Hollywood, RealNetworks square off on DVD copying

Hollywood calls it "rent, rip and return" and contends it's one of the biggest technological threats to the movie industry's annual $20 billion DVD market — software that allows you to copy a film without paying for it.

On Friday, the showdown over the issue will take place in federal court in San Francisco, where an army of lawyers representing Hollywood will argue that RealNetworks Inc.'s DVD "ripper" is an illegal digital piracy tool.

The company, in turn, will say the $29.99 software that allows DVDs to be easily copied to computer hard drives is legitimate.

The same federal judge who shut down music-swapping site Napster in 2000 because of copyright violations will preside over the three-day trial, which is expected to cut to the heart of the same technological upheaval roiling Hollywood that forever changed the face of the music business.

The movie studios fear that if RealNetworks is allowed to sell its RealDVD software, consumers will quickly lose interest in paying retail for DVDs that can be rented cheaply, copied and returned.

Their lawyers argue the software violates a federal law known as the Digital Millennium Copyright Act that makes software and other tools that enable digital piracy illegal. They also contend shoppers will widely condone such illegal behavior if RealNetworks' product is allowed on the market.

For its part, the Seattle-based company says its RealDVD product is designed to simply let customers back up a purchased DVD and that the software allows for only one copy to be made.

The company argues that the contract it signed with the DVD Copy Control Association, which equips DVD player manufacturers with the keys to unscrambling DVDs, allows RealDVD because the software doesn't alter or remove anti-piracy encryption on DVDs like illicit software that is easily obtained for free online.

RealNetworks says its product legally fills growing consumer demand to convert their DVDs to digital form for convenient storage and viewing.

In October, U.S. District Judge Marilyn Hall Patel temporarily barred sales of RealDVD after the product was on the market for a few days. At the time, the judge said it appeared the software did violate federal law against digital piracy, but ordered detailed court filings and the trial to better understand how RealDVD works.

The industry's lawsuit has incurred widespread wrath from bloggers, digital rights advocates and groups on both sides of the political spectrum, including former Republican congressman and Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr and the left-leaning Electronic Frontier Foundation.

The industry's critics accuse the studios of stifling innovation as they attempt to develop their own copying software.

"It's all about control," said Cato Institute scholar Timothy Lee. "No one is allowed to innovate in the DVD space without industry permission."

The industry, through the Motion Picture Association of America, counters that its goal is to stamp out piracy. It says it welcomes legitimate attempts at innovation.

"RealNetworks acted in bad faith by taking a license to build a DVD player and instead built a copier that violates the circumvention rules of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act by enabling consumers to copy DVDs illegally," said Greg Goeckner, the MPAA's top lawyer. "Our objective is to get the illegal choices out of the marketplace and instead focus constructively with the technology community on bringing in more innovative and flexible legal options for consumers to enjoy movies."

Regardless of the trial's outcome — and the judge isn't expected to rule immediately — some predict that Hollywood control over digital copies will continue to wane because of the proliferation of illegal software online.

"If Hollywood wins, I don't think much changes in the real world," said Fred von Lohmann, an attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation. "Anybody who wants DVDs copied can download software for free in 10 minutes."

Jennifer Love Hewitt new love can't stop gushing

Jennifer Love Hewitt has her latest love, Jamie Kennedy, talking continually about how much in love with her he has fallen.

Kennedy’s career is rock solid and scorching hot yet he manages to fly under the press radar screen. Savvy? Yes. Talented? You bet.

In love with Jennifer Love Hewitt?? Oh, you bet!

Most known for his comedy, Jamie Kennedy is currently starring in a new film, Finding Bliss, being featured in Manhattan this week at the Gen Art Film Festival presented by Acura.

In the flick, Leelee Sobieski wins the top filmmaker award at her NYU graduation and goes where else...to Hollywood!

She wants to pursue her dream of becoming a director and takes an offer in editing adult entertainment.

Back to Jamie Kennedy: the 38 year-old revealed he’s in love with Ghost Whisperer co-star, Jennifer Love Hewitt, as they recently vacationed in Mexico and he discovered kidney stones.

