1. Prince Musically Flirts with Salma Hayek and Penelope Cruz

Over the years, Prince has been known to enjoy the company of a beautiful woman. Vanity, Apollonia, Sheila E. Mayte…do I need to keep going? But despite taking a more spiritual road nowadays, US Weekly says the hitmaker is exhibiting a bit of his former self as he gets his musical flirt on with Salma Hayek and Penelope Cruz in the song “Valentina.”

The name of the track, which can be found on Prince’s new three-CD set, may not strike a nerve until you realize that Valentina is the name of Hayek’s 18-month old daughter. Hence the connection as the crooner sings:

“Hey Valentina, tell your mama she should give me a call/ When she get tired of runnin' after you down the hall/And she's all worn out from those late-night feedings/and she's ready for another rock and roll meeting,”

As tempting as a meeting with the Purple One may be, it may be hard to make considering that Salma is now married. But hey, you can’t blame the guy for trying. Two times if you count the part of the song where he targets Cruz, who is currently dating Oscar winner Javier Bardem.

“If Penelope wants to Cruz there ain't no way that we ain't gon' dance,” Prince sings.

It’s nice to see the player in Prince still lives. Much respect to the guys who have Salma and Penelope, but when Prince flirts with your girl, you better tighten your grip. One song and it’s a wrap with a purple rain of tears for not taking heed to the warning.

2. Jamie Foxx Practices Literal Insanity for The Soloist

Could this be why Jamie Foxx went in on Miley Cyrus and later apologized?

With any actor, it’s always a plus when he or she can completely dedicate themselves to a role, but Mr. Foxx may have put himself out there a little too much. According to the Oscar winner, it got to the point where he nearly lost his mind playing real life homeless schizophrenic cello prodigy Nathanial Ayers in the upcoming film The Soloist.

“You had to lose your mind every day you're on set, and sometimes you didn’t have enough time to get your mind back before the weekend,” Foxx told EUR’s Lee Bailey.   “I just remember calling my manager like, ‘I know what it is; I know why he's crazy!’ And my manager's like, ‘Foxx? Are you okay?’ I said, ‘No, no, no! He does this because of this, he does that because of this, and I'm gonna go crazy, and I'm gonna lose everything, and I'm gonna be homeless, but I'm gonna be able to play the piano great…’[My manager] says, ‘Foxx, I'm on my way over.’”

Despite believing that actors don’t need their own therapists while filming difficult roles, Foxx ended up taking his manager and agent’s suggestion that he talk to a psychiatrist, “just so you'll have a way to get out of your head,” they said, according to the actor.     

As a result, Foxx is sold on bringing in a therapist when the need exists. “I had no idea that the mind could be that fragile,” he said. 

To see how crazy Jamie gets, be sure to check out The Soloist when it arrives in theaters on April 24.

3. Amy Winehouse Turns Down Eminem Collaboration

Is it me or is Amy Winehouse deliberately trying not to make a solid comeback? I could be wrong, but it looks like the embattled diva has missed out on another chance to let her music do the talking rather than her tabloid headlines.

According to The Sun, Winehouse has turned down a chance to work with Eminem for the rapper’s highly anticipated album, Relapse. Eminem was hoping to repeat the success he had with his 2000 Dido-assisted hit “Stan” by recruiting the songstress. But all plans for the collaboration fell through according to a source, who revealed that it would only be a dream.

“Eminem has followed Amy's career closely. They have both had drug addiction issues and he empathizes with her and hoped to feature her on (comeback album) Relapse,” the source told The Sun. “His idea was to make a track as magical as ‘Stan’ but unfortunately Amy declined”

Despite Winehouse’s snubbing, the source stated that Eminem was optimistic about a joint project somewhere down the road.

“He understands that recently she hasn't been in a state to focus on music because of her tumultuous private life but he hopes they will get together on a future project.”

I hope Amy gets it together myself. The thought of her and Em on a song has classic written all over it. The “Rehab” remix with Jay-Z was good, but this could trump it if they ever get around to it.

4. Halle Berry Makes Vanity Fair’s Most Beautiful; Calls Out Non-Exercising Celebs

Halle Berry has made yet another list. The only difference is she isn’t sitting pretty at the top.

That honor would have to go to Angelina Jolie, who ranked Number One on Vanity Fair’s list to find the Most Beautiful Woman in the World with 58 percent of the vote. Berry was among 19 other beauties listed for the magazine’s survey. Despite coming in at Number Three (behind supermodel Gisele Bündchen’s nine percent) four percent of the vote, Halle did get a leg up on Beyoncé who tied for fifth place with Slumdog Millionaire star Frida Pinto, Cate Blanchett, Catherine Deneuve and Natalia Vodianova with 2 percent.

