Hot in Hollywood

Posted by December 20, 2011

By SHARMILA NAIR
alltherage@thestar.com.my

All engaged

Britney Spears is ready to walk down the aisle for the third time, y’all. Her long-time (yes, two years is a long time in celebrityland) boyfriend Jason Trawick popped the question last week and the Pop Princess was more than thrilled to say “yes”.

She tweeted: “OMG. Last night Jason surprised me with the one gift I’ve been waiting for … Can’t wait to show you! SO SO SO excited! Xxo.”

As we all know, Britney was infamously married to her childhood best friend Jason Alexander and got it annulled 55 hours later. She had also tied the knot with her backup dancer Kevin Federline – with whom she has two sons.

Britney and Jason have been dating since 2009, and the latter even gave up his job as her manager after their relationship got serious. He also co-designed the engagement ring.

Sharm says: How much do you want to bet that this marriage will last longer than 72 days? And Britney is the one who had a mental breakdown …

Yes, they’re real

Miley Cyrus turned some heads when she wore a deep cleavage-baring dress to the CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute event in Los Angeles last week. The yellow dress with a plunging neckline clearly accentuated her chest area which prompted many to question the authenticity of her breasts. Apparently, they seemed slightly bigger than usual.

Rumours started flying that the 19-year-old singer had recently undergone a breast enhancement surgery and plastic surgeons (who have never worked on Miley) even speculated on it.

Miley Cyrus

Not one to let people spread rumours about her, Miley took to Twitter to defend herself. She said: “Thank you for the compliment but these babies are all mine. I wish they’d realize you don’t have to be fake to be beautiful!” and “HA! Yeah! And I’m 19!!! BOOBS GROW PEOPLE!”

Sharm says: Miley’s wild things just can’t be tamed.

A talented lot … not

We all know that veteran TV host Barbara Walters doesn’t shy away from the hard-hitting questions and the Kardashian clan was not spared her sharp tongue.

Kim, Kourtney, Khloe and Kris were featured on Barbara’s annual 10 Most Fascinating People Of 2011 special, when the host sprung the “sex-tape” question to the family’s main money maker.

Barbara asked Kim if the 2007 sex tape of her and R&B singer Ray J was a good thing to have done. Kim gave an unintelligible answer which went something like this: “Whatever you do, you might think. I’ve made mistakes in my life for sure.”

Kris then jumped in to state: “It was devastating for the whole family. You cry yourself to sleep for a few nights, then you hire an attorney.”

Then the host also asked about the family’s lack of “talent”, which Khloe defended by saying: “None of us think we have talent. None of us think we can sing or act or dance.”

Sharm says: No kidding, Kardashians. We kinda figured that you’re a talentless lot, like, ages ago!

Don’t call her ScarJo

Whatever you do, don’t ever make the mistake of calling Scarlett Johansson, “ScarJo” to her face.

While other celebrities don’t mind the affectionate nicknames that the media gives them, Scarlett is very much offended by the moniker.

Scarlett Johansson (not ScarJo)

The actress lashed out at the media while promoting her latest flick We Bought A Zoo and told USA Today: “Oh, it’s awful. It’s a laziness. People can’t actually say the whole name? It’s just bizarre.”

Scarlett then dragged in actress Cate Blanchett into the conversation and said, “So Cate Blanchett is not, like, ‘CaBla’? Why is that? Why do I have to get stuck (with this nickname)?”

Sharm says: Why is she all worked up about the nickname? Okay, maybe we should start calling her The-Actress-Famous-For-Lost-In-Translation.

Doing a good deed

Justin Bieber proved that he’s not just all talk when he fulfilled the promise he made to the students of Whitney Elementary in Las Vegas, Nevada. Not only did he put on a holiday concert at the school, he also wrote them a cheque for US$100,000 (RM318,000) when he visited them last Friday.

The singer had teamed up with Ellen DeGeneres to help the school kids and the TV host also surprised the school with another US$100,000 donation courtesy of Target.

Justin Bieber

The school was brought to attention when news spread that over 70% of the children enrolled at Whitney don’t have permanent homes.

Sharm says: It’s really awesome when celebs use their good fortunes to help those in need.

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Shruthi’s back

Posted by December 13, 2011

For those who say that there is a lack of talent among young musicians in the country today, well, they obviously haven’t heard Shruthi J. perform live.

Last week, at the media preview of her sophomore album Va, the award-winning singer performed two tracks off the EP – and boy can that girl sing.

* Shruthi's back *

Shruthi came into the music scene when she was only 14. She released her debut Life Is A Mystery, which won the “best Indian album” award at the Anugerah Industri Muzik 17 (AIM 17) last year.

She is currently the youngest person to have received an AIM award.

“This album is different from my previous one, which I worked on when I was about 12 or 13 years old. Now, I’m a little bit more mature and it shows in Va,” she said at the preview in Kuala Lumpur.

Va, which means “come” in Tamil, took six months to complete and Shruthi worked with two outstanding composers in the local Indian music scene – Saran Narayanan and SaranZ – on it.

Five of the tracks on the album were written and produced by Saran, while Shruthi co-wrote the song Sevaayil with SaranZ, which was released as a single last February.

