The Last Word: Prince Preaches Celibacy, Terrence Howard Wants Women With Wet Wipes, and Will Smith as Captain America If Obama Wins?

What’s universal Planet Earth? With the House of Representatives voting today on the latest version of that $700 billion economic bailout package the Senate passed on Wednesday (Sept. 30), to the teams for this year’s World Series being decided with the MLB playoffs, Wall Street having its worst performance since the big stock market crash […]

What’s universal Planet Earth? With the House of

Representatives voting today on the latest version of that $700 billion

economic bailout package the Senate passed on Wednesday (Sept. 30), to the

teams for this year’s World Series being decided with the MLB playoffs, Wall

Street having its worst performance since the big stock market crash in 1987

and the long- awaited Vice Presidential debate between Joe Biden and Sarah

Palin (I can’t wait to see what Saturday Night Live will do with it. Shout out to Tina Fey), it’s been

another week of struggle amongst us all.

 

Get well wishes go out to Janet Jackson, who was admitted

and released from the hospital. Congratulations to Scarlett Johansson and Ryan

Reynolds, who got married last weekend, producer Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds and

his girlfriend, who gave birth to the couple’s first child, George Lopez show star Constance Marie who is expecting, and

neo-soul singer/songwriter Erykah Badu, who is pregnant with her third child.

 

Shout out to the sounding boards for sparing a brother a

dime for gas and a penny for my thoughts.

 

Enough of the ra ra, here’s…the Last Word for the week

ending Oct. 3, 2008

 

1. Prince Converts Dirty Mind to Celibate Living

 

Looks like Prince is turning over a new leaf and making his

retirement official from the player’s circle. Media sources report that the

Purple One is directing his sexual energy towards a higher cause as a Jehovah’s

Witness.

 

Case in point: Very little physical contact from Prince with

co-star Mía Maestro in his “Te Amo Corazon” video, which the hitmaker explained

as being “another way faith has changed me.”

 

As a result, Prince feels no need to revisit baby-making

classics like “Scandalous,” “Dirty Mind,” “Insatiable” and “Darling Nikki.”“I did the Dirty Mind tour and pushed that envelope off the

table,” the Grammy winner told USA Today

while promoting his new coffee-table book 21 Nights. “What I didn’t do, Madonna finished. I don’t want

to go back. You have to get out of your own way.”

Look for 21 Nights to

contain Prince’s lyrics and poetry, 124 previously unreleased photographs by

Randee St. Nicholas and Indigo Nights, a 15-track CD featuring songs performed

at post-concert club jams in London.

After two failed marriages, the singer is putting his time

and energy into the one thing that remains constant for him. Music. Whether

it’s an ode to the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. or a love song where he

yearns for the feel of a lover’s lips and the move of her hips, Prince seems to

have accepted being alone.

“That’s what happens with years of celibacy. It all goes

into the music,” said the vocalist, who hasn’t ruled out another go at a

relationship. Any contenders? “This time, it has to be the right person. Music

to me is a life force. It’s not what I do. It’s what I am.”

And the rest, they say, is history.

 

2. Jennifer Hudson Exposes Many Musical Sides

 

Now that Jennifer Hudson has made her mark in the film

world, she has finally come back to what got her to the table. And to make sure

she strikes a chord with all music lovers, the singer is sprinkling a little

bit of everything into her just released self-titled debut album.

 

“I don’t believe in limits, so I wasn’t allowing myself to

be limited and I wanted to show other sides of me, and to say, ‘Well, if you

like this side of Jennifer, let me introduce you to another side,’” J. Hud told

The Associated Press. “I used to

consider my voice a tree with many branches and that’s what to me this album

displays, all these different sides of me.”

 

And while it’s good that Jennifer wants to bring all aspects

of herself to her music, one thing we won’t be getting is material straight

from the mind of Hudson. The Oscar winner admitted to Popeater.com that she had

no hand in writing any of the songs on her CD.

 

“I didn’t write for this album, but I do write and I do plan

to start writing songs,” said Hudson. “I’m trying to focus on films and then,

OK, I have to do the music. I don’t have time to write music, too. Let someone

else do that.”

 

Looks like the diva is starting to come out. Let’s hope

J-Hud can put the star mentality on hold to let us really see what she’s all

about. After all, the spotlight does fade with the foolery. If you want

something done right and a classic album (and you’re able to do it), then do it

yourself. Ask Lauryn Hill and Mary J. Blige what that gets you. Another case of

split personality for J-Hud if you ask me.

 

3. Terrence Howard Makes Memorable First Impression on

Thandie Newton

 

People have always said that first impressions are

important. After all, they can make or break any relationship. Or at the very

least result in a good story to tell. Just ask Thandie Newton, who had an

interesting first meeting with her Crash

co-star Terrence Howard.

 

During an interview with the Jamaica Gleaner, Newton

admitted to not knowing who Howard was or seeing any of his films prior to

working with him on Crash. Nevertheless,

that didn’t stop Terrence from putting his best foot forward.

 

“The first time I met him, he was actually playing a

guitar,” Newton said. “He was like, ‘I don’t feel really able to say what I

wanna say, meeting you for the first time, so I just want to sing you this.

