I don’t know about you but I’m super happy that the Black Eye Peas (i.e., will.i.am + Fergie et al) are back with another hit record. I am really feeling their latest song - “Boom Boom Pow.” This song has been number one on the pop charts Top 100 for the third week in a row and the number one download on iTunes for yet another week. They’ve sold over a million copies of the digital single - amazing! Although the track is definitely one that will get your booty shaking, the video leaves a little to be desired. I was hoping for another video that I wouldn’t be able to stop watching (like Jamie Foxx’s “Blame It” featuring T-Pain). Anyway, there is something simple and enjoyable about the beat and lyrics that gets this song stuck in my head.  And the album - “The END” (The “Energy Never Dies”) is coming June 9th. Enjoy!!!

-The Caramel Bella

Eighties nostalgia, young love, and the horrors of summer jobs describe the cinematic ride, Adventureland.

Although written and directed by Greg Mottola, best known for the comedic hit Superbad (2007), this film can only be loosely called a comedy. (And if you are expecting a laugh-filled movie experience like his last film, then Adventureland is not for you.) Instead, Mottola delivers a coming of age story set in Pittsburgh in the 1980s.

Adventureland is the story of college graduate, James Brennan (Jesse Eisenberg) who has big plans to move to New York City and attend Columbia University’s graduate school. He wants to become a travel essayist and thinks a master’s degree in journalism will help him because the field is “still an old boys’ network.”

However, James’s big plans and lifelong dreams fall flat when he finds out that his parents are broke. Not only is his college graduation gift of traveling through Europe with his buddy cancelled, but his parents also tell him he needs to get a summer job to save money.

After rounds of applications to every menial and entry-level job in town, Brennan finds he isn’t qualified for anything, except a “games” job at the local amusement park, “Adventureland.” So, tucking his highly educated tail between his legs, he attempts to make the best of the situation.

James soon finds there are some upsides to his rather brainless job. He develops friendships with people who are crazier and more socially awkward than he is. In fact, in some of his summer circles, James becomes the “almost-cool kid.” He also meets a girl, Em (Kristen Stewart) who is the sad, often depressed, and girl-next-door plain. Yet, she is sexy enough to tug at his heart strings. (And if you are wondering who is Kristen Stewart, you must not have seen the latest vampire film sensation, Twilight. She is the young actress who starred in this movie and has become a major success.)

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Blame It - Jamie Foxx feat. T-Pain

It’s been a minute since I posted a music favorite because I honestly have to FEEL the song. Well, Jamie Foxx gets this CARAMEL BELLA’s music pick. His latest, “Blame It,” featuring T-Pain, off his “Intuition” album is soo hot that it hasn’t left my CD changer or iTunes since I started playing it. I commute about 30 minutes to graduate school  each day and sometimes I repeat the song the whole way (yes, I know.. a bit excessive).  It’s just what a girl needs to get excited about the day (and wake up).

But speaking of the song and its lyrics. You have to love the lines:

“She said she usually don’t…But I know that she fronts. ‘Cause shorty knows what she wants. She doesn’t want to seem like she’s easy..”

So ladies, do we blame alcohol for our intimate (*wink*) indiscretions? And fellas, do you buy the bellas drinks to lower their inhibitions?? Hmmm.. Interesting things to ponder while shaking your butt to Foxx’s “Blame It.”

And check out all the celebrities in the video (directed by Hype Williams): Forrest Whitaker, Samuel L. Jackson, Ron Howard, Jake Gyllenhaal, and of course T-Pain. It seems more like a mini-movie than your usual hip hop video fare.

Enjoy!

Smooches,

The Caramel Bella

With the economy in the tank, many analysts believe that Americans are foregoing life’s extras and putting a tight watch on their household budgets. Yet despite slow retail sales on Black Friday and confirmation of a recession, Americans are buying “Material Girl” (a.k.a Madonna) tickets (so far 550,000 have been sold). Her North American tour called Sticky & Sweet for her “Hard Candy” album has grossed close to $91.5 million dollars reported Reuters. According to Coolfer, the average cost of a single ticket is $166.

Madonna’s North American blitz ended Wednesday in front of a crowd of 50,000 people at Miami’s Dolphin Station. The Pop Queen then took her show on the road to Mexico City this past Saturday and Sunday, and then onto Europe. Madonna has sold about $207.5 million in ticket sales including her Europe shows. And by the time the Material Girl concludes her tour in Sao Paolo, Brazil on December 21, she will have sold about $282 million worth of tickets.

Always pushing the limits and mocking those who think she’s washed up, Madonna’s Sticky & Sweet is on course to be the “top-grossing tour ever by a female artist or solo artist.” (And she is breaking the previous record held by her Confessions tour in 2006, which took in $193.7 million.) See her in action above!

Rihanna is starting to grow on me. And choosing Justin Timberlake for her latest video, “Rehab,” was a step closer to making me a fan. Check out the duo walk back and forth (and back and forth some more) in heated passion I suppose. Don’t you wish love was that intoxicating?

Although I hate doing Beyoncé stories back to back, this one called for it.

So, speaking of Beyoncé… The Los Angeles Times reported on Friday, Nov. 7 that Beyonce wants to play superhero Wonder Woman. Apparently, she has had her fill of emotional, tearjerker movies and wants to take on the world of the fantastic.

Beyoncé tells LA Times Reporter/Blogger, Geoff Boucher:

“After doing these roles that were so emotional I was thinking  to myself, ‘OK, I need to be a superhero.’ Although, when you think about the psychology of the heroes in the films these days, they are still a lot of work, of course, and emotional. But there’s also an action element that I would enjoy.”

Well, we’ll see if she gets the part. According to the LA Times, Beyoncé has met with DC Comics and Warner Bros to stake her claim on the role, but there is no guarantee at the moment of a future Wonder Woman film.

Smooches,

The Caramel Bella

Photos courtesy of Los Angeles Times

As most of you know by now, Beyoncé is back! Her latest video, “Single Girl (Put a Ring On It),” is a true dance video. And Beyoncé, along with her two dancers, are working it out. Although I am not in love with the song (and I consider myself a fan), I think it’s one of those jams that grows on you! I’m betting on a remix with some hot rapper like Lil’ Wayne, Jay-Z or T-Pain (Mr. Collabo). Her album comes out on November 18th. Check it out!