Oct. 17, 2005

Kirk Franklin may be a minister of the gospel, but the happily married father of four recently overcame an addiction to pornography. Franklin is frank in his talk about his deliverance from pornography, an obsession he'd indulge in while he traveled city to city ministering the word of God and at home when his wife Tammy was asleep.

Though the Texas-bred entertainer hid the evidence of his pastime well, it was while lying in bed with his wife in a Los Angeles hotel room that he decided to come clean about his struggle. At that moment, Franklin knew he could conquer his demon.

"Because sexuality is so spiritual, you have to go back to that source to recognize that it's that connection to Christ that will give you victory over addictions. You learn what that is and when you're willing to go through the process of understanding that truth. Not necessarily the acrobats of religion, but just the simplicity of the truth of the Gospel and your new identity in Christ. When you become born again and you're able to understand that and to apply that to practical living, then you are able and a candidate for victory," explained Franklin, in his gruff preacher-like voice.

Despite potential scrutiny from judgmental Christians about his taboo addiction, Franklin has opted to be outspoken about his issue regardless of pending backlash. "I guess it's just my makeup," he declared. "That's just something that I am. I'm just very vocal about stuff. My weaknesses are something that God just presses upon me to discuss, and I'm very comfortable talking about it."

Franklin said that his openness and desire to share are part of the reason he's joined the world of blogging. "It's another new and fresh way to really be connected. It will allow people who are blessed by your ministry to stay part of the process," he offered. Franklin's blog can be found at www.kirkfranklin.us.

Love Calls

Is Pharrell Williams of The Neptunes ready to turn in his player card? Apparently so! The rapping and singing producer told Complex magazine that he's gearing up to propose to his longtime girlfriend.

"It's close, man. It's really close. There's definitely a girl that I love. It's close man," he confessed about his mystery love interest.

Though hit singles, numerous awards and lucrative business ventures are all nice, Williams shared that the most important thing to him is his family. "My ultimate legacy is gonna be my family -- my mom, my dad, my girl, and then she becomes my fiance, and then my wife, and then my kids," he revealed.

The Virginia Beach, Va.-bred musician admitted that his hectic lifestyle can complicate a relationship -- "It's tough, man. Doing what I do is not easy on a relationship, it's very hard on it," he added -- but the love of his life understands. "She hears my whispers. She knows my dreams. And she knows my heart," he closed.

Fresh Start

Former Miami radio personality Jill Tracey is a new house guest on NBC's 'Starting Over.' The daytime reality drama, created by producers of MTV's 'The Real World,' showcases women overcoming personal obstacles with the help of life coaches Iyanla Vanzant and Rhonda Britten and consulting psychologist Dr. Stan Katz.

Tracey's story details her longstanding issues with her mother, weight loss and the public end of her professional career -- a raging expletive-laced tantrum live on the air in Miami ended her radio career. "My story is scandalous, let me tell you, but it is truly helping me start my life over which is a blessing sent straight from the Lord," Tracey told me via e-mail.

Last year, Towanda Braxton appeared on "Starting Over" and recently told BV Buzz she learned the greatest lesson on the series: forgiveness. "I used to hold grudges, my God, for years and years," confessed Braxton. "I was pretty bad. I don't do that anymore, and I know that it's important to forgive people because life is short and you never know what tomorrow is going to bring."

During her 12-week stint on the show, Braxton revealed she was tired of living in Toni's shadow; bitter with sister Tamar for leaving The Braxtons trio and underhandedly securing a solo deal; and humiliated that her father cheated on her mother, causing his church to force him to step down from preaching.

Braxton said she was frustrated with some of the inaccuracies in her life story, that were a result of clever editing. "It kind of made it like I was at odds with everyone in my family and that's so not true," she explained.

With which family members did she actually have issues with? "As you saw on the television show, I never said anything bad about Toni, and I never said anything bad about my mother. The only problem that I wanted to air out was me not forgiving Tamar. I love Tamar, but I had never forgiven her," she clarified. She added that her emotions about her father, Reverend Michael Braxton, were dead-on however. "Everything about my father was just the absolute truth," she confirmed. "But the great thing about it was that my father didn't have an attitude about anything I said because he knew it was all the truth. Our relationship is so great now, and I talk to him quite a bit. I love my daddy."

When Braxton left the show, she was outraged with Vanzant. According to the singer, what wasn't shown on camera was that the life coach wrote a two and a half page letter in very Iyanla-speak addressed to Braxton's husband, Andre Carter. The letter complained about private conversations that Vanzant listened to Braxton having with her sister Tamar -- "Tamar would snap off about Iyanla like, "She needs to handle her own business. I know she has a lot of issues with her husband herself. She's trying to be Oprah [Winfrey]," shared Braxton. Vanzant also questioned whether the singer's marriage to Carter would last. "She wrote it to my husband, and it wasn't nice. " Braxton surmised.

