Pimp

Statue of a young 19th-century prostitute with her pimp
Occupation
Description

A pimp is an agent for prostitutes who collects part of their earnings. The pimp may receive this money in return for advertising services, physical protection, or for providing (or in some cases monopolizing) a location where she may engage clients. A woman who runs a brothel is known as a madam rather than a pimp.

Like prostitution, the legality of certain actions of a madam or a pimp vary from one region to the next. Pimps may punish johns for physical abuse or failure to pay, advertise services to potential clients without alerting police, and enforce exclusive rights to 'turf' where their prostitutes may advertise and operate with less competition.^[1] In the many places where prostitution is outlawed, sex workers have decreased incentive to report abuse for fear of self-incrimination, and increased motivation to seek any physical protection from clients and law enforcement that a pimp might provide.

The pimp-prostitute relationship can be abusive and possessive, with the pimp / madam using techniques such as psychological intimidation, manipulation, starvation, rape and/or gang rape, beating, confinement, threats of violence toward the victim’s family, forced drug use and the shame from these acts.^[2][3] Pimps can be arrested and charged with pandering and are legally known as procurers.^[4]

Etymology[link]

The word pimp first appeared in English in 1607 in a Thomas Middleton play entitled Your Five Gallants. It is believed to have stemmed from the French infinitive pimper meaning to dress up elegantly and from the present participle pimpant meaning alluring in dress seductive. Pimp used as a verb, meaning to act as a pimp, first appeared in 1636 in Massinger's book, The Bashful Lover.^[5] In the 18th and 19th centuries, the term was commonly used to refer to informers.^[6] A pimp can also mean "a despicable person".^[7] The term can also be applied to a person who is considered a ladies' man.^[5] Rapper Nelly tried to redefine the word "pimp" by saying that it is an acronym for "positive, intellectual, motivated person." He created a college scholarship with the name "P.I.M.P. Juice Scholarship". Dawn Turner Trice of the Chicago Tribune argues that there is "something truly unsettling, to say the least, about attaching such a vile word to a scholarship" and expresses concern about the glamorization of the term.^[8]

The verb "pimping" came up in the early 17th century.^[5] In the first years of the 21st century, a new meaning of the word has emerged in the form of a transitive verb pimp, which means "to decorate" or "to gussy up" (compare primp, especially in Scottish usage). This new definition was made popular by Pimp My Ride, an MTV television show.^[5] Although this new definition paid homage to hip-hop culture and its connection to street culture, it has now entered common, even mainstream commercial, use.^[9] In medical contexts, the verb also means "to ask (a student) a question for the purpose of testing his knowledge".^[10] In the US military, the verb can be used to express a superior reminding a subordinate of a task that the subordinate forgot to accomplish.^{[citation needed]}

Business of pimping[link]

Pimping is sometimes operated like a business.^[11] The pimp may have a bottom girl who serves as office manager, keeping the pimp apprised of law-enforcement activity and collecting money from the prostitutes.^[12] Pimps recognize a hierarchy among themselves. The least respected, or newer pimps, are the "popcorn pimps" and "wannabes". A pimp who uses violence and intimidation to control his prostitutes is called a "Jonas pimp", while those who use psychological trickery to deceive younger prostitutes into becoming hooked into the system are called "finesse pimps". An important part of the business is obtaining and maintaining a selection of prostitutes. Losing one's prostitute to another pimp is known as being "peeled". Informing a pimp that one of his prostitutes has switched pimps is a professional courtesy, and any attempt to respond to this courtesy with violence will quickly get the violent pimp labeled a "Gorilla" or "Godzilla". Prostitutes who move between pimps often are labeled as a "Choosey Susie". In addition, a prostitute may "bounce" from pimp to pimp without paying the "pimp moving" tax.^[13]

A large percentage of pimps in the United States are also documented gang members, which causes concerns for police agencies in jurisdictions where prostitution is a significant problem. Pimping rivals narcotic sales as a major source of funding for many gangs, this is particularly true with African American gangs. Gangs need money to survive, and money equates to power and respect. While selling drugs may be lucrative for a gang, this activity often carries significant risk as stiff legal penalties and harsh mandatory minimum sentencing laws exist. However, with pimping, gang members still make money while the prostitutes themselves bear the majority of the risk. Pimping has several benefits to the gang that the pimp belongs to. These benefits include it helps the gang recruit new members because the gang has women available for sex and the money brought in by prostitution allows gang members to buy cars, clothes and weapons, all of which help to recruit younger members into the gang by increasing the reputation of the gang in the local gang subculture. The presence of gangs (and weapons and drugs) is a virtual guarantee when prostitutes are present, which is why many law enforcement agencies advocate taking an aggressive stance against prostitutes. Many vice units work to ascertain if the prostitute they have arrested has a pimp, and if so they pressure them to provide information about their pimp and the gang involved. This information can then be used to go after the more serious and violent offenders. ^[14]

The pimp business has an internal structure – built around violence – for dealing with rule breakers. For example, pimps have been known to employ a "pimp stick", which is two coat hangers wrapped together, in order to subdue unruly prostitutes.^[12] A variation is a "pimp cane", used for similar purposes.^{[citation needed]} Another punishment for disobedient prostitutes is to "trunk" them, where the pimp locks the prostitute in the trunk of a car. Although prostitutes are supposedly free to move between pimps, this movement sometimes leads to violence. For example, a prostitute could be punished for merely looking at another pimp; this is considered "reckless eyeballing".^[12] Violence is also used on customers, for example if the customer attempts to evade payment or becomes unruly with a prostitute.

