:''For the station in Hamilton, Ontario that used the branding "OnTV" during the 1990s, see CHCH-TV.''

Coordinates	39°44′21″N104°59′5″N
network name	ON-TV
network logo
headquarters	New York, NY
network type	Pay television network (movies, sports)
available	United States, national
owner	Oak Communications Inc.
launch date	1977
closure date	1985
key people	Jerry Perenchio
website	}}

ON-TV, also known as National Subscription Television, was a subscription television service launched in 1977 by Oak Industries, Norman Lear's Chartwell Enterprises and Jerry Perenchio. Oak was a manufacturer of satellite and pay-TV decoders and equipment. ON-TV operated in major markets such as Los Angeles, Chicago and Detroit.

Origins

ON-TV was one of many "scrambled UHF" services in many major markets around the country in the era before multi-channel cable television became widely available. Others included SelecTV, Prism, Starcase, Spectrum, Preview, VEU, and SuperTV. During the 1980s, cable television became more available in the United States and rendered "over the air" subscription television obsolete.

Programming

ON-TV, like other pay-TV networks, aired a mixture of movies, sports events, and concerts. For example, the Los Angeles-area service showed many home games of the Los Angeles Dodgers, California Angels, Los Angeles Lakers, and Los Angeles Kings, as well as some of the era's biggest championship boxing matches. In Chicago, ON-TV aired Chicago White Sox, Chicago Bulls and Chicago Blackhawks games (which eventually migrated over to a second ON-TV owned station, Sportsvision.) In Detroit, it aired the Detroit Tigers and Detroit Red Wings, but was soon replaced by another premium channel, PASS Sports.

ON-TV not only aired mainstream films, but much like Z Channel, also aired more unique films and concerts, featuring such acts as Todd Rundgren, Talking Heads and Siouxsie and the Banshees. ON-TV also opted for a uniquely New Wave and heavy metal-dominated music video lineup between films, including acts such as Oingo Boingo, Slade, Adam and the Ants, Devo, Men Without Hats, Rush, Utopia, The Police, The J. Geils Band, Wall of Voodoo, Bonnie Tyler, Queen, and many others.

The cult film ''Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains'', featuring a very young Diane Lane, Laura Dern and various members of the Sex Pistols and The Clash, also aired on the service. Another cult item, slasher film ''My Bloody Valentine'' was shown with several minutes that were never seen theatrically (they were edited out to avoid an X rating) - a rare showing of the film in its entirety. ON-TV was also the first network to broadcast the uncut version of the original ''Dawn of the Dead''. Between films, ON-TV favored artistically-driven film shorts and the oddball Canadian comics Roger and Roger, who aired daily in an afternoon time slot.

In 1982, ON-TV's executives convinced George Lucas to sell them the rights for the very first TV broadcast of the first ''Star Wars'' film as a means to "help a pioneering PayTV technology fight the likes of HBO and Showtime cable networks from taking over." The rights to broadcast ''Star Wars'' were obtained by ON-TV for a one time pay-per-view showing in September 1982, available for a one-time fee of $7 to $8. (Lucas would do the same favor for LA's Z Channel by granting them the rights to air ''The Empire Strikes Back'' in January 1985.)

Basic service fees

Service fees for the subscription varied by market.

In Los Angeles, basic service was $19 a month, plus an extra charge for a selection of softcore pornography marketed as "ON Plus." Plans were developed for a second ON-TV channel, which never appeared (Chicago did have a somewhat tied in Sportsvision that had its own channel). In Detroit, the service cost $22.50 a month flat for all programming. Many subscribers also received a monthly program guide called ''SeasON Ticket''.

In the South Florida market, the basic fee was $19.95 a month. Softcore pornography was broadcast in earlier years of the service, but ON would eventually broadcast hardcore features as part of its optional "Adults Only" service. Some titles would include uncut versions of Debbie Does Dallas and Taboo, for example. This would be a large part of the lawsuits following the end of the service.

There were two basic steps to access ON-TV programming:

Pay a monthly subscription fee to NSTV, the parent company of the service.

Receive a converter box (a box with a knob that had two settings, OFF and ON) which decoded a picture sent to the TV.

The picture was transmitted over-the-air on a UHF station. The technology was sometimes called multipoint distribution system. Viewers without decoder boxes saw a scrambled, flickering picture and garbled or substituted audio. However, some older models of black-and-white (and some color) TV sets were able to receive a clear signal, due to a fluke with the older technology. These older sets still received garbled or no audio.

Since the signal went out over-the-air, it was a popular target for signal pirates. This was especially true in the Detroit market, where many Windsor, Ontario residents built homemade decoder boxes. The boxes were also popular on the American side, and hobbyists sold them for as much as $150 each.

Stations transmitting ON-TV programs

Among the stations that transmitted ON-TV programs were:

KBSC Los Angeles (now Telemundo affiliate KVEA)

WSNS Chicago (also a Telemundo station)

WSMW Boston (now Univision affiliate WUNI)

KTXA Dallas/Fort Worth (later UPN, now independent again)

WBTI Cincinnati (now MyNetworkTV station WSTR)

WXON Detroit (now WMYD, also an MNTV affiliate)

WKID Fort Lauderdale (now Telemundo affiliate WSCV)

KNXV Phoenix (now an ABC affiliate)

KECH Salem/Portland, Oregon (now KPXG, an Ion Television station)

KTSF San Francisco (now an independent airing multiple language programming)

Chicago

ON-TV began broadcasting in Chicago in 1980, airing on Channel 44, WSNS and competing directly with the similar Spectrum service, which was owned by United Cable. The service went dark in May 1985, largely due to the long-awaited entrance of cable television into the city. Chicago was the last remaining ON-TV market to go under due to the city's overlong debate over how to divide itself up for cable distribution in order to avoid a monopoly.

The only new film ON-TV purchased rights to and televised that month was ''Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes''; however, as a farewell and thank you to their Chicago subscribers, ON-TV filled the remainder of the May 1985 schedule with what seemed to be their entire back-catalog of films, a different set of programs every day, with no authorization from any of the related film studios. The motto that entire month was "Get your VCRs ready, because you, our last devoted subscribers, are in for a treat with a new lineup of programs every single day!" The only film actually repeated that month was, ironically, ''Greystoke''; the others only aired once each. (Oddly, no studio ever lodged any complaints with ON-TV, probably because the service was closing its doors.)

Many subscribers were alarmed with both the end of ON-TV and the lack of forewarning about the bonanza of films being shown. The only indication that ON-TV was doing anything unusual were the on-air announcements and in the May ON-TV Program Guide; any earlier advertising of that month's schedule risked raising red flags. But as the word got out about the film bonanza, by the second week of May, VCR tapes of either variety were becoming almost impossible to come by for any price in Greater Chicagoland. People were having to borrow their school's 3/4 inch U Matic video recorders and erase and re-use all kinds of old black-and-white school videos that were just laying there outdated gathering dust, or drag out their old Cartrivision or V-Cord recorders from the 70's and pick up tapes for them at the swapmeet in order to catch all the movies. Brief 'film clubs' had even been formed at the time between neighbors and co-workers, even going so far as to have a scheduling captain so that all VCR's would be recording as much as possible at a time when to purchase a single movie on tape was close to $100 even though LaserDisc and SelectaVision videodiscs could be had for a third of that.

