I talked about this, briefly, in my "Five Things Bad Boy Needs to Do to Improve it's Online Strategy" write up. But, I'm inspired to tackle it more in depth now, thanks to the fact that people are unable to pre-order Donnie Klang's "Just a Rolling Stone" on iTunes, when it is being released in two days. The two other big releases of the week - New Kids on the Block and Young Jeezy - are both available for pre-order and, I'm guessing, have been for a while.

iTunes is the largest seller of music in the United States. Back in April, it was reported that Apple had surpassed Wal-Mart and, in January of 2008, held 19% of the market. This amounted to the market share of Amazon.com, Target, FYE/Coconuts, Borders and Rhapsody - combined.

In other words, handling business on iTunes is important. This is where Bad Boy is faltering. There are two key areas. The first, and worst, one is how they are working with pre-orders. It has been quite a while - so long that I can't even remember - since a Bad Boy album has been up for pre-order, weeks in advance of it's release.

What has been happening now, for far too long, is that a release gets added a day or two before or worse: the day of release! I can't even begin to imagine the amount of sales they are leaving on the table here. Again, iTunes is the largest seller of music in the U.S. So, when people want to pre-order an album, where do they go? Well, in the U.S., they go to iTunes more than anywhere else.

The internet has changed the way that people buy music. People don't go to the store the day of release, like they used to. Not as much, anyway. They pre-order it and have it delivered to them. When you make them get online the day of, you are losing out.

In doing so, you surrender a tremendous sales opportunity to promote pre-orders on your official websites, MySpaces, etc. You also lose the opportunity to promote an iTunes exclusive in the process. iTunes exclusive for pre-orders = more pre-orders = more sales. To not have albums up in advance for pre-order - at least weeks in advance, more if you can swing it - represents a fundamental break down that has to have been affecting the first week sales of Bad Boy albums.

The second part is tied to how they release singles on iTunes. This was covered in the article I mentioned before. However, the idea is that, if Bad Boy "leaks" a single on MySpace or through a record serving agency, it should be up for sale on iTunes before that happens. Not doing so turns away people who want to spend money, but it can also have an effect on album sales on iTunes.

The proof of this is in the fact that 52% of Lil' Wayne's first week sales for "Tha Carter III" were through iTunes "Complete My Album" feature. Fifty two percent. More than half! Now, some of those people would have still bought the album. But, it would be crazy to assume that they all would have. Sell those singles. Even if you are not sure they will make the album. Then, on the singles that do, offer iTunes customers the ability to complete the album. And then you'll have more sales.

It's not hard to see how, if Bad Boy just made a couple of adjustments in their iTunes and music release strategy, coupled with the promotion of the availability of singles and albums, for pre-order, they would stand to reap a substantial sales gain.

With music sales in the state that they are, it's imperative that the full power of iTunes be harnessed.

AllTheParties has pictures from Mario Winans birthday party, held on August 29. You have to register for a free account and login to view them.

According to Target's website, they will have an exclusive edition of Donnie Klang's "Just a Rolling Stone" that features a "30-min. DVD of interviews and more." I'll try to get my hands on a copy to let you know what it contains.

You can check out a couple of new Elephant Man tracks, titled "No Tikkle" and "Stab Dem," in our audio player.

Watch below for a video from Chase N. Cashe and Hit-Boy of The Surf Club, a pair of producers that is working with Diddy, as we reported on Friday. In the clip, they are broadcasting from what is apparently Diddy's backyard. Warning: explicit content.

Watch below. Warning: explicit content.


As a reminder, political comments are not allowed in our comment section here at Bad Boy Blog. Please don't comment on the election, who you are voting for, etc. Thank you.

For the past couple of days, I have been lisening to "Just a Rolling Stone" a lot, through MTV's The Leak. I have to say, I love the album. It's very, very solid. Donnie's great on it and the production is great.

My top 5 favorite tracks are:

1. "Take You There"
2. "Dr. Love"
3. "Which One"
4. "Hollywood Girl"
5. "My Idol"

I also like "Pick It Up," "Pretty Girls Cry," "Not a Love Song" and "Love in Stereo." But, even the other songs are listenable and the interludes are cool, as well. So, in other words, this is an album that I am comfortably listen to from front to back.

Donnie Klang's debut album will have a Circuit City exclusive bonus track. It's called "Beautiful Escape" and you can purchase this version of the album online on the Circuit City website.

D-Dot's MySpace blog has a download link for his new mixtake, "Appreciate The Hate: The Madd Rapper Chronicles Volume 1." The front and back covers are below. It features a few tracks with Bad Boy artists:

"Gun Shots" featuring Ness and Aasim
"Live From the BBQ" featuring Diddy, The Notorious B.I.G., Ness, Black Rob and Aasim
"What You Gonna Do?" featuring The Notorious B.I.G. and 50 Cent

Watch below (warning: explicit content).

Check out "Time Will Reveal," a new track from Janelle Monae, in our audio player.

In the video above, Diddy appears with Chase N. Cashe and Hit-Boy, Co-CEOs of the Surf Club, a music production company.

The video indicated to me that Bad Boy may have entered into some sort of formal relationship with them, perhaps a production management deal. But, the duo is already signed to Polow Da Don's imprint, Zone 4 Inc., and is simply working with Bad Boy on some upcoming projects, according to Cashe, who I spoke with shortly after watching the video. "We're working with Diddy on material for multiple projects," he said.

When asked if there was a deeper connection, he indicated there was one, but declined to go into detail. "The connection is deeper, for the world to be surprised."

Glenn Gamboa of Newsday has a great feature on Donnie Klang.

There are some great Janelle Monae related features on the Zune Marketplace right now, including an exclusive song. Here's the breakdown:

- You can purchase "Violet Stars Happy Hunting!!! (Live From The Blender Theater)," an exclusive live version of the song.

- Janelle breaks down the meaning behind each of the songs in her album.

- "The Guestlist," featuring 8 of Janelle's favorite songs, complete with reasoning.

- A spotlight of videos that feature Monae that you can purchase.

- A list of her influences, inluding albums that she likes, apparently, as well as a Bjork video she likes, as well.

All you need to view and/or purchase is the free Zune software.

According to SOHH.com, she will also be featured as part of the Zune's "Green Room" interview series, launching in September. Watch below for a preview clip.

So, Diddy talks about gas prices pushing him to leave the private plane in the hangar (see video below, warning: explicit content) and the world notices. The AP, Fox News and countless sources pick it up. When he spoke about the art of the viral video in the last episode of "I Want to Work for Diddy," he wasn't kidding.

From the press release:

DogHouseBoxing.com has the story.

Jordan McCoy fans may have noticed that an audition video was posted on her YouTube channel yesterday. Titled "Jordan McCoy Ruby Audition," no other details are provided. I have some info. But, first, the video:


In any case, I reached out to Debbie Hammond, CEO of ClockWork Entertainment, McCoy's co-label. She couldn't tell me much. But, what she did tell me was that it's for a new TV show on ABC Family. One of the writers of the show is Shaun Cassidy, the half-brother of David Cassidy of The Partridge Family fame. Apparently, the show shares similarities with the life of David Cassidy.

In doing a little research, however, I found other audition videos posted on YouTube where girls were working from the same script as Jordan, but they gave away a show title. "Ruby and the Rockits" is how one clip spelled it. Stay tuned.

Dream Hampton of UptownLife.net has a fashion centric interview with Diddy.

Check out our audio player for a new track from Mario Winans called "What Can I Do." The quality sounds poor to me, but this is how it was released. Not sure. Probably a rough cut.

Watch below.

Steve Goldstein and Shawn Langlois of MarketWatch report on Diageo fiscal year financial results. Ciroc gets a quick mention:

Beginning this week, we will start tracking Bad Boy placement on all Billboard album and single charts in the U.S.

Albums

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums

50. "Day26" by Day26 ("Pace Setter," up from 73).
53. "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition)" by Janelle Monae (down from 20).
82. "Welcome to the Dollhouse" by Danity Kane (unchanged).

