Nigerian rapper breaks world freestyle record

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Rapper Chidera ‘Chiddy’ Anamega from the Hip-Hop duo, Chiddy
Bang is the current holder of the ‘World’s Longest Freestyle Rap’ title. The
American-based rapper with Nigerian root last weekend had a rap freestyle
running for 9 hours, 16 minutes, and 22 seconds at the MTV organised ‘O Music
Awards’ to beat the previous record of 9 hours, 15 minutes and 15 seconds held
by the rapper named M-Eighty.

Revealing preparations towards achieving this feat, the rapper
popularly known as Chiddy told MTV.com he practices freestyles daily.

“That’s better than a lot of people, if you really think about
it; I freestyle once a day for like 30 minutes straight. I never put myself to
this maximum test, but it’s very exciting for me, and once this all done, it’ll
be like, ‘Wow I didn’t know I could go that long.'”

“It’s a marathon, not a race,” Chiddy continued.

“It’s all about pacing yourself. I tend to be very, very hype
when I rap. This time, I realise I’m gonna rap for like nine hours, so I’m not
gonna come out of the gate hyped. I’m just gonna pace myself and ride that
thing out, ride it till the wheels fall off.”

The group Chiddy Bang gained recognition after its 2009
released Extended Play set, ‘The Opposite of Adults’ received critical commendations.
Chidera acknowledges his Nigerian roots on the opening of the track ‘Sooner Or
Later’ which receives sampled elements from the legendary Afrobeat singer, Fela
Anikulapo-Kuti.

————————————————————-

***Ehikhamenor presents
new collections

Visual artist, Victor Ehikhamenor will commence the exhibition
of his famous ‘Entrance Exit’ series on Saturday May 7 2011. The latest
from the series, ‘Entrance Exit: In Search of Not Forgetting’ will be
paraded at the Centre for Contemporary Arts, Yaba and the exhibition will be
open till Saturday May 28,

2011.

According to the Masters Degree holder in Fine Art from the
University of Maryland, USA, the exhibition which is an instalment of the
‘Entrances and Exits: A Quest for Memory’, will display new art works from the
‘Entrance Exit’ collection.

“The exhibition will present several new bodies of paintings,
photographs, drawing and installation. These works will explore from an
ethnographic perspective, the artist’s consummated experience between his
ancestral heritage and home, and the subsequent valour with which the colours,
patterns and designs engraved or drawn on these ancestral walls, doors and
other surfaces fuelled his evolutionary style in figurative and abstract
paintings and drawings. It also explores the aesthetic imagery that connects
his visual repertoire with the beaming arts on the numerous shrine walls,
including the mud walls of his many grandmothers, the rooms of his uncles, and
other villagers’ walls,’ a message from the official invitation reads.

A graduate of English and Literary Studies from Bendel State
University, Ekpoma (now Ambrose Alli University, Edo State), Ehikhamenor is
currently the creative director at Timbuktu Media, publishers of NEXT
newspaper.

Previous successful exhibitions include ‘The Labyrinth of
Memories series’, ‘The Mirrors and Mirages series’ and ‘Roforofo Fight:
Paintings to Fela’s Music’ amongst others.

———————————————————

***”Fast Five”, “Thor”
top box office attractions

“Fast Five,” the fifth entry in the “Fast and the Furious”
street-racing franchise, raced to the biggest opening of the year at the North
American box office, while “Thor” was the top choice overseas.

According to studio estimates issued on Sunday, “Fast Five”
earned about $83.6 million during its first three days of release across the United
States and Canada, proving the appeal of car chases in exotic locales for young
male moviegoers.

Industry prognosticators had expected the film to edge past the
$71 million start for the previous film, “Fast and Furious” in 2009. The
opening also boosted the flagging fortunes of both its distributor, Universal
Pictures, and the overall industry.

“Thor” pulled in $83 million from 56 foreign markets, a week
before the Marvel comic book adaptation opens in North America.

Top-ranked openings included Britain ($9 million), France ($8.1
million) and South Korea ($5.7 million). Its foreign total stands at $93
million after the Paramount Pictures release got an early start in Australia
last weekend.

“Fast Five” earned $45.3 million internationally after expanding
to 14 markets from four last weekend. It opened at No. 1 in each of the 10 new
markets, including Russia ($11.5 million), Germany ($10.2 million) and Spain
($6.3 million). Its foreign total stands at $81.4 million.

The strong performances of the two action films suggest a
strong summer for the Hollywood studios, which have suffered a dismal year so
far. Ticket sales in North America are off 17 per cent and attendance is down
18 per cent from 2010. Universal, newly controlled by Comcast Corp, had the smallest
market share of the six major studios last year. It has enjoyed a decent 2011
because it distributed the hit cartoon “Hop.”

————————————————————-

***Kelly Price releases
first RB album in eight years

When Kelly Price was nominated for a Grammy last December, the
RB nod caught many people off guard.

Up until that point, Price hadn’t released an RB album
since 2003’s “Priceless.” In fact, when she delivered the contemporary gospel
album “This Is Who I Am” three years after that, most people assumed the
soulful singer had chosen a new career path.

“It’s never been a secret that I’m a preacher’s kid,” says
Price from her Los Angeles home. “Gospel will forever be a part of my life;
that’s why I sing the way I sing. But I never said I was leaving RB.” Now,
the artist known for belting out such hits as “Friend of Mine,” “As We Lay” and
“Heartbreak Hotel” is adding an exclamation point to that declaration with the
May 3 release of her sixth album “Kelly.” Its anthemic opening track “Tired”
caught Grammy voters’ attention. (Alas, she lost to Fantasia).

Not only does the project plant Price squarely back into the
RB scene, it’s helped the singer achieve her first top 40 hit on
Billboard’s Hot RB/Hip-Hop Songs chart in 11 years: second single “Not My
Daddy,” featuring Mint Condition frontman Stokley Williams.

Price and her manager, husband Jeffery Rolle, began dressing the stage for
her return three years ago when they relocated from Atlanta to Los Angeles.
After the 2006 release of “This Is Who I Am,” Price continued performing,
averaging between 200 and 250 dates per year.

Naija4Life

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