ATTENTION

It's kinda time consuming keeping up 2 blog so I will no longer post articles here. Instead I will be posting them on my other blog Blaque's Diary

http://blaqueskorner.blogspot.com/

HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE

All Hail The Queen

So the Grammys have come and gone and in their wake a Queen’s reign was solidified. Yep people it’s now official Her Royal Bootilisciousness is now the biggest female artist on the planet after setting a record of most Grammy wins by a female in one year. The former Destiny's Child singer snagged Grammys for best R&B song for “Single Ladies” and best contemporary R&B album for her chart-topping “I Am ... Sasha Fierce” as well as best traditional R&B vocal performance for “At Last". Queen Bey also won the prestigious Song of the Year award for her hit “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)", which also earned her the best female R&B vocal award.

I have always had reservations about Beyonce. I think she isn’t that original. In most of her shows and songs she rips off other people’s work and very seldom gives credit to them. I wrote an article about her concepts’ being unoriginal http://www.tvsa.co.za/default.asp?blogname=seasonallover&ArticleID=13267. I also think Beyonce isn’t the greatest of all singers however whether you are Beyonce fan or not, it would be preposterous to say she has no talent and ignorant to not acknowledge her impact in the world music scene . Sometimes one needs to judge an artist on based artistic merit and not personal taste. Judging by Bey’s success she is the best in the game. I mean to achieve the heights she has in such a short period of time is astounding and deserves an applause.

Queen Beyonce Giselle Knowles-Carter was ranked no 4 on Forbes’ 2009 Celebrity 100 with earnings of $87mil last year. At 29 she has won 16 Grammys (among other awards) and has sold over 120mil albumns i.e abt 70mil with Destiny’s Child and abt 55mil on her own. Should Bey’s star power keep rising like this she is set to beat the Grammy record of 26 Grammys won by a female artist set by Allison Krauss. At this stage she only needs 3 to beat Aretha Franklin’s record of 18 Grammys by a black female artist.

Mrs Shawn Corey Carter-Knowles’ achievements are just too numerous to mention so I’ll just leave it at that and just say Big Up Gurl !!!

If You Don't Like It, Quit

I was very disappointed to read that JustCurious.co.za decided to remove an article by one of it's bloggers, The Jozi Insider. The article was about a bday bash hosted by 5fm's Poppy and was attended by Jozi's schlebs. I never read the article and seeing that it's not there anymore I would assume this second hand info is true (thanks Mika). This is very disappointing in deed. We all know that gossip well inevitably ruffle some feathers and for JCurious to fold like this, it's unfortunate. JC's lack of "balls" has made it loose any credibility in my books.Why succumb to the pressure of this schlebs? What's the point of having a "celebrity" site if you can't even write freely about celebrities? Then again if some of JustCurious people are trying to be celebs themselves I guess they don’t wanna piss certain people off and burn their bridges *sigh*. This is what happens when bloggers become celebrities themselves. How do you become unbiased if you have to write about your friends, colleagues or potential employers? ... I'm sorry I still can't forgive Brown Shuga for going actress on us bloggers. I mean, imagine Christine Amampour suddenly becoming a politician, would you take her seriously? :)

So what does all this mean for JustCurious?

- Are you only gonna write "nice" things about celebs?
- Are you gonna be selective about celebs you write about?
- Can your bloggers be assured that their views will not be censored by your need to suck up to this celebs?

My advice to Brown Shuga or whoever is in charge of Just Curious would be:

Your celebrity friends must respect your work. Your site is a blogging site which means your writers express their own views on situations. People see things differently and you cant be held responsible on other people's perspectives. Your writers are not journalists they are bloggers, one has to distinguish between the 2. Though being a blogger is not a ticket to fabricate stories it is a platform to give first person perspective on situation thus eliminating the bearaucracy of mainstream journalistic reporting. I'm not really into gossip articles hence I never comment on them. I do however enjoy reading some of them and The Jozi Insider is a talented writer and has a way of phrasing his/her commentary that is just fun and a delight to read. It must have been demoralising for him/her to have his/her article removed just because you succumbed to over-sensitive hypocrites.

Much Love. Blaque

I love blogging and reading blog sites because the articles don't have the mainstream news media red tape. I'd be very sad if the non-biased independency of blogging was manipulated in this way to soothe and suck up to bruised egos. As for the schlebs who had “issues” with what was written about them… well, if your egotistic-hypocritical behinds cant take the heat, quit the industry. There are plenty of people who will replace you in a sec and trust me no-one will miss you. Be grateful that atleast someone still thinks you matter enough to be written about.

pics: google
original article:http://www.tvsa.co.za/default.asp?blogname=seasonallover&ArticleID=13605

Uyanda Mbuli Vs Mika

I find it very irritating that people will do anything, some will even do things their mothers wouldn’t be proud of, just to be in the limelight and once they are there they turn around and say they want their “privacy”. We all know that celebs are a talked about commodity. Hell, this people make some of their living on the fact that people read about them. If you are now a celeb you knew before you got into this industry that people will not only talk about your work but they will poke into your personal life as well. If you didn’t want anybody to talk about more than just work then you should have not gotten in to this industry. Go be a teacher or something, nobody will care if you cheat on your wife, you haven’t paid your rent or you have kids in every area code in Gauteng.