Ouch! We hear that he’s recovering and Love Hewitt is at his side. Apparently he’s home now and resting.

But here’s our question: the lovely Jennifer Love Hewitt always seems to have a leading man and several broken engagements.

Remember her relationship with Carson Daly? Then there was another one in between we believe and the most recent break up to fiance Ross McCall.

Rihanna and Chris Brown back together

Rihanna and Chris Brown are back together! Paparazzi are swarming the Los Angeles area for that million-dollar picture of the couple together.

Fuzzy images of the two boarding and leaving a plane in Florida are claimed to be Rihanna and Chris Brown. It certainly looks like the pair who appear to be trying to reconcile after Brown allegedly beat Rihanna so badly she thought she was going to die.

Early this morning Rihanna and Brown arrived at LAX together and thus begin the long process that is navigating a relationship reunion with the domestic abuse charges hanging over Brown's head. Brown is set to be arraigned in a Los Angeles court on March 5.

After Rihanna and Chris Brown reunited in Miami for a few days, the couple have made their way back to LA to recuperate their relationship and his career.

Sources close to the pair have Rihanna and Brown hiding out in Beverly Hills. With the throngs of paparazzi outside both their LA homes, the couple settled into the Beverly Hills Wilshire.

Although charges are filed and Brown could face almost a certain very-public trial, if the main accuser, Rihanna, refuses to testify, there is no case. It makes one wonder if Brown is reconciling to save his legal hide or if he truly is remorseful and plans to treat Rihanna right.

Either way, this story is far from over.

4 Better boyfriends for Rihanna

Depending on who you believe, there have been mixed reports that Rihanna is dating either actor Wilmer Valderama, best known for That '70s Show and famously bragging about bedding starlets like Mandy Moore and Lindsay Lohan to Howard Stern, or Bromance "star" Frankie Delgado.

And while we're happy that Rihanna has moved on from her turbulent relationship with ex Chris Brown, a part of us can't help but wonder: "Really, Rihanna? The guy that played Fez or, even worse, a guy who claims friendship with Brody Jenner?"

We think our RiRi deserves better, so here are a few guys who'd we prefer to see the beautiful "Umbrella" songstress with instead:

1. Josh Hartnett

If Rihanna wants to revisit a past relationship, she could do a lot worse than getting back in touch with Josh Harnett, the hunky star of Lucky Number Slevin and Wicker Park whom she was previously linked to in 2007. A Midwestern boy at heart with old-fashioned values, he decided to move back to his home state of Minnesota in 2002 and leave LA because "flitting around from club to club and girl to girl is no way to live," he was quoted as saying.

2. Damon Dash

An older man who could mentor and protect her may just be what Rihanna needs after having her fairy tale romance with Chris Brown go so badly awry. The thirty-seven year old Dash, a successful hip-hop music and fashion mogul, could fit that bill nicely and is known for appreciating the charms of beautiful young singers, having once famously dated Aaliyah. Although he is currently in the process of divorcing wife Rachel Roy, he could certainly commiserate with Rihanna's past relationship troubles and offer her a strong shoulder to lean on.

3. Laz Alonzo

While the least famous of the group, there's no question that this former model turned actor and musician is Rihanna's counterpart in both looks and talent and would make the perfect rebound guy. Resembling a young Denzel Washington, Alonzo studied business at Howard University and even worked on Wall Street before gaining recognition in films like Stomp the Yard and the latest Fast & Furious flick. He is also said to be an accomplished musician and singer, having played the piano since he was a kid.

4. Justin Timberlake

With his relationship with Jessica Biel reportedly on the rocks, we'd love to see a romance develop between Rihanna and the "SexyBack" singer. The pair are reportedly good friends and displayed sizzling chemistry in her sexy 2008 "Rehab" video (so much that Jessica Biel was supposedly 'sick to her stomach' after seeing pictures of them from the set.) They were also slated to sing together at the Grammys before Rihanna had to drop out, but perhaps a romantic duet later on this year is what is really in the cards for them.

Jessica Simpson's country career hits sour note

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Jessica Simpson's courtship with country music seems to have had a shorter shelf life than her marriage.

