First YouTube Now The Maroon Tiger....

For the week of September 23-29 The Black Tie Affair has been featured in the Morehouse College newspaper, the Maroon Tiger. This feature is by far one of the greatest accomplishments the blog has yet to receive. I thought it was a joke when the corresponding editors Bryant and Jasmine emailed me, saying they wanted to meet and discuss featuring the blog in the paper. I send special kudos to the two of them, they were so professional in the interviews, and the final story came out GREAT!. Since the release of the paper, there have been non stop emails, text messages, and Facebook notifications on the feature, this experience has really gotten around campus like wildfire. For the followers who are in the AUC, I strongly suggest you all go and grab your copy of the Maroon Tiger, and read the article on myself and TBTA. Thank you all for your support, and I will continue to bring you the news from the web, and the paper. Next stop, magazines.

Much Love to you all,

-d.ford

"WELCOME TO HOLLYWOOD"

The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards

Sunday September 13th was the premiere of the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards. And while we were all glued to our television sets, some of the industry's most profound artist filled the city of New York once again for the awards. The night kicked off with the Michael Jackson tribute which featured his sister Janet, it was rumored that she'd practiced day and night to make sure her segment was nothing less than perfect. While everyone had their own opinions of what Ms. Jackson should do, but instead she chose to stick with a classic of the duo; Scream. From start to finish Janet kills every step as though Michael was present on stage with her, they even played the video along with her, to add to the effect; MJ's presence was defiantly in the room. What a way to kick off the show.

This year, the Queen B, Beyonce and new comer Lady Gaga were tied for a total of 9 awards, the world was dying to know who would take home the most. The highlight of the night was indeed Kanye West and his rude antics toward 17 year old country singer Taylor Swift. Unbelievably she won Best Female Artist, beating Beyonce and Lady Gaga both. Being the good sports they are, the two ladies cheered on young Swift on her first VMA, Kanye out of no where takes the microphone from here and commends Beyonce for having the "hottest video of all time for Single Ladies" this sent the media on an outrage and put both West and Swift in the public eye more than the Chris Brown incident. While Swift has gone public and forgave Kanye, the media is still having issues on letting it go. Beyonce even allowed Taylor to do her official acceptance speech in place of her Video of The Year award. Now isn't that something?, one bad judgement and now its the talk of the town, but isn't that Hollywood?. We still support Kanye here at TBTA!!!!

OH!, back to Lady Gaga, Omg, here performance was mad crazy!!!, she opens being landed under a fallen chandelier then she just wilds out. Everything from here dancers to the effects of the show, mad her another media topic. So in the middle of her performance you notice that she goes over to play the piano (who knew she played), then all of a sudden she starts bleeding, that caused for a major OMG!, it came out of no where and the fans loved every bit of it. kudos to u Gaga, u defiantly did that.

Overall this years awards show was better than any of the other ones in the days of Britney and *Nsync. TBTA is in the works of trying to be at next years, cause if all this happened this year, who knows what will happen in 2010.

The Louis Vuitton 2009 Fall Collection

Today marked the official release of the Louis Vuitton Fall collection. This is truly the season for guys. Louie V calls it "A Man's World", its primary feature is the Monogram canvas of Macassar bag. This stylish yet masculine feature will run you about $2,230, and is worth every penny. One of Louis Vuiton's spokesman, rapper Kanye West is the prime example of the monogram tote being apart of men's fashion. In other news the Fall collection is expanding its fashion for men with tons of accessories. belts, wallets, and sunglasses to say the least. Time and time again Louis Vuitton has provided us with tons of seasonal pieces to add to our wardrobe, and TBTA is letting you know that the Macassar bag is defiantly a keeper.

CONGRATS Neffe & Soullow

Yesterday Neffe (Keyshia Cole's sister) gave birth to her 5th child a baby girl names Nayla. Neffe and her fiance' Soullow together have a total of 7 kids now, so this will defiantly bring about a new spin off of the debut show "Frankie & Neffe". I don't know how many of you saw the last episode where Frankie had all the kids in her downtown Atlanta condo, but it was a MESS!!!. But here at the Black Tie we supports of them , wish them all the happiness the world has to offer. Congrats you two, we're keeping our fingers crossed that this relationship will last the test of time.

The Blueprint 3 Is Realeased Early!

