Dustin Hoffman, Letterman to receive Kennedy Center Honors

This year’s Kennedy Center Honors will recognize the achievements of seven artists across disciplines, from acting to comedy to dance.

Dustin Hoffman, David Letterman, Buddy Guy, ballerina Natalia Makarova, and Led Zeppelin members John Paul Jones, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant will be honored this December for their “lifetime contributions to American culture through the performing arts,” the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts announced Wednesday.


“With their extraordinary talent, creativity and tenacity, the seven 2012 Kennedy Center Honorees have contributed significantly to the cultural life of our nation and the world,” Kennedy Center Chairman David M. Rubenstein said in a statement.

Bluesman Buddy Guy, Rubenstein said, “is a titan of the blues and has been a tremendous influence on virtually everyone who has picked up an electric guitar in the last half century.” Meanwhile, acting legend Hoffman has displayed an “unyielding commitment” while portraying a “wide variety of roles” has made him “one of the most versatile and iconoclastic actors of this or any other generation,” Rubenstein added.

“David Letterman is one of the most influential personalities in the history of television, entertaining an entire generation of late-night viewers with his unconventional wit and charm; Natalia Makarova’s profound artistry has ignited the stages of the world’s greatest ballet companies and continues to pass the torch to the next generation of dancers; and Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant transformed the sound of rock and roll with their lyricism and innovative song structures, infusing blues into the sound of rock and roll and laying the foundation for countless rock bands,” he concluded.

The honorees will receive their Kennedy Center Honors medallions at a State Dinner hosted by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and then on December 2 they’ll join the President and the First Lady for the annual gala.

President Obama and First Lady Michelle will receive the seven honorees, among others, at the White House before the festivities move to the Kennedy Center Opera House, where the group will be recognized with plenty of performances and tributes from their artistic peers

EXCLUSIVE: Coolio's Son Grtis Ivey -- Sentenced for Hookerific Robbery

Coolio's son Grtis Ivey -- who appeared on the family reality show "Coolio's Rules" -- has just been sentenced to prison for robbing an apartment in Vegas with a lady hooker friend ... and he could be locked up for 10 YEARS.A rep for the Clark County District Attorney's office tells TMZ, 22-year-old Grtis was sentenced to serve between 42-120 months in prison -- meaning he has to serve at LEAST 42 months ... but if the Nevada Department of Corrections finds good reason, it can hold him for up to 10 years. As we first reported, Ivey was arrested on November 14, 2011 for busting into a Las Vegas apartment with a gun and forcing the tenant into the bathroom ... while his female prostitute friend ransacked the place.Ivey agreed to plead guilty to felony robbery -- and in exchange, prosecutors dropped the remaining felony charges.Ivey has been in custody since his arrest and will receive credit for time served.

