JumpinJack AJ

Who has gotten Busta Rhymes new album, Extinction Leven Event 2: The Wrath of God? I'll share more later, but I'm wondering if anyone else has been vibing with it.

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/alfonso-ribeiro-talks-fresh-prince-reunion-and-the-slow-decline-of-sitcoms?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&fbclid=IwAR2KJwH3tdyNl-o88S1MTJ3bsrI71droNtt0c5r5RzclfNgo2tw3qkd8hbs NOVEMBER 20, 2020 1:55pm PT by Mikey O'Connell Alfonso Ribeiro Talks 'Fresh Prince' Reunion and the Slow Decline of Sitcoms Courtesy of HBO Max "Since everybody wanted to be a movie star, they only worked on becoming movie stars — and then sucked when they did a TV sitcom," says the actor, who recently reunited with his colleagues from the '90s hit for an HBO Max special. Television cast reunions, like many exercises in nostalgia, can easily come across as indulgent and unnecessary. But, more than two decades after subverting its slapstick premise with frequently profound takes on race, class and family, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is still defying norms. Thanks in large part to its homage for the late actor James Avery, who died in 2013, and a filmed reconciliation between star Will Smith and onetime cast member Janet Hubert, who was replaced halfway through the series' run amid mounting tensions, HBO Max's new reunion special for the '90s sitcom isn't just an advertisement for the six-season streaming library. It's a moving look at the relationships that can be forged on sets when the chemistry is right — and a warning of how long the acrimony can linger when it's off balance. Series star Alfonso Ribeiro, the America's Funniest Home Videos host who played preppy Carlton Banks, got on the phone with The Hollywood Reporter to talk about filming the special, what didn't make it to air and his own take on why the multicamera sitcoms of yore just don't work anymore. As sitcom reunions go, this one is surprisingly moving. I think they did a fantastic job with it. When we were making it, I felt like it was really going to turn out well. People love the show, but everyone has their own personal relationship with it and with those characters. But we didn't play into everybody's idea of it. We just showed everybody what it really was. I think the entire emotion of what James Avery brought to our entire family and to the world made people really feel what we were feeling about that incredible man. It's an incredible tribute to him — especially because, back in the '90s, viewers really didn’t get much opportunity to see what life was like behind the scenes. We’re in a new time where everyone has access to everything. If you’re on social media, you can see everything. That didn’t happen in the '90s. There’d be interviews on set every once in a while. Will would go on Letterman and Leno. But you didn’t have behind the scenes. This was a peek behind the curtain that, realistically, I don’t know how many shows will be able to do moving into the future. Once you hit 2010, we know everything about everything. Once you all agreed to do it, was it difficult to plan? It was a very simple ask: Let's film it on the same day that we premiered, 30 years before. They let us know a while in advance, so we were able to make our schedules free that day. For COVID, we all did the testing and stayed away from people beforehand. But I don’t care if Dr. Fauci was on that set, we were gonna hug each other. It was what it was gonna be. Were you surprised by anything about the finished product? They edited out a lot. I really felt like that could have been a two-and-a-half-hour special, but short and sweet always works. Maybe they'll do The Reunion Special 2 one day, where they take the other stuff that we talked about. That’s the only thing I didn’t really know what to expect. I only did one day, but they shot for three days. How do you turn three days into an hour and 10 minutes? Is there anything that you wish had made the cut? We did a lot more showcasing the fun and our show night rituals. There was a lot more of that — and a lot of other stuff as well, but I’m really not sure how much I’m allowed to talk about. Seeing that footage from show nights feels so foreign now. The industry keeps distancing itself from multicamera sitcoms, and you forget about the energy those sets used to have. If you go back into the '60s and '70s, everything was live television. They didn’t do many hourlong dramas. There was a lot of variety and other things with that live energy. The sitcom is kind of the end of that. Yeah, you have shows like Dancing With the Stars or The Voice and all that. But the sitcom energy was incredible. We might do it a couple of times, but it was live. We used to do an episode of Fresh Prince in 90 minutes. I used to laugh at this, because I could never understand it, but we’d always hear about Friends going until 4 o’clock in the morning — and we were like, “What are they doing?” What you come to realize is that the stage performer no longer exists. People are deathly afraid of performing in front of an audience. These shows have gone away because the actors can’t deliver a better performance with an audience sitting there. To me, the performers got worse. (Laughs.) They had to figure out a better way to deliver equal content, because they couldn’t do it the way it had always