Jean-Paul Goude's History With Kanye Wests' Women

Grace Jones;Amber Rose

Recently, I've come across more art-form photography by artist Jean-Paul Goude, the Parisian artist now known for the most recent nude spread of Kim Kardashian. 

Goude is best known for his decades of work capturing model/actress Grace Jones, in captivating photo shoots -- many that are deemed controversial in nature as well as borderline racist.

The recent photos uncovered are another recreation of Goude's past work which showcased his then muse, model Grace Jones; model Amber Rose, Kanye West's former girlfriend was apart of Goude's recreation as she re-enacted similar poses as Grace Jones. Rose's photos were indeed taken in 2010, the same year the former couple were actually a couple.

The Yeezus rapper seems to have a fascination with this particular artist and his works, as he keeps using this same visionary for his artisan projects. 

It's obvious that Kanye's spouses become his muses and he already admitted that the reality star had become his new muse, but will she continue to let Kanye make art with her body just as Goude did with Grace Jones?

On a side note: Kanye is recreating the past; art that becomes art again. Art often imitates life but it's interesting to see that Kanye prefers art to imitate art. Will the 'Cold' rapper try to innovate new art with his art pieces, or simply continue to pull from the past -- much like sampling vintage music?

2014 LA

Solange Knowles Ties The Knot With Alan Ferguson

Solange and Alan Ferguson arrive for their wedding. (Patriot Pics/SBMF/FameFlynet)

On Sunday November 16th, Beyonce's little sister -- DJ and mama to her 10 year old son Julez, Solange Knowles, finally tied the knot with her 51-year-old longtime video producer beau Alan Ferguson, who she's been dating since 2009.

Solange and her new hubby married in their residential home town of New Orleans; riding vintage style bikes to their ceremony instead of the traditional limousine and/or horse and carriage transportation. The dazzling bride had a basket filled with flowers that attached to the front of her bicycle.

Again, instead of following "tradition" -- that the only person to wear white should be the bride, the 28-year-old seemed to knock that trend and instead opted for her entire bridal party to wear white; the bridal party also wore their own style of shoes. This picture shows Solange's bridal party in all-white -- standing very stoic and militant in style; singer Janelle Mone' broke the militant pattern as she smiled broadly displaying her excitement for her friend.

The new Mrs. Ferguson stood in the middle of her bridal party looking like the leader of the pack, with sister Beyonce to her right and Mama Knowles to her left. Solange looked ravishing in an all-white gown and cape by Humberto Leon for Kenzo. Her all-white jumpsuit that plunged low in the front, seen above in the first photo is designed by Stephane Rolland. 

She had her signature Afro hairstyle and red lips to give a tinge of boldness -- along with two gold cuffs that adorned both her wrists, which resembles to me jewelry worn by African Queen Nefertiti. In the portrait, she is the epitome of a super soulful chic sistah; very down-to-earth with an old soul and knowing exactly what she wants. 

Solange and her 10-year-old son Juelz who she co-parents with her ex-husband Daniel Smith, whom she married at the tender age of 17-years-old, performed a sweet mother and son choreographed dance routine to the song 'No Flex Zone' for all the wedding guests in attendance.

Overall, the wedding appeared very intimate, stylish, down-to-earth, and strictly family and close friends based. Congrats to the new Mr. and Mrs. Ferguson!

On a side note: Was the bride given away by her father, Matthew Knowles? Was he even in attendance?

2014 LA

Kim and Kanye: Friends With Benefits?

A recent magazine cover which prominently displays the nude full frontal of the 'Keeping Up With The Kardashians' star Kim Kardashian, has most people wondering why Kanye West would agree to showcase his wife's goods for all to see?

Talk show host Wendy Williams, seems to believe it's because the #MostTalkedAboutCouple is "grooming their 18-month-old daughter North West, to be over-sexualised like her mother." 

ESPN host Michelle Beadle, recently told TMZ it was because Kim had "no talent" and therefore, "what else was she going to do?" 

However, little sister Khloe Kardashian-Odom, has a rather different take on it as she bespeaks "If you got it, flaunt it", also "And people just, I think, went so hard on her during her pregnancy that I think it's almost that she feels liberated to show everyone, like, 'Look how bomb I look.' And she does, she looks great." 

Khloe also made it her point to say that this photo shoot was definitely a KimYe production, as Kanye most certainly encouraged her to do the shoot. 

So again, why would a man encourage his wife to bare all her nakedness to the world?

1. Is it because the world has already seen her nakedness, so why not continue the trend? 

2. Is it because he deems Kim's body to be a work of art, and he enjoys using his creativity to influence her endeavours? 

3. Is it because the two have a business marriage in which he promised to help her make more money and in return she'd do the same, all while making sure to keep up her end of the bargain to produce his children -- #FriendsWithBenefits? 