Top Heatseekers

15. "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition)" by Janelle Monae (down from 2).

Top Heatseekers (South Atlantic)

6. "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition)" by Janelle Monae (down from 1).

Songs

Hot Singles Recurrents

6. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (down from 5).

Hot 100 Recurrent Airplay

7. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (unchanged).

Pop 100

26. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (down from 25).

Pop 100 Airplay

20. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (unchanged).

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs

64. "Since You've Been Gone" by Day26 (up from 69).
81. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (a new high, up from 87).

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay

64. "Since You've Been Gone" by Day26 (up from 69).

Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop

36. "Since You've Been Gone" by Day26 (up from 39).

Hot Dance Club Play

39. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (down from 35).

Watch below for the third "Just a Rolling Stone" webisode, titled "Anger." I wish the finishing graphic on these was better. You can hardly read it.

InsideNova.com has a feauture on Boris "Can Do" Kuperman from "I Want to Work for Diddy." It has a unique twist in that it was written by someone who held a leadership role in a camp Kuperman attended when he was in ninth grade.


Meanwhile, Shari Logan at the New York Post has a quick feature on Laverne Cox and Mic Barber.

According to her MySpace, Shannon Bex of Danity Kane is on the cover of the October issue of "Fitness Rx For Women" magazine.

Check out the MySpace page for the casting directors of "Notorious," the upcoming film about The Notorious B.I.G. It has some cool pictures and appears to be linked to the official MySpaces of some of the actors in the film (though, I have no way of knowing, so take it for what it is worth).

You can listen to Donnie Klang's new album, "Just a Rolling Stone," in full on MTV's The Leak.

Last week, I ranked the remaining contestants of "I Want to Work for Diddy," in order of their chances of winning the competition, in my opinion, at that moment. With episode 4 done, here are the revised rankings:

1. Suzanne (Last Week: 1). She continues to manage Kim well and maintain a level head.

2. Mic (LW: 2). Kept goal focused and on track, though his bluntness, if you'd like to call it that, could be a little unproductive.

3. Stefanie (LW: 3). Took a slight hit this week after allowing herself to get dragged into the argument with Kendra, but still maintains the spot.

4. Laverne (LW: 6). Gets credit for being a team player and rolling with the punches while her teammates made, at times, some offensive suggestions as far as how she should act during interviews - though, the meltdown in the grocery store detracts a little bit of that.

5. Boris (LW: 8). Receives a boost for putting himself out there and being a team player, like Laverne. However, he suggested they make fun of him and then was wishy washy about it and difficult when it came time to shoot.

6. Red (LW: 7). He gets a raise because Brianna is out, but otherwise, it's a mixed bag. He appears to care, but sometimes he can be a little condescending and, on top of that, he lets Kim get to him way too much.

7. Kendra (LW: 5). The only person to drop this week. A lot of it is tied to her confronting Kendra in the van. Why? Talking is fine, but you also have to back it up and I'm not sure that her actions are coming through on the show as she'd like.

8. Kim (LW: 9). Still at the bottom spot. She continues to manipulate people and set them up. Ultimately, it is this quality that will backfire.

Eliminated. Brianna (LW: 4). She let Kim set her up as leader of a challenge she had no idea about and she paid the penalty when she was ineffective.

Anyway, that's just my opinion. What's yours? Post your top 8 (or your top 3, if you'd rather) in the comments!

Debbie Hammond, CEO of ClockWork Entertainment, the label that has a joint venture with Bad Boy to release Jordan McCoy, posted a blog entry on Jordan's MySpace today.

In it, she goes into great detail about the situation with "Big Girls Don't Cry", a song written and released by Fergie, after it had been sold to Bad Boy for Jordan's use.

Hammond paints Toby Gad, the song's producer, and David Sonenberg, attorney and manager of The Black Eyed Peas, as underhanded and blames Fergie, and the situation, for delaying Jordan's album at least a year. She claims that Diddy was too busy to care about the situation.

The post then switches to "Hannah Montana," the popular Disney series. According to Hammond, Jordan was given the lead role until Billy Ray Cyrus offered to work for free on the show for the first season, if Miley Cyrus was given the role.

"Just Watch Me" was recorded with the intention of being the theme song to the TV show. In any case, Hammond says that Diddy loved and selected it as the first single. But, she says, he went on vacation and, when he returned, it was too late to do a video for the song.

The TV show, Good Girl/Bad Boy was an effort to make up for that.

According to Hammond, 3 networks wanted the pilot and Diddy told her they didn't have a show. "He's wrong again... But, Diddy is a perfectionist and it's his show," she says. "He also put himself all over the trailer and decided he had no time to do the show. We can take it, though. It makes us stronger, and better. We move on, and don't complain."

After he jumped down the throat of MTV News' James Montgomery during a taping of FNMTV, Diddy came back on the show and apologized to him last week, complete with flowers.

Today, Montgomery describes the moment, from his perspective.

The Cascades Connection has a feature on Boris "Can Do" Kuperman from "I Want to Work for Diddy."

Bad Boy has started posting what they are referring to as "Just A Rolling Stone" webisodes. You can watch the first two below. They are titled "Love" and "Jealousy," respectively.

According to a bulletin from Dawn Richard's MySpace, she will be joined by Danity Kane group mates D. Woods and Shannon to host a party in San Francisco on August 31. It'll be at Suite One 8 One at 181 Eddy Street. The party starts at 10:00 PM.

Watch below for an acoustic cover of "Big Girls Don't Cry" (by Fergie) from Jordan McCoy. This track has some backage attached to it. See past coverage for more details.

We have a pair of new Cassie tracks in our audio player. They are "Activate" and "Nobody But You." The latter features The Dream with some ad libs. Meanwhile, "Activate" features what appears to be a reference vocal for Diddy by an unnamed rapper. I love the song, though, hopefully he jumps on it as it's a nice verse.

I have to say that I am really digging the direction of Cassie's album. Looking forward to picking them up.

Check out some new Donnie Klang, "My Bedroom," in our audio player. Though it sounds like a complete song, it could be a snippet, as it's only 2 minutes long.

You can listen to and download "Shawty Got Me," a new song by Ray L (Ray Lavender) that features Yung Joc, on the Ray L MySpace.

Rap-Up.com talked with Cassie about her upcoming sophomore album.

Are you unable to make any of the casting dates for "StarMaker," Diddy's new reality show in search of solo artists? No problem. You can send in a DVD. Check out MTV.com for details.

Via bnd.com.

Day26 will be hosting a live chat on their MySpace tonight, after Making the Band 4, at 10:00 PM ET. This is according to a blog post on the Bad Boy MySpace.

The Jamaica Star reports on claims from Ice, a dancer from Jamaica, who says he has not been properly compensated for his work in the creation of the "Gully Creepa" dance. They also have Elephant Man's reply.

Kim from "I Want to Work for Diddy" (also known as Poprah) has a MySpace. According to the profile, she used to be a recording artist, under the stage name of Tempest, that charted in Europe and Asia. She has a new song, "Up in the Club!!," available for purchase on the page.

Courtney Hazlett of MSNBC discusses Diddy's anticipated absence from the Democratic National Convention, which started Monday and will run through Thursday.

The Jamaica Observer has a quick interview with Yung Joc.


This interview may have been done a little while ago, even if it was just posted, as I last heard his album was slated for 2009.

From the press release:

Melissa Mary Smith of The Jambar reports that Danity Kane will be giving a free concert on Thursday in Youngstown, Ohio at Stambaugh Stadium, which is a part of Youngstown State University. The show starts at 7:00 PM.

Donnie Klang will be appearing at City Bar in downtown Lafayette, Louisana at 7:45 PM, to watch Making the Band 4 at 8. This is according to a bulletin posted on his MySpace.

Here are some video extras from the fourth episode of "I Want to Work for Diddy."

Uptown Team Viral Video


Downtown Team Viral Video


Diddyism: Make it Happen

» Read More

Watch the latest episode, episode 4, of "I Want to Work for Diddy," in the clips below.

