VH1 Hip-Hop Honors!!

VH1’s “Hip-Hop Honors” 2008 Set for October Premiere

VH1 has announced the upcoming date for its next A-List tentpole event the “VH1 Hip Hop Honors.” Now in its fifth year, “VH1 Hip Hop Honors” will once again pay tribute to the hip hop luminaries who broke new ground and propelled the genre into a truly global news phenomenon.

VH1 will fete this year’s honorees at a high-energy event at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York taping Thursday, October 2, 2008 and premiering on VH1 on Tuesday, October 7.

The music and influence of each of the honorees, to be named later this summer, will be recognized through performances in collaboration with some of today’s hottest talent. Generations of hip hop will bridge the gap for one exceptional night to set it off with the original style and flavor that sparked and inspired the evolution of the music.

Last year’s show was hosted by Tracy Morgan and honored A Tribe Called Quest, Snoop Dogg, WHODINI, Missy Elliott, the film Wild Style and Teddy Riley and Andre Harrell for New Jack Swing. The star-studded 2007 edition also featured performances by the honorees, along with appearances by Ciara, Eve, Pharrell Williams, The Game, T.I., Timbaland, Bow Wow, Busta Rhymes, Common, T-Pain, Keyshia Cole and Nick Cannon as well as Chris Rock, Harvey Keitel, LL Cool J, Kerry Washington and Diddy. Salt -N- Pepa, Nelly Furtado, Ne-Yo, KRS-One The Teacha, Jermaine Dupri, Grandmaster Caz, Nelly, Mos Def, Kool Moe Dee, Grand Wizzard Theodore and The Chief Rocker Busy Bee.

“As we’ll remind viewers with our upcoming ‘VH1 Rock Honors’ show saluting The Who, VH1’s on-air tentpole events represent the best of music and pop culture entertainment. We work tirelessly and passionately to attract the biggest stars in the industry, create must-see buzz and engage record numbers of viewers,” said Tom Calderone, Executive Vice President and General Manager, VH1.

“Our ‘VH1 Hip Hop Honors’ has grown into one of the most anticipated events in the hip hop community, drawing legends from back-in-the-day to the hottest stars of the genre today. This fifth edition will reflect the true power of hip hop while promising to deliver our best Hip Hop Honors show yet,” he added.

Story pulled from: http://www.hiphoplinguistics.com/

Diddy Wants to Anoint You With Fragrant Oils

\
Do you feel kingly yet?
Photo: Courtesy of Sean John

We know we're not alone when we say this, but we completely heart Diddy. His brazen love of self, propensity for speaking in the third person, how much he enjoys being rich. Some have called him "arrogant," and his grand displays of nouveau riche wealth "vulgar" but, to paraphrase Diana Vreeland, better to be vulgar than boring. And Diddy is definitely not boring (case in point: his recent YouTube dispatch warning that levels of global "bitchassness" are reaching record highs).

So we weren't surprised to hear that he was naming his new fragrance I Am King. (Though we were surprised to hear it's expected to make more than $100 million globally in its first year alone. For reals? Damn!) WWD reports that the new cologne will launch exclusively at Macy's in December before going global in February, to be followed by an I Am Queen perfume for all the lay days in 2009.
What's in a name? "I believe in positive affirmations," Diddy says. "If I say, 'I am not going to succeed, I'm a loser,' then that's what I am going to be. If we say we're kings and we say we're queens, that's what we're going to be. It has nothing to do with being arrogant."

The print and TV campaign for I Am King portray Combs as a mogul in a suit, cavorting around Monaco and Saint-Tropez with models Bar Refaeli and Ana Paula, on jet skis around the French Riviera, lounging aboard his palatial yacht and playing the tables inside the Casino de Paris in Monte Carlo. So, you know, his everyday life. According to Diana Espino, vice-president and general manager of Sean John Fragrances, "This is a story that needs to be told." Like the story of Jesus! Who was, coincidentally, also a king, and we bet would've totally dominated at the craps table as well. He would've passed on the jet skis, though: "No thanks, Diddy, I'll walk." —Noelle Hancock

Combs Crowns New Men's Scent [WWD]

Diddy not showing in FASHION WEEK??!

