter Confesses

In a classic case of too little too late, the man who shot Tupac the FIRST time at QUAD studios in 1994 confessed. His shooting death remains unsolved.

1) Kelly Rowland  Has A Sextape?

After listening to the sensual “Motivation” one too many times thousands of Kelly Rowland stans got it into their heads that she had  sex tape out. We have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you if you believe that.

READ MORE BEST OF 2011 HERE!

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The Biggest Hip-Hop Videos Of 2011

Queen Latifah and country music icon Dolly Parton get their praise on in the upcoming comedy Joyful Noise. Latifah plays Vi Rose, whose traditional style of choir directing, rubs rival G.G. Sparrow (Parton) the wrong way.  Shaking things up even more is the arrival of G.G.’s rebellious grandson Randy (Jeremy Jordan), who has his eye on Vi Rose’s daughter, the beautiful and talented Olivia (Keke Palmer).  Can Vi Rose and G.G. overcome their differences and help their town choir win the prize at the National Joyful Noise Competition?

Watch trailer below:

Joyful Noise opens nationwide January 13, 2012

This isn’t Latifah’s first daytime talk show, “Queen Latifah Show” debuted in 1999 and aired for two seasons. No word on the name of her new show in the works.

In addition to Will Smith, Queen Latifah’s new show will be produced by her Flavor Unit partner Shakim Compere, Will Smith’s Overbrook Entertainment partner James Lassiter, and Jada Pinkett Smith. Get the rest of the story right here.

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Let’s take a look at her greatest movie roles:

Taxi

The Queen stars as “A mouthy and feisty taxicab driver who has hot tips for a green and inept cop set on solving a string of New York City bank robberies committed by a quartet of female Brazilian bank robbers.”

Just Wright

Dana plays “A physical therapist who falls for the basketball player she is helping recover from a career-threatening injury.”

The Secret Life Of Bees

Queen Latifah starred alongside Dakota Fanning in this film about a 14 year old who runs-away into the arms of four black sisters.

Last Holiday

“After she’s diagnosed with a terminal illness, a shy woman named Georgia Bird decides to take a European vacation. She finds love with a man (LL Cool J) and it changes her life.”

Hairspray

The Queen’s large bouffant like hair assisted her amazing acting in the remake of “Hairspray”.

Life Support

Queen Latifah played the role of  “a mother who overcame an addiction to crack and became a positive role model and an AIDS activist in the black community.”

Bringin’ Down The House

Queen Latifah brings the funny in “Bringin’ Down The House” as a wrongly convicted woman looking for love on an Internet date!

Set It Off

“Set It Off” is considered one of the greatest “bank robber” movies of all time. Queen Latifah’s gangster “Cleo” character is most respected by the streets for the way she went out, shooting at police while taking her life at the same time. Dana starred along-side Jada Pinkett-Smith, Vivica A. Foxx and Kimberly Elise.

Sources:

IMDB

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Queen Latifah & Snooki To Join “Dancing With The Stars”

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I wonder if Queen Latifah can still get her boogie on. Snooki may be able to bust some dope moves, she was a member of her high school cheerleading squad.

The contestants will be announced for season13 of “Dancing With The Stars” August 29 during “Bachelor Pad”  on ABC.

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Did Queen Latifah & Her “Girlfriend” Breakup Over Eating Habits?

Tonight on “Single Ladies”: Did Queen Latifah Sleep With Stacey Dash?

In tonight’s episode of “Single Ladies” secrets are revealed when Keisha (LisaRaye) helps Malcolm out of a bind. April (Charity Shea) takes a huge gamble when she invests her own money in Reed’s career. Wild child intern Christina ends things with Aaron, who does not take it well. Val’s life is turned upside down by newscaster Sharon Love’s on air confession of their steamy one night affair. Queen Latifah and Biz Markie guest star.

“Single Ladies” airs Monday on VH1 9P.M. EST/8c

Catch sneak peek here:

“Single Ladies” airs on VH1 Monday night 9 P.M. EST/8c

Check out trailer below:

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Lil Kim, Nicki Minaj, Queen Latifah, MC Lyte, Trina, Foxy Brown and Remy Ma went head to head in the battle. Who did you vote as the best female rapper ever?

