Beyoncé
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Who do you admire out of the new breed of divas?
I don't really follow every new act — they come out constantly. There are so many, it's often hard to keep track, and sometimes they're here today and gone tomorrow. I admire my friends, like Beyonce and Nicki Minaj — people who seem destined to be doing this for a living with longevity.

When you think of a hardcore rap fan Gwyneth Paltrow wouldn’t typically come to mind. The Oscar winner may not wear her musical tastes on her sleeve but she’s a serious hip hop lover. Paltrow was recently out promoting her latest film Country Strong, which centers on a country superstar dealing with addiction, a failing marriage, and an up and comer trying to steal her shine. While talking about her preparation for the role she revealed how Beyonce was a huge inspiration for her and how some of her favorite albums right now include the latest from Nicki Minaj and Kanye West. When it comes to music on her iPod Paltrow has a little bit of everything. “I listen to everything. I probably have the most schizophranic iPod. My biggest obsession right now is the Nicki Minaj album. She’s a genius. I’m also obsessed with Kanye’s album. I really like Dierks Bentley. He has a bluegrass record that I really love.” When it came to pulling off her best music diva impression Paltrow channeled her inner Sasha Fierce. “I watched Beyonce a ton because I think she’s the best live performer happening right now. She has this amazing confidence and I thought to myself if I could just get a tiny bit of that self confidence then maybe I can pull off this scene at the end. You wouldn’t necessarily think that Beyonce would be the inspiration for a country star .” You can find out if all that training paid off when Country Strong hits theaters on January 7, 2011.

Willow Smith might only be ten years-old, but that's not stopping the little star rubbing shoulders with some of the biggest names in music. According to the Metro, when the Whip My Hair starlet was asked which celebrities share their words of wisdom with her, the daughter of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith replied: "My mom, my dad, Jay-Z, Beyonce. That's probably it. They give me advice like: 'Have fun'." Despite her fame, the star who will be touring with Justin Bieber, revealed that although she gets excited about meeting other celebrities, she tries to stay "cool". "I've met Lady Gaga. She was awesome. Was I starstruck? Not really. I was very cool. I kept my composure."

Justin Bieber has joked that he would like to be handcuffed to Beyoncé for the day. The 'Pray' singer was asked which person he would like to be joined to for 24 hours while answering questions posed by fans on Twitter during an appearance on ITV1's Daybreak this morning.

Alexandra Burke has revealed her forthcoming tour is inspired by the late Michael Jackson and her idol Beyonce. Ahead of her first-ever 21 date headline tour - which starts in January 2011 and ends a month later - the Broken Heels singer explained that she has been watching the King of Pop's This Is It DVD, to help make her performances more exciting. "Going on tour is nerve-wracking in case it doesn't work," Alex told the Daily Record. "I wouldn't say I'm used to singing live because you never know what a performance will bring. "For me, it's more about the things you don't know. I've never toured alone before so I'm excited but very scared - although not to the point that I won't go on stage. It's always good to have nerves and show you care." Burke continued: "I've watched Michael Jackson's This Is It DVD about five times and all of the Beyonce tour and have seen how people do live performances."

Nicki Minaj is a big, big fan of Beyonce and hopes the two can work together in the near future. So far Minaj has worked with an impressive line-up of collaborators, including Rihanna and Eminem, but Knowles is one artist the rapper dreams of hitting the studio with. When asked who she would work with if the opportunity arose, Nicki replied: "Probably just Beyonce right now. "I've worked with just about all my dream collabs," added the Right Thru Me star, as she talked with UsMagazine, "like I’ve worked with Jay-Z and I’ve worked with Kanye and I worked with Rihanna and I’ve worked with Eminem. "Those were at the top of my list. Now that I’ve done that, probably the only one on my list that I haven’t worked with that I’ m really, really excited about is Beyonce."

Katy Perry might be married to Russell Brand now, but she's determined to stay sexy and not become boring. The Teenage Dream star told the News of the World that she's looking to fellow popstar and married lady, Beyonce for tips on how to keep the sex factor, despite being off the single's market. She said: "People tell me, 'Oh, you're gonna be boring now you're married.' I say, 'Look at f**king Beyoncé!' She's married to Jay-Z. She's so sexy but she's a married woman. She absolutely rocks it. "I won't be less sexy or provocative. I'm a good girl because I believe in love, integrity and respect. I'm a bad girl because I like to tease. I know that I have sex appeal in my deck of cards. However, I admit I don't feel sexy all the time, especially when I've just woken up."

On Wednesday evening, Oscar-winning actress Gwyneth Paltrow proved her vocal chops by pulling off her first live singing performance at the 44th annual CMA Awards. Although her singing skills had remained largely under wraps until the awards show, Paltrow scored rave reviews from critics and country superstars alike for her rendition of "Country Strong," which is also the title of her upcoming flick. It turns out that Paltrow had some superstar assistance for her CMA debut. Before she hit the stage, she opened up to "Access Hollywood" about reaching out to her celebrity pals while prepping for her performance. "I kind of asked my girl singer friends ," she said. "I asked Faith a lot of questions ... and Beyoncé actually too." Gwyneth added that she took some cues from B's fierce stage presence. "I studied Beyoncé a lot and her concerts for her kind of confidence," she said, adding, "And I'm lucky that I know some singers in real life."

