HRS News

Beyoncé led the pack of Soul Train Music Awards nominations with three nods. Her seemingly indestructible No. 1 track, “Irreplaceable,” garnered attention for Best R&B/Soul Single, Female and Best R&B/Soul or Rap Music Video, while her sophomore album B’Day, was nominated for Best R&B/Soul Album.

Coming up close behind with two noms each were the likes of Chris Brown, John Legend, Chris Brown, Gnarls Barkley, Ne-Yo, Mary J. Blige, Jagged Edge and The Isley Brothers featuring Ronald Isley.

Soul Train creator Don Cornelius missed the announcements due to an illness.

Other music nominees included Jay-Z, Sean Paul, Keyshia Cole, Letoya and Danity Kane.

Omarion and LeToya will co-host the 21st annual Soul Train Music Awards scheduled to take place March 10th ceremony at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium.

Full list of nominees:

Best R&B/Soul Single,Female
“Irreplaceable” Beyoncé
“Take Me As I Am” Mary J. Blige
“Love” Keyshia Cole
“Torn” LeToya (more…)

In the wake of an overturned conviction which would have seen him spend life in prison, C Murder is prepping Screamin’ 4 Vengeance for a March 20 release date.

Featuring lead single “Posted On Tha Block,” the set sees the newly freed rapper address his incarceration for a 2002 murder he says he did not commit.

“A lot of people want to know what’s going on with me and what my personal feelings are as far as what I’ve been through the last five years,” C-Murder said. “I expressed it on ‘Posted On Tha Block. The public’s getting a basic picture of what I’ve been through, how I feel and what’s going on in my mind from that song.”

“Posted On Tha Block” is accompanied by an innovative clip shot in New Orleans. Using the Dream Sequence program, the video has a unique storybook-like feel but C-Murder, under court gag order could not appear in the video. Making a cameo in the video is longtime C-Murder friend and collaborator, Snoop Dogg.

Guests on the album include Chamillionaire, LeToya, Slim Thug and Pimp C.

Screamin’ 4 Vengeance also marks the rebirth of the independent Priority Records, once home to the likes of N.W.A, Ice Cube, Eazy-E, Master P and more.

Jermaine Dupri has been appointed president of urban music for Island Records, a new division of the Island Def Jam Music Group. The move reunites Dupri with Antonio “L.A.” Reid, currently Chairman of Island Def Jam Music Group.

“I’m so excited to be reunited with L.A. Reid because most of my biggest hits were when he and I worked together,” said Dupri. “I can’t wait for us to start stuntin’ on y’all.”

Today, Reid announced that in addition to Dupri being top man for Island’s entire urban music operation, part of the arrangement will also see him produce artists on the entire Universal Music Group family of labels as well as the urban division.

“Jermaine’s career has grown from strength to strength over the years as a producer and songwriter and recording artist in his own right, as a respected label executive and entrepreneur, and as a highly esteemed developer of new talent, said Reid. “His deep ties to Atlanta’s creative R&B and hip-hop community have been the springboard to working with the greatest names in contemporary music.”

In October 2006, Dupri stepped down as president of urban music at Virgin where he signed Dem Franchize Boyz and brokered the deal with OutKast’s Big Boi and his Purple Ribbon imprint. Dupri left Virgin after his girlfriend Janet Jackson’s last album, 20 Y.O, whichhe co-executive produced, bombed on the sales charts.