been done. There is a specific artistry to being able to play something that lands in a room and on camera. Absolutely. Where does your energy go? Performing in front of an audience, your energy goes up. But sometimes that energy needs to be small. Can you be small, even though there are 200 people sitting 100 feet away? There’s a reason television actors couldn’t become movie stars. They were typically bigger with their energy than movie stars. On a movie set, everything has to be minimal and the camera is much closer. And since everybody wanted to be a movie star, they only worked on becoming movie stars — and then sucked when they did a TV sitcom, because they couldn’t actually pull off the energy necessary to the medium. When you were filming the reunion, who led the conversation? Will really navigated it with the help of the other producers. They’d whisper a few things in his ear when it was time to move from section to section. Did you learn anything that you didn’t know before? The one thing I learned aired. And it’s the full story of how Will ended up at Quincy Jones’ house, doing his audition in front of Warren Littlefield and Brandon Tartikoff. But for everything else, it’s like, “Tell me a story about your family of 30 years that you didn’t know.” You can't. That audition could never happen today. Never. People would lose their jobs if that happened today. I don’t think there’s anybody in television who could give a greenlight after one informal audition like that — maybe Les Moonves, before he left CBS. It’s clear from social media that the cast keeps in touch. How often do you actually see one another? With Joe [Marcell] living in the U.K., we haven’t seen him in a long time. Joe would always come and stay with James Avery whenever he would come to town, so he’s not back as much as he used to be. Little Nicky, Ross Bagley, we don’t get to see that much. There’s a lot of getting together, but it’s more on an individual basis than as a group. You were absent the day Janet Hubert was on set. Did you get a chance to talk to her at all? No, I did not. I wasn't there. Like two or three days before we supposed to shoot, they were like, “Hey, are you available the next day?” Unfortunately, I had to go shoot [America's Funniest Home Videos] that day. So all of the social media content and the photographs were taken without me. I literally did my own photo shoot on the couch so they could put me in the group photo. The actual special was filmed in one day, but all the other stuff was done on the other days. This is a silly question, but do you have a favorite episode? Karyn Parsons talked about it: that moment where I break the fourth wall and go through the audience. That was always my favorite moment filming the show — but I never watched anything after it finished. We’re talking 30 and 24 years ago now, so I don’t remember a lot! A couple people brought old scripts to the reunion set. I opened a few up and had no idea what I was reading. (Laughs.) Streaming has made it so that old shows are still current for a lot of viewers — in a way that traditional syndication doesn't allow. What’s your take on the afterlife of the show? It’s interesting, this constant changing of the business. I loved syndication, because you could do great work and it would live on forever. Now it's kind of living on forever in many different facets that are hard to monetize. You’re not getting your rightful checks for it, but it is what it is. At this point, I do my job and I move on the next one. However it plays out, it plays out. We’re in a very different time, and next week it will be something new. One of the people at ABC said to me, “AFV will be on ABC as long as there’s an ABC.” Obviously, that’s not a true statement, but it’s the idea of that … Your predecessor at AFV, Tom Bergeron, used to refer to it as "the annuity." Right — until he decided to hand over to me a beautiful annuity. [Laughs.] What’s crazy is that we don’t know how much longer there will be ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox. Kim Kardashian, by herself on social media, is more powerful than any network. The networks have the ability to have hundreds of millions of viewers, but they don’t. She can post an ad on social media, and it’s so much more powerful than the ones the networks have. Where do we end up with media in 10 years? I couldn’t tell you. Speaking of AFV, you’re in studio without an audience right now? Yeah. ABC and Vin Di Bona Productions bought the technology that the NBA used while they were in the bubble, zooming the audience into the bubble. People are watching us tape from their homes all over the country, which is actually kind of cool. People who live in, you know, Virginia, wouldn’t have had the opportunity to come to a taping. It’s very different than it was before, but we can still vibe with the audience. Do you even have to practice "The Carlton" at this point? It's all muscle memory. I don't even have to think about that dance. Are your castmates pleased with the reception? We were on a group text as it was all going on. After I finished watching it with my wife, I wrote, "Wow. Oh, so good." This was a wonderful gift that Will and his team felt was necessary to give the world right now, especially with all that's going on, and it felt like it was absolutely that. Interview edited for length and clarity.

