Aug. 13, 2007

Rumors, Rants & Reality Checks

Usher Raymond IV: So I have it on good authority that the 28-year-old R&B star is now being managed by Antonio "L.A." Reid, chairman of The Island Def Jam Music Group. That would answer one major question that folks in Usher's camp had all along: 'Why wasn't L.A. Reid the voice of reason when Usher decided to marry Tameka Foster."

Now that Reid is apparently representing Usher, whom he has known since signing him to LaFace Records when he was 13-years-old, it makes sense because he has vested interest in the star now and didn't want to be fired like Usher's mom/manager Jonetta Patton. When Patton refused to accept Usher's relationship with former stylist Foster, the singer retaliated by canning her days before Mother's Day. Reid on the other hand, opened up his backyard in The Hamptons for that ill-fated initial ceremony.

In addition to Reid, I'm told that Usher has also brought on über -talent manager Benny Medina (Tyra Banks, Mariah Carey) and NoonTime's Chris Hicks (who is the cousin of Foster's ex-husband Ryan Glover) as consultants. A rep for Usher denied that Reid is the singer's new manager. "This is totally false," said Usher's rep Patti Webster.

In addition, did you notice how initially all of Usher's exclusives (engagement announcement, pregnancy announcement and wedding information) were given to People magazine? I'm told that the reason Us Weekly is now getting all of the exclusive updates from the modern day Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown is because People magazine began researching the information being sent over by Usher's camp and realized it wasn't checking out. "Once People discovered that Foster had never checked into St. Vincent's Medical Center in New York and that wasn't the reason the wedding was called off, they questioned Usher's camp on it. Instead of responding, team Usher began offering their exclusives to Us Weekly," said a source close the situation.

Karrine Steffans: The interview circulating online that is supposed to be a leak from the forthcoming book, 'The Vixen Diaries,' from The New York Times best-selling author sometimes referred to as "Superhead" is 100 percent fabricated. Steffans released a statement about the Internet hoax.

"Reports of an excerpt from my upcoming book, 'The Vixen Diaries,' are maliciously false. My publisher, Grand Central Publishing (formerly Warner Books) and I stand united in officially denying the validity of these reports. For the record, I do not know most of the people in this fake excerpt with the exception of those in my first book, 'Confessions of a Video Vixen.' 'Diaries,' much like 'Confessions,' is not a sex laden romp fest but an extension of my life as it stands today including views into my personal, public and professional life ,which happens to be littered with celebrities. This spectacle is saddening and shameful for those who practice such poor judgment in reporting," she said in a statement sent by her rep Danika Berry. Not only did some random person make the story, which claimed Steffans dishes about sexual trysts with everyone from Russell Simmons to Juelz Santana and Missy Elliott in her September tome, but they even acknowledged their wrongdoing and poked fun at online blogs for being so gullible and quick to post the story. The culprit, who posted the story on AllHipHop.com's message board, wrote: "LMAO (laughing my a- off) @ Mediatakeout jacking the Superhead thread I made up." Let's hope this is a wake-up call to bloggers!

Sherri Shepherd: By now 'The View' has become one of the most talked about shows on television. Apparently the headline news stories and tabloid scandals surrounding the show have helped boost ratings, which is why news of Sherri Shepherd's negotiations to join the show are being so played up in the media. A report surfaced a few weeks ago that both Whoopi Goldberg, who was recently announced as the new moderator, and Shepherd would be joining the show for fall 2007 season. On Aug. 1, only Goldberg was announced as a new co-host and speculation that Shepherd's contract negotiations stalled on her alleged $2 million asking price made headlines. Do I believe this? Nope.

Having interviewed Shepherd over the years and just from getting a since for her personality, I'm sure Shepherd was only asking for a salary that was both fair and would help her take care of her special needs son. More so, I do believe that contract negotiations are still ongoing and Shepherd's recent statement to 'Access Hollywood' backs those claims up. "We're still in talks so hopefully you'll see me there in that chair in September," Shepherd told 'Access' from the set of ABC's new game show, '"Wanna Bet?'"

My prediction is that the actress/comedienne, who graces the cover of the new 'Figure' magazine, will definitely fill the fifth chair on 'The View' when the show returns after Labor Day.

Duane Martin & Tisha Campbell Martin: I thought addressing this story in last week's column would clear things up, but I am still getting e-mails and phone calls from "avid readers" of the 'BV Buzz' asking me the same question. So for the last time, no this Hollywood couple has not split and the 'All of Us' star did not come out of the closet. The internet forward making its rounds online is completely bogus and TMZ.com did not report that story. That's why there was no link to the TMZ.com Wweb site, usually the tell-tell sign that an Internet forward is bogus.

Buzzworthy

Star Jones Reynolds' new daytime show on TruTV (formerly Court TV) will go live next week. The daily one-hour show, titled 'Star Jones,' will debut on Aug. 20 at 3 p.m. and air Mondays through Fridays.

'King of Comedy' D.L. Hughley has apparently been tapped to host the new season of 'Def Comedy Jam' on HBO. The forthcoming season will tape in Los Angeles in Sept. Funnyman Mike Epps hosted the last season of the hit comic showcase series.

Congratulations are in order for R&B singer Tamia and hoops star Grant Hill. The couple gave birth to their second daughter, Lael Rose Hill, last week in Orlando, Fla. The two already have a five- year- old daughter named Myla Grace. I broke news of Tamia's pregnancy in March on the 'Tom Joyner Morning Show,' just before singer announced the news on her MySpace page.

R&B singer Monica is expecting her second child. The Atlanta-based star is apparently five months pregnant by her boyfriend, music producer Rodney Hill, Jr. Monica gave birth to the couple's first child, a son named Rodney Ramone Hill III, in May 2005.

Former MTV 2 personality Amanda Diva is now touring with Floetry's Marsha Ambrosius as a replacement for "floacist" Natalie Smith. Amanda will perform her own lyrics in place of Natalie's on the group's 'Floetry Remixed' tour. She has one song up on her MySpace page called 'Floetry Passin' Me By' that samples the Pharcyde track '"Passing Me By.'" In addition, Diva is expected to release her 'Filling The Void' EP on Oct. 23. A music video for the single '40 Emcees' featuring Q-Tip is available on MySpace.

Veteran music journalist Lin Woods will moderate Inspired Lives Foundation's Inspired Music Entertainment Seminar on Sept. 29 at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. The all-day forum will be held at the Millennium Student Center and featured panelists like D.A. Johnson (Malaco Records), Alvin Williams (Gospel Music Channel), Tammy Johnson Williams (Open Rivers Pictures), Benita Bellamy (Light Records), Curtis Jermany (Urban Gospel Alliance) and Clyde Duffie (Jordan Entertainmnet Group). For details visit www.theinspiredco.com.

Where Are They Now?

Whatever happened to singer Tracie Spencer? The "Tender Kisses" singer became a star in the late 1980's after winning 'Star Search.' She released several albums on Capitol Records and hasn't been heard from since. If you know the latest on Spencer, drop me a line at JawnMurray07@aol.com.

Can't Say Names ...

This R&B starlet is not winning any new fans with her apparent nasty attitude. The once-charming and former sweet entertainer is developing a reputation with promoters, former stylists and hometown associates for being "a real b#%*@," as one person who was once close to the star put it. A publicist recently working with the singer even quit because of her attitude.