Part 1


Part 2


Part 3

» Read More

Remember, back in April, when Diddy.com featured two viral videos? I wrote a detailed recap of each. Well, the questions I asked back then were answered tonight on "I Want to Work for Diddy." You see, the creation of those videos was the challenge. The purpose of the fan vote? Deciding the winning team.

In the end, "The Applesauce Bandit" won and Brianna was eliminated.

DJBooth.net has an interview (both text and audio) with Day26.

As Donnie announces in the video below, he will be on the morning show on CW11 on September 2, the day that his debut album, "Just a Rolling Stone," will be released.

Former Bad Boy artist Jerome (real name: Jerome Childers) is now on MySpace, with five tracks posted. I've verified it's legitimacy with Mr. Childers. For more on him, check out the interview I did with him in March of 2007.

Thanks K. Haynes for the tip.

Jotham Sederstrom of the New York Daily News reports that, during a traffic stop early Saturday morning, a Los Angeles deputy briefly pulled his gun on Diddy's party, which included Diddy himself. Spokespeople for both the sheriff's department and Diddy confirmed the incident.

The reason for the stop was expired tags. A source said that a member of the group became uncooperative, which led a half dozen others, including Diddy, to approach the deputy. The sheriff's department spokesman stated that, "The situation was deflated as quickly as it began." Meanwhile, Diddy's publicist, Keesha Johnson, mentioned that the weapon was never aimed directly at her client and was careful to say that the officers were "really respectful."

Julie Hinds of the Detroit Free Press has a feature on Suzanne Siegel, my current favorite on "I Want to Work for Diddy". Siegel previously worked at the publication as a reporter.

The New Yorker reports:

On Tuesday, rapper The Game releases his third album, titled "LAX". It features "Never Can Say Goodbye," where he raps through the eyes of 2Pac, The Notorious B.I.G. and Eazy-E, during their final moments.

Via The New York Times.

With a new season of Making the Band 4 underway, the members of Day26 are back in the weekly reality TV spotlight once again, on tour with Danity Kane, Donnie Klang and Cheri Dennis. The first episode saw the return of Laurie Ann Gibson and Gibson's harsh criticism of their dance routines. But, by the end of the episode, they are back in her good graces once again, nearing the start of their tour.

The day after the episode premiered, I spoke with the group about the show, their plans for the future and, yes, I asked them some of your questions.

The premiere of the third season of Making the Band 4 was last night. Where'd you watch it?

Will: We watched it in the studio recording and it was good.

So, let's talk a little about the premiere. Reality TV is edited for drama. Watching the episode, was there anything last night that jumped out at you that made you think, "hey, that's not how it happened!"

Will: No, everything happened. It was a couple things I didn't think MTV was gonna be bold enough to show. But, they did.

» Read More

Ness has added seven mixtape downloads to his MySpace.

You can listen to a snippet of "Unnoticed" by Jordan McCoy, on her MySpace.

Yesterday, we reported that The Notorious B.I.G. and Ness would featured on D-Dot's upcoming mixtape, "Appreciate The Hate: The Madd Rapper Chronicles Volume 1."

Through a press release put out through MySpace bulletin, he's announced that it will also feature Aasim and Black Rob.

50 Cent, Redman, Maino, Red Cafe, Papoose, Wais P, Joel Ortiz and Missy Elliott will also be featured.

HOT 97 is hosting "On Da Reggae Tip," a reggae and dancehall show at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City on AUgust 29. The show starts at 7:30 PM. You can buy tickets now.

Via The Village Voice.

The Windsor Star reports that "I Want to Work for Diddy" will be premiering in Canada on Sunday on MuchMoreMusic at 6:00 PM ET.

After Cassie's "Official Girl" premiered on FNMTV, Pete Wentz sent it up to the judges table, as they always do. You'll remember that, last time they judged a Bad Boy video, Diddy ran up to the table and gave James Montgomery, the resident critic, a lot of grief about his often harsh criticisms of videos on the show.

After guest judge LL Cool J chipped in his thoughts, it was Montgomery's turn. And, once again, Diddy was there. But, this time, he had flowers for Montgomery, as well as an apology, which was repeated in semi-robotic fashion.


Judges table host Tim Kash implored Montgomery to forgive and hug. "Of course! I appreciate it, that's very nice," Montgomery said. Montgomery seemed to geniunely appreciate the gesture, saying he felt like Miss America.

With that out of the way, Montgomery praised the video. "She had sort of a rough start getting out of the gate. But, you know, here she is now. She's got that swagger. She looks good, she sounds good, and she's got something to say. Legitimately, cool video. And I'm not just saying that because I got flowers, either.

Below, check out the video for Cassie's first single, "Official Girl," featuring Lil' Wayne.

Watch below.

Billboard's Gail Mitchell reports that Yung Joc will be featured on "True to the Game," an upcoming compilation album. A portion of profits from the album will go to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. Joc's contribution is "Knock It Outa Da Park," which you can check out in our audio player. The album will be released October 21.

Jake Paine of HipHopDX.com reports on a new mixtape that D-Dot and Statik Selektah will be releasing. It's called "Appreciate The Hate: The Madd Rapper Chronicles Volume 1" and it will feature The Notorious B.I.G., Ness and others.

Bennett Marcus of New York Magazine reports:

The Jamaica Star reports on a party that'll be held on Saturday to celebrate the success of Jamaicans at the Olympics. Elephant Man will be there.

Watch below for a clip from the next episode of "Making the Band 4." In this portion, Diddy and Aubrey are arguing about her place in the group. Out of all of the girls in the group, I have to say that I am a fan of Aubrey the least. I mean, I like her as artist, but she seemingly goes out of her way to create controversy and bring attention to herself and those around her - in a negative light. It just gets old.

Watch below.

Watch below.

MySpace interviewed Cassie when she appeared at FNMTV to premiere "Official Girl". The show airs tonight at 8:00 PM ET on MTV. Watch below.

The Birmingham News has an interview with Laverne Cox from "I Want to Work for Diddy".

The mysterious "Imagination" MySpace page has added a pair of videos in what they are calling "The Imagination Campaign". One for Jonathon and one for Jovian.

The Jamaica Star has yet another feature with Elephant Man. The topic this time? Dancing.

Faith Evans' book "Keep the Faith: A Memoir" has been released.

I have a copy and I'd recommend that any big Bad Boy fan pick it up. She shares a lot of stories, from her perspective, on the early Bad Boy fans and that whole era. I definitely think fans will find it interesting. I've read a good portion of it and, for the most part, I think it was well done, for what is essentially a tell all book, I suppose.

This book is not an autobiography of Faith Evans. This is a book where Faith tells what she did and saw while she was with Bad Boy, around Diddy and Biggie and everyone in that situation. It starts right around the part where she met Diddy and it ends right around the part where she left Bad Boy. There are tales of her recording her album, of Biggie's infidelity, of the night she spent with 2Pac and much, much more, including drama with Lil' Kim, Mary J. Blige and Missy Elliott.

The 2Pac excerpt will likely garner a lot of attention. While wondering where her own judgement went, she recounts what happened on the infamous night she recorded a hook for 2Pac and what happened afterward. 2Pac had promised her $25,000 and did not pay it. He had her come up to his hotel room to get it, in an effort to get her in bed. She refused, he got angry and claimed that that was what she had wanted. According to Faith, 2Pac never paid her as promised.

She paints Diddy as the demanding, details driven boss that most paint him as, but it comes out as a fair depiction. Someone has to be the boss and it becomes clear that he did a lot for her and offered her a lot of good advice and lessons. She notes, more than once, how she didn't agree with something he did at the time, only to find out later that it was for the best.

