TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA NATIVE, T-PAIN TOPS LIST OF MOST PLAYED RADIO SONGS IN 2007.

I had to show some love to fellow Tallahassee native & chart-topping R&B artist, T-Pain (and his sister Ki-Ki, who cuts my hair!). The rapper-ternt-singer is celebrating after his Buy U A Drank (Shawty Snappin') was named U.S. radio's most played song in 2007. The 22-year-old - real name Faheem Najm - beat out competition from Beyonce Knowles' Irreplaceable and Fergie's Big Girls Don't Cry to top the list, compiled by USA Today from data supplied by Nielsen BDS, Arbitron and Radio & Records. Making up 2007's top five most played songs on the radio are Rihanna's Umbrella and Carrie Underwood's Before He Cheats.

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ICE CUBE LAUNCHES INTERNET ONLINE TV NETWORK, UVNTV.COM

First he became a top rap artist. Then he turned his talents to the movies as an actor. Now Ice Cube has a new line to add to his résumé: Internet entrepreneur. Cube and his partner DJ Pooh, a record producer and screenwriter who also is a self-described techie, are the latest entertainers to launch a new website showcasing all sorts of videos, original to music to user-generated. But Cube and Pooh aren't just looking to promote their own work. They have loftier ambitions: to create a TV-style network with multiple channels and high-quality video that can support everything from short videos to full-length movies.

UVNTV (short for U View Network Television, at uvntv.com), still in rollout mode, now features about a dozen channels, run both by large companies and individual artists. Each channel will be screened for quality but will run its own programming. For example, Snoop Dogg's Snoopadelic channel features his rap videos; Nextreme TV shows clips of extreme sports such as snowboarding jumps. The official stations of urban magazines The Source and Vibe are included as well. Cube says, "We figured we needed to think about how could we still be part of entertainment in this future that's coming out at full speed."

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All videos are shown in a new Microsoft-developed format called Silverlight that promises definition high enough to be played on big screens. Shows can be viewed by time or on demand. And, like most websites launching these days, UVNTV includes community-building features along the lines of MySpace.

Eventually, the founders hope thousands of individuals, studios and corporations will bring their material to UVNTV, drawn by artistic freedom and the opportunity to bring their material to a new audience — and make money in the process. They're inviting everyone from fledgling filmmakers and performers to established stars, networks and companies. Channel partners will share advertising revenue with UVNTV or sell their own ads on their own channels. "We figured we needed to think about how could we still be part of entertainment in this future that's coming out at full speed," says Cube. "We didn't just want to be providers of a product. We wanted to be a full-blown network. I think we're going to have programming that's way more interesting than what you can see on your daily television or even YouTube."

Cube says they're not competing with YouTube or other existing networks, but adding a needed new player to the mix. "Yeah, (artists) can throw (content) up and hope that it gets seen on a YouTube or whatever. But here you can present it the way you want it. And if you get enough people to come and watch, you become a major player in entertainment."

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MOBB DEEP MEMBER PRODIGY TURNS HIMSELF IN A DAY EARLY TO SERVES HIS 3.5 YEAR PRISON SENTENCE.

Mobb Deep member Prodigy reported to jail a day early today (Tuesday, January 8) to start serving a three-and-a-half year sentence for gun possession offenses. The rapper - real name Albert Johnson - pleaded guilty to illegal firearm charges after he was found with an unlicensed .22-caliber pistol in his Chevy Suburban in 2006. But the 33-year-old maintains the patrolmen who pulled him over for driving on the wrong side of the road had no right to search his vehicle. Prodigy, who finished working on his upcoming album H.N.I.C. 2 before handing himself over to the authorities, recently insisted being locked up won't affect his creative output.

He told MTV.com, "Throughout my life, I have always lived through adversity. I'm a survivor. You don't understand the mental power that I have. While I'm locked up, I'm going to be writing lyrics, working on the script for my second feature film, Dope, and finish writing an autobiography of my life, which will be finished by the time I'm released. My mind is going to be focused, and I'll have time to think and map out my entire plan. The experience will make me a tougher, stronger person. I'm gonna work on getting out faster, so I can get back to doing what I do best. When I get home, it's gonna be on!"