Will has shared how he was mistreated in that past. I don't think he's been revealing anything new, but he has gone deeper on a few topics. I think one of the things that made me identify with him early on is that he's grown out of certain circumstances that are similar to my own. If his marriage is health, great. If his marriage and his career are being influenced by pains from the past, such as considering his first divorce to be his greatest failure, it seems like it's time to reorganize his approach to some things.

These are both dope and really frustrating. lol Musically, I love what he does with the songs, but he ruins it with how it chops up the vocals so that the lyrics don't make sense.

Yes! I love that they tend to go right to "Brand New Funk" these days instead of "Summertime." "Summertime" is my favorite, but I never liked that it was always the go-to joint.

Here it is. A picture of FP, Janet, and Daphne together. https://thegrio.com/2020/11/15/fresh-prince-aunt-viv/?fbclid=IwAR3Q-YiOl72YR-Kpq1jeTBLeF9RCHh8EW0ln48QdyyC8Y6sWw4AcUR-Hv0U

I've been revisiting a lot of old Mariah recently. "Underneath The Stars" was always one of my favorites. Her label didn't want to promote it, so the single wasn't properly pressed and the music video was lost. The video doesn't really fit the song, but she recently got her hands on it and released it two days ago. MARIAH CAREY - Underneath The Stars Daydream (1995)

https://comicbook.com/movies/news/peoples-choice-awards-male-movie-star-2020-winner/ People's Choice Awards: Will Smith Wins Male Movie Star of the Year By NICOLE DRUM - November 15, 2020 11:25 pm EST Awards season is in full swing and while things look a little different than in years past thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 46th People's Choice Awards took place tonight to recognize fan-chosen favorites across the pop culture spectrum from the past year and that means choosing the Male Movie Star of 2020. While there weren't a lot of movies opening in theaters in 2020, thanks to streaming fans still had plenty of performances to get excited about with fans ultimately choosing Will Smith as Male Movie Star of the year. Smith was nominated for his work in Bad Boys For Life, the fourth film in the Bad Boys franchise. The film saw Smith and co-star Martin Lawrence reprise their roles as Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett respectively for one last film. In Bad Boys for Life, an aging Burnett has become a police inspector while Lowery, suffering a midlife crisis, is assigned to head up AMMO, a "young guns" group of millennial cops with whom he has nothing in common. Both of them reunite once again when a fierce cartel mob boss, whose brother they defeated years earlier, makes a retaliation effort on Mike just as both he and Marcus are about to officially retire. The film also took home the Movie of 2020 award at Sunday night's People's Choice Awards. Even with perhaps fewer major films to choose from in 2020, fans nominated some solid performances. The nominees in the category were Chris Hemsworth (Extraction), Jamie Foxx (Project Power), Lin-Manuel Miranda (Hamilton), Mark Wahlberg (Spenser Confidential), Robert Downey Jr. (Dolittle), Tom Hanks (Greyhound), Vin Diesel (Bloodshot), and Will Smith (Bad Boys For Life). Winners for the People's Choice Awards are determined by fans who can vote for their choice 3 ways, per the People's Choice Awards website: pca.eonline.com, Twitter, and Xfinity (where available) with Twitter voting requiring a specific format using the category hashtag and corresponding nominee hashtag in the same post. Fans can vote up to 25 times per day, per category, per method to ensure their choice is heard .

I've been revisiting Chamillonaire's stuff. I don't hold it on the same level as the 80's and 90's legends, but I'm finding a new appreciation for him all these years later. CHAMILLIONAIRE + SLICK RICK - Hip-Hop Police Ultimate Victory (2006)

Guys, DJ Jazzy Jeff is on Cameo! You can book him for birthday well wishes, holiday greetings, shout outs, etc. Here's the link: https://www.cameo.com/djjazzyjeff

I'm wondering why it took four years to get music like this. Hip-Hop weaponized is refreshing. Peep this new song. The new version of the forum doesn't seem to automatically load videos, but that link will take you to it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzxKomdvs_8

I'm really liking the new album, especially the joint with Run, DMC, Ad-Rock, and Mike D.

Yeah, I love Volume 2. I posted it on my Facebook after I got the heads up for Speech and Eshe about it. I should have tagged you in it. I'm glad you posted the new R&B one here, because I've wanted to watch it, but haven't had the time yet.

