I don’t know about you but despite Jay-Z’s friendship with Gwyneth Paltrow and Coldplay’s lead singer Chris Martin, I still like Coldplay. Gwyn was on America’s late night TV show, Letterman, the other night and refered to her 2 year-old as a “sensitive thug,” a reference from an old Jay song. Does anyone else see a problem with this? Anyway, Coldplay’s music is perfect for a rainy day at the beach. In a good way. Listen to their new single, “Violet Hill” here. Thoughts, ladies?

-Steely D

props to Perez.

This looks pretty great. That is all. **Pledges undying love for “Ugly Betty“**

-Steely D

props to Latina

Peace in the actual Middle East? I don’t believe it. And though it’s not totally related, this is why: “More than 400 people have been killed in fighting over the last month between Shia gunmen and US and Iraqi forces.” sigh… [BBC1] [BBC2]

This is a travesty. BBQ’s and picnics everywhere are crying, somone cue Poetic Justice. [ChiTrib]

A body protein, ITK, might be for responsible for the human immune system’s resistance to HIV meds. [BBC]

Portishead doesn’t want to talk to you, or me about their new album, Third. [NYMag]

I can’t. Apparently, Zimbabwe opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai only won 47% of the election votes over Mugabe’s 43%. But they still need a recount because no one got 50%. Wtf? [Guardian]

Busta Rhymes has a new video, “Don’t Touch Me,” that reminds me of why I liked him in the first place. Finally. [NR]

Wanna know how much your credit card number is worth to a theif? scary. [Slate]

Equal confusion for Mariah Carey’s new film role in “Tennessee” and Lindsay Lohan’s new album. I actually heard that Ne-Yo’s writing on Linds’ joint. As for Mariah’s acting, did Nick Cannon have something to do with this? Thoughts, ladies? [BV] [Fox]

Remember, I’m Steely D aka dsteel, a girl with a passion for hyperstripe popsicles, tasty new purses and manly men. It is spring you know…got a lil’ sugar for my Afternoon Tea? Hit me at dsteel@parlourmagazine.com.

Our boy—ahem, our man—Usher, was in New York recently and Parlour got the chance to kick it with the triple-threat chiseled entertainer. Don’t even try escaping his single “Love In This Club,” and his album, Here I Stand, hits shelves May 27th. With wall-to-wall club joints and slow jams made for quickies, this latest disc should knock as hard as its 2004 predecessor Confessions. But there’s a more mature Usher at its helm. It’s still the same Ursh who used to drop his pants during shows, except he’s married now (for which he’s attracted some hate) and just had his first child, Usher Raymond IV. Along with addressing the haters, Usher also let Parlour in on the mind state of a married man and how he’s getting better with age. (more…)

Anybody know the cost of a date? Fellas? It’s something I never think about, but did recently. The night after the first outing with Stars, I wound up back at Tillman’s for a buh-bye party for a now-former editor. I bought a drink, the same one I’d had two of the previous evening. It was $12 for a chocolate martini. That’s about average for a NYC drink at a proper establishment in Manhattan (and it beats Bar 89’s $14 martinis) so I didn’t bat a mascara-ed lash at the price. It was only later when I realized Stars had to have dropped $60 on our date that I gained a sense of pause. (more…)

<<< See, remember when I wrote this? So it turns out that international football (or soccer) star, Ronaldo (not to be confused with his younger, cuter name-sharing counterpart), got caught up in a sex scandal with three transvestite prostitutes…which he all confessed to when he reported them to police. Keep in mind, prostitution isn’t exactly illegal in Brasil. First you get all chubby on us, then this? No booty call is worth involving the press. {BBC}

So, instead of walking that fine line, Obama has decided to step on one side–by formally denouncing his former pastor, Reverend Jeremiah A. Wright. Anything for a vote I guess. *shrugs shoulders*. Although I would bet my new Chanel lipgloss that they planned this in private. {NYT}

I am personally a Blackberry girl (nice&simple–I just need a phone and email), but for all of my techanistas: AT&T is about to slash the price of the iPhone by about $200. {Fortune}

In England, the current tally of foreign pupils enrolled in school adds up to about 800,000. That means a lot of ESL classes. Keep in mind the total population is at about 51million. We might as well do away with these silly notions of racism now, cuz we are takin’ over around the world dammit! {Telegraph}

Finally! A good reason to actually watch TV! Angela Bassett will join the cast of “ER” for it’s final season. {NYT}

The Swiss chemist who discovered LSD, Albert Hoffman, has died. He was 102 years old. Thank you for my experience of witnessing my dinner crawl off my plate and melt into the floor (I swear thats what I saw), LSD is a hell of a drug. Damm, 102! {LaTimes}

-jbaker

Why oh why did I pretend I was under 23 last night? Yawn. Anyways, hit me at jbaker@parlourmagazine.com for any fresh Coffee or Tea brews!