Despite Phelps’ immediate public apology, rumors of Phelps losing several of his endorsements began flying. Although it has only been confirmed that Kellogg has officially dropped Phelps as an endorser, the repercussions of Phelps’ actions are clearly running deep.

Although the situation with Chris Brown and Rihanna (or not Rihanna) has yet to be clarified, Wrigley’s has already separated themselves after a two-year partnership with Brown. The news is, Wrigley’s severance from the star is temporary, pending the outcome of the charges.

Do you think that, in either case, the endorsers’ decision to isolate themselves from their celebrity partners is a good one? A fair one? Or do you think that endorsers should take a route similar to Phelps’ endorser, Omega Watches? For those that missed it, the quote was as follows:

“You can’t buy this kind of product placement — believe me, we’ve tried!” a spokesman for Omega Watches said, giddily. “He’s modeling one of our blinged-out products as he expertly removes the carb from the bong, which we will also be selling replicas of: The Poseidon, as we are proudly calling it, holds actual water, just like what Michael Phelps swims in!”

Words Jonnine Yarbrough

It’s a sad yet true case in today’s news environment that people are quick to flock to scandal. Tabloid Web sites, like Perezhilton.com or TMZ.com, now have enormous clout as they feed the public’s appetite. As much as they won’t admit it, people tend to love drama – especially when it’s real life. Maybe it gives us something interesting to talk about during what otherwise might be a boring day. And hey, I’m definitely not claiming innocence. I’ve probably been keeping as close an eye on the story as anyone else. What I don’t know is what makes us enjoy, closely follow or laugh at other people’s misfortune or problems? Yeah, they’re celebrities and, to a certain extent, place themselves under the hot lamps, but shouldn’t we also be keeping up on news with real substance? What about celebrating people’s success? Maybe that’s just asking too much…

Words Rene Perez

It was done exceptionally well, except it made me feel like they hired Picasso to paint the picture pretty. The biopic was of Biggie Smalls and his road to perdition, which was displayed with colors and smooth, teddy-bear-like antics to soften the streetwise, thug image that the real Notorious B.I.G. had.

The casting was done meticulously but was faulted in my opinion. The character of Tupac Shakur was definitely casted all wrong. He was portrayed like a colorful butterfly with no direction, instead of a serious lyricist who had concerns about deep issues. Although a little thuggish and outspoken, it didn’t paint him accurately. Okay, well it wasn’t about Tupac. I feel ya.

The storyline was rushed into sequence and polished up. Mrs. Voletta Wallace sure made it clear, as one of the producers in the film, that it wasn’t going to be to gritty. It seemed like she was dictating every line and cleaning up the image of the true street hustler Biggie was, not to mention the gun clapping, stick-up kid her son rapped about being.

All in all, the movie did its job of paying tribute, but in no way did it stay true to its non-fictional character. It’s definitely not an Oscar winner, although the actor/rap artist Gravy did an exceptional job on his first acting gig. It’s worthy of an MTV award, but he wasn’t able to shrug the executive producers’ limitations on the real antics of the down-and-dirty life of a street hustler.

I give it three thumbs up on its gutsy try … time for some munchies nite nite, Tums Tums Tums Tums Tums!!!!!!!!!!!!

For the fans of 30 teams all across the world, this disappointment was all too real. But for the devoted (and some bandwagon) fans of the Arizona Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers, their countless hours of faith have paid off. The wish of every NFL fan has been granted to these fortunate few. So, for the rest who have no stock in either of the teams playing, will you watch?

Most would say that the Super Bowl is a must-see for any football fan, and to miss it would be considered a capital crime. After all, it’s not just about supporting the team, right? It’s the love of the game that makes football fans tune in year after year. And who can forget the halftime show, or even the million dollar commercial spots that are the hot topic around the water cooler on Monday morning? To enthusiasts, Super Bowl Sunday is like Christmas.

For some, though, the Super Bowl is only as good as the teams that are in it. Unless you’re a Patriots fan, many of the Super Bowls have been replays (that is, until the Giants came along with the Cinderella Story of the century). Just because two underdog teams have managed to somehow defeat all opponents in their conference doesn’t guarantee a good game. They’re underdogs for a reason. But if the teams have been playing with a little extra umph during the season, viewers may be pleasantly surprised.

So, with the news of the Steelers-Cards matchup, many fans feel that these are teams that, perhaps, may not put on a good show. The Super Bowl is being hosted in Tampa this year, which is right down the road from my Orlando location. Somehow, though, I am not as excited as I would have been if the Giants, or even the Eagles, were playing. A Pittsburgh vs. Arizona matchup seems to leave something to be desired. Besides, come February 1st, what else will there be to do? I guess I’ll be planted in front of the flat-screen watching Super Bowl XLIII to see how it unfolds. I’ll watch, but whoever wins, I won’t be happy about it.

