EBONY GETS PERSONAL WITH MICHELLE OBAMA: Sept. issue also has exclusive interview with her mom, Marian Robinson August 6, 2008

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Harpers Bazaar may have the Tyra Banks version of Michelle Obama in its September offering, but Ebony magazine has the real thing in its new August issue. In fact, the article is titled “The Real Michelle Obama.”

Inside the issue, Mrs. Obama talks about her husband, presidential hopeful Barack Obama, as well as her signature style and life on the campaign trail.

Ebony states in a press release: “Going beyond the surface view of poise, elegance, style and the utmost class, Ebony magazine unveils the real Michelle Obama: mother, wife, potential first lady and style icon.

“Take a rare look behind-the-scenes of Michelle’s life on the road to the White House and how she finds the necessary balance between managing the household with Sen. Barack Obama and joining her husband in pursuit of the most ambitious American dream.”

The magazine also features an exclusive interview with Michelle’s mother, Marian Robinson. She “reflects on her daughter’s childhood and transition to being one step away from changing her address from Chicago to Washington, D.C.”

The issue hits newsstands nationwide on Tuesday (Aug. 12).

OBAMA NETS $5 MILLION AT BOSTON BIRTHDAY PARTY: City’s fundraiser reportedly the biggest in city history August 6, 2008

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Sen. Barack Obama received a nice chunk of change for his campaign Monday night from a Boston fundraiser that doubled as a party to celebrate his 47th birthday.

The event, held at the swank State Room near Faneuil Hall, was expected to bring in close to $5 million for Obama and the Democratic Party, which organizers say would make it the biggest political fund-raiser ever in Boston, reports the Boston Globe.

The reception also served as a unity gathering for Hillary Clinton supporters who were angry at how they believed she was treated by the media and some Obama surrogates during her primary run.

“We all wanted to make a dramatic statement that we’re with him every step of the way,” said Steven Grossman, a leading Clinton fund-raiser and former chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

Clinton supporters by themselves raised $700,000 for Obama at last night’s event, according to Grossman and Shanti Fry, a longtime Democratic activist who said she campaigned hard for Clinton in five primary states. Fry said that she hoped that the amount contributed by Clinton supporters would squash all talk of them being unsupportive of Obama.

“Given the perception out there, I hope that figure would be a surprise to people,” Fry said.

Crooner Harry Connick Jr. and his 9-year-old daughter led the crowd of 850 people in singing “Happy Birthday” to Obama. About 250 people paid $15,000 each – $28,500 for a couple – to dine with him afterward.

For a birthday present, supporters presented Obama with a Red Sox-themed Hawaiian shirt, for use on his vacation next week in Honolulu. “I gotta say that, as a White Sox fan, this hurts a little bit, particularly because we’ve been losing lately,” Obama said. “But it is a very attractive shirt, I must say.”

Joss Stone on ‘Tudors’; Chris Rock in Australia; Beyonce in Obama t-shirt; 50 Cent finally sees Marquise August 6, 2008

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Joss Stone has been cast in the Showtime original series “The Tudors” as Anne of Cleves, the homely wife of King Henry VIII, played by star Jonathan Rhys Meyers. According to the Hollywood Reporter, the role is expected to be a brief one – as Henry was so unhappy with Anne’s looks he annulled their marriage after six months.

*Chris Rock shocked patrons at a pub in Australia Friday (Aug 1) night by jumping on stage and performing a surprise set. According to WENN, the comedian kicked off his first tour of Australia on Monday night (Aug 4), with a 30 minute performance that poked fun at presidential candidate Barack Obama and Australia’s heritage. A witness who saw the show said: “He was hilarious. Lots of f-bombs but he was really funny. He’s going to be a big hit Down Under. There was only about 100 people in the pub. I guess he wanted to test his material.”

*Beyonce was photographed by paps sporting a red, white and blue Barack Obama “Progress” t-shirt while walking down a New York street with hubby Jay-Z. Both husband and wife were mentioned by the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee as two of his favorite artists.

*Rapper 50 Cent is reportedly spending time with his son Marquise at his home in Connecticut until the middle of next week, when he’s scheduled to fly overseas to film a movie. TMZ.com is reporting that father and son hadn’t seen each other since before the house where Marquise stayed with his mother, Shaniqua Tompkins, burned down at the end of May. Tompkins has accused 50 of masterminding the blaze. The artist, in turn, has sued Tompkins for slander. They’re both due back in family court in September to settle a restraining order.

