Pimp C Found Dead in Upscale LA Hotel Room!

Early this morning in Los Angeles, the fire department responded to a 911 call from the Mandarin Hotel on Sunset Boulevard. When authorities got to Chad Butler's (aka Pimp C) hotel room on the 6th floor, they found him dead.....



Pimp C is one half of the famed Houston rap group UGK (Underground Kings). For those of you that might not be familiar with their music, they have done notable collaborations with many of raps superstars. They were featured on 3-6 mafia's classic "Sippin on some Sysurp", Outkasts " International Player's Anthem" and possibly most notable the Jay-Z classic, "Big Pimpin".




(UGK's Bun B and Pimp C on tour)


Barry Weiss, CEO of their record label, Jive, said in a statement: "We mourn the unexpected loss of Chad. He was truly a thoughtful and kind-hearted person. He will be remembered for his talent and profound influence as a pioneer in bringing southern rap to the forefront."

Wow. What a sad and untimely loss for hip hop. Surely Pimp c will be missed dearly, as he was one of the pioneers of contemporary Southern hip-hop. Although the cause of death was natural.... How devastating for a young man of 33 to go so soon....Our prayers go out to Pimp c, his friends, and his family.

Detroit: Most Dangerous City in the Country!

(city image courtesy of blacknews.com)

DETROIT - (AP) In another blow to the Motor City's tarnished image, Detroit-- the famed hometown of multi-platium rap artist Eminem; pushed past St. Louis to become the nation's most dangerous city, according to a private research group's controversial analysis, released Sunday, of annual FBI crime statistics. The study drew harsh criticism even before it came out. The American Society of Criminology launched a pre-emptive strike Friday, issuing a statement attacking it as "an irresponsible misuse" of crime data.

The 14th annual "City Crime Rankings: Crime in Metropolitan America" was published by CQ Press, a unit of Congressional Quarterly Inc. It is based on the FBI's Sept. 24 crime statistics report. The report looked at 378 cities with at least 75,000 people based on per-capita rates for homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and auto theft. Each crime category was considered separately and weighted based on its seriousness, CQ Press said.


Last year's crime leader, St. Louis, fell to No. 2. Another Michigan city, Flint, ranked third, followed by Oakland Calif.; Camden, N.J.; Birmingham, Ala.; North Charleston, S.C.; Memphis, Tenn.; Richmond, Calif.; and Cleveland. The study ranked Mission Viejo, Calif., as the safest U.S. city, followed by Clarkstown, N.Y.; Brick Township, N.J.; Amherst, N.Y.; and Sugar Land, Texas.

Woooow, I guess 8 mile was just as grimey as Em always said... At least now we know his street cred isn't phony.... I hope word gets out, and people from Miami and elsewhere will stop asking me if I've been shot just because I'm from New York... LOL, I mean seriously; some of these statistics makes NYC look like a damn safe-haven paradise! Weeeeell...... Let's not go that far! We still get DOWN, ya heard????

Guess who turned 26, Y'all?

Britney Jean Spears turned 26 last night, and had an intimate dinner with friends, Sam Lufti, Alli Simms and Paris Hilton at the 4 seasons hotel. Before that, she had attended Sharon Stone's event that she threw for hot haute couture Swedish designer Katja Berglund. For the big day, Brit received $30,000 worth of fur coats from the brand, as well as $4,000 worth of eyewear... and that fabulous cake! Must be nice to be queen B-- hehe

Yep, She's Crazy!

According to UK's MIRROR gossip rag, Amy Winehouse was wondering the streets of London yesterday morning at 5:45 am in nothing more than jeans and this bra...Looking quite distraught I might add... She didnt even have on her signature dirty-ass ballet slippers! Oh my! Reps for the troubled singer claim that she heard a disturbance, and went to investigate, but from the look on her face, that's probably not the case.

Witnesses claim that she stormed out of the apartment looking very distrubed, teary-eyed and upset. She reportedly wandered around for blocks, look very contemplative and then retreated back into the apartment-- barefoot and all.... I think homegirl is either stupidly high, or suffering from some real crazy withdrawals.... Poor thang-- so much talent and promise yet such a mess!

Britney Spears Pregnancy Rumors!