Having said that, I don’t think that journalists and bloggers should go out of their way to slander and defame celebrities and use the fact that this people are on the spotlight as an excuse. It is upsetting at times when you read these gossip columns and blogs and it’s very clear that the writer has a personal gripe against the person she is writing about. One ought to be objective in the stories they write because at the end of the day celebrities are human and do deserve some sort of respect as anybody would want their person to be respected. For a blogger to call someone a “dragon” simply because he doesn’t like them is just rude and kinda has a whiff of vindictiveness. Such insults say more about the writer’s character than that of the celeb he is clearly berating.

Uyanda Mbuli Mika Stefano

Case in point: I don’t know how true this rumour is but apparently Uyanda Mbuli is suing SA’s Perez Hilton wannabe, Mika Stefano, for calling her a dragon while reporting on her recent legal woes with her business partner Gert Johan Coetzee. I do think Uyanda is overreacting but I understand where she’s coming from. What's the deal between this two anyway? I used to like reading Mika’s blog until I noticed that he has a tendency to not be objective and often takes jabs at people he doesn’t like personally. Yes it’s his website and he has every right to post whatever he wants but childish personal attacks on people simply because you have issues with them it’s just low and spiteful. I love and admire the fact that Mika is doing something to bring the zest back into this industry, let’s face it Shwashwi has gotten a bit redundant but damn brother leave the stereotypical-vindictive- jaded-attitude (Kuli Roberts has that covered) out of your work because you could be better than that. You have a platform do reach great heights so don't taint it with petty bitchiness.

I originally wrote this for tvsa.co.za http://www.tvsa.co.za/default.asp?blogname=seasonallover&ArticleID=13605

Mark Cherry Getting Desperate

Jerry Seinfeld once said, when asked why he decided not to do the 10th season of Seinfeld, that tv shows are like a great meal. You can have an awesome meal but one bite too many can ruin it. He had had a great run with the show and it was time he bowed out while he was still at the top. The man was reportedly offered $5 mil per episode to continue with the show to its 10th season but he refused. Now that is someone who knows how to read his audience. Unfortunately Marc Cherry the creator of Desperate Housewives doesn’t seem to get that too much of something can be toxic or in this case… desperate

I have been aware of Marc Cherry having signed on for the show to run until its 9th season for some time now. I have to say I think that would be a mistake. I have to say I was not impressed with season 5. The entire season was filled with flashbacks. I didn’t mind them at first because the show jumped 5 years into the future some storylines had to be explained so we can catch up but I kinda got tired of them after a couple of episodes.

The biggest blow obviously was the death of Eddie Britt (Nicollete Sheridan). I wondered if I would still be able to watch the show without her. Then there was the “now we poor and fat and suddenly we rich and skinny within a month” thing with Gabby & Carlos just put me off. I didn’t like the fat Gabby and was happy to get the sassy-mean- but- adorable Gabby back but the storyline was a bit far fetched and totally unrealistic.

I have been doing the math (not that Im good at it) and if my calculation is correct by the end of 9th season we would have had to endure 14 years of these characters’ lives because the show jumped 5 years in season 4 finale. Unles Marc Cherry doesnt decide to jump to the future again. I’m sorry but I don’t think anybody has that much of an interesting life that we’d want to see it for that long. Plus there is no guarantee that all the ladies would sign on until season 9 as yet. I'm already missing Eddie Britt, imagine Westeria Lane without either Gabrielle, Bree or Susan… I dnt care much about Lynette. Rather not have the show at all then. I love these ladies but I think they should hang up their aprons and take a bow while we still care. I mean I will probably still watch the show but would I have the same sentiments that its best drama/comedy of the century by the time it gets to 2013... I doubt it.


Anyway season 6 is currently on M-Net and I pray it doesn’t disappoint. I loved Drea De Mateo in The Sopranos and Joey so I’m kinda curious to see how she fits into Fairview .

Catch the ladies of Westeria Lane on M-Net, Thursdays at 20h30

THE HANSIE MOVIE: Not All Bad

After reading comments on Tashi Tagg’s article on tvsa.co.za, I kinda felt compelled to write a counter article of my views on this movie on my tvsa blog. This is what I wrote:

Film-makers like any other business people know that they can’t please everyone though in terms of profit they’d like to see everybody flocking to cinemas to see their shows. I agree that THE HANSIE MOVIE is not groundbreaking or even that entertaining but there are some good things about that movie that need to be applauded.

What’s wrong about it?

Try as he might to downplay it, Frans Cronje in penning the movie did in some points paint his brother as some “Jesus”. If you gonna tell a story about someone that your audience know all too well the best option is to leave your personal opinion at home and keep to the subject matter. Frans failed dismally to to tell Hansie’s story without the exaggerated “he was a good guy and only did that because…” sentiments

Regardt Van den Berg, on the other hand could have chosen to take the script and use Frans’ vision but use his own experience to portray Hansie as a human being not as a saint like the subsequent material suggests. I know it would have been easy because let’s face it, Hansie can only be depicted in two ways. One, he was a boy from a church going family with impeccable morals who grew to be corrupted by a morally tainted society. Alternatively he could be an obnoxious, deceitful, greedy motha f, who enticed others like some of his team mates into his web of dishonesty and sin.

