Whitney Houston Previews Her New Album In LA

In front of a star-studded crowd
Friday, July 24th, 2009

Last week Whitney Houston and music mogul Clive Davis were on hand at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in London, England to world premiere her new album I Look To You in front of an audience of press folks. Earlier this week Whit Whit appeared at the Lincoln Center in NYC to premiere her album in front of press and celeb friends. Last night, Whitney and Clive made their way to the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, CA for the third and final premiere event for her new album, due out in stores on September 1. Here are a few photos from last night’s star-studded event and a report from E! News’s Marc Malkin:


Whitney Houston’s comeback album drops in just six weeks. And it was the superstar diva herself who best summed up the excitement for her return when she took center stage at last night’s VIP-only album listening party in Beverly Hills. “I’m back home,” she said. “I’m back home where I belong.” Among the VIP guests packed into a ballroom at the Beverly Hilton hotel to hear nine songs from I Look to You were Halle Berry, Stevie Wonder, Magic Johnson, Barry Manilow, Penny Marshall, model Beverly Johnson and a slew of music industry heavyweights … Sitting in a front row seat was Jane Fonda, who attended with her music producer boyfriend Richard Perry. “When they told me you were here tonight, I almost croaked,” Houston said to the Oscar winner after the two embraced. “I was like, ‘Jane Fonda is at my listening party? How cool am I?’” Sony music honcho and Houston’s mentor since he discovered her oh-so-many years ago Clive Davis hosted the evening. And Ms. Whitney looked fantastically fabulous last night (she kept it simple with a short black dress, killer heels and little makeup). The music was true Houston. Among the songs Davis introduced and played for the crowd were the Alicia Keys-written “Million Dollar Bill,” the up-tempo “Nothing But Love,” the ballad “I Didn’t Know My Own Strength,” the island song duet with Akon “Like I Never Left,” and the title track, one of two collaborations with R. Kelly. The album took about three and a half years. “For the years we were apart, I felt kind of lost,” Houston said to Davis, referring to her troubled past. “But I’m home where I truly belong, don’t ya think?” The audience went wild. Pointing to Bobbi Kristina, her daughter with ex-husband Bobby Brown, Houston smiled, “There’s my baby, my inspiration. Mama loves you so much.” Looking out to Berry, Houston cooed, “How’s the baby?” “Fantastic,” Berry said. And we have a feeling Houston’s fans will be saying the same and a whole lot more when I Look to You drops on Sept. 1.

I, too, was fortunate enough to attend last night’s listening party and let me tell you … I was floored. I’ll have all of my personal thoughts on the album in a post a little later on today. But let me assure you, Whitney Houston — the voice, the diva, the legend — is back. I Look To You is packed with amazingly strong songs … powerful ballads, hip upbeat dance tracks and quite a few candidates for hit singles. It was truly an honor to be among the first people to hear Whitney’s new album in full … I can’t wait to tell you all about it later on today. After the jump, check out a few photos of Whitney posing with some of the celebrity friends who came out to the Beverly Hilton Hotel last night to share the night with Whitney and Clive

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Halle Berry Enjoys Miami Beach With Her Cute Family

Nahla brings the cuteness, Gabriel brings the hawtness
Wednesday, July 8th, 2009

OMG … here are a few ADORABLE photos of Halle Berry with her family, daughter Nahla Ariela and babydaddy Gabriel Aubry, enjoying a day of sun, surf and cute fun in Miami Beach, FL yesterday afternoon:


I understand that Halle took little Nahla for a few personal swimming lessons in their hotel pool before the big trip to the beach yesterday. The happy family did spend quite a bit of time frolicking on the beach … but they also spent some time in the water. After the jump, check out those adorable photos …

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Halle Berry In A Huff

Talk to the hand
Monday, May 4th, 2009

Halle Berry stepped out over the weekend with her beautiful baby girl Nahla Ariela for a nice lunch for just the two of them and emerged from their restaurant to a sea of paparazzi hoping to get photos of mother and baby together. Halle, clearly annoyed at the attention, went into mama lion mode and stepped to the paps ordering them all to move back and give her space to get to her car:


I can absolutely understand Halle’s distress and commend her for handling herself with grace. I know I would not want to find myself on the receiving end of that finger … she looks about 2 secs. away from opening a can of whoop ass on the fool to dares to cross her. Halle rules!

