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Sept. 13-20: Presidential Debate, Justice Served, And True Hollywood Stories

Posted Sat Sep 19, 2009 5:11pm PDT by Billy Johnson, Jr. in That's Really Week

I would personally like to thank Kanye West for making this week in news truly one of the most entertaining. I anticipated this year's MTV Video Music Awards because of the planned Michael Jackson tribute.

I was anxious to see what MTV had in store, and was excited that Janet would be participating. I enjoyed the opening eulogy from Madonna, and I appreciated the MJ dance sequence that wrapped with Janet. It was cool seeing her in sync with her late brother, who was present on the big screen, as they performed their 1995 collab "Scream."  It is horrible that that incredible moment was eclipsed by yet another typical selfish outburst from Kanye West.

 

http://a323.yahoofs.com/ymg/hiphopmediatraining__4/hiphopmediatraining-690313370-1253303071.jpg?ymgcX6BDWZabLRKpAs 19-year-old Taylor Swift was making her acceptance speech for receiving the night's first honor, Best Female Video award, Kanye took the microphone from her and proclaimed, "Beyonce had one of the best videos of all time." When he handed the mic back to a stunned Taylor, the country starlet stood still, seemingly confused. The crowd erupted with a combination of boos for Kanye and applause for Taylor. Though Beyonce helped clean things up a bit at the end of the night when she received the Best Video Moon Man and invited Taylor back on stage to "have her moment," the ruckus had only just begun.

Kanye posted an apology on his website later that night. He was close to tears the next day when speaking about the incident on the debut of The Jay Leno Show. By Tuesday, he finally got to talk to Taylor via phone to ask for her forgiveness for which she obliged. That Taylor Swift is some sweetheart.

However, the best part of the entire ordeal is that President Obama's off-the-record opinion hit the ‘net. The President summed up in three words, the 700-word response blog I wrote Sunday night. The President offered a succinct, "He's a jackass." The President's remarks made during the set up for a CNBC News taping were not intended for broadcast. However, ABC's Terry Moran shared the President's comment over Twitter when he heard about the controversial statement. Later, the audio, and video surfaced. I wish I could have been with former President George W. Bush when he received this news. He must have felt some vindication. He is, by the way, the one Kanye said, "does not like Black people" on a nationally televised Hurricane Katrina benefit program. I can't wait to see how Saturday Night Live parodies this fiasco.

http://a323.yahoofs.com/ymg/hiphopmediatraining__4/hiphopmediatraining-416867217-1253139464.jpg?ymIgv5BDWJ5Rf2UbKanye West is not the only one served up a good dose of payback this week. R&B pop star Chris Brown started his new temp job Wednesday. No, it wasn't a new Doublemint Gum commercial, or feature film appearance, but something a bit more labor intensive, labor being the keyword here. Chris Brown started his 180 day community labor gig that he was formally assigned in August after striking a plea deal for felony assault against his former girlfriend Rihanna. Chris Brown was captured on video raking weeds at the Richmond police horse stables. Chris worked up a sweat in his fluorescent orange vest, red cap, and baggy pants. One of his bodyguards modeled a Stop Teen Violence t-shirts that Chris is rumored to be selling. Chris waved to onlookers, and even graced his female fans by appearing shirtless. His sentence also includes 5 years probation, an order to stay away from Rihanna, and a 52-week course on domestic violence. Hopefully, these measures will help him reform.

http://a323.yahoofs.com/ymg/stopthepresses__1/stopthepresses-738341833-1250233072.jpg?ymx7puBDsjb2Mhc8Aerosmith does not have any legal matters at hand, but it looks like they could use some intervention. Last month the group's tour with ZZ Top had to be cancelled due to injuries lead singer Steve Tyler sustained when he fell off a stage in Sturgis, SD, and broke his left shoulder, requiring 20 stitches in his head. Honestly, when I read the press release in August that the tour was cancelled, I found it interesting that the quotes from the band emphasized their disappointment for letting down the fans. The references to Steven and his recovery were minimal. Now, I know why. In an interview with AP this week, member Joe Perry explained his frustration with Steven Tyler for derailing their tour. "The tour was building up to be a great tour, and I was pretty (upset) you know," Perry said. He added that he did not know what was going on with Steven, who he had not spoken to in five weeks. Joe blamed Steven for the cancellation of other dates, and said his bandmate needed to "get his act together." Wow. Therein lies an idea for a new line of Hallmark cards. I could see the "Get Your Act Together Soon" line totally taking the place of the simple, "Get Well Soon" series.