Check out the results:

Even though MC Lyte won the competition over all the other ladies, we saw that Lil Kim is clearly the preferred female rapper over Nicki Minaj! Lil Kim got 15 percent of your votes and Nicki Minaj got only 12%! Does this officially make Lil Kim a better rapper than Nicki Minaj?

Speak on it below and don’t forget to vote in our new poll: Who Is The Best Celebrity Dad?

When: 1993

What: The Flavor Unit was the name of DJ Mark the 45 King’s crew of New Jersey based hip-hop artists before Queen Latifah and Shakim Compere co-opted the name for their fledgling management company. As CEO and COO, respectively, the duo became formidable business partners in the music industry.

In celebration of Black Music Month, TheUrbanDaily’s “It’s All Black Music” presents 100 Rewarding Black Music Moments, sponsored by Southwest Airlines.

Each Black Music Moment is associated with an actual place that you can visit. During the month of June, check in to at least three of these places on Foursquare to unlock TheUrbanDaily’s exclusive “It’s All Black Music” Badge. Check out the locations and details on our Foursquare page!

From Our Partners:

Sisters Dazzle Judges On”So You Think You Can Dance?”

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Click here, for more pictures.

Queen Latifah Inducted Into The Jersey Hall Of Fame

5 Women Who Should Play Aretha Franklin Instead Of Halle Berry

Queen Latifah’s real name is Dana Owens and has been rapping since the 80′s where she started beat boxing for a female group Ladies Fresh. She released her debut album in 1989 entitled “All Hail The Queen.” Dana’s career hasn’t slowed down since then; she starred in one of the best black sitcoms–”Living Single,” won a Golden Globe for “Life Support,” and is still producing music.

Congrats Queen Latifah!

5 Women Who Should Play Aretha Franklin Instead Of Halle Berry

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Furthermore, we know that Ms. Franklin was one svelte Diva in her younger days but we’re not sure Halle could really capture the essence of who she was then and now.  If the Queen Of Soul wants to keep it real, here are five women who could do bang up job playing her in a movie.

Queen Latifah

Dana Owens could be a fine Queen Of Soul. With two singing albums of under her belt (The Dana Owens Album and Trav’in Light) there would be no need to artificially enhance her vocals. But even more convincing was her performance as Liz Bailey in Living Outloud. She’d have no problem conveying Franklin’s regal swag.

Jennifer Hudson

The Oscar Award winning singer and actress is the fan favorite to play Aretha Franklin. Her looks, voice and acting prowess make her a fairly obvious choice. And with her new Weight Watchers sculpted frame she has the flexibility to play Franklin at different parts of her career.

Amber Riley

The neophyte from Glee has turned heads with her showstopping performances as Mercedes Jones. Finding someone with both singing and acting chops is key and Riley has both to spare.

Jill Scott

My personal favorite for any feature-length film lead Ms. Scott would put the D in Diva for this role. Her turns in Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married? series and on HBO’s “No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency” prove she’s more than comfortable in front of the camera. And did we mention she could sing?

Fantasia

As one of Franklin’s closest friends Fantasia could bring an element to the role that most of the others on this list couldn’t. Not to mention her voice is probably closest to Aretha’s in power and style. Her stint on Broadway playing Celie in “The Color Purple” means she will need less coaching than most in front of the camera.

Who do you think should play Aretha Franklin in her biopic? Leave a comment with your own choice.

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9. Ed O G And The Bulldogs Be A Father To Your Child.

Dope ode to to fatherhood with a great positive message to young black men.

8. Queen Latifah U.N.I.T.Y.

Queen Latifah’s song both discourages misogyny and encourage unity in this early 90s classic.

7. Kool G. Rap Ft. Biz Markie And Big Daddy Kane Erase Racism

Great song about the evils of racism and how to stop it from three of the Juice Crew All-Stars.

6. Gang West Coast All Stars We’re All In The Same

King Tee, NWA, MC Hammer, Digital Underground, Ice-T and several other West Coast stars came together to try and stop the gang violence that plagued the West Coast in the nineties.

5. BDP You Must Learn

KRS kicks a dope Black history lesson on the mic for the BDP gem.

4. Lauryn Hill That Thing

Great song about women and self respect by Lauryn.