4. Or is he really just that confident in himself to allow her to continue business as usual, knowing that she isn't going anywhere? 

Although the soft porn magazine cover was titled #BreakTheInternet -- which it most certainly did not, and the magazines website received 5 million less views than the amount of people following Kim on Twitter -- the cover did however bring more awareness to the online site than it ever had before, but the backlash that ensued due to the vulgarity of the cover left the online business at a loss with regards too not receiving any champagne endorsements, so much so, that the bottle Kim Kardashian was holding had to be blurred out of the shot.

And although GQ UK gave Kim a 'Woman Of The Year' award (in which GQ US had given superstar Beyonce a ('Woman Of The Millenial Award'), GQ US decided to make it adamantly clear that Kim's award had absolutely nothing to do with their American chapter.  

Will Kim Kardashian lose endorsements because of her most recent shoot? Will it become harder for her to attain future endorsements and/or business ventures because of this particular shoot or just the opposite? And when Kim's pictures become mundane as people tire from seeing the same thing over and over again, will the next step be another videotape and will Kanye actually be in the video? Or will their public divorce be the next big payday -- as it's added to her video app game?

On a side note: Did Kim not realize that in her quest to be innovative she was actually recreating racist imagery, in which the photographer Jean-Paul Goude, simply used one of his old photos to create the new and improved Kardashian version? 

Photographer Jean-Paul Goude photo of Kim Kardashian recreated his now famous "Champagne Incident" photo.

The old photo was of Sarah "Saartjie" Baartman, whose buttocks were naturally big, round, and poked outward away from her body; much like Black people's lips poke outward from their face. 

For centuries Black women were made fun of for having smaller waists with larger hips and posteriors that protruded outward instead of inward, and now in the 21st century outward lips, hips, and butts are the new fade. 

Or maybe it was secretly always a fade when the invention of corsets became the new norm; corsets which forcefully squeeze (sometimes to death) and trains the waist to stay small, while making the hips and buttocks protrude away from the body. Corsets first became popular in 16th century Europe, and most certainly wasn't a coincidence. 

#AsKanyeContinuesHisPoliticalArtEndeavours

2014 LA

Disgusted Mother Wants Kardashian Kids Line Eradicated

Photo Courtesy of Babies "R" Us

Amie Logan, a 43-year-old mother of one, created a Change.org petition targeting Babies "R" Us to completely remove all Kardashian Kids collections of clothing. 

Logan stated in her petition, "I don't want my kid to grow up to be a sex tape star. You pulled the Breaking Bad toys because they promoted drug use. You should pull this clothing line because it promotes bad behavior as well. The madness has to stop. If the toys are damaging so is the clothing."

"Our priorities are a little messed up," Logan tells Yahoo Style. "We are getting upset that they have toys from a fictional television show for kids 16 and older, but then they’re selling the Kardashian clothing line, which is from a real-life family that made their fortune from Kim’s sex tape."

Although Ms. Logan's frustration is quite understandable, it must be known that one's child won't grow up to be a sex tape star simply from wearing a sex tape star's clothing -- as a child is only molded by the way it is raised. 

So Ms. Logan, if you do your due diligence and parent your children in the way you'd like them to turn out, don't be so concerned with clothing because at the end of the day your child is to young too comprehend who the Kardashians are anyway; and the clothing sure can't talk. 

Also remember, it's your prerogative whether you purchase the clothing or not; when people want to see a product or person go away -- the best way to do that is to boycott the product and/or the person. Don't put your hard earned money and time into a product that you don't approve of, and your petition can be a way of informing other mother's to boycott the product with you -- rather than having Babies "R" Us be forced to remove the goods. 

Business is business, and Babies "R" Us struck an exclusive "business" deal for the Kardashian Kids Line, however, consistent boycotting will eventually force the retailer to eradicate the product from its store's shelving due to declining profit -- as there are mother's currently in the process of boycotting Babies "R" Us altogether.

#PeoplePowerWorksAllTheTime

2014 LA

Tina Knowles' Personal Story

Getting to know the mother figure behind super power singer Beyonce, was just as delightful as listening to her daughter talk about her own life. 

Following Destiny's Child from its conception; the only thing I knew about Tina Knowles is that she's the master mind behind the groups fabulous outfits, she owned her own beauty salon, she could fry a mean Cajun turkey and cook up a "slap ya mama" gumbo! 

Outside of that her private life was just that -- private, until her very public divorce in 2011, from ex-husband Matthew Knowles.

Furthermore, I related so much to her story because it has been the stories of women in my own family; growing up poor, trying to find your own voice while others dictate to you how "they" want you to be, empowering women through beauty as my grandmother was also a beauty shop owner -- and on many days when I'd come to get my free hair-do, I'd sit and listen to the women chat, laugh, debate and create a one-of-a-kind culture all their own. And of course the strong woman talk that often told me to always work hard so that I wouldn't have to depend on a man for anything; I didn't realize it back then but these women were molding a mini feminist, which I'm presently proud to wear the title.