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NEW PICS: CHRISTINA MILIAN W/HER BOYFRIEND, DRE & HER MOTHER AT THE FLORIDA ROOM IN MIAMI.

Looks like Christina Milian's relationship with music producer Dre is going still going strong, bless her heart. Below are photos of the pint-size singer/actress with her boo, mother and Sophia Bush mingling at the Cuervo Platino party in the Florida Room at the Delano hotel in Miami Beach on January 1, 2008.

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NEW PICS: KIM K. FLAUNTS FRAUDULENT ENGAGEMENT RING; DENIES ENGAGEMENT RUMORS THAT SHE STARTED.

It's this type of free-for-all, fraudulent and- excuse my Swahili-fuckery that...you know what? Remember when I told yall I was allergic to bullshit? Well, you all can blame Kim 'I live for attention' Kardashian's lying and meandering ass for my most recent allergy attack. I swear, for someone who claims she wants privacy and denies dwelling in the constant attention being bestowed upon her by the press, she sure does have a way of continuing to make shit all about her. And this is why I have no problem believing this heffa-hussie's gall to tell her friends to create and spread a false and blatant lie that she's engaged to Reggie. But then again, this is the same girl who vehemently denied that she had never, ever made a sex tape in her life. I guess her telling Ray J. to cum on her face while looking straight into a camera must've slipped her mind.

Wanna "It Girl" Kim Kardashian is still cashing in on all the tips on how to get press that she learned from former friend Paris Hilton. Kardashian has her publicity team working overtime to squelch rumors that she's engaged to her beau, football star Reggie Bush. But the buzz-busters face a major challenge: Kim's friends keep insisting the two are getting hitched. Kim is trying to create attention in her life because nothing else is really going on with her. The whole debate over her engagement is buzz, and that's what she wants. She's not engaged, but her friends are telling all their celeb weekly contacts that she is," according to a PageSix source.

So what's Kim's response to this blasphemous story? Kardashian, 26, tells Usmagazine.com that she didn’t make it official with Bush over the weekend in Miami, despite an earlier OK! magazine report. The reality star who was recently potted wearing what appeared to be an engagement ring, insists they are only dating. “It’s not true,” she tells Us. “Not yet!”

I swear this chic stays thirsty.

If I was ever given the opportunity, I would find Kim, rip her head off and put it on backwards just so she could watch me kicking her ass! And that's real talk too.LOL

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This isn't the first time Kardashian has used smoke and mirrors to drum up publicity. Last month, she claimed $50,000 worth of stuff was swiped from her at a Delta terminal while the paparazzi were swarming her, but she never filed a police report. Kardashian's rep didn't return calls or e-mails.

Kardashian's claim to fame stems more from a worldwide release soft-porn tape she made with former boyfriend of three years R&B singer/actor Ray J.; baby brother of R&B artist Brandy, than as the former best friend of Paris Hilton. Coincidentally, the couple began dating in April of 2007, after being introduced to each other by Hilton.

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MOVIE STILLS: 'A RAISIN IN THE SUN' with SEAN 'DIDDY' COMBS, SANAA LATHAN & PHYLICIA RASHAD; TV VERSION TO AIR ON ABC IN FEBRUARY '08.

Thanks to WoooHah.com and Soul Glo, here are some exclusive movie stills of Sean 'Diddy' Combs as Walter Lee Younger in the television adaptation of A Raisin in the Sun. The film will air on ABC on February 25, 2008 from 8pm-11pm, so check your local listings for the channel. Combs, who reprises the role of Walter Lee, Jr. which brought him acclaim in the Broadway version in 2004, stars in the television movie adaptation from Sony Pictures Television, along with the cast of the award-winning Broadway revival who recreate their roles for the new film, including Emmy and Tony Award winner Phylicia Rashad, four-time Tony Award winner Audra McDonald, Tony Award nominee Sanaa Lathan, plus "ER" star John Stamos (Stamos also played the role of Uncle Jessie on Full House).