At the end, the 'masters' were often taken to the duplication centers of the local public school media libraries and run off hundreds at a time as they did for educational videos so each teacher could have their own copy. After each of the 'film club' members had received theirs and traded in kind, the leftovers from this process were then sold in swapmeets for a reduced price as 'blank tape' once the shortage of videocassettes had been alleviated. During ON-TV's six years in Chicago (and for several years thereafter), WSNS was constantly embroiled in numerous lawsuits related to late night adult programming from the service, but nothing ever came of their final month of unauthorized back-catalog programming.

Outside of being the last remaining ONTV market, another unique characteristic of ONTV Chicago was that it was the only 'Subscription Television' over-the-airwaves service worldwide that owned and distributed a total of 3 pay networks in the same market. Not only was WSNS channel 44 Chicago an ONTV network, but they also distributed SportsVision for 21 months between March 1982 to December 1983. In addition, WFBN Channel 66 aired 'ON Subscription Service' for fourteen months between March 1984 to May 1985. This third expansion effort was unique to Chicago due to their pennies-to-the-dollar purchase of Spectrum’s customer base during the Spectrum Bankruptcy of 1983. At that point in time, ONTV had no financial capability to expand to a 3rd network in any other market because ONTV suffered as its' competitors did from the imminent threat of Cable TV encroaching in on their service territories nationwide.

Enormous class action lawsuits based around airing late night 'adult' material over the public airwaves became common, even though the FCC had previously issued an amendment to the term 'public airwaves' declaring that 'broadcasts which could not be seen and heard in the clear by an ordinary viewer with an ordinary television', were exempt from those rules, lawsuits were still filed against the company. But by then, all was moot anyway as customers dropped like flies, defecting to the newly-introduced multi-channel cable TV, and severe signal piracy issues arose for the few people that were left who were interested in the service.

ONTV was only able to pull off a third pay service in the Chicago market simply because of the enormous customer base in existence due to the large population that by and large had no access to cable television until the Summer of 1985. The purchase of Spectrum brought in over 40,000 new customers, and in March 1984 WFBN Channel 66 “ON Subscription Television” was born. “ON Subscription Service” 66 was a completely different Channel from “ONTV” 44 with a completely different lineup of entertainment and kept the same less expensive monthly subscription price of $19.95 versus ONTV’s $29.95.

Instead of migrating the new subscriber network into their own existing network which would have saved costs, ONTV strangely chose this opportunity to expand into a second movie/entertainment network, resulting in a third pay service. With some notable power moves like this one, Kent Hauver, then General Manager of ONTV Chicago, fought an admirable fight to keep the last dying bastion of what was once a strong national subscription service alive in the Chicago market til the bitter end.

In addition, even though magazines such as ''Popular Science'' and ''Electronics Monthly'' published schematics for his new system even before he had a chance to implement it, Mr. Hauver also made a notable effort of abolishing a majority of the piracy happening at the time with stronger signal scrambling and changing the algorithm of the signal code so the “black boxes” would regularly fail discouraging continued piracy efforts.

Detroit

In 1979, ON-TV came to Detroit on WXON (now WMYD), Channel 20. Like the services in other cities, ON-TV in Detroit carried local sports action (Detroit Red Wings, Detroit Tigers, etc.) in addition to movies and specials, but soon ran into a problem: ON-TV did not begin transmitting until 8PM. Since many games began ''before'' 8 PM, fans missed the start of many contests: in one famous incident, the Red Wings racked up a 5-0 lead in a game against the Calgary Flames before ON began its coverage.

In 1982, WXON began airing ON-TV on weekend afternoons and soon faced challenges from "In-Home Theatre" (which aired 24 hours a day on what is now WPXD in Ann Arbor) as well as a Livonia, Michigan-based service entitled MORE-TV which was a precursor to the later wireless cable services and today's DSS services like Dish Network and DirectTV.

MORE-TV like its' microwave cousins in other cities, beamed HBO directly to viewer's houses via microwave, utilizing the frequencies of the former Instructional Television Fixed Service (ITFS) used in schools in the `70's. WXON dropped ON-TV on March 31, 1983.

Cincinnati

ON-TV was broadcast on independent station WBTI Channel 64 starting in 1980 and ending in 1985 due to Warner Amex cable being available within the Cincinnati city limits. Warner Amex' 60 channels that were available as well as variety of programming made interest in ON-TV slow to a halt. In January 1985, WBTI became WIII and began airing a standard independent schedule, with ON-TV regulated to evenings and weekends. By June 1985 ON-TV was off the air, leading WIII to show standard programming full-time.

Fort Lauderdale

ON-TV was broadcast on an existing independent station based in Hollywood, Florida, WKID channel 51, that was purchased by Oak Industries in 1980. The ON-TV service was offered generally from 4pm to 2am in the South Florida market with independent programming during other hours. In the early days of the service, it proved to be successful. Unfortunately, cable television became more available as each year passed. This would make the service obsolete for most customers. In 1984, ON-TV had approximately 30,000 subscribers throughout Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties. By the summer of 1984, many jobs at the station were cut to help save the financially distressed station. Unfortunately, much like other markets in the country, there was no recovery and the station was quickly sold to John Blair & Co. for $17.9 million .

Shortly after the sale, ON-TV service as well as all other programming on WKID ceased broadcasting in late November 1984. Channel 51 remained off the air until 1985 when the station became WSCV, a Spanish-language station. In 1987, WSCV became a Telemundo network station.

Los Angeles

In 1983, ON-TV merged its Los Angeles operations with SelecTV, a similar service that was carried on KWHY, now a Spanish-language independent. However, the merger could not forestall the technological changes that made the service obsolete: as cable TV became more widely available, ON-TV's popularity declined. The last shows aired sometime around 1985.

ON-TV Los Angeles started up in April 1977 and grew to just over 430,000 subscribers at its peak. The UHF station was KBSC, ch. 52, licenced to Oak broadcasting for Corona-Los Angeles and transmitted from Mount Wilson with studios and offices in Glendale California. ON-TV LA had great success with pay-per-view films and sporting events, and for a while was the biggest single channel pay TV service in the US.

References

External links

The history of UHF pay-TV in Chicago

Category:American subscription television services Category:Defunct broadcasting companies of the United States Category:Television channels and stations established in 1977 Category:Defunct American television networks Category:1985 disestablishments

Coordinates	39°44′21″N104°59′5″N
name	Rob Dyrdek
fullname	Robert Stanley Dyrdek
nationality	American
residence	Hollywood, California
birth date	June 28, 1974
birth place	Kettering, Ohio, United States
height
weight
website	www.dyrdek.com
sport	Skateboarding
turnedpro	1991 (age 16)
pb	}}

Robert Stanley "Rob" Dyrdek (born June 28, 1974) is an American professional skateboarder, actor, entrepreneur, producer, philanthropist, and reality TV star. He is best known for his roles in the reality shows ''Rob and Big'' and ''Rob Dyrdek's Fantasy Factory''.

