Wednesday, 3 September 2008

Trapped And Neglected - Trafficked Children In South Asia Need The Law On Their Side

�All as well often child victims of sexual victimization and trafficking are damn and punished across South Asia, where weak national legislation tin can lead to further victimization of children, according to a UNICEF report launched recently.


The report "South Asia in Action: Preventing and responding to youngster trafficking" base that torah need to be reinforced to protect children after they have been trafficked, as easily as from being trafficked. Child trafficking is a neglected form of human trafficking, as children risk being picked out as undocumented migrants, juvenile delinquents or unaccompanied minors. South Asian children continue to be trafficked for multiple forms of sexual victimisation - including prostitution, sex tourism, shaver pornography, pedophilia - and labour victimisation in agriculture, factories, domestic servitude and begging, forced marriage, acceptation, military recruitment and debt release. There is a great deal a leaning to overlook the trafficking of boys for intimate exploitation.


Although few reliable estimates exist of the true magnitude of the phenomena, trafficking occurs both within and between countries in the region and also from South Asia to other regions including East Asia, Europe and the Gulf States.


The reputation recognizes that governments in South Asia have highly-developed national plans of activeness and some have adoptive laws that criminalize trafficking in human beings. But the legal framework needs to be strengthened further to protect children from all forms of trafficking and to assist child victims with legal and psychosocial support. Most outside and regional standards focus on adults. So far only two countries in South Asia, India and Sri Lanka, have gestural the Palermo Protocol, the first legal instrument to provide international definition of trafficking in human beings and specifically addresses children. However, non one South Asian body politic has ratified the Palermo Protocol.


The judicial process itself also necessarily to be reformed, according to the report, to make it more child-friendly. Legal remedies, such as witness protection schemes and in camera proceedings, to protect the privacy and psychological upbeat of children should be implemented. South Asian children are currently not well informed about the legal process and that stool lead to children by chance being criminalized.


Child trafficking across the region is not exclusively committed by organized criminal networks. It may involve friends, relatives and even parents of children.


There ar push and pull factors that draw children into being trafficked and poorness is by and large recognized as the most visible and widespread effort but, spell further research is required into the root causes, it is well documented that violence and ill-treat at home and in the residential area and indeed the sweetener of a better life means that children and young people can descend prey to traffickers.



The report "South Asia in Action: Preventing and responding to nestling trafficking" is being launched today as South Asian government and NGO representatives are gathering in Kathmandu to discourse the subject of sexual exploitation of children and adolescents. The South Asia Forum Regional Preparatory Consultation for the World Congress III against sexual exploitation of children and adolescents, due to be held in Rio de Janeiro in November 2008, presents a unequalled opportunity to reinforce the commitments made by governments in South Asia to ensure auspices of children from trafficking and sexual exploitation.

About UNICEF


UNICEF workings in over 150 countries and territories to assist children hold up and flourish, from former childhood through adolescence. The world's largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child wellness and nutrition, safe water system and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, development, and AIDS. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations and governments.

UNICEF


More info

Sunday, 24 August 2008

Ed Mcmahon - Mcmahon Finds Buyer For Home

TV star ED MCMAHON has seen off the threat of foreclosure and found a buyer for his Beverly Hills, California mansion.

The early Tonight Show sidekick was reportedly liner up a deal to sell the $5.75million (GBP2.9million) six-bedroom home to Apprentice star Donald Trump.

Now he has shut the sale - merely revealed holding developer Trump will non be the new owner.

The buyer of the business firm has non been revealed, but MCMahon's spokesman Howard Bragman says, "It's a confidential deal, and the buyer wants anonymity, only I can tell you it is not Mr Trump - and it's not (Republican presidential candidate) John MCCain."

MCMahon had owned the home for 30 days but faced the threat of foreclosure after his mortgage lenders filed notice of default in February (08).