However, it was the title track that soared the local charts after it was released last month as a Deepavali gift to her fans.

“I have never produced songs for other singers before so it was quite a different experience working on Va with Shruthi,” said singer-songwriter Saran.

He admitted that it was initially difficult to write a song for the teenage sensation as he had to get into the mindset of a 16-year-old girl to do that.
“I’m 33,” said Saran, with a smile on his face.

* Shruthi's set to rock the music scene *

Their chemistry is apparent on the tracks and Shruthi credits the producer for creating songs that are not only relevant to her lifestyle, but other young females as well.

“I also have a song called Love on this album, and it’s my first time singing a song about that subject,” said Shruthi a little coyly, adding that the song is one of her favourites for that very reason.

A classically-trained Carnatic singer, Shruthi takes a huge departure from her usual singing style and her latest album definitely makes her a bonafide pop singer.

“It is quite difficult for classically-trained singers to leave their singing styles behind, but Shruthi managed to do just that in the album. She sounds very modern which really fits the songs and the kind of music that we used for them,” added Saran.

Va will be released in February. Shruthi also plans to kickstart a string of concerts called Va: The Concert Tour, later in 2012.

 

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Win Justin Bieber’s latest album and Xmas card!

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Christmas is a magical time of the year and what would make it even more special than it already is?

Well, how about listening to Justin Bieber’s Under The Mistletoe while decorating the house or sending a Justin Bieber Christmas card to your friends?

Yes, you can so do that now. Ho, ho, ho!

In the spirit of Christmas, R.AGE and Universal Music Malaysia are giving away 15 Under The Mistletoe albums and 15 Justin Bieber Christmas cards (which has the Biebs’ signature on it) just for you!

* Merry Christmas *

The album features 11 tracks – or 13 tracks in the deluxe edition – many of which are classic Christmas tunes, but there are also a handful of original songs. Some of them include Mistletoe, Christmas Eve and Only Thing I Ever Get For Christmas. Meanwhile, his rendition of Santa Claus Is Coming To Town appears in the end credits of the seasonal movie, Arthur Christmas.

Justin also duets with Mariah Carey on her popular catchy tune, All I Want For Christmas. Other stars who are featured on the album are The Band Perry, Busta Rhymes, Usher and Boyz II Men. Merry Christmas, everybody!

* Under the Mistletoe *

Fellas, don’t fret if you don’t win the CD and Christmas card here. FYI, you can also get hold of Under The Mistletoe at any of your local CD store, and you will receive a free limited edition Justin Bieber Christmas card!

Now, to get your FREE copy of one (1) Under The Mistletoe CD AND one (1) Justin Bieber Christmas card, answer these questions.

  1. What is Justin Bieber’s middle name?
  2. Name three of the songs featured on this album.
  3. Name Justin Bieber’s hometown.
  4. Complete this sentence in less than 15 words. “I am Justin Bieber’s biggest fan because…”
This contest has officially ended. Thank you.

 

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Local watch

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By WAHIDUZZAMAN MOHD YUNUS

alltherage@thestar.com.my

No go for Panik

Bunkface lead singer, Shamsul Annuar Mohd Baharum or better known as Sam, is upset that the band’s latest single Panik won’t get as much airplay as their other songs.

That is because Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) had recently announced their decision to ban the song from being played on any of their stations.

Sam said that one of the reasons why the song is banned by RTM is because it contains the word “reformasi” (reformation) in the lyrics.

“The song is banned just because the word reformasi is used in it, even though Panik is not a political song.

* Sam *

“The word reformasi in this song’s context doesn’t imply any political incidents that may have happened in the past,” explained Sam.

He also said that when he writes a song, the lyrics are often based on life experiences worth sharing with his listeners and that they are never to create any controversy.

He added that although he is upset, he respects RTM’s decision and that the incident has not broken his spirit. Sam said that he will continue to write lyrics and make music that Bunkface fans would appreciate.

The budding songwriter had earlier received the Young Potential Composer award at the Music Authors’ Copyright Protection (MACP) Malaysia 2011 soiree last week.

 

Happy baby news

Dance choreographer Linda Jasmine, 39, who is married to actor Que Haidar, is expected to give birth to a baby girl in May.

Linda, who is currently four months pregnant, was ecstatic to receive the news as she had always wanted another baby after giving birth to her second child Tengku Ratu Haidar, now two.

“We had always planned to have another baby together and I’m happy to have conceived again at this age. I’m not getting any younger, you know.

“My pregnancy has just entered the second trimester and my life is going pretty well right now. I just can’t wait to see my new baby.

* Congrats to Jasmine and Que *

“After the scanning process, my doctor is 95% sure that the baby is going to be a girl. However, it is still too soon to confirm anything,” she said.

The dancer is currently battling a serious bout of allergies brought on by the pregnancy but said that she had the same ailment while carrying her other kids.
“It’s getting better, though. I’m not as prone to allergy now as I did earlier in the pregnancy,” she said.

Linda, who gave birth to Ratu through C-section, said that she reacted badly to the painkiller injected to her body during the delivery. However, she doesn’t mind going through the pain again for the next child.

“Even though I am allergic to painkillers, I’m just going to go through the delivery thinking that it’s a small sacrifice I make for my baby,” said Linda.

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