Personal life

Rob Dyrdek was born in Kettering, Ohio to Gene and Patty Dyrdek. Dyrdek was involved in sports as a child and began skateboarding at age 12. He says of his early interest in the sport "I was a pretty driven young man. I was so focused on becoming a pro skateboarder. I would sit in school and think about all the tricks I was going to do, then I’d get out of school and skate until they made me come inside." He has one sister, named Denise, and his cousins Christopher "Drama" Pfaff and Scott "Big Cat" Pfaff (Drama's older brother) are featured in ''Rob and Big'' and ''Rob Dyrdek's Fantasy Factory''. He also has two bulldogs named Meaty and Beefy.

Career

Television

Dyrdek first starred in an MTV reality series, entitled ''Rob & Big'' (aired November 2006 to April 2008), with his best friend and bodyguard Christopher "Big Black" Boykin as well as his cousin, Chris "Drama" Pfaff. After three seasons, Boykin's long time girlfriend had a baby and caused him to leave the show. In February 2009 ''Rob Dyrdek's Fantasy Factory'', featuring Dyrdek, Pfaff, and his Dyrdek Enterprise staff, was first aired. The "Fantasy Factory" is a converted warehouse where Dyrdek runs his many entrepreneurial ventures. It also features a large indoor skate plaza, Rob's personal office with "bat cave" parking garage, a foam pit, and numerous basketball hoops in various places around the inside of the factory. He also built a "hands of God" music studio for his cousin "Drama" Pfaff inside the factory. During the course of the first season, he also opened his first SafeSpot SkateSpot with the sponsorship of Carl's Jr. During the grand-opening, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa rode with Dyrdek on the world's largest skateboard. Dyrdek was also featured in the video games ''skate.'' and ''Skate 2'', along with "Big Black". During the days of ''Rob & Big'', they were featured in an episode where they were actually going to the EA building to shoot for the game. In ''Skate 2'', the player is able to purchase an early version of the Fantasy Factory on the Xbox Live Marketplace and PlayStation Store as an add-on, allowing the player to skate within the factory premises. He made a movie entitled "Street Dreams" in 2009.

World records

Dyrdek set 21 separate Guinness World Records for skateboarding as part of his former show ''Rob & Big''. Big Black also set two eating records for the show; most bananas peeled and eaten and most powdered donuts eaten in a set period of time. Since Dyrdek set those 21 world records, several have since been broken. In ''Fantasy Factory'', Dyrdek also set the record for the largest skateboard after he found the current record holders undeserving of the record. Although, according to the GBWR website it is listed as the Longest Skateboard in the world. Dyrdek's personal bests, some of which have been broken since he recorded them, are:

Consecutive front-side ollies: 46 (2007, WR)

Ollie big spins: 12 (2007, WR)

Consecutive nollie kickflips: 73 (2007, WR)

360-degree kickflips in one minute: 12 (2007, WR)

Heel flips in one minute: 15 (2007, WR)

Consecutive ollies: 215 (2007)

Nollie kickflips in one minute: 22 (2007, WR)

Longest stationary manual: 49 seconds (2007, WR)

Switch frontside kickflips in one minute: 9 (2007, WR)

Longest 50-50 rail grind: 100 feet 5.75 inches (30.62 m) (2007, WR) Longest board slide: 100 feet 5.75 inches (30.62 m) (2007, WR) Highest skateboard ramp jump into water: 10 feet 8 inches (3.29 m) (2007, WR)

Sponsors, Brands & Partnerships

Dyrdek is sponsored by DC Shoes, Alien Workshop, and Monster Energy. Dyrdek's properties include Wild Grinders, Street League Skateboarding, The Rob Dyrdek Foundation and Megahorse Racing. In addition, Dyrdek has partnerships with various brands including Bill My Parents, ISX(TM) (Instant Scoring Experience) and DTA Rogue Status with musician Travis Barker, .

Wild Grinders, a fictional cartoon skate crew, are Dyrdek's first venture into toys based on him and his group of childhood skateboarding friends. The line consists of six characters. Dyrdek also pioneered the iSX, Instant Scoring Experience, which he hopes will revolutionize the way skate competitions are held. He is the creator of the Street League Skateboarding - a professional skateboarding contest offering the largest prize purse in skateboarding history and is also broadcasted live on ESPN and ESPN2 . . Dyrdek also has his own signature TAG Body Spray scent called ''Make Moves''. A fraction of the profit will go to his charity organization, The Rob Dyrdek Foundation

References

External links

Rob Dyrdek's Fantasy Factory

Category:1974 births Category:American skateboarders Category:Living people Category:Participants in American reality television series Category:People from Kettering, Ohio Category:People from Hollywood Category:Sports world record holders

cs:Rob Dyrdek de:Rob Dyrdek fr:Rob Dyrdek nl:Rob Dyrdek pl:Rob Dyrdek pt:Rob Dyrdek fi:Rob Dyrdek sv:Rob Dyrdek

Coordinates	39°44′21″N104°59′5″N
Name	Selena Gomez
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Selena Marie Gomez
Birth date	July 22, 1992
Birth place	Grand Prairie, Texas, U.S.
Genre	Pop rock, dance-pop, electropop
Occupation	Actress, singer, businesswoman
Instrument	Vocals, piano, guitar, drums
Years active	2002–present
Label	Hollywood
Associated acts	Selena Gomez & the Scene, Demi Lovato
Website	150pxSelena Gomez's signature }}

Selena Marie Gomez (born July 22, 1992) is an American actress and singer best known for portraying Alex Russo in the Emmy Award-winning Disney Channel television series ''Wizards of Waverly Place''. She subsequently ventured into feature films and has starred in the television movies ''Another Cinderella Story'', ''Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie'', and ''Princess Protection Program''. She made her starring theatrical film debut in ''Ramona and Beezus''.

Her career has expanded into the music industry; Gomez is the lead singer and founder of the pop band Selena Gomez & the Scene, which has released two RIAA Gold certified studio albums, ''Kiss & Tell'' and ''A Year Without Rain'' and spawned three RIAA Platinum certified singles, "Naturally", "Who Says" and "Love You Like a Love Song". As of April 2011, the band has sold 1,354,000 albums in the United States. Gomez has also contributed to the soundtracks of ''Tinker Bell'', ''Another Cinderella Story'', ''Wizards of Waverly Place'', and ''Shake It Up'' after signing a record deal with Hollywood Records. In 2008, Gomez was designated a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.

