Jennifer Hudson: I've Forgiven Eric Balfour After Brutal Family Murder

Jennifer Hudson can forgive the man, but she can't forgive the act.
Less than a month after her brother-in-law, William Balfour, was convicted of murdering her 57-year-old mother, Darnell Donerson, her 29-year-old brother, Jason Hudson, and her 7-year-old nephew, Julian King, on October 24, 2008, the Academy Award winner shared her grief during an appearance on September 9 episode of Oprah's Next Chapter.
(On July 24, Balfour, 31, was sentenced to three consecutive life terms in prison without the possibility of ever being paroled.)
"I'm not letting him off the hook for anything," Hudson, 30, told host Oprah Winfrey, 58. Though she holds him "very responsible" for murdering her immediate family members, Hudson said she's also learned to forgive Balfour.
"I feel like, for the most part, it's not his fault. It's what he was taught. How was brought up. We tried to offer love, but he was so far gone, he couldn't even see that. A lot of things came out [during the trial] that we didn't even know about from his upbringing. . . He never had a chance. He never had a chance," Hudson explained. "Had he had the love that my mother gave us, or the background that some have, then he would have stood a chance. How could your heart not go out to that?"
When Cook County Circuit Judge Charles Burns delivered Balfour's sentencing in July, the singer -- who finished in seventh place on American Idol in 2004 -- "felt so many things," she told Winfrey. "There was definitely a celebration because he's off the streets. My child [David, Jr., 3] is going to be safe."
Hudson's interview with Winfrey was conducted on August 14 -- what would have been her nephew's 11th birthday. "I haven't been to the grave site since we buried them, but now I want to go because I feel like, 'Okay, we've accomplished this. We've done this. We got justice for you. We can't come back here empty handed,'" Hudson said. "So now I feel like I deserve to be able to see them."
With Balfour behind bars, Hudson feels she's gotten closure -- even though the tragedy will haunt her forever. "I remember one time when William had an argument with my sister. They had split up he went up to her job and he told her, 'I'm gonna take Julian,'" Hudson shared. "And Julian went home and told my mother, and my mother said, 'Over my dead baby.' That's exactly what happened."
This article originally appeared on Usmagazine.com: Jennifer Hudson: I've Forgiven Eric Balfour After Brutal Family Murder

D'Banj disowns Nigerians, parties with Ladacris

African music maestro and entrepreneur, D’Banj was expected at an event last weekend in Lagos, but was no where to be found. We just reliably gathered that the Koko master joined other international superstars Akon, Ludacris, Kevin Hart, Pusha T and many other stars at the 7th Annual Luda Day Weekend which held over the weekend.
The five day event which was organized by the Ludacris Foundation included a celebrity basketball party as well as a Welcome to Atlanta Dinner.
D’Banj who only recently opened for British singer and songwriter Rita Ora is currently having a scintillating international career. He notes that artistes have come a long way from being just singers and musicians and are giving back positively to their communities. We’re wearing many hats now, ’entrepreneurs’ ‘activists’ ‘social icons’ ‘role models’ and so much more.”
“Music,at any time,can place millions of individuals on one united platform. We always say that music is our ‘bridge to connect with the people’. Well, its time more acts walked the talk, just like Ludacris and other artistes are doing, and give back to their community, he concluded.

Behind The Scenes: On Set At Davido’s “All Of You” Video Shoot

Davido is gearing up for the 5th video from his album, and the song that gets that honors is the first track in the album, All Of You. The video was shot in Brooklyn, NY, and should be ready for the public shortly.

R. Kelly 'owes another million in unpaid taxes'

Legendary singer-songwriter R.Kelly has accrued another million dollars on his tax tab, it is being reported.

According to documents filed in Illinois, the I Believe I Can Fly singer owes America a cool $1,379,695.11 for unpaid taxes for the year 2011. 


Tax bill: R Kelly is said to owe another million in back taxes

TMZ carries the report and were also the first to reveal that Kelly, 45, owed $4,848,072.71 in unpaid taxes for the years 2005-2010.

This means that his total $6,227,767.82.

A spokesperson for Kelly told the website: 'He takes this very seriously and is already communicating with the IRS about the payment process to quickly resolve the issue.'

Kelly, born Robert Sylvester Kelly, is often referred to as the King of R&B, and is  is recognized as one of the most successful R&B artists of all-time.


Hugely successful: R.Kelly also has his book, Soulacoaster under his belt

A native of Chicago, Illinois, Kelly began performing during the late 1980s and debuted in 1992 with the group Public Announcement.

