SO RICKY MARTIN FINALLY SAYS "IM GAY" Love me or hate me!

Ricky Martin Comes Out

Holy Clay Aiken -- Ricky Martin has finally come out of the closet.

Martin -- who has dodged questions of his sexuality for years -- just posted the following on his official website: "I am proud to say that I am a fortunate homosexual man. I am very blessed to be who I am."

Martin says the birth of his twin sons led to his decision to come out -- and according to the singer, "To keep living as I did up until today would be to indirectly diminish the glow that my kids where [sic] born with."

Ricky's kids were born in August 2008.

From Poverty to Power

From Poverty to Power: Celebrities Who Started With Nothing
by Michael Deane


When thinking of the "new breed" of celebrity - from the Kardashians to Paris Hilton to the stars of "The Hills" - fame seems to depend on the fact that they're already fabulously wealthy. Well, despite these new trends, some of the most famous and wealthy people did not come from rich families - many of them were born into poverty. Read on to learn some of their stories and what it took from having nothing to multi-million-dollar empires.


The Phenomenon - Oprah Winfrey

Surely the most well-known rags-to-riches story of our era is the story of Oprah Winfrey. Having been born into abject poverty in rural Mississippi, Winfrey went from being a young girl clothed in potato sacks (literally) to the richest and most powerful female media mogul in the world. Winfrey was able to accomplish this by moving from a disruptive and abusive household in with her stricter father.

Once Winfrey was subject to discipline and was supported at school, she became an honors student and got her big break when she became a newscaster in Nashville after finishing college. Winfrey has come a long way from her poor upbringings, and is worth $2.9 billion as of 2009, according to Forbes.

J.K. Rowling

Similar to Winfrey's story, J.K. Rowling went from being on the dole to starting a $15 billion industry. Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter books series, was estimated to be worth $843.92 million U.S. dollars as of 2008. She began writing the series while she was on welfare and by incorporating some of the darker elements of her own life - the loss of her mother and battle with depression - into the novels, Rowling's books became a success after an initial press of 1,000 sold out, giving way to Potter mania.

Signing the Stars - David Geffen

David Geffen is a name that many of you will have heard, but few will understand the significance. Geffen is responsible for signing Crosby, Stills and Nash, Bob Dylan and Nirvana, starting Geffen Records and was a founding member of Dreamworks studio.

Geffen grew up poor in Brooklyn, living in a one-bedroom apartment with his family and sleeping on the couch. Geffen did poorly in high school and flunked out of college, but his natural gift in spotting and developing musical talent — along with business sense that he learned from his mother - made him a millionaire by the time he was 26.

At 67, renowned art collector and philanthropist Geffen is worth an estimated $4.6 billion - making him one of the richest behind-the-scenes players in showbiz.

Making It With Music - Jay-Z

Another music mogul that made his way from the bottom to the top is Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter. Carter is as much a businessman as he is a performer, but began his life in the Brooklyn's Marcy Housing Projects. Carter was raised by his mother, and was involved in crime when growing up - at 12 he shot his brother in the arm for stealing his jewelry.

Carter began as a rapper and went on to become involved in everything from nightclubs and clothing to being a part owner of the New Jersey Nets. As of 2009, Carter was worth over $150 million according to Forbes, and seems to be broadening his reach in the business world.

Her Cash Will Go On - Celine Dion

Though she's kind of faded from the spotlight since her late '90s ubiquity - Celine Dion is still ranked as one of the highest-grossing female entertainers and in 2007 was listed by Forbes as the fifth richest female entertainer, coming in at $250 million. She also was ranked as the top-earning singer of the decade by U.K.'s The Sun. Not bad for the 14th (!) of 14 children growing up in a poor household in rural Quebec, where her father made $160 per week to support the family of 16.

Like many of these rag-to-riches stories, it seems Celine's success owed as much to luck as talent - she was discovered singing when she was 12 and continued to create more songs and make more money.

Canadian Songstress - Shania Twain

Another Canadian songstress that grew up with nothing in the rugged wilderness was Shania Twain (born Eileen Regina Edwards). The recently separated Twain grew up in Timmins, Ontario in a household that was too poor to pay for heat, and at times couldn't afford to buy food. By the age of eight, Twain was honing her craft in bars in order to provide an extra $20 for her family.

Twain continued her singing career into high school and was soon on her way to becoming the highest-selling female musician of all time. Her net worth is estimated at around $450 million.

The Bottom Line

From inner-city housing projects to rural homesteads without heat, many of the most famous and wealthy celebrities had very humble beginnings. What brought all of these stars from rags to riches was focusing in on their natural talents, dedicating themselves to its development and not stopping until they had a hefty bank account. It just goes to show that you don't have to be born rich to become rich.

Eva Marcile & lance Gross OFICIALLY CALL IT QUITS!