Personal life

Gomez was born in Grand Prairie, Texas. She is the daughter of former stage actress Amanda Dawn "Mandy" Teefey (née Cornett) and Ricardo Joel Gomez. Her father is of Mexican ancestry, and her mother is of part Italian descent. Regarding her Hispanic heritage, Gomez said: "My family does have Quinceañeras, and we go to the communion church. We do everything that's Catholic, but we don't really have anything traditional except [that we] go to the park and have barbecues on Sundays after church." Her birth parents divorced when she was five years old, and she was raised as an only child by her working mother. In 2006, Mandy remarried Brian Teefey. She is named after Tejano singer Selena, who died almost three years after Gomez was born. In a 2009 interview with ''People'', Gomez mentioned that she developed an early interest in acting from watching her mother prepare for and act in theater productions. She earned a high school diploma through homeschooling in May 2010.

On February 27, 2011, Gomez attended the 2011 Vanity Fair Oscar Party with Canadian singer Justin Bieber, confirming several months of media speculation about a romantic relationship between the pair. The relationship has since continued to garner significant media attention.

Acting career

2002–06: ''Barney & Friends'' and early work

Gomez began her acting career at age seven, playing Gianna on ''Barney & Friends''. She later had minor roles in ''Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over'' and the TV film ''Walker, Texas Ranger: Trial By Fire''. Gomez also starred in the television movie ''Brain Zapped''. (Selena Gomez also found out that she wanted to be an actress because in E Special she states that "I would also watch my mom on stage do her lines".)

In 2004, Gomez was discovered by the Disney Channel in a USA-wide scouting. Gomez appeared as a guest star on ''The Suite Life of Zack & Cody'' and had a guest appearance – that later turned into a recurring role – on ''Hannah Montana'' from seasons two to three. Gomez previously taped two different pilots that were spin-offs to two previous Disney series. The first one, ''What's Stevie Thinking?'', was the spin-off to ''Lizzie McGuire''. Gomez played Stevie Sanchez, Miranda Sanchez's little sister. The other show was titled ''Arwin!'', the spin-off to ''The Suite Life of Zack & Cody'', in which she played Alexa. Neither series was picked up.

2007–09: ''Wizards of Waverly Place''

In early 2007 Gomez was cast in the Disney Channel series ''Wizards of Waverly Place'' as one of the three main characters, Alex Russo. The show premiered to an audience of 5.9 million, becoming a hit. Many news outlets began dubbing Gomez the next 'Miley Cyrus' causing some controversy and a reported 'feud'. Gomez clarified that there was no feud and that she was flattered by the comparison, saying: "It's a little overwhelming, but I think really, it's a compliment. She's obviously extremely successful, and I think she's a wonderful performer ... So being compared to her, I was very, very flattered."

In 2008, Gomez appeared in ''Another Cinderella Story'', the direct-to-DVD sequel to the 2004 Hilary Duff film, opposite Drew Seeley. She also had a minor voiceover role as one the Mayor's ninety-six daughters in ''Horton Hears a Who!'' which released in March of that year. In April, Lacey Rose, of ''Forbes'' ranked Gomez as being fifth on their "Eight Hot Kid Stars To Watch" list; and Rose described Gomez as having been "a multitalented teen".

In February 2009, Gomez signed on to star as one of the two female leads in ''Ramona and Beezus'', a film adaption of the children's novel series by Beverly Cleary. Gomez stated that she felt no pressure in taking more adult roles: "I think I’m fully aware of my audience and I’m still just a kid myself. I wouldn’t do a role I don’t feel comfortable doing or that my audience wouldn’t feel comfortable seeing."

In June 2009, Gomez did a guest appearance as herself in one episode of best friend Demi Lovato's Disney Channel television show, ''Sonny with a Chance'', entitled "Battle of The Network Stars". That same month Gomez appeared alongside Lovato in the made-for-television Disney Channel movie, ''Princess Protection Program''. The telecast garnered 8.5 million viewers becoming, at the time, the third most watched Disney Channel Original Movie. One month later, Gomez, along with two cast members of ''Wizards of Waverly Place'' appeared in a television three-way cross-over episode with ''Hannah Montana'' and ''The Suite Life on Deck'', entitled ''Wizards on Deck with Hannah Montana''.

On August 28, two months after appearing in ''Princess Protection Program'', Gomez starred in ''Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie'', a made-for-television film based on the show. The film premiered to an audience of 11.4 million viewers becoming cable's No. 1 scripted telecast of 2009 and Disney Channel's second most-viewed film premiere after ''High School Musical 2''. In 2010, the film adaptation won ''Wizards of Waverly Place'' its second consecutive Emmy for "Outstanding Children's Program" at the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards over its television series counterpart which had won in the same category at the 61st Primetime Emmy Awards.

2010–present: Focus on film

Gomez's first theatrical film ''Ramona & Beezus'' premiered on July 23, 2010 and met with generally positive reviews. In March 2010, ''Variety'' reported that Gomez was set to star as one of the three lead roles in ''Monte Carlo'', alongside Leighton Meester and Katie Cassidy. In the film Gomez plays Grace, a girl who’s “mistaken for a socialite while on a trip to Paris.” To prepare for the role Gomez learned how to play polo and also took two weeks of vocal training to learn two different British accents. The same year Gomez confirmed that the fourth season of her hit Disney Channel show, ''Wizards of Waverly Place'', would be its last.

In February 2011, Deadline.com reported that Universal Pictures and Strike Entertainment had acquired the novel ''Thirteen Reasons Why'' by Jay Asher with Gomez attached to the lead. That same month TV Guide reported that Gomez would make a cameo in the ''Muppets'' film. Production for the final season of ''Wizards of Waverly Place'' came to a wrap on May 14, 2011. Gomez co-hosted the 2011 MuchMusic Video Awards on June 19. She also hosted the 2011 MTV EMAs on November 6, 2011, in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where she performed her band's new single "Hit The Lights". In early November, ''Variety'' reported that Gomez was in talks to star in the upcoming film ''Spring Breakers'' alongside James Franco, Emma Roberts, and Vanessa Hudgens. Gomez confirmed to ''MTV'' that she had signed on for the project and that production will begin in early 2012.

Music career

2009: Solo career

In 2008, Gomez recorded a cover of "Cruella de Vil"—which included a music video—for the compilation album ''DisneyMania 6''. Gomez recorded three songs for the ''Another Cinderella Story'' soundtrack, which Gomez appears in.left|thumb|Selena Gomez permorming [[Naturally (Selena Gomez & the Scene song)|Naturally on Good Morning America|150px]] Gomez also recorded "Fly to Your Heart" for the 2008 animated film ''Tinker Bell''. In July 2008, before Gomez' sixteenth birthday, she signed a recording deal with Hollywood Records, a music label owned by ''Disney''. In 2009, Gomez recorded "One and the Same" for ''Princess Protection Program'' as a duet with her co-star Lovato. Gomez recorded four songs, one of which was a cover, for the ''Wizards of Waverly Place'' soundtrack, only one single (Magic) from the album was released. In May, of the same year, Gomez was featured, with Forever the Sickest Kids, on a duet version of the non-album song "Whoa Oh!".