ALICIA KEYS - Love Looks Better Alicia (2020)

Arrested Development just put out a new album. You can listen to it and purchase it here: https://officialarresteddevelopment.bandcamp.com/ It's everything you'd expect from the legendary group.

LL Cool J slams Kanye West for peeing on Grammy: ‘Piss in a Yeezy’ By Jessica Bennett October 3, 2020 | 12:32pm Kanye West’s latest stunt against the recording academy — involving the artist urinating on one of his Grammys — didn’t sit well with fellow winner and frequent award show host, LL Cool J. The Hip-Hop veteran, 52, shared his frustration with West, 43, being “disrespectful” towards the trophy and what it represents during a sit-down with “Desus & Mero.” “With all due respect, I think Kanye should just — maybe he should just piss in a Yeezy or something instead of pissing on a Grammy,” the musician and actor said. “Piss in a pair of one them Yeezys, B. I felt some kind of way about that s–t. I didn’t love that s–t, because I’ve been with the Grammys for five years.” LL, whose real name is James Todd Smith, has won two Grammys and has hosted the annual ceremony a total of five times. “I don’t understand this constant disrespect,” he continued. “Look, now don’t get me wrong, there have been some foul things that have happened to some artists around the Grammys; they (the Recording Academy) are not without flaw … but piss on one those f–king space shoes or something … C’mon, man. What the f–k is he doing?” Last month, in the middle of a Twitter meltdown, the “Ultralight Beam” rapper tossed one of his 21 trophies into the toilet and peed all over it. “Trust me … I WONT STOP,” West captioned the video, which he shared on Twitter after publishing screenshots of his contract with Def Jam Music Group, which is a subsidiary of Universal Music Group. https://pagesix.com/2020/10/03/ll-cool-j-slams-kanye-west-for-peeing-on-grammy-piss-in-a-pair-of-yeezys/?utm_medium=SocialFlow&utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_source=P6Facebook&fbclid=IwAR0ukPsPSKMGuexJQb_rHYImF8mtzxUi75gXNg-ypqsHWUPqcHwIr7JytEY

A lot of pop has been coming out. Music will be thriving in the last part of 2020. KATY PERRY - Smile Smile (2020)

This is such a good find. I like how they acknowledged that the song was already a hit years before. I thought it was kind of strange that they re-did it, released it as a single and a music video when the Rock The House album already ran its course. Jive just wanted that money for themselves once they got their hands on an already completed and successful album.

XSCAPE - Keep It On The Real Off The Hook (1995) Xscape's best project. This album has always been a summer staple for me.