3. Public Enemy Fight The Power

An anthem to revolutions everywhere. PE rallied the sufferers to fight against their oppressors and not just tolerate it.

2. The Stop The Violence Movement Self Destruction

KRS-One, Big Daddy Kane, D-Nice, MC Lyte, Public Enemy and others came together to fight against Black on Black crime.

1. Slick Rick Hey Young World

Great inspirational song for our youth with wisdom and life lessons included.

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‘Just Wright’ comes out today on DVD/Blu-Ray.  If Common didn’t convince you to catch it in theaters maybe it might make it onto your date rental agenda.

In this modern day meets the NBA romantic comedy, Queen Latifah plays Leslie Wright a single, tomboyish physical therapist looking for love. One night at a gas station, she meets handsome ball player Scott McKnight (Common) who shares her love of Nina Simone and jazz. The fly in the ointment comes in the form of Leslie’s beautiful but cunning god-sister, Morgan Alexander. Morgan makes gold-digging an art form.

Rounding out the cast are Phylicia Rashad, Pam Grier, James Pickens, and cameos by real-life NBA stars Dwayne Wade and Dwight Howard.

REASONS TO WATCH

PAULA PATTON—you know the saying “When God gave out beauty he gave with two hands”—looking at Patton, it’s safe to say she won the triple bonus round. But Patton is more than just a gorgeous face; she is a talented actress with an enviable resume. Besides her role as a nurturing teacher in last year’s ‘Precious’, she joins the cast of ‘Law & Order SVU’ as the new ADA, and just landed a plum role in the upcoming ‘Mission Impossible 4’ film.

MEHCAD BROOKS—If the name doesn’t ring a bell, it soon will. Audiences may remember Mehcad as Melanie’s Plan B hottie, Jerome from ‘The Game’ or as the sexy but homicidal Eggs on ‘True Blood.’ But in Just Wright he’s Scott McKnight’s best friend and teammate.

PHYLICIA RASHAD & PAM GRIER–How can you go wrong when you have two women like this playing mothers? Rashad is in all of her Claire Huxtable-type splendor as Common’s doting mother and Pam Grier gives Latifah all of her man-catching expertise. Co-Star James Pickens, Jr. had ball on set with them both. [CLICK TO WATCH HIS INTERVIEW HERE]

SOUNDTRACK- It’s a shame that movie studios don’t release actual soundtracks to films any longer because this one would be a must-have for the booty call playlist. Sultry cuts from Van Hunt, Vikter Duplaix, Kevin Michael and Mos Def help give the film a sex gloss even when the actors fail to. [click here to download the songs]

DVD EXTRAS— Check out the hilarious ‘Gag Reel’ where Queen Latifah is far from the eloquent MC that we know her to be and trips over her lines like a clumsy referee. In ‘Common on the Fast Break’  our favorite b-boy discusses his love of basketball.

VERDICT—‘Just Wright’ may not join the ranks of romantic classics like ‘Love Jones’ and ‘Love and Basketball’, but it does have its good points. The inspirational messages of inner beauty and ‘good girls finish last’ is worth the purchase-or at least a rental.

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This Tuesday Latifah and Common’s romantic comedy Just Wright comes to DVD.  In this interview actor James Pickens, Jr., who played Latifah’s father LLoyd in the film, shares what it was like being married to Pam Grier in the flick and how it almost didn’t happen.

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According to the Hollywood Reporter, Dolly Parton is returning to the big screen to team up with Queen Latifah in the feature “Joyful Noise,” which centers around two women who join forces to prevent a small-town gospel choir from shutting down.

Latifah will play the mother of two teens who is put in charge of the Pacashau Gospel Choir after the death of its choir director, while Parton will appear as the choir director’s widow who hopes to take over her late husband’s job.

This will be a very interesting pairing given the musical angle of the movie. Could this end up being Sister Act 2010?

More details at THW.com

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There are dozens, maybe hundreds of songs by female MCs that have earned their place in hip-hop history. But sometimes it’s not a whole song, just a verse, 8 to 16 bars that serve as defining moments for that MC.

Sometimes they’re going toe-to-toe with a bunch of other men, other times with their sistren and even dolo. Here are some of our favorites from around the office. What is your favorite verse from a female MC?