2009–present: Selena Gomez & the Scene

Formed in 2009, Selena Gomez & the Scene is a teen pop band which consists of Selena Gomez on vocals, Ethan Roberts on guitar, Joey Clement on bass, Greg Garman on drums and Dane Forrest on keyboards. ''Kiss & Tell'' is the band's debut studio album and was released on September 29, 2009 by Hollywood Records. On March 5, 2010, the album was certified Gold by RIAA. The album's single, "Naturally", was certified Platinum by the RIAA on July 15, 2010. The band's second album ''A Year Without Rain'' was released on September 17, 2010. The record debuted on the Billboard 200 at number 4, selling 66,000 copies. On January 19, 2011, the album was certified Gold by RIAA. The band's third album ''When the Sun Goes Down'', previously titled ''Otherside'', released on June 28, 2011. The album debuted at number 4 on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling 78,000 copies its first week. The following week, the album rose to number 3 on the, becoming the band's highest charting album to date. The album's lead single, "Who Says" was certified Platinum by RIAA on June 23, 2011 and has become the band's highest charting song on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 to date, peaking at number 21.

Other projects

Philanthropy

Gomez was involved in the UR Votes Count campaign which encouraged teenagers to learn more about 2008 presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain. In October 2008, Gomez participated in St. Jude's Children's Hospital "Runway For Life" benefit. Gomez is a spokesperson for Borden Milk; she is featured in the campaign's print and television ads. She is the ambassador of DoSomething.org after being involved with the charity Island Dog, which help dogs in Puerto Rico. She got involved while filming ''Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie'' in Puerto Rico. Gomez is a spokesperson for State Farm Insurance, and is featured in their TV commercials; which air on the Disney Channel, to raise awareness of being a safe driver. Gomez is also involved with the charity RAISE Hope For Congo, an initiative of the Enough Project, which helps raise awareness about conflict minerals and violence against Congolese women.

In October 2008, Gomez was named UNICEF's spokesperson for the Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF campaign, which encouraged children to raise money on Halloween to help children around the world. She said that she was "extremely excited" to "encourage other kids to make a difference in the world."

In August 2009, a 17-year-old Gomez became the youngest UNICEF ambassador ever, passing fellow songstress Hayley Westenra, who was 18 when she was chosen. In her first official field mission, Gomez traveled to Ghana on September 4, 2009 for a week to witness first-hand the stark conditions of vulnerable children that lack vital necessities including clean water, nourishment, education and healthcare. Gomez explained during an interview with Associated Press that she wanted to use her star power to bring awareness to Ghana: “That’s why I feel very honored to have a voice that kids listen to and take into consideration [...] I had people on my tour asking me where IS Ghana, and they Googled it [...] and because I went there, they now know where Ghana is. So it’s pretty incredible.” Gomez said of her role as ambassador that: "Every day 25,000 children die from preventable causes. I stand with UNICEF in the belief that we can change that number from 25,000 to zero. I know we can achieve this because every moment, UNICEF is on the ground providing children with the lifesaving assistance needed to ensure zero becomes a reality."

Gomez was named spokesperson for UNICEF's 2009 Trick-or-Treat campaign, for the second year in a row. Gomez, who raised over $700,000 for the charity in 2008, stated that she hopes to be able to raise 1 million dollars in 2009. Gomez participated in a celebrity auction and hosted a live web cast series on Facebook in support of the Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF campaign. Gomez returned as the UNICEF spokesperson for the 60th anniversary of Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF campaign in 2010. In celebration of the 60th anniversary, Gomez and her band, The Scene, held a benefit concert donating all proceeds to the campaign.

In February 2011, Gomez traveled to Chile to witness and meet with the families of UNICEF's supported program, "Programa Puente" which helps families better understand and develops skills to deal effectively with early childhood education, development and other issues related to raising children. From her field trip experience, Gomez said "UNICEF is helping Chilean families get out of poverty, prevent violence within the home and promote education. To witness first hand these families' struggles, and also their hope and perseverance, was truly inspiring." In March 2011, Gomez participated in the UNICEF Tap Project's "Celebrity Tap Pack," limited-edition, custom-made water bottles featuring tap water from the homes of each celebrity advocate, in order to raise funds and increase profile for the clean water and sanitation programs. She is also featured in videos promoting the campaign.

Gomez is involved in Disney's Friends for Change, an organization which promotes "environmently-friendly behavior", and appears in its public service announcements. Gomez, Demi Lovato, Miley Cyrus, and the Jonas Brothers recorded "Send It On", a charity single with all of its proceeds to the Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund. It debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 20. Also in 2009, Gomez made a surprise visit to a Los Angeles elementary school as part of the "A Day Made Better" program that was sponsored by OfficeMax. During her visit, Gomez gave the school an award and $1,000 worth of school supplies, and talked to students about the importance of giving back to the community.

Gomez is also the owner of six rescue dogs and describes herself as a "huge animal-lover".

Entrepreneurship and sponsorships

thumb|left|upright|Gomez on the set of her music video for "Tell Me Something I Don't Know" in July 2008 Gomez was part of Sears back-to-school fashion ad campaign. As part of the campaign Gomez was featured in the television commercials. In August 2009, Gomez also hosted the "Sears Arrive Air Band Casting Call" – to select five people for the first-ever "Sears Air Band", which performed at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards.

In October 2008, Gomez launched her own production company, July Moon Productions, and partnered with XYZ Films to create star vehicles for Gomez. As part of the agreement Gomez will have the opportunity to be able option articles, hire writers and create talent packages to shop to studios. Also, as part of the deal, "XYZ Films will allow Gomez to star in and produce at least two films. ''Variety'' reported that: "In August, XYZ [Films] inked a similar deal with Time Inc. and management-production company the Collective to finance the development of the print media giant's content for the bigscreen [...] As part of the July Moon-XYZ deal, [Selena] Gomez will have the ability to cherry-pick projects from the vast Time Inc. library, which includes Time, Sports Illustrated, Fortune and Life."

In October 2009, Gomez announced her plan to launch her own fashion line, called "Dream Out Loud by Selena Gomez". The clothing line launched in the fall of 2010. The collection consists of and features bohemian dresses, floral tops, jeans, skirts, jackets, scarves and hats, all made from recycled or eco-friendly materials. Gomez said that the line will reflect her own personal style and described the clothing as being "pretty, feminine, and bohemian," and: "With my line, I really want to give the customer options on how they can put their own looks together [...] I want the pieces that can be easy to dress up or down, and the fabrics being eco-friendly and organic is super important [...] Also, the tags will all have some of my inspirational quotes on them. I'm just looking to send a good message." Gomez, who has no background in fashion, teamed up with designers Tony Melillo and Sandra Campos, both who have worked with big-name fashion houses. Gomez said of the partnering: "When I met Tony and Sandra, I was instantly comfortable with them and now they are just like family to me [...] They are so creative and I love how I can just call them up whenever and talk to them about everything, even if it's just about changing a button [...] They've been so cool about everything." The brand will be manufactured by, Melillo and Campos teamed with New York-based Adjmi Apparel and formed by Adjmi CH Brands LLC; which is the holding company for the brand.