Based on the play that inspired a generation, A Raisin in the Sun tells the story of a family living and struggling on Chicago's South Side in the 1950s. A fiercely moving portrait of people whose hopes and dreams are constantly deferred, A Raisin in the Sun was the first play written by an African American woman to be produced on Broadway. It premiered in 1959 with a cast that included Sidney Poitier, Claudia McNeil, Diana Sands, Ruby Dee and Louis Gossett, Jr. A Columbia Pictures feature with the same cast followed in 1961.

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RANDOM CELEB PIC: TISHA CAMPBELL-MARTIN & TICHINA ARNOLD.

Don't be alarmed by Tichina's appearance. The actress is in hair and make-up for her role as Miss Pippy in Alex In Wonderland. Anyhoo, here is a random picture of Arnold and her BFF Tisha Campbell-Martin backstage at the UCLA Freud Playhouse before one of Arnold's recent performances. Alex In Wonderland is an adaptation of the story Alice In Wonderland. The play was created, choreographed and directed by Debbie Allen and is this year's holiday production presented by the Debbie Allen Dance Academy and its sponsors.

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FROM HIS OWN MOUTH, JAY-Z SETS THE RECORD STRAIGHT RE: HIM MARRYING BEYONCE: SAYS, 'A WEDDING WILL BE SOONER THAN LATER...'

After the grand opening of his 40/40 nightclub in Las Vegas last Monday, mega-mogul Jay-Z, talked to Robin 'Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous' Leach and set the record straight regarding his soon-to-be wedding nuptials with longtime girlfriend-turned-fiancee, Beyonce Knowles. However, don't expect to see exclusive wedding photos of the most rumored to be married couple in celeb history in People, In Touch or Essence magazine. For six days, music mogul hip-hop star Jay-Z (real name Shawn Carter) and gorgeous galpal, Knowles held hands and were literally inseparable on their Vegas visit—but not only did he laughably deny recent rumors of a secret marriage in the French capital of Paris, he also told me that they wouldn’t tie the knot in Vegas this trip either!

“A wedding will be sooner rather than later, though,” he says, “but it will be kept a private serious celebration for our very closest family and friends. When it does happen, we’ll keep it very quiet. When we read these news reports about hiding tattoos under wedding rings, we laughed together and said, ‘uh huh, another wild one—put it with the other 80,000.’”

Guest attendee Rev. Al Sharpton has so much admiration for the couple, he's offered to marry them for free. "I told both of them that I would marry them pro bono—I won’t even charge a fee.”

To read Robin Leach's entire interview with Jay-Z as well as other celebrity attendees from the grand opening,

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IN TODAY'S 'THIS NIGGAH, HERE!' NEWS: DMX TO RELEASE A HIP-HOP ALBUM & A GOSPEL LP IN 2008; SAYS, 'A DOUBLE ALBUM WILL MAKE MUTHAPHUCKAH'S MAD!'

I mean, really! Have you ever read something about someone that was so outrageous and unbelievable, it made you wanna just throw your hands up in frustration and yell to anyone within earshot, 'This niggah, here!'

Rapper DMX is planning to release two new albums in 2008 - one hip hop and one gospel. The two LPs, called Walk With Me Now and You'll Fly With Me Later, will hit stores on the same day. DMX tells MTV, "I (was) the first n**ga to put out two albums in one year, now I'm gonna hit 'em again - drop two albums on the same f**kinn' day, yo. A double album will make muthaf**kas mad, because they gotta spend more money - plus it's already a long (double) album. I'm talking about a hip-hop album and a gospel album." The religious star - who once considered becoming a minister - promises the gospel album will be completely "without cursing", adding, "How 'bout that one? No songs about bitches, no songs about robbing, just straight 'Give God the glory.' "

Young! Yeah, you better keep your fingers crossed!
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EDDIE MURPHY & TRACEY EDMONDS MARRIAGE DEEMED INVALID IN BORA BORA; COUPLE TO WED AGAIN IN THE U.S.