Use of tattoos[link]

Many pimps tattoo prostitutes as a mark of "ownership".^[15][16] The tattoo will often be the pimp's street or even his likeness. The mark might be as discreet as ankle tattoo, or blatant as a neck tattoo, or large scale font across the prostitute's lower back, thigh, chest, or buttocks.^[17]

Internet effect[link]

Since the Internet became widely available, it has become the preferred medium for prostitution. Prostitutes increasingly use websites to solicit sexual encounters. In turn, pimps have used these sites to broker their women.^[18]

However, the use of the Internet for prostitution as well as other changes in the sex industry have resulted in the disintermediation of prostitution, allowing prostitutes to deal with clients directly. This has rendered pimps largely superfluous, at least in the United States. In 2011, Wired reported that of 11 pimps working out of New York's midtown Manhattan in 1999, all were out of work within four years.^[19]

Loverboy[link]

Loverboy is slang for young men (boys) who lure underage girls into prostitution.^[20] It is a significant problem in many countries including the Netherlands^[21][22] and it is estimated there are 1,500 victims a year.^[23] One of the factors is that immigrant groups of boys leverage their sexual sophistication over the largely conservative Protestant Christian population.^[24] Even though loverboys use kidnapping, gang rape and other coercive and intimidating techniques on their victims politician Jamila Yahyaoui notes as of 2009^[update], only 5 cases lead to convictions.^[25] Because of the young age, fear and emotional dependence of the girls and the vagueness of what exactly happened, many times loverboys and their associates can only be charged with having sex with a minor and get short sentences.^[23] The socialist party ROOD wants police to remove obstacles to girls reporting abuse and to not lose contact, while some municipalities are educating front line workers to better identify victims.^[26]

Notable pimps[link]

• Fillmore Slim
• Iceberg Slim
• Don "Magic" Juan

See also[link]

• American Pimp, a 1999 documentary by the Hughes Brothers consisting of first person interviews with people involved in the pimping lifestyle in the U.S.
• Pimp tenure, a form of feudal land tenure
• Procuring (prostitution)

References[link]

External links[link]

• U.S. DOJ guide to street prostitution
• Pimp Anthropology, radio show from This American Life featuring an interview with a former pimp.
• Jody Raphael and Brenda Myers-Powell, From Victims to Victimizers: Interviews with 25 Ex-Pimps in Chicago, The Family Law Center Report, September 2010

David Shuster
Born	(1967-07-22) July 22, 1967 (age 44) Bloomington, Indiana
Nationality	American
Religion	Jewish[1]
Spouse	Julianna Goldman (separated)
Awards	Disabled American Veterans, Bugle Award (2006) Emmy (1996)

David Martin Shuster (born July 22, 1967) is an American television journalist who has been an anchor for MSNBC and who has also worked for Fox News and CNN. He anchored MSNBC Live weekdays from 10-11am and 3-4pm ET and filled in for Keith Olbermann, Chris Matthews, Ed Schultz and Rachel Maddow on their respective shows. Shuster was MSNBC's lead "breaking news anchor," and anchored prime time coverage of several stories including the death of Michael Jackson, congressional votes for health care reform, and the earthquake in Haiti. Shuster's high profile career has included some controversies; the most recent, an indefinite suspension on April 6, 2010, came from MSNBC after he auditioned for a new political show on CNN. He did not appear on MSNBC again, as his contract expired while serving his suspension. On June 6, 2011, it was confirmed that Shuster was hired by Keith Olbermann and Current TV to serve as "primary substitute anchor" for the network's re-launch of Countdown with Keith Olbermann.

Personal life[link]

Shuster was born in Bloomington, Indiana. He is the son of Arnold Shuster of Bloomington and Susan Klein of Nashville, Indiana, and stepson of Robert Agranoff, married to his mother, and Rose Mahern-Shuster, married to his father; he has one brother, Jonathan. As a child, he was part of the Zionist Youth Leadership Training movement Young Judaea. He graduated in 1985 from Bloomington High School South, and with honors from the University of Michigan. He is in the process of completing a Master of Arts degree in International Affairs at Georgetown University. He was married on May 27, 2007 (at age 39) to journalist Julianna Lee Goldman, at the Sixth & I Historic Synagogue, in Washington, D.C..^[2][3] On January 10, 2011, the Washington Post published a report that Goldman and Shuster had separated.^[4] The couple had no children.^[4]

Career[link]

Early career[link]

Shuster started his journalism career at CNN's Washington, D.C. bureau. He was an assignment editor and field producer from 1990 to 1994, covering both the Persian Gulf War and the 1992 presidential election campaign. Shuster left CNN in 1994 to become a political reporter for the ABC affiliate KATV in Little Rock, Arkansas, covering the Whitewater scandal. During this period, Shuster led KATV's coverage of the indictment, trial, conviction, and resignation of Arkansas Governor Jim Guy Tucker. At KATV, Shuster won a regional Emmy Award for investigative journalism for his reporting on a manufactured housing scandal.

