It was big news back in May when Diddy and Macy’s jointly announced that the Sean John clothing brand, which has generated $1 billion dollars in sales since it’s launch in 1999, would now be sold exclusively at Macy’s. Some in the fashion industry thought Diddy was leaving money on the table by having exclusive distribution, others argued it was a smart move as Sean John growth was projected to slow down. Whatever the case, one thing is for certain…Diddy made millions and will make more off the deal. Macy’s is fully committed to making the Sean John deal work for both parties.

“In order to maximize on the opportunity, we will give the Sean John collection bigger and better space,” Kevin Morrissey, executive vice president and general merchandise manager of men’s for Macy’ said. “Our flagship stores from coast-to-coast will have Sean John sportswear shops. They will also help to communicate the Sean John collection’s evolved aesthetic.”

According to the Atlanta Post, the new Sean John line is set to launch this Fall not only with premium store space but with an “unprecedented” ad campaign that will introduce a “new style of marketing,” including viral video and social media.  It will harness “Diddy’s star power and vibrant persona,” Morrissey said. Sounds like Macy’s doesn’t really just want Sean John…they actually want Diddy and his marketing savvy to build continued growth for the department store.

Due to the overwhelming success of Universal’s Despicable Me which opened this past weekend at #1, the studio has already started preliminary talks for a sequel and spin offs featuring those little yellow minions who sound like Juvenile on speed. As previously reported, Pharrell has been an intricate part of the movie having written the majority of the soundtrack and score (see video).

Continue Reading…

Universal Pictures confirms that Christopher “Ludacris” Bridges is set to reprise his role as Tej Parker (from 2 Fast 2 Furious) in the fifth installment of the Fast & The Furious franchise which is tentatively titled Fast Five. Luda added further confirmation about his role in the film with his latest Tweet:

Fast Five is set to be one of Universal’s biggest productions of the franchise as Paul Walker, Vin Diesel and Tyrese Gibson reprise their roles. And to shake things up a bit, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is on board as a cop in pursuit of Diesel and Walker’s character. Movie is set to release June 10, 2011 with the majority of production taking place in Puerto Rico. Conjure it up!

In case you wanted to know what K-Ci and JoJo have been up to the past couple of years then this little tidbit of information might interest you. K-Ci confirms in this video that the reality show him and JoJo have been shopping around to TV networks has finally been sold and will be released via TVOne this Fall. This is definitely one show I have not been waiting “all my life” for.

The lastest single from Mr. Raymond.

Apparently times are tough for Icelene Jones, widow of Ol Dirty Bastard. The NY Post reports that Icelene has sold the rights to ODB’s unreleased album A Son Unique for a mere $10K and that she spent all the money on herself. This has left ODB’s manager, Jarred Weisfeld, a bit unhappy.

“She sold out for peanuts,” Weisfeld told The New York Post.

Weisfeld believes the album could have been worth millions (ok realistically maybe thousands) to his other survivors, which include his mother, and the four mothers of his thirteen children. That’s right…thirteen children. In the words of Puffy, “That’s a lot of Air Jordans right there.” No word on who bought the album or when it will be released. Spotted @ TSS

Pollstar just released their 2010 mid-year concert report that tracks the financial performance of artist tours. Although people love to hate, Black Eyed Peas come in at #6 grossing $29.5 million for the first half of the year. Jay-Z comes in at #12 with $22.5 million. These numbers might look low across the board compared to past years. The concert industry has taken quite a hit this year as people continue to be a little more cautious on how they spend their money. Check the entire list of the Top 100 here.

Since Chris Brown’s music career is pretty much shot maybe he should try being an actor full-time. T.I. had nothing but praise for CB’s acting chops in the upcoming action flick Takers.

“Chris was cool, man. I think Chris gonna impress a lot of people,” Tip told Power 106. “He does a lot of high performance, action sequences. He shows his ability. I think people will actually be presently surprised with his performance.”

Luckily none of these action sequences required Chris to beat other people up. Instead he does a lot of running and jumping off roof tops and cars. Check the trailer to see what we mean.