DRAKE SAYS RIHANNA PLAYED HIM

Check out the below excerpt from the NYTimes interview with Drake:


On “The Resistance” he raps about an accidental pregnancy with a woman he was briefly involved with, who chose to end the pregnancy. And on “Fireworks” there’s a verse about Rihanna, who asked him last year to write a song for her new album;the two soon began seeing each other regularly, though they never publicly confirmed their brief relationship.

“I was a pawn,” Drake said. The song he wrote for her never got released. “You know what she was doing to me? She was doing exactly what I’ve done to so many women throughout my life, which is show them quality time, then disappear,” he said. “I was like, wow, this feels terrible.”

But it’s also the new normal, and Drake wonders if real intimacy is now out of reach, maybe irretrievably so. “Did I sacrifice something?” he asked, looking for the black cloud above the silver lining. “Have I not realized what it is yet because I’m enjoying this too much?”

To read the FULL article click HERE

B.o.B. Takes Over Rap’s Top Spot on the Charts

B.o.B. usurped hip-hop’s leading spot on The Billboard 200 from Nas and Damian Marley today (June 9).

The Adventures of Bobby Ray, which climbed three spots from No. 16 to No. 13 this week, is the highest-ranking rap album on the charts after selling 20,130 units in the last seven-days, according to the Nielsen SoundScan. Overall the ATLien has 210,300 in sales.

Four chairs down at No. 17 is the Black Eyed Peas. Fans are still purchasing the group’s 2009 disc, The E.N.D. in droves, picking up 17,400 CDs last week alone. To date, the Grammy-nominated album has sold 2,569,000 copies.

Directly below at No. 18 is Nas and Damian Marley’s collaborative project, Distant Relatives. The reggae-laced effort was bagged up 17,100 times this go-round, bringing the duo’s three-week tally to 99,800.

Rounding out the Top 40 is Ludacris’s Battle of the Sexes. The DTP general moved 11,700 units, which now makes his complete numbers equal 440,800.

Failing to chart on The Billboard 200 this week is Bay Area rap vet Yukmouth. The former Luniz MC’s new album, Free At Last, sold about 1,300 discs in his first week on shelves.

Next week look for Plies’s Goon Affiliated and Lil Jon’s long delayed Crunk Rock album to debut on the charts.

Destiny's Child Reunion Rumors Quashed By Beyonce's Dad

Attention those of you diehards still dreaming of a Destiny's Child reunion: Matthew Knowles would like to inform you that you might want to consider moving on with your lives.

Because Knowles — who, in addition to being Beyoncé's dad, was the manager of the group back in the day — just released a statement refuting weeks of rumors that Bey, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams are planning on reuniting, saying that the trio wouldn't be getting back together anytime soon, or, really, ever.

"Contrary to rumors online of a Destiny's Child reunion, there are no plans for the group to reunite for a performance or album," Knowles' statement read. "The rumors are false. Destiny's Child made an unprecedented impact in contemporary music, becoming one of the best-selling groups of all time. Beyoncé, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams have each moved on to successful solo careers. The members remain close, but will not reunite as a group."

So there you have it. And in case you've forgotten, Destiny's last album together was 2004's Destiny Fulfilled, a title that seems oddly prophetic given everything that has happened since. The trio embarked on a world tour in support of the album, and it was during a performance in Spain thatthey announced they would be disbanding at the completion of the tour.

And when they did part ways — to pursue solo careers of varying degrees of success (needless to say Beyoncé did alright for herself) — they left a fairly sizable legacy behind them: Destiny's Child were one of the best-selling female pop vocal groups in history, having sold more than 40 million albums worldwide.

Gucci Mane Gets “Wasted” At Summer Jam

Uncle Luke's Son Speaks Out On His Father Disowning Them & Luke At The Vh1 Awards Holding His Baby Acting Like Its His Only Son "I Don't See How You Can Be That Retarded"

Nico (Guy Who K.O'D Lil B) Apologizes For Going Ali On Him & Why He Went Off! (Claims Lil B Laughed At Them When Asking If Soulja Boy Can Put Them On)

Vistoso Bosses (Collipark's Female Group) - Pretty Girl Swag Freestyle

Soulja Boy – “Touchdown”

Kanye, Drake, Rick Ross, Khaled Added To BET Lineup Of Performers

Kanye West continues to inch his way back into the spotlight with a performance at the 2010 BET Awards. 

The performance will be West’s first major performance at an awards show, since his infamous appearance alongside Taylor Swift, at the 2009 MTV VMA’s. 

“While West received much backlash and criticism following the VMAs, BET decided to give the multifaceted performer a spot in music history during its 10 year anniversary special,” BET said in a statement. 

Also added to this year’s roster of performers are Rick Ross, DJ Khaled, Drake and others. Previously announced performers include T.I., Diddy and Dirty Money, Nicki Minaj and Trey Songz, while John Legend will receive a Humanitarian Award. 

The BET Awards ‘10 are slated to air live on Sunday (June 27th) at 8:00 PM from the Shrine Auditorium. 