Wow, I didn't think this would ever happen. All these years there was speculation of it being the work of Randy Allen (Rusty Waters) and that appears to be false. The fact that it was related to drugs is a little discouraging, but it was always known the Jay was the one in the streets, and in later years, dealing with a lot of debt. I'm glad that it looks like justice will be served. https://abc7ny.com/arrests-in-unsolved-murder-of-run-dmcs-jam-master-jay/6374271/?fbclid=IwAR307rMK3XFOo59UATt2JRueYpNsZ5LGq84zbuLMTIgOOXmU_NFuO-8DV28 Arrests in unsolved murder of Run-DMC's Jam Master Jay Tuesday, August 18, 2020 12:07AM Ad Duration00:28 - More Info PauseCurrent time00:01Seek 00:00 Duration02:37Toggle MuteVolume Settings Toggle Fullscreen EMBED <>MORE VIDEOS Two men have been indicted in the 2002 unsolved murder of Jam Master Jay, the D.J. for the rap group Run-DMC, federal prosecutors in New York City have announced. NEW YORK (WABC) -- Two men have been indicted in the 2002 unsolved murder of Jam Master Jay, the D.J. for the rap group Run-DMC, federal prosecutors in New York City have announced. Jason Mizell was murdered in Hollis, Queens on October 30, 2002 -- shot at point-blank range with a .40-caliber handgun. "The defendants allegedly carried out the cold-blooded murder of Jason Mizell, a brazen act that has finally caught up with them thanks to the dedicated detectives, agents and prosecutors who never gave up on this case," stated Acting United States Attorney DuCharme. "The charges announced today begin to provide a measure of justice to the family and friends of the victim, and make clear that the rule of law will be upheld, whether that takes days, months or decades." RELATED: Brooklyn street renamed in honor of The Notorious B.I.G. Mizell, known professionally as Jam Master Jay, was a member of 1980s hip-hop sensation Run-DMC, behind hits such as "It's Tricky" and the Aerosmith remake collaboration "Walk This Way." The 37-year-old Jay was shot once in the head by a masked assailant, police said at the time. He left behind a wife and three children. Officials announce charges against two men in the murder of Run-DMC legend Jam Master Jay. NYPD Chief of Detectives Rodney Harrison, a Queens native and self-described Run-DMC fan, said "this arrest was very important to me." NYPD Chief of Detectives Rodney Harrison, a Queens native and self-described Run-DMC fan, said "this arrest was very important to me." RELATED Letter written by Tupac Shakur to Madonna to hit the auction block Karl Jordan and Ronald Washington, both of Queens, have been charged with the murder of Jam Master Jay while engaged in cocaine trafficking, according to an indictment unsealed in the Eastern District of New York that also charged the two with drug offenses. The murder of Jam Master Jay stemmed from a dispute over drug trafficking, according to the indictment. According to investigators, Mizell sought to exclude Washington from a large multi-state drug deal. In retaliation, Washington and Jordan conspired to murder, and ultimately executed Mizell. As alleged in court filings, on October 30, 2002, Mizell was present at his recording studio, 24/7 Studio, located on Merrick Boulevard in Jamaica, Queens. Washington and Jordan, armed with firearms, entered the studio at approximately 7:30 p.m. Washington then allegedly pointed his firearm at an individual located inside the studio and demanded that the person lie on the floor. Jordan was said to have approached Mizell and pointed his firearm at him, firing two shots at close range, striking the victim once in the head and killing him. The second shot struck another individual in the leg. "Mr. Jordan and Mr. Washington walked into a music studio in Queens, where Mr. Mizell and others were working essentially hanging out, and they walked in and they murdered them in cold blood," DuCharme said. The investigation revealed that the motive for the killing resulted from Mizell's previous acquisition of approximately 10 kilograms of cocaine from a narcotics supplier in the Midwest. The cocaine was allegedly intended to be distributed in Maryland by Washington, Jordan and other co-conspirators. Mizell had recently informed Washington that the defendant would not be involved in distributing the narcotics in Maryland, which precipitated the murder conspiracy. The ATF New York Field Division said they never believed this case was unsolvable. "Working tirelessly alongside the NYPD Cold Case Squad, we were determined to bring justice for the Mizell family and see these killers held accountable," ATF Acting Special Agent-in-Charge McCormick said. "For nearly eighteen years, one of these alleged perpetrators walked freely, thinking he'd gotten away with murder. But today, thanks to the unwavering efforts of the investigators and prosecutors, two individuals will answer for their crimes." NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea also commented on the indictment. "The gunshots that rang out in a recording studio in Queens nearly 18 years ago, taking this pioneering rap artist's life, have been answered," Shea said. "Today's indictment shows that no amount of time passed can erase the commitment of our NYPD detectives, federal law enforcement partners and prosecutors in the US Attorney's Office for the Eastern District, to the pursuit of justice." The 36-year-old Jordan was taken into custody on Sunday. Washington, 56, was already in prison on a prior robbery case. Jordan was arraigned Monday, pleading not guilty and was ordered held pending trial. In addition to the murder, Jordan is also charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and seven counts of cocaine distribution. Federal prosecutors said this case carries the possibility of the death penalty. The return date is September 17.

Yeah, I miss this sound. Rakim's output since the mid-90's has been complicated. I lost all of his solo stuff in the house flood almost two years ago. I was about to start replacing it.

I'm not gonna lie. I don't understand the appeal of the classic film. Perhaps I should watch it again. I'd like to see Will and Kevin team up, though. It'll be a new dynamic.

I just put on this on for the first time in a while. I'm curious if there's anyone who loves this album as much as I do. To me, this 1995 release is darn near perfect. Skee-Lo has lyrics, stories, and jokes. You could say that it generally has a west coast g-funk sound, but the sound is definitely broader than that. The title track was actually a huge smash. "Top of the Stairs" was a respectable follow-up single, which was also used on the Money Train soundtrack. "Superman" didn't generate the same attention. I know "Holdin' On" was released overseas with a more radio-ready remix, but I don't remember seeing the video in the US. I've always held this album close to my heart. When I put it on, it takes me right back to the summer of 1995. Anyone love this album or any of these songs?