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Thursday, 14 August 2008

EXACT Sciences Announces Next Generation Stool-Based DNA Technology Study Results Of 92% For Colorectal Cancer Detection

�EXACT Sciences Corporation (NASDAQ: EXAS) announced the published results of a sketch in which stool and blood plasma were assessed, in a head-to-head equivalence, for the detection of colorectal malignant neoplastic disease (CRC). Using an improved BEAMing DNA detection engineering science from Johns Hopkins University, study results demonstrated 92 percent predisposition for detective work CRC in stool samples. Importantly, results showed that, using this BEAMing engineering, stool-based DNA testing outperformed blood plasma testing, especially for the detection of early stage CRCs. EXACT Sciences has exclusive rights to the Johns Hopkins University BEAMing technology for use in a succeeding generation stool-based DNA (sDNA) detection engineering for CRC.


In the study, a total of 25 stool DNA samples from colorectal cancer patients were analyzed and a next generation sDNA applied science correctly identified 23 (92%) of the cancers. In the 16 of 25 cases where there were paired stool and plasma DNA samples, the sDNA technology detected mutated DNA in pot in 14 cases (88%) while only if 8 (50%) corresponding plasma DNA samples had detectable levels of mutated DNA. Further, when late-stage disease (Stage IV) is removed from the total, noninvasive sDNA public presentation remained at 86% (12/14) while plasma DNA performance fell to 43% (6/14). The results of the study, Analysis of Mutations in DNA Isolated from Plasma and Stool of Colorectal Cancer Patients, were published in the August journal of Gastroenterology.


"We are very excited by these up-to-the-minute results as they underline the early detection power that is achievable when combining sophisticated detection techniques with a DNA target-rich environment like stool," commented Jeffrey R. Luber, EXACT Sciences' President and Chief Executive Officer. "Although this technology is still at the very early stages of development, the results of this latest sketch suggest that stool, which is in immediate link with the colorectal cancers and polyps, is the more authentic and robust source of mutated DNA when compared to blood plasma for detecting early stage colorectal cancer-an essential characteristic for a mickle screening test."

About BEAMing


BEAMing is the name of an assay technology which incorporates the purpose of "Beads, Emulsion, Amplification, and Magnetism". The engineering is a useful method for performing single-molecule analysis of DNA or "Digital PCR" that has been demonstrated to provide a high grade of sensitivity for the detection of mutations or deletions in gene sequences of stake.

EXACT Sciences Corporation


EXACT Sciences Corporation uses applied genomics to develop patient-friendly screening technologies for consumption in the detection of cancer. EXACT maintains an exclusive license agreement in the United States and Canada with Laboratory Corporation of America� Holdings (LabCorp�) allowing LabCorp to offer a laboratory-developed testing service based on certain of EXACT Sciences' intellectual property. EXACT continues to retain rights for the development of whatever U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved in vitro diagnostic outfit, and rights to licence its technologies outside of the United States and Canada. EXACT Sciences' stool-based DNA engineering is included in the colorectal cancer screening guidelines of the American Cancer Society, the U.S. Multi-Society Task Force on Colorectal Cancer (a group comprised of representatives from the American College of Gastroenterology, American Gastroenterological Association, American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy and the American College of Physicians), and the American College of Radiology. EXACT Sciences is based in Marlborough, Mass.