Mariah Carey has joked that her kid would marry superstar couple Jay-Z and Beyonce’s unborn (yet to even be conceived!) child. The wife of actor and TV presenter Nick Cannon who only recently announced her pregnancy after months of relentless speculation, appeared on US chat show ‘Lopez Tonight’ to promote the release of her new christmas album ‘Merry Christmas II You’. Host George Lopez presented her with a mock ultrasound video and Rap-Up.co.m shows the video as he told the unborn tot of the ‘Always Be My Baby‘ singer: “I‘ve already arranged for you to be married off to Jay-Z and Beyonce‘s unborn baby.” The hilarious footage shows the foetus with headphones and microphone, ready to follow in his Triple Platinum selling mothers footsteps. But there is more, Lopez exclaims: “The baby has an assistant!” and a foetus PA pops on screen too. The 41-year-old found the skit hilarious and when asked what sexuality the child will be, she told Lopez: “Don‘t impose a sexuality on the baby so soon!" Clearly Carey just wants a healthy little bundle - she’s definitely waited long enough!

Eliza Doolittle talks to Sugarscape! And we leave wanting ALL of her clothes. Eliza Doolittle has a cool name. We've known that since we saw her first music video back in the springtime, and her name flashed up on the screen. "That's cool" we said. And then we changed channels. We met up with her a couple of weeks ago, and the same thing popped into our heads when we saw her. Followed by "She's tiny" and a 3 minute thought tangent about whether or not she would actually fit in our pockets. Conclusion: She wouldn't. But that's only because we don't have any. Once we'd recovered from the height/name thing, we let her get on with telling us about everything that she's been up to recently. Her latest single, Rollerblades was out on the 18th of October. She said that she really didn't expect her music to do so well this year: "It totally blows my mind. I didn't see this coming at all. Obviously I really hoped that it would, but I had no real idea of what would really happen with it. "I was about 12 when I decided that I really really wanted to sing, so when somebody told me to start writing straightaway, that's what I did. I got a publishing deal for my songwriting while I was pretty young, but I spent a while working what i really wanted to sound like before I put myself out there as a singer. Actually Rollerblades was the first song when I was really like 'yeah, this is my sound!' which is I put my head down and got on with the album. Then I got a record deal and a couple of years later, here we are! "I still have all the old songs from when I was 12 on my laptop though, but nobodys allowed to see them! Its kind of like a diary. I don't get embarrassed by them: they're kind of cute. They're just a bit personal. I was just writing about boys and copying Destiny's Child: I desperately wanted to be Beyonce. "When I was 14 or 15, I got really annoyed about all the songs on the radio being about love and boyfriends, especially when I didn't even have one! So I made a pact with myself not to ever base my songs on those subjects. It's just really boring. That's why I write about real life. I'm not saying that I'll never change my mind about that, but at the moment I'm happy with the kind of thing I'm doing.

Sir Paul McCartney believes music today is just as good, and in some cases better, than it was in his Beatles heyday. In an interview with The Sun, Sir Paul said, "I think there's a lot of great music around, I really do. You get someone going, 'Oh, it's not like it was in my day!' I say, 'No, it's different. It isn't like it was in your day. And actually some of it is better.'" As for the knight-of-the-realm's current favourites, he said, "I like Kings Of Leon, I think they're really cool. I like Plan B, he's good. He has really got it, you know, a good singer, man." Currently promoting the reissue of Wing's album 'Band on the Run,' Sir Paul was asked who he would invite to appear on an updated cover -- the 1973 original featured a host of celebrities caught in a spotlight trying to make a getaway. The former Beatle said, "Tom (Meighan) from Kasabian. Then next to him Beyonce Knowles, looking a bit sort of scared. Then we'd have to get Bob Dylan and Neil Young. We could have Ricky Gervais. I need a sportsman -- Usain Bolt? I'd have to have Barack Obama too. I'd give him a ring." He concluded, "Kirsty Young from Radio 4's 'Desert Island Discs'. That would top it off nicely."

Monday was a good time for Michael Ealy to chat with Speakeasy, because he had the afternoon off from an independent movie he’s filming in Nashville. As an actor, Ealy’s everywhere these days, playing the possibly devious new law partner in the CBS hit, “The Good Wife,” and the boyfriend of David Duchovny’s baby mama on Showtime’s “Californication.” He has also been cast as the lead in a USA Network comedy pilot, “Common Law,” about two mismatched police partners. And this Friday, he opens in Tyler Perry’s film adaptation of the 1975 stage hit “For Colored Girls,” playing a deeply troubled war veteran. He has taken less taxing roles as the love interest in two videos, Mariah Carey’s 2005 “Get Your Number” and last year’s “Halo,” with Beyonce. “Beyonce—she’s Beyonce!” he explains his motivation. “Once I heard the song, I had to do it. It was my second time being asked to do a Beyonce video. The first was ‘Irreplaceable”’ –where the singer explains that her lover is indeed replaceable—“but I didn’t want to do that. I said, ‘Call me when you have a hero role.’” Well, it doesn’t get much more heroic—or angelic—than “Halo,” although Ealy says that “the original video wasn’t so fluffy. People weren’t sure what it meant. And Beyonce said, My audience is young, this is too dark for them. “So I got another day of hanging around Beyonce,” he continues. “Poor me. How many men can say they have stood three inches from Beyonce and had her sing for them? I was like, THANK YOU!”