[Photo credit: X17]

‘People’ Magazine Selects The ‘100 Most Beautiful People’ Of 2009

The annual list
Wednesday, April 29th, 2009

It is time again for People magazine to release their annual 100 Most Beautiful People issue and this year they have selected actress and breast cancer survivor Christina Applegate to grace the cover of the issue. Christina herself credits her man Martyn Lenoble for her beauty and talks about how his love for her is what makes her beauty shine. Here is the cover of the 100 Most Beautiful People issue of People magazine and a short piece on Christina’s beauty:


She has an “angel” of a boyfriend, Dutch bass player Martyn Lenoble, “who loves me from head to toe.” She has a cozy Malibu beach house that she calls “the best thing I’ve ever done for myself.” And, after a very public battle with breast cancer that has given her a gratifying “feeling of purpose,” Christina Applegate has a new lease on life. “I used to be really shy but I started to come into my own in my late 20s and early 30s,” Applegate, 37, tells PEOPLE in the cover interview for the annual Most Beautiful issue – her first interview since her reconstructive breast surgery last November. “Now I’m not afraid to speak up in a room full of people and be a part of the conversation.” The Samantha Who? star says she’s finding balance and embracing her body after undergoing a double mastectomy in July. “You have to get through the physical transformations then buck up, go to work and try to be the normal, happy Christina for everyone around you,” she says. One source of strength has been Lenoble. “He’s been a friend for about 13 years,” Applegate says. “Our relationship gets stronger and stronger. I’m really lucky.” And, more importantly, he makes the actress feel “beautiful” about her new body. “I’m very grateful to Martyn for coming along at a time that he did because he’s been my rock through all of this,” Applegate says. “He gave me something to really want to live for and something to smile about.”

Considering the life-changing effect that enduring a double mastectomy has on a woman, I am very impressed with Christina’s attitude about her beauty (which is on full display in this issue of People magazine). I, for the life of me, cannot imagine what it must be like to survive a bout with cancer so my hat is off to her in that respect. I suppose congrats are in order for being named by People magazine as one of the 100 Most Beautiful People. But, there are 99 other folks who have been deemed beautiful by People — after the jump, check out a few of those pretty faces …

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Halle Berry Does ‘Harpers Bazaar’ Magazine

Bubbly
Wednesday, April 8th, 2009

The beautiful Halle Berry is featured on the cover and in the pages of the new issue of Harper’s Bazaar magazine lookin’ about as purdy as she ever has before. In her coverstory interview, Halle does a bit of promo for her new fragrance while she tells the magazine how wonderful her life has been since the birth of her daughter Nahla Ariela. Here is Halle’s Harper’s Bazaar magazine cover and a portion of her coverstory interview:


One doesn’t want to enter the Berry/Aubry residence in Los Angeles feeling less than fantastic. Because the image that greets you — by the pristine pool, past the vegetable garden, and under a blazing blue sky — could be detrimental to one’s self image. Halle, 42, and her partner, model Gabriel Aubry, who met on a Versace shoot in 2005, and baby Nahla are, to quote that great fashion sage Derek Zoolander, “really, really, really good-looking.” Gabriel, carrying Nahla, bids adieu, while Halle, relaxed in a long black jersey dress, retires to the art-filled pool house to talk

Laura Brown: Tell me how you keep your mojo.
Halle Berry: I have a 33-year-old man. That’ll keep your mojo mojo-in’.

LB: How has your body changed since you had Nahla?
HB: Having a baby takes so much from you. It’s the most glorious thing you’ll ever do, but the aftermath is not so glorious! So now I’m having to exercise, eat a little bit differently, take a lot more vitamins.

LB: Do you ever go on a food binge?
HB: I like Doritos. I’m usually watching The Biggest Loser eating Doritos.

LB: What do you think of actresses who say they don’t work at staying slinky?
HB: God bless them if they’re telling the truth. It’s questionable if they are. I always had to diet. I’m diabetic, so it’s a lifestyle for me anyway just to stay healthy and not end up in the hospital.

LB: What works for you fashionwise?
HB: I’m not the girl for superhigh fashion because I don’t have the right body. When I want to get dressed up, I’m a Roberto Cavalli girl. Also, Dolce & Gabbana, Versace, Calvin Klein …

LB: You once wrote that the only wardrobe you need for sex is a tank top and pumps. Do you still maintain that?
HB: Oh, yes. Any pumps! You just need length to your legs.

LB: Does having a fulfilling family life decrease your desire to work?
HB: I used to work a lot because I had nothing better to do. What I’ve learned, especially by having a baby, is that you can’t bring that stuff home anymore. For example, I was alone filming Monster’s Ball. I was married to someone else, and he wasn’t really around much. Thank God that was only a 20-day shoot.