There is one particular exchange that may stand out for some. It has to do with the MTV VMAs performance of "I'll Be Missing You." Suffice to say, if Faith had had her way, it never would have happened. Or, at least, she wouldn't have been there. She relays the following telephone conversation:


Of course, she went on to do the performance, as she indicates, which proved to be iconic. There are different ways to take that exchange. I suspect some will take it as Diddy being selfish and I can understand that. But, you have to wonder, if Diddy doesn't shove her back into the spotlight and make her start performing again and make her take part in what ends up being a historic performance - where is she now? I'm not saying she wouldn't still be a successful artist, but again, there are different ways to look at that situation.

As the book nears it's conclusion, she recounts the day she left Bad Boy, what led up to it and how she approached Puff. She asked that he let her go, and he did. The book ends with an epilogue that takes a quick look at where things stand today.

In all, a very interesting read. You have to take it for what it is. It's not the gospel. She's a human being, recounting conversations from as long as fourteen years ago. Memories fade. But, it's an interesting look at how she saw things from that era and remembers them happening. If you are interested in the book, you can buy it on Amazon.com.

The Billboard 200

115. "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition)" by Janelle Monae (debut).

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums

20. "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition) by Janelle Monae (debut).
73. "Day26" by Day26 (down from 71).
82. "Welcome to the Dollhouse" by Danity Kane (up from 85).
91. "Greatest Hits" by The Notorious B.I.G. (down from 86).

Pop 100

25. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (down from 19).

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs

69. "Since You've Been Gone" by Day26 (down from 61).
87. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (down from 84).

Estee Lauder, who counts the Sean John fragrance line in it's large portfolio of brands, recently released financial results for the fiscal year ending June 30.

The fragrance division of the company reported a 28.8% gain in operating income, year over year. It's noted, in the release, that Sean John Unforgivable Woman was one of the fragrances contributing to this growth.

Via TheMoodieReport.com.

In anticipation of an upcoming Danity Kane performance at Jones Beach in New York, Dawn Richard of Danity Kane had a quick interview with Newsday.

Gorilla Zoe is featured on the new single from rpper Kasanova, "Chain Swang." You can listen to and download it on MySpace, which is featured on the MySpace of DJ E-Feezy, who Kasanova is affiliated with.

E! Online and MTV.ca are reportng that Janelle Monae's "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition)" will debut at #115 on The Billboard 200 with sales of 5,200.

This has to be considered a success, for a number of different reasons. The EP concept itself is a challenge, but it's even harder when most of the album has previously been released. This EP is essentially a re-release with two new tracks. She is who she is and she has her fans, but what she has going for her is not something that is raking in big sales right now. That's not to say she can't do it, just that it will be a great challenge.

Due to this, it is tougher to garner press. The majority of press she has received has been limited to the internet, primarily, and Atlanta area media. She doesn't have a video out, though that will be soon. This isn't to say that Bad Boy should have promoted her more. I think Bad Boy's promotion of her was fine. It's questionable how much you can really invest in the promotion of a re-release EP like this. The purpose of it, from my perspective, is to introduce her to some people, setting the stage for the album to do well.

So, I think all parties did a good job with this one. If she hits, she hits - perhaps the video will boost her. But, it'll be interesting to see what she is able to do with a full album of new material where there has been time to get her out there more. The EP will help introduce her to people, leading to sales of the album. But, right now, #115 has to be counted as a good thing. So, congrats to them.

In anticipation of her upcoming peformance at the Doug Fir Lounge in Portland, Oregon, Local Cut has a feature on Janelle Monae.

The Jamaica Star discussed fashion with Elephant Man.

From BBC News:

The Examiner.com's Video Game Examiner spoke with Donnie Klang about his video gaming habits.

C21Media reports that, UK TV station, Virgin 1 has acquired the rights to "I Want to Work for Diddy" and plans to air it during their primetime autumn schedule.

Watch below.


Cool stuff. For more on Affion Crockett, a Google search for his name is as good as anything. He was on Nick Cannon's MTV show.

In his interview with Clizbeats.com, Donnie mentioned that Diddy had asked him to work on his upcoming album.

On tonight's premiere of Making the Band 4, Diddy confirmed that he has a new album on the way. He said that the release date would be coming later.

I've decided to start a new feature, of sorts, here at Bad Boy Blog. Following the conclusion of each episode of "I Want to Work for Diddy," I'll rank the remaining contestants in the order of how likely I feel they are to win the competition. Beginning next week, since we'll have some first time rankings to refer back to, we'll discuss how contestants have helped and hurt their chances.

Here are the initial seeds:

1. Suzanne
2. Mic
3. Stefanie
4. Brianna
5. Kendra
6. Laverne
7. Red
8. Boris
9. Kim

So, those are mine, what are yours? If you'd rather not do a full list, how about a top 3?

Singersroom has pictures of the girls from Danity Kane modeling the new DK line of jeans from Dollhouse. There is a brief mention on the Dollhouse website, but it doesn't look like you are able to buy them from the company, yet.

Paste Magazine has a feature on Janelle Monae.

From the Jamaican Ministry of Information, Culture, Youth & Sports:

The Jamaica Star has the story on eight fans who won a spot in a one hour workout session with Elephant Man.

On Monday, Yung Joc appeared on the Ryan Cameron Show on the V-103 radio station, in Atlanta, to discuss the recent allegations regarding late or short child support payments, made by the mother of his son, Fatimah Jester.

"My mom, my sister, my dad - everybody told me, you know what I'm saying - protect yourself and I did that," Joc said. "So, what I did, as soon as I got on, I was only ordered to pay $114 a month. And I was like, what the hell is that? Like, who could survive on that? So, I was paying extra money, anyway, because at that time, when I had got on, the court couldn't determine how much money I was gonna make or I was making. So, they was like... well, as far as it looked to them... I didn't have a job. So, I was ordered to pay $114 a month. So, I was paying more."

He said that something came up where more money was required, so they involved attorneys and came to an agreement that Joc would pay her $2,000 a month and that he would take care of any of his son's medical costs, extra curricular activities and any other expenses related to his son.

"I never missed a payment," he told Cameron. "If you consider me not paying on the first and me paying on the third or the fourth being late, then I think everybody in America is late all the time. It is what it is. I pay it. You saw how she said it on the show today, on Porche Foxx [another host on V-103], saying that, well, I'm not saying he don't pay it, he just pay it late. Now, you really gonna take the time out of your day to go on the news and slander my character and say that, you know, I'm a dead beat dad because the child support a few days late. I don't pay it directly to her. I pay it through DHR [Department of Human Resources]. My banker wires the funds right to DHR, they wire the funds to her account. However long that takes, she need to discuss that with them and not put me out up there like that."

To be fair, if I pay my credit card bill one day late, they don't care, they are still going to add finance charges. So, whatever the due dates are, they need to be met. I'm not saying whether or not they are, just commenting on what Joc said. But, a day or two late is still late and payments should be made on time.

Finally, Joc commented that a lawsuit against him had been dropped, but he didn't specify who had filed it and Cameron didn't ask. However, there is only one lawsuit that I know of and that is the one with the stereo equipment company.

Singersroom reports that Danity Kane, Day26 and Donnie Klang will be hosting MTV's TRL today (Tuesday). Danity Kane and Donnie Klang will be hosting on Wednesday and Day26 will be hosting on Thursday.

EURweb.com reports:


The cover for the issue is up on the Vibe website and it mentions that there is an interview with Diddy included, as well. It's not clear if this interview is just a general interview or if it is related to Biggie, however.

An official casting MySpace for StarMaker has been launched. If you're interested in auditioning, you should definitely check it out to make sure you are prepared.

Via ACESHOWBIZ.

In Estelle's new music video for "Pretty Please," Aubrey O'Day from Danity Kane provides a cameo. Watch below.


Via SOHH.com.

Clizbeats.com has an audio interview with Donnie Klang.

Poor Tommy.

Watch below for a video featuring the constume designers for "Notorious," working on the clothes for the film. There is a part at the end where they recreate an early Bad Boy photoshoot with Biggie, Craig Mack, Faith and Diddy. Crazy.

Check out the clip below. Toward the end, Diddy is walking into what appears to be a club and it sure looks like Boris greets him. This doesn't mean he makes it to the final 5. It could be a part of a challenge (maybe they have to set up a club for Diddy's arrival?) or something, but it's worth taking note of.

