Welcome Home Beckham!!

I was so excited when I heard that David Beckham, the world's most popular sports figure, was gonna play for the MLS. When I went to work the next day I was telling everyone and they're like, "David who?" which shocked the shit out of me. "David Beckham, the soccer superstar!" "Sock what? What the hell are you talking about. Have you been drinking again? What have I told you about that?" No one knew who the hell this guy is, so I mention that he's married to one of the Spice Girls, "Oh I remember the Spice Girls, they sucked," and that pretty much was the extent of the conversation. Pretty lame, schmucks don't even know who David Beckham. So take like Tiger Woods, Lance Armstrong and Michael Jordan and put them together to make like a super sports celebrity kinda guy, I guess, and that dude would be like 10 times as not popular as David Beckham, if that even makes any damn sense. I dunno. The guy's famous damnit!

And he's rich as hell too. He signed a deal that could potentially be worth $250 million over five years including his salary, endorsements and a bunch of other crap. You realize how much $250 million is? I could whip out my weewee and slap Cameron Diaz in the face and people would be like, "well I guess it's OK, he's got $250 million. He can do that." That's what I call F*ck You money because you can kick some guy in the balls and take a dump in his wife's mouth while telling them to go f*ck themselves, in German, and nothing would happen because you have $250 million. That's insane! And I'm not even talking about a normal dookie, I'm talking about you just ate a giant ice cream sundae and washed it down with Prune Juice mixed with Pepto Bismol kind of dookie, in his wife's mouth and this went on way too far than I planned. That was pretty nasty.

So anyways, back to David Beckham. The story is that more European superstars are on their way, like Ronaldo. So now the MLS is gonna have an influx of out of shape soccer players who can't hack it in European soccer anymore but I care zero because that's a lot better than what MLS currently has. Pretty sad, but I really want an excuse to go to Gillette Stadium during the Pats offseason.

The Michael Richards Story

Wow, it's been almost a month since my last post. Things have been real busy lately but I'm slowing getting back into blogging more often. But that's not what this post is about.

By now everyone has heard of the Michael Richards tirade at the Laugh Factory a couple weeks back so no need to recap what went on. Richards has gone on an "Apology Tour" trying to repair is reputation. The question is will the Seinfeld star be able to clean up his image?

I don't care what anyone else says, but Michael Richards is through. There is nothing he can do to restore his reputation. He can apologize all he wants, he can seek support from Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, he can hire the best PR professional in the world, he can donate a gajillion dollars to the NAACP, and nothing will fix his image.

He made the first mistake of hiring PR guru Howard Rubenstein, the best in the business. Rubenstein has over 450 clients and is the official spokesperson for Yankees owner, George Steinbrenner. Richards knows his booboo is so big that he needs the best PR guy to fix it. That should tell you something. His next mistake was trying to get support from Sharpton and Jackson, as if they forgave him the entire black community would forgive him too. That's just plain nonsense. Then Richards went on Letterman and gave the most pathetic attempt at an apology that I've ever heard, all this to clean up his image. But Richards forgot to do the most important thing yet...confront the two men he verbally abused. That is the FIRST thing he should have done instead of getting the media involved. He should have apologized to the two men in person and then move on from there.

Is Kramer a racist? Absolutely, but not so much because he called them niggers. If all Richards did was call the men niggers I think this would have been fixed a lot easily. There still would have been some explaining to do, but I think he could have worked it out. It's funny that the media is only focusing on his use of the word "nigger." I don't have a problem with the word itself, but the context of how it's used. It's used to freely these days that it's been re-associated, redefined, which was why guys like Richard Pryor used it so much. But why focus on Richards' calling them niggers? He did something even worse by saying "fifty years ago you'd be hanging from a tree with a fucking fork up your ass" and "that's what happens when you mess with a white man."

Do you mean to tell me that calling a black guy a nigger is a lot worse than making a reference to lynching? Nigger is just a word, lynching is death by hanging! He told those two men that fifty years ago they would be DEAD! But I'm almost disgusted that no one is even talking about that, they focusing on the use of "nigger." The "nigger" debate will last for years, that's not being solved anytime soon, but telling someone that they would be lynched fifty years ago...anyone who makes that kind of remark is CLEARLY a racist, there is no fixing that my boy.

