Real Music People

Timbaland got married on a private island in Aruba last weekend but don’t think that the rapper and mega producer went all out with the fancy stuff. Spies at the wedding site says that the music mogul’s wedding, which the hotel called the code name of ‘Heaven on Earth’, actually featured open mic karaoke and $50,000 worth of flowers. If you compare that to Mariah’s weddings, it’s practically peanuts. Oprah, Madonna, Missy Elliott, Beyonce, Jay-Z and Prince were said to be invited but there’s no official word on just who actually showed. What, Justin Timberlake wasn’t invited? I was kind of imagining him as the wedding singer.

Justin Timberlake was in France earlier this week doing a little bit of shopping with his manager Johnny Wright. Next month, the singing and dancing sensation will host the 2008 ESPY Awards to celebrate the year’s best moments in sports. There are currently 4 commercials featuring Justin on ESPN.com that serve as publicity to drum up support for the ESPY awards. The one entitled ‘Time Capsule’ is actually pretty funny. The ESPY Awards will air on July 20 on ESPN. Justin will appear on ‘Live with Jimmy Kimmel’ on July 18 to hype up the show. Other announced presenters for the award ceremony include Zac Efron, Kristen Bell, Luke Wilson, David Beckham and Lance Armstrong.

Timbaland got married on Tuesday. The record producer and long-term partner Monique Idlett, who works as a music publicist, opted for a low key ceremony and wore sweat pants as they secretly tied the knot in front of a family pastor in a church in Virginia.

The newlywed couple are also planning to hold a formal ceremony in front of friends and family in the Caribbean island of Aruba on June 22.

Timbaland, whose real name is Timothy Z. Mosley, and Monique welcomed their first daughter Reign in November.

The 37-year-old music mogul - who has collaborated with Justin Timberlake, Nelly Furtado and Madonna - proposed to Monique at Reign’s baby shower last October.

Timbaland isn’t the only celebrity to wed in secret recently. Former Destiny’s Child singer Beyonce Knowles and hip-hop star Jay-Z married in the musician’s New York apartment in April, while Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon held an impromptu beachside ceremony in the Bahamas following their whirlwind romance.

Madonna and Justin Timberlake’s collaboration ‘4 Minutes to Save the World’ has leaked and is making the rounds all over the internet. And as people say, don’t believe the hype. I’m disappointed really. You can barely hear Madonna singing because the song is all about the beats and it overpowers the whole thing. The melody is completely sacrificed and I can’t even determine where the chorus is. And those darn horns repeating on a loop – it’s so annoying! The song sounds more like something from one of Gwen Stefani’s solo albums. It’s ironic because Gwen has been vocal about how she’s been inspired mostly by Madonna. Sorry Madonna, not even golden boy Justin could give you a hit. I’m just not digging the song. Maybe it will grow on me.

Justin Timberlake’s Amazon/Pepsi commercial has been released and it’s a funny clip. Let’s hope that he wore a cup for this one. The ‘Sexyback’ singer had two of the hottest rising stars for his commercial – SNL funnyman Andy Samberg and Dallas Cowboys QB Tony Romo. Justin also pimped out his own music, ‘LoveStoned/I Think She Knows’, and his own restaurant, Southern Hospitality. His advertisement is to promote the 4 billion Pepsi products which will have collectible points on them that can be ‘banked’ starting February 1st on PepsiStuff.com and can be later redeemed for purchase on Amazon MP3. Justin is pimping a lot!

Justin Timberlake’s sixth release from solo bow “FutureSex/LoveSounds” has earned props as the first time that six tracks from one release have hit the top 40 since Michael Jackson’s “Dangerous” more than 15 years ago. With Beyoncé now stripped onto “Until the End of Time,” it’s quite likely JT will score the tenacious set’s fourth No. 1—which has already catapulted into the top five at R&B.

The meandering song is clearly a tribute to Prince, with its soul-soaked guitar-driven shuffle and funkified production—think “I Would Die 4 U” on Xanax. While Timberlake’s vocals are smoothed out to near anonymity, as usual, he employs recognizable falsetto amid layers of appreciably creamy harmonies.

It’s Beyoncé, however, that really fuels the passion of the track, with her loosest vocal performance since “Listen” from “Dreamgirls”—and Timberlake is wise enough to sprawl her vocal across the song so that it commands the lead. The mantra here: unstoppable.

I think he’s talented, but whiny. He’s always going on and on how great he is…humble pie is going to taste mighty rough when it’s served up, as it always ends up being, at some point. He can dance, he can sing (marginally), he’s got some style…sure, it comes from a thousand r/b legends before him, but still…his biggest crime is he’s a punk ass about everything. Stop tooting yo’ own horn, just do your thing…stop acting like your the savior of music, cuz what your putting out is the thing right now, but remember, what you put out in the late nineties was the thing then, too. This too shall pass. Save some good will, eh? As to the Superbowl shit, they were both at fault, both should have been equally on blast, and both should have taken responsibility… but PAB weenied out of his share and that will always leave some with a poor opinion of him. Actually, just for simulating ripping/forcing a girl he aught to be whipped. Course then he’d cry a like a baby…

It was first reported that he ended up straining his voice due to his performance at the 2007 MTV VMAs which took place in the middle of his massive tour. But this is Justin Timberlake and he was raised to be a good southern boy with all those loveable southern qualities. Honesty, being one of them.