 

“I was thinking: What am I supposed to do?” continued

Newton, who took it all in while standing up. “…and the song went on for a

while so in my mind, I was like, OK, maybe I should sit down. But it was quite

beautiful.”If she didn’t get anything from Terrence, the least Thandie

can say is that, “He’s definitely not in any type of box. He’s really doing his

own thing. But, sometimes I wanna slap him a bit!” And if that didn’t get you,

the actress weighed in on Howard’s view on female cleanliness. Apparently,

there was a story in which, according to Newton, Howard was quoted as saying

that a woman couldn’t be “completely clean” if she only used toilet paper and

not baby wipes after using the bathroom.

“When I heard about that, I thought, come on, Terrence!” she

said. As you can see, a good first impression (and an interesting quote

for a publication) is all you need.

4. Kem Defines the Meaning of Intimacy and Love

Live your life long enough and you’ll have your view on what

intimacy and love mean to you. If you’re Kem, you can explore the definition of

the word on your upcoming album, KEM III: Intimacy.

 

“I’m known for making love songs so we thought we’d explore

that word, that idea – not only sensual intimacy, but the true meaning of

relationships and opening yourself up to somebody and allowing them to do the

same with you,” Kem shared with Billboard

while giving insight into one of the tracks on the album. “So the song

‘Mother’s Love’ is about maternal intimacy between a mother and child. There

are spiritual love songs on the album, too. Life is about relationships –

good, bad or indifferent. That’s what we will be exploring on this new album.”

 

And while he defines love and intimacy for his fans, don’t

look for the Intimacy album anytime

soon. Kem, who is in talks to include a superstar duet on the release, hopes

his latest project will see store shelves in 2009.

 

5. Stan Lee Considers Will Smith for Black Captain

America

As a retired comic book collector, superheroes and me go way

back. From Saturday morning cartoons to the current slate of movies, we all

know that certain heroes and villains look a certain way. But that could change

as Marvel Comics fixture Stan Lee considers making Will Smith a part of the

cinematic Marvel Universe…if Barack Obama becomes President.

“I would love us to do something with Will Smith, but I

don’t know that he’s Captain America. That would be a long shot,” Lee told Moviefone. “It would be a real leap to make Captain America Black

… then again, I don’t know. It might be a really smart thing. If Barack Obama

becomes President who knows…suddenly a lot of our characters will be Black!”

While Matthew McConaughey has been mentioned to possess the

red, white and blue shield, it would be interesting to see what the Fresh

Prince could bring to Steve Rogers when Cap hits the big screen in 2011.

So what say you? Should Marvel go with Will Smith for a

little swag to go with Captain America or should they stay traditional with McConaughey?

Which Cap fits best, America?

 

In Other Words…

 

* Toni Braxton may be Dancing With the Stars, but the Grammy winner is making moves to come back

to her day job. BlackVoices.com reports that Braxton has recently signed a

recording contract with Atlantic Records. The 40-year-old songstress is

currently selecting music for her upcoming CD while competing on DWITS. Plans

call for Atlantic to have Toni’s album ready for early 2009.

* Jennifer Lopez is back in the stores. The fragrance store,

that is. Just Jared reveals that the

singer/actress launched her new fragrance, Deseo for Men, Monday (Sept. 29) at

Macy’s in New York today (Monday Sept. 29). Scents to choose from include lemon,

yuzu, red berries and cedar leaf; a heart of tobacco leaves, guaiacwood and

orris, and a drydown of sandalwood, cedarwood, patchouli, amber and vanilla.

Prices range from a 1.7 oz. eaux de toilette for $45 and $55 for a 3.4 oz. eaux

de toilette.  If you’re looking for

something a little cheaper, you can get Deseo for Men aftershave balm for $40

and a 2.4-oz. Deso for Men deodorant for $16. With prices like these, Jenny may

get run out of the block.* More evidence has surfaced that D’Angelo is on his way

back. On Tuesday (Sept. 30), iTunes released the crooner’s remake of his song “I

Found My Smile Again,” as well as his “I Believe,” a song he did with Q-Tip for

the rapper’s forthcoming album The Renaissance. “I Found My Smile Again,” which D’Angelo originally recorded for the Space

Jam soundtrack in 1996, is “something

that’s very close to him,” the singer’s manager Lindsay Guion, admitted to

Billboard.com while alluding to the problems D’Angelo has had over the last few

years. “He’s able to smile again and he’s ready to connect [with fans]. He’s

coming back. And he looks great, by the way.” The new D’Angelo album is slated

to hit stores in the spring of 2009.

* Halle Berry and Forest Whitaker are among the celebs

urging young people to vote by telling them not to do it. The pair, along with

Leonardo DiCaprio, Usher, Jennifer Aniston, Tobey Maguire and Eva Longoria,

appear in a new public service announcement  on YouTube as they join DiCaprio, who says “Please –

just don’t vote.” After reinforcing the actor’s plea with “Don’t Vote,” stars

such Ellen DeGeneres, Dustin Hoffman, Demi Moore, Sarah Silverman, Jonah Hill,

Ashton Kutcher, Courtney Cox, Laura Linney, Natalie Portman, Jamie Foxx, Usher,

Kyra Sedgwick and will.i.am come back with: “Voting is a civic duty and the

only way to affect change.”