After lackluster sales for her country debut, "Do You Know," Simpson and her Nashville record label have parted ways, leaving many wondering what's next for the 28-year-old entertainer.

"Right now it seems like she's taken a break from recording. There is nothing else on the books," said Ian Drew, senior music editor at Us Weekly magazine.

A spokeswoman for the one-time pop princess says Simpson remains part of the Sony Music Group on the Epic label, but is no longer working with the company's country division, Sony Music Nashville.

"She was on loan to Sony Nashville for her country album," said Lauren Auslander.

As for her future in country music? "We don't know yet," she said.

"Do You Know" started strong but faded fast. The lead single, "Come on Over," a flirtatious, steel guitar-laced slice of country pop, peaked at No. 18 last summer and the album debuted at No. 1. But the second single, "Remember That," stalled at No. 42, and the third, "Pray Out Loud," failed to chart.

To date, the disc, Simpson's fifth studio release, has sold around 178,000 copies — a long way from her 3 million-selling 2003 disc, "In This Skin."

"Everywhere I saw her around the U.S. at different radio station events she was always well-received," said Lon Helton, editor and publisher of the industry trade publication "Country Aircheck." "For whatever reason, the music did not resonate."

Simpson came to country after her 2006 pop outing, "A Public Affair," fell flat. The Texas-born blonde touted the move as a return to her roots. She performed on the Grand Ole Opry, signed autographs at the Country Music Association's annual festival, and toured with country's multiplatinum trio Rascal Flatts.

But she got more publicity for her life outside of music, most of it far from positive. She was ridiculed when it seemed as if she had gained a few pounds, and the status of her romance with Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo was constantly scrutinized.

She was also criticized for a few erratic concert performances. At a February show in Michigan, Simpson apologized to fans after she forgot the lyrics to a song and asked her band to start over on another.

Some detractors viewed her country career as a calculated attempt to follow other pop stars who have found success on country radio.

"Working the country market is very different. You really have to work it at country. You have to spend your life on the road building an audience and she didn't really put the work in," Drew observed. "She walked the walk and talked the talk, but she didn't have the street cred that she needed to make it work."

But others say Simpson shouldn't bail too soon. She may just need more time to find an audience.

"It doesn't seem like she was even on the country music scene long enough to prove what she is capable of doing for this industry. She never got the chance," said Neely Yates, music director for country station 96.3 in Lubbock, Texas.

Helton wondered whether the singer was a victim of bad timing. Pop rockers Darius Rucker and Jewel were crossing over to country about the same time, which he called unusual in country music.

"What was the ability of the market to absorb and focus on more than one pop singer at a time coming over?" he asked.

The question now is whether Simpson will keep her record deal. After two disappointments, Epic may be ready to move on without her.

"She's never really sold a lot of records except for the album out at the height of 'Newlyweds,'" said Drew, referring to her popular reality TV show, "Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica," which chronicled her ill-fated marriage to Nick Lachey. "Other than that, she's never been able to sell much of anything."

But in a recent interview, Rascal Flatts' Gary Levox said Simpson is in a no-win situation with her critics: "She's in a spot where whatever she does, they pick her apart. They need to just leave her alone and just let her sing."

"She's a wonderfully gifted singer," added bandmate Jay DeMarcus. "All the other stuff overshadows what she's really about and it's unfortunate, because there's more to her there than just tabloid fodder."

Circus Coming to Court? Lawyer Wants Britney to Testify

Britney Spears could be forced back into the legal zone.

Jon Eardley, who once tried to break Spears out of her father-controlled conservatorship supposedly at her behest, has asked a judge to require the songbird to take a time-out from her Circus tour and testify in court. Eardley is currently the target of a restraining order filed by the conservatorship.

Per court documents obtained by E! News, Eardley says that with the "Blackout" singer performing at L.A.'s Staples Center this Thursday and Friday, she should be required to show up and testify on the validity of her allegations against him.

"If Britney Spears is well enough to put on two concerts in Los Angeles she is certainly well enough to attend a trial where attorneys on her behalf have falsely accused Jon Eardley of harassment," the petition states.