Certain statements made in this press discharge that are not based on historical information ar express or implied advanced statements relating to, among other things, EXACT Sciences' expectations concerning the public presentation of future versions of its technologies and similar matters. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but ar subject to a sort of risks and uncertainties, many of which ar beyond EXACT Sciences' controller, and which could cause actual results to dissent materially from those contemplated in these forward-looking statements. In particular, the risks and uncertainties include, among other things, EXACT Sciences' ability to secure FDA approval or clearance for any of its products; changes in FDA guidance or policy; the ability to attract prospective collaborators or former parties to enter into a collaboration, acquisition or other strategic transaction with EXACT; the ability to raise additional capital on acceptable price; the clinical performance and market acceptance of its technologies; the reproducibility of its research results in subsequent studies and in clinical practice; sufficient investment in the sales and marketing of EXACT Sciences' technologies; the success of its strategic relationship with LabCorp; EXACT Sciences' ability to license certain technologies or obtain raw materials for its technologies; the ability to convince Medicare and other third-party payors to supply adequate reimbursement for EXACT Sciences' technologies; the ability to convince medical practitioners to fiat tests victimization EXACT Sciences' technologies; the ability to increase the performance its technologies; the ability of EXACT Sciences or LabCorp to take down the cost of stool-based DNA screening technologies through automating and simplifying key operational processes; the number of citizenry who decide to be screened for colorectal cancer using EXACT Sciences' technologies; competition; the ability to protect EXACT Sciences' noetic property and the monetary value of enforcing or defending EXACT Sciences in judicial proceeding relating to intellectual place rights; and the possibility that other companies will develop and market novel or improved methods for detecting colorectal cancer. Existing and prospective investors ar cautioned not to place undue trust on these forward-looking statements, which address only as of the date hereof. EXACT Sciences undertakes no obligation to update or revise the information contained in this press release, whether as a outcome of fresh information, future events or circumstances or otherwise. For additional disclosure regarding these and former risks faced by EXACT Sciences, regard the disclosure contained in EXACT Sciences' public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission including, without limitation, its most late Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q filed with the SEC.

EXACT Sciences Corporation


More info

Thursday, 7 August 2008

Faz

Faz   
Artist: Faz

   Genre(s): 
Other
   



Discography:


So High   
 So High

   Year: 2004   
Tracks: 4




 





Galaxy

Friday, 27 June 2008

'Valkyrie' portrait flap was mistaken photo ID








LOS ANGELES - What looked at first like another PR blow to "Valkyrie," the twice-delayed Tom Cruise film based on the true story of a German officer who plotted to assassinate Hitler, turned out to be a case of mistaken photo identity.

A report posted on Slate.com last week suggested that United Artists had doctored a portrait of Claus von Stauffenberg to make it more closely resemble the "Top Gun" actor. One problem: The two images scrutinized in the story, posted June 17 under the heading "Tom Cruise Mystery: The case of the doctored publicity photo," didn't come from the same source.

David Plotz, the editor of Slate, said after the web magazine was contacted by The Associated Press that the conclusion of the article was wrong, and a correction was planned.

"We did not do the photo research that we should have done," Plotz said Tuesday evening.

United Artists released its side-by-side publicity portraits last year to draw attention to the resemblance between the real von Stauffenberg and Cruise. In the black-and-white images, Cruise and von Stauffenberg are each in a similar profile pose, wearing similarly blank expressions.

Slate's story, by contributor Kim Masters, compares the von Stauffenberg photo supplied by United Artists to an image from the photo archive of The Associated Press.

The posting includes commentary from two Slate designers and an overlay, created by a third designer, with the AP photo - lighter and bearing less resemblance to Cruise - atop the darker, more heavily contrasted image released by United Artists.

The report concludes that it "Looks like someone tweaked the photo. Finding out who may be mission: impossible."

The AP determined that its archived photo of von Stauffenberg is not the same image released by United Artists. That photo can be found, among other places, in a Getty Images database, credited to the Hulton Archive and dated circa 1943.

"We did not check other archival sources to be sure there was not another version of the photograph," Plotz said. "We don't know where UA got the photograph, but it's clear that in the Getty archive there's a version of the photo which they used."

United Artists said it acquired its version of the photo some time ago during research for the film, but could not be certain of its exact provenance, or how the studio came upon it.

"The picture United Artists used of Colonel Stauffenberg can be found all over the Internet," said "Valkyrie" co-writer and producer Chris McQuarrie in a written statement released by a United Artists spokeswoman Tuesday.

McQuarrie, who won a screenplay Oscar in 1995 for "The Usual Suspects," added that it would have been easier to "alter Tom Cruise" than to doctor "every available picture of Claus von Stauffenberg."

"Valkyrie" stars Cruise as the aristocratic army officer executed after a failed attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler in 1944. In April, United Artists pushed back the film's release date from Oct. 3 until February 2009, the second delay for the movie that was originally slotted for June.