It was announced on July 14, 2011, that Gomez had signed a license agreement with Adrenalina, an extreme sports and adventure-themed lifestyle brand, to develop, manufacture, and distribute the actress' fragrance. It is expected to debut in the spring of 2012. Chairman and C.E.O. of Adrenalina, Ilia Lekach, said, "We are incredibly enthused to be working with Ms. Gomez and will reveal more details pertaining to the fragrance as we get closer to the launch date."

Filmography

Film

Notes
2003	''Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over''	Waterpark Girl	Minor role
2005	''Walker, Texas Ranger: Trial by Fire''	Julie	Television movie
2008	''Another Cinderella Story''	Mary Santiago	Direct-to-videoMain role
2008		96 daughters	(Voice)
2009	''Princess Protection Program''	Carter Mason
2009	''Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie''	Alex Russo
2009	''Arthur and the Vengeance of Maltazard''	Princess Selenia
2009	''Arthur 3: The War of the Two Worlds''	Princess Selenia	(Voice)
2010	''Ramona and Beezus''		Main role
2011		Grace Bennett/Cordelia Winthrop Scott	Main role
2011		Herself	Cameo appearance
2012		Hannah Baker	Main Role
2012	''Hot Mess''	TBA	Main Role
2013	''Spring Breakers''	TBA	Main Role

Television

Notes
2002–2003	''Barney & Friends''	Gianna	Recurring role
	''Brain Zapped''	Emily Grace Garcia	Unsold pilot
''The Suite Life of Zack & Cody''	Gwen
2007–2008	''Hannah Montana''	Mikayla	"I Want You to Want Me... to Go to Florida" (Season 2, episode 13)"That's What Friends Are For?" (Season 2, episode 18)"(We're So Sorry) Uncle Earl" (Season 2, episode 22) (uncredited)
2007–2012	''Wizards of Waverly Place''	Alex Russo	Lead role
	''The Suite Life on Deck''	Alex Russo
''Hannah Montana''	Alex Russo	"Double Crossed"
''Sonny With a Chance''	Herself
	''So Random!''	Herself
''PrankStars''	Herself	Guest star

Music videos

Notes
2008	"Burnin' Up"	Jonas Brothers	Played Nick Jonas' love interest
2011	"The Dance Routine"	The Midnight Beast	Cameo

Discography

Soundtrack albums

+ List of albums, with selected chart positions	scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:15em;"	Title	Album details	Peak chart positions
! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"	! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"	! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"		! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"
! scope="row"		* Released: August 26, 2008	* Formats: CD, digital download	* Label: Walt Disney Records	116	8	—
scope="row"	''Wizards of Waverly Place''		* Released: August 4, 2009	* Formats: CD, digital download	* Label: Walt Disney Records	24	4	2

Singles

+ List of singles, with selected chart positions	scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:16em;"	Title	Year	Peak chart positions			Album
! scope="col" style="width:4em;font-size:90%;"	! scope="col" style="width:4em;font-size:90%;"	! scope="col" style="width:4em;font-size:90%;"
"Tell Me Something I Don't Know"	2008	58	—	—	''Another Cinderella Story#Soundtrack	Another Cinderella Story''
scope="row"	"Magic"		61	86	5	''Wizards of Waverly Place (soundtrack)	Wizards of Waverly Place''
scope="row"	"One and the Same" (with Demi Lovato)	82	—	—	''Disney Channel Playlist''
scope="row"	"Shake It Up"	2011	—	—	—	''Shake It Up: Break It Down''

Featured singles

+ List of singles, with selected chart positions	Title	Year	Peak chart positions	Album
! scope="col" style="width:6em;font-size:90%;"
! scope="row"		—	non-album song
! scope="row"	20	non-album song

Other appearances

Song	Year	Album
! scope="row"		''Disneymania 6''
"Fly to Your Heart"
"Everything Is Not What It Seem"		''Disney Channel Playlist''
"Everything Is Not What It Seem"	''Pop It Rock It!''
! scope="row"		''Disneymania 7''
"Winter Wonderland"	''Family Holiday, Vol. 2''

Music videos

Song	Year	Album
"Cruella De Vil"		Unknown
"Tell Me Something I Don't Know"	Unknown
"Fly to Your Heart"	Unknown
"One and the Same"		Unknown
"Send It On"	Unknown

Awards and nominations

! Year	! Award	! Category	! Work	! Outcome
	ALMA Award	Outstanding Female Performance in a Comedy Television Series		rowspan=3
Imagen Awards	Best Actress – Television
	NAACP Image Awards	Outstanding Performance in a Youth/Children's Program – Series or Special
	Favorite TV Actress	rowspan=2
	Best Performance in a TV Movie, Miniseries, or Special – Leading Young Actress	''Another Cinderella Story''
Best Performance in a TV Series – Leading Young Actress	''Wizards of Waverly Place''	rowspan=2
Best Performance in a Voice-over Role
	"Choice Summer- Celebrity Dancer"	''Another Cinderella Story''	rowspan=4
"Choice Summer – TV Star-Female"	''Princess Protection Program''
"Choice Other Stuff – Red Carpet Icon: Female"
Hollywood Style Awards	Style Igenue
Imagen Awards	Best Actress – Television
Alma Award	Special Achievement Comedy – Television – Actress
Nickelodeon Australian Kids' Choice Awards	Fave International TV Star
	Gracie Award	Outstanding Female Rising Star in a Comedy Series
NAACP Image Awards	Outstanding Performance in a Youth/Children's Program – Series or Special
	Favorite TV Actress
Young Artist Award	Best Performance in a TV Movie, Miniseries, or Special – Leading Young Actress	''Princess Protection Program''	rowspan=3
BET Awards	YoungStars Award
American Latino Awards	Favorite American Latino Actor
rowspan="3"	Choice TV Actress: Comedy	rowspan=2
Choice Red Carpet Fashion Icon: Female	Herself
Choice Summer: Movie Star- Female	''Ramona and Beezus''	rowspan=2
Imagen Awards	Best Actress – Television	''Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie''
Nickelodeon Australian Kids' Choice Awards	Fave TV Star
	NAACP Image Awards	Outstanding Performance in a Youth/Children's Program – Series or Special
rowspan=2	Favorite TV Actress
Favorite Female Singer
rowspan=4	Choice Female Hottie	rowspan=2
Choice TV Actress: Comedy	''Wizards of Waverly Place''
Choice Summer: Movie Star- Female		rowspan=2
Choice Summer: Music Star- Female	Herself
Imagen Awards	Best Young Actress – Television
	Favorite TV Actress – Leading Role in a Comedy	rowspan=4
Favorite Movie Actress – Comedy/Musical	''Monte Carlo''
Favorite Female Music Artist
	Biggest Fans
Nickelodeon Australian Kids' Choice Awards	Fave TV Star	''Wizards of Waverly Place''	rowspan=2
Nickelodeon Argentina Kids' Choice Awards	Favorite International Singer	''Selena Gomez & the Scene''