'Spiritual' newlyweds Eddie Murphy and Tracey Edmonds will marry for a second time in a legal ceremony when they return to America. The couple wed on a private island off Bora Bora in French Polynesia in front of 25 friends and family on Tuesday (01Jan08). As that ceremony carries no legal significance in the United States, Murphy and Edmonds will enjoy a second wedding on their return home. General law specialist in French Polynesia, Malgras Benoit, confirmed reports that Murphy and his 40-year-old fiancee Tracey Edmonds were ineligible to be married locally because they had not lived in the region for long enough. Under French law people wishing to marry must reside near where the ceremony is to take place for at least 30 days before they can legally tie the knot. The couple reportedly arrived in French Polynesia by private jet last weekend and were married on new year's day on a small islet near Bora Bora Island, a playground for wealthy tourists.

Benoit said the details indicated the wedding could not be recognized under French law. "A marriage on the beach would be like... a fake marriage. It's not a real marriage, if it is on the beach with only a local priest. I think it was just an exotic, artistic 'marriage'," he said. "You need to have residence for at least 30 days - one month in the island of Bora Bora for instance - and this has not been the case," Benoit said.

Edmonds' spokesperson tells People.com, "As is typical when couples get married in foreign countries, a legal ceremony will take place when they return to the U.S. The wedding that took place in Bora Bora was a ceremony to bind Eddie and Tracey spiritually in the presence of family and friends. The couple plan a legal ceremony as soon as they return to the States."

Murphy and Edmonds, who have been dating since 2006, have both been married before - Murphy divorced Nicole Mitchell in April 2006, while Edmonds ended her marriage to music mogul Kenneth 'Babyface' Edmonds in October 2005.

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R. KELLY RESPONDS TO NE-YO'S LAWSUIT AGAINST HIM FOR DROPPING HIM FROM HIS 'DOUBLE UP' TOUR.

Representatives for R. Kelly have hit back at a lawsuit filed by Ne-Yo over a tour dispute, insisting the R&B superstar is "confident enough" in his own talents to have a younger singer join him on tour. Ne-Yo - real name Shaffer Smith - is suing Kelly's promoter, Rowe Entertainment, for breach of contract after Ne-Yo was dropped as the support act from the 40-year-old's Double Up tour in November (07). He also alleges Kelly didn't want him on the tour because his opening sets were getting bigger cheers from the crowd than the headliner's performances. In legal papers filed at Los Angeles Superior Court on Monday (31Dec07), Smith alleges he had an "oral agreement" in place with Rowe Entertainment, which is named as the defendant, and lost out on $785,000 in earnings from the tour, which was meant to be for a minimum of 25 dates.

But Kelly's spokesman, Allan Mayer, has denied the allegations, and insists the Bump N' Grind star had nothing to do with Ne-Yo being dropped from the tour. He tells AllHipHop.com, "The idea that R. Kelly had anything to do with Ne-Yo being dropped from the Double Up tour is just plain silly. As we said at the time, Ne-Yo was dropped because of a contractual dispute with the tour promoter, and in fact Ne-Yo is not suing Kelly but only the promoter. Ne-Yo may think blaming the situation on R. Kelly will improve his chances of collecting from the promoter, but if he does, he is sadly mistaken. Anyone remotely familiar with R. Kelly knows he is confident enough in his own abilities to be happy to share the stage with enormously talented people - the more talented, the better."

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'THE STUPID SHIT CELEBS SAY': MARIAH CAREY ON HER DIVA-ISH ATTITUDE.

'I've never done one diva-ish thing in my entire life, though I happen to be lying on a bed in high heels from the gentleman from Q magazine. The actual definition of a diva is a woman who sings well. The secondary definition is a woman who is difficult to deal with. I hope I am the first. I don't think I am the second. But these days everyone is a diva. "Oh, she's the diva of chocolate chip cookies. He's a real diva of garbage collection." If I'm a diva it's because I get the joke. I don't believe I am truly nasty and act in a bad way. The truth is I'm quite boring. I'm just as likely to be sitting in front of the TV with a bag of chips, watching my favorite show that I TIVO'd, as the next person.'

--Mariah Carey to Q magazine on her unfounded diva reputation.