http://a323.yahoofs.com/ymg/vivanashvegas/vivanashvegas-257172695-1250799273.jpg?ympK0wBD1drIFNa0I wonder if Kenny Chesney's band relates to Joe Perry. Kenny has announced that he won't tour next summer because he does not want to burn himself out. Country's top party boy has been a mainstay for the summer tour circuit, so this news comes as a big surprise. Maybe this will give him more time to develop his new clothing line and other projects in the works.

http://a323.yahoofs.com/ymg/chart_watch__10/chart_watch-908816107-1253123425.jpg?ymhlr5BDeMp6.GSZJay-Z has not announced any tour plans, but he did make news this week when he debuted with the No. 1 selling album in the country. His album, "The Blueprint 3," sold 476,000 copies, making it the third highest selling debut of this year. Eminem's "Relapse," and U2's "No Line On The Horizon," respectively, hold the No. 1 and No. 2 spots. Even cooler, "BP3" marked his eleventh No. 1 album, which breaks a record previously set by Elvis.

http://a323.yahoofs.com/ymg/chart_watch__10/chart_watch-307085557-1253123442.jpg?ymylr5BD.jXjxNopHowever, the Beatles celebrated even bigger sales news. The re-release of their catalog surpassed record posthumous chart positions for Michael Jackson. The Beatles sold 626,000 albums last week, and had nine albums in the top 20, and 12 in the top 30.

http://a323.yahoofs.com/ymg/hiphopmediatraining__4/hiphopmediatraining-950504952-1253295689.jpg?ymJpV6BDjJCAg1ajWhitney is expected to make a nice chart showing next week, thanks to her two day appearance on Oprah this week. On Monday, Whitney sat down with Oprah and addressed all of the rumors about her drug use, tumultuous marriage to Bobby Brown, and the impact of her voice. The following day, she performed live. Her album, "I Look To You" debuted at No. 1 when it debuted last week. It sold more than 300,000 copies. Jay-Z is expected to resume the No. 1 spot next week, but Whitney should do just fine.

That's it for this week folks. Who would have thought that so many salacious news stories could hit all during one week? Let's hope Mother Nature affords us another week of zaniness. It makes our lives at That's Really Week so much easier. Have a good one. See you next week.

THIS WEEK'S TOP 10 NEWS STORIES:

1) President Obama To Kanye: You're A Jerk - President Obama's off-the-record reaction to Kanye's Taylor diss hits the internet.

2) Kanye Doesn't Let Taylor Finish - Kanye's VMA outburst steals thunder from MJ Tribute, Taylor Swift win, etc.

3) Michael Jackson's Mom Gets $86k Per Month - Judge awards $86,000 per month to Katherine Jackson and Michael's children.

4) The Beatles & Jay-Z Set Chart Records - One surpassed Michael, the other surpasses Elvis.

5) Whitney Houston Gets "So Emotional" On Oprah - Mary J. Blige gives the play-by-play of the big tell-all interview.

6) Chris Brown Faces The Music - Chris Brown cleans up police horse stable grounds as part of community labor sentence.

7) Aerosmith Members At Odds Over Tour Cancellation - Member Joe Perry says injured Steven Tyler is at fault.

8) America's Got Talent Names New Winner - Chicken framer Kevin Skinner just won $1 million.

9) Chesney Vows No Concert, Next Summer, No Problem - Country superstar says he needs a break.

10) Peter, Paul & Mary Singer Dies - Mary Travers of 1960s folk anthem trio dies at 72.