LB: With your fragrance, Halle by Halle Berry, you are selling the essence of yourself. How will women respond?
HB: I think there’s a certain level of trust that I have with women. I’ve always been honest, even when I haven’t had good times in my life or my movie bombed or I’ve had great success. I’ve owned up to all of it. I’ve said, Hey, this is who I am; take me or leave me. I’m pretty simple and pretty natural. I’m not one of these people who wear a face full of makeup so I look like I have on a mask. What you see is what you get.

LB: How is this reflected in the scent?
HB: I wanted it to smell like fig and mimosa. Well, it’s not quite that simple! I thought, Oh, God, I have to add something else because the worst thing is when you put a fragrance on and an hour later it’s gone. So I had to then add other smells to try to give a well-rounded product.

LB: What’s your next project?
HB: There’s this movie called Nappily Ever After. It’s beautiful, funny, but has a deep message about women. Women slave for their hair! It’s all about how we compare ourselves to other women, how we size ourselves up. It’s a look at this one woman’s life, and she goes through this metamorphosis when she gets rid of her hair. Not only does she feel different, but people treat her differently. She’s now more like an alien than the hottest chick on the block. She’s got to reboot and discover who she really is.

LB: For the role, do you plan to shave your head on camera?
HB: Yes. I’m scared to death. I just hope my reaction fits into the story. If it’s uncontrollable screaming, it might be a different type of movie.

LB: What are your guilty pleasures?
HB: Very boring, but I buy baby clothes online. Nahla can’t wear all the clothes I’ve bought, and we don’t go anywhere because I can’t deal with the paparazzi. Gabriel’s always like, “She doesn’t even leave the house! Halle, you’ve got to stop.”

LB: Nahla is a beautiful girl — amazing, given her challenged parents.
HB: Let her be sweet because I believe beauty is as beauty does. My hope is that she is sweet and kind because no matter how beautiful you are, ugly ain’t cute.

LB: Would you ever get married again?
HB: No. I’m done. Also, I happened to find a person who feels done too, and he’s never even been married before. So it works.

LB: More children?
HB: Yes. My pregnancy was amazing. I was happy that whole time, I felt good, I had energy, I was like Superwoman. I wish I could feel like that for the rest of my life, that’s how fantastic it was.

LB: Last year was kind of super for women in Hollywood too.
HB: It really was. As a woman, when you embrace where you are in life, then I think the struggle isn’t so hard. If you’re 42 and still think you’re an ingenue, then you’ve got a problem.

LB: Whose style do you like?
HB: Eva Mendes. She’s beautiful, and she’s sexy and hot, and I love her.

Halle Berry is a beautiful woman both inside and out … it’s hard not to like her. She really does come across as a likable person, who is both talented and savvy. I still don’t get why she’s is so uninterested in marrying her hot man Gabriel Aubry but she appears to be loving her life and living it to the fullest. You have to respect that. After the jump, check out a few photos from Halle’s Harper’s Bazaar photospread …

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Halle Berry Takes Sleepy Nahla Out & About

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
Sunday, March 29th, 2009

Here are a few really cute pics of mama Halle Berry and her little princess Nahla Ariela enjoying a lovely afternoon of shopping together this weekend … unfortch, tho, Nahla was more interested in sleeping than shopping:


OMG … so cute!! Even after an outfit change, Nahla seems no more interested in sleeping and even more so in drooling on her mother’s shoulder. This little girl is absolutely adorable. We don’t get to see much of little Miss Nahla out and about so these pics are a real treat. Tutu? Seriously, the cutest thing ever. Get some sleep, Nahla … we’ll be right here waiting for you to wake up ;)

[Photo credit: X17]

Halle Berry Gets Topless In Vancouver

It's OK, folks ... she's a professional
Wednesday, December 17th, 2008

Halle Berry continues to film scenes on the Vancouver, Canada set of her latest film Frankie and Alice and this week shows just how far she’s willing to do for a movie role. Despite the freezing temps up in Vancouver these days, Halle stripped off her top and bared her buxom breasts for an integral scene in the film:


Now, we all know that Halle Berry has no problem gettin’ nekkid in movies if it’s an important part of the story … so we have to assume that all of this running around topless is for a good reason, right? After the jump, check out a few uncensored NSFW images of Halle’s berries on the set of her new movie …

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