If you watch the video you can clearly see that Richards meant what he said. He made a conscious decision to say what he did. You can't mistakenly say what Richards said, there is no taking that back. You can feel the rage and hatred in his voice as if he's been holding that in since he was a boy. So I say to Michael Richards, you can apologize until the cows come home but an apology won't fix this. You can pay all the money you want but there is no buying your way out. Sharpton and Jackson can forgive you but they have nothing to do with this. You can even apologize to the two men you offended, give them money, and even put their kids and grandkids through college, but you, sir, are through. The damage has been done so go hide under a rock because there is no coming back from that.

21st Century Love Letter

Today, seems like everything revolves around business, even relationships. Below is what a love letter in this day and age looks like...

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MODERN LOVE LETTER

Dearest Girl :
I am very happy to inform you that I have fallen in love with you since Tuesday, the 03th of April 2001. With reference to the meeting held between us on the 31st of March 2001 at 1500 hours, I would like to present myself as a prospective lover. Our love affair would be on probation for a period of three months and depending on compatibility, would be made permanent. Of course, upon completion of probation, there will be continuous on-the-relationship training and relationship appraisal schemes leading up to promotion from lover to spouse.

The expenses incurred for coffee and entertainment would initially be shared equally between us . Later, based on your performance, I might take up a larger share of the expenses. However I am broad-minded enough, to be taken care of, on your expense account. I request you to kindly respond within 30 days of receiving this letter, failing which, this offer would be cancelled without further notice and I shall be considering someone else. I would be happy, if you could forward this letter to your sister, if you do not wish to take up this offer .

Thanking you in anticipation.

Yours sincerely,
[Boy]

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MODERN REPLY OF MODERN LOVE LETTER

Dear Boy :
Please refer to your letter dated today. I am pleased to inform you that I hope to accept your proposal for romance.However, you should be informed that there are certain conditions of acceptance. Promotional prospects are to my satisfaction. However, please enlighten me as to your retirement benefits. Gratuity should be generous. I also need to be assured that there is sufficient security with regards to this commitment.

If there is any chance at all of retrenchment or consequent disinterest on your part, then I should receive monetary compensation according to union standards. Due to the nature of my position, I am sure you will agree that an expense account should be arranged for my access in light of the 'VIP'. I shall be entertaining. In addition, housing and transport allowances should be in order and nothing less than a placed luxury condo and a Jag are in order. Please also note that there should be no moonlighting restrictions on myself.

If you are still interested in the relationship, please reply on an urgent basis as other prospective lovers have sent indications of interest . Please also note that my sister is happily employed.

Yours perhaps,
[Girl]

Seatbelts Shmeatbelts

I don't wear seatbelts. I haven't for many years now ever since a friend of mine, who had her seatbelt on, died in a car accident, while the driver, who didn't wear his, lived. That was enough proof for me that I'll die when it's my time, seatbelt or no seatbelt. I know research states otherwise but I'll take my chances.

I know there are plenty of people in America who feel the same way as I do. I also believe there are plenty of people who would agree that seatbelt laws are dumb. If I want to risk my life by not wearing a seatbelt, that should be my decision, not that of the state.

I thought about this some more the other day. I think it's strange that people, myself included, fuss about seatbelt laws and fines despite the odds that about three to one in case of an accident, seatbelts would help prevent injury or worse yet, death. On the other hand you never hear an airline passenger complain about being asked to buckle their seatbelt. Hardly ever happens. Let's not forget that if the plane indeed crashed, there's a pretty slim chance that the little piece of fabric and metal is going to do you any good.

So with this new-found outlook will I begin wearing my seatbelt? Nope, and I'll still complain about seatbelt laws. However, I'll start NOT wearing my seatbelt on any plains. Haha!

