REALGOSSIP 101: 06/25/08

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

CIARA LAUNCHES NEW CLOTHING LINE; SIGNS ON WITH MODELING AGENCY WILHELMINA.

R&B singer Ciara has signed with modeling agency Wilhelmina and is in talks to launch her own clothing line. Wilhelmina will now focus on casting Ciara, who’s currently ending a print modeling run for Jay-Z's Rocawear line, in both clothing and fragrance campaigns, according to the singer. "Modeling has always been one of my aspirations," says Ciara. "But I was insecure about my height. I thought I was 5'7" but I just found out that I'm 5'8" so I'm really excited about that." Ciara’s also in talks with the budget-friendly department store, Steve & Barry's, to create a reasonably priced clothing line that bridges her personal style with affordable price points. Steve & Barry's also carries Sarah Jessica Parker's Bitten line as well as the New York Knicks' Stephon Marbury's Starbury collection. "I have a couple of cool things that I'm working on," says Ciara. "The coolest thing about Steve & Barry's is they cater to everyday people. I won't say that my line will be like theirs, I want to stay true to who I am, but most importantly it has to be affordable."

Ciara is also in the midst of prepping her third album, Fantasy Ride, set for September via Jive. Her last album, 2006's Evolution, has sold 1.3 million copies to-date, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
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TLC, SWV & EN VOGUE WITH ALICIA KEYS AT 2008 B.E.T. AWARDS.

Alicia Keys served up a girl power treat at the BET Awards in Los Angeles on Tuesday night (6.24.2008) when she performed with SWV, En Vogue and the remaining members of the history-making, multi-platinum girl-band of all girl-bands TLC. Keys had arguably the greatest performance of the night and one of the best in the history of the BET Awards.

To reiterate my last post informing you guys of the 'surprise performance': Keys began her set with her hit song Teenage Love Affair, then segued into classics by top female R&B acts of the 1990s. Members of SWV, Taj, Lelee and Coco (humph...that's funny--if you used each girl's first initial of her name, you'd have TLC! LOL! Too bad the real TLC nabbed it first!) were the first group out the gate as the three women came out performing Weak; The Funky Divas a.k.a. En Vogue including Dawn—— stepped onstage for Hold On; and before Alicia could get the letters TLC out of her mouth good, the audience was already up on their feet awaiting the arrival of TLC's remaining members T-Boz and Chilli while singing along to the first verse of TLC's Waterfalls--cue Kanye West and Melody of the Pussycat Dolls. Emotional to the say the least. I, for one, got goosebumps at seeing the girls on stage again...and I damn near cried when I realized Lisa's rap verse wasn't incorporated into the set...then again, maybe that was a good thing because there's no telling how many folks would've been wiping tears and just all-out crying at watching Lisa 'perform' alongside her bandmates/sisters. But then again me and my baby sister had no problem rapping Lisa's part for her! LOL! She's is truly, truly missed. However, thanks to a Lisa 'Left Eye' Lopes fan, Lopes was indeed there with her girls both in spirit (and image)....just check out the photo up above

In all, the reunions of SWV, En Vogue and TLC were the first for the respective groups in years. And it was the one and only time that all three groups have performed on stage together. I have always loved me some Alicia Keys. Always. But after last night, I will forever love me some Alicia Keys! Whether folks think the ladies' performances could have been better or if one group looked better than the other isn't even up for debate (although you can't deny the fact that after all of these years, Tionne and Chilli...as well as the ladies of En Vogue--Dawn included...and even Maxine with her preggy belly--still look as good today as they did back in the day!)..the fact that Alicia thought enough of them and in her eyes, deemed them each worthy enough to pay homage to them----especially TLC--is better than any performance--good or bad--that night. So, thank you, thank you, thank you Alicia, for taking us back down memory lane...the trip was nostalgically bittersweet.