Kamis, 11 September 2008

Lindsay Lohan Remembers 9/11

Lindsay Lohan and Samantha Ronson are paying tribute to those who perished in the 9/11 NYC attacks seven years ago today.

“I am in New York and I would like to remind everybody to take a moment today for those lost in tragedy that occurred on 9/11/01," Lohan blogs.

Ronson adds that "waking up in NYC this morning, seven years later ... feels like just yesterday this city and our worlds were turned upside down."

Ronson recalls what it was like witnessing the attacks.

"Never in my lifetime had I ever believed that I would see such horror - the kind that you see in documentaries set in far off places and read about in text books," she writes.

"Never in my life had I ever thought that I would wake up and fall asleep afraid, watching things on television that felt like a film, walking through a city that felt like a war zone," she goes on.

Adds Ronson, "There were army vehicles on Houston Street, barricades dividing neighborhoods and lines around the block of people waiting to donate blood -- set in front of a backdrop of smoke, filling a space where two of the largest buildings once stood.

"Two buildings that shaped one of the most famous skylines in this country, or in the world... seven years later, and I will never forget," she writes.

"I don’t really know what to say," she says. "To all those we lost, we will never forget, and never take for granted, the sacrifices that you made."

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Metallica album hits shops early

Metallica's new album Death Magnetic has gone on sale in the UK ahead of its planned release.

The metal band's hotly anticipated 12th album was due out on Friday.

But their record label Vertigo is believed to have told shops to go ahead and sell it early after some retailers broke the sales embargo.

Zavvi's flagship store on London's Oxford Street started selling it on Wednesday, while HMV also said it was now available in its stores.

An HMV spokesman said: "We were advised yesterday by the label that because it's been leaked quite heavily, they should bring forward its physical release and allow retailers to merchandise it.


"That was the communication we received and we've responded to that. I'd imagine it's a similar picture across the whole of retail."

There is no suggestion that HMV or Zavvi broke the sales embargo.

Music Week magazine reported that more than 2,500 copies of the album had been sold on CD by the end of Wednesday.

A spokeswoman for the band said Friday was still the official release date. Representatives for Vertigo were unavailable to comment.

Death Magnetic may now have the edge in the battle for the number one spot this Sunday.

Its main rival is the self-titled debut album by Glaswegian rockers Glasvegas.

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Kanye West arrested at LAX

The rapper is accused of confronting a photographer and smashing a camera. His road manager is also in custody.

Rapper Kanye West was arrested this morning at Los Angeles International Airport on suspicion of vandalism and his road manager was arrested on suspicion of vandalism and battery after the two men reportedly confronted a photographer and smashed the man's camera, authorities said.

The incident took place about 7:50 a.m. outside the passenger security screening area in Terminal 4, said LAX spokeswoman Nancy Castles.

Initial reports said the incident involved "a commercial photographer, 'paparazzi' " and a camera worth more than $10,000, according to Castles.

Castles said authorities were interviewing several witnesses. West was taken by police to the LAPD's Pacific Division jail, where Castles said he was expected to be booked.

At least part of the incident was apparently filmed by a TMZ cameraman who was at the airport, the celebrity gossip website said this morning.

The incident caused delays of about 15 to 20 minutes for passengers waiting to get through security. People waiting in line could see West, who was wearing a hooded sweatshirt, standing at the top of the stairs with about 10 police officers nearby.

A security guard told those waiting that there had been a loud argument between West and photographers.

West, 31, rose to fame on the success of his 2004 debut album, "The College Dropout," a Grammy nominee for album of the year.

Even in rap, which is dominated by brash stars, West is a notorious firebrand. He stormed out of the American Music Awards in 2004 when he did not win the trophy for best new artist and later went on a rant to reporters about a conspiracy against him.

During a telethon to raise money for victims of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, West said: "George Bush doesn't care about black people."

In 2006, West barged onstage at the MTV Europe Awards during the acceptance speech by another act and again protested that he had been wronged by voters. He has also gone after music critics and publications that have, in his opinion, undervalued his work.

Last year, for instance, he published an R-rated rant on his blog taking "Entertainment Weekly" to task for daring to give his concert tour a B+ rating in its review.

The temperamental West has said he enjoys the role of provocative artist, telling Rolling Stone -- when he appeared on that magazine's cover wearing a crown of thorns -- "If I was more complacent and I let things slide, my life would be easier, but you all wouldn't be as entertained. My misery is your pleasure."

His mother Donda West, 58, died late last year after undergoing cosmetic surgery, in a case that drew scrutiny of the surgeon who performed the procedures.

West, who has said little publicly about her death, gave a moving performance of his song "Hey Mama" during this year's Grammy ceremony in February.

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