The ‘SexyBack’ singer went back to San Jose, California Sunday night to make up for the concert that he cancelled the day after the Video Music Awards. Justin took time to speak to the audience and revealed the real reason as to why he cancelled. “Certain bloggers said I cancelled because I was hung over and they were right… I was.”

You can’t blame him now.

Check out these promotional shots of Rihanna and Kanye West for this year’s MTV Video Music Awards. World famous photographer David LaChapelle did the elaborate photo shoots of not only Rihanna and Kanye but also Fall Out Boy, Foo Fighters and Chris Brown.

All of the above mentioned artists are featured as performers for this year’s VMAs along with Amy Winehouse and Lily Allen. And FYI, Justin Timberlake will be hosting a Fantasy Suite party with good pal and partner Timbaland.

The 2007 MTV Video Music Awards will air on September 9. And if the photos are any measure of the hotness of the show, then prepare to take on the heat!

50 Cent’s new album, “Curtis,” has been pushed back another week, from September 4 to September 11, according to Interscope, which declined to give a reason for the move.

“Curtis” originally was slated for a June 26 release but was pushed back in late May.

Two singles from the project have met with little success on radio. “Amusement Park” peaked at No. 36 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and is No. 57 in its ninth week there, while “Straight to the Bank” peaked at No. 30 and has since fallen off the chart.

Another new song, “I Get Money,” debuted in early July at No. 75.

“Curtis,” which is the follow-up to 2005’s “The Massacre,” features production from Dr. Dre, Eminem and Timbaland, plus guest turns by Eminem, Akon, Justin Timberlake, Mary J. Blige, Robin Thicke and Nicole Scherzinger from the Pussycat Dolls.

There has been much talk of late regarding the ramifications of a Blake Lewis victory come tomorrow night on American Idol. The issue has nothing to do with Jordin Sparks, so we’ll leave her out of this for now. There are, then, two issues to discuss. One, the reasons Blake Lewis doesn’t want to win and, two, evidence that Blake Lewis is not trying to win.

The truth is, Blake Lewis would benefit from coming in second. He would have more creative freedom on the album he decides to make. As witnessed at his Seattle concert (or any of his outside-of-Idol concerts), Blake has a repertoire of original songs that he’d love to record. However, they aren’t exactly mainstream fare. How much dance music do you see on TRL? American Idol will attempt to steer Blake into more of a Justin Timberlake direction if he ends up winning. I really don’t see the Idol executives signing off on an album that features 7-minute, loop-centric dance songs.

During tonight’s episode, the first thing that might clue you in to Blake’s mindset was his decision to perform first after he won the coin flip (AND after asking Jordin whether she wanted to go first). It’s always beneficial to perform last, in terms of making a lasting impression on the Idol voters (this may not be scientifically proven, but it sure seems to be the case). Blake’s lack of nervousness is another red flag. He does not seem at all invested in the competition and looks as if he only really cares about going out there and having a good time. If he really wanted to win American Idol, we’d probably sense at least a little stress out of him.

Thankfully, it is impossible to accuse Blake of trying to “throw” the competition at any point. It’s obvious that he’s doing the best that he can out there and that he has a lot of pride in what he does. A moment that stood out during last week’s results show was Blake’s reaction after it was announced that Melinda was eliminated. He looked embarrassed, even a little upset. That’s not the way a person reacts if they are in it to win it.

Blake’s already going to have the opportunity to record a high-profile album. Creative freedom is more important than the bragging rights of being an Idol champion. Jordin Sparks is much more Idol’s type: young, marketable, malleable.

Justin Timberlake is turning his back on pop to write country music. The 26-year singer wants to take some time away from spotlight to go back to his Tennessee roots and explore other music genres. In an interview he told: ”I’ve had a good share of the spotlight. I don’t feel I need too much of it right now. I want to write country music, because I grew up in Tennessee, and soul music.” The artist has also started to do something new. He is now writing songs for other artists. He said that he is tired of writing for himself and wants to concentrate on composing for others. He has already penned tunes for Macy Gray and Rihanna. About this he says: ”I feel the only way to really express all those different sides, even just for myself, is through different people. To write for myself, I definitely have to recharge my battery. I can’t just pump out 20 more songs and expect them all to be “What Goes Around”. It looks like Justin is trying many new thing this year. He has turned to acting too. This year he can be seen in “Alpha Dog” and “Black Shake Moan”, and has also lent his voice to the character of King Arthur for animated movie “Shrek the Third”.