New Music

 

Keyshia’s latest album, Just Like You, has been a proven success as it has delivered hit after hit to the hip hop community straight into the year 2008…and her music continues to bring the flow with the debut of “Heaven Sent“, the fourth single off of the platinum album.

I haven’t heard the single on the radio, but it was debuted on BET on March 26. The video was shot by director Benny Boom, who has also worked with artists such as Lil’ Kim, LL Cool J,P. Diddy, and Monica, on the beautiful and serene island of Hawaii.  It was shot in such a way to mimic the poem, “Footprints in the Sand,” by Mary Stevenson.

The song/video has been posted on many sites, including Rap-Up.com, and has been getting many positive responses from fans. Check out what they had to say!

Hot Tresses

 

Have you ever heard the expression “It’s all in the hair”? For many women in our society, hair is a huge part of their lives. Spending $200 at a salon is no longer unheard of. And why do you think this is? I’ll give you one clue…stardom. We spend money on this main feature because it is the one which will allow us to most accurately depict the looks of our favorite celebrities. For example, when I cut my hair to the inverted bob style, people started to ask me if I was trying to be like Katie Holmes. There you go, It’s all in the hair. These people knew nothing about me or my life but through my haircut, they automatically assumed that I was trying to emulate the lifestyle projected by Tomcat. Sad, but true.

Keyshia Cole is a great example of setting hair style trends. She currently rocks the blonde bob, but that is just one look out of many for the chic R&B sensation. Like her collabo with Trina, “I Got a Thing For You,” this girl’s got a thing for hair. Some fans go as far as describing her hair styles as art. They’re usually very colorful and dramatic. It’s been short, long, highlighted, weaved, you name it, she’s done it. And fans appreciate the bold statements she makes through her hair styles.

One blogger named Lawanda admires the risks Keyshia takes with her unconventional style.

“Keyshia is always fire. She brings her own look to everything she does. I always love her hair cause she is never afraid to take it to another level. Whether its blond, red, orange and black it always look great.”

Interview Gone Wrong?

Bloggers had a field day with Keyshia Cole after tuning in to her live interview with Baltimore’s WERQ-FM 92.3 Big Phat Morning Show. Her non-chalant tone sounded cold and dismissive. Basically, it sounded like she couldn’t wait to get out of there! Some are blaming her bland attitude on a bad day, and schedule conflicts, others think she has a lot to learn, but some die hard fans are still standing by her side.

But in her favor, I think that’s just the way she talks. She’s very calm and collected and is not the type of person to make a scene-qualities that became apparant once viweing her interview I posted a few weeks ago with Tyra Banks. One blogger, Tanya 34, understands where she is coming from and cut her some slack.

I think Keyshia is an outstanding artist, however, sometimes scheduling conflicts happens and things don’t go as planned but it’s my opinion to remain professional at all times! I don’t think Keisha was rude, I just think that her anger shown thru at the interview. Keyshia, just remember that you are a professional and professionals have to deal with being able to be onstage/radio at a moments notice and handle it with enthusiasm….U could have dealt with management AFTER the interview.

 Still, some fans are not happy with her deliverance.

Everyone is entitled to a bad day, this is true, but her attitude was unecessary. If you’re feeling tired, sick or overworked, say so, the fans will understand. Don’t just act ignorant, even after you’ve been called out for your behavior. I think the scheduling confict is an excuse. Ok, so your schedule was mixed up, that may be an excuse for being late or even absent, but not for being rude. That doesn’t add up.

- M. Kelly

Here is the actual interview…what do yout think?

Cole Model

Despite all of the rumors of Keyshia being labeled a diva, there is proof out there that she truly is grateful for her position as one of the R&B world’s reigning queens.

I have faith that Keyshia is a good person who does not let celebrity stardom get to her head. However many people may mistake self confidence as a negative attribute due to their own jealous feelings. Keyshia has had the odds against her from the beginning, as her childhood was far from ideal, but the struggles she has endured comes across in her music with certainty and conviction.

Keyshia denies being a diva, like other music starts such as Mariah Carey, but she says “I’m confident, and I don’t let people walk all over me.” She also understands that a part of being in the spotlight is being a role model to young people around the world-a realization that became more clear during the airing of her reality show, The Way It Is. “When going into that situation I kept in mind that the young kids who would really be looking up to me for answers and that’s how I went about it.”

If only more celebrities took the role model factor into account…

Swing and a Miss

Keyshia Cole is known for her great talents but not for her good taste in fashion. Bloggers are deeming her as one of the worst dressed celebrities while begging her to find a new stylist.

It all started when Keyshia wore an all fur mini-dress and leggings during an appearance on BET’s hit countdown show, 106 & Park. Fans were outraged by her outfit and said she looked like a “stuffed bird” whose stylist “needs to be fired.” Bloggers, in particular, were hating on the R&B sensation by saying that she looked like a ghetto hooker during her appearance on the show. But not everyone was as harsh on Keyshia. A blogger named Heather showed her support for the misguided star-”She has a great voice, and by the way, she dresses better than Shitney Spears! She has her own style, that’s what I like about her and her voice.”