Five months before their July 17th wedding, model/actress Eva Marcille, 25, and actor Lance Gross, 28, have split up. When ESSENCE.com reached out to the couple's representatives for confirmation about the break-up we were given this official joint statement.

"Lance Gross and Eva Marcille have mutually decided to end their relationship. The split is completely amicable," the statement reads.

Last month the blogosphere buzzed that Marcille and Gross, who had been together for nearly three years, were on the rocks, due to an alleged argument between the two during Super Bowl XLIV weekend in Miami.

The couple got engaged on Christmas Eve 2008, while vacationing with family in the San Bernardino Mountains outside of Los Angeles, after dating for a year and a half. The couple announced their engagement to ESSENCE.com.

We reported: "Marcille and Gross decided to open gifts after dinner in their rented cabin. When Marcille opened her gift--a pillow with a note attached that read: 'Hope you like it. Give this pillow to the man you love and he will explain.' Gross used the pillow as a cushion and got on bended knee and popped the big question with a 3.36-carat 1895 Pave Cartier ring at 11:30 PM PST."

"She took full control of my heart and is the only woman that has ever made me feel that way," Gross told ESSENCE.com during happier times. Ironically, Gross stars in the recently released movie "Our Family Wedding," which he said was like rehearsing for the couples upcoming nuptials.

"I was in love with him before we ever met. He's my dream guy!" Marcille told ESSENCE.com after Gross popped the question.

According to the joint statement from their reps, "both parties remain friends."

Chris Brown pleads with fans

Sad news is in abundance this week, starting with the former prince of pop Chris Brown. Brown, who has been vying for a way to revitalize his career following his 2009 assault on ex-girlfriend Rihanna, has resorted to desperate measures to stage his comeback.

The 20-year-old singer-dancer, who plead guilty to felony assault and is on probation for five years, recorded an audio message Wednesday on Say Now asking his fans to "bring [him] back." A humbled Brown said he needs his fans' help. "Some radio stations aren't playing my records," he said. "They're not being that supportive and I wouldn't expect them to. But it's on the fans...It's in your power to bring me back."

Brown said he is doing everything he can do. He refers to himself as a "better person" and said he is doing his music for the love, but added that his career is in jeopardy.

"It won't be possible for me to be an artist if I don't have support from people who give me an artist outlet," Brown said. "I can't be an underground mixtape artist."

Brown sounds stressed out. After releasing two previously successful albums, it has got to be tough experiencing such a decline in support for his current album, Graffiti.

I know it's been a year since the incident, he has accepted his sentence, and was previously praised by the judge for following through with his community service, but he needs to relax. It is going to take some time for him to repair his reputation. He needs to be patient. He just re-emerged on Twitter at @ChrisBrown and is keeping it positive so far. He Tweeted about reading to 3rd grade students at a school in Harlem. This feels like a better plan. Releasing a new album just eight months after the altercation was just too soon.

story by Billy Johnson, Jr.

Jamie fox is wrong LMAAAAAO

LMAOOOOOO!

lady Gaga & Beyonce Telephone Video

http://popline.mtv.uol.com.br/tube/lady-gaga-beyonce/telephone-video_7dcd73cae.html

Singer D’Angelo Arrested for Soliciting Prostitute!

D’Angelo, who is well regarded for his singing and performance abilities, has become the most recent celebrity to be arrested for an embarrassing crime. This past Saturday the performer was arrested for soliciting oral sex from an undercover law enforcement official in New York.
According to sources, D’Angelo allegedly offered the undercover policewoman about $40 in exchange for oral sex. The incident occurred in New York’s West Village neighborhood around 2:30 AM. D’Angelo, who resides in the area, was arrested while driving alone in his Range Rover after his attempted solicitation. The performer also had $12,000 in cash in his SUV.
This is not the first time that D’Angelo has been in trouble with the law. In January 2005 he was arrested for driving under the influence and possession of marijuana.
D’Angelo, whose birth name is Michael Eugene Archer, has been actively involved in the entertainment industry since 1994. In the past he has been affiliated with various successful record labels including EMI and Virgin Records. His first album, “Brown Sugar,” was released in 1995 and sold over 2 million records.
D’Angelo is rumored to be releasing a new album in the summer of 2010. However, the title has yet to be released.

AVATAR MAKES BIG BUT LOSES BIG AT THE OSCARS!

Really, looking back, did "Avatar" even stand a chance?

"Avatar" is still raking in the profits, but failed to produce the critical success that Cameron's previous film, "Titanic," generated 12 years ago. In fact, "Avatar" -- the most financially successful film of all time -- was easily the most mocked film of the evening.

Sure, it was an easy target. No other nominated film featured blue aliens. Oscar co-host Steve Martin participated in a bit where he used bug spray to defend himself against "Avatar's" jellyfish-like creatures. Ben Stiller attempted his best Na'vi impression as a presenter -- oh, that could have been much, much worse.

