Jamaica’s tennis player Dustin Brown stands at the entrance of a good example of achieving greatness. He meets Britain’s Andy Murray in round two of the Men’s Singles at the US Open continuing at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York, on Friday, September 3, 2010.

While the odds favour in-form Murray, currently ranked number four in the world, the 25-year-old German-born Brown, ranked 123rd, has bags of confidence. He claimed his first Grand Slam scalp on Wednesday, ousting Spain’s Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo 6-4, 7-6 (8/6), 7-5.

“I’m really excited to play against him (Murray),” Brown said. “I’m definitely going to play my type of tennis, play aggressive, and try to keep the points short.”

Born in Celle, Germany, to a Jamaican father and German mother, Brown grew up in Jamaica but honed his skills on the minor-league clay court tournaments of Europe. He pulled off a shocker at a grass-court event this past summer in Newport, Rhode Island, USA. That is when he beat another big boomer, American Sam Querrey. It was his first victory over a top 20 player.

Brown, who enjoys special support from New York’s Jamaican community at the US Open, hopes to add the scalp of top 5 player Murray in their match on Friday.

Just the very indignation, shame and scandal of it! You spend your entire life raising a child, particularly a girl child, to be a good little person: respectful, gracious, God-fearing and bright.

Then, one day, you realise that all along she wanted to be a bad little girl as soon as she came of age. To cap it all, she seems to want to undo all the good parental work you have done. How? By doing something you feel will cheapen the family brand or drag the family name down into the gutter.

These thoughts, if shared, cannot be sitting very well with Oscar-nominated actor Laurence Fishburne, star of the “Matrix” and other top Hollywood movies. His daughter Montana has just released her first porn video. Now, all hell has broken loose…

The video, simply called Montana Fishburne (An A-list daughter makes her XXX debut), was released on August 10 by Vivid Entertainment. This is the same company behind many celebrity sex tapes including Kim Kardashian and Kendra Wilkinson’s. They apparently specialise in such things.

From the cover you can see Montana is no shrinking violet. If she wanted to hurt her father deliberately, she could not have picked a better way to do it. Other dads can boast about their beautiful daughters being a movie star, singer or an executive in some huge company. Laurence Fishburne, however, will have to contend with “porn star” as his daughter’s occupation.

No father, especially one as respected, private and dignified as Laurence Fishburne, deserves this kind of treatment.

It is disrespect of the highest order; an unprecedented level of contempt and disregard one can only imagine. And where is Montana’s mother stand in all of this? We do not know for sure but she must also be unhappy.

Nevertheless, what kind of person would publicly defecate on their father in the process of launching their career? One such person is obviously Montana Fishburne. It is so shortsighted. What will happen after the fame has faded and Hollywood has consumed then spat her out? What will become of her then? She will probably realise just what a fool she has been.

Still, here we are telling her what a fool she is being now but is she litending? Is she f**k. Parents, I can feel on this one…

It must be like a dagger in your back when your own ‘cousin’ and band member not only refuses to back you in an election race but backs your opponent instead.

This is the case with Pras who has refused to back his former Fugees colleague Wycliffe Jean in his bid to become the next President of their beleaguered country Haiti.

Pras, who like Jean was born in Haiti and grew up ‘practially as cousins with Jean’ before moving to the USA, says he will not back Jean because he lacks a definitive plan to bring the island nation into the 21st century.

“You’ve got 1.2 million people living in tent city right,” says Pras of the survivors of the January 12 earthquake. “What are the plans to get these people out?”

Jean has not yet responded to Pras’ comments but that’s the second high-profile opposition he has fielded since he announced his decision to run for presidency last week.

Actor Sean Pean has also accused Jean of not spending enough time in Haiti after the quake and misappropriating US$400,000 of the $9 million his charity, Yele Haiti, raised after the disaster.

This is not looking too pretty. Stay tuned…

Singer Diana King is back and is determined to prove that a sister can do things in the music business for herself! She has just officially announced the launching of ThinkLikeAgirL Music, her very own label and the signing of a licensing deal with Warner Music Japan.

The Miami-based Jamaican singer says launching her own label is a dream come true and marks another step towards her long desired independence in the music business.

