S. Samuel
R&B divas Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and Rihanna are kicking off 2013 with a heavy slate, landing huge performance opportunities at President Barack Obama's inauguration and Grammy Awards, respectively.
First up, Beyoncé will grace the stage later this month in Washington, DC for the president.
Pop stars Beyonce Knowles and Kelly Clarkson and folk veteran James Taylor will perform at Barack Obama’s inauguration as he officially begins his second term as US president. “Their music is often at the heart of the American story and speaks to folks across the country,” Mr Obama said. Cuban-American Richard Blanco will be the 2013 inaugural poet at the event, in Washington DC on 21 January. (BBC UK)
RiRi along with country star Taylor Swift are slated to invade next month’s Grammy Awards in Los Angeles.
Taylor Swift, Rihanna and Mumford & Sons are among the initial crop of artists unveiled as performers on the Feb. 10 Grammy Awards. LL Cool J will return return as host for the telecast, which will be broadcast live except for the West Coast on CBS at 8 p.m. The Black Keys and Fun. were also a part of Wednesday’s announcement. Typically, all five nominees for album of the year are tasked with performing. Contenders for the top prize this year are Mumford & Sons’ “Babel,” the Black Keys‘ “El Camino,” Fun.’s “Some Nights,” Frank Ocean‘s “Channel Orange” and Jack White‘s “Blunderbuss.” (Los Angeles Times)
Just last month, Beyoncé got announced as this year’s halftime Super Bowl XLVII performer.
At some point after her Super Bowl XLVII halftime performance on February 3rd (of which Pepsi is a sponsor), the singer will appear in a new TV ad for the soft drink, which will also feature her face on a limited-edition run of soda cans. The deal will also involve sponsorship of her tour next year (Beyoncé is expected to release a new album at some point in 2013), along with a multi-million dollar fund for Beyoncé’s creative projects, even if they have no obvious connection to Pepsi. Lee Anne Callahan-Longo, general manager of Beyoncé’s Parkwood Entertainment, said those collaborative projects could include live events, videos or “a cool photo shoot,” but are still at the early stages of development. (Rolling Stone)
Outside of hitting stages, RiRi has spent time hanging around rumored love interest Chris Brown these days.
And just like that … Rihanna’s back where it all started … Chris Brown’s passenger seat. The on-again couple relived their past earlier today in L.A., where they picked up some refreshments — including an Icee — at a gas station convenience store. You’ll recall, Rihanna was riding shotgun back in 2009 when CB unleashed a ferocious beatdown on her face — but today, she was nothing but smiles. Oh yeah, that red sweatshirt she’s wearing is Chris’ clothing line — Black Pyramid. (TMZ)