The film, to be distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc., is the second attempt by Cruise and producing partner Paula Wagner to revive United Artists, in which Cruise owns a stake. The first, the terrorism thinkpiece "Lions for Lambs," was estimated to have lost about $30 million.










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Thursday, 19 June 2008

Mel B to start black version of Hannah Montana

London (ANI): Scary Spice Mel B is all set to start a television series, which she claims will be a black version of the kids' show Hannah Montana. The 33-year-old singer has revealed that her show will be broadcast by Nickelodeon. She even revealed that the telecast of the series would begin at Christmas. "I've written my own sitcom that's just been picked up by Nickelodeon that I start at Christmas," the Mirror quoted her as saying. "I'm the star of it. It's a bit like Hannah Montana, but the black version," she added.


Saturday, 14 June 2008

Janet Jackson ready to head out on tour

Dates begin Sept. 10 in Vancouver





Though going out on tour means connecting with fans, it can also mean long hours, high stress, and sleepless nights. Janet Jackson says she's looking forward to all of it.
"I love all of that, all of that pressure, I really do," Jackson said Monday as she gears up for a North American tour to kick off in September.
The tour, which opens Sept. 10 in Vancouver, and includes dates in New York and Washington, D.C., is Jackson's first in seven years. But the singer, who just turned 42 last week, said she hadn't planned on waiting for so long.
"I was supposed to go on tour with the last album," said Jackson, referring to the 2006 CD "20 Y.O." But the singer said her record label wanted her to wait for her latest album, "Discipline."
"We were actually in full-blown tour rehearsals at that point ... learning numbers, getting everything together, set designs," she said. "I had to kind of shut everything down and go into the studio."
Jackson's shows have always been heavy on choreography and glitzy sets. But she promised fans some surprises this time around. "It will definitely be a big production but it will definitely also be something that I've never done before, that people have never seen from me before," she said.
While only a few dates have been announced for the Live Nation-produced outing, Jackson expects to take the "Rock Witchu" tour (named, by the way, for a song on her new album, not for her brother Michael's famous hit) worldwide.
"It's been a while so I really want to make my rounds," she said. "I haven't been to "Australia in a very long time; I can't wait to go there. There are a lot of places where I really want to stop off at, and that's the idea, that's the goal with this tour.
Tickets go on sale June 7.

Sunday, 8 June 2008

Justin Timberlake - Timberlake Inspires Coldplay Album


JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE was the inspiration for COLDPLAY's new album VIVA LA VIDA OR DEATH AND ALL HIS FRIENDS, according to frontman CHRIS MARTIN.

The band's drummer Will Champion is such a fan of Timberlake's hit track Cry Me A River, he used it as inspiration for one of their's tracks, Lost!

Martin says, "One song we're always trying to chase is Cry Me A River in terms of the beats and everything.

"I know that is one of Will's favourite songs. And he did all the drums on Lost!"