“ThinkLikeAgirL Music means a lot to me; it’s a big dream that I’m taking one step at a time,” King said. “I’d like it to grow into a label that offers quality music from female acts and operates outside of the box in terms of artist development, marketing and promotions, music distribution and touring.”

As a woman King, who had an international hit with “Shy Guy” back in the 1990s, is sensitive to the struggles of female artists in a male dominated industry and felt the name ThinkLikeAgirL, the title of her sophomore album, was an appropriate name.

Under the terms of the licensing deal with Warner Music King will retain 100% ownership of all her music, something which is generally rare in the industry but which King agrees “is the way it should be.”

The journey to conclude this deal has taken two years of studio work with King writing, producing, engineering and managing all aspects of the production herself.

“It felt good having complete control of the creative process,” she said. “It was hard at first but the more I did it, the more confident I got. I always wanted to produce other artists but I guess I had to prove it to myself first.”

New material from this collection will be released first in Japan next month with a global release following shortly after.

Jamaica’s champion athlete, Usain Bolt, took to the internet to express his disappoint at losing the 100m race to American Tyson Gay in xxx on Friday.

Writing on his Facebook page Bolt said: “Dear Fans, I got beat today by an athlete who was in better form and shape than I was. It was one of those days…I got a great start, but there was no power and I came in second. There is no excuse! Thanks as usual for your support.”

This, of course, is a very gracious way to acknowledge defeat. Very sportsman like. But all the Jamaican massive out there will be vex from yasso till morning that the Jamaican has taken what they hope will be a temporary setback…

The British are now drinking milk from cloned cows. But they did not know because the milk has come from baby cows secretly cloned and introduced into the food chain.

This revelealation has come from a British farmer who claimed milk from a cow born to a clone had gone into high street shops without any special labelling.

Now the British Food Standards Agency (BFSA) watchdog doesn’t even know where the cows at the centre of the investigation are, because Holstein UK, the body responsible for registering all pedigree cows and bulls on farms, would not disclose the information.

Worryingly, offsprings of the same cloned cow have been born in Britain, and they have gone on to produce nearly 100 cows but no one knows the exact number produced so it could be much more.

Currently, there is no legislation against meat and milk from cloned milk being supplied to UK consumers without special labelling.

Animal welfare activists are against the remodelling of nature in the laboratory and about the health effects on humans of clone or clone-descended produced. However, some farmers welcome the cloning of cows because they are supersized and able to produce vast quantities of milk.

The BFSA are now investigating all claims and counter claims in an effort to quell public concerns over cloned produce being introduced into the human food chain.

Sugar Minott was buried yesterday in the Harker’s Hall Cemetery in St. Catherine. Many artists in Jamaica’s entertainment fraternity came out to pay respects.

Among them were singer Ken Boothe, former Third World keyboardist Ibo Cooper, producer/songwriter Michael Bennett, musician/singer Boris Gardner, the Mighty Diamonds, Dillinger, Trinity, Home T and Pam Hall. Also presetn were some of the proteges helped and inspired by the well loved singer. These include Japanese singer Nahki, Tristan Palmer and Little John.

Some of the things which set Sugar Minott apart from other Jamaican artists were the fact he actually set up foundations that helped to improve the lives of poor, disenfranchised youths in the ghetto by giving them an outlet for their talent, putting food on their tables and keeping them away from crime.

Additionally, he infused his music with a positivity that inspired, uplifted, entertained and motivated all who hear it.