The Tonto Dike you don’t know

Nollywood actress, Tonto Dike may strike many as a magnet for controversy, but a stroll into her world reveals there’s more to her than controversies, tattoos, cigarettes, twitter fights and drama.
Here’s the Tonto Dike you do not know:
Born on June 9th, 1985, Dike is now a force to reckon with in Nollywood, the Nigerian movie industry. With an increasing number of Nollywood movies to her credit, she has gradually acquired a large fan base among Nollywood movie fans, both in Africa and in other parts of the world such as the United States, where these movies are exceedingly popular. The light skinned, beautiful and talented Tonto has her determination and her God to thank for her break into the limelight.
Growing up without her mum, Tonto was confined to the parental care of her father and later on, her stepmother, in a family of nine. At a tender age, she gained admiration for notable Hollywood stars Julia Roberts and Al Pacino, and said to herself, ‘I can do this.‘
Her description of Julia Roberts: ‘Lighthearted and serious-minded, brave in the face of any movie role that comes her way…. I see a lot of Julia Roberts in myself.‘ The journey to acting had its rough patches, the most threatening being her admission into University to study engineering. She says, ‘Deep within my heart, I cried, thinking I would never achieve my dreams.‘ She had embraced the idea of the incompatibility between higher education and acting.
However, she decided to take on both activities with enough passion to keep her going till the end, a decision that worked in her favour. Tonto is a graduate of petrochemical engineering from the University of Science and Technology (RSUST) Nigeria.
Tonto’s big break came in 2006 through a Nigerian reality TV show, The Next Movie Star, where she emerged the first runner-up, exposing her to the world of Nigerian movie entertainment. Her experience, she says, was a lot of fun and very emotional, helping her learn the concepts of theater arts, including character analysis and interpretation.
At the end of the reality TV show, Tonto had become acquainted with a few people in the industry who believed in her dreams, and movie roles started coming. Since then, she has been fully involved in a series of Nigerian movies, acting alongside other prominent Nigerian actors.
She still has bigger dreams, with Hollywood and the opportunity to take classes at the New York Film Academy as her next targets. She also intends to own a standard editing studio and a petrochemicals firm in Nigeria.
Apart from starring in movies, Tonto loves dancing, reading fictional novels and her Bible. With her impressive aspirations, there’s definitely a lot more to come from Miss Tonto Dikeh.
Up close and Personal with Miss Tonto Dikeh:
WHO I AM…
I’m a very simple person by nature, I’m focused, I’m very business minded, I’m more of an indoors person (that you might be able to understand from my childhood), I’m an independent woman, I’m a good listener, I’m a very emotional person I hate to see people cry and hurt, I’m a very understanding person but  I lack patience. I’m not exactly a quiet person, I love originality, I love to be myself in everything I do, I love to see people around me useful and productive. I’m a very hard working woman, a woman proud of herself but not pompous, I hate free times and holidays….Above all, I am a very good Christian…
MY FEARS…
I am a very fearless person, I love to take all the risk Life brings my way, sometimes I come out wounded but I learn from it all and it makes me a stronger person than I was…..but my greatest fear or worry is FAILURE…..I see it as a plague…
MY HAPPIEST MOMENTS…
My happiest moment is when I’m in church, where I can feel the presence of God…For me it’s a place of peace, a place I can talk to My Creator the only one who sees me for who I am, who never criticizes me, the only one who understands all things. I love my moment with God, IT REFRESHES ME AND MAKES ME HAPPY….
MY ROLE MODELS…
My Number one person I look up to after My GOD is my Papi (dad), he is an inspiration to me in so many ways, he gives me strength to go on when everything seems down…
In the Movie industry I admire AL-PACINO and JULIE ROBERTS, I think they are fantastic actors (Their ability to play different roles in different movies without a trace of characterization carry over is an amazing thing)….In Nollywood I admire the likes of RITA DOMINIC, INI EDO, RAMSEY NOAH, RICHARD MOFE-DAMIJO..
MY HOBBIES…
I love driving a lot and watching movies…
MY PHILOSOPHIES OF LIFE…
1. Life is only for the living, so make good use of what’s left of your life on earth…
2. There is nothing that we go through in life that God doesn’t know we can come out of, because if you can’t, God wouldn’t let it come to you…
3. Everyone is special in their own way…
4. Nobody was born a pauper, the riches we desire is within us we only need to lok harder…
5. If you think your situation is the worst, wait till you hear what other peple are going through…
6. Envy and Bitterness is only a way of stopping your blessings..

Former governor James Ibori turns prayer warrior in UK prison

Former Delta State Governor, James Onanefe ibori is now experiencing the golden truth about the Biblical saying that “whatever a man soweth, that he shall reap.” Ibori sowed the seed of corruption in his 8-year rule as Delta State helmsman. He was crafty enough to escape.

Sources from the prisons, said the former Delta State Governor is now an imprisonment in Nigeria, but not in the United Kingdom where he was slammed with 13 years imprisonment by a Southwark Crown Court in London. Now, James Ibori is alleged to be full of regrets for his past misdeeds. He has also reportedly turned a new leaf. ardent student of the Bible which he now carries always as a companion.

“Ibori has been visited by the Holy Spirit; he is no longer the same. From the way he now talks, it seems old things have passed away and all things have become new. I observed that he said a little prayer when he alighted from the prison van and when he was standing in the dock. I heard something like God is in control from him as he walked away from the court. He was really looking very sober, I think he may have become a born again Christian,” the source said.

The former strongman of Delta politics has now become an avid Bible reader as he recently told a relative in a message that he has been reading and studying the message of the Bible as well as engaged in fervent prayers in the prisons.

“Ibori inferred in a censored message he sent to one of his relatives who interacted with me that he spent most of his days in detention reading the Bible and praying fervently. He said he has fasted about four days in prison. He described his prison cell as being okay but not too comfortable,” our sources added.