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979 Comments

1. Rocio -
i hate kanye west now

2. Andrew -
Was Kanye a jerkoff for what he did? yeah
Was the media circus around it and what he actually said blown way out of proportion? most definitely

3. Yahoo! Music User -
Kanye set that whole thing up,...he just wana smack her in the tail!!

4. Christopher -
Chris Brown has "bodyguards"? He's supposed to be doing manual labor, under police supervision. Why would he need bodyguards? I guess it's just a psychological trick to keep his mind believing that he's in control. This guy will not rehabilitate. The one true thing when it comes to habitual behavior, you cannot force someone to change. They have to initiate the change themselves. He has not done this. With regards to Kanye, didn't he say he was taking a break or something? He's got a tour with Lady GaGa. That's not a break. He's a fraud. He's not sorry for what he did. You do not interrupt an acceptance speech at an awards show. I don't care who you are. Kanye's sales need to take a hit. That's the only way to teach this thug not to do it again.

5. kristen -
omg i freaggin love this song so much, i will die if i dont't hear a part of this song.

6. Coffey -
his music sucks so bad I pray everyone downloads his music for free!!!! [profane]k him

7. Cza -
Kanye West. Typical. What a douche. People should really stop buying that crap he sings Rap, Hip Hop or whatever it's called this week. He's an idiot.

8. Trevor -
Check out http://kanyegate.tumblr.com/ . Somewhat funny.

9. oumard -
3rd person

10. afree -
Stop talking about him. It's what he wants. Plus he's a racist.

11. DominiqueW -
ive always hated him he is a jackass

12. Yahoo! Music User -
i feel bad for taylor she didint deserve that!!!!!! at all!!

13. Michelle -
maybe if people stop talking about Kanye and stop buying his records he will go away. He is a product of what this country created, another garbage music artist!

14. tempest -
kanye u are a beast man u did right shoot beyonce is the best iwould have did the same thing but at the same time beyounce was akind person for doing what she did

15. Amy -
he should have been thrown out..

16. Mike -
He's old news - See he just didn't ruin it for Taylor - he also ruined it for the Phenomenal performance by Janet Jackson'a to tribute to the "King of Pop". He will be missed.

BAN KAYNE - DON"T BUY HIS MUSIC - ATTENTION ALL RADIO STATION - DON'T PLAY KANYE - RECORDING LABELS - DROP THE RACIST ASS!

17. raynedaze1 -
He is a JackAss, I knew that a long time ago..

18. Jeff -
Kayne West was coked up that night, as usual...

19. Yahoo! Music User -
kanye soooooo much of a jerk i don't really like taylor but after what Kanye did i am NEVER buying his songs!

20. Yahoo! Music User -
I just wonder like what people were thinking when they voted for Obama? What they thought he was a black man who thought like a conservative white male politician? Nope. People are seriously asking for too much from the guy like if he is God. Fixing this country will probably take a while. Many people in the U.S are like spoiled kids who if they don’t get what they want or things don’t go as they want then they start complaining and being disrespectful. This Kanye situation is very ridiculous. I was kind of disappointed because it’s like damn he just made it harder to be his fan but I will continue to enjoy his music. All those individuals who are saying racist and mean remarks towards the President or Kanye are just hypocrites and dullards. Sooner or later many people will have to realize that the minority as in blacks, hispanics, and other cultures are going to continue to do things that people thought only white Americans could mostly do. By that I don’t mean going on a stage and interrupting somebody because that is rude no matter who or what is the persons reason to do that. I call those racists and wicked individuals hypocrites because they most likely go to a Christian church and are taught to forgive especially the majority of the fans of Taylor Swift. I think those people are not open minded and just haven’t seen the reality of the status quo of how our country really is today. Kanye as we all know apologized, she forgave him, yet he is still receiving this backlash towards him. I wouldn’t completely say that it is mostly racism being thrown at the guy but obviously it plays a sad part. Also those celebrities saying to boycott this mans music are stupid because he still has fans and in reality is a smart and great artist who is human and also makes mistakes like us. Plus it was just a dull award show (IMO) where this occurred and it became a big deal. People just need to move on and learn how see the reality of things today and how things will be tomorrow.

Plus I highly doubt due to how big this Kanye/Swift situation became that he will do it again.

Get educated -

http://hypebeast.com/blog/phillipannand/2009/09/media-flakeout-a-statement-on-mr-west/

http://harryallen.info/
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