Now this is where the dilemma comes in. The latter would have made Hansie haters very happy whereas the first depiction, which is what Regardt and Frans went for, makes them seem like in the Cronje’s attempt to restore their son’s legacy they are trying to shift the blame for his action on circumstances. This is laughable.

Whats right with it?

Frank Rautenbach gives a sterling performance as Hansie. He is very convincing and doesn’t try too hard to be Hansie but in some way finds a way to portray this character with some element of truth. The problem with playing real life characters is that actors sometimes can lose touch with the fact that they are a vehicle for the characters they play and not the driver, the story is. If they concentrate too much on being the character then they lose the plot and the audience with it. Case in point Beyonce in Dreamgirls, yes they would claim now that Denna was not Diana Ross but was inspired by her however to the audience and clearly to Beyonce, Deena was Diana. In trying to be Diana, Beyonce lost sight of who Deena was and in the process lost her audience. Compare that to Morgan Freeman as Mandela. He doesnt try to be the man, like copy everything about him, but he allows the story to lead him to the Mandela his audience expects to see. Morgan was true to the character and I believe in playing Hansie, Frank managed to do that.

The other thing that’s applaudable about the movie is that it’s beautiful to watch. Some of the scenes in the movie were shot using Phantom high speed camera which produced detailed slow motion footage. Those of you who have seen Planet Earth would know how mesmerizingly beautiful such a shot is especially watching it on HD tv. Hansie gets a nod from me for being the first SA movie to employ such innovative use of technology

I know we all have different tastes and opinions but once in while we have to give credit where credit is due and I hope by sharing my thoughts with you about Tashi’s article and the movie itself would encourage you to sometimes look beyond what it’s expected of you and formulate your own opinions. It’s funny how sometimes because of the hype or criticism one ends up not really having his own opinion about a movie but gets entangled in the noise it creates. I have actually stopped reading movie reviews and very rarely see a movie in cinemas. I prefer dvd because you can pause and rewind if you don’t get where the story is going. And I love the special features. It’s amazing how hearing about the actors and directors’ thoughts about their movies can give you a different perspective on the movie, be it positive or negative.

Good riddance Tyra, Hello Wendy

The Tyra Banks Show premiered on SABC 3 on January 11th. Sadly for South african Tyra fans the show has been cancelled in the states. I for one am happy to see it leave our screens. I like Tyra and think she has a great future in media however I hated the show mainly because of her hypocritical and sometimes narcissistic approach to interviews. She had this tendency of making everything about her. If she had a guest on she would find a way to make their story less than what “she has been through”. Yes sometimes it helps to compare someone’s story to yours as an interviewer if you relate but with Tyra hers was always worse or more meaningful than her guest’s. Yes Tyra Banks is a role model to a lot of young black girls and she has the business savvy that has led to her being dubbed “the next Oprah” but the woman didn’t crack it as a talkshow host.


There were also rumours that she was mean to her staff which was contradictory to the “sister to all” image she was portraying on her show and on America’s Next Top Model. Of course these rumours are just allegations and she continues to succeed in other ventures she is involved in. ANTM is still doing well and apparently her company Bankable Production is moving in to making movies. Well, I wish her luck with that and hopefully she can grow and learn that you can’t succeed at everything in life. I went to Tyra’s website and of course she claims that the decision to end the show was hers but reports are the ratings were down and it became expensive to produce the show after it was moved from LA to NY.

As one diva leaves the small screen another rises to take the reigns and in this case Wendy Williams has become the’ it’ girl of the talk show world. Some have even claimed that Wendy’s success maybe partially to blame for Tyra and Oprah’s demise. Tyra focused more on targeting teens whereas Oprah just lost steam and then comes the over-the-top Wendy, Ty and O just didn’t stand a chance. Like in politics, tv audiences just needed a change. Ironic since the same message that helped Oprah’s friend Obama get in oval office may have something to do with the demise of her cash cow show. Wendy’s over-the-top and yet down-to-earth approach to her hosting has led to audiences flocking to her show in droves. She is not a celeb and doesn’t feel the need to suck up to big names stars like Oprah and Tyra did. That has made her relatable with her audiences.

It maybe a while until we get to see Wendy in Mzansi tv. I mean SABC is probably cant afford to pick her show up as its still kinda new and M-Net is unlikely to pick up a “black” talkshow (let’s be real, M-Net is a white channel J… u knw wat I mean). I suggest you go to youtube and see clips from the show. It’s great. Notably though is the interview with Whitney Houston Wendy knows how to press the buttons. She is real, Whitney is throwing some F*** word all over the interview, it’s just hilarious.

Simply put I think Wendy is direct and yet approachable which Tyra and Oprah could never be. Well maybe Oprah was 15years ago but people are tired of her “My friend Mandela”, “My friend John Travolta” etc … I know I am.