The biggest disappointment, in my opinion was the amount of votes for Kerry Washington (one percent). Is it too late for a recount?

No matter what, Kerry always ranks high on my (and Mr. Richardson’s) most beautiful list. But being beautiful, sexy, or whatever you want to call it doesn’t come without its fair share of work. Just ask Halle, who called out celebrities who say they stay slim without exercising. Talking with Harper’s Bazaar, it seems the actress shares other women’s pain as she admitted to having to work hard to keep that body of hers.

“God bless them if they're telling the truth. It's questionable if they are,” said Berry. “I always had to diet. I'm diabetic, so it's a lifestyle for me anyway just to stay healthy and not end up in the hospital.”

And there you have it. Another celebrity we can relate to. Take away the money, fame and I can picture her at Wal-Mart on any given day searching for the next big bargain.

So fellas, who would you consider to be the most beautiful woman in the world? Would it be a celebrity, co-worker, significant other or that potential jump-off you saw the other day? What say you?

5. Eva Mendes Supports the Pleasure Principle

As one of the most beautiful women around, Eva Mendes can command a captive audience. Maybe that’s why she was on hand last week to launch the world’s largest survey on pleasure as Magnum’s Global Pleasure Ambassador.

According to Fox News, the poll is aimed at discovering the human pleasure quotient through surveying 100,000 people from around the world. The results from the survey will be released in a few months.

As far as what gives Miss Eva pleasure, the answer is simple if you ask her.

“I love chocolate! I like chocolate like no-one else and I love indulging,” Mendes shared with Fox News. “In fact, I am all about pleasure. I am the girl who will get three massages a week — that’s my luxury and that’s where I spend most of my money. I’m not a big shopper, but I love facials and spas and everything indulgent when it comes to the body and pampering. I am a girly girl at heart.”

And while she loves her chocolate, Eva is quick to say that she doesn’t mind paying the price as she works out at least five days a week to maintain what she has.

“I put in a lot of time at the gym to ensure that I am able to indulge at other times. Pleasure is pain.”

Well that’s nice to know. That and the fact that Eva believes that women should learn to “ask for what they want in all areas of their lives more than they currently do.”

“I want to encourage the world to inject more pleasure into their lives and I think especially at this time in the world where it’s all doom and gloom it’s a fantastic time to talk about pleasure and work out how to get more pleasure into our lives.”

I couldn’t agree with her more. Why can’t we just concentrate on the pleasures in life instead of all the drama? Makes for a less stressful life. But don’t get it twisted. Despite advocating pleasure in all its forms, Eva admits that being recognized for her talent rather than her looks would generate more personal pleasure than anything else. 

How’s that for a pleasurable alternative?

In Other Words…

* TLC’s Chili is coming back to the public eye via the power of advertising. Billboard.biz reports the Grammy winner will help promote Coca-Cola's Dasani and Dasani Essence water brands through a series of radio, print, digital and in-store ads. According to Dasani’s Vice President of African-American marketing, Yolanda White, the campaign will target African-American moms as African-American women are heavy purchasers of packaged waters and that the new effort is about “invigorating women in a that allows her to escape her daily challenges.”

In addition to the main brand, Dasani’s recently launched Essence unsweetened, flavored waters will be highlighted in the Chili-featured effort. The 38-year-old entertainer/single mom was chosen for the campaign because she embodies the struggles and the balance “we see in our target audience,” White said. “She gives reassurance to moms that you can still be a great mom, take care of yourself and look beautiful.”

* Famed R&B group Frankie Beverly and Maze will be the latest collective to be honored with a tribute CD. Media sources report that the production will being this month for the project, which is being helmed by Beverly’s son, Anthony and will highlight the vocalists four decades of entertaining fans with a catalogue that includes 30 hit singles and 12 albums. In addition to the album, a commemorative DVD will be included that will feature interviews with those contributing to the album as well as current and former music industry executives and community leaders who will weigh in on how Beverly and Maze impacted the music industry and African American culture.        

* Michael Jackson’s stuff is officially off the auction block, thanks to a settlement reached between the iconic singer’s production company and Julien's Auction House. As part of the deal, Jackson has told Julien’s Auction House to beat and gets away like a smooth criminal while retaining the nearly 2,000 items that were slated to be auctioned off next week.

Cost of organizing the sale: $2 million. Predicted revenue generated by the auction items: $12 million. Cost of Michael (literally) holding on to his past: Priceless.