As many may know, I am "THE JAY-Z FAN!" This guy is defiantly the truth. So when it came to the release of Jay's newest project I was with it from the jump. Rumors surfaced the net saying that the Blueprint 3 would be pushed back due to label issues, but as of yesterday, the September 11th release of the album was a no no. Jay pushed the album up 3 days and made the official release date 9/8/09. What many people fail to realize is that when you are on Jay-Z status, you can do different things like that. And of course the Black Tie Affair has the album already, that was a given factor. But, from beginning to end the Bluprint 3 is defiantly a chart topper, it also features artist like Rihanna, Alicia Keys, Kanye West, and many many more. Kudos to you Jay, you certainly got the Black Tie's support. When can we expect the next tour???

I Love The 90's

At the Black Tie Affair, we like to keep up with the latest fashion. The newest thing to hit the block are the 90's retro shades. Now all the 90's babies, will defiantly remember these, every kid on the block was rocking a pair. Now some ten years later the shades have made a comeback, Jay-Z and Beyonce' have been seen all over the world with a pair of the retro's. I guess its true what the parents say, "keep all your clothes, cause in 10 years they'll come back in style". Well you've heard it here from TBTA, the retro shades are defiantly IN!, so make sure you grab a pair in all colors.

Jasmine Lynn 1990-2009

Today in the AUC (Atlanta University Center) we morn the lost of a fellow member in the class of 2012. Jasmine Lynn was a student at Spelman College in Atlanta, Ga who was caught in the crossfire of a gun shootout early Thursday morning. When news struck the three campus' it brought about a sudden stage of shock for us all. The fact that classes just began no more than a week ago, and now one of our classmates are no longer with us, is a hard situation to grasp. All day there have been Tweets, and Facebook messages sent about the memory of this young scholars life. There was also a night walk held in her honor; beginning at the famous Martin Luther King, Jr. International Chapel on Morehouse College's campus and ending in the exact location in which she lost her life. As we morn this tragic lost, the AUC is trying to remember the happy times shared with Jasmine. We know that it will take some time to get over, but she's in a far better place. The Black Tie Affair sends their prayers to all her loved ones. She will truly be missed.

May God rest her soul....R.I.P Jasmine

Alicia Keys & Swizz Beats Make It Official

I guess this is the season for all the upcoming couples to go live with their love. Last weekend Alicia Keys and producer Swizz Beats went open with their relationship, and we seen out having dinner together. They seemed to really enjoy each other's company. They also wrote the new single on Whitney Houston's LP "I Look To You", the song is entitled Million Dollar Bill. Its about time we've seen these two out together, they've pulled a Jay-Z and Beyonce' move and kept quite for long enough. We'll here at the Black Tie Affair we send out blessing, and hope the two of you can stick this out, cause Alicia is a keeper!!!

Music's Newest Couple!!

Now this is a shocker!! Word on the streets is that R&B singers LeToya Luckett and Tank are dating. OMG, we never saw this coming. But with the release of her sophomore album Lady Love; LeToya is finally making a name for herself in the music industry, other than being an ex member of Destiny's Child. Sources say that the two were spotted in NYC this past week promoting their projects, and just happen to end up in the same night clubs. ummm, i wonder what that's all about. but we'll keep our eyes open on this topic. I know they are both supposed to appear in a movie together "Preacher's Kid" due later this year, maybe we'll see some on camera chemistry....Good Luck you guys

Baby Fever!!!

For the past few weeks pictures have surfed the net of The-Dream and his new love Christina Milian and what looks like a third party. A BABY!, oh wow, now isn't this major. Well according to Mediatakeout.com Milian is trying to cover the baby bump, but really isn't doing a good job. Now The-Dream on the other hand was married to Niva, who is now 9 months pregnant by Lil' Wayne, and together they have 2 children. The two divorced about a year ago. Now he's seeing Christina Milian, who we all know got dumped by Mr. Mariah Carey (Nick Cannon). If you ask me, this is a weird love triangle. But if The-Dream and Christina Milian are happy, then we wish them the best. But c'mon Christina, don't be ashamed of the baby bump, its becoming the latest fashion statement in ladies fashion.

R.I.P DJ AM

In resent news the death of DJ AM, has sparked the music industry like wild fire. For those unfamiliar with AM, he was one of the industry's most universal DJ's to hit the scene thus far. He was also married to Nicole Richie, were they had two children. As with any death this one defiantly hits home. The believed cause of death was overdose on crack/cocaine, the National Enquire claims "their was a crack pipe laying right next to DJ AM's lifeless corpse". Whatever the case maybe, our hearts go out to the family, especially Nicole and the kids.

Lil' Kim At It Again

Since her release from prison in early 2008, Lil' Kim is back at it again with another banger. "Download" with T-Pain, and Charlie Wilson is hot on all the radio stations from NYC to LA. Its good too see the Queen B back on the microphone giving us her sultry lyrics and revealing album covers. While no official album title has been released, a secretive cover was leaked on the web a few weeks ago, and you know the Black Tie Affair has it to show. Check out Kim in a different way.