Fox News[link]

From 1996 to 2002, Shuster was a Washington, D.C.-based correspondent for the Fox News Channel. He was at the Pentagon at the time of the September 11, 2001 attacks and led Fox's coverage of U.S. military operations in Afghanistan. During the Clinton Administration, Shuster led Fox's coverage of the Clinton investigations including Whitewater, the Monica Lewinsky scandal, the Starr Report and the Senate impeachment trial.

Shuster was also a member of Fox's "You Decide 2000" political team. He spent four months on John McCain's "Straight Talk Express" bus and was Fox's lead correspondent for McCain's presidential campaign.

MSNBC[link]

Shuster left Fox News for MSNBC/NBC in 2002. In early 2003, he traveled to Qatar, where he provided coverage from the United States Central Command during Operation Iraqi Freedom for hourly live reports in prime time. Later, he was in California for two months for MSNBC's television program Hardball with Chris Matthews as lead correspondent on the 2003 California recall election, in which Governor Gray Davis was recalled and actor Arnold Schwarzenegger was elected. In 2004 he led the show's coverage of the presidential campaign, including leading the "ad watch team," which analyzed 150 campaign ads. In all, he has filed more than 700 correspondent reports for the show.

Occasionally, Shuster filled in for Chris Matthews on Hardball. Recently, he interviewed former President Jimmy Carter on the show. During the trial relating to the Plame affair, Shuster blogged for Hardball on Hardblogger about the Lewis "Scooter" Libby trial and about other political matters. In addition to this, Shuster has also filled in for commentator Keith Olbermann on Countdown.

In August 2005, Shuster reported from the eye of Hurricane Katrina as it made landfall in Biloxi, Mississippi; Shuster’s reports aired on MSNBC and NBC Nightly News. Shuster also spent several weeks reporting on the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina from New Orleans.

On September 24, 2007, Shuster interviewed Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn while filling in on Tucker Carlson's show. When Shuster asked about her response to the MoveOn.org ad campaign concerning General David Petraeus's Iraq war testimony, he followed up by then asking her the name of the last soldier from her congressional district who had been killed in Iraq; she was not able to name the soldier. Shuster mentioned that it was 18-year-old Jeremy Bohannon, and asked Blackburn why she was not able to recall the name. Blackburn's office soon claimed that Bohannon was not actually from Blackburn's congressional district, but was from the congressional district of Rep. John Tanner. However, while Bohannon did grow up in Tanner's district, his legal residence for the year prior to his enlistment was in Blackburn's district. After the promotion of David Gregory to Meet the Press, Shuster was named interim host of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue before being announced as the permanent host.^[5]

Chelsea Clinton remark and suspension[link]

On February 7, 2008, while he was guest-hosting on Tucker, Shuster discussed Chelsea Clinton's campaigning for her mother Hillary Clinton, her efforts to influence superdelegates and her refusal to answer any questions by the media. When his guest, Bill Press, pointed out that Bush's daughters campaigned for their father, Shuster noted the different access rules in each case and responded, "There's just something a little bit unseemly to me that Chelsea's out there calling up celebrities, saying support my mom... doesn't it seem like Chelsea's sort of being pimped out in some weird sort of way?"

The Clinton campaign demanded an apology and stated that Clinton might not participate in any further debates on MSNBC.^[6] Shuster was temporarily suspended from all NBC News and MSNBC appearances for his comments.^[7] Before the suspension, Shuster had engaged in a heated e-mail exchange with a Clinton staffer in which he defended his remarks.^[8] Shuster's two-week suspension^[9] from on-air duties ended on February 22, 2008.^[10]

Indefinite suspension from MSNBC[link]

On April 6, 2010, MSNBC announced that it had suspended David Shuster for an "indefinite period" after they learned from press reports that Shuster and Michel Martin of National Public Radio had shot a pilot episode for a new show on CNN, without the knowledge or permission of MSNBC.^[11][12]

Current TV[link]

Starting July 29, 2011, David Shuster became a regular guest-host of Countdown with Keith Olbermann on Current TV.

Internet venture[link]

Shuster announced in February 2011 that he is seeking to launch a website for investigative journalism.^[13]

Awards[link]

Shuster won an Emmy Award as well as a Bugle Award awarded in August 2006 by the Disabled American Veterans for his coverage of the 2005 National Disabled Veterans Sports Clinic and the hour-long special that accompanied it on MSNBC.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: David Shuster

• David Shuster at the Internet Movie Database
• David Shuster on Twitter

Cee Lo Green
Cee Lo Green at a Gnarls Barkley concert in July 2010.
Background information
Birth name	Thomas DeCarlo Callaway[1]
Also known as	Cee Lo Green, Cee Lo
Born	(1974-05-30) May 30, 1974 (age 38)[1] Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Genres	Soul, hip hop, neo soul, R&B, funk, alternative hip hop, hip hop soul
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer, actor
Instruments	Vocals, piano
Years active	1992–present
Labels	Arista, Elektra
Associated acts	Gnarls Barkley, Goodie Mob, TLC, Kid Cudi, OutKast, Jazze Pha, Bruno Mars
Website	ceelogreen.com

Thomas DeCarlo Callaway (born May 30, 1974),^[1] better known by his stage name Cee Lo Green, is an American singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer and actor. Originally came to prominence as a member of the southern hip hop group Goodie Mob, later launching a critically acclaimed solo career^[2] and forming Gnarls Barkley with DJ Danger Mouse.