Specifically, the attorney is demanding Spears address two issues: whether or not she authorized him to take legal action to block the conservatorship, and whether he caused her "substantial emotional distress."

Should the Britster not be able to show up for any reason, Eardley is seeking an order forcing her to submit to an oral deposition "at a location of her choosing" to answer questions pertaining to those two points.

If the Oops! girl's unable to make herself available in any way but is willing to stipulate that she did not suffer substantial emotional distress due to Eardley's conduct, court papers said he'd withdraw his subpoena.

Team Spears has previously claimed that after her onetime manager Sam Lutfi brought Eardley in to act as her counsel, she never knew the legal eagle nor acknowledged him working for her.

Chris Brown: Game for New Gal-Pal?

Los Angeles (E! Online) – Chris Brown isn't going to let something like his arraignment get in the way of having a good time.

The alleged girlfriend beater was not only seen hanging with a new gal-pal on Saturday afternoon, but later that same night, he and a group of celeb friends partied at L.A. Live's Lucky Strike Lanes & Lounge in downtown Los Angeles.

Brown was photographed at a Sunset Boulevard tattoo parlor with Girlicious singer Natalie Mejia.

Mejia confirmed to E! News that she's the woman in the pics but declined to comment on the nature of her and Brown's relationship. (Brown is also said to be seeing an ex, college student Erica Jackson, according to the Gatecrasher column in the New York Daily News.)

Mejia was not seen, however, when Brown was spotted later on at about midnight entering Lucky Strike through a back entrance. He made a beeline for the private Luxe Lounge, where he was joined by Transformers star Tyrese Gibson, Omarion and Dreamgirls actor Keith Robinson.

The posse munched on chicken bites and fries, and Brown "appeared happy and was dancing around," the source reports. The group took off at about 2:30 am, but not before Brown apparently noticed one of the female bartenders. "It seemed as if he was definitely into her," another source says.

Brown pleaded not guilty last Monday to felony charges of assaulting and threatening to kill Rihanna the night before the Grammys. The next hearing in the case is April 29. If convicted, Brown faces a maximum sentence of four years and eight months in prison.

Phil Spector Guilty of Murder!

Los Angeles (E! Online) – The boy genius has given way to the convicted murderer.

Phil Spector, the legendary record producer, eccentric and recluse with a reputation for building walls around people as much as his signature music, was found guilty of second-degree murder by Los Angeles jurors today in the 2003 shooting death of cult-movie star Lana Clarkson.

Emotions occasionally spiked at the courthouse: Spector's wife Rachelle sobbed; the jury forewoman broke down at a post-verdict press conference; prosecutors spoke of justice served. Spector, however, was described in reports as seeming unmoved.

The 69-year-old Grammy winner and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member, who was taken immediately into custody, faces up to life in prison when sentenced May 29.

This was Spector's second judgment day on the Clarkson case. In 2007, a jury deadlocked 10-2 in favor of convicting Spector.

At the second trial as at the first, prosecutors said Clarkson fell victim to a man who had a history of waving guns at, and acting violently toward, women, especially when he'd been drinking. Spector's defense argued she shot herself.

There was one new twist at the new trial, but it ended up being a nonfactor, unfortunately for Spector.

At this trial, jurors had the option of convicting Spector of a lesser charge of involuntary manslaughter. They not only didn't take the option, they also convicted the former hitmaker of using a gun while committing a crime.

The jury forewoman, whose name was not disclosed, told reporters deliberations were "painful." "We all have hearts," she said. "We all have people we love."

For L.A. prosecutors, the guilty verdicts were a welcome change. They previously failed to win convictions against celebrity murder defendants O.J. Simpson and Robert Blake.

Spector's fame dates back to 1958, when, at age 19, he wrote and sang his way to No. 1 on the chart with "To Know Him Is to Love Him."

As a young producer, Spector dominated the pre-Beatles 1960s with hit ("He's a Rebel") after hit ("Da Doo Ron Ron") after hit ("Be My Baby"). The songs were predominantly recorded by girl groups and were exclusively backed by the aural sensation known as the "Wall of Sound." Spector's magic touch continued through the 1960s, with "Unchained Melody," the Beatles Let It Be, John Lennon's "Imagine" and George Harrison "My Sweet Lord," among other standouts.