However much audiences may enjoy the visually stunning imagery in "Avatar," it seems, when it comes to the Oscars, nothing beats real, live human beings.

Los Angeles Times columnist Patrick Goldstein sums up this sentiment by writing, "My suspicion is that academy members still find it difficult to believe that films largely created and sculpted in the computer--whether it's "Avatar" or the long string of brilliant Pixar films -- can be just as worthy and artistic as the old-fashioned live-action ones."

But if anyone was going to defy the big-budget-visual-effects-films-don't-win-Oscars rule, everyone seemed to think it could be James Cameron.

In 1997, James Cameron's other box-office behemoth, "Titanic," accomplished the rare feat of box-office and Oscar dominance. "Titanic" was nominated for a record 14 Academy Awards and won a record 9 awards. "Avatar" only won three of its nine nominations: Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction, and Best Visual Effects. Cameron's "Titanic" also won those same three awards, plus 6 others, including the Academy Award for Best Picture and Best Director; "Avatar" lost Best Picture and Best Director to "The Hurt Locker."

"Avatar" had the unfortunate luck -- if you can call a movie that's made over $2.5 billion worldwide "unfortunate" -- of being right smack in the middle of the science fiction genre. A genre that, historically, doesn't win Oscar gold no matter how successful financially. In 1977, "Star Wars" became the most financially successful film of all time but lost the Best Picture Oscar to "Annie Hall." Similarly, in 1982 "E.T." set box-office records but lost the Academy Award to "Ghandi." The closet thing to science fiction to ever win Best Picture would be 2003's "Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" -- and even that film series needed three attempts before it finally won.

This year, Cameron was frustrated that his film wasn't taken seriously as an "actor's film." He worked hard in his Oscar campaign to spread the notion that actors acting in front of green screens and using computer generated technology are just as worthy as actors not engulfed by special effects. (Actors make up the largest segment of the voting Academy.) Clearly, the campaign did not go over so well at the Oscars. However unfair it may be, it seems no one likes the idea of being replaced by a machine.

Do you think Avatar should have won Best Picture? YES OR NO

Oldest Women on record dies!

WESTMORELAND, N.H. – Mary Josephine Ray, the New Hampshire woman who was certified as the oldest person living in the United States, has died at age 114 years, 294 days.
She died Sunday at a nursing home in Westmoreland but was active until about two weeks before her death, her granddaughter Katherine Ray said.
"She just enjoyed life. She never thought of dying at all," Katherine Ray said. "She was planning for her birthday party."
Even with her recent decline, Ray managed an interview with a reporter last week, her granddaughter said.
The Gerontology Research Group says that Ray was the oldest person in the United States and the second-oldest in the world. She was also recorded as the oldest person ever to live in New Hampshire.
The oldest living American is now Neva Morris, of Ames, Iowa, at age 114 years, 216 days. The oldest person in the world is Japan's Kama Chinen at age 114 years, 301 days.
Ray was born May 17, 1895, in Bloomfield, Prince Edward Island, Canada. She moved to the United States at age 3.
She lived for 60 years in Anson, Maine. She lived in Florida, Massachusetts and elsewhere in New Hampshire before she moved to Westmoreland in 2002 to be near her children.
Ray's husband, Walter, died in 1967. Survivors include two sons, eight grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren and five great-great grandchildren.

THE DEFINITION OF A BOSS LADY! So it appears...She has alot of Secrets..HINT!

Tempress.

Known to most as Tempress or "Mother Tempress" to be exact, Chastity Moore is woman who personifies the concept of growth, knowledge, and performance. I use the word women because she is that in every way except for her secret. Born in upstate New York, in the city of Mount Vernon, Chastity was a product of the typical American family. More than satisfied with her home life, Chastity was always interested in theatre and cultivated a profound love for the stage. After performing in her first play in elementary school, Chastity progressively trained and performed in the realm of theatre, eventually moving to Atlanta to attend Clark Atlanta University to pursue a degree in Mass Media Arts. Chastity soon began to travel and perform various plays with Movie Comedy & stage play mogul Tyler Perry, even being featured on the soundtrack for the production, “I Know I’ve Been Changed.” She has also used her talents for the benefits of the youth and the community. Acting and producing stageplays for Youth Theatre Interaction, a company that specializes in HIV/AIDS prevention through arts and education. Chastity currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia pursuing a singing career, as well as developing and perfecting her craft as an actress, producer, and novice stagewriter. Chasity has her dark secret's esp the ones surrounding her and one particular SUPER CELEBRITY... Chasity has also mastered the element of beauty thru her years, esp seeing as thou Chasity wasn't born Female she was born a Male! I wonder what ___________ is going to say when Boss ladies Debut's and all of the Dirt HITS THE FAN!