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NEW PICS: LISARAYE & FAMILY IN JET MAG; ACTRESS DISHES MORE DETAILS ON HER SHORT MARRIAGE, MOTHERHOOD & FEELING 'ROBBED' OF HER ACTING CAREER.

In a new interview from 'Villa del Raye', one of three lavish mansions she shares with her husband, LisaRaye McCoy-Misick, actress and First Lady of Turks and Caicos Islands, dished a load of details on her unscripted life as an actress, mother, wife and her self-proclaimed title as the 'New Millennium First Lady.' McCoy-Misick reveals how her longing to be in love with someone motivated her to marry a man whom she's still in the process of falling in love with...after knowing him for only one month. (Hmm, and here I was thinking the reason folks get married is because they loved and are in love with one another).

The actress also made a startling implication of how her role as first lady is 'alienating' and 'robbing' her of her acting career. She also addressed those pesky infidelity rumors that has surrounded she and her husband since their engagement. The couple insist the 'honeymoon is still going on.'

You can read the excerpts from the interview below. Click on pictures to view their full size.





McCOY-MISICK ON HER ONE MONTH COURTSHIP WITH HER HUSBAND, THE HONORABLE MICHAEL MISICK: "I think you are forever falling in love and the process of falling in love is what we're doing. He said, 'I want you to be my wife, but I want to date you while we're married.' Our courtship wasn't long; just the entire time it took for me to plan our wedding. He asked me to marry him a month after we met. That was scary for me...but what is a girl to say about that. I was 39 years old, been a single parent, there's no stability in Hollywood and I said you know, I'm tired of playing. I'm tired of being without and I want to be in love. It damn sure feels great to belong to someone and have a partner, have a foundation." Misick, a lawyer and real estate magnate, says when he pursued LisaRaye, he wasn't looking for a first lady, but it was after he got to know her that he could not resist asking her to be his wife. "I thought, OK, she's beautiful and I like her but I wasn't looking to get married; I was a confirmed bachelor," the 41-year-old Misick said, laughing. However, he became "attracted by her inner beauty, her outer beauty, her grace, her kindness."

The couple has been the subject of infidelity rumors since their engagement, but it hasn't rocked their relationship. The twosome insist the "honeymoon is still going on."



LisaRaye's only child, Kai Pace, who just recently turned 18 and begins college in London this month, says she has adapted to her role as 'first daughter. She says the title is really no big deal off of the island because 'then I'm LisaRaye's daughter.' But will she return home from Spring Break to discover that there's a baby brother or baby sister on the way? Probably not...

McCoy-Misick says she's not planning to have any more children. "I have two bonus sons. (Misick's two children from a previous relationship). But if it happens, it happens. If it doesn't, we're not so gung-ho about it because we're both 40, he's 41, so we want to live, be able to travel extensively." But then again you never know. LisaRaye went on to say, "We're OK with having our kids growing up...but if it happens, you'll see my belly swelling."

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And a LisaRaye article wouldn't be complete without the actress comparing herself, once again, to actress-turned-Princess Grace Kelly of Monaco. Mc-Coy Misick, who spends '60 percent' of her time in Turks & Caicos with her hubby says,

'There's definitely a difference between the celebrity LisaRaye and the first lady LisaRaye. I don't have to stop acting. I call myself a 'New Millennium First Lady.' Grace Kelly was an actress; she stopped acting, but that was 50 years ago. I'm going to hold it down in Los Angeles and also be a great mother, a wonderful daughter, a loving wife and a supporting first lady. However, I'm not in L.A. as much as I want to be. So it almost has me thinking, 'should I take a step back for a minute and reinvent myself, take a few month off, or should I ride this roller-coaster and keep moving, because you're only as good as your last job. I'm really torned, because for me, this is where my acting stops. The more I'm here (in Turks & Caicos), the more I feel alienated or robbed of what it is I do that makes me shine, that makes me be creative and makes me realize why I got in the business. I've worked 12 years to build my name, my image, my brand. I'm not giving that up. I worked hard for that. That name means something."

