MONDAY'S MEGA HOT R&B SCOOPS AND EXCLUSIVES....

R&B Bajan singer Rihanna performed at Radio 1's Big Weekend 2007 which is Europe's biggest free ticketed event. With a stellar line up of top UK and international artists it took place on the 19th and 20th May 2007. Rihanna performed the following tracks: Pon de Replay, Break It Off, SOS, Breakin' Dishes, Unfaithful, Shut Up & Drive and her new track Umbrella:



You can watch her perform Umbrella at the event here. You can watch her Breakin' Dishes performance here. And you can watch her Shut Up & Drive performance here. And also, her whole album Good Girl Gone Bad leaked early this morning so you know I had to download my copy. I am shocked that the whole CD has leaked and we have 3 weeks to go for the release. This is what you would call the ultimate devastation. Inside this post, you will find a couple of tracks from Good Girl Gone Bad given to you exclusively by Toya's World (sorry folks but I will NOT be posting the whole album on here and please don't bombard my email. It's really not that hard to find). And there is also a Keyshia Cole exclusive inside this post. Keyshia's new album Just Like You is coming ya'll! Enjoy the MEGA update.

LEAKED!!!



Don't Stop The Music - Rihanna [Download]
Breakin' Dishes - Rihanna [Download]
Shut Up & Drive [Download]
Say It - Rihanna [Download]
Sell Me Candy - Rihanna [Download]
Good Girl Gone Bad - Rihanna [Download]

Toya's Album Review: Good Girl Gone Bad

Wow. She really is slowly ditching the R&B for a more retro-pop and rock type sound if this new album is anything to go by. And as for the slower tracks, Ne-yo has recycled all of his beats including Beyonce's Irreplaceable for Good Girl Gone Bad and his own hit So Sick/Sexy Love for Hate That I Love You. This guy should be given the nickname Ne-yo the beat recycle jacker because he cannot seem to produce anything fresh. My favourite tracks on the album are Say It, Sell Me Candy, Don't Stop The Music, Lemme Get That, Good Girl Gone Bad and Umbrella. Worst song on the album would have to be Breakin' Dishes. I partially liked the album and the new sound is definitely more edgier and compelling. Rating: 3/5

And you can also check out her live performance of Umbrella when she performed at Z100's Zootopia 2007 this past weekend:



Her stage presence is SLIGHTLY improving but she is still stiff as hell as if she's counting the steps in her head.

Rihanna has also achieved her first-ever UK number one. Rihanna's latest single Umbrella which features rapper Jay-Z has went straight in to number one last night on the UK singles chart and that is on downloads ALONE making UK history in the process. Umbrella is not even out in stores yet, but is available digitally. Rihanna is ONLY the 2nd artist in the UK to score a no1 on downloads alone. Nobody has done this since Gnarl's Barkley's "Crazy". Rihanna's biggest hit in the UK prior to Umbrella was Pon De Replay back in 2005 and that got to no2. Her second and third biggest hits after that was Unfaithful and SOS and those two made it to top 5 positions, but Umbrella tops them all! Rihanna's career has gone from strength to strength which has seen Rihanna have her name endorsed to high-profile brands such as Nike, LG mobile phones, CoverGirl and many other advertising campaigns. Her new album Good Girl Gone Bad is set to drop 5th June 2007 which is in approximately 3 weeks time. Her second single, the pop-rock driven Shut Up And Drive has already been sent out to radio.

Meanwhile, check out these really cool portraits of Rihanna. They were taken at the Kiss Concert 2007:


[images courtesy of oh-rihanna.com]

I guess this new image of hers is slowly beginning to grow on me but she's definitely targeting a broader audience this time round.

But the mind continues to boggle. What on earth has happened to Teairra Mari, Rihanna's other Def Jam sidekick? You can also check out a couple of throwback pictures of Teairra Mari and Rihanna when they first got signed by Jay-Z further down this post.

Anyway, here's another Toya's World exclusive. A brand new track from Keyshia's Cole's upcoming album called Let It Go is now available for download and it features Lil Kim and Missy:



It is not yet known whether this song will be the first single off her sophomore album Just Like You but it's slamming despite the beat being over-sampled. Check it out.

The early days of Rihanna and Teairra Mari:














[Mad props to PSG for the pics, and you can view much more at my photobucket account]

Big things were in the pipeline for Teairra Mari and her track Make A Girl Feel Good was pretty hot, even if the lyrics were overly mature for a girl her age. Jay-Z travelled with both signees all over the globe. London's TRL was one of their destinations where Jay-Z introduced both acts to the London crowd. Jay-Z even chilled with Teairra Mari on the set of her debut video. Rihanna and Teairra would often attend New York parties hosted by Jay-Z and were regular attendees of Jay-Z's 40/40 nightclub despite being under-aged at the time. They both got to mingle with Jay-Z's superstar girlfriend Beyonce on many occasions. Only one of his signees were to see commercial success. Rihanna made it. Teairra didn't. But when it all became prevalent that Teairra's career was going nowhere, Jay-Z showed less enthusiasm and decided to put all of his energies into Rihanna's career instead as her future appeared to be more thriving. Soon enough, Teairra got dropped from the label. Despite recording her sophomore album (ironically entitled Second Round) Teairra Mari is still shopping for a new record deal whilst Rihanna is now on her third album in 3 years. With an identical physical likeness to Beyonce, rumours had speculated that Rihanna was most likely Jay-Z's type. Since the pair became considerably close, reports suggested that the green-eyed monster started to develop in Beyonce which also triggered off speculation that her hit single Ring The Alarm was aimed at the Unfaithful singer. The last time we got a Teairra Mari sighting was when she was seen hanging out with Beyonce's younger sister Solange and Kelly Rowland in Miami on the beach and in Miami's hottest night spots late last year. Still undeterred by her dismissal from Def Jam, Teairra was still living it up with her celebrity pals but as to whether this second album of hers will see the light of day, we will just have to wait and see what happens.