But over the past 30-40 years, Spector's fame gave way to a kind of infamy—the mad genius who, per lore, pulled gun on Lennon and the Ramones, or who, per Ronnie Spector, of the Spector creation the Ronettes, treated her more as a captive than wife during their troubled marriage.

Spector's alleged gun-waving ways caught up to him at trial, if not on night of Clarkson's death at his Alhambra, Calif., castle-style home. At Spector's first trial, five women testified about being at the other end of a gun drawn by Spector. Their testimony was allowed to be introduced in the new trial.

Spector and Clarkson, the queen of Roger Corman's Barbarian Queen movies, met Feb. 3, 2003, at L.A's House of Blues, where the 40-year-old Clarkson worked as a hostess and where Spector visited shortly after midnight.

About five hours later, after the pair was driven to Spector's home, Spector walked out of his mansion, and, per testimony at the first trial, told his driver: "I think I killed somebody."

LA jury convicts Phil Spector in murder of actress

LOS ANGELES – Two trials involving one legendary music producer. The first jury couldn't reach an unanimous decision, but the second found Phil Spector guilty of second-degree murder in the shooting death of actress Lana Clarkson.

Six years after Clarkson was found dead in the foyer of Spector's mansion, the diminutive 69-year-old now finds himself in a Los Angeles jail cell after he was convicted on Monday. His sentencing is scheduled for May 29 where he faces at least 18 years to life in prison barring a successful appeal.

Spector, wearing one of his signature suits with a long black coat, red tie and red handkerchief, had no obvious reaction. His 28-year-old wife, Rachelle, sobbed as the verdict was announced. Spector was led out of the courtroom by sheriff's deputies and remanded to jail immediately.

"He took it very stoically," defense attorney Doron Weinberg said later. "He wanted to know what is next."

The jury forewoman, who spoke later, also wept. She recounted the pressure of deciding the fate of another person.

"It just is a painful decision," she said. "For anybody in our shoes, you have no idea. It's tough to be on a jury."

The murder case was a flash from Hollywood's distant past, a reminder of the 1960s when Spector reigned as the hit maker supreme with such songs as the Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" and the Ronettes' classic, "Be My Baby."

The 40-year-old Clarkson, star of the 1985 cult film "Barbarian Queen," died of a gunshot fired in her mouth as she sat in Spector's mansion in February 2003. She met Spector only hours earlier at her job as a nightclub hostess. In one of many ironies of the case, she had no idea of his fame. Prosecutors argued Spector had a history of threatening women with guns when they tried to leave his presence.

The defense claimed she was despondent over her fading career and killed herself.

Spector's chauffeur, the key witness, said he heard a gunshot, then saw Spector emerge holding a gun and heard him say: "I think I killed somebody."

The first jury deadlocked 10-2, favoring conviction in 2007. This time, jurors spent about 30 hours in deliberations before finding Spector guilty. They had the option of choosing involuntary manslaughter, but did not do so. The panel also found Spector personally used a firearm in committing a crime.

"It feels fantastic, this is the type of day prosecutors live for," said Deputy District Attorney Alan Jackson, who summed up Spector's motive for killing Clarkson in one word: "Rage."

Clarkson's mother and sister attended with their lawyer, who said they would not personally comment because they now face resolution of their civil damage suit against Spector.

"The family is pleased that the jury rejected distortions of Lana Clarkson's life," said attorney John Taylor.

Prosecutors, haunted by the acquittals of stars such as O.J. Simpson, Robert Blake and Michael Jackson, at first seemed invested in making Spector the first showbiz star to be convicted in a major criminal case. But after the first trial ended in a deadlock, public interest faded. The second six-month trial was played out in a sparsely populated courtroom with few members of the media present.

9IJANEWS REPORT

Husband of late reality TV star sentenced

LONDON – The husband of reality television star Jade Goody, who died of cancer last month, has been jailed for 12 weeks for attacking a cab driver.