Diddy's New Pres

Sean John appoints Dawn Robertson; celebrates 10th anniversary

Monday, August 04, 2008

(NEW YORK) Sean "Diddy" Combs has become a champion for the electoral process with his Vote or Die campaign. But today his menswear brand announced the appointment of its own president-- Dawn Robertson--effective immediately. Robertson will work directly with Combs, founder and chief executive officer. She was most recently president of Old Navy. Previously, Robertson was managing director of Australian department store Myer; prior to that she was president and chief merchandising officer of Federated Direct, a division of Federated Department Stores. "We are very excited to have Dawn join the Sean John team on the eve of our 10 year anniversary," said Combs. "As the new president, she will help continue the dynamic growth and expansion of our brand."

Sean John will celebrate its diamond anniversary this month. In lieu of debuting the Spring/Summer 2009 collection at MAGIC in Las Vegas, Combs will be hosting an editor preview mid-August at his home base in the Sean John building at 1710 Broadway. And front rowers looking forward to a fashion week extravaganza won't get their fix this season--come September, there will be no Sean John runway show.

NOLA WEINSTEIN
from Fashionweekdaily.com

Nelly's New Underwear!

Sean John Underwear taps internationally renowned recording artist, Nelly, as their new spokesmodel. The first campaign features the rapper donning the Fall collection of underwear basics and loungewear.

The campaign was shot by Randee St. Nicholas and showcases Nelly in both interior and exterior shots at a modern home overlooking Los Angeles.
Sean “Diddy” Combs on picking Nelly for the new campaign:

“I have known Nelly for many years and I really admire his work. To me, Nelly is the quintessential definition of the Sean John man. He has the attitude, the swagger, and most of all the physique that our customers can both aspire and relate to. And let’s be honest, all of the ladies out there are going to be thanking us for this campaign. The images are so strong; they speak for themselves. We are truly excited to welcome Nelly into the Sean John family.”

Nelly on the campaign:

“I have been a big fan of Diddy and the Sean John clothing line for years. So, when they asked me to work with them, it was a real honor. I hope my fans will enjoy this campaign as much as I did shooting it.”

Diddy or Puff Daddy!??

Combs Reverting to Puff Daddy Status?
06/09/2008 10:00 AM, E! Online

Sean Combs must be feeling nostalgic.

The nickname-friendly hip-hop mogul, whose "official" alternate moniker has metamorphosed over the years from Puffy to Puff Daddy to P. Diddy to Diddy and so on, has decided to take a cue from his past.

Although his rep has denied reports of a name change, Combs has indicated on his MySpace site and via a guest appearance on a new single that he is reclaiming Puff Daddy, a handle he hasn't used since 2001.

"They call me Puff Daddy...he's back," Combs raps on the remix of former stylist O'Neal McKnight's single "Check Your Coat," which also features Greg Nice and Jermaine Dupree.
"Yeah, you heard me right—I said Puff Daddy," he continues. "I'm about to back on that Puff Daddy s--t."
Sounds pretty convincing.
Although he originally wrote "This is your boy Puff Daddy!!! Yes Puff Daddy" in a blog entry on his MySpace page, a new entry, dated today, now reads, "This is your boy P.Diddy, the King of the Remix..."

So which is it, Diddy? Er, Daddy?
Well, he certainly doesn't like the idea of anyone else trading on the name Puff Daddy, whether he's using it or not.
The multihyphenate's legal camp recently sent a cease-and-desist letter to cufflink seller Cuff-Daddy.com, warning the niche business that its name is way too close to Combs' second stage name.

It's unclear whether the current reversion to Puff Daddy has anything to do with a British court's decision in 2006 that Combs couldn't go by Diddy in England because U.K. record producer Richard "Diddy" Dearlove had already been using the name professionally for years.

"It's only fair that since he said he used Diddy first, that he be allowed to use it," Combs said amiably at the time. "I am blessed that I have many, many names to choose from."