Wesley the Tax Fraud Guy

Looks like Wesley Snipes is being indicted on 8 counts of tax fraud, allegedly filing false tax claims in total of $12 million, and if found guilty could spend up to 16 years in prison. Yikes! But before you get my take on it here is the scoop.

So apparently Wesley Snipes, the famed actor of "Blade" and "White Men Can't Jump," tried to pull a fast one on the IRS by filing false tax claims and in addition hasn't filed a tax return in seven years. He also hired someone to do his taxes who has a history of filing false claims. Snipes' former agents, United Talent Agency and William Morris, have both sued him for not paying commissions; William Morris settled out of court. Too add to the drama, Chase Manhattan has sued Snipes several times for not paying the mortgage on his Florida mansion. And just when it couldn't get any worse, in 1997 Snipes claimed an income of $19.2 million but later amended his tax return stating he had zero income!

You KNOW I'm going to comment. Why would an actor, making millions of dollars per movie (Snipes made about $13 million for Blade: Trinity) want to fool the IRS (which you'll never get away with) so he can make even more money? Hmmmm. That one baffles the mind. It's not like he's poor and NEEDS the money. Or maybe he does? I'm guessing he's accumulated so much money in debt and spent millions on useless crap that he NEEDS more money. You don't neglect your mortgage because you just don't feel like paying it. The bank could take your house! You don't pay your mortgage because you don't have money to pay your mortgage. So it begs the question once again, why does a multimillionaire NEED money? Seems like the richer you get the broker you get, if that even makes sense.

I doubt "Blade" will serve any jail time and probably end up paying some fines. I guess as the millions start piling up you forget that you can't spend money if you don't have money. Hmmm.

Floyd Mayweather Highlight Reel

This is the first installment of the NellyNandes.com Video of the Week. This week's video features the best boxer today, Floyd Mayweather. "Pretty Boy" will be going up against the Welterweight Champion Carlos Baldomir, November 4th.

Leaving Comments

Hey folks. If you could please leave your email and name when posting I would definitely appreciate it. You don't have to, it's just a request on my part. I know some readers expected a response from comments they have left me, but there is no way of contacting you without an email address. You do not need to be a member of Blogger to leave your name or email address, I know I've gotten that question a few times.

But I will answer one reader's question regarding my post "Passion or Career?" Reader asked had I been exposed to someone from Disney would my outcome have been different? I don't think so. The classes I took were pretty much how life at an animation studio would be. My Intro to Animation instructor was a cartoonist; he worked on Dharma, Beavis and Butthead, and Ren & Stimpy. Had I stuck with it my hobby of drawing would have turned into a routine, thus killing my liking for it.

Thanks for the comments folks and keep them coming! If you would like to email me: nellynandes@gmail.com

Honesty Is The Best Policy

It's a strange thing...honesty. You want others to be honest with you, but not too honest as to say something you might deem too bold, or rude. You'll take the compliments, because it makes you feel good about yourself but God forbid someone says something you don't like. That's not fair now is it? Either you want people to be honest with you or not; it's not a case by case basis.

If you want my honest opinion, I will give it you. It may not necessarily be what you want to hear, but I wasn't brought into this world to make you feel good about yourself, unfortunately that's not my mission in life. How you react is up to you. All I can be is honest and leave it at that. But no matter how carefully you choose your words, you can pretty much guarantee you will fall on either side of perfect honesty. Don't let that hinder your intentions. People won't always react the way you'd like, but that is ultimately out of your control. Take responsibility for what you say and speak the truth. The reaction is the responsibility of the person you are speaking with. People will react according to their personal biases, which may not coincide with yours. Understand, you are not failing in your communication; it's merely a facet of human existence that must be accepted. Assume 100% responsibility for your own words and others should retain 100% responsibility for their response.

Honesty serves your own self interest because it keeps your understanding of reality from becoming corrupt by inaccuracies. The more honest you become, the more accurate your model of reality will become. Honesty also serves others well because it reflects their own nature back to them. Too much inaccurate feedback and people will suffer a false sense of self-security; it hinders one's own personal development.