Internationally, Cee Lo is best known for his hip hop work, his most popular was Gnarls Barkley's 2006 worldwide hit "Crazy", which reached number one in various singles charts worldwide, including the UK. In the United States, "Crazy" reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100. Parent album St. Elsewhere was also a hit, reaching number one on the UK Albums Chart and number four on the US Billboard 200 album charts. Gnarls Barkley's second album, The Odd Couple (2008), was less successful and missed the top ten in both the UK and U.S., where it charted at number 12 in the U.S. and 18 in the UK.

In 2010, Cee Lo took a break from recording with Gnarls Barkley and released the single "F**k You!" on August 19 as a solo recording artist. The song was an instant hit, with the radio-edit version "Forget You" reaching the top spot in the UK and the Netherlands and charted at number two on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. The parent album, The Lady Killer (2010) saw similar success, peaking within the top five of the UK Albums Chart and debuting within the top ten on the Billboard 200 album charts, and received a Gold certification from the BPI in the UK shortly after its release. His second single "It's OK" was a hit in Europe and the third single, "Bright Lights Bigger City" has also seen similar charting success. Cee Lo is also currently a vocal coach on the NBC reality talent show The Voice with Adam Levine, Christina Aguilera, and Blake Shelton.

Early life[link]

Cee Lo Green was born Thomas DeCarlo Callaway in Atlanta, Georgia. He graduated high school from Riverside Military Academy, Gainesville, GA., an All-Boy Boarding School. Both of his parents were ordained ministers and he started his music career in his church. His father died when he was two years old. His mother, Sheila J. Tyler-Callaway, was also a volunteer firefighter.^[3][4] She was involved in a car crash, leaving her paralyzed, and died two years after the accident. At the time, Cee Lo's career with Goodie Mob had just begun taking off. His mother's death led Cee Lo into depression, as is reflected in various songs throughout his career, including "Free" by Goodie Mob, songs on St. Elsewhere, and on The Odd Couple ("She Knows", "A Little Better").^[5][6] Cee Lo also expresses his love for his mother in the song "Guess Who" from Goodie Mob's Soul Food album. In an excerpt of "Cee Lo Distilled", a mini documentary produced by Absolut and The Fader released on YouTube, Cee Lo explained that his mother's death was a defining moment to "crossing that threshold over into a career".^[7]

Music career[link]

Goodie Mob[link]

Along with Big Gipp, T-Mo, and Khujo, Cee Lo was an original member of the Atlanta hip hop group Goodie Mob. He is the youngest of the four.^[8] The Goodie Mob were a part of the Atlanta rap collective the Dungeon Family, which also included OutKast. The group released their debut album, Soul Food in 1995. The album received much critical praise as a pioneering record for the then emerging Southern rap scene. It featured a distinctive soulful southern sound by production team Organized Noize, who had also produced OutKast's debut Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik. Cee Lo got considerable praise for his rapping and singing of hooks, particularly on the hit singles "Cell Therapy" and "Soul Food". The band has recently published a single "Fight to Win" and performed it on The Voice.

The group's second album, Still Standing came out in 1998 and also received much critical praise. Its commercial performance was slightly lower than the group's previous effort however. At this time, Cee Lo focused primarily on rapping over singing. While he did frequently sing hooks and did some singing, at this point he was a rapper first and foremost. Cee Lo took more creative control on the group's next album, World Party. Released in 1999, this album was more of a party record than the group's previous output, getting away somewhat from their socially conscious lyricism.^[9]

During the making of the album World Party, Cee Lo left the group to pursue a solo career under Arista and the remaining members continued to perform together under the Goodie Mob name with Koch Records. They did however collaborate in combinations in the Dungeon Family album Even in Darkness. Although the next Goodie Mob album seemed to mock Cee Lo with its title, One Monkey Don't Stop No Show, the group expressed that it was more of a jab at Arista and the music industry as a whole.

The song "Hold On" from Big Boi of OutKast's Got Purp? Vol. 2 album was the first newly recorded Goodie Mob song with all four members since World Party. (Khujo later revealed to fans at an album signing^{[original research?]} for his new album "Mercury", that the song "Hold On" was originally recorded in 1995 before Soul Food was released.)

Santana[link]

In 1999, Cee Lo, credited as "Cee-Lo" was one of ten famous guest musicians who contributed to the Santana album Supernatural. Lauryn Hill wrote "Do You Like The Way," and the two of them trade off on lead vocals.

Solo career[link]

Cee Lo at a Gnarls Barkley concert in the Netherlands, July 2008.