9. Bahamadia “Proceed 3”

I love the way she weaves in all of those song titles throughout her verse.
Quotable: “Eargasmatic, from distortion to statics/automatic/systematic/I’m nasty at it/so hand me the five microphones like you did Illmatic.”

8. Nicki Minaj “Up All Night”
We had to show the rookies some love and several Drake heads have pinged me about this verse on his debut album. She actually lost her train of thought, had you hanging on empty air and then said “fixate.”

Quotable: “On a diet but I do donuts in the six speed”

7. Rah Digga, “Tight” (Remix)
There is something in the water in Jersey giving birth to Rah, La and Lauryn but Digga Digga earned her place on this list with either the original verse or the one from the remix.
Quotable: “Tighter than pumps on fat ladies/Flows like the liquid in the IVs stuck in crack babies”

6. Queen Latifah, “Wanna Be Down Remix”

On one of the smoothest female rap songs ever Latifah managed to stand out even from her peers.
Quotable: “Skip the Moet and let’s chill with some Alize”

5.Remy Ma, “Yeah, Yeah, Yeah”
After Pun she was clearly the best MC in Terror Squad (sorry Joe) and this verse is one reason why. It’s a shame they couldn’t’ keep this team together.

Quotable: “You got skill but your face look like Emmett Till”

4. MC Lyte “Self Destruction”

Arguably the best verse on the song (even if the rumors that LL Cool J wrote it are true.)

Quotable: “You ain’t guardin the door/so what you gotta gun for?”

3. Foxy Brown “I Shot Ya Remix”
Pharaohe Monch told the girls to rub on their t*tties but it was way sexier when Foxy gave her mammary command. However, she sent all the thugs runnin for the clinic with her quotable..

Quotable: “Sexin raw dog without protection/disease infested”

2. Lil Kim “Quiet Storm” Remix

She paid homage to MC Lyte and sent a few shots at Foxys way all at the same time.
Quotable: “I’m a leader/ya’ll on some following shit, comin in this game on some modelin shit…”

1. Lauryn Hill, “Zealots”

It’s hard to pin down just one verse from L-Boogie but this is one that really established her as a rewind-worthy lyrical monster.

Quotable: “After all my logic and my theory/ I add a motherfucker so you ig’nant niggas hear me.”

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Will These Pics Force Queen Latifah To Come Out Of The Closet?

Photos have surfaced of Queen Latifah and her friend Jeanette Jenkins getting rather close on a yacht while vacationing with Swizz Beats and Alicia Keys.

We can only wonder how she’s going to explain these pictures…

Pics spotted at Crunk & Disorderly

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MC Lyte Vs Antoinette

Back in 1988 Brooklyn’s MC Lyte took a swing at then newcomer Antoinette because her single “I Got An Attitude” allegedly “bit the beat” to Audio Two’s “Top Billin.” Later on Lil Kim would “sample” the lyrics to “10% Diss” for her verse on Mobb Deep’s “Quiet Storm.”

10% Diss

Hot damn, hot damn, hot damn, hot damn
Hot damn! Hot damn hoe, here we go again
Suckers steal a beat, when you know they can’t win
You stole the beat, are you havin fun?
Now me and the Aud’s gonna show you how it’s done

Antoinette answered with “Lights Out, Party Over”

I dis and don’t miss, cause i ain’t a friend of that
Scallywag, that tom, dick & harry-hag
Don’t get upset, homegirl, just get mad
You’re a lightweight, so it’s easy to demo teeth
A ’10% dis’? here’s a 100% beef

But Lyte silenced this beef once and for all with “Shut The Eff Up! (Hoe)”
“In ’10% [Dis]‘ I popped your head in a microwave/ I’m into blenders now, so you better behave.”

WINNER: MC LYTE

Lil Kim vs Foxy Brown

Before the battle of the Barbies Kimberly Jones was going head up with Brooklyn’s other high profile MC, Foxy Brown.

What made this battle particularly bad is that they were supposed to do an album together at one point and even shared the cover of The Source magazine in February 1997.

Like most beefs, details are fuzzy on how things fell apart between the two of them but several records went back and forth ending up in Lil Kim going to jail. (yikes!)