I think people hold themselves back from being too honest because of the fear of coming off as arrogant or rude. Personally, I don't care because your response has nothing to with me. I can say to a girl "Hey, you look lovely today," and she can take it as a compliment or as harassment, or react to it a variety of ways. Her reaction is merely a reflection of her than it is of me.

So I say to you, be as honest as possible, with honorable intentions, while freeing yourself from the fear of an undesirable response and simply accept whatever response you get.

Passion or Career?

We have always been lead to believe that the perfect job is doing what you love and getting paid for it. Kids growing with a passion for music or sports dreamed of becoming a pop star or an athlete; get paid to do what you love, right?

Growing up my passion was art. I knew since age five that I would grow up to be a cartoonist, work for Disney and become a millionaire. There was never any doubt in my mind. I even have my first drawing saved! Once I got to high school and realized that my school had a building dedicated to fine arts I knew I was on the right track and meeting other students who shared my passion further fueled my desire. I won art competitions, had a nationally recognized portfolio and earned a scholarship to the largest art school in the country. I was on top of the world!

But something happened once I got to college. I remember having two art classes that changed the way I looked at art; Life Drawing and Intro to Animation. These were intense five to six hour long classes of non-stop drawing. Up until college I absolutely loved drawing; I loved it so much I would skip classes in high school and head to the art studio. But college art, a whole new ball game. I have never hated drawing more than when I was in college. It wasn't fun anymore; I lost the zest that I'd had since pre-school. Second thoughts about making art a career had started to settle in. I ended up dropping out of that school, took up graphic design at another school and dropped out of that, too. A career in art was killing that drive I'd always had, killing my motivation!

What does this all mean to you? That all depends. I am not saying you should never make a career of your passion, but you do need to put it through a reality check. What you love may not make the greatest job in the world; it may even be tough making ends meet. This is perfectly okay and shouldn't necessarily discourage you from pursuing it as a career. But you need to assess yourself and your goals and come to a conclusion as to what means more. On one hand you may love what your doing but struggle trying to support yourself with it; but you're happy. On the other, you can opt for a stable career, however, may not be totally passionate about it. What means more to you? One is not necessarily better than the other so no answer is the wrong answer. It all depends on what makes you comfortable, what you can live with. So pick one and go with it full steam ahead. If it doesn't work out for you then you'll always have that other option to fall back on. And, throughout this whole experience you'll definitely learn something new about yourself.

I love what I do now and I have no regrets. If I had known then what I knew now would I do things differently? Absolutely not. Life is all about experiences; great ones and horrible ones. That's what builds character and makes you a great person. What will you do?

Beckham in Hollywood???

Rumor has it that international soccer superstar, David Beckham, may head to the US to play for the Major League Soccer. If so, this could be big news for US soccer tantamount to Pele playing for the New York Cosmos back in the 70s. Nothing has been confirmed yet but a few things are certain.

After losing to Portugal in the World Cup this past summer, David Beckham shocked the soccer world when he decided to relinquish his captaincy. Last month, new coach of England, Steve McClaren, called Beckham to tell him he had no use for the soccer superstar on the national team; he was cut! To make matters worse, Spain soccer club, Real Madrid, is asking Beckham to take a pay cut if he extends his contract, which expires next summer. Also, new coach for Real Madrid, Fabio Capello, has bench Beckham in Real's last 4 games. Bad luck with new coaches.

So where does that leave the world's most recognized athlete? Why not the US? David Beckham already owns a few soccer academies in the US and I'm sure his wife, Posh Spice, wouldn't have any issues living in Hollywood or the Big Apple. The only possible problem would be signing him. Beckham currently makes $8 million a year with Real and even taking a $7 million pay cut to play for the LA Galaxy or New York Red Bulls (two teams said to be after him), it would still make him the highest paid player in the MLS, which with MLS's strict salary cap no team would be able to afford him. Unless, as sources say may happen, MLS modifies its rules to allow for an exception.