But how well did you know Sugar Minott? Here’s your starter for 20…

1. Born May 25, 1956 in Kingston, Jamaica.
2. His full name is Lincoln Barrington Minott.
3. He was one of eight children of Austin and Lucille Minott.
4. Began working with local sound systems before he was 13.
5. Started singing when he was about 12.
6. His musical inspirations were Ken Boothe, Delroy Wilson and Dennis Brown.
7. Teamed up with Derrick Howard and Tony Tuff to form the African Brothers around 1974.
8. Cut his first song “No Cup No Broke” with the African Brothers for Studio One in 1974.
9. Pioneered a new dancehall technique in the studio of laying over new vocal tracks over original 1960s backing tapes instead of using a live band.
10. Formed his own Black Roots record company in 1979 as an organisation to nurture and develop new Jamaican talent.
11. His 1979 album, Black Roots, generated the massive hits, “Hard Time Pressure” and “River Jordan”.
12. He relocated to Britain for a time in 1980.
13. His single “Lovers Rock” coined a phrase for the brand of soft reggae that started in the UK.
14. He was committed to the beliefs of rastafarianism.
15. His Youth Man Promotion sound system gave career opportunities to acts such as Junior Reid, Tenor Saw, Tony Rebel, Ranking Joe, Captain Sinbad and Ranking Dread.
16. In 1993 he married Studio One owner Coxone Dodd’s niece, Maxine Stowe, who later worked as A & R for Colombia, a subsidiary of Sony Records.
17. He died on July 10, 2010.
18. He is survived by his mother, Lucille, three sisters, four brothers and 14 children, 10 of whom from relationships not with his wife.
19. He was buried on August 1, 2010 in Harker’s Hall Cemetery, St. Catherine, Jamaica.
20. His new album, “New Day”, which was already in production before he died, is due to release soon.

My heart is truly broken today to hear of the passing of singer Sugar Minott on Saturday, July 10, 2010. My condolences to his family, friends and fans.

Earlier, the night started out nice with me attending two fine concerts in Dallas, so I was on a musical high. Then messages on my phone from friends, family and others in California notifying me of Sugar Minott’s death brought my world to a screeching halt.

I cannot say a passing affected me so much, since the day we lost the late Mikey (Dread) through whom I had met Sugar Minott. The funny thing is when I first started my show “Reggae Solutions” I would always say before I played Sugar’s song “Not for Sale” I always loved a little “Sugar” in my tea. Too many times I had been meaning to call and have Sugar come on the show. However travel and time got away from me.

Sugar will always be the voice of Lover’s Rock: no one could touch his pitch as he brought you into his world with songs such as “I’m not for sale”, “The More We Are Together”, “Give My Love to You”, “Conscious Lover”, “Half a Love” (my favorite), “Tears You Cry” and others. Sugar also made you think and no matter what the message in the song was he would make it work.

I am honored to have crossed his path in life, talk with him and laugh with him over the years in my travel with Mikey Dread. They were two of a kind together; very high strung and lovable Jamaican men (smile). If you had a chance to spend even a minute with him it would be memorable (smile).

Sometimes I would have to act as referee between the two (smile). Mikey and Sugar went way back; as Mikey was one of the first producers for Sugar (from the time he worked at the government controlled Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation (JBC) TV in Jamaica, back in the 1970s. This helped jump start Sugar’s his career in reggae. All I could remember was how nice it was to sit and listen to them talk and laugh about old times.

I once been naïve asked sugar “why they call you sugar?” He said to me are you for real, you don’t know and laughed (smile). All those flood of sweet memories hit me like a thunderstorm this morning as I spoke with Carmelita, The Scientist, Lady Cham, Leon (Mikey’s brother) and others.

This is surely another strong blow to our reggae fraternity. His presence will surely be missed, but in my heart forever he will live…

Mushiya Strickland, more popularly known as Queen Mushiya, is an entertainment writer, reggae radio personality and public relations/media representative based in Dallas, Texas but born in Marlie Moun. St. Catherine, Jamaica. Visit her MySpace page.

The South Africa World Cup was still in full swing when Nigeria’s newly appointed, acting President Goodluck Jonathan announced a ban on his country’s participation in future world soccer activities. He was apparently disappointed with Nigeria’s progress in the World Cup and he wanted time tolook at how the nation’s team could go forward. This decision prompted FIFA, the world soccer governing body, to issue a threat to Nigeria for them to reconsider or face penalties. On the day of the deadline Jonathan rescinded the ban…

Nigeria is not a country known for its responsive leaders. High-level politicians rarely engage with the electorate, and it’s commonly complained that the voice of the people goes unheard. But newly-confirmed President Goodluck Jonathan may be changing that: a few weeks ago he opened a Facebook account, and two days later reversed a controversial decision after hundreds of fans posted disappointed reactions on his wall.