Supposedly Lil Cease took a shot at Fox on a song called  “Play Around” saying that her style was similar to Kim’s. Kim then followed up on the The Notorious K.I.M spitting “You ain’t a star, and her record company know that.” Foxy responded on Capon-N-Noreaga’s “Bang Bang” calling Kim’s album “lame.”

This led to the exchange at Hot 97 where Lil Kim and her entourage bumped into Capone and his crew. An argument ensued and 20 shots were fired from five different weapons. Lil Kim spent a year in jail for perjury after testifying that she didn’t recognize two of the men involved.

At the time Foxy Brown said she wanted to “call a truce” with Lil Kim but in 2010 she dropped a track called “Off The Muscle” talking about Lil Kim’s appearance on the ABC series Dancing with the Stars last May.

She raps, “Catch me at Marcy at the mall/ But muthafuckas will never see me dancing with the stars/ Never, will I embarrass my borough/ I’m too thorough/ Dark skin bitches, we here now/ I swear now/ Ya’ll bitches wanna be me so bad/ Ya’ll studied my whole swag.”

WINNER: While Lil Kim is currently more popular due to her extra curricular activity, they are both neck and neck in terms of music output of late.

Roxanne Shante vs. EVERYBODY, “Big Mama”

In a move that is the closest precursor to the Lil Kim/Nicki Minaj beef, in 1991  rap vet Roxanne Shante inexplicably went after all of the female rappers of the day (Queen Latifah, Mc Lyte, Yo Yo, Salt-N-Pepa, etc) in one scathing diss called “Big Mama”

“Cause Shanté ain’t about no games/Matter of fact, yo, I’ma start callin off names
First up there’s Latifah/You roll up, and I’ma smoke that ass like reefer…I’ma rip you and your girl Monie/ You’re illegitimate, tryin to get a little bit And I’m about sick of that ‘Monie-in-the-middle’-shit.”

Our memory is a little fuzzy but we only think Latifah bothered to respond in the first verse of “ I Can’t Understand.”

Queen Latifah “I Can’t Understand”

WINNER: Queen Latifah. Last we checked Shante was apologizing for lying about having a doctorate and Latifah was making movies.

Khia vs Trina

To call this battle ugly is an understatement. The time line of this beef is more disjointed than than Kat Stacks weave. Whether it’s on stage or on record these two simply don’t like each other. Most recently Trina spazzed out on a DJ for playing one of Khia’s records at one of her shows and Khia said that Trina had “ninja turtle” in response to nude pics of her that leaked on the ‘net. Who is winning?

Well last we heard Khia’s publicist had put a gag order on her from speaking ill of others so for now we’d say Trina has a leg up.

Jackie-O vs Foxy Brown

Thankfully we can say this is the only beef that resulted in violence of any kind. Ironically, the diss records came AFTER the fight, not before.

Foxy says words were exchanged and that she did tell her she should “show respect” but that she wasn’t touched.

In response Jacki-O recorded the track “TKO” describing the incident bar by bar.

We’ll see if Foxy has time from reigniting her Lil Kim beef to answer this.

WINNER: We’ll give this round to Jacki-O just because it was so damned entertaining and “TKO” wasn’t that bad a record.

Where will the Lil Kim/ Nicki Minaj battle end up? We may never know. So far the younger Barbie has not responded and may be smart enough to wait until her debut actually drops to put out any answer records. Will she end up being the young LL Cool J going up against the Kool Moe Dee or the young Canibus who wanders off into obscurity after a whoopin from the vet?

Nominees for the 2010 BET Awards were revealed today, and the world let out a collective “WTF?”

If you were to let BET tell it, there are no other figures in black entertainment other than Jay-Z, Beyonce, and Rihanna as these three seem to appear on the show every year and make it difficult for any new talent to shine.

Jay-Z unsurprisingly led the list of nominations with 5.

Viewers Choice Nominees:
Beyoncé “Sweet Dreams”
Jay-Z “Empire State of Mind”
Monica “Everything To Me”
Rihanna “Hard”
Trey Songz Ft. Drake “Say Aah”
Young Money “Bedrock”

TUD:  This one could be a tough race, seeing as how this one is based on viewer votes, but knowing that record labels have in the past hired companies to boost votes on MTV’s TRL Countdown for a particular artist, this one comes down to who has the biggest budget behind them as well as the fanbase…  I think Jay-Z has this one on lock.