One of Oz's most successful songwriters could soon hear her words sung by Britney or Pink with both performers currently considering a few of her tunes. But it's Beyonce she's really chasing. "Beyonce! She's my queen. Now that I've written for Christina, and I hope I keep writing for her because she's a f**king powerhouse, but Beyonce is my queen."

What is the most quirky or hilarious part of your touring/showtime routine?

It's not all that quirky or hilarious, but I like to watch Beyonce's live DVDs often before I go on stage for inspiration. I absolutely love her. She is the ultimate performer for me. She sings, dances and gives the audience a phenomenal show with all the bells and whistles. I have seen her live in concert several times, and I am always completely blown away.

Williow Smith reveals to MTV’s Gabi that her biggest music inspirations are Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Jay-Z, Billie Idol and her parents. Shockingly enough, Rihanna’s name was no where to be seen in her list although her sound and image is pretty much a kiddie version of the ‘Umbrella’ songstress, from the clothes, music and swag right down to the androgynous shaved haircut.

Clayton Perry: In 2003, Rob Theakston (of AllMusic.com) called Priceless, your last full-fledged R&B album, "a much needed return of a quality R&B vocalist in the genre oversaturated with mediocrity." Seven years later, with the release of “Tired,” I feel that I can echo his statement, because vocally you can still run circles around the “best” singers that are currently on the charts. Where, oh where, have all the SANGers gone?

Kelly Price: When I look around at who is out today, I don't really see a lot of singers, like myself. And I guess I have to be careful, in how I say that, because I mean no disrespect. But I do look at other things. Beyoncé, for example, I love her work ethic. She works like she's got to go stand in line and wait for a block of cheese.

Clayton Perry: Right!

Kelly Price: But I so respect that, because what I see around her, I see a lot of artists who are grabbing at where she is, but they don't work nearly as hard as she does. And so she'll always be “Bey,” because she always works like that. So I respect that.

Before the 2009 Grammy Awards, Lil Wayne sat down for a blunt conversation with CBS News' Katie Couric. And on Tuesday (October 5), Weezy's Young Money protégé Drake sat down for an interview with the anchor that was broadcast on UStream. Drake opened up about why Lil Wayne is so important to the music industry, hip-hop's attitudes toward women and how he'd like to collaborate with Beyoncé and Justin Timberlake. The MC has his upcoming R&B mixtape It's Never Enough on the horizon, and he's already thinking ahead, telling Couric that he'd like to work with Beyoncé, Andre 3000 and Justin Timberlake on future projects. "I hope I get a chance to work with B," he said. "I'm always in awe of her talent ... Andre 3000 from Outkast. I'd still love to work with him and Justin Timberlake. Me and Justin are friends. We're tight, but we haven't worked together yet."

Joe McElderry once almost wet himself at a Beyonce Knowles concert. The 19-year-old singer was once so excited to see his idol in the flesh he refused to go to the toilet and spent almost the entire show desperate to relieve himself because he didn’t want to miss any of her songs. He told BANG Showbiz, “I went to see her. And I was desperate for the toilet and I would not leave in case I missed a tiny bit. My cousin was like, ‘Just go to the toilet,’ I just kept saying, ‘No! I’m not going!’ ” Joe, who shot to fame after winning UK TV talent show ‘The X Factor’ last year, would love to work with the ‘Single Ladies’ singer in the future, if the opportunity ever arises, because he thinks she is so incredible. He said, “Beyonce is the top one. She’s amazing. She acts the songs. And she has got the right balance between it all and she just connects with the cameras. She outdoes her dancers. Her dancers are flagging and she is still going! That takes a lot.”

Young Money labelmates Drake and Nicki Minaj may have playfully joked about jumping the broom—both on record (Drake's "Miss Me") and Twitter—but Nicki says she's waiting 'til age 40-plus before donning a wedding dress. The 26-year-old MC planned out her next 20 years in VIBE's Juice issue, revealing that she'll be ready to settle down in 15 years. "I want the beach wedding," Minaj said. "Everything would be white and soft pink. I hate red!" She continues: "I'd be wearing a strapless dress, gripping around the waist, with a never-ending train. No shoes, just my feet in the sand." As for guests, there's room for little Barbies and a special performer not in Lil Wayne's crew. " have five little flower girls dressed in Hawaiian straw skirts," Minaj says. "Then Beyoncé would sing 'Smash Into You' and I'd cry like, 'Oh God.'" For now though, those plans are in the distant future. In her June/July VIBE cover story, she said "I don't date women and I don't have sex with women," adding in her current Out magazine cover story, "but I don't date men either."