If you learn nothing from Mama Knowles' speech -- know this; nothing worth while ever comes easy, hard work does pay off, sacrifices are inevitable and should be used as a tool to make one stronger, and as you walk through the storms of life always know that God is waiting for you on the other side to hand you something greater -- as you were being prepared to handle the challenges ahead.

After her speech I feel more inspired, empowered, and eager

to press on with life's unfolding discoveries as I keep my faith in knowing that I'll end up exactly where I'm supposed to be; thanks Mama Knowles. And this is the stock on which Beyonce and Solange came from? Their significant others are very lucky.

2014 LA

Gotham! Gotham! Gotham!

Jada Pinkett-Smith as "Fish" Mooney

Gotham is a new television series on the Fox network, and if you haven't viewed it yet -- it's an absolute MUST SEE!

The mini-series is more like a pre-cursor to the movie Batman, in which you see how all the characters in Batman became who they are from this "earlier" rendition. You see how "Penguin" became how he is, you see how "Batman" grew up from childhood, you see how "Cat Woman" started out and so on and so forth. 

I originally heard about this thriller by word-of-mouth because I have mutual friends and family that LOVE Jada Pinkett-Smith, so when I was told that she was apart of the cast I was ALL IN. 

Jada's character as "Fish" Mooney is a sexy, sinful, and seductive woman who's the head honcho of her operation and when she instructs her followers to jump their only response is, how high. I've never seen Jada play a role quite like this before but I must say, she's giving the character and this show much life with what she brings regarding her artistic abilities. And every actor thus far as exuded A-MA-ZING talent -- in which I am permanently a Gotham fan for life.

This awesome series kicks off every Monday on Fox, check your local listings and use your OnDemand to catch up from the last 3 episodes! I promise you will not be disappointed.

#GothOnWithGothamCity

2014 LA

Alicia Keys' 'We Are Here' Movement

Soulful singer and uniquely connected to the universe visionary Alicia Keys, hits us with the #Real as she uses her wisdom and in depth mental to educate us all on why "We Are Here".

I appreciate the candor of the soon-to-be momma of two, who appears to want desperately for the world what she wants for her own children; a place that's safe, loving, and full of opportunity. Her words are empowering and the message is clear; if we are to have positive, peaceful and progressive change in our world it must start with you...me....all of us. 

If you want to be apart of the why "We Are Here" movement, click here and subscribe to receive more information about this important mission. And while you're at it check out Ms. Keys' video here, and hopefully it'll embolden you to action.

#OneLove

2014 LA

Karrueche Tran Disses Blue Ivy in Tasteless Joke

Karrueche Tran attends The Kill Collection launch at Vanquish Lounge on January 17, 2013, in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Prince Williams/FilmMagic)

Karrueche Tran, the on-and-off again girlfriend of singer Chris Brown, made some disparaging remarks about Beyonce's daughter Blue Ivy while hosting on BET's 106 & Park.

During a segment in which the hosts highlighted the "top six things Blue Ivy thought about at the MTV VMAs," Karrueche, 26, said, "I really did wake up like this because my parents never comb my hair."

Needless to say, the Twitter community didn't take her remarks kindly and blasted her on social media about picking on a two year old baby, while lambasting her for appearing desperate to be Chris Brown's girlfriend.

Again, I'm not sure why people feel the need to make comments about Blue Ivy's hair -- but the negativity needs to STOP! This is a child and public bullying should be OFF LIMITS, period.

Although Ms. Tran tweeted that the comment she made was apart of her script, if you're truly a fan of Beyonce', then something deep down inside of you would've told you that making such a remark wasn't right. 

If it were me hosting on BET's 106 & Park, and they asked me to recite those horrible words about Blue Ivy or any baby for that matter, I would've told them NO! Some things aren't worth the money Karrueche, including your character but it's understandable that this is a learning process for many individuals.

And in case you weren't aware Ms. Tran, Blue Ivy's hair is naturally curly and if you were aware of black culture -- especially since you date a "black man", then you'd know that there are many textures and tones to black hair and if a black woman chooses to wear her hair -- or style her daughter's hair in its natural state, then it is for her to choose to do so and not the concern of any outsider.

It would behoove you to learn a bit about black history and how black people have been demeaned for centuries with regards to the texture of one's hair....you know, just in case you decide to have a black baby and need advice on how to properly groom a black child's mane. 

But whatever you do Karrueche, please stop perpetuating black stereotypes because it does nothing for your reputation and only seeks to isolate and degrade little black children -- potentially the ones that sit in the BET audience listening to your comments.

#ReadKarrueche

2014 LA

Update: BET and Karrueche Tran publicly and privately apologized to the Carters, regarding the tasteless joke made about their daughter's hair. #GoodJob #SubjectDead

2014 LA