References

External links

Selena Gomez at Disney.com

Category:1992 births Category:Actors from Texas Category:American bloggers Category:American actors of Mexican descent‎ Category:American child actors Category:American child singers Category:American dance musicians Category:American female singers Category:American film actors Category:American musicians of Mexican descent Category:American musicians of Italian descent Category:American pop singers Category:American rock singers Category:American television actors Category:American television personalities Category:American voice actors Category:American women in business Category:Barney & Friends Category:Child pop musicians Category:Female American rock drummers Category:Living people Category:Musicians from Texas Category:People from Grand Prairie, Texas Category:Pop rock singers Category:UNICEF people

kbd:Селена Гомес ar:سيلينا غوميز az:Selena Qomez ba:Селена Гомес be:Селена Гомес bg:Селена Гомес bs:Selena Gomez br:Selena Gomez ca:Selena Marie Gomez cv:Селена Гомес ceb:Selena Gomez cs:Selena Gomezová cbk-zam:Selena Gomez da:Selena Gomez de:Selena Gomez et:Selena Gomez el:Σελένα Γκόμεζ es:Selena Gomez eu:Selena Gomez fa:سلنا گومز fr:Selena Gomez gl:Selena Gomez ko:셀레나 고메즈 hy:Սելենա Գոմես hi:सेलीन गोमेज़ hr:Selena Gomez id:Selena Gomez is:Selena Gomez it:Selena Gomez he:סלינה גומז kn:ಸೆಲೆನಾ ಗೊಮೆಜ್ krc:Гомес, Селена ka:სელენა გომესი kk:Селена Гомес ky:Гомес, Селена lo:ເຊລີນ້າ ໂກເມຊ lv:Selena Gomesa lb:Selena Gomez lt:Selena Gomez hu:Selena Gomez mk:Селена Гомез ms:Selena Gomez mn:Селена Гомес nl:Selena Gomez ja:セレーナ・ゴメス no:Selena Gomez nn:Selena Gomez uz:Selena Gomez km:សាលីណា កូមាស់ pl:Selena Gomez pt:Selena Gomez ro:Selena Gomez ru:Гомес, Селена sah:Селена Гомес sq:Selena Gomez simple:Selena Gomez sk:Selena Gomezová sl:Selena Gomez sr:Селена Гомез sh:Selena Gomez fi:Selena Gomez sv:Selena Gomez tl:Selena Gomez ta:செலெனா கோமஸ் tt:Селена Гомес th:เซเลน่า โกเมซ tg:Селена Гомез tr:Selena Gomez tk:Selena Gomez uk:Селена Гомес vi:Selena Gomez yi:סעלינע גאמעז zh:賽琳娜·戈梅茲

Coordinates	39°44′21″N104°59′5″N
name	Wiz Khalifa
alt	Wiz Khalifa holding a microphone
background	solo_singer
birth name	Cameron Jibril Thomaz
alias
born	September 08, 1987Minot, North Dakota, United States
origin	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States
genre	Hip hop
occupation	Rapper, Singer
years active	2005–present
label	Rostrum, Warner Bros., Atlantic
associated acts	Tinie Tempah, Snoop Dogg,Rick Ross, Curren$y, Big Sean, Fashawn, Mac Miller
website	wizkhalifa.com
notable instruments	}}

Cameron Jibril Thomaz (born September 8, 1987), better known by the stage name Wiz Khalifa, is an American rapper. He released his debut album, ''Show and Prove'', in 2006, and signed to Warner Bros. Records in 2007. His eurodance-influenced single, "Say Yeah", received urban radio airplay, charting on the Rhythmic Top 40 and Hot Rap Tracks charts in 2008. Khalifa parted with Warner Bros. and released his second album, ''Deal or No Deal'', in November 2009. He released the mixtape ''Kush and Orange Juice'' as a free download in April 2010; he then signed with Atlantic Records. He is also well-known for his debut single for Atlantic, "Black and Yellow", which peaked at number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. His debut album for the label, ''Rolling Papers'', was released on March 29, 2011.

Early life

Khalifa was born on September 8, 1987 in Minot, North Dakota, to a mother and a father serving in the military. His parents divorced when Khalifa was about three years old. His parents' military service caused him to move on a regular basis. Khalifa lived in Germany, England, and Japan before settling in Pittsburgh where he attended Taylor Allderdice High School.

His stage name is derived from khalifa, an Arabic word meaning "successor", and wisdom, which was shortened to Wiz when Khalifa was fifteen. Khalifa stated to spinner.com that the name also came from being called "young Wiz 'cause I was good at everything I did, and my granddad is Muslim, so he gave me that name; he felt like that's what I was doing with my music." He got his stage name tattooed on his 17th birthday. He includes Camp Lo, The Notorious B.I.G. and Bone Thugs-n-Harmony among his influences.

Career

2005-08: Early mixtapes and ''Show and Prove''

Khalifa released his first mixtape, ''Prince of the City: Welcome to Pistolvania'', in 2005. The mixtape led to his first full length album entitled ''Show and Prove'' in 2006. Khalifa was declared an "artist to watch" that year in ''Rolling Stone'' magazine.

In 2007, Khalifa signed to Warner Bros. Records and released two mixtapes through Rostrum Records: ''Grow Season'', hosted by DJ Green Lantern and released on July 4, 2007, and ''Prince of the City 2'', released on November 20, 2007. His debut Warner Bros. single "Say Yeah" reached number 25 on the ''Billboard'' Rhythmic Top 40 music chart and number 20 on ''Billboard's'' Hot Rap Tracks. The song samples "Better Off Alone" by Alice Deejay. Khalifa's vocals from "Say Yeah" appear near the end of Pittsburgh mash up producer Girl Talk's 2008 album, ''Feed the Animals'', over music from Underworld's "Born Slippy", Usher's "Love in This Club", and the Cure's "In Between Days". Khalifa appeared with The Game, David Banner and Play-n-Skillz at U92's Summer Jam at the USANA Amphitheatre in West Valley City, Utah on August 2, 2008. Khalifa released the mixtapes ''Star Power'' in September 2008, and ''Flight School'' in April 2009 on Rostrum Records.

Khalifa parted ways with Warner Bros. Records in July 2009 after numerous delays in releasing his planned debut album for the label, ''First Flight''. Khalifa stated to the ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'' that, "I learned a lot during my time there and matured as an artist during the process. I'm happy to be moving on with all of my material and having the chance to be in control of my next moves". Khalifa appeared with Girl Talk, Modey Lemon, Donora, Grand Buffet, and Don Caballero at the Amphitheatre at Station Square in Pittsburgh on July 31, 2009, where he announced that his relationship with Warner Bros. was over.