REMY MA HOPING TO EARN FREEDOM: Rapper hires famous trial attorney to try and overturn sentence August 6, 2008

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Rapper Remy Ma has not given up her fight to get out of jail. The artist just hired lawyer William “Billy” Murphy, Jr. to handle her appeal on charges of assault, illegal weapons possession and attempted coercion.

 

      Murphy’s name first made headlines when he successfully defended fight promoter Don King on federal charges that he defrauded Lloyd’s of London. Recently, he reversed a $1.6 million verdict against rapper DMX and secured a civil judgment of $35 million for former Ravens Defensive End Michael McCrary.

 

       “With the addition of Mr. Murphy, Ravenell, and Levitt, I now believe I have assembled a team that will have the might and expertise to tell my side of the story,” stated Remy Ma, according to Allhiphop.com. “I am confident that after hearing everything my side will prevail. Mr. Murphy comes highly recommended and I am pleased that he has agreed to lead my defense team.”       

       Murphy is a senior partner in the Murphy Firm and represents DMX, Redman, Mary J. Blige, and Missy Elliott.       

        “We are pleased to handle Remy Ma’s appeal,” Murphy explained to AllHipHop.com. “We are confident that when we present all the facts, the public for the first time will get a true picture of what actually happened; and Remy will be vindicated.”      

      Remy Ma is currently serving an eight-year prison sentence at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women in Westchester County, New York. 

DR. DRE COGNAC READY TO SPILL: Product among first drinks under partnership between Interscope, Geffen, A&M and Drinks Americas August 6, 2008

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An indication that Dr. Dre is serious this time about his “Detox” album dropping sometime before year’s end is the set’s promotional tie-in with a Dre-branded Cognac, which is confirmed to be released within the next two months.      

       Aftermath Cognac, named after Dre’s record label, will be introduced at the same time as “Detox” and will be part of an integrated marketing plan surrounding the album, reports Billboard.com.       

       The beverage is among the first alcoholic drinks from the Interscope Geffen A&M Records joint venture with beverage company Drinks Americas. In the Drinks Americas Q4 earnings, which were released on Monday, the company said it would introduce Aftermath Cognac in the next sixty days.       

       In late July Dr. Dre told USA Today that the album would be out in “November or December.”

TYRA DRESSES AS MICHELLE OBAMA FOR BAZAAR: Magazine’s Sept. issue features model in a mock Oval Office setting with fake Barack August 6, 2008

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It’s no secret that Tyra Banks like to play dress up – whether it’s on the fashion runways as a supermodel, or in disguise while going undercover as an obese woman or stripper for her daytime talk show.

 

      Her latest endeavor, seen within the pages of September’s Harper’s Bazaar magazine, has the entertainer sporting hair, makeup and wardrobe designed to make her resemble would-be First Lady Michelle Obama.

 

      In the photo, Banks wears a slinky black shift dress, pearls, and poses next to a Barack Obama look-a-like in the White House Oval Office with a little black girl playing under the desk.

 

      “When Barack won the nomination, I just started bawling,” Banks, 34, says in the issue (out August 19). “I started calling all these people, and everybody was talking to me like I was crazy. They’re like, ‘Well, he hasn’t won yet,’ but I’m like, ‘Yes, he has, because he’s gotten this far.

 

       “So what gives me tears is if Barack Obama wins, kids are going to say that a black man can be president, too,” she continues. “I think it will give so many people – black, Latin, Asian, even white people that feel forgotten – hope. I did not think I would see it in my lifetime, and I’m only 34.”      

       Calling Michelle Obama “one hot mama,” Banks says: “With Barack Obama, his becoming president is them becoming president because Michelle was there from the beginning. Without Michelle, he wouldn’t be there.”      

       Banks’ prescription for a modern first lady?      

       “Oh, I want her to not take herself too seriously,” she says. “She’d need to know how to take a fierce picture, but at the same time be able to eat fried chicken, have grease on her fingers, and be okay with getting photographed like that, too. I’d want her to feel like every child in America is hers – to have a true connection.”      

       Banks says if she were First Lady, her Secret Service acronym would be “KMFA: Kiss My Fat A**.

TONI BRAXTON ON ‘DANCING WITH THE STARS?’: Singer rumored to be among cast for next season August 6, 2008

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