The decision in question followed on the heels of the Nigerian national football team’s dismal performance at the World Cup. After their elimination from the tournament, Jonathan announced the team would be suspended for two years while plans were carried out to eliminate corruption. The problem of Nigerian football is structural,” the President’s communication adviser told the press. “There is need to withdraw from all international football competition so that we can put our house in order.” But many fans were displeased with the news, complaining that the suspension was unfair. On July 5th, Jonathan reversed his decision, posting the following message on his Facebook wall:

I read your comments and took them into account in the government’s decision to rescind the suspension of Nigeria from International Football. I had a meeting with the NFF [Nigeria's national football federation] today and conveyed my disappointment and those of Nigerians on this page and received assurances that there will be positive changes …

But was Jonathan’s change of heart really a response to citizens voicing their frustration on Facebook? FIFA, the international body governing football, also disagreed with the suspension, and gave the President a week to reverse it. Jonathan’s decision to reinstate the team fell exactly on the deadline set by FIFA, leading many to wonder if it was the powerful football organization – rather than the Nigerian people – that made him change his mind. SolomonSydelle writes:

This now gives the impression that Jonathan bowed under pressure to an international sporting organization. That perception can be harmful for Jonathan who only has a few months in office before presidential elections… Furthermore, the snafu between Jonathan and FIFA raises questions about the behavior of the football agency, which challenged the decision of a sovereign leader in an avoidable way.

Jonathan is not the first head of state to join the world of social networking. Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez famously joined Twitter in April; Chile’s Sebastián Piñera tweets, along with his entire cabinet.  But the question remains whether leaders will use platforms like Twitter and Facebook interact with their constituents – or merely as one more way to disseminate an already-fixed agenda. Nigeria is approaching an election year and it is anticipated that Jonathan will want to stand candidate; popular moves like joining Facebook and reinstating the Super Eagles may merely be a ploy to win over support in advance of the election. “Is this not another play of words? is this not another design to flatter Nigerians?” wrote My pen and my paper.

For Mr. President to go back on his decision looks to me like an attempt to throw his words around for the sake of speaking.

Perhaps. Time will tell if Jonathan is merely maneuvering for political advantage — or truly listening to the requests of his people.

ABOUT THE WRITER

Eremipagamo Amabebe is a writer, researcher, and editor currently based in Germany and the United States. She is interested in topics where politics, culture, and media intersect – in the past she has received grants to research Nigeria’s “Nollywood” film industry and Germany’s contemporary political cinema. Follow her on twitter.

Music superstar Prince, or maybe you still know him as AFKAP (the artist formerly known as Prince), is onto something here. He has decided he will shun the internet as a distribution platform for his music.

While many other singers and creative individuals are finally accepting the inevitability of new media as the new standard, Prince has chosen to use a moribound format, the humble compact disc or CD, on which to distribute his latest album.

That album, 20Ten, which features en exclectic mix of 10 tracks, will be officially released today, Saturday, June 10, 2010 in Britain’s Daily Mirror newspaper for free. There’ll be no downloads anywhere in the world because of Prince’s ongoing battles against internet abuses.

As one of the early adopters of the internet and unlike most other rock stars, he has banned YouTube and iTunes from using any of his music and has even closed down his own official website. He is also bold (or is it foolardy?) enough to declare the internet’s immediate demise. “The internet’s completely over,” he has told the media. “I don’t see why I should give my new music to iTunes or anyone else. They won’t pay me an advance for it and then they get angry when they can’t get it.”

But, some will ask, what’s the point spending all that creative energy and giving away your music for free? Maybe the answer really lies in the marketing concept. Because by giving away his album free to readers of the Mirror, which sells 1,247,073 copies per day[ref]ABC figures[/ref], Prince is hoping to reach a much wider audience than if he’d given it to the likes of iTunes, et al.

Obviously, this also bodes well for any follow up tours Prince will have since he would probably have a hready made audience waiting for him when he’s ready to tour Britain. Clever move!

But maybe, just maybe, Prince is just disillusioned with the whole technological thing. He hints at this when he said: “The internet’s like MTV. At one time MTV was hip and suddenly it became outdated. Anyway, all these computers and digital gadgets are no good. “They just fill your head with numbers and that can’t be good for you.”

Perhaps, for him, performing live in front of real people is what it’s all about; not releasing tracks to virtual people online, which is quickly becoming the way forward.

It will be interesting to see how this plays out.