So what happens is that the voice in my head tells me “Oh, no rush, you have plenty of time,” or “Hit the snooze button once more, you can just get ready quicker.” I’m sure you can see where I’m going with this. I sometimes sit there and try to examine my mistakes from my last tardy adventure so I can try to avoid that next time, yet it happens again and again. This is not to say it’s not conquerable, because most things in life are. I’m not trying to make excuses, just trying to explain my thought process and where I’m coming from. The temptation for excuses is often a powerful one, but in reality is a sign of weakness – something I continue to remind myself. Let’s face it, I’m nearly 23 and it’s time to get my act together, once and for all. I’m not saying I’ll be perfect, but I will do all that I can to ensure that this vicious cycle of death and destruction is vanquished in my life.

by: Rene Perez

For Teixeira, Sabathia and Burnett, the Yankees paid a combined total of about $423.5 million. Now, it seems, for many, that the fact that the Yankees have $400 million available to grab up any and everyone who becomes available is extremely unfair. As a fan of the Boys in Blue, my perception of the situation might be a bit lop-sided when I say that those in favor of the cap are probably die-hard fans of teams that don’t ever make it very far in the season.

However, I am not so brainwashed that I cannot sympathize with these people. I understand the sting of repetitive defeat, as I also happen to root for the Giants (don’t get me started) and the Knicks. So the idea of being able to possibly prevent any further heartache by forbidding “more fortunate” teams from creating a monopoly would be a consideration.

I can see where people with less fortunate teams would think that a salary cap would be a quick fix, however, what many fans fail to realize is that a salary cap is more complex than simply cutting off the spending amount of teams.

Firstly, a salary cap would, essentially, remove money from players’ pockets and put it in the pockets of the team owners. How many players would agree to that?

Second, the ability to purchase players doesn’t ensure a winning team, as the Yankees learned in 2000. Also, the Mets, who have the 3rd highest payroll, still can’t seem to buy their way to a Championship.
If it weren’t for the Yankees and their luxury taxes, these other teams wouldn’t have a leg to stand on as far as team salaries.

Face it, MLB needs the Yankees. The Yanks are the international poster team for baseball.
My suggestion – instead of putting all your energy into whining about what the Yankees, Angels and Red Sox are doing, pay more attention to teams like the A’s and the Twins, who have mastered the art of stretching their dollar and utilizing the draft. I mean, look how far Tampa Bay made it with a fresh team!

Bottom line, there are pros and cons to implementing a salary cap. Money can buy a team, but money can’t buy guarantees; you either have it or you don’t.

by: Jonnine Yarbrough

Other highlights from this year include 50 Cent, Big Boi, Cassie, Keri Hilson, Missy Elliott (who had a hit with “Ching-a-Ling” nearly a year ago…), Jadakiss, The-Dream and Bus-A-Bus himself – all artists who released a single only to lose speed in the end. Like I said, I realize that so much of the industry relies on perfect timing and I’m not advocating rushing out a sloppy, unfinished product, but c’mon … The reality is that often times an artist ends up losing their momentum and steam. How you gonna drop a hot song and then not follow up? People get tired of hearing that a release date has been pushed back, yet again, and whatever promotion you have done up to that point is pretty much wasted. Fans are confused by multiple “lead” singles, some that are actually “promotional” singles or “buzz” singles, or whatever they’re called nowadays. Which one gets a video and the full promotional treatment? How does this help an artist stay in the news and stay popular? Beats me. In this reality of leaked albums, file sharing, DRM-free music (now including the juggernaut known as iTunes Plus), artists need to stay on top of things more than ever. They would be wise to learn a lesson from someone like Beyoncé, who came and dropped two monster singles, kept up the promotion with appearances, scorching videos and killer performances and released her album about a month later to some serious success.

So don’t pull a Nicole Scherzinger (who went straight back to The Pussycat Dolls), Lindsay Lohan (who knows what’s happening there), or an Eve (did she shake that “Tambourine” too hard?) and get your album shelved indefinitely, because people will soon be like “Yo, whatever happened to (fill in the blank)…”

by: Rene Perez

Ok lets be real how much more of this crutch will the hip-hop industry really use. For instance Carrie Underwood is a multiplatinum selling artist and she doesn’t have Auto-Tunes pushing her record sales, plus she sounds awesome live. That’s what makes a real artist, having no gimmicks or crutches. When Aretha Franklin sang she did it with a mic and some great vocals. If you say you’re a genius and you use all kind of gadgets to make your record, then you’re the total opposite when you’re performing at a venue that doesn’t have Auto-Tunes or Melodyne to aid your act. Look if you’re not a singer  and I mean a real singer please hang up the gloves and stick to rapping, don’t get hurt that only singers can turn rappers.

Auto-Tunes is great for the Deacon at the church who can’t sing and you have to cover your ears when he’s giving his solo song testimony. If you can’t perform live or make a record without crutches then get out of the business before you’re the next parody on SNL or the biggest YouTube video hit.

by: Jon Jon Da Don