KIM KARDASHIAN Wears See Through Bra, Wishes Fans “Sweet Dreams” (PHOTO)

KIM KARDASHIAN wore a see through bra in one of her latest Twitter photos and wished her fans “Sweet Dreams” with it.
Unfortunately, we don’t think many were able to sleep after seeing this image:

As usual, Kim Kardashian couldn’t bear do a racy photo shoot—which she once called a “vintage” shoot where she lays down on a slab in a semi-sheer white lingerie with garter belts, a pearl necklace and some fur—and not show it to her fans.
But while she looked like she was in a rather uncomfortable pose and clothing to sleep in (although she’s obviously very used to wearing lingerie by now) the reality star tweeted “Goodnight” along with the picture.

And to make sure that viewers do get a good night’s sleep, she uploaded a closer shot—this time, with her left nipple more visible through her bra—with the message:
“Sweet dreams.”
Clearly, jammies and night gowns are overrated.
What can you say about Kim‘s latest lingerie pics?
Photos Via Kim Kardashian‘s Twitter

BIG SHAME: Nigerian Government No Show to Receive Winning Paralympics Team – “In Our Country, Nobody Regards us as Anybody”

What a big shame. Enough said. “When the 29-man team arrived the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) at about 2.30pm on Tuesday afternoon, there was no official of National Sports Commission on hand to receive them. . . Nigeria finished in 22nd position at the global showpiece with a total of 13 medals comprising 6 gold 5 silver and 2 bronze medals.”- Channels TV - Photo: Yakubu Adesokan, winner of the 1st gold medal for Nigeria at the 2012 Paralympics London event in the 48kg class Power Lifting category. Adeosokan also broke world record.

ALBUM REVIEW : LIL WAYNE, DEDICATION 4

Despite his blatant charade of nonchalance (which was heavily conveyed at this year's MTV Video Music Awards as he listened to music on his headphones throughout most of the event), Lil Wayne does care about his legacy. "I hope I'm remembered," Weezy confesses at the very end of his latest offering, Dedication 4. With D4, he adds another chapter to his legacy as an inventive artist who could flip the same subject matters until kingdom come.
The title of the second track encapsulates the entire tape, for it is indeed the "Same Damn Tune." Birdman Junior's skillful wordplay over others' beats and a few originals has clearly not tailed off. "You know that I ain't got no ceilings/The money changed me/I'm making cha-millions," Weezy voices over the instrumental to Meek Mill's "Amen." That is not to say he lacks weak lyrics on D4 ("Smoke so much that Smokey the Bear have to bear with us," Tunechi blandly phrases on one of his new singles, "No Worries," produced by Detail).
However, bars as dull as those are few and far between, almost as rare as the moments when featured guests pulled a Jay-Z, contribute a scene-stealing verse. It is debatable whether J. Cole did just that on "Green Ranger," yet that is not the case for Nicki Minaj's guest spot on "Mercy." Both artists represented YMCMB well over the G.O.O.D. Music clique's instrumental, but Nicki just went harder, generating one of her most infamous bars to date. "I'm a Republican, voting for Mitt Romney/You lazy bitches fucking up thee economy," Nicki spit, to her Barbz's pleasure and Democrats' disgust, leading to death threats via Twitter.
Even so, Weezy surely does not mind sharing his colossal limelight, as proven by his lukewarm offerings I Am Not a Human Being and Dedication 3, both of which were flooded with features. Tune proves this once again on D4, not contributing a single bar to "My Homies Still (RMX)," which allowed Young Jeezy, Jae Millz and Gudda Gudda to rock the mic without his assistance. For all that, most tracks that feature another artist ("Amen," "Mercy," "Get Smoked" and "Green Ranger") seem to bring the best out of the New Orleans native. "I'm on a pain pill/I keep this shit trill/These niggas ain't for real, like a fire drill/Yo ho on my back, like a fucking fifth wheel/That bitch make her pussy open and close like fish gills," he asserts on "Get Smoked."
Dedication 4 features some trademark Lil Wayne, another impressive array of plays on words about oral sex, life euphemisms, drugs, superiority over others, light-skinned women and guns, while adding some new content to the short list--namely, his newest clothing line, Trukfit. Weezy will celebrate his 30th birthday later this month, and although D4 will not be celebrated as much some of his other work, he does reminds all why Hova considered sending "D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)" to "the Mixtape Weezy."