Best Collaboration:
Beyoncé Ft. Lada Gaga “Video Phone”
B.o.B. “Nothin’ On You”
Drake Ft. Trey Songz “Successful”
Drake Ft. Kanye West, Lil Wayne, & Eminem “Forever”
Trey Songz Ft. Drake “Say Aah”

TUD: First off, LOL at Bruno Mars not even being mentioned in this category for his contribution to B.o.B.’s “Nothin’ On You” even though he’s the only reason anybody even likes the song. That said, this award is Beyoncé’s.

Best Female Hip Hop Artist:
Ester Dean
Lil Kim
Nicki Minaj
Rasheeda
Trina

TUD: The dearth of female mc’s is made painfully obvious by this category as Lil Kim’s been nominated even though she didn’t do ANYTHING in the last year except appear on Dancing With The Stars. Ester Dean is still a no name to most people, and the same goes for Rasheeda.  Trina doesn’t have the visibility of Nicki Minaj, so expect Barbie to take home this award.

Best Male Hip Hop Artist:
B.o.B.
Drake
Fabolous
Jay-Z
Ludacris

TUD: This one could be interesting.  B.o.B.’s too much of an unproven rookie at this point to take home this award.  Fab’s nomination is just to pad out the category.  As much as we love Luda, he’s up against Drake and Jay-Z who are the obvious favorites in this category.  So who takes home the award?  Wheelchair Jimmy or Joe Camel?  I’m hoping Jay takes it so as to keep Drake from ever having delusions of being better than Jay-Z at anything.

Best New Artist:
Justin Bieber
Melanie Fiona
Nicki Minaj
Wale
Young Money

TUD: The biggest WTF here is the Justin Bieber nomination.  Has he even had a video played on 106 & Park?  Then there’s Nicki Minaj being nominated twice in this category.  Either way, she’s gonna take home an award…. probably all by herself.

YoungStars Award:
Selena Gomez
JJ Lewis
Keke Palmer
Willow Smith
Tyler James Williams

TUD: I don’t know who none of these people are.  On to the next one.

Best Movie:
Avatar
Law Abiding Citizen
Michael Jackson: This Is It
Precious
The Blindside

TUD: The nominees in this category upset me.  Avatar?  Really?  The Blindside???  In order for BET to have any sort of credibility in the film industry, they will let this award go to Precious.

Best Female R&B Artist:
Beyonce
Mary J. Blige
Melanie Fiona
Alicia Keys
Rihanna

TUD: This is a tough category as all five of these females did well last year.  It’s safe to say that Melanie Fiona will NOT win.  Alicia and Beyonce are probably the best ones to put your money on if you’re the wagering type.  If your bookie needs something more specific, put $5 down on Alicia Keys.

Best Male R&B Artist:
Chris Brown
Raheem DaVaughn
Maxwell
Trey Songz
Usher

TUD:  If Chris Brown wins this award, I will dance naked in Times Square.  Trey Songz has this one on lock even though we all know that Maxwell should get the award.

Best Group:
Black Eyed Peas
The Clipse
Diddy & Dirty Money
The New Boyz
Young Money

TUD: Duh.  Young Money.  Next.

Video of the Year:
Beyoncé Ft. Lada Gaga “Video Phone”
B.o.B. “Nothin’ On You”
Melanie Fiona “It Kills Me”
Jay-Z “Empire State of Mind”
Jay-Z “Run This Town”

TUD: I think it’s pretty safe to say that Beyoncé is a shoo-in for this award.

Best Gospel:
The Anointed Pace Sisters
Kirk Franklin Presents Artists United For Haiti
Tamela Mann
Marvin Sapp
Vickie Winans

TUD: I haven’t paid attention to Gospel music since BeBe & CeCe Winans were having top 10 R&B singles… aka a LOOONG time ago.   Next.

Video Director of the Year:
Benny Boom
Gil Green
Anthony Mandler
Chris Robinson
Hype Williams

TUD: Anthony Mandler directed some of the most hyped videos, doing clips for Drake, Rihanna and Jay-Z to name a few.  Expect him to win this one.