If you were a soccer star making $8 million a year to play, would you take a major pay cut to play in a country where soccer has yet to bloom? Hell yeah! So what that Becks will take a cut; he makes over $20 million a year in endorsements alone, not to mention that his biggest sponsors are US companies. Also, he would be the face of the MLS compared to playing in Spain where soccer stars are a dime a dozen, especially with Real Madrid, the New York Yankees of Spanish soccer.

I say do whatever it takes to get Beckham over to the US. The MLS needs him and he needs a new beginning. It's a match made in heaven!

Review: The Departed

The Departed is the first Scorcese movie I have seen in theaters and it not let me down. It has taken in $27 million over the weekend to top the box office (a little less than I had predicted). The cast was phenomenal and the action was top-notch.

I see quite a few Oscar nods for this movie: Best Actor, DiCaprio; Best Supporting Actor, Jack Nicholson; Best Adapted Screenplay, William Monohan; Best Director, Martin Scorcese; Best Film Editing and Best Picture.

Everything about this movie was great. The character development for the all the main characters were on point, the writing was true to Boston (count how many time they say "prick" and call each other "faggot"), and the action, although not so graphic, was indeed spontaneous. This movie was so good I saw it twice and the interesting thing I realized is that every part that needed a reaction got exactly the reaction that was intended. People laughed on cue, they gasped on cue, and the Oh-shits were on cue. Can't forget about the Brockton mention in the movie too (one of Nicholson's goons lived with his mom in Brockton).

Watch this movie! Watch this movie! You will not be upset especially with the climactic ending! Watch it and let me know what you think.

My Poor Yankees :-(

As much as it hurts to write this article I think it's only fair. The Yankees, although making the playoffs 11 years in a row, have failed to win it all. I don't have any excuses for them and I don't plan on making any. We had a great season, winning the division by 10 games, but unable to come through in the playoffs.

The worst thing about this postseason is that Yankees manager, Joe Torre, will probably get fired. He doesn't deserve the boot but figuring that The Boss, George Steinbrenner, has a patience problem I see him, however unjust, firing Torre and replacing him with his pal Lou Piniella. The problem isn't Joe Torre. As a manager you can only do so much. No other manager will win you an average of 98 games a year over 11 years. No other manager will win you 9 division titles in a row. No other manager will take your team to the postseason for 11 straight years. As a manager you can only do so much, the rest falls on your talent.

The Yankees have a very talented team but what they suffer is chemistry. I do think they need to shuffle up the team a little bit, get some youth in there especially in the bullpen, that way they will have a consistent team year in year out. They actually do have a decent farm system and that will prove itself in the next couple years. They shouldn't pick up the options on Sheffield or Mussina, they shouldn't resign Bernie Williams. Let those guys go play somewhere else and get a guy like Barry Zito in the rotation along with maybe one more pitcher via trade. As far as A-Rod, well, I love the guy but I'm starting to realize that he may not be a good fit on this team. If he can be traded for a top pitcher I'd go for that. If they do keep him then I would trade Giambi for a younger version of himself, even if less powerful. Giambi still has life in him and can be a great first baseman or DH on a number of teams.

But keep Torre, George! Keep him. Torre is the best thing going for you. He is one of the greatest managers in the history of sports and I hope you realize that and keep him around. Replacing Torre won't better your team. Fielding a better team will better your team (if that makes sense, haha). I want to see Torre in pinstripes next year and I think most people agree. Hopefully Steinbrenner agrees.

FutureSex Debuts at Top

Justin Timberlake's newest solo project, FutureSex/LoveSounds debuts at number 1 on the Billboard selling 684,000 copies. The album, which was launched on September 12th, displayed JT's vocal and musical range from 80's new wave beats to Minneapolis funk. The album has a few preludes and interludes which add a more concert-like feel.