Earlier this week, IN TOUCH WEEKLY, STAR MAGAZINE, US, and several other media outlets were reporting that Britney is pregnant... Once again. Pahleeeze Lawd, say it ain't so! Apparently, Britney has been canoodling with JR Rotem-- the sleazy, multi-platinum producer who has made hits for Rhianna, Paris Hilton, 50 Cent and others. What makes this even juicier is that JR was working exclusively with K. Fed on his (horrible) rap album back in 2006. That is actually how Britney met JR-- as Kevin's wife.... Trippy.

Reports are saying that Britney sent "excited e-mails" and spoke of ultra-sounds. Apparently Rotem had confirmed this information to IN TOUCH, but Britney's camp has been denying the pregnancy completely. I doubt it's true, but we'll keep you up-to-date as things develop!

Sean Taylor's Murder Mystery Case Closer to Being Solved

This past Tuesday night, the washington Redskins lost their star player, Sean Taylor. He had been shot in his Florida home during a robbery-gone-bad. Four suspects have been apprehended in connection to this murder. At the time, Taylor's one and a half year old daughter, and girlfriend of 2 years were home. He was shot in the groin on Monday night, but he was showing some progress later that evening. Unfortunately by Tuesday morning he was gone...

According to news sources, some men had been caught around the neighborhood bragging about how much money Taylor had, and how nice his house was. From this act of stupidity, authorities were able to capture the four suspects...

See? people just can't keep their mouths shut! Well good for them! I hope they get put under the jail for this horrible, senseless crime. This is yet another instance of black-on-black crime and it sickens me. Sean Taylor was a star football player, loving father, and great friend. We are all touched by this loss. Our prayers are with his family....

Amy Winehouse Cancels Career Until 2008!

The troubled singer who had a 13 hour stint in rehab this year has cancelled her tour and public appearances until the end of the year. She released a statement that claimed that she is heartbroken without her husband Blake (who will most likely be in jail until January), and she did not want to give her fans a half-hearted performance.... Eh, that may be partly true, but the real truth is that homegirl is strung out on heroine, cocaine and alcohol, and her doctor suggested that she cancel the rest of her schedule, and clean herself up....

I know her fans are pissed, but this might be the boost that she needs. It's almost 2008, and everyone deserves a clean slate... no? I pray that she gets it together before she becomes another cliche over-dosing jazz singer. Let's take a look back at Amy this year:

Mr. Usher has a lot to smile about these days....

Congratulations are in order for Usher and his troll, oops, I mean tranny, ooops, I mean WIFE Tameka Foster. The two "ushered" in a healthy baby boy named Usher Raymond V on Thursday. No pictures are available of the bundle of joy yet, but I can only imagine what he looks like. With a Curious George father and a Skeletor mother it can only get ugly from there... oops! Did I say that? Geez, that was catty-- even for me! No people, I'm just playing, that was wrong. We all know you can't call babies ugly! hahahahahah!

Congrats to the new family! :o)

T.I Still on House Arrest....

As most of you may know (unless you've been living under a huuuuuuge rock), Atlanta rapper T.I was apprehended last month along with his bodyguards and his baby-mama Tiny. The crew was apprehended and charged with attempt to buy automatic weapons and silencers. T.I is currently on house arrest as he awaits his trial.

Law enforcement has been trying to plea bargain with the rapper. Apparently, they were looking to nab another Atlanta rapper on some drug and weapons charges, but T.I refused to be a snitch.... More news in the coming weeks as the story develops.....

K-Fed is father of the year in Details Magazine, and Hell has Officially Frozen Over!

K-fed made the list of the 45 most influential men under 45 in Details Magazine this week. He made the whopping #7, and for what else? Being a good father.... I have to say, I was rather disturbed by this. I mean, I know it's just Details, and who reads Details right? But still. What about Ben Affleck, Brad Pitt, Will Smith, and a slew of others that have shown great parenting skills...

The media tries to make some angelic image of K-Fed; but anyone can look good and sane compared to our favorite celebuwreck, Britney Spears. I mean, the guy hired a 50-year old black nanny to watch his kids, while he parties in Vegas, sleeps with girls, and gets wasted. Wooooow, what a father. Just cuz he's not running around shaving his head, driving blindfolded, and acting plum crazy-- does NOT, I repeat NOT make him a great father... He's just...."ight". ya dig?