On episode 3 of "I Want to Work for Diddy," Deon was eliminated. 5 out of 6 members voted for Boris and Boris voted for Deon. Boris then elected to take Deon up with him. After the judges discussed it, they opted to kick Deon off the show. As he exited, he blamed himself for not giving simpler answers to questions (from the judges, presumably).

Personally, I felt Boris should have been the one to go, by a hair, just because I don't see Boris winning this competition. But, they both made some critical errors.

Here are some extras from the third episode of "I Want to Work for Diddy."

Exit Interview: Deon


Diddyism: Perserving The Sexy


Diddy Survival Guide: Be Prepared


Game Ideas

» Read More

Did you miss the third episode of "I Want to Work for Diddy?" Watch it here!

Part 1


Part 2


Part 3

» Read More

If you have a suggestion for a question that I could ask Day26, this is the last call.

Broadway.com has an interview with Aubrey O'Day from Danity Kane, discussing an array of subjects, but centering around her work on "Hairspray" on Broadway.

The Jamaica Star has a feature on Elephant Man, having followed him around for a day.

In a blog post on her MySpace, Dawn from Danity Kane announced that she was working with a charitable organization named the Artist Relief Collective.

She'll be hosting an event for them, benefiting displaced survivors of Hurricane Katrina. It'll be on August 29, from 7:30 PM to 12:00 AM at the Judson Memorial Church in New York, NY. See the flier below.

There will be a live chat with Donnie Klang after the premiere of Making the Band 4 tomorrow night. The show starts at 9:00 PM ET and the live chat starts at 10:00 PM ET. It'll be on Donnie's official website.

Forbes has released the 2008 edition of their Hip-Hop's Cash Kings. Diddy held onto the third spot, taking in an estimated $35 million. The top 2 spots remained the same, as well, with Jay-Z ($82 million) and 50 Cent ($150 million).

Diddy's number is $7 million dollars higher than last year's figure.

Singersroom.com reports that the September issue of GQ features Danity Kane.

Danity Kane is featured on the cover of the August issue of ENVY Magazine. You can read the magazine on their website and see the cover below.

It appears that Rob from "I Want to Work for Diddy" has a MySpace as does Laverne. It looks like she has a music MySpace, as well. I have no confirmation on these, but they look official enough. Laverne MySpace mentions an official website.

Dawn Richard's MySpace notes that the Danity Kane comic book is due out on September 29.

Dawn Richard's MySpace has a new track from Dawn called "Release Me".

Yung Joc is being sued for $2,000 in unpaid child support, according to a news report by Atlanta's WSB-TV, an ABC affiliate.

Via SOHH.com.

The Jamaica Star spoke with Elephant Man about the Olympics and, specifically, Jamaican sprinters Usain Bolt and Asafa Powell.

Via Daniel Oshinsky of the Rocky Mountain News.

Bad Boy Online has the casting dates for Diddy's upcoming reality show, StarMaker, where two solo artists - one girl and one guy - will be signed to Bad Boy.

From the official site, here are some upcoming Janelle Monae in store appearances.

Watch below for Diddy talking about a new weekly web show coming to his YouTube channel called P.A. TV. It's producer by his former personal assistant, T. Popps.

The Jamaica Ministry of Information, Culture, Youth & Sports notes that Jamaican Olympic hurdler Vonette Dixon is a fan of Elephant Man.

Watch below.

On Wednesday morning, Cassie appeared on Shade 45, discussing a number of different subjects. Among other things, she hasn't dated Diddy or Ryan Leslie. Regarding those photos that were floating around of her and Diddy in Central Park, "We're not dating, so, I can tell you that. But, you know, we are tight. We're working on the album together. There's not much more to say than that."

One other thing was that she discussed production on the album. She said that she "got to work with Puff on a lot of stuff." Glad to know we'll get some Diddy production out of this album. She also said that she's worked with Kanye West, Mario Winans. Bryan Cox, Danja, Ryan Leslie and Eric Hudson. Much of this was already known, but I wanted to pass it along, anyway. I'm definitely looking forward to the album, which is untitled, as of now.

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums

71. "Day26" by Day26 (down from 70).
85. "Welcome to the Dollhouse" by Danity Kane (up from 72).
86. "Greatest Hits" by The Notorious B.I.G. (re-entry).

The Billboard Hot 100

45. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (down from 40).

Pop 100

19. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (unchanged).

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs

61. "Since You've Been Gone" by Day26 (down from 58).
84. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (a new high, up from 89).

Yung Joc is featured on a new single from singer Bobby Valentino, titled "Beep Beep".

Pegasus News reports that Day26 will be performing in Dallas, TX on September 14. It's for the Hip Hop for HIV concert at Dallas City Hall. It'll be from 2 to 6 PM and will also feature David Banner, Mike Jones, Bun B, Pleasure P, Young Berg, Trap Star and others.

The Jamaica Star has a quick interview with Elephant Man.

In the Loudoun Times-Mirror feature on, "I Want to Work for Diddy" contestant, Boris "Can Do" Kuperman, they mentioned his MySpace. On that page, a personal website is also mentioned.

A couple of other contestants from the show appear in his top friends, as well. These include Stefanie Sitzer, Brianna Davis and Kendra Haffony.

On Stefanie's MySpace, Red (Redano Tadjer) is listed. Finally, on Brianna's MySpace, Georgette Cardenas and Mic Barber are featured in the top friends.

The Loudoun Times-Mirror has a feature on Boris "Can Do" Kuperman, a current contestant on "I Want to Work for Diddy".

Jordan McCoy will be performing in Addison, TX, at RockHouse Grille, on August 21. The performance will be a part of Rock 2 Cure, with proceeds going to a local musician that is fighting an advanced form of cancer. See the flier below.

Earlier today, I interviewed Donnie Klang, just a few short weeks before the release of his debut album, "Just a Rolling Stone".

Donnie Klang's story is a bit of a fairy tale, thus far. As a grade schooler in New York, Klang was a big Bad Boy and Diddy fan, even performing "Mo Money Mo Problems" in his school's sixth grade talent show. After beating out thousands and thousands of applicants, he came away with a solo deal on the very label he idolized. He went from performing Diddy's verse in said talent show, to having Diddy on his first single and by his side, in his first video. Can you write it any better? I spoke to Klang about his Bad Boy fandom, his upcoming album, and more.

» Read More

The iTunes exclusive "Fantastic Edition" of "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition)" will be out in a couple of weeks, according to Bad Boy.

After seeing that the release was no where to be found, I reached out and was told that it would be released after the video for "Many Moons" premiered. The iTunes package will include a copy of the video.

The MyFox Atlanta website has video from Janelle Monae's performance on Good Day Atlanta on Tuesday morning. There is a quick interview at the end.

According to this press release, Aubrey O'Day of Danity Kane is featured in this month's issue of IMAGE Chicago Magazine.

Update: Interview done. Thanks all.

The interview with Day26 will be next Wednesday (I hope you didn't think I forgot!)

But, I just found out that I'll be interviewing Donnie Klang in a few hours. What should I ask him? Please provide your suggestions in the comments!

Previously, we reported that Cassie was featured on the September/August 2008 issue of Complex magazine. They've posted a bunch of Cassie related content on their website, so I wanted to be sure to highlight it.

Their cover story is an interview with her where she touches on a number of subjects.

They have also posted a gallery of photos and behind the scenes footage from her photoshoot. Here are the clips:


Via FN' Famous.

PopMatters has a feature on Janelle Monae.

Watch below.

One of my all time favorite videos, Diddy's dancing is classic!

New York Magazine has a couple of short features on DIddy: one discussing employment and another about the Olympics, both in good fun.

Via NME.com.

During a recent visit to the U-92.7 radio station in Palm Springs, CA, Donnie Klang taped a mock music video for "Take You There" guest starring personalities from the station. Check it out below.