Best Actress:
Taraji P. Henson
Regina King
Mo’Nique
Zoe Saldana
Gaborey Sidibe

TUD: Again, BET isn’t gonna wanna look like losers in the shadows of the Oscars, so Mo’Nique or Gabby got this one, probably Mo’Nique, seeing as how she has a show on the channel and all…

Best Actor:
Quinton Aaron
Don Cheadle
Idris Elba
Jamie Foxx
Denzel Washington

TUD: What was Denzel in?  If he doesn’t win, it’ll probably go to Jamie Foxx even though Don Cheadle can act circles around just about anyone in this category.

Subway Sportswoman of the Year:
Tamika Catchings
Vanessa James
Candace Parker
Serena Williams
Venus Williams

TUD: Wait, what?  Subway?  The sandwich spot?   I can’t….

Subway Sportsman of the Year:
Carmelo Anthony
Usain Bolt
Kobe Bryant
LeBron James
Tiger Woods

TUD:  God help BET if they give this award to Tiger…

Centric Award:
Melanie Fiona
Maxwell
Chrisette Michele
Monica
Sade

TUD: The Centric award?  What’s the criteria for this??  I’ll just say Sade should win, because she should win everything.

Best International Act
Kojo Antwi
Chipmunk
Dizzee Rascal
Estelle
Hip Hop Pantsula
K’NAAN
M.I.
P-Square
Corinne Bailey Rae
Sade

TUD:  Again, Ill say Sade should win, but it’ll probably go to Estelle.

The BET Awards will be hosted by Queen Latifah and take place on June 27th in Los Angeles.

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From TheBVX.com

We love Common’s raps and we’re glad that he’s secured a place on Hollywood’s list of leading men — but is he really that good of an actor?

Recently, theBVX attended a screening of “Just Wright,” a romantic comedy where Common, in his first lead role, plays fictitious basketball star Scott McKnight. Let’s ignore the fact that he’s über-petite and focus on the film’s plot.

Leslie Wright, played by Queen Latifah, is a physical therapist that meets her favorite New Jersey Net, McKnight, by chance at a gas station. Wright likes him but he’s taken by her gorgeous gold-digging godsister Morgan, played by Paula Patton. Morgan and Scott eventually become engaged but when Scott gets injured, Morgan leaves him. Nursing a broken heart, McKnight and Wright develop a relationship as she guides him through recovery as his live-in physical therapist. Upon regaining his health, McKnight realizes that — SPOILER ALERT! — he loves Wright and the couple ride off into the sunset of happiness.

Sounds good on paper right? It would be if Common could handle a leading role or play anything other than the flat character he’s channeled in every film, from “Wanted” to “Date Night.”

It’s hard but we must face the fact that, like Beyoncé, Lonnie “Common” Lynn can not act at this point in his career.

Read the whole article at TheBVX.com!

Do you think she’s hating? Common gives his reasons to check out his movie HERE!

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Common teams up with his Just Wright co-star, Queen Latifah for this song from Common’s upcoming greatest hits album.

This originally was a song from Common’s last listenable album, Finding Forever, but it now boasts new lyrics, and Latifah provides some vocal sweetening here and there.

Common & Queen Latifah’s film Just Wright hits theaters on May 14th.

Common’s Go! Common Classics (who came up with that title?)  is in stores May 25th!

RELATED: DOWNLOAD: Just Wright Mixtape VOL. 2

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In anticipation of his new movie Just Wright, Common has been putting out mixtapes of music inspired by the movie. In this latest installment he culls the soul of Patrice Rushen, Roy Ayers Music Project and many more.

LISTEN TO IT HERE:

Queen Latifah and Common present

Just Wright Mixtape Volume 2

Music Assembled by The Twilite Tone

1. Settle For My Love / Patrice Rushen
2. There’s Nothing Like This / Omar
3. You’re Always On My Mind / SWV
4. Guilty (Featuring Barry Gibb) / Barbra Streisand
5. Promise Me / Luther Vandross
6. Someday / George Duke
7. Making Love In The Rain / Herb Albert
8. That Day / Muhsinah
9. Daylight / Ramp
10. I Still Love You / 702
11. Inspiration Information / Shuggie Otis
12. Uno Esta / Bobbi Humphries
13. One On One / Hall & Oates
14. When Will The Day Come / Rasa
15. The Makings Of You (Live) / Curtis Mayfield
16. Nothing Even Matters (featuring D’angelo) / Lauryn Hill
17. Light My Fire / Jose Feliciano
18. Paperchase / Clara Hill Meets Vivkter Duplaix
19. Tomorrow / Quincy Jones & Tevin Campbell

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GALLERY: Just Wright Red Carpet

Also don’t miss this interview with Charles Barkley and Common’s character Scott McKnight. I think he want easy on him!