Chris Brown's Apology Song

Yesterday was the official release of the new single from Chris Brown entitled "Changed Man" In Memphis, the song debuted on one of the hottest radio stations K-97. The song played a total of 3 times throughout the day and listeners called giving their feedback. On the real, it was not Chris' best work, and while i totally understand that its now cool for everyone to hate him now, what he needs is a club banger to get back in the game. A simple apology song is the last thing he should be pushing for, that seems too cliche'. Better luck next time Chris...

Danity Kane....Still Together??

The breakup of Pop group Danity Kane, was a shocker to everyone in the music world. But after Diddy officially disband them, we thought that was it. Not even a month after the Finale aired and all the girls except Dawn was dropped for the Bad Boy label. A press release hit the streets and airways of the girls having a deal with Visa, for their own credit card. Ironic?...absolutely not!. Now this story has been kept under the raps for a while now, and all five of the girls are doing their own things, but you know we'll have eyes and ears open for the official yay or nay of the ladies joining back together for another album, or tour. Dawn is the only member of the group that is still in the news; two days ago she celebrated her birthday where on her Twitter she twitpic'd of a new puppy her beau Q (of Day 26) bought her. She is also a member of Diddy's new trio Dirty Money, which includes the two of them and a new comer who raps.

The Kardashian Sisters

Now you all know I'm a fan of "Keeping Up With the Kardashians" and a major fan of Kim. Together all three of the Kardashian sisters hold their own and continue to roll in dough. With the close of the final season of the show. Kourtney and Khloe decided to move their adventures to Miami while Kim held her own in LA. The title of their new show is called "Kourtney & Khloe take Miami". This is one show I know ill be glued to the TV to watch. Fine girl who make they own money, can we say a HIT!.

But in other news I know everyone heard about the Reggie and Kim breakup, and while everyone has their own opinion on what happened; the two of them are the ones who will truly know. I know i kept getting reviews saying it was because of the sex tap with Ray-J, but if that was the case Reggie wouldn't pursued Kim in the first place. But here at the Black Tie Affair, we wanna send our positive remarks on the situation and wish the two of them much much success in the future, weather together or not.

Whitney Is BAAAAAAAACK!

Over the past few months the rumor of Whitney Houston returning to the music scene, has had everyone on the edge of their seats. Well, be prepared to fall out of your chair on this one. She's making a comeback. On August 30 you can expect the official release of Whitney's album "I Look To You". The media is going crazy over this one. We all know that for the past 5 or 6 years Whitney has been a target in the press for her "drug addiction" and relationship to husband Bobby Brown. But through it all it seems like Whitney is finally coming back to her original roots. MUSIC!!!!. I cant wait until the album comes out, I know the sales are gonna be through the roof, as Whitney always do. We continue to keep her in our prayers and wish her the best. YOU GO WHITNEY!!!!!!!

Who Is Tere'z?....

Here at the Black Tie Affair, we're trying to showcase new talent. Another lyricist we've come across is Tere'z, also a Memphis native and trying to get his breakout into the industry. This potential Hip-Hop artist grabs his listeners and takes them to his world, by making you listen to his story, experience his life, and also make u bump him in your car. Tere'z has broadcast his tracks on all the popular social networking sites; Myspace, YouTube Facebook, etc. where he and the Trak$ Gang have gained major hits. He has also appeared on the mic in many of Memphis' hottest night clubs, where he ripped any competition that would step his way. Tere'z has been a good friend of mine for the last 4 years, and one thing i can honestly say about him is that, this guy is a go getter! Right now Tere'z resigns in Memphis, TN and he along with the Trak$ Gang ent and K&C productions are working constantly to produce an official album. If you haven't heard any of Tere'z tracks go to his myspace page www.myspace.com/malloryheightz and check him out. My boy has mad skills.

Martin Louis the King Jr.

OMG!...Kanye has done it again. Now everyone knows Kanye is the poster kid for the big Ego. But a few weeks ago, Yeezy released a statement to the press concerning the death of Michael Jackson. Now we all knew Michael as the King of Pop, and even in his passing he will still live on to that. Kanye being the guy he is, the critic and self acclaimed "Best rapper ever created" is now wanting to go by a new name "Martin Louis the King Jr." or "The New King of Pop". Okay Kanye, normally I'm with you on these things, but this is a little bizarre. Plus, the main question is where in the world did the reference to MLK come from??? Whatever the case maybe, trust and believe this isn't the last time you'll hear of Kanye's new fiasco's'.