Sonia Murray of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Brian Howe of Pitchfork dispense with loads of praise for recent Janelle Monae performances in Oslo and Atlanta.

From OK! Magazine:

Here are some extra video features from the second episode of "I Want to Work for Diddy".

Diddyism: No B****a**ness


Rob: "... I swear to God he's homeschooled." Wow, what's with the crack? I was homeschooled. That's not cool. Rob, you betrayed me!

Diddy Survival Guide: Adaptation


Meal Ready to Eat


Kevin Liles Comes to Lunch


Dance Off

Here is the vast majority of last night's second episode of "I Want to Work for Diddy." Part 10 is where Kim compares her plight to that of Jesus and Martin Luther King, Jr.

Part 1:


Part 2:


Part 3:

» Read More

Gorilla Zoe's second album, titled "Don't Feed the Albums," has been pushed off of the September 23 release date, according to a label source. The album has not been given a new date, but it is slated for a late 2008 or early 2009 release.

As of right now, the exclusive iTunes "Fantastic Edition" of Janelle Monae's "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition)" is a no show. Only the regular version of the album is available for sale, along with a digital booklet which features high resolution scans of the album booklet. I've e-mailed people at the label and her management to find out where it is.

Ken Capobianco of the Boston Globe and Timothy Finn of the Kansas City Star review "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition)."

Janelle Monae's Bad Boy debut EP, "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition)" was released today.


Track listing:

1. "March of The Wolfmasters"
2. "Violet Stars Happy Hunting!" featuring The Skunks
3. "Many Moons"
4. "Cybertronic Purgatory"
5. "Sincerely, Jane"
6. "Mr. President"
7. "Smile"

There is a new dance remix of "Just Watch Me" posted on Jordan McCoy's MySpace.

I just finished watching episode 2 of "I Want to Work for Diddy" and they eliminated Rob, in favor of Kim a.k.a. "Poprah". I'm not sure if they were going for TV drama, and that is the reason they kept Kim, but I can't help but feel that that was the absolute wrong choice.

Kim has been the definition of manipulative. After she escaped elimination in the first episode, she tearfully vowed to change her ways. One problem: she didn't. She skipped the second challenge thanks to asthma. I'm not saying she faked it - maybe she did or maybe she didn't - but, it's definitely a hit against her. And then, in front of the judges once again, she berated her team. But, for some reason, they kept her over Rob.

The challenge this week featured the teams being dropped at an Army base where they were charged with navigating a nearby forest in search of check points. Rob was in the Army for nearly 5 years, so his team was favored. But, they struggled and got lost. Rob took charge and made mistakes and, as such, he was a big part of the loss.

But, unlike Kim, he didn't blame other people, he blamed himself. And that should have counted for something. From watching the show, Rob was at the top of my list of candidates to win. Kim was at the bottom. At the end of the show, she compared herself to - get this - Jesus and Martin Luther King, Jr. - claiming that what had been done to her was what had been done to them and other "great leaders." No way.

The bottom line is that, with Kim, you have someone who won't win this competition. They may keep her around as a ratings coup. But, that's it. She can't win in the end.

Watch below.


And check out the YouTube version with Donnie and Diddy introducing the video:

Janelle Monae's Bad Boy debut EP, "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition)," was executive produced by Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, The Wolfmasters and Janelle Monae. It was co-executive produced by Antwan "Big Boi" Patton.

Besides that, all seven of the EP's tracks were produced by Nate "Rocket" Wonder, Chuck Lightning and Janelle Monae for Wondaland Productions.

The limited edition vinyl of "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition)" features a hidden bonus track, according to a sticker on the cover.

The two sided album insert inside of Janelle Monae's "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition)" features Cindi Mayweather behind the "Imagination Inspires Nations" message, on one side. On the other site is an offer to text MONAE to 50505 for "all the latest news, contests, exclusive content and more."

There is a new MySpace page being promoted on the physical copies of the "Metropolis" EP release: myspace.com/icampaign. Outside of a background image featuring Cindi Mayweather and "Imagination Inspires Nations" slogan, there is not much there, yet.

Women's Wear Daily reports that Diddy has new fragrances on the way for men and women, named "I Am King" and "I Am Queen".

"I Am King" will launch in December, exclusively at Macy's stores, followed by a worldwide launch in February. The woman's fragrance will debut later in 2009. The Cut has a promo photo from the upcoming marketing campaign.

While a new Dream is in the making, members of the old Dream appear to be getting back together for a new group.

Melissa Schuman's MySpace reveals that Diana Ortiz has joined her and Ashley Poole in Lady Phoenix, a new girl group that will reunite 3 of the original 4 members of Dream. Or, at least, the group that released the first album. Lady Phoenix also features Tiffany Brouwer.

The group's MySpace lists them as "Pop / Blues / Big Beat" and their influences as Ella Fitzgerald, Michael Buble and Peggy Lee.

If you watched Friday's FNMTV premiere of Donnie Klang's video for "Take You Here," featuring Diddy, you know that Diddy ran up to the judges table to give MTV News' James Montgomery, the show's resident critic, some grief. Before Montgomery started, Diddy gave him a little bit of the evil eye, if you will, and said "Hi Hater," quoting from Maino's single, which samples the "Be Happy" remix that Diddy did for Mary J. Blige, back in the day.

Montgomery began to say how, with the audience reaction (which was strong), you never know, but for him, there was nothing new in the video. Diddy cut in and asked him who he was and how many hit records does he have? Before leaving the scene, Diddy planted a kiss on Montgomery's cheek. I thought it was questionable (read: rude) of Diddy, certainly, but this is TV and, well, Montgomery's a target for this sort of thing, I guess.

Montgomery writes about the incident at the MTV Newsroom blog, noting that, "... I think he was more “TV mad” (i.e. “acting”) than he was actually upset." That makes sense. It's TV.

All of that said, I thought the video was pretty cool.

Watch below.

Danity Kane has been nominated for it's second 2008 MTV VMA, picking up a nod for "Damaged" in the "Best Dancing In A Video" category. This follows their nomination, for the same song, in the "Best Pop Video" category.

According to a press release from Electronic Arts, Janelle Monae's "Violet Stars Happy Hunting!" will be featured on the soundtrack to "The Sims 2 Apartment Life," an expansion pack for the popular Sims series, is set to be released on August 26 in North America and August 22 in European and Asia-Pacific regions.

Back in July, we reported that there would be an auction on October 1 featuring a watch worn by Biggie. More details are now available.

According to the auctioneer's website, the Biggie watch is a yellow gold and stainless steel Rolex with a
diamond bezel. Quite possibly going a little overboard, they call it "his first prized possession."

The auction will also feature a princess and baguette cut diamond and platinum bracelet worn by Diddy, as well as jewelry from a number of other notable artists, including 50 Cent, Lil' Wayne, Jay-Z, Nas, Mary J. Blige and others.

A portion of proceeds will go to a trio of charities: Russell Simmons' Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation, the Hip Hop Summit Action Network and the Diamond Empowerment Fund.

Via Deidre Woollard of Luxist via Nola Weinstein of Fashion Week Daily.

Walmart.com has snippets from Janelle Monae's upcoming debut EP, "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition)."

From The Guardian:


Via Now Magazine.

TicketNews has the dates for the Yung Joc/Cartel tour.

"Many Moons," from Janelle Monae's upcoming debut EP, was named a featured single by MySpace.

From The St. Louis American:

Janelle Monae will be a guest on "Frank & Wanda in the Morning" on V-101 in Atlanta tomorrow (August 11) morning, according to her MySpace.

MTV announced today that the premiere of Making the Band 4, season 3, has been moved to August 19 at 9:00 PM ET. On August 13 at 9:00 PM ET, the time slot it was previously scheduled in, MTV will air a special called "Making the Band's Greatest Hits."

This special will feature some of the greatest moments from seasons past and will also preview the upcoming season. It will be hosted by Aubrey from Danity Kane, Donnie Klang and Robert from Day26.