I love the album. I think Justin is more talented and has more mass appeal than his R&B counterpart, Usher, and that's saying a lot from me since I was a HUGE Usher fan (and still am for the most part) but I think JT takes the throne. FutureSex has variety, which all albums need, but not so much as to lose focus. I read a Vibe review by Jon Caramanica who pretty much bashed the album claiming Justin was trying to hard. If that was the case I doubt FutureSex would have sold 684,000 copies in the first week. Do these 684,000 people have no clue as to what good music is? I doubt it. Maybe you say Justin only sold that many because of his N'Sync fan base, but you said that same about his first solo album, Justified, and that only sold more than 200,000 less than FutureSex. If FutureSex was a musical mistake why is it that its debut have the biggest sales week of any solo artist this year? Why it set an iTunes record for most pre-ordered album EVER and fastest selling digital album EVER with more than 67,000 copies sold by download? These things don't happen by mistake my friends.

So what does this all mean? Well, quite frankly, Justin Timberlake is the best solo artist around, and with his non-superstar attitude and his openness to try new things, Mr. Timberlake will be around for quite awhile...much like that other guy, Nelly Nandes.

Source: http://www.vibe.com/news/news_headlines/2006/09/justin-timberlake-first-number-1-album/

My Team's in the Playoffs...and Yours?

For the ninth year in a row the Yankees have won the American League East division and are on their way to the postseason. I won't even mention the Red Sox since nothing can be said about them at this point. Ortiz will be swinging a club while Jeter will be swinging a bat. The competition will be the A's, Twins, and Tigers although all three teams have had little success and postseason experience in the last few years.

The Yankees lineup has the depth most teams wish they had. Mussina is not injured after all and questions still remain about Randy Johnson. However, the Yanks do have other pitching options if they need it, younger and less experienced, but options nonetheless. Sheffield and Matsui are back in action so their options are endless.

I do see them in the World Series and I do see them playing their cross-town rivals, the Mets. Subway Series 2006 with the same result as the last time...Yankees winning their 27th World Series title, and once they win I will no doubt here the same complaints I've heard for the past 10 years...they bought their ring. I think we all know by now that any blabber about Yankees and payroll is null in void at this point. Let's take a look.

Yes, the Yankees can afford the salaries of top players such as Johnson, Damon, Giambi, Rodriguez and Sheffield but ask yourself this: Are these players playing like the top money makers they are? The answer is no. They may be having a pretty good season but not one of these players are dominating in any way. Who is dominating on the Yankees? Jeter, Rivera, Wang, Cabrera, and Cano; players who came from the Yankees farm system, not purchased. So you can't say Yankees are buying championships because the top money makers on the team are producing as they should and quite frankly the Yankees haven't won in ring in six years. That excuse is nothing but an envious cop-out statement by folks who don't care to realize that the Yankees are one of the best managed teams in baseball.

So if the Yankees win the Series this year I don't want to hear any complaining from anyone. This injury-plagued season is much like the injury-plagued season of 1996, you know, the season that started the modern Yankees dynasty. Now it's time for another.

The Strength of Weakness

Lao-tzu, the ancient Chinese philosopher, spoke of water as the weakest substance in the world, yet there is nothing you can compare to it that can overcome both hard and soft. You can cut water with a knife and it lets the knife go right through yet water is also responsible for cutting the Grand Canyon out of rock!

It’s a common Western idea to associate masculinity with strength and femininity with weakness. The whole concept of the “tough guy,” rugged and muscular, is really a model for weakness. One would assume that this tough exterior would work to protect itself – but so much of what we fear from the outside gets to us because we fear our own weakness on the inside.

What if an engineer were to build a completely rigid bridge? If the Golden Gate Bridge were not able to sway, if it had no give, it would come crashing down. Likewise, when a man pretends to be this super macho tough guy on the outside he is in doubt of his manhood on the inside.

For example, let’s say Mr. Tough Guy approaches another guy rather aggressively, cursing, trying to intimidate him. What Mr. Tough Guy is actually doing is trying to validate his manhood by putting on this elaborate display of aggression when in fact he is insecure with his manhood. He is trying to prove to his onlookers that he is in fact a man as if their opinion of him has some sort of direct effect on his journey through life. For the man on the other end of this spectacle, he can show his strength by backing down and continuing on with life; he has better things to do with his time. In fact he has already won the “battle” and need not prove anything to anyone. He is secure with himself and his manhood and attacking poor Mr. Tough Guy would be like a Lion trying to kill a rabbit. There is just no point.