Anyway, Rihanna really is trying to pull off this new rocker/old school 80's look when she performed at Radio 1's Big Weekend yesterday:



I liked this outfit. Shock horror! But her obsession with the gloves is very unbecoming.

The sexy Amerie performed at the "Because I Love It" Record Release Party in Tokyo - May 20, 2007:





Amerie's album Because I Love It got released today in the UK and she's been promoting like crazy. I can't wait to see her entry next Sunday.

On the 20th May 2007, gorgeous R&B starlet Christina Milian attended the Taurus World Stunt Awards:






As I keep saying it is most definitely a sin to be this beautiful. Another day that goes by where Christina doesn't refrain from looking stunning.

And here, she changed off to rock Rihanna and Solange's signature style of dress:



She looked totally fab. If anyone can pull it off, it's her, Rihanna and Solange of course.

Mya attended Playboy's celebration for the season 2 DVD release of 'The girls next door' a couple of days ago:


[images courtesy of myaharrison.net]

Never mind attending Playboy parties. This is the career path that stares Mya in the face especially with the way things are going right now. And this time she really will mean it when she's singing about that ass being whoa.

Janet and her man Jermaine Dupri was spotted out and about this past weekend:





It looks like they finally bit the bullet and said fuck it, let's get married. If so, I be damned! Of course they could be attending somebody else's wedding but really I'm not even certain of the circumstances surrounding these new pictures. If JD finally did put a golden band on that finger I say congrats to them. Janet looked lovely. And she does deserve happiness, even if it's with a troll. Still I'd be amazed because this would be her third marriage. But these two have been together a hot minute now and they've gone past the dating stages so it only seems right that they take the plunge and exchange nuptials.

Hpnotiq hosted John Legend's After Concert Party at LIGHT Nightclub at The Bellagio Hotel and Casino Resort:





Wow. All sorts of wow. John Legend's pants are tighter than my south regions after watching Jay-Z, Ne-yo and 50 Cent indulge in a threesome together. Damn, they outline his pert ass immaculately. So not a cool look. And his love for skin tight trousers have noticeably been a consistent thing of late.

The Cheetah Girls attended the "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" World Premiere:





I guess Disney really are paying these chicks some serious cheques for them to arrive at a billion events under their Cheetah Girl motif. The money must be so darn good, they no longer feel the need to have anything to do with their group name 3LW and decided to ditch it to carry on as the Cheetah Girls instead. Poor Jessica who had to nurture the chewed-and-spat-out treatment. Raven Symone is younger than all of them and you never see this chick hanging with them. Wonder why that is.

Eric Benet attended the Victoria Rowell Steps Out for High Tea at Noon event:



Wow. I guess it really IS true that he snagged up Prince's ex-wife Manuela Nelson. All I can say is WOW.

Well, I've posted some exclusive brand new Rihanna tracks and I've also posted a brand new Keyshia Cole track but the new music doesn't stop there either. I got more goodies so check out my latest R&B singles review on some new leaked joints:





Lose Myself - Lauryn Hill
Lauryn Hill really is making a comeback. Contrary to certain reports about her scheduling gigs in California and London, I guess Lose Myself will be one of many offerings from her new album. And the overall style is definitely different to previous material released in the past. The song is really hip, really edgy and very groovy-driven. Check it out.

Good Girl - Chrisette Michele
This is the very first time that Chrisette Michele is getting a mention on Toya's World. And after listening to this track I totally dig her style. Not only is she a talented vocalist but her music is hot. Good Girl is not just your typical R&B track but it packs in a catchiness that you can't help but sing along to. If this is representative of new singing sensation Chrisette, I simply cannot wait to hear what else she brings to the table. Check it out.

Special - Jennifer Hudson feat Papoose
Jennifer Hudson has yet to establish herself as some kind of artist. OK, so she started out performing on American Idol and she has received many accolades for the track And I'm Not Telling You during her co-starring role in Dream Girls. But this leaked track taken from her recent recording sessions does not fully emphasise Jen's fullest potential as a vocalist and to top it all off, the song is very mediocre. As she's currently recording her debut album on J Records, I hope this is not the direction she will be heading musically because a lot of people will be very disappointed. Check it out.

On & On - Nicole Scherzinger feat Manni
Nicole's album Her Name Is Nicole is scheduled to drop later this year and her first single is scheduled to hit radio next month. This is a track that samples another R&B classic (Zhane originally recorded this I believe). Her rendition is catchy and more up-to-date but doesn't touch the original back in the day when R&B music was mad hot. Sounds like her album will be full of fun-loving dance anthems if this track and Steam is anything to go by. I look forwards to hearing other future material. Check it out.

Ghettolicious - Brooke Valentine
See what Beyonce done started? Bootylicious and now Ghettolicious. I wonder if this new synonym will make the urban dictionary like Bootylicious did. Anyway, this is yet another typical Brooke track, kind of on the wack side really. What is going on with her album Physical Education? Her first single Dope Girl was mad hot but flopped hard which resulted in the album being pushed back. With tracks like this, is it any wonder why the girl can't come out yet? Check it out.

Now That You've Got It Remix - Gwen Stefani feat Damien Marley
This summery reggae-influenced track features Rastafarian singer Damien Marley. I'm not really big on Gwen's music to be honest with you. And her Barbie doll voice does my head in at times but this is definitely a catchy head-bopper of a single that you can tolerate whilst cruising in your car this summer as it definitely has that overall summer vibe. Check it out.

Stay tuned!

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