This season, full episode will be added to MTV.com the day after they premiere. MTV.com will also feature exclusive rehearsal and backstage footage from the recent Making the Band tour.

Watch below.

Janelle Monae's "Sincerely, Jane" will be featured in TV ads for "Lipstick Jungle," a new show from NBC. This is according to the Wondaland Arts Society blog, who says that the ads will begin running this evening and that you should look for them during "The Baby Borrowers," which begins at 9:00 PM ET.

Watch below for a video announcement from Diddy relating to Nelly being named as the spokesmodel for Sean John Underwear. There is also footage from Nelly's photoshoot featuring Cedric the Entertainer.

Finally, as I watched it, I noticed that the Sean John signature they flash for the Sean John Underwear logo is altered from the normal Sean John logo. If you compare the one in the video, and the normal one, side by side, you'll notice the O in the logo is a little different. Trivial for sure, but companies don't usually mess with their logos, so I thought some might find it interesting.

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums

70. "Day26" by Day26 (down from 64).
72. "Welcome to the Dollhouse" by Danity Kane (up from 75).

The Billboard Hot 100

40. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (down from 31).

Pop 100

19. "Damaged" by Danity Kane (down from 16).

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs

58. "Since You've Been Gone" by Day26 (down from 57).
89. "Lost" by Gorilla Zoe (a new high, up from 94).

Recently, Janelle Monae was featured in the July/August issue of URB Magazine as well as the July issue of Giant Magazine.

Janelle Monae will be doing a performance and signing at Amoeba Records on 6400 Sunset Blvd. in Los Angeles, CA on August 18 at 7:00 PM.

Back in June, it was reported that Jennifer Lopez would have to testify in a lawsuit against Diddy and Shyne, relating to the club incident in 1999. TMZ reports that her deposition has been cancelled and may not be rescheduled.

As requested by Razz, here are parts 1 through 4 of the "I Want to Work for Diddy" casting special.

Part 1:


Part 2:

» Read More

You can now purchase the Donnie Klang deluxe fan pack on donnieklangonline.com. The fan pack includes "Just a Rolling Stone" on CD, an immediate MP3 download of "Take You There," a Donnie Klang tank top and 1 year membership into the Donnie Klang fan club, which entitles you to access to a members only website, first access to any presale tickets, participation in online chats and meet and greets, contests, a message board "and much more."

The first 200 preorders will receive an autographed CD booklet and 50 random people who preorder will receive a call from Donnie.

Aubrey O'Day of Danity Kane is featured on the cover of the August issue of Palm Springs Life magazine. The feature on her is online.

Jordan McCoy has decided that Tuesday will be "Cover Video Day," for her, as she plans to post covers of other songs every week. This is according to a MySpace blog post where two new covers were posted. The first is "Fall to Pieces" by Avril Lavigne:


And the second is "Me and Bobby McGee" by Janis Joplin:

Rob, a contestant from "I Want to Work for Diddy," which premiered on Monday (live blog, video of the full episode and video extras), is blogging at AfterElton.com. His latest post is a recap of the premiere.

From Fashion Week Daily:


Via The New York Observer.

From the New Haven Register:


D. Woods will be a celebrity judge at this event, according to the article.

From the press release:

A portion of Diddy's verse from "I Need a Girl (Remix), Pt. 1" has been sampled for a new Charlie Wilson track called "Need a Wife." The song takes the line "I really need a wife at home" and lays it over the chorus of the track. Diddy ad libs of "yeah" and "come on" are also added. It's unclear if any of this was freshly recorded for this track, but I wouldn't be suprised if it wasn't.

That said, it is executed in a satisfying manner and the track has a nice sound.

Thanks Theo.

According to a note posted on Diddy's Facebook, these are the dates for open calls for "StarMaker".

The remix to Lloyd's "Girls Around the World" features Yung Joc, as well as DJ Khaled, The Game, T.I., Rick Ross, Ace Hood, Young Dro, Pitbull and Busta Rhymes.

You can watch the full first episode of "I Want to Work for Diddy" here at Bad Boy Blog. Check it out below.

Part 1:


Part 2:

» Read More

Here are some extra clips not seen in episode 1 of "If I Want to Work for Diddy". Some really good and funny stuff here.

"Diddyism: Sleep is Forbidden"


"Branding"

» Read More

The opening of the show is Diddy talking about what Bad Boy means to him, where he's come from and what he expects from those that are around him. There are also clips of former assistants talking about the job, the benefits and the requirements.

After the opening theme, various contestants talk about what the job could mean for them. We are now introduced to "Diddy's Front Line". Derek, his personal stylist for 2 years. Norma, Director of Special Events at Cipriani. She's the assistant that has lasted with him for the longest (7 years). Finally, we have Capricorn, his assistant for 4 years, who is now the Director of Marketing for Sean John. We now have the contestants:

Mike, 25, from New York, NY, a banker. He looks like he is chewing some gum and Capricorn asks him if he is. His eyes get big and he says no.

Stephanie, 21, who just graduated from college and has not had full time employment before. She's from Newport Beach, CA.

Rob, from Akron, OH, an Iraq War Veteran.

Andrew comes in, with white suspenders and a white hat. He says, like Diddy, he was born to dance and starts doing a little dance. He's a personal trainer from San Diego. He comes across really goofy as Capricorn looks at him in disbelief.

We get our first glimpse of Kim who asks them to bare with her for a couple of moments while she sets up. She starts to put together presentation board. We now get to see...

» Read More

Here are the upcoming tour dates for Janelle Monae:

August 11th in Atlanta, GA at Variety Playhouse (with Gnarls Barkley).
August 15th in San Diego, CA at House of Blues (Delta Room).
August 17th in Los Angeles, CA at Live Show (with Raphael Saadiq).
August 19th in Los Angeles, CA at Viper Room.
August 20th in San Francisco, CA at Bimbos (with Raphael Saadiq).
August 22nd in Portland, OR at Doug Fir.
August 23rd in Seattle, WA at Nectar.
August 26th in Arlington, VA at Iota.
September 6th in Chicago, IL at Soul Music Festival.

Some information was released today on the iTunes exclusive version of Janelle Monae's Bad Boy debut EP, "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition)," due out on August 12.

Dubbed the "Fantastic Edition," it will feature exclusive live videos and remixes, including the video for "Many Moons," which was directed by Alan Ferguson, who has directed videos for Panic at the Disco and Fall Out Boy. I'm trying to see if I can get a full track listing and will post if I am able.

According to a Bad Boy press release issued today, Janelle Monae's upcoming debut album is now slated for an "early 2009" release.

According to Bad Boy, Janelle Monae is featured as Rhapsody's "One to Watch" and as the Microsoft Zune's "Ignition Artist," both for the month of August.

On August 12, the release date of her Bad Boy debut DP, Janelle Monae will be appearing on Fox's Good Day Atlanta! Later in the day, she'll be doing an in store appearance at Criminal Records at 7:00 PM. Criminal Records is located at 466 Moreland Avenue NE in Atlanta.

According to Bad Boy, Cassie's album is slated for "early 2009." No more specific details were given.

Programming note: I'll be liveblogging tonight's premiere of "I Want to Work for Diddy". The show starts at 9:00 PM ET, so check back, hang out and comment as it happens (or after!)

Boston Globe and USA TODAY have articles on "I Want to Work for Diddy," due to tonight's premiere of the show at 9:00 PM ET on VH1.

In light of the recent controversy surrounding a fragrance ad campaign by Calvin Klein, Women's Wear Daily spoke with Diddy, getting his thoughts as well as reflections from the controversial Sean John fragrance launch campaign.

Big Gee's MySpace is now named "Free Big Gee... The Mixtape!" and there are three new tracks in the player. The first is "Mixtape Intro" which makes it sound like the mixtape is being put together by DJ Drama. Other tracks include "I'ma Rider" and "Return Of The Real."

From MTV:


Sounds like he was young and mad that he wasn't receiving the attention he wanted and his life wasn't going how he wanted, so he got a little jealous. It happens. It's good that he's come to realize it. Diddy put him on the "Too Old for Me" remix, which is probably one of my favorite Bad Boy remixes.