Heather’s comment was a dime a dozen on Perez Hilton’s “Smashin Fashion” page from PerezHilton.com. Come on bloggers, have some sympathy. Everyone makes mistakes!

Personally, I would never trust anyone else to tell me that I look good if I was ever to make an appearance on television. Keyshia obviously trusts her stylist to no end. If she didn’t, she would have been able to avoid this wardrobe mishap that put fans into a frenzy. But look on the bright side…at least she didn’t mix plaids and stripes!

Baby on Board?

Rumors have been flying through the Internet that Keyshia is pregnant! I know, I’m just as shocked as you are. But you can’t always believe what you read on-line, especially when it involves a pregnancy because the media today seems to be obsessed with pregnant celebrities.

Keyshia quickly addressed the rumors on her myspace page by saying “To all my adoring fans: I am aware of all the rumors that are running rampant on the Internet and I wanted to address the pregnancy rumor: I am not and never have I been pregnant. In fact, I am currently in the studio working on album number 3 and readying a new tour at the same time. Thank you for always being concerned about me!”

It seems to me like she’s too busy to be pregnant, but then again, you never know. Even though she claims the rumors are false, I will still be keeping my eyes peeled for a baby bump.

Hot 97 Full Frontal

Get your fashion and music fix on Thursday, March 20th at the fifth annual Full Frontal Hip Hop Fashion Show hosted by New York radio station, Hot 97, at the Hammerstein Ballroom.

The show will feature models strutting the latest fashions from designers such as Baby Phat, Rocawear, and Sean John, just to name a few. Artists such as Chris Brown, Lupe Fiasco, Mario, Wyclef Jean and my girl, Keyshia Cole are scheduled to perform at the event. The fresh beats and hot new fashions are expected to throw some pep in the model’s steps down the cat walk as live performances are an unconventional approach to your everyday fashion show experience.

So what are you waiting for? Tickets are available through Hot97.com or Ticketmaster.com. Hurry, there’s only three days left until the big day!

Litte Miss…Diva?

I love Keyshia for her voice, her humble attitude and her down-to-earth persona. However, Keyshia left a following of loyal fans in the dust this weekend, as she showed up nearly four hours late for a reunion taping of her reality show “The Way It Is” at Turner Studios in Atlanta. The incident has fans asking if the formerly modest Miss Cole has made the transformation to Miss Diva.

 

 

By the time Keyshia finally showed, many fans had already picked up and left. The taping finally gained a more plentiful audience after a last minute announcement was made on V-103, one of Atlanta’s local hip-hop radio stations. The show began taping at 7:30 pm, an hour and a half late from when it was supposed to wrap, allowing this incident to be labeled as Keyshia’s first true diva moment.

For all of you who have never seen “The Way It Is” watch the Youtube clip for a taste of what you missed…After you watch this maybe you will know why fans didn’t stick around for the reunion taping…

“I Got A Thang For You”

Yes, that’s right, a “thaaang.” That’s the new ladies anthem Keyshia Cole is singing alongside female rap veteran, also known as Trina who has had record breaking success in the past when teaming up with big time artists such as Ludacris and Missy Elliot. Trina is most commonly known for her provocative and in-your-face type of attitude, which is reminiscent of one of her first singles “Pull Over That Ass Too Fat.”  

 

I dont have to say much more for you to get an idea of Trina’s image. I’m not a huge fan- she is a little raunchy for my taste. So I didn’t know if this single would do it for me. It’s not my favorite Keyshia collabo. release, but these things have a tendency to grow on me. Listen and decide for yourself…

“I Got A Thang For You”was released late February and will be appearing on Trina’s 4th album entitled Still Da Baddest, scheduled to hit stores on April 1st.

Keyshia on Tyra

In an interview with Tyra Banks Keyshia talks about love, loss, heartbreak and success.

One of her main struggles is making and keeping friends and being strong when it comes to male domination. Many men in the music industry and a number of professional athletes have expressed an interest in Keyshia but she is unfazed by all the attention. Her mission-watch out and keep focused because you never know what a person’s true motives are. I guess she learned from her past as the catalyst that jump started Keyshia’s ambition was being cheated on by an ex-boyfriend. Cole said “I was tired of it…I just packed up, got in my car, I felt like pretty woman drivin’ down the highway…I drove to Los Angeles.” And here she is!

As far as family relationships, Keyshia spills the dirt on her mother who was a drug addict, a prostitute, and was incarcerated for most of her life. She was constantly in and out of Keyshia’s life. “I always kept in touch with my mother but she was always in the streets.” Keyshia does not know her father, as he passed away a number of years ago, but to my surprise he was Italian. I guess Keyshia and I have more in common than I ever thought. But she does have two families. She has reconciled with her biological mother and was raised by her adoptive family from the age of two.

I am not a huge Tyra fan but I did like this interview because it showed a softer side of Cole and a witty side of Tyra. The interview had the perfect mix of emotions and taught me a thing or two about Keyshia’s life before she was famous. It seems to me that she hasn’t forgotten where she came from.

Here is a clip of the interview that aired in October of 2007.