If he (Tough Guy) can allow himself to be “weak” per se, he can allow himself to experience what is really his greatest strength.

A Little Something About Trust

For those of you who have difficulty trusting others I say this:

If you cannot trust others, how can you trust your mistrust of others? How do you know that your mistrust of others is not wrong as well?

Think about it.

Sell Your Songs on MySpace

SNOCAP, the service that lets artists register their songs and sell it directly to fans on the Web, inked a deal with News Corp's MySpace this week. The deal is designed to allow MySpace's 3 million bands to sell their music.

SNOCAP, the company founded by Shawn Fanning after Napster was flushed down the toilet, will need about 4 million songs to be downloaded per month in order to break even? Possible? Who knows, but with MySpace's 107 million members and counting that shouldn't be too hard. The MySpace artist chooses how much he or she wants to sell the song for. Of that amount, the artist gets more than 50%. MySpace and SNOCAP split the rest, with MySpace taking a bigger chunk.

I mentioned before how powerful MySpace is and will continue to be. Think about what this deal will do to the indie record label and artist. You have a free website a la MySpace where you can do all your promotions, create hype, build a fan base; that’s your Marketing department right there. Now you can sell music via download on the free MySpace site; that’s your distribution channel. The evolution of music. What do you need Universal or Columbia for?

Not that this deal alone will scare the bejesus out of the major labels but we are witnessing the evolution of the music industry. The major labels know that there chances of finding great talent is like a gajillion to one. It's like Russian Roulette to them where they will sign a bunch of talent hoping one of them will turn into an Usher or a Beyonce. The labels lose millions because of this so that's why they take a huge portion of the artist's money to recoup their losses. So how does a company like Universal make money? Distribution. Threaten their distribution and well, put two and two together. Remember Napster? The labels weren't enraged because of copyright issues, please! The labels were worried that their distribution model was in jeopardy. If you are an artist and you want millions of records sold you have no choice but to sign a deal with a major label because they controlled music distribution, but now MySpace is allowing the artist to sell their music through the website.

Does this really impact the major labels? Not necessarily. The Big Four record labels (Universal, Sony, EMI, Warner) control 80% of the worldwide music industry so this deal won't be anything more than really small sneeze in their realm. As I mentioned earlier, most artists and bands suck, no question. So if your local Lemon Swirls band wants to sell their music on MySpace, believe me, Diddy is not crying over it. But what if the Lemon Swirls were the next Maroon 5, the next Metallica? That's millions of dollars of lost revenue that could have been pocketed by one of the Big Four! That's what they should be worried about.

Let's face it, MTV is not what it used to be. If you watched the ever-boring VMAs then you know what I'm referring to. MTV and even radio are not breaking acts as they once did; MTV has more TV shows than music videos and radio has more commercials than music. Could MySpace be what these two powerhouses once were? With MySpace you have the freedom to CHOOSE who you want to listen to. And, I keep going back to it but MySpace has over 100 million subscribers, that's almost 2% of the entire WORLD'S population! Ok, maybe it's not so dramatic.

MySpace Music isn't going to cripple the music industry anytime soon, but Tom and Chris are thinking outside the box. Don't expect them to make millions from this new deal, but hey, what is it costing them? Call me crazy if you'd like but MySpace and Google are the future of BUSINESS.

New Blackberry Pearl!

Oooooh, I'm like a child on Christmas Eve! Crackberry addicts have a new toy to play. The new Blackberry 8100, better known as the Pearl, is set to be released on September 12, only on T-Mobile, which is what I have (T-Mobile is also the best cellular provider in the US, because I said so).

The Blackberry Pearl was created to compete directly with the Treo, by having additional features such as a camera, MP3 player, and better navigation. The phone is also on T-Mobile's GSM/Edge network which is much faster than the Treo, which runs on Verizon; you know, that cell company that sends you outrageous $500 phone bills for calls and services you never used. It has a various other services too, but I am already sold.