In 1993, Kelly went solo with the album 12 Play.

He is known for a collection of major hit singles including Bump n' Grind, Your Body's Callin, I Believe I Can Fly, Gotham City, Ignition (Remix), If I Could Turn Back the Hands of Time, The World's Greatest, I'm a Flirt, and the hip-hopera Trapped in the Closet.

In 1998, Kelly won three Grammy Awards for I Believe I Can Fly

Football star tortured and killed mistress, then fed her dismembered body to his dogs

A star footballer is to go on trial accused of torturing and killing his mistress, then feeding her dismembered body parts to his pet dogs.

Married Bruno Fernandes de Souza, 27, a goalkeeper once tipped to play for Brazil, is alleged to have turned model Eliza Samudio 'into a human sacrifice' to preserve his reputation after she gave birth to his love child.

He is already serving a four-and-a-half-year prison sentence after being convicted of assaulting and abducting Ms Samudio, 25, but will be tried for her murder later this year.

Prosecutors allege that Bruno planned Ms Samudio's kidnap and murder with eight others, including his wife Dayane, a teenage cousin and former detective Luiz Santos, all of whom have been charged with murder, conspiracy to murder and kidnapping.

The goalkeeper, who played for Brazilian club Flamengo, is said to have watched as Santos committed 'barbaric tortures' on Ms Samudio before helping the former detective dismember her body.

Parts of the woman's body are alleged to have been fed to Bruno's dogs while the rest was buried in concrete.

Bruno is accused of ordering his wife to tell people that his love child, who was four months old at the time of the killing, had been adopted by them from a poor relative.

It is also claimed that Bruno told police Ms Samudio was 'a whore who will not be missed by anyone'.

A Brazilian newspaper has reported that the prosecution at the trial will allege that Bruno attacked a supporter, smoked cannabis and attended orgies with fellow players.

Edson Moreira, a detective who investigated the case, told the Sunday Express: 'An idol like Bruno, from such a major team, has turned out to be a monster.

'We have witnesses who will testify that he turned this girl into a human sacrifice merely to try to protect his reputation.'

The trial is expected to hear that Bruno met Ms Samudio at a party held by a teammate.

'Unfortunately for her, they slept together that night and she later discovered she was pregnant,' Mr Moreira said. 'When she approached de Souza and told him he was the father, he became enraged.


Prosecutors will allege that Bruno planned Ms Samudio's murder after she told him she would take legal action to prove he was the father of her child.

In a statement to police, his cousin claimed that, led by Santos, they kidnapped Ms Samudio from a hotel in Rio de Janeiro on June 4, 2010.

He said they drove her some 220 miles to a property in Belo Horizonte which the footballer and his wife used occasionally as a weekend retreat, where Ms Samudio was tortured.

It is claimed that Santos played loud music on the stereo to drown out the woman's screams.

Bruno, whose contract with Flamengo has been suspended, also faces charges of kidnapping, hiding a body and forming a criminal gang with intent to murder.

He has maintained his innocence throughout, claiming he has a 'clear conscience'.

Al Pacino attached to play Joe Paterno

Joe Paterno’s legacy may soon unfold on film.

Deadline Hollywood reports that a biopic of the late Penn State football coach is in the works, with Al Pacino attached to star as JoePa. The beloved sports figure died in January at 85 following his exit from the football program in November, 2011 amidst a child sexual abuse scandal.


The film, to be produced by Pacino’s manager, Rick Nicita, will be based on the best-selling biography from sportswriter Joe Posnanski, “Paterno.” Deadline suspects the film’s arc will include the controversy that led to Paterno’s dismissal, but notes that the movie would focus on much more than that.

As patterned after Posnanski’s book, the project is expected to highlight Paterno’s family, his pre-Penn State life as well as the impact he made at the university.

However, much needs to happen before the film could be viewed as a sure thing: No deal’s in place, there isn’t a script, and the project doesn’t yet have a director attached to helm.

Miley Cyrus Avoids Scissor-Wielding Intruder

Miley Cyrus managed to avoid an especially unwelcome guest on her Los Angeles property early Saturday morning.
The Associated Press reports that an unidentified man, clutching a pair of scissors, tried to force his way inside Cyrus' Studio City area residence around 4 a.m., claiming to be a friend of the "Can't Be Tamed" singer. (Cyrus, luckily, was not home at the time.)
Los Angeles police Lt. Brian Wendling says authorities were called by employees inside the house; law enforcement officials arrested the suspect after they saw him jump behind some bushes on the property.
No charges have been filed against the trespasser at this time.