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Tuesday, 3 June 2008

Rhys Meyers and Nesbitt Golden Globe nominees

Jonathan Rhys Meyers and James Nesbitt are amongst the nominees in the television categories for the Golden Globe Awards.
Rhys Meyers has been nominated for Best Actor in a Television Series (Drama) for his role as Henry VIII in 'The Tudors'.
He is up against Michael C Hall ('Dexter'), Jon Hamm ('Mad Men'), Hugh Laurie ('House') and Bill Paxton ('Big Love') in the Best Actor category.
'The Tudors' was also nominated for Best Television Series (Drama), along with 'Big Love', 'Damages', 'Grey's Anatomy', 'House' and 'Mad Men'.
Northern Irish star James Nesbitt also bagged a nomination for Best Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture for Television for his role in 'Jekyll'.
Also nominated were Adam Beach ('Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee'), Ernest Borgnine ('A Grandpa for Christmas'), Jim Broadbent ('Longford') and Jason Isaacs ('The State Within').
'Damages' and 'Longford' both secured the most nominations with four each.
'Damages' star Glenn Close was nominated for Best Actress in a Television Series (Drama) along with Patricia Arquette ('Medium'), Minnie Driver ('The Riches'), Edie Falco ('The Sopranos'), Sally Field ('Brothers & Sisters'), Holly Hunter ('Saving Grace') and Kyra Sedgwick ('The Closer').
'Longford' was nominated for Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television along with 'Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee',  'The Company', 'Five Days' and 'The State Within'.
Along with Broadbent's nomination for his role in 'Longford', his co-stars Samantha Morton and Andy Serkis were also nominated in the acting categories.
Morton was nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television along with Rose Byrne ('Damages'), Rachel Griffiths ('Brothers & Sisters'), Katherine Heigl ('Grey's Anatomy'), Anna Paquin ('Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee') and Jaime Pressly ('My Name Is Earl').
Serkis was nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television along with Ted Danson ('Damages'), Kevin Dillon ('Entourage'), Jeremy Piven ('Entourage'), William Shatner ('Boston Legal') and Donald Sutherland ('Dirty Sexy Money').
There were also nominations for 'Extras', '30 Rock', 'Ugly Betty' and 'Californication'. The awards ceremony will be held on 13 January 2008.
For more on the Golden Globe film nominations, click here.

The City - Davis Thrilled To Land Dead Sea Skincare Line

SEX + THE CITY star KRISTIN DAVIS has landed a free trip to Israel's Dead Sea so she can be well versed at the spokesperson for Ahava beauty products.

The miracle skincare line contains minerals from the Dead Sea and Davis can't wait to head off to the Holy Land to dip her toes in the rejuvenating waters once her promotional duties for the new Sex + The City movie are complete.

She says, "I'm going to Israel to do a photoshoot on the Dead Sea for Ahava. The product is from the Dead Sea. I've never been to Israel but I've seen pictures of the Dead Sea. It looks like the moon but with a really big lake on it. "I've never been to the country so that's exciting because I'm a traveller.

"Ahava is a line of products containing the minerals that are found there in nature. They used to bag it up and sell the bags of the water.

"I'd had a pedicure at a spa with the foot cream and the minerals make it really rich and obviously our feet need some help after wearing high heels. It was amazing."




See Also

The Fratellis' frontman lines up solo album

The Fratellis' frontman Jon Fratelli is planning to release a solo album.

The singer and guitarist is currently writing tracks for his first release, which he plans to put out after the Scottish band have finished touring for their upcoming album 'Here We Stand', which is out on June 9.

Fratelli told The Daily Star: "I'm thinking I'll probably release a solo album after we finish touring this new album.

"It's not a big deal, just something to keep me busy."






Jul 10, 2008 at Somerset House, London -
More The Fratellis tickets

Wolf Hoffmann

Wolf Hoffmann   
Artist: Wolf Hoffmann

   Genre(s): 
Rock: Hard-Rock
   



Discography:


Classical   
 Classical

   Year: 1999   
Tracks: 11




 






Dinner with Pamela Anderson for highest charity bid

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - How much would you pay to have dinner with Pamela Anderson?


The former "Baywatch" star is offering herself as a dinner guest to the highest bidder at an auction in Abu Dhabi on Saturday for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.


Anderson, 40, will be flying out to Abu Dhabi as the big attraction at the fund-raiser. The United Arab Emirates branch of the international foundation is hoping to make the wishes of 39 terminally ill children come true.


"We are planning to have a lot of fun and make a lot of money for the cause," the Canadian-born actress said in a statement on Wednesday.


(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Steve Gorman)

Motor City motormouth Esham inspires rap's best

Esham paid for Eminem’s sins.
The Detroit native has been rapping about his city’s murderous underbelly since Slim Shady was in short pants. You might even say there would have been no Eminem without Esham.
Esham, whose Sacrificial Lambz tour plays Harpers Ferry Friday, fancies himself the king of all Detroit hip-hop acts from Insane Clown Posse and Slum Village to Eminem and his D12 crew.