Cee Lo's Arista career was short lived, as he was dropped after only two albums due to low record sales. His first album, Cee-Lo Green and His Perfect Imperfections, was heavily in the vein of various other Dungeon Family releases, with southern soul/funk/jazz backings produced solely by himself and boasting appearances by fellow Dungeon Fam members Big Gipp and Backbone. The album explored his departure from Goodie Mob and his solo growth in the song "El Dorado Sunrise (Super Chicken)", as well as socio-political issues, and showcased his singing. The album did not sell very well, but Cee Lo achieved some airplay with the single "Closet Freak".

His second Arista album, Cee-Lo Green... Is the Soul Machine brought a more branched-out sound and more deeply explored southern rap music. This is evidenced by collaborations with Ludacris, T.I., and Pharrell Williams, as well as production from Timbaland, The Neptunes and Jazze Pha, among others. The only other Dungeon Family member that appeared on his second release was Big Rube. This album saw Cee Lo delve into other styles besides traditional rap. Timbaland proved to be Cee Lo's single producer as their song "I'll Be Around" received mild airplay. They performed the single on an episode in the second season of Chappelle's Show. "The One" featuring Jazze Pha and T.I. was also released as a single. On the heels of the success of Gnarls Barkley, Arista released a 17-track greatest hits collection of Cee Lo songs, Closet Freak: The Best of Cee-Lo Green the Soul Machine. It features predominantly Cee Lo solo tracks and several Goodie Mob songs. His new song "What Part of Forever" has been included in The Twilight Saga: Eclipse Original Motion Picture Soundtrack.^[10]

After his second solo album, Cee Lo joined the group Gnarls Barkley (see below) with Danger Mouse, temporarily putting his solo career on hold. He would release two albums with that group, before again releasing solo material in 2010.

On August 14, 2010, Cee Lo released the single "Fuck You!" to YouTube ahead of his planned solo album release, due to its partial leak on April 13. "Fuck You!" was an instant viral smash hit,^[2] registering over two million plays in less than a week. Two weeks later on September 1, Cee Lo released to YouTube an official music video of the song.^[11] "Fuck You" made a debut at No.1 on the UK charts, notably beating out "Shame" from the recently reunited Robbie Williams and Gary Barlow. On December 1, 2010, Cee Lo received five Grammy nominations for "Fuck You!", which has been certified Gold in the United States^[12] and Denmark.^[13] The single achieved platinum status in Canada,^[14] New Zealand,^[15] and the UK;^[16] and multi-platinum status in Australia.^[17]

When discussing his most recent album, The Lady Killer (released on November 9, 2010, by Elektra Records and Roadrunner Records),^[18] Cee Lo said: "I suppose this is a more clear, concise, consistent, conceptual, entire album. It's a complete thought, because it's written to be like a score. The album's meant to be a motion picture, you know? I've never taken that approach to doing an album before."^[19] The album was certified Gold in the UK on December 6, 2010.^[20]

Green is touring with an all-female backing band named "Scarlet Fever" (made up of Sharon Aguilar, Brittany Brooks, Theresa Flaminio, and Regina Zernay Roberts), performing for Taratata,^[21] the BBC,^{[22][23][24][25]} Late Show with David Letterman,^[26] W's Symmetry Live Concert Series,^[27][28] Saturday Night Live,^[29][30] the Jimmy Kimmel Live! special show following the Academy Awards,^[31] and many other venues. Green also performed "Forget You", a sanitized version of his hit "Fuck You", with Gwyneth Paltrow and several puppets provided by The Jim Henson Company at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards on February 13, 2011, a shoutout to Elton John, who wore a very similar costume in a Muppet show performance in 1977.^[32] At the 2011 BRIT Awards two days later, he was joined by British vocalist Joelle Bennett in another duet of "Fuck You".^[33][34] Shortly thereafter, it was announced that Green will be joining Rihanna and J. Cole on the North American leg of Rihanna Loud Tour in the summer of 2011.^[35] However, he later dropped out of the tour citing that his busy work schedule which includes his commitment to judging “The Voice”, writing a new book and recording a new album as the reason for his withdrawal.^[36] On August 14, 2011, Green performed at WWE SummerSlam performing "Forget You" and the event's theme, "Bright Lights, Bigger City".

Cee Lo released his debut album The Lady Killer as a Platinum Edition on November 28, 2011.^[37] The repackaged album contained the original 16 tracks (including remixed versions of Bright Lights Bigger City (feat. Wiz Khalifa) and I Want You (Hold On To Love) plus one extra track, written by Bruno Mars, Anyway. The new track, Anyway, served as the album's sixth overall single and first Platinum Edition single.

Gnarls Barkley[link]

Gnarls Barkley at the Mini V festival in Melbourne, 2007

Along with DJ Danger Mouse, Cee Lo was part of a duo called Gnarls Barkley. They first met when Danger Mouse took second in a talent contest and opened for OutKast and Goodie Mob at a University of Georgia concert in 1998. Afterwards, Danger Mouse gave Cee Lo an instrumental demo tape and told him to call him if he was interested.^{[citation needed]} They did not make contact again until Cee Lo was contacted to be featured in a remix of the Danger Mouse and Jemini song "What U Sittin' On?" from the album Ghetto Pop Life. They worked together again on the 2005 Danger Doom (Danger Mouse and MF Doom collaboration) album The Mouse and The Mask on the song "Benzi Box" where Cee Lo sings the chorus.

