Rubin Studdard hospitalized and released for exhaustation
American Idol star Ruben Studdard was hospitalized last week for and has reportedly been released from the hospital in his native Birmingham, Alabama, after spending three days there recovering from exhaustion.
The velvet teddy bear singer was admitted last Tuesday after a bout of bronchitis left him overtired and he spent Thanksgiving morning in hospital before he was allowed to leave and spend the rest of the holiday with his family.
Studdard is expected to return to Los Angeles this week, where he's currently filming a TV diet segment for the news show EXTRA.
source: spotlightonR&B.com
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New Will Downing album ready for the 'Christmas'
Singer Will Downing has a great deal to celebrate these days. The smooth vocaled crooner recently celebrated a birthday turning 41 and he also has a new album in stores.
The disc called 'Christmas, Love and You' is a holday CD that mixes holiday favorites with several original cuts. Christmas has always been a source of memories for Downing, who grew up in the Albany projects in Brooklyn’s Crown Heights .
He is hoping that the disc will provide listeners with a new soundtrack that enhances fond Christmas memories to come. The CD is in record stores now.
- Source: spotlightonR&B.com
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Brian McKnight set to write 'Martial Arts' theme
Singer-songwriter Brian McKnight has been tapped by pop musician Leslie Loh to collaborate on the theme song for a forthcoming martial arts flick called Black Salt. The song will be included on the soundtrack, which will feature a score by Loh, a popular Hong Kong-born multi-instrumentalist
whose current single, "Boom Bang Bang," is a hit in the U.K.
Black Salt is described as an epic about a powerful and ancient form of
martial arts practiced by the Shaolin for hundreds of years. The concept
is already the subject of a popular video game and comic book. The film version is due from October Pictures sometime in 2005, according to the concept's owner, Owen Ratliff of Ratti Entertainment.
McKnight has contributed to other film soundtracks, including Jason's Lyric, Stuart Little, Life, Men Of Honor, and Nutty Professor II: The Klumps, among others. McKnight's latest single, "What We Do Here," has climbed to Number One on the national urban AC radio airplay charts. The song is the lead single from McKnight's new album, Gemini, which will be released February 8th, 2005.
- Source: billboard.com
Jody Watley gears up for new album in 2005__________________________________________________________________
If you've been looking for a new song from Jody Watley recently then you won't have to look too much longer. According to the magazine Billboard, the former Soul Train dancer turned singer has stepped back into the lime light and backin the studio.
The once one third member of the 80s R&B group Shalamar is busy collaborating with songwriter and producer Milan Ross, but so far no label has been attached to the still untitled project nor a date for the release of the album.
After a successful stint with Shalamar, Watley stepped onto the soul/R&B scene as a solo artist in 1987 and took off with her smash hit “Looking for a New Love.” taken from her self-titled debut solo LP. Subsequent hits soon followed in the tracks “Don’t You Want Me” and “Still a Thrill.” Her videos and style created a fashion phenomenon. She won a Grammy for Best New Artist that year. More to come so stay tuned.
- Source: billboard.com