Lil' Mo sings Happy Birthday to Jennifer Hudson

By Mr. Hollywood
JR Staff Writer

Long before Jennifer Hudson made it big, Lil' Mo was poised to be the future of R&B. Signed to Elektra Records, she worked closely with Missy Elliott. At the time, Missy was one of the biggest stars in the game.

After meeting Irv Gotti at an industry party, Lil' Mo was partnered with Murder Inc. The partnership led to Lil' Mo being featured on a number of Ja Rule's hits. But, within a year, Ashanti was signed and Lil' Mo moved on.

Since this time, Lil' Mo has struggled to release new music and to garner radio play. The faces and names have changed since she dominated. Following her starring role in the Dreamgirls film, Jennifer Hudson rose to fame.

Currently, one of the biggest female R&B stars out, Hudson recently celebrated her 30th birthday. In attendance at the party was Lil' Mo. The songstress sang to Hudson, wishing her a happy birthday.

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Lil' Mo offers support to Missy Elliott

By Mr. Hollywood
JR Staff Writer

Late last month, Missy Elliott came forward to explain her break from the music industry. At one point, Missy Elliott was the biggest female in the game. With the ability to both rap and sing, each of her albums ended up being a major success. But, over time, Missy Elliott faded away with no explanation.

Before the release of her last album, The Cookbook, Missy lost an incredible amount of weight. There was much outrage because of this. Throughout her career, Missy Elliott preached about being proud of the way you look. Now, at the peak of her career, she was losing weight.

However, Missy Elliott revealed her weight loss came with her battle with Graves disease. Lil' Mo, one of the artists Missy helped nearly a decade ago, is offering her support. Knowing what she is going through because of her mother's battles with Graves, Lil' Mo said she would be there for, because she has been instrumental in launching her career.

Nearly a decade ago, it seemed as if Lil' Mo was going to become one of the new key players in the R&B game. Teaming up with Ja Rule, she recorded several hit singles. However, soon Lil' Mo found herself replaced by Ashanti, while Fabolous continued to work with her.

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Olivia talks 50 Cent and G-Unit departure

By Mr. Hollywood
JR Staff Writer

In 2007, 50 Cent made a shocking statement when he revealed he had dropped Olivia from G-Unit Records. At the peak of his feud with Ja Rule, 50 Cent signed Olivia to serve as his "Ashanti." Despite being brutally dissed by 50 Cent and his associates, Ja Rule made a strong comeback in 2004 and 50 Cent countered with Olivia.

50 Cent had a strong year, in 2005, when he released his album and the hit single, "Candy Shop." The song featured Olivia on the hook and was embedded in the brain of many fans. At the time, it seemed as if the future was very bright for Olivia. She had a previous record deal with J Records, but things did not work out for her.

Two years into her time at G-Unit, Olivia was dropped from the label, but 50 Cent said there was no beef. However, before the end of 2007, 50 Cent dissed Olivia, saying she likely had a sexual relationship with Missy Elliott. While Olivia denied having a sexual relationship with Missy Elliott, there were rumors that she and 50 Cent had something going on.

When asked about her relationship with 50 Cent, Olivia said they kept it professional at all times. However, when she was asked about her departure from G-Unit Records, Olivia said she has not been completely paid for her time with the label. Olivia said she and 50 Cent have talked several times about the money he owes her and she said he will be paying her back.

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Jennifer Lopez releases Lil Wayne-assisted "I'm Into You" single

By The Music Scoop
JR Staff Writer

When she first made it big, Jennifer Lopez made music, which catered to the urban audience. But, when she began landing major Hollywood roles, her style in music changed. Many of her early fans said Jennifer Lopez only made black music when her career was on the line.

A little over ten years ago, Jennifer Lopez was posting chart-topping hit after chart-topping hit. She met Irv Gotti, then a powerful executive for Def Jam and head of Murder Inc. Gotti was behind many of the top hits from 1999 to 2004. Lopez linked with him at his peak.

Immediately, Jennifer Lopez was paired with Ja Rule and they charted multiple hits. But, after her album went platinum, Lopez returned to Hollywood. Ja Rule would soon pair with Ashanti and post more hits. In 2002, Jennifer Lopez returned to music and teamed up with LL Cool J for her "All I Have" hit and also released "Jenny From the Block."

Several years have passed since Jennifer Lopez last released an album. She recorded with Fabolous a few years ago for her "Get Right" single, but she has been focusing on her family in recent years. Now considered one of the older stars in the game, Jennifer Lopez has nearly been forgotten. Recently, Jennifer Lopez has been working on new music, while still paying close attention to hip hop. Like most hip hop fans, J. Lo has been taken by Lil Wayne, saying she is his biggest fan.