“I’ve had five Mr. Rights”–Queen Latifah

RELATED: Common Wants To Play Marvin Gaye In A Movie

GALLERY: Just Wright Red Carpet

Check out the red carpet flicks below:

Common: “I Want To Play Marvin Gaye Or A Priest”

VIDEO: Common And Queen Latifah Perform With School Choir

Common and Queen Latifah recently performed with the school choir from New York’s PS 22. The music teacher at PS 22 is great and he manages to get great energy and soul from his students with and interesting selection of songs. Check out some more PS 22 videos after this one.

PS 22 Performs “Viva La Vida” by Coldplay

PS 22 Performs “Empire State Of Mind By Jay-Z

PS 22 Performs “Landslide” By Stevie Nicks

Angie Martinez, Lil Kim, Left Eye, Da Brat & Missy Elliott – “Ladies Night” (Remix)
(Produced by Rashad Smith for Tumbling Dice)

Taken from the slower/ less pimptastic version produced by Jermaine Dupri on Lil Kim’s debut Hardcore, this track gotta makeover for the Nothing To Lose soundtrack starring Martin Lawrence. This was the Queen B’s first single to go top 10 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.

Brandy – I Wanna Be Down (Remix) (feat. Mc Lyte, YoYo & Queen Latifah) 1994

(Produced By Keith Crouch and Kipper Jones)

Officially dubbed the “Human Rhythm Hip-Hop Remix” this took Brandy’s debut single to whole new audience earning it a Best Hip-Hop video nomination from MTV in 1995.
I sincerely wish VH1 Hip-Hop Honors would get these women together to perform this live at the next show. They all still look fine as hell.

Big Kap – Da Ladies In The House feat Bahamadia, Precise, Treep, Uneek & Lauryn Hill

(Produced by Big Kap)

I used to wear out my DooWoop mixtapes listening to Uneeks grimey ass vocals and how can you go wrong with L Boogie and Bahamadia on the SAME RECORD?

Panther Soundtrack “Freedom” F/ Queen latifah, Yo-Yo, Lisa ‘Left Eye’ Lopes, MC Lyte, Patra, Nefertiti, De Five Footers, Salt-n-pepa, Meshell Ndegeocello and others

(Produced by Diamond D and Dallas Austin)

“Freedom” is a cover of a song originally performed by underground R&B singer Joi on her 1994 album Pendulum Vibe, and was used for the film Panther, and featured over 60 female singers and rappers. But the version above features just the MCs (Salt-N-Pepa, Queen Latifah, Lisa ‘Left Eye’ Lopes of TLC, Yo Yo, MC Lyte, Da 5 Footaz) along with  Patra  and Me’Shell Ndegéocello.

You know I couldn’t find one female posse cut with Foxy Brown on it? Found one!

Total F/ Foxy Brown, Lil Kim and Da Brat “No One Else” (Remix)

Produced by Poke of The Trackmasters

I’m mad at myself for forgetting about this one initially. (That’s what I get for expecting Youtube to have everything.) While his claim may be dubious it was songs like this that made you think Puff really did invent the remix. This version of Total’s “No One “fueled anticipation for Lil Kim and Fox Boogie’s rumored Thelma and Louise album that obviously never came to be. Every DJ should have this one in the hard drive.

Total feat. Foxy Brown, Lil Kim & Da Brat – No One… – MyVideo

Honorable Mentions:

Deadly Venoms “Bomb Threat”

Apani B Fly F/Helixx C. Armageddon, Ayana Soyini, Jean Grea,
Pri Da Honey Dark , Yejide The Night Queen & Heroine “Estregen”

Erykah Badu F. Queen Latifah, Angie Stone and Bahamadia “Love Of My Life Remix”