“I am to Detroit what Jay-Z is to New York,” Esham said from a tour stop in Tennessee. “I might not have sold as many records as a lot of them, but they wouldn’t have been able to come up with their styles or get their deals if I never put out records.”
At age 13, Esham introduced the violent, raucous style he called “acid rap” in 1989 with “Words From Hell.” He followed up the next year with a sequel, “Boomin’ Words From Hell,” and continued to put out at least one release every year for the next decade.
“It’s just always been so (messed) up around here that it’s helped me create a lot of music,” he said. “I just look outside every day and see the blight, so I’ve never had a problem finding material.”
To outsiders, Esham’s graphic album covers and off-color titles - including “KKK the Fetus” and “Closed Casket” - make it seem as if he’s applying the aesthetics of slasher movies to music. And while he often does, Esham says he’s mostly describing the streets of Detroit as he sees them.
“I wouldn’t call my raps imaginative,” he said. “Detroit is a great place, but economically we’re at the bottom of the barrel. This is not a thriving metropolis. This is an example of what the rest of the country should not do.”
Clearly Esham is no poster boy for the local chamber of commerce. And he’s had his share of beefs with local hip-hoppers, including Eminem, D12 and Insane Clown Posse. Esham accused ICP of stealing his psychotic rap style, and the group’s label, Psychopathic Records, of imitating his business plan. So it came as a surprise when he decided to tap into ICP’s extended fan base by signing a two-disc deal with Psychopathic in 2002.
Esham hasn’t spoken about his Psychopathic arrangement since he left the label in 2006, but he has a bloody axe to grind.
“There wouldn’t have been any of those styles if it weren’t for me,” Esham said when asked if he considers his music horrorcore, death rap or any of the other labels he and like-minded artists wear. “Still, it’s cool that kids can relate to these things I talk about and start their own projects up. It’s one big family. It’s good that so much has branched off of acid rap.”
Maybe now that he’s touring nationally, more heads will realize Esham is the template for Eminem, even if he lacks platinum-dyed hair and a cute persona.
“Artists on the mainstream level tend to emulate the underground,” he said, “and sometimes they lose focus and don’t give credit to the people who actually had those ideas first. It’s all right though. I don’t mind being that guy who everybody gets their stuff from.”
Esham, with NATAS and Royce 5’9”, at Harpers Ferry, Allston, Friday. Tickets: $13 in advance, $15 day of show; 800-594-8499.
- fara1hiphop@gmail.com

'Hottest MCs In The Game': Should Lil Wayne Be #1 Again?




Just a few more days. The new "Hottest MCs in the Game" list will be revealed Friday at 10 p.m. on MTV.


Since we announced the epic extravaganza, tens of thousands of hip-hop fans have responded online, saying what they expect. Many fans have sent in their own lists, and some artists are even chiming in with who they think should be on the list. Obviously, last year's champ is Lil Wayne. His popularity has probably doubled since 2007 — as has his workload.

Wayne's in-demand status hasn't waned at all, with monumental guest spots on records like "Duffle Bag Boy," and his own "Lollipop" went to the top of Billboard's Hot 100. And while he's maintained a successful recipe with his words and how he delivers them, Weezy — hip-hop's ultimate rock star — has one gaping hole on his résumé: no album. Tha Carter III was pushed back from February to May and is now slated for June 10. So here's one of the biggest questions MTV's Hip-Hop Brain Trust posed: Can the Birdman Jr. be #1 two years in a row without an album?

He obviously has enough material out in the marketplace to equal an album's worth of work. The delay of Tha Carter III is hurting Weezy's anticipation factor. The LP will undoubtedly be #1 for a couple of weeks when it drops. Still, will the Brain Trust think he needs a complete body of work to tie it all together to be the Hottest MC once again? Well, only the experts know for sure. However, some of Weezy's peers are having their say right now.

"He's the hottest rapper in the game," said Lloyd, who worked with Weezy on the new single "Girls Around the World." "He's my favorite by far, and I feel he's earned his spot. He's versatile."

