A must see.

Nicki Minaj sat down with Paper magazine for a little interiew.

Check excerpts after the jump

On Her Style Being A Mistake
“It happened like a lot of things I do — as a mistake,” Minaj explains. “Like the freegin’ clip in my hair in the ‘My Chick Bad’ video with Ludacris. My hairdresser was curling one side and using a clip to hold my hair. I was like, ‘Leave it.’ They all looked at me like I was insane — but that’s something I do. It’s the same thing with my cadences: I’m probably running out of breath or something crazy, and it’s like, ‘This is not going to work.’ But then I’m like, ‘Let me listen,’ and it winds up being magical and I just keep it and I’m like, ‘Yeah, I love it.’”

On How attending performing arts school Opened Her Eyes
“I saw gay kids, I saw white kids, I saw grunge and pink hair and piercings,” she recalls. “I think because of that, I didn’t put limits on myself or what I was going Read the full story

Detroit hasn’t screamed this loud at a baseball park since Kirk Gibson was hitting home runs in the 1984 World Series. Hip-hop history was made as Jay-Z and Eminem co-headlined the Motor City’s Comerica Park (home of the D-Town Tigers for the past decade) on Thursday night (September 2), the first of two shows on consecutive nights.

While Jay’s high-grossing touring schedule helped him to top this year’s Forbes’ “Hip-Hop Cash King” list, Eminem took a much-needed sabbatical to deal with a myriad of personal issues. Now beyond his darkest hour, Em had one of his brightest moments ever onstage. Not only did he gift his hometown with a seemingly endless string of hits, he pulled off some major surprises. After D12, 50 Cent and the G-Unit — acts that fans likely expected — came out for performances with Em, Slim Shady pulled off a shocker. Dr. Dre came out, first stunning the people then delighting them with smashes.

After his name appeared on the Comerica big screen, the man heralded by many as the greatest producer of his time came out to the opening notes of his world-famous “Next Episode.” Then the familiar first keys of “Still Dre” were played.

“Haters say Dre fell off,” the Doc rapped. “How n—a? My last album was The Chronic.”

After that, the Shady/Aftermath duo took it back to Dre’s Chronic days with Read the full story

Before T.I. and Tiny ended up getting arrested last night, Tip was getting it poppin’ in the studio with Pharrell. The above pic, snapped hours before the couple’s felony arrest, shows Skateboard P and the King of the South kicking it, most likely during a studio session for T.I.’s upcoming album King Uncaged.

Shortly after, T.I. and his bride Tameka “Tiny” Cottle were apprehended in Los Angeles after cops stopped them for making an illegal U-turn. Smelling marijuana in the car, Read the full story

The 2 look very strong together… Alicia Keys has her baby bump in full effect. The couple looks great together. What you think? See another picture here Read the full story

Looks like Jay is keeping busy… what do you think of the new cover?

Times are tough, no matter what size a business is. Start-ups and corporate giants alike are struggling to stay afloat long enough for business to pick up again. These companies have bucked the downward trend: they grew a profit, despite the bad economic climate. Here are six companies that survived the recession, and the secret to their success.

1. Amazon (Nasdaq:AMZN – News)

It all started in a garage, like so many large corporations we know today. Amazon’s founder Jeff Bezos believed the internet could meet consumers’ needs in a unique way, and began shipping books to customers worldwide in 1995. His vision proved to be profitable, as Amazon has grown to the place to go for online shopping; the company grew sales by 28% in 2009, a tough year of deep dips in sales for most businesses.

The company’s secret? Focus on the long term: Amazon looks to innovate with products like its new Kindle 3, and strives to expand market share, forever anticipating the next change.

2. Ford (NYSE:F – News)

Just years ago, Ford was in deep financial trouble, along with the entire American car industry. Plagued by recalls, safety issues and lagging sales, Ford was looking like it was on its way out – until CEO Alan Mulally took over. It took three years of losses, rigorous cuts in jobs and costs, but Ford is now posting a $2.7 billion net income for 2009, and recently announced 2010 second quarter profits for April through June of $2.6 billion.