Jack Tweed, 21, was sentenced Tuesday at Harlow Magistrates' Court northeast of London. He had denied the assault charge.

Tweed's wife died March 22 after a highly publicized battle with cervical cancer. The couple married in a media extravaganza two months before her death.

Goody's last months were marked by an outpouring of public sympathy, but Tweed has been dogged by legal problems.

In September, he was given an 18-month jail sentence for beating a teenager with a golf club. He was granted early release on that charge.

Defense lawyer Tania Panagiotopoulou says Tweed has matured since Goody's illness and had pleaded for a lesser sentence.

Chimamanda out with new book

The award winning author, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is out with a new book. Titled The Thing Around Your Neck, the book is a collection of 12 short stories written by Adichie. Chimamanda has won awards for her books – Purple Hibiscus and Half of a Yellow Sun. This new book will be her third published work.Adichie is expected to be in Nigeria in July to promote the book.

Rumours that I don’t wear underwear might be true

On a given day in Accra, the capital city of Ghana, you might catch him on the road: barefooted, clad in skirt and with a mass of dreadlocks on his head. He could be walking about alone or with fellow musicians playing his two koshkas (pendulum shakers) or his atenteben (bamboo flute). His fans, young and old, would draw after him listening, dancing and singing along. On such days, Wanlov Owusu-Bonsu, popularly called Wanlov The Kubolor (pronounced“coo-bor-law”) is happiest amongst the people he says inspire him to be the truest version of himself.

He started performing publicly in high school at Adisadel College in Cape Coast in 1995, but went professional in 2004 while living in Killeen, Texas. He released his CD, Green Card in 2007 after a seven year stay in the US. Green Card has several nominations already.

“I did a little music class here and there while I was a child,” Kubolor says “but I never took it seriously enough to learn notation and so on.” He doesn’t regret being unserious with learning formal music. He says it would have impeded his creativity and confined him to rote learning. He claims he knows enough to enable him play the flute, piano, and many percussive instruments.

He was born of a Ghanaian father and a Romanian mother. The mixed breed is responsible for his skin colour – too light to be African and too dark to be European. The search for identity between two worlds inspired him to write My Skin and Human Being. Human Being won the 2006 WCS International Song Contest and is also serving as the soundtrack to the anti-child trafficking campaign led by UNICEF in collaboration with the Ministry of Women and Children in Ghana.

Of his trademark appearance, Kubolor says it is nothing mystique.

“I wear dreadlocks because I like the hairstyle and convenience. All I have to do is wash my hair and oil it. I got tired of braiding my hair. I never liked going to the barber ever since I can remember. However, I am not a Rastafarian. Dreadlock is a hairstyle indigenous beings have been wearing thousands of years before the Rastafarian religion. Also, I don’t wear shoes because it feels good without it. Different textures and sensations against my sole make me feel more alive than when I used to wear shoes,”

Wanlov, however, wears shoes in winter. Wearing skirt, (or wrap, as he calls it), is part of his person.

“There are even rumours that I don’t wear underwear.”

But are those rumours true ? He laughs before he responds. “Rumours and rumours of no underwear might very well be true, but would you expect anything less radical from a Kubolor?”

He was raised in a home where both parents were avid collectors of music and other forms of eclectic art and it has influenced Kubolor so much that he has a unique perspective on life; a fact evident in his music.

Wanlov sings in Pidgin English and adds here that one of his influences is the legendary Afrobeat king, Fela Anikulapo Kuti. His kind of music blends medley of songs from different parts of the world with a strong background of Hiplife and Indigenous Ghanaian sounds.

“The messages in my song range from everyday things like traffic; personal issues like My Skin that addresses the things I went through in life for being a mixed race being, to fantastic fictional stories like Supa Chompia, a little child who has magical powers and goes around the world solving real problems.”

His other influences include Gyedu-Blay Ambolley, Reggie Rockstone and his parents.

He has been roundly described as one of the most refreshing and original artiste of the times because of the way he uses the music of his generation and yet lives out his true roots. Kubolor is so respectful of nature and this is greatly felt in his music. He delivers it in his melodic accent which has come to be his style and it is organic in