But she's also working hard on making 2008 a year the kids of Turks & Caicos will remember. A three-screen movie theater (the first one ever on the Island), aptly named L'Raye Cinema, will open this year as well as a bowling alley and an arcade, thanks to their first lady. 'My passion is really the kids and I think I've got that from being a single parent for 16 years", she says. And it's no secret that LisaRaye has put Turks & Caicos on the map since exposing the island to the West Coast market here in the United States that was almost untapped by the Turks & Caicos Islands, thus exposing the island to thousands of celebrities, movie producers and investors.

Beyond the island, LisaRaye's multifaceted career continues to blossom. She hosts a teen talent pageant, Miss RayeDiant Jewels. She publishes a magazine, Hip Hop Weekly. She is currently producing a film, Eight Days to Turks, and working to create a film committee on the island. She was diligent in forming the partnership with the American Black Film Festival to produce the 2008 Turks & Caicos International Film Festival. She is perusing South Beach property in Florida to build a hotel. The former model will also resume her part in the stage play Gossip, Lies and Secrets later this month.

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VIVICA FOX SEX TAPE EMERGES; ACTRESS FILMED WHILE ORALLY SATISFYING AN ATLANTA MAN.

Celebrity Sex Tape-Gate continues into the new year. A list of celebrities such as Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee, Ray J. and Kim Kardashian, Jennifer Lopez, 80s actress, Jane Kennedy, Paris Hilton, Ne-Yo and O.J. Simpson have all had their sexual escapades caught on tape for the whole world to see. Now, Vivica A. Fox could be added onto that list of celebrity sexual scandals after reports of a sex tape featuring the star surfaced. Atlanta blogger SandraRose claims Fox was filmed performing oral sex on an Atlanta man who secretly shot the sex act and emailed the footage to his friends. It is claimed Fox has passed the tape on to local police, but it's unknown whether the alleged encounter is being investigated by the authorities.

On her blog, Rose writes, "In the tape, an apparently inebriated Vivica can be seen on her knees servicing a male friend who surreptitiously taped the encounter on his cell phone. Allegedly the man, who lives in Atlanta, emailed the tape to friends who emailed it to Vivica. She quickly forwarded the tape to a friend at the Atlanta police department. It isn't known if Vivica filed an official complaint with the police or if she asked her police friend to handle the situation privately."

QUOTED SOURCE: SandraRose.com

Can someone tell me how she didn't notice ol dude filming her?

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CHRISTOPHER 'PLAY' MARTIN INJURED IN CAR ACCIDENT THAT KILLED ONE IN RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA.

According to Allhiphop.com, rapper Play of legendary Hip-Hop group Kid-N-Play was seriously injured in a wild car accident that killed one person in Raleigh, North Carolina last weekend. Play, born Christopher Martin and his female companion, Michelle Gonzales, were injured when Martin's SUV was struck by a driver on Saturday (December 29) who was shot, while attempting to flee Durham police officers after a home invasion robbery.

According to police, three men broke into a house in Durham and began stealing property and subduing the residents. As two of the men exited the house, police arrived on the scene. The driver of the waiting Ford Taurus, 34-year-old Raul Aldamo, drove at officers, striking one of the officers, who fired on the vehicle. Aldamo, mortally-wounded, managed to drive about a half a mile, when he struck an SUV driven by Play. Play and his passenger were ejected from the vehicle, while Aldamo died at the scene. Play, 41 and his passenger were released from the hospital yesterday (January 2), and according to a rep for Martin, he is at home recovering.

Play is formerly part of the successful 1980’s - 1990’s Hip-Hop group Kid-N-Play. In addition to releasing three albums with Kid, the pair starred in three installments of the House Party film franchise and starred in the classic comedy Class Act. Play, a born-again Christian, went on to found HP4 Digital Works & Solutions and is currently a teacher at North Carolina Central University in North Carolina. In 1993 he married actress Shari Headley (Coming to America). The couple divorced in 1995 and share a 13-year-old son, Skyler Martin.


Fans wishing to send Play get well greetings can email: hp4digitalworks@yahoo.com

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