Now, Braxton, who is eight months pregnant with her first child, said she's "applied the principals of the show" and has since forgiven Vanzant as well.

Can't Say Names

Sources say that a soon-to-be divorced Hollywood power player had already began romancing a stud music artist/producer turned Hollywood actor well before her divorce was announced. Said Tinseltown bigwig had apparently been spotted out with her new beau several times in Hollywood and even vibed with her boyfriend during an intimate rendezvous to Mexico. No word on whether the couple will go public once the divorce is final.

Buzzworthy

'The View' host Star Jones will release her second book, 'Shine: A Physical, Emotional, and Spiritual Journey to Finding Love' (Collins, $24.95), on Jan 6, 2006. The tome shares how Jones met and wed banker Al Reynolds. the couple will celebrate their one-year wedding anniversary on Sunday, Nov. 13. Jones' first book, 'You Have to Stand for Something or You'll Fall for Anything' (Bantam, $22.95), was released on Sept. 1, 1998.

Gospel star Brent Jones will follow in the footsteps of legends such as Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra and Nat King Cole and record a live album at the famed Capitol Records building in Hollywood, Calif. on Feb. 4, 2006. Presented by Neily Dickerson's ND Company, the session will be an exclusive invite-only recording at the 300-seat Capitol auditorium. Coko of SWV will be one of Jones' special guests for the recording -- she also sang the hit 'Midnight' on Jones' critically acclaimed 2002 release 'Beautiful.' In addition to ten new songs including 'Church Folks Don't Like Me,' Jones shared that his group T.P. Mobb, backed by a 100-voice choir, will likely re-record hits including 'Heaven In The Room,' 'Goodtime,' and a remix of 'Midnight' during the session. The former EMI Gospel artist was rumored to be signing with Gospo Centric Records (Dorinda Clark Cole, Kurt Carr), however Jones confessed that he's still a free agent and is meeting with numerous labels.

Music producer Rich Harrison told the Washington Post that despite creating hit records for artists like Beyonce ('Crazy in Love'), Amerie ('One Thing'), Jennifer Lopez ('Get Right')and Destiny's Child ('Soldier'), he's not aiming for stardom like producers-turned-record executives Jermaine Dupri and Sean "Diddy" Combs. "I enjoy a little mystique, man. It works for me. I just want to be the Howard Hughes of this [expletive]," he told the daily. Apparently part of Harrison's enigma is his age and, after much inveigling, he told reporter Chris Richards he is 29 years old. When Richards realized Harrison's confessed age conflicted with the age listed in a publicity blurb, 24, he researched voter records and learned that the hitmaker actually turned 32 on Oct. 10. I guess some things are just hard to keep quiet.

Weatherman Tony Perkins has officially announced that he's leaving 'Good Morning America' to return to Washington's Fox affiliate, WTTG-TV. Perkins announced his departure from the ABC morning show in an e-mail to 'GMA' staffers last week. "I worked for Channel 5 [WTTG] for over seven years before coming to 'GMA,' and the chance to once again be part of that family is too good to pass up," Perkins wrote. His last day at "GMA" is Dec. 2, and the weathercaster will begin at WTTG on Jan. 3.

Soul crooner Donell Jones is readying his return to the music scene after a three-year hiatus. The former LaFace recording artist will drop his new album, 'Journey of a Gemini,' the day after Christmas on Jive Records. The Chicago-bred father of four (daughters Keyana, Danielle, Tatiana and Shakia), who typically writes and produces his own music, will collaborate with The Underdogs (Ruben Studdard, Omarion), Tim and Bob (Bobby Valentino, Lionel Richie) and Sean Garrett (Destiny's Child, Ciara) on his upcoming release. "Working with a lot of different people opened me up and made me a better writer," said Jones.

BV Scene

Destiny's Child member Kelly Rowland was partying with an entourage of five at Margaritaville in Ocho Rios, Jamaica. Rowland impressed the locals with her adept execution of the latest reggae and dancehall moves...Lovebirds Nelly and Ashanti shopping at the Forum Shops in Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. The two browsed the mall with bodyguards and hotel security in tow, spending big bucks in stores such as Dolce & Gabbana and Salvatore Ferragamo...A t-shirt and jeans-sporting Aaron Neville, of the legendary Neville Brothers, in Franklin, Tenn., at the Cool Springs Walgreens checkout counter. He zipped away in a new silver metallic Corvette coupe, complete with a temporary tag...The Fugees -- yep, all three: Wyclef Jean, Lauryn Hill and Pras Michel -- checking in to the Fontainebleau Resort on Collins Ave. in Miami Beach, Fla.