Urban Thought Collective

OH, LISA…

In the continuing soap opera that is the marriage of actress LisaRaye and Turks and Caicos President Michael Misick, the two reportedly came to blows in the mansion this week, resulting in both receiving emergency medical attention for bites.

The Misicks have each filed a police report against the other, according to Caribbean Net News. The site also reports that the fight went down in the presence of several government officials, including the Minister for Health and Education, Lillian Been-Boyce.

A rep for Misick released a statement Thursday denying that he assaulted his wife, and accusing LisaRaye, her cousin and her publicist of initiating the drama.

“Last night LisaRaye, her cousin Phillip Travis, and her publicist Lynn Jeter assaulted the guard at the Premier’s home, proceeded to ransack the house, and then assaulted the Premier and his sister,” read the statement. “As the result of her assault on them, both the Premier and his sister were taken to the hospital with injuries and later released. The Premier at no time had any physical contact with LisaRaye.

MEMORIES & BLESSINGS ON BEHALF OF BERNIE MAC

At age 50 Bernie Mac died after suffering from a rare lung disease. Bernie Mac was on medication to suppress his immune system—and that that made him vulnerable to the pneumonia that ended his life.

Bernie is survived by his wife, Rhonda McCullough; their daughter, Je’Niece; and a granddaughter, Jasmine.

Fans and friends of Chicago comedian Bernie Mac may make donations in Mac’s honor may be sent to the Bernie Mac Foundation for Sarcoidosis, 40 E. 9th St., Suite 601, Chicago, IL 60605.

SPIRIT & LEGACY OF ISSAC HAYES WILL LIVE ON

Funk-soul legend and Academy Award-award winning musician & legend Isaac Hayes was found unconscious next to a treadmill at his Memphis home Sunday and it was reported he died from a massive stroke brought on by chronic hypertension at the age of 65.

He is survived by his wife of three years Adjowa Hayes, and their two-year-old son Kwadjo Hayes, ten children-Jacqueline Fields, Felecia Hayes Fisher, Veronica Hayes, Vincent Hayes, Melanie Hayes, Nikki McGhee, Heather Hayes, Isaac Hayes III, Darius Caston and Lillian Bryant-14 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

Issac rose to artistic success as an accomplished GRAMMY, Golden Globe and Academy Award winning composer/musician, paving the way for his fellow African Americans in the arts and entertainment world. As well as being a published author, actor and radio personality, Hayes was also a King of Ghana in western Africa. Instead of a palace, he built an 8,000 square foot educational facility as he felt that education and literacy is the key to a successful life.

The Hayes family, in lieu of flowers requests that donations be sent to the Stax Music Academy in Memphis, made out to Soulsville, 926 E. McLemore Avenue, Memphis, TN 38106. Please specify “In memory of Isaac Hayes.” Condolences may be sent to the family at message@isaachayes.com

SEAN PAUL GET’S CUFFED IN SWEDEN

Sean Paul and his fine ass was charged with marijuana possession at the Uppsala Reggae Festival after getting swept up in a police raid.

Now, it still amazes me that people decided to go to international waters, so far away from home to act a fool. I don’t know if y’all have seen the movie “Midnight Express,” but let me tell you, it makes Rikers Island look like Club Med.

Sean was one of 200 to 300 people, including 10 performers, who were hauled off to the slammer for questioning. Police said that they collected evidence at the scene and an investigation into the allegedly smoky shenanigans is underway.

Lord when will these children learn…all eyes on them!

R&B BATTLE: JOE GOES FOR R. KELLY’S JUGULAR

Joe ain’t holding back and boldly says that R. Kelly has been sabotaging his career! After 11 years on Jive Records, R&B “sanga” (cause that boy can sang), Joe discovered a pattern of stalled promotions and adjusted radio play all linking to one culprit – R. Kelly.

Both Joe & The Rrrra were Jive label mates and in a recent interview Joe let it all hang out about R Kelly’s antics. Joe states, “R. Kelly was very instrumental in making a lot of decisions when it came to my records being played on the radio. He would make a call to the radio station or to the label and say, ‘Hey, this Joe record is too hot right now. Ya’ll need to pull that back.’ And they would oblige.”

Now y’all do the math and add up the amount of beefs R. Kelly has going on…yeah, there’s Joe, but let’s not forget the drama surrounding Jay-Z and the Best of Both Worlds tour disaster; and please don’t sweep under the rug the fact that Ne-Yo was booted from R. Kelly’s tour last year. Ne-Yo sued R. Kelly in January as a result of a highly publicized “feud” that R. Kelly allegedly had a problem with the attention Ne-Yo was receiving as an opening act and promptly removed him from the tour shortly after it started.

As long as I’ve been in this business I’ve seen the most successful entertainers harbor the biggest insecurities and become a true nightmare behind closed doors. You can’t say it’s jealousy when all the above mentioned talents are just as successful as R. Kelly. They all can’t be wrong…

Now, what’s really ironic is that R.Kelly produced Joe’s hit single “More & More” which reached #15 on the R&B charts that year followed by the G-Unit collaboration “Ride Wit You.” You know what they say, “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”

Joe also says R.Kelly put pressure on Jive executives and radio stations to pull back on promoting his records when the singles appeared to be getting to much attention. “He did try to make some decisions when it came down to my records being on fire, and climbing up the charts and on the radio stations” says Joe.

Get ready cause Joe has a new deal with Kedar Entertainment/Universal, where he will release two new albums. However, don’t get it twisted, Joe says that he did not know what was truly going on until after he left Jive six months ago.

Joe’s latest album “New Man,” is due to hit the streets, September 22nd. Another album, currently untitled, is expected to hit stores next year.

YUNG BERG FACES DRUG CHARGES

Oh lawd y’all, it seems the Rock-n-Roll cats end up with constant drug overdoses (just watch VH1’s Behind the Music) while rapper’s end up arrested after being caught with their hands in the “cookie bag” I mean jar…

It seems a limo driver snitched and dialed up the authorities to report a blow up with Yung Berg and another passenger. Now you know the cops searched the ride and found two bags of weed on Yung Berg as well as a.45 caliber pistol on the other passenger, Cornell Whitfield.

Yung Berg, who’s government name is Christian Ward, was charged with menacing (what ever the hell that means in legal lingo) in the 2nd degree and unlawful possession of marijuana, while Whitfield was charged with criminal possession of a weapon in the 2nd degree and two counts of menacing in the 2nd degree. (Just kidding: criminal menacing is an offense that threatens to cause evil, harm)

Bail was set at $2,000 for Yung Berg and $2,500 for Cornell. Well he better store his coins for the winter especially since Yung Berg’s new album, “Look What You Made Me Do,” just hit stores. Unless he has R. Kelly’s lawyers, he may not get the same carte-blanche treatment and tour the world with a million offenses.

See ya’ll next week…

Big Lez has interviewed everyone from Tupac and The Notorious B.I.G. to Mary J. Blige and Tom Cruise. She was host of and producer of BET’s landmark show “Rap City” and has enjoyed an extensive tenure in radio as co-host of The Steve Harvey Morning Show in Los Angeles, plus stints at New York’s WQHT/Hot 97, Atlanta’s WAOK/V103, LA’s Big Boy Morning Show at KPWR/Power 106 and Sirius Satellite Radio. Currently, Lez is partnered with DVA Media + Marketing as producer and host of the syndicated urban radio report, “The Urban Eye,” which launches nationwide this summer.