Gnarls Barkley's first collaborative album, St. Elsewhere, was released on April 24, 2006, in the UK and May 2, 2006, in the United States. St. Elsewhere entered the charts at No.1 in the UK, as did the first single "Crazy". "Crazy" is the first single to go straight to No.1 in the UK based on digital download sales alone and is ranked by Rolling Stone as the No.1 song of the decade. The album is Cee Lo's greatest selling venture yet, having shipped over 3 million copies in the United States according to Nielsen SoundScan.^[8] A second album by Gnarls Barkley, titled The Odd Couple, was released in March 2008. Its first single was released in January called "Run (I'm a Natural Disaster)".^[8]

Future projects[link]

Cee Lo is collaborating with producer Jazze Pha to release an album called Happy Hour on Jazze’s record label. The songs "Happy Hour" (as well as the remix with Bun B, Snoop Dogg & Tone Tone), "Man of the Hour", and "Disco Bitch" (featuring The Pussycat Dolls) from the album have already been released as singles and B-sides. Jazze Pha has produced numerous hit singles with many artists, but this project is his rapping and singing debut. Cee Lo is co-producing the album with him, so both artist and producer share equal roles in vocals and production. Also, Melody Thornton confirmed that she is currently in the studio with Cee Lo working on her solo album. In 2010, he recorded a song for the Sex and the City 2 soundtrack which reached number 9 in the charts and was written by him and produced by T-Pain which is called "Language of Love". He along with The Red Hot Chili Peppers and OneRepublic frontman Ryan Tedder were rumored to be appearing on British DJ Paul Oakenfold's upcoming album. Also, Cee-Lo has recorded a song with Alien Ant Farm that is expected to be released on their upcoming 2012 album.^[38] Green will voice Murray the Mummy in the upcoming film, Hotel Transylvania.

In March 2012 Green performed at a fundraiser for President Barack Obama with the president present.^[39] He began singing Fuck You! with the original profane lyrics, but then switched to the non-profane lyrics, apparently unaware that the profane lyrics were inappropriate at a presidential fundraiser.^[40]

In May 2012, The alcohol trade magazine 'The Tasting Panel' featured a cover story detailing Cee Lo Green's part ownership of an alcohol brand called TY KU. ^[41]

Television and film career[link]

Cee Lo, along with the rest of the Goodie Mob, had a cameo in the 1999 film Mystery Men as a member of the Not So Goodie Mob, in which he was credited as "Thomas Burton aka Cee lo". He also has done voice acting work, voicing Prime Cut Miggity-Mo' Macdaddy Gizzabang Doggy Dog Dog on the Brak Show episode "Brakstreet" in 2002, Frank and Buddy Z Class of 3000's Christmas special and as Godzilla in the Robot Chicken episode "Squaw Bury Shortcake" in 2007, and Rev. Rollo Goodlove in the Boondocks episodes "The S-Word" and "The Hunger Strike" in 2008. In 2010, he appeared in T-Pain's Freaknik: The Musical as Light Skin.

On January 15, 2011, Cee Lo both acted and performed on NBC's Saturday Night Live hosted by Gwyneth Paltrow, who, in November 2010, covered his song "Forget You" on an episode of Glee.^[42]

Cee Lo is currently one of the coaches for contestants on the singing TV show The Voice.^[43] He also made a guest-star appearance in the episode "Tales From the Luncheonette" of Parenthood season 3.^[44][45]

On August 14, 2011, Cee Lo appeared at WWE SummerSlam and performed both "'Bright Lights Bigger City", the official theme song for the event, and his hit "'Forget You".

On September 25, 2011, Cee Lo appeared as himself in a live action/voice appearance and as the voice of a hot tub in the American Dad! episode "Hot Water".^[46]

On February 5, 2012 Cee Lo appeared in the Super Bowl halftime show with Madonna.

On March 31, 2012, Cee Lo Green appeared in the 2012 Kids' Choice Awards. Near the end of the show, he was revealed to be the evil mastermind that was trying to ruin the show, and the only reason he was evil was because he wanted to get slimed. However, the show's host, Will Smith, refused to slime him, and he "ice cream sundaed" him instead, claiming it was the "second-best thing" compared to sliming.

Personal life[link]

Cee Lo has described himself as having been a "goon" in his youth.^[47][48] At age 16 years old, Cee Lo's mother was pulled to safety from an almost fatal car accident by local volunteer firefighters. His mother also served as a volunteer firefighter herself, and these two things inspired Cee Lo's 2011 song "Thank You" (a reworking of "Forget You"), which pays tribute to firefighters.^[49]

Cee Lo was married to Christina Johnson until they divorced in 2005. Together they have a son Kingston; and Cee Lo was a stepfather to Christina's daughters, Sierra and Kalah. Sierra appeared on the MTV show My Super Sweet 16.