Kanye West's Mother Dies After Cosmetic Surgery

Donda West (58), passed away in a Los Angeles hospital yesterday due to complications with cosmetic surgery... Surely, this will hit Kanye hard who has had a very close relationship with his mother ever since his father abandoned him at 3 years old. Patricia Green (Donda West's publicist) would not confirm the type of cosmetic surgery Donda was having, nor the precise cause of death. She did say however, that West was a warm, kind spirit that everyone gravitated towards. Donda was a manager, mother and best friend to her son...





Donda retired from Chicago State University after 30 years of service back in 2004. She retired so that she could manage her son full-time. Yesterday upon hearing the news, Kanye flew into LA from London to be with family... Jay Z had a concert last night in which he payed homage to the West family stating: "Let's get serious for a minute. This show is dedicated to Kanye West who had a death in the family. We got you, Kanye. Stay strong." After that statement there was a minute of silence for the West and his family. I feel for the man. He's basically orphaned considering that his dad was a deadbeat. I wonder if he showed his face now, would Kanye even care? Hmmmmmm. Too bad, so sad. Hold ya head 'ye!

CD's, DVD's? We need that money in a hurry, please???

(Image courtesy of Perezhilton.com)

They want their words worth! That's what SAG members around the country are saying this week. Writers went on strike after petitioning a salary increase that has steadily been denied. Shows like Grey's Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, and all the late night talk shows depend on their clever writers for ratings. However, these geniuses have never gotten a cut of any of the DVD profits from these shows. It's downright unfair, and they're not going to take it anymore!

This strike has the potential to seriously cripple the entertainment industry and even the economy. California, for instance, depends heavily on movies and tv shows for their sustenance. Because of this strike, several shows will stop production as soon as this week, and next Wednesday the latest. Hollywood heroes such as Eva Longoria, Julianne Moore, and Katherine Hiegl have showed their support on the picket lines. Jay Leno fed the protesters everyday this week with doughnuts and coffee. Jon Stewart has offered to pay his staff for two weeks out of his own pocket. How noble! I wonder how long this will go on, but the powers-that-be need to stop being greedy and give these hard-working witty writers their fair share.... I mean really... this is sooooo un-American! Hahaha, I know you heard the sarcasm dripping from my voice right? From one writer to another I say-- get yours.. Ight????

Dog: the Bounty RACIST!!!

Duane Chapman aka :"Dog: the Bounty Hunter" has been in a lot of hot water these days. Chapman, with his trademark blond mullet and leather gear, shot to fame after his 2003 capture of Max Factor heir and serial rapist Andrew Luster in Mexico. This led to an offer for a reality TV show following him and his entourage tracking down people who jump bail.

Unless you have been living under a rock the past week, then you have heard about this reality tv star's scathing racially-charged rant against his son's African-American girlfriend. The converstation was between Chapman and his son. Unbeknownst to Chapman, his son had been recording the conversation, and ultimately sold it to the media for at least $15,000. The cable channel A&E which aired his popular bounty hunter show has pulled the show off the air indefinitely because of this. Has he learned nothing from Seinfeld's Kramer? Geez!

"He will not talk to me," said Chapman about his son, who has 12 children and has been married five times.
"His mother's in on it with him. I have been away from her since the '80s so now she is like getting even," he told the Larry King Live show on CNN on Wednesday night.

In my opinion, his Larry King interview was more damaging than anything. He repeatedly apologized, but claimed that he thought he could talk like that about black people and use the "n" word because he is "cool" and is supposedly "cool with black people". apparently his black friends don't mind when he uses the "n" word in their company... Wow, I'd like to meet these people... Wouldn't you? Instead of taking the humble road, he tried to explain away his actions. He told his son, he shouldn't date this "nigger" girl because it's bad for image and so on. He never even met or spoke to this woman! I wonder what his black friends would think about that????

He claims that his son is on probation after serving 4 years of a 20 year armed robbery sentence. He heard that his girlfriend was "bad" for him, and Chapman was just speaking out of concern for his son. I guess that's all up to interpretation but if you ask me? Ya boy is a stone-cold RACIST! Bad dog! Baaaaad dog!