"What makes Wayne a great MC is that he has no boundaries," Chris Brown said of his favorite MC. "He's limitless to what he wants to do. He doesn't say, 'This image is gonna mess me up if I do this record. If I sing, it's gonna make me soft.' He don't care about it — even with 'Lollipop.' That's my homie, but I was like, 'I don't wanna hear Wayne sing.' But when you hear the record, it ain't about the singing; it's about the song, how good it feels. It's a dope record to me. Him and Kanye are probably the two that's on top of their game right now as far as creativity. Kanye is one of those big, big minds of the future, and Wayne is one of those MCs that's gonna be here forever. He was here since he was 9 rapping."

"Lil Wayne is definitely the best rapper in the game," DJ Khaled agreed. "His lyrical techniques and his style is so amazing, but also his work ethic is amazing too. You got to work hard to be #1. His music backs it up, and his work ethic backs it up. He's just amazing. He takes it to a whole other level. He gave you that 'Lollipop' because he could do that rap stuff all day and eat it. So he took it to another global level. I look up to Lil Wayne. He's an inspiration of mine."

But Wayne maintaining the #1 position isn't as clear-cut as Khaled's comments might have you believe.

"Sure, people were feeling him, but those were his performances on someone else's record," 50 Cent argued. "Now, a good rapper, you want me to tell you a couple of good rappers? Jae Millz. You can go to Philly, you got Reed Dollaz, Chic Raw. It's a bunch of them. ... It's a whole bunch of dope rappers, man. It's just, are they good songwriters? Do they have the presentation to present to the public that's going to make them buy into them? As far as having a talented rapper, they could match [Wayne], in my head, personally. Like every guy I mentioned is an underground rapper right now. They're as entertaining to me as Lil Wayne is. He's been groomed in a way. He's been made for it. He's been raised in hip-hop, since he was 12 years old. So I expect him to be something special."

Even Khaled can't definitely say that Weezy is ahead of another Southern general.

"Ricky Ross is another number-one MC of mine," Khaled added. "Not just because he's my brother and he's a part of the movement, but you've seen his growth. Me, I've seen it already, but the people have got to see his growth through Port of Miami to his new album, Trilla, and doing records with me. Rick Ross is ahead of his time. Before he got his deal, he was ahead of his time musically. He was always rapping. He's from the South, but he could rap. He's just amazing, man. His swagger is crazy. He's the boss. ... I'm going to be real with you. Rest in peace to Biggie, rest in peace to 'Pac. [They're] legends, number-one MCs — Rick Ross is one of them dudes. I know it's hard for people to [believe], because the people I named are such legends, but I got to keep it real. [Ross] is one of them dudes."

If Jermaine Dupri had to vote right now, he'd be going with half of Outkast. "I don't know my full top 10, but I feel like Andre 3000 is #1 right now, because every time he puts a verse out, it's crazy. I think you want more! And to me, that is what rap is about — to hear somebody keep growing. Every time I hear him, it's like, 'Wow. What do he be doing?' "

Then, of course, you have most MCs who feel they should be #1.

"Cash Money been doing their thing," Webby said, before declaring his candidacy for the top spot. "Wayne, Birdman been doing them. You know, if you hot — I'm hot! If I was you, I probably wouldn't even touch me right now. You'd burn your fingers. I said, if I was you, when you see me, I probably wouldn't touch me because you'd probably burn your mutha----in' fingers. I'm hot, believe that. That's how I feel. I'm on f---ing fire. I'll set your house on fire when I step in your living room. Believe that. You think I'm playing. ... I ain't used a lighter in so f---ing long, it don't make no f---ing sense. I'm on fire!"

(While you're waiting for the 2008 "Hottest MCs in the Game," check out everything "Hottest-MCs"-related!)

"The Hottest MCs in the Game" airs on MTV at 10 p.m. Friday, May 16. Vote on who you think is #1 at the Newsroom blog — and submit your own top-10 list below!






See Also

Uriah

Uriah   
Artist: Uriah

   Genre(s): 
Metal
   



Discography:


Letters In Blood   
 Letters In Blood

   Year: 2007   
Tracks: 10




 





Cliff Richard - Richard Regrets Fat Elvis Snub