Controversies[link]

At the April 2011 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Cee Lo was booed by fans after he showed up late, drew fan disapproval, had his set cut off, and then stormed off stage.^[50] Cee Lo had arrived 25 minutes late, for which he apologized to disgruntled fans at the top of his set, saying, "Sorry guys, I just landed. Y'all still gonna party with me? I only have 20 minutes. It ain't my fault. They should have ... given me a better time slot." Things then took a turn for the worse, and after performing five songs, including "Fuck You" and a cover of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'," Green's set was cut. He then stormed off stage.^[51]

On June 16, 2011, journalist Andrea Swensson of City Pages negatively reviewed one of Green's performances, writing that it "failed to measure up to the fun factor of his recorded material. Green spent most of the set stationed in front of a microphone at the center of the stage, barely moving an inch while he sang and flanked by two forgettable back-up singers and a DJ that was all but hidden behind a giant LCD display”.^[52] In response, the following day Green tweeted "I respect your criticism but be fair! People enjoyed last night! I'm guessing ur gay? And my masculinity offended u? well fuck U!”.^[53] Green promptly received angered responses from some of his followers on Twitter, to which he replied "Apologies gay community! what was homophobic about that?"^[54] In a subsequent interview with magazine Us Weekly, Green stated that his comments were in good fun, adding that "I am not harboring any sort of negative feeling toward the gay community" and that "I am one of the most liberal artists that I think you will ever meet, and I pride myself on that".^[55] Green has since deleted the tweets pertaining to this review.^{[citation needed]}

On December 31, 2011, at Times Square in New York City, Green sang John Lennon's "Imagine" just prior to the ball dropping to ring in the new year. In his rendition, Green replaced the line "and no religion, too" with the words "and all religion is true".^[56] Many saw this as a substantial revision of the meaning behind Lennon's original lyrics.^[56] Green also sang the words "imagine no possessions" while wearing a full-length fur coat and large gold watch. Shortly after the performance, Green responded via Twitter: "Yo I meant no disrespect by changing the lyric guys! I was trying to say a world where u could believe what u wanted that's all" [sic] ^[57] Green deleted a series of tweets pertaining to this event shortly thereafter.^[58]

Discography[link]

• Cee-Lo Green and His Perfect Imperfections (2002)
• Cee-Lo Green... Is the Soul Machine (2004)
• The Lady Killer (2010)
• Cee-Lo Green... Is Everybody's Brother (2012)^[59]

Awards and nominations[link]

BET Awards[link]

Billboard Music Awards[link]

Brit Awards[link]

Grammy Awards[link]

Soul Train Music Awards[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Cee-Lo discography at Discogs
• Cee Lo Green at the Internet Movie Database
• Cee Lo Green on BBC Music
• Official Jazze Pha & Cee Lo website
• Cee Lo Green Storytellers on VH1
• Cee-Lo Documentary on Youtube Part 1
• Cee-Lo Documentary on Youtube Part 2

Eva Mendes
Mendes at the 66th Venice International Film Festival in 2009
Born	(1974-03-05) March 5, 1974 (age 38) Miami, Florida, United States
Occupation	Actress, Model, Singer, Designer
Years active	1998–present

Eva Mendes (born March 5, 1974) is an American actress, model, singer and homeware designer. She began acting in the late 1990s, and after a series of roles in B movies such as Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror (1998) and Urban Legends: Final Cut (2000), she broke into the Hollywood mainstream with an appearance in Training Day (2001). She has since starred in many films including All About The Benjamins (2002); 2 Fast 2 Furious, Once Upon a Time in Mexico and Stuck on You (2003); Hitch (2005); Ghost Rider and We Own the Night (both 2007); The Spirit (2008); Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans (2009); The Other Guys and Last Night (both 2010).

Mendes has worked as a spokesmodel for Cocio chocolate milk, Magnum ice cream, Revlon make-up, Calvin Klein underwear and perfume, Cartier jewelery, Thierry Mugler perfume, Reebok trainers, Campari apéritif, Pantene shampoo, Morgan clothes and Peek & Cloppenburg clothes. Mendes is the creator of a home decor line, Vida, sold exclusively at Macy's. She launched a bedding collection in 2008 and a dinnerware collection in 2010. Mendes is a singer: she has recorded a version of The Windmills of Your Mind and has collaborated with Cee Lo Green on a song entitled Pimps Don't Cry. She is dating Ryan Gosling and lives in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles.

Early life[link]

Mendes was born in Miami, Florida to Cuban parents, and was raised in the Los Angeles suburb of Glendale by her mother after her parents' divorce;^[1] Mendes has said that her mother (who was a stay-at-home mom until she became an accountant when Eva went to school) "suffered so much to make my life OK" during her early years.^[1] Mendes was raised a Roman Catholic and aspired to be a nun.^[2] She attended Hoover High School in Glendale and later attended California State University, Northridge to study marketing, but dropped out after wanting to begin an acting career. She studied acting under Ivana Chubbuck.^{[citation needed]}

Acting career[link]

Mendes at the 2009 Venice Film Festival

While Mendes "always had high hopes" for herself,^[3] she didn't consider an acting career until a talent manager saw her photo in a friend's portfolio.^[4] Her first film appearance was in the direct-to-video Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror. Mendes was "so ashamed" by her performance in the film that she decided to hire an acting coach so that she wouldn't "squirm" when watching herself in future roles.^[3] In this period of her career, she also starred in A Night at the Roxbury, Mortal Kombat: Conquest, My Brother the Pig, The Disciples, Urban Legends: Final Cut and Exit Wounds.