The company expects to end 2011 with less debt than cash – quite a turnaround in just a few years. A complete overhaul, eliminating models from its line, cutting costs and revamping its image got Ford back into the game at a time when recovery is toughest.

[See 10 Retail Chains Facing Financial Trouble]

3. Domino’s (NYSE:DPZ – News)

It’s not easy to admit your product stinks on national TV, but Domino’s Pizza did just that. Sparked by a consumer survey (with video clips on TV), the pizza overhauled its recipe, proving that change is good for business. Under the new campaign and new recipe, profit more than doubled in the fourth quarter of 2009, increasing sales for that quarter by $23.6 million.

The secret to Domino’s turnaround was novelty: changing the self-proclaimed cardboard crust and ketchup sauce to a new, improved pizza brought people in the door. Time will tell if Domino’s can keep these new customers, but for now, the pizza giant has turned this remake into a financial success.

4. Snuggie

It’s been called a robe you put on backwards by Jay Leno, and parodied all over TV, but the Snuggie was undoubtedly last Christmas’ hit. This blanket with sleeves was snagged up by 20 million people during 2009, and while exact sales numbers are hard to come by, this novelty has turned out to be a recession hit. Why? The one thing we all did a lot in 2009 to save money was stay home, curled up on the couch – just like the Snuggie commercial. The Snuggie is proof that novelty, the right price point and timing can translate into big bucks.

[See 10 Tips to Help You Save $1,000 by Christmas]

5. Intel (NYSE:INTC – News)

“What goes down must come up” seems to be the secret to Intel’s recent $2.89 billion profit, which came in much higher than expected. Intel sat tight during the recession while client companies held off on computer purchases for their employees, and is now seeing the upswing, with profits soaring to a 10-year high. Intel’s secret to success is simple patience: by waiting for pent-up demand to return, it’s back to making the big tech bucks.

6. Lego

Last year was a tough year for toy companies – except for Lego. During 2009, when most companies were holding tight to ride out the recession storm, Lego’s profits soared 63%. Exploration of the global market was the key to this company’s recession-bucking success. While the U.S. had a stagnant toy market, Lego was able to expand to Asia and increase its sales in Europe, bringing in the big bucks. For a recent surprise addition to Lego’s profit: after a recent interview where British soccer star David Beckham admitted he was building a Lego Taj Mahal during his down time, sales soared 663% – proof that sometimes free celebrity endorsement is the best profit boost of all.

The Bottom Line

If the recession has proven anything, it’s that even corporate giants have to think outside the box to stay afloat. These companies show that with patience, innovation and occasional brutal change, you can beat a recession and come away with a profit even during the roughest of times. Of course a little help from a famous soccer star doesn’t hurt either.

How long yall boys been together?
(Pyro) Well we all been cool for years but we been together as a movement for bout a 1yr and 1/2

Who all is apart of 25eight?
(I10) 25eight consist of super producers Soundmob Dj Ryu and Pyro, Krucial,Younggutta.com,Young Show,Sho Stoppa snd me I10

What inspires your group?
(Pyro) All around good music the grind just life period knowing that we are willing to go where other artist want go. Read the full story

WE GO BY THE NAME OF RDC ENT (RUNNIN DA CITY ENTERTAINMENT) A RAP GROUP REPPIN THE DC MD & VA AREA(DMV). WE HAVE 6 UNIQUE MEMBERS IN OUR GROUP ZO, Sapp, Jay-Lou, Y-O, P.Eazy, Kenito ORIGINALLY FROM AFRICA & COSTA RICA. USING OUR CREATIVE LINGO, WE FEEL OUR MUSIC IS A NEW FLAVOR TO THE GAME THAT IS DIFFERENT & CATCH

WE KNOW ITS NOT EASY MAKING IT IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY BUT WE ARE CONFIDENT IN OUR MUSIC. WE WILL CONTINUE TO WORK HARD & STAY HUMBLE BECAUSE WE LOVE MAKING MUSIC. UNLIKE ATLANTA, DMV IS ONE OF THE FEW CITIES Read the full story

Celebs came out in droves last night for the NAACP 20th Annual Theater Awards in L.A. Meagan Good and Nia Long rocked the light and airy colors last night.  Gorgeous looks for both ladies.