                                   BET AWARDS '10
                              NOMINEES AND CATEGORIES

    Best Female R&B Artist               Best Male R&B Artist
    ----------------------               --------------------
    Beyonce                              Chris Brown
    Mary J. Blige                        Raheem DeVaughn
    Melanie Fiona                        Maxwell
    Alicia Keys                          Trey Songz
    Rihanna                              Usher

    Best Female Hip Hop Artist           Best Male Hip Hop Artist
    --------------------------           ------------------------
    Ester Dean                           B.o.B.
    Lil Kim                              Drake
    Nicki Minaj                          Fabolous
    Rasheeda                             Jay-Z
    Trina                                Ludacris

    Best New Artist                      Best Gospel
    ---------------                      -----------
    Justin Bieber                        The Anointed Pace Sisters
                                          Kirk Franklin Presents Artists
    Melanie Fiona                         United For Haiti
    Nicki Minaj                          Tamela Mann
    Wale                                 Marvin Sapp
    Young Money                          Vickie Winans

    Best Group                           Best Collaboration
    ----------                           ------------------
    Black Eyed Peas                      Beyonce f/ Lady Gaga - Video Phone
                                          B.o.B. f/ Bruno Mars - Nothin' On
    Clipse                                You
    Diddy-Dirty Money                    Drake & Trey Songz - Successful
                                          Drake f/ Lil Wayne, Kanye West &
    New Boyz                              Eminem - Forever
                                          Jay-Z & Alicia Keys - Empire State
    Young Money                           of Mind
    Trey Songz f/ Fabolous - Say Aah

    Video Director of the Year           Video of the Year
    --------------------------           -----------------
    Benny Boom                           Beyonce f/ Lady Gaga - Video Phone
                                          B.o.B. f/ Bruno Mars - Nothin' On
    Gil Green                             You
    Anthony Mandler                      Melanie Fiona - It Kills Me
                                          Jay-Z & Alicia Keys - Empire State
    Chris Robinson                        of Mind
                                          Jay-Z, Rihanna & Kanye West - Run
    Hype Williams                         This Town

    Best Actress                         Best Actor
    ------------                         ----------
    Taraji P. Henson                     Quinton Aaron
    Regina King                          Don Cheadle
    Mo'Nique                             Idris Elba
    Zoe Saldana                          Jamie Foxx
    Gabourey Sidibe                      Denzel Washington

    Best Movie                           YoungStars Award
    ----------                           ----------------
    Avatar                               Selena Gomez
    Law Abiding Citizen                  Lil JJ
    Michael Jackson's This Is It         Keke Palmer
    Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push'
     by Sapphire                         Willow Smith
    The Blindside                        Tyler James Williams

    Subway Sportswoman of the Year       Subway Sportsman of the Year
    ------------------------------       ----------------------------
    Tamika Catchings                     Carmelo Anthony
    Vanessa James                        Usain Bolt
    Candace Parker                       Kobe Bryant
    Serena Williams                      LeBron James
    Venus Williams                       Tiger Woods

    Viewer's Choice
    ---------------
    Beyonce - Sweet Dreams
    Jay-Z & Alicia Keys - Empire State of Mind
    Monica - Everything To Me
    Rihanna f/ Young Jeezy - Hard
    Trey Songz f/ Fabolous - Say Aah
    Young Money (Lil Wayne, Gudda Gudda, Nicki Minaj, Jae Millz, Drake,
     Tyga) f/ Lloyd - Bedrock

    Best International Act               Centric Award
    ----------------------               -------------
    Kojo Antwi (Ghana)                   Melanie Fiona
    Chipmunk (UK)                        Maxwell
    Dizzee Rascal (UK)                   Chrisette Michele
    Estelle (UK)                         Monica
    Hip Hop Pantsula (HHP) (South
     Africa)                             Sade
    K'NAAN (Somalia)
    M.I. (Nigeria)
    P-Square (Nigeria)
    Corinne Bailey Rae (UK)
    Sade (UK)

Diamond From Crime Mob Inks Deal With Battery Records

Battery Records has announced that they’ve signed former Crime Mob rapper Diamond to their label, which is distributed by Jive Records. 

This summer, Diamond will debut her lead new single “Lotta Money” which was produced by Recka on the Beat.

Diamond split from Crime Mob around 2007 and inked a management/record deal with Polo Grounds Music, another label distributed by Jive. 

Most recently, Diamond has had a strong presence on radio airwaves with appearances on Ludacris’ “My Chick Bad Remix” with Trina and Eve, as well as the “Bedrock Remix” with fellow female talents Rasheeda and Lola Monroe. 

“I can be more of an individual, say what I want to say. I also have to be much more responsible and make sure my business is taken care of,” Diamond told AllHipHop.com of her solo career. 

She has also parted ways with Polo Grounds, as her career is now being handled by veteran Dallas, Texas based executive, Mic Moodswing.

“We welcome Diamond to the Battery family,” Battery’s CEO Neil Levine said. “Her ability to constantly evolve makes her an exciting and remarkable artist that has proven that she can shine as a solo artist. We look forward to introducing Diamond and her new single ‘Lotta Money’ to the world.”

The news comes on the heels of a recently announced deal between Battery Records and Mickey Factz.