2009-10: ''Deal or No Deal''

Continuing his association with Rostrum Records, Khalifa released the single "Teach U to Fly", and the mixtape ''How Fly'', a collaboration with New Orleans rapper Curren$y, on August 9, 2009. Khalifa introduced a more melodic style on the mixtape, alternating between singing and rapping. He opened for Wu-Tang Clan member U-God at the 2009 CMJ Music Marathon in New York City. Khalifa released the mixtape ''Burn After Rolling'' on November 2, 2009, where he raps over familiar beats from other artists, including the songs "If I Were A Boy" and "Diva" by Beyoncé, "Walking on a Dream" by Empire of the Sun, "Luchini AKA This Is It" by Camp Lo, and "Best I Ever Had" by Drake. Khalifa released his second album, ''Deal or No Deal'', on November 24, 2009.

Khalifa performed at Emo's in Austin, Texas in March 2010 as part of the 2010 South by Southwest Music Festival. He appeared on the cover of ''XXL'' magazine that same month, for the magazine's annual list of Top 10 Freshman, which included Donnis, J. Cole, Pill, Freddie Gibbs, and Fashawn. Wiz Khalifa was named 2010 "Rookie Of The Year" by "The Source", with alongside Rick Ross, "The Man Of The Year". He toured with rapper Yelawolf on a 20-date tour, the Deal Or No Deal Tour. Khalifa released the free mixtape ''Kush and Orange Juice'' for download on April 14, 2010. Due to Khalifa's devoted grassroots fan base, the mixtape became the No. 1 trending topic on Twitter with the hash tag #kushandorangejuice, and "Kush and Orange Juice download” ranked No. 1 on Google’s hot search trends.

2010: Signing with Atlantic Records

Citing music industry insiders, ''New York'' magazine wrote that Khalifa signed with Atlantic Records in April 2010, although the rapper did not confirm it. He stated to AllHipHop in June 2010 that he was working on a new album, but was weighing his options and had not yet decided on a label to distribute it. Khalifa confirmed to MTV on July 30 that he was signing an Atlantic Records deal.

Khalifa was featured in a remix and video for the 2010 Rick Ross single "Super High", alongside Curren$y. He guested on the mixtape ''Grey Goose, Head Phones, and Thirsty Women '' by St. Louis rapper M.C, and was featured on the track "The Breeze (Cool)" on rapper Wale's August 2010 mixtape ''More About Nothing''. Khalifa was named MTV's Hottest Breakthrough MC of 2010, winning with nearly 70,000 votes, and beating out finalists Nicki Minaj, J. Cole, Travis Porter, and Diggy Simmons.

Khalifa appeared at the Soundset 2010 festival in May 2010 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, alongside Method Man & Redman, Del the Funky Homosapien and Hieroglyphics, Atmosphere, Murs, Cage, and others. He also performed at the 2010 Rock the Bells festival, along with hip hop veterans Wu-Tang Clan, Snoop Dogg, Lauryn Hill, A Tribe Called Quest, Rakim, KRS-One, Jedi Mind Tricks and Slick Rick. Khalifa declined an invitation to tour with rapper Drake and launched his own "Waken Baken" tour, a 50-city national tour with rapper Yelawolf. The tour, scheduled to last from September to November 2010, has, as of October, sold out every venue. On November 2010, during his "Waken Baken" tour at East Carolina University, Wiz Khalifa was arrested for possession and trafficking of marijuana. He was then released the next morning after a $300K bail, and resumed his tour. Khalifa performed in a cypher during the 2010 BET Hip-Hop Awards. He recited his verse from the song, "The Check Point", from his mixtape with Curren$y, ''How Fly''.

2010-11: Mainstream success and ''Rolling Papers''

Khalifa released "Black and Yellow", his first single for Rostrum/Atlantic, produced by Stargate, which has received radio airplay. The single was peaked at number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100; the title of the song refers to the colours of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Khalifa will release his debut album with Atlantic Records in 2011. He appeared with Curren$y on the track "Scaling the Building" on producer Ski Beatz' 2010 album, ''24 Hour Karate School''. Khalifa's fanbase is known as the Taylor Gang, named after his love of Chuck Taylor All-Stars shoes.

On March 29, 2011, Khalifa released his first studio album, ''Rolling Papers''. The album debuted at number two on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart, with first-week sales of 197,000 copies in the United States.

On June 26, 2011, Khalifa was nominated and won Best New Artist at the BET Awards of 2011.

Khalifa collaborated with the prolific British rapper Tinie Tempah whom Tinie announced in an interview with Rolling Stone that his next single is to be called "Till I'm Gone" and would feature Wiz Khalifa and is to be produced by Stargate. The single and the video song were released at the end of June 2011.

Personal life

Thomaz is dating Amber Rose, the former girlfriend of Thomaz's fellow hip-hop star Kanye West. He is also personal friends with rapper Yelawolf, and fellow Pittsburgh rapper, Mac Miller.

Discography

;Studio albums

''Show and Prove'' (2006)

''Deal or No Deal'' (2009)

''Rolling Papers'' (2011)

References

External links

Wiz Khalifa at MTV

Category:1987 births Category:Military brats Category:African American rappers Category:Atlantic Records artists Category:Living people Category:Musicians from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Category:People from Minot, North Dakota Category:Rappers from Pennsylvania

bs:Wiz Khalifa ca:Wiz khalifa cs:Wiz Khalifa da:Wiz Khalifa de:Wiz Khalifa es:Wiz Khalifa fa:ویز خلیفا fr:Wiz Khalifa hr:Wiz Khalifa it:Wiz Khalifa he:ויז קאליפה nl:Wiz Khalifa ja:ウィズ・カリファ no:Wiz Khalifa pl:Wiz Khalifa pt:Wiz Khalifa ro:Wiz Khalifa ru:Wiz Khalifa simple:Wiz Khalifa sh:Wiz Khalifa fi:Wiz Khalifa sv:Wiz Khalifa vi:Wiz Khalifa zh:维兹·卡利法

Cole Taylor was a straight pornographic actor who primarily worked in the 1980s. He made his debut in the Nova Studios production ''Heroes'' (1984). He played the role of a college professor who bangs all his female students.

Despite the acclaim for his performance in the scene, Taylor's career in adult film was a short one. Although he turned in several more notable performances—in ''Nightcrawler,'' ''The Company We Keep,'' ''Full Grown, Full Blown,'' ''Lifeguard,'' ''Perfect 10'' and ''Thinking Big''—Taylor retired from adult film in 1990. All told, Cole Taylor made just 21 pornographic films.

He once said, "I am a sea otter in a man's body" - it is perhaps one of the best things he ever said- US Weekly

As of 1997, he was living in Saskatoon, Canada.

References

Douglas, Jerry. "Behind the Camera: Scott Masters, Part 2." ''Manshots.'' November 1997.

Hardesty, Rex. "Nova Studios, Part Two: The Final Years." ''Manshots.'' August 1997.

Category:Living people Category:Year of birth missing (living people) Category:American pornographic film actors Category:Actors in gay pornographic films