Quickly, Jennifer Lopez reached out to Lil Wayne and the result was their "I'm Into You" single. The song has been heavily discussed for days. However, no one has heard the song... until today. Earlier today, the first single from Lopez' Love? album was released and Lil Wayne has a cameo.

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Olivia discusses Game's disses during her G-Unit days

By The Music Scoop
JR Staff Writer

G-Unit was on top of the game by 2004. 50 Cent had established himself as the top rapper in the game. But, he did something most popular rappers do not, he developed more popular artists. In 2004, alone, G-Unit posted hits from Young Buck and Lloyd Banks, outside of 50 Cent.

50 Cent envisioned himself fully replacing Murder Inc. Ja Rule was posting platinum hits throughout his career, but he took over the game after he paired with Ashanti. 50 Cent had taken over the game, but he wanted more. He signed Olivia and intended to make her into his Ashanti.

Things were going great by 2005, as they prepared for Game's debut album release. However, a feud broke out between Game and 50 Cent and the movement fell apart. Game went from being the biggest G-Unit soldier to being the biggest rival of G-Unit. Soon, he began releasing several G-Unit disses, targeting not only 50 Cent, but also Olivia.

During her time with G-Unit, Game often said Olivia was transgendered. Even with his frequent disses, Olivia never responded to Game's digs. By 2007, Olivia also saw her self off the G-Unit label, like Game. 50 Cent dissed Olivia and Game immediately stopped. Recently, Olivia opened up on the "beef" with Game. She said she never responded to him because she does not respond to immature people. Olivia never understood why she was being dissed by Game. After all, the feud was between Game and 50 Cent.

Olivia said she always laughed each time Game dissed her.

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Nelly discusses marrying Ashanti

By Mr. Hollywood
JR Staff Writer

For the past few years, Nelly and Ashanti have been dating behind the scenes. Despite the public knowing about their relationship, the two denied being together. Last year, the couple had a highly publicized breakup. Earlier this year, they denied they were ever a couple.

Recently, Nelly decided to end the longstanding "secret." He admitted that he had been seeing Ashanti for some time. Unlike his past relationships with Eve and Kelly Rowland, Nelly has deep feelings for Ashanti. Even through their breakup, the two remained close.

As he is getting older, Nelly is thinking about settling down. If he had to choose someone to settle down with, he would choose his favorite songstress, Ashanti. Nelly has strong feelings for Ashanti, but the two are currently still broken up. Right now, the two are good friends and Nelly is willing to keep it that way as they work out their problems.

But, Nelly remains confident that he and Ashanti will get back together and he hopes one day he can end up marrying the former Murder Inc. artist.

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JR Throwback Video of the Day: Ashanti ft. Ja Rule - "Happy"

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Keyshia Cole in talks with Murder Inc.

For the first time in her career, Keyshia Cole is in control of her own destiny. Soon after being discovered, Cole was quickly signed to Interscope Records. She signed a three-album deal with the label. In 2008, following the release and promotion of her third album, Cole decided to take a break. During this break, she started a family.

Keyshia Cole has everything she could ever dream of within reach. Cole has a man she loves in her life with NBA player, Daniel Gibson and she has an adorable son. Aside from the family, money will never be an issue for Cole. She acquired this lifestyle from singing songs. Despite taking a break, she has plans of returning in a major way.

Now the power is in her hands because she is proven. Before, she had to pitch herself to labels. The labels now pitch themselves to her. Irv Gotti, of Murder Inc. Records has been close to her ever since the release of her sophomore album. Cole has a strong relationship with Ja Rule and many feel she would be a great asset for the label. If given the chance, she could do very well with the label because there is still a lot of talent surrounding the crew.

However, Keyshia Cole wants to have a much stronger voice and a bigger role than what Ashanti had during her time with the label. Each album Keyshia Cole has recorded, she has had full creative control on. Irv Gotti is known for filling any album, not recorded by Ja Rule, with appearances from the other artists. Cole still wants to work with other producers and artists not signed to Murder Inc. Still, Gotti would love to test her chemistry with Ja Rule. Rule is known for songs he has recorded with female vocalists. Early in his career, he had great chemistry with Lil' Mo and he hit his stride with Ashanti, then bombed with Ashley Joi.

Keyshia Cole may be the female sidekick to help Ja Rule regain his spot in the game.

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