Many of today's hip-hop personalities and R&B royalty would have fans believe they've got the genuine Midas touch, but few in recent years can truly back that claim up. The Tallahassee-born T-Pain, however, is one of these chosen few. It's no wonder Akon snatched him up for his own imprint, Konvict Muzik, upon hearing his rendition of the impresario's single, "Locked Up," back in 2005. Since then Pain has put singles on the Top 40 almost faster than Billboard can get to print, thanks
Rick Ross, Flo Rida, Brisco, Jazmine Sullivan, Busta Rhymes, and more. Tuesday, December 16, 2008Cafe IguanaBetter Than: Watching BET's 106 & ParkPower 96 does not like to be showed up. Last weekend, much attention was paid to Y-100's annual Jingle Ball concert, and their star studded line-up of pop acts like Chris Brown, Fall Out Boy, Rihanna, Katy Perry, etc. Just three days later, South Florida's favorite pop station for the people, Power 96, held their own impressive holiday jam titled,
Pop music often gets a bad rap for being disposable or vapid, and in many cases that's true. (Katy Perry, Danity Kane and the Pussycat Dolls, step right up!) But every year, a few irresistible bits of innovative ear candy rocket up the charts and seep into our subconscious. The following ten singles saturated the Top 40 -- or what passes for hit-oriented radio in this topsy-turvy musical climate -- while proving that accessibility doesn't necessarily preclude creativity.
CHRIS BROWN
"Forever
Photo courtesy of Yo Jeff CarrollYo, Jeff Carroll didn't get laid much in his formative years. He had eczema in high school, wore glasses, and weighed about 125 lbs. When he finally got up the courage to ask out his first girlfriend, the relationship lasted about four hours. "It wasn't easy for me to date," he says.Now 41, living in Pembroke Pines, and happily married with a 6-year-old son, Carroll has turned his Steve Urkel past into a business. He calls himself a Hip-Hop Dating Coach. And yes,
Flickr user: xiphoenix87Please help this man beat the Magic.Being a Cleveland sports fan requires a lifetime commitment to Prozac. The underdog city's teams have a habit of fostering great hopes before losing in some spectacular, nail-biting way. It's a bruising, emotional roller coaster that would make Rihanna and Chris Brown wince. Yet we keep coming back for more.Now that the Cavaliers are in the Eastern Conference Finals, it's strange to experience this phenomenon from the distance of South