Mendes' breakthrough role came when she appeared in Training Day as the girlfriend of Denzel Washington's character. She found it to be a fulfilling experience: "I thought, 'This is what people meant about acting."^[3] That performance led to roles in All About the Benjamins, 2 Fast 2 Furious, Once Upon a Time in Mexico (which earned her a nomination at the Teen Choice Awards), Out of Time and Stuck on You. She was the female lead in the 2005 comedy Hitch opposite Will Smith. They were the first minority actors to play leads in a hit romantic comedy.^[5] She then starred in The Wendell Baker Story, Guilty Hearts, Trust the Man, and Ghost Rider. In 2007, she starred alongside Joaquin Phoenix, Mark Wahlberg, and Robert Duvall in the film We Own the Night. She also starred in Live! and Cleaner.

In 2008, she received a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actress for her performance in The Women.^[6] She next starred in The Spirit, Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, The Other Guys, Last Night and Fast Five. In August 2010, Mendes appeared in a Funny or Die video spoof, selling her "S.E.X. tape".^[7] She also sang for the Funny or Die music video "Pimps Don't Cry," a song featured in The Other Guys, released on August 6, 2010.^[8]

Modeling career[link]

Mendes appeared in Will Smith's video "Miami" and the Pet Shop Boys' music video for "Se a vida é (That's the way life is)" in 1996 and Aerosmith's video "Hole in My Soul" in 1997. Mendes was employed by Revlon Cosmetics as an international spokeswoman and was also a supporter and active participant in Revlon's campaign to raise funds for breast cancer research.^[9] Mendes appeared nude in an ad for Calvin Klein's Secret Obsession perfume. Since there was exposure of her nipples in the ad, it was banned from airing in the United States.^[10] In 2007, she was named as an ambassador for Cartier.^[11] In December 2007, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) used a nude photo of Mendes for their anti-fur campaign alongside the tagline "Fur? I'd rather go naked."^[12] She modelled in a Morgan campaign in 2007.^[13] Mendes was a spokesmodel for the 2008 Campari calender.^[14] Mendes was announced as the international face of Australia's 30 Days of Fashion & Beauty event in July 2008. She made guest appearances in that country at the month-long festival in September.^[15]

In October 2008, she toured various stores in Europe including Harrods to promote Calvin Klein's Seductive Comfort line of lingerie.^[16] In 2009, Mendes was announced as a Pleasure Ambassador for ice cream brand Magnum.^[17] In 2010, Mendes was the face of chocolate milk brand Cocio.^[18] In March 2011, it was announced that Mendes will be a new spokeswoman for Thierry Mugler's Angel fragrance.^[19] Also in 2011, she was named as the brand ambassador for Reebok Easytone trainers^[20] and Pantene shampoo.^[21] She also modeled in a Peek & Cloppenburg clothing catalog in 2011.^[22]

Mendes was voted as No. 4 in the 2008 edition, and No. 1^[23] in the 2009 edition, of AskMen.com's Top 99 Most Desirable Women. Maxim ranked Mendes #7 in its 2007 Hot 100 issue.^[24] She also made her second Maxim cover in the November 2007 issue.^[25] Maxim ranked Mendes #11 in its 2010 Hot 100 issue.^[26] People named her one of 2012 Most Beautiful at Every Age.^[27]

Designer[link]

Mendes runs a home decor line, Vida, with her former longterm partner George Augusto. On September 4, 2008, Mendes announced she was launching a line of bed linens available in Macy's stores.^[28] In 2010, Mendes launched a line of dinnerware at Macy's stores.^[29]

Music career[link]

In 2010, Mendes dueted with Cee Lo Green on a song entitled Pimps Don't Cry.^[30] In 2011, she recorded a version of The Windmills of Your Mind.^[31]

Personal life[link]

Mendes does not want to have children and has described marriage as "a very archaic kinda thing. I don't think it fits in my world today."^[32] She was in a relationship with George Augusto from 2002 to 2010.^[33][34][35] She began dating Ryan Gosling in September 2011.^[36] She lives in Los Feliz, Los Angeles.^[37]

Mendes spent several weeks at the Cirque Lodge addiction facility in 2008 to address "some personal issues".^[38] She later said that she will never publicly disclose details of her condition because "I have to think of the pain it might bring my mother."^[39] She now attends therapy sessions which have "enriched my life. I come from a family and a heritage where you don't really go to therapy unless you're crazy. I want people to know that that's so not the case."^[40]

In 2011, Mendes visited Sierra Leone to speak with rape victims and raise awareness of the problems in the area.^[41]

Filmography[link]

Eva Mendes at the premiere of Trust the Man, Toronto Film Festival 2005

References[link]