I've had my Blackberry 7100 for over a year now and I think it is time to upgrade, don't you? The best part is that the Pearl is only $199 whereas I paid about $325 for my 7100 after some negotiating. So yes I will be visiting my neighborhood T-Mobile store on September 12 and also FYE to get Justin Timberlake's new album (that's right, I said it).

Blackberry Rocks! Click here to check it out!

SUZANNA LUBRANO SIGNS U.S. RECORD DEAL

Contact:
Laura Fernandes
323.228.5415
caboverde77@gmail.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SUZANNA LUBRANO SIGNS U.S. RECORD DEAL WITH MASS APPEAL ENTERTAINMENT AND PREPARES FOR THE RELEASE OF HER LONG AWAITED ALBUM!

Suzanna has signed a record deal with Boston based Mass Appeal Entertainment, which has distribution through Universal Music Group's Fontana Distribution. This move will provide easier access of Suzanna's music which will broaden her reach within a diverse market. For the first time, her CD's will be available in major retail stores in the United States. It has been well over three years since Suzanna's smash album Tudo Pa Bo and she is more than ready to present her fourth project! The first single from the album will be released in October of this year, and the album release is scheduled for January 2007.

Backed by a wide array of producers, Suzanna intends to expose her range giving her fans a taste of everything they loved and missed. From sexy Cabo Zouk to delicate R&B ballads in English, the album is poised to be her best yet. "I'm really excited about this new album and connecting with my fans and hopefully reach more. I know it's been way too long since Tudo Pa Bo and the Kora Awards but I hope the fans will love the album and feel it's been well worth waiting for."

Mass Appeal Entertainment owner and producer Marcus Siskind has worked with artists such as platinum selling group, Backstreet Boys and numerous R&B artists in the industry. With a large respect for the music of Cape Verde, Marcus saw the substantial fan base Suzanna already had and wanted to present an opportunity to broaden it. "Suzanna is an extremely talented artist at the forefront of Cape Verdean music. She continues to evolve artistically and I speak for everyone at Mass Appeal when I say that we are extremely excited to be a part of Suzanna's career, and look forward to furthering her music and the bringing the Cape Verdean culture to the masses".

Suzanna plans to perform in the states with later dates in Europe and Africa . Check her website www.suzannaonline.com for show information. Her latest single Paraiso can be heard on www.myspace.com/suzannalubrano. TACV (Cabo Verde Airlines) is a proud sponsor of Suzanna. For U.S. bookings contact: Laura Fernandes, caboverde77@gmail.com. Europe & Africa, Rene Romer rene@transcity.com.

Babbleonia

When I started this blog I had so much to say, but 22 posts later I’ve realized that I really don’t have much to say at all. But, nevertheless I promised my readers a post a day and that’s a promise I intend to keep. I’ve received lots of emails praising my posts and keep them coming! Haha. I’m glad someone besides me likes this site. Since I have a bunch of random thoughts today I figured I’d include them all in one post entitled “Babbleonia.”

Steve Irwin – The Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin died this past weekend after he was attacked by a stingray, an animal, experts say, that is not aggressive. Who knows what really happened and I don’t think it matters much (unless you’re an animalogist, I made that word up, haha). I say that because he died doing what he loved and Steve Irwin knew he was taking risks every time. He will be missed, especially his vocabulary: Oh Crikey!

Al Pacino – I just finished reading “Al Pacino” a new book on, well, Al Pacino. The book is a transcript of interviews between Lawrence Grobel and Al Pacino spanning over 30 years! It’s an excellent read that everyone should have in their personal library. Pacino is the greatest actor who ever lived in my book and his approach to acting is what makes him so great. It’s a quick and easy read that I’m sure you’ll love. If you don’t like it, well then too bad, you probably have something wrong with you and in that case should have yourself checked out.

Arnold – I saw Pumping Iron over the weekend. Great documentary about the world of bodybuilding. It’s THE movie that put Arnold Schwarzenegger on the map and if you get the 25th Anniversary Edition DVD you can see the Making Of section and a whole bunch of other Special Features. Good flick! Definitely a date movie! LOL.