The Blog World & New Media Expo is an upcoming conference, held in Las Vegas, Nevada, covering everything to do with, well, blogging and new media. This includes communities, forums, podcasting, video blogging, technology, journalism, monetization, entrepreneurship, management and more, discussing varying levels of experience.

It's scheduled for September 20 and 21 with the extra Executive and Entrepreneur (E&E) conference being held on September 19. I will be there for all 3 days.

This will be my first time there. It looks like an awesome conference that will be attended by loads of cool people. I will be on a panel called "Avoiding Disaster: How Not to Use Social Media", along with Lee LeFever (Principal, Common Craft), Jason Falls (Social Media Explorer, Doe-Anderson and Blogger, SocialMediaExplorer.com) and Darren Rowse (Owner, ProBlogger.net; Co-Founder, Sixfigureblogging.com; Co-Founder and VP Training, b5media and Co-Author, "ProBlogger: The Book"), who is tentative. It should be a lot of fun.

If you are interested or involved in any of these fields and can afford to come, I'd definitely recommend checking it out. Through August 22, I have a 20% off coupon code that you can use while signing up. This code is FROGVIP and it is good for the "Exhibits Only," "Exhibits Only + Opening Party," "Full Access" and "E&E Conference" packages. The full access pass is currently $300, so the 20% off ticket would take it down to $240. The E&E pass is $750, making it $600 with the coupon.

If you are able to attend, definitely let me know so that we can meet, if you'd like. And, of course, I invite you to come to my panel, as well!

Fox News and People have more on the club incident on Friday night, in Atlanta. According to the police, a gun was fired while Diddy, Nelly and Usher were performing on stage. The only person reported to have been hurt was a secruity guard, who received a minor injury when a bullet grazed his elbow.

Rich Heldenfels of The Akron Beacon Journal reports that Rob, a contestant from "I Want to Work for Diddy," has a blog, located at robinthecity.blogspot.com. Started in February, the blog has been most active in July and August, with Rob mentioning the show on a few occasions.

According to a bulletin from the Day26 MySpace, the group will be performing at the Harold Washington Cultural Center, in Chicago, on August 9. Doors open at 6:00 PM, while the show begins at 7:30 PM.

Watch below.

There isn't a bigger Bad Boy fan in this world than myself. Ask anyone who knows me or check out my Last.fm profile and you'll find that I am a huge fan. At the same time, as loyal Bad Boy Blog readers will know, that doesn't mean that I won't be critical when it's appropriate.

This is one of those times. Being critical is a good thing when it's constructive and that's what I am aiming for here. While most readers know me here as a blogger and fellow Bad Boy fan, managing online websites and communities is what I do - online strategy is what I do. I own the iFroggy Network, of which BBB is a part, and I'm the author of a book called "Managing Online Forums," which discusses strategies and tactics for managing online communities. It received advance praise from recording artist, and Bad Boy producer, Ryan Leslie, as well as Debbie Hammond, CEO of ClockWork Entertainment, Jordan McCoy's co-label.

Putting together my professional experience and area of expertise and my long history of being a Bad Boy fan and observer, I've come up with 5 things that Bad Boy can do right now to drastically bolster their online strategy, leading to more traffic, more sales, more money - more everything.

» Read More

Various reports indicate that shots may have fired, last night, at a club in Atlanta where Jermaine Dupri was hosting a party. These reports have also stated that Diddy was in attendance and was rushed from the premises when it happened.

I thought that it would be interesting to start a monthly feature, here at Bad Boy Blog, showing the top 10 keywords or phrases that visitors have used to find this site through search engines, for the previous month. For the month of July:

1. Bad Boy Blog
2. BadBoyBlog
3. Danity Kane The Chase
4. www.badboyblog.com
5. JC feat Big A Looking at Me 2008
6. Danity Kane VH1 Host
6. Donnie Klang Album
8. Making the Band Tour
9. Day 26 Tour
10. Donnie Klang Interview

According to Bad Boy, Donnie Klang will be making the following in store appearances around his album release date:

Virgin Megastore on 52 E. 14th Street in New York, NY at 7:00 PM ET on September 2.

Best Buy on 1050 Old Country Road in Westbury, NY at 6:00 PM ET on September 3.

Check out the single cover for "Official Girl" with the Lil' Wayne feature added. It's similar to the original, but with a few adjustments.

Danity Kane's "Damaged" has been nominated in the "Best Pop Video" category in the 2008 MTV VMAs. The competition is "Burnin' Up" by the Jonas Brothers, "Nine In The Afternoon" by Panic At The Disco, "Piece of Me" by Britney Spears and "Ready, Set, Go!" by Tokio Hotel.

Watch below for an extended trailer for "I Want to Work for Diddy".

Watch below.

E! Online spoke with Jesse McCartney on the rumors that he and Aubrey O'Day of Danity Kane were going out.

Previously, we had reported that ClockWork Entertainment, who has worked with Bad Boy on joint ventures for Dream and Jordan McCoy, was attempting to put together a new Dream lineup. Jordan McCoy is the first member.

In speaking of ClockWork CEO Debbie Hammond, I was able to piece together some details. Assuming it comes to fruition, this new group isn't necessarily signed to Bad Boy - but, Bad Boy will receive a first look. Somewhere down the line, they are looking to promote the group through a movie.

Vincent Herbert, who has a long list of production credits (Mary J. Blige, Destiny's Child, Aaliyah, Toni Braxton, Total), and produced on Dream's first album, "It Was All A Dream," is on board for the project.

Though they haven't begun promoting auditions yet, they are accepting them. They are looking for girls around 18 years of age (or that look young). And, of course, you must be able to sing and dance at a high level. It'll be a 3-4 member group, so they are looking to add another 2 or 3 people.

If you are interested in auditioning, you should you post a video of yourself online and send a link to it to the ClockWork Entertainment MySpace or YouTube channel or the Dream MySpace or YouTube channel. Not all four - just one.

If they are unable to put together a group from the online submissions, they will hold formal auditions in Los Angeles. But, if all goes well, they'll look to hold call backs from the online submissions in Los Angeles, instead.

It's important to note that Jordan McCoy is still a solo artist signed to Bad Boy, trying to get an album out and trying to get a TV show. That hasn't changed.

Here is a trailer for the video for the first single from Cassie's upcoming album, "Official Girl," featuring Lil' Wayne. The video will premiere on MTV's FNMTV on August 22.

Check out a 2 minute long trailer for the third season of Making the Band 4, on MTV.

The Australian has a feature on Dawn Robertson, the new president of Sean John.

From the press release:

The Janelle Monae fan pack is available for pre-order from Atlantic Records. It includes both a CD and vinyl copy of "Metropolis: The Chase Suite (Special Edition)" as well as an instant MP3 download of "Many Moons," her first single.

The first 100 people to take advantage of the offer will have their vinyl cover autographed by Ms. Monae.

The new Janelle Monae website has launched. Check it out.

Watch below.


Thanks Ricardo for the tip.

From Jack Leonard of the Los Angeles Times:


This is quite the story. We may never know who to believe about this stuff. On one hand, you have an inmate, convicted of a serious crime that may be trying to help himself. On the other, you have Chuck Phillips, who has had his credibility questioned on numerous occasions. Most recently, when he reported by Biggie and Diddy knew about the attack on 2Pac at Quad Studios, before it happened.

Care of Cassie's MySpace, here is her cover on the September/August 2008 issue of Complex magazine.

Watch it here. I like the original version, with just Joc, better.

The AP spoke to Diddy about his new reality show, "I Want to Work for Diddy," premiering on Monday at 9:00 PM ET on VH1.

Women's Wear Daily reports that Sean John has hired Dawn Robertson as President. Formerly, Robertson had held the same position at Old Navy.

The former president, Robert Wichser, left last year for The Yucaipa Cos, where he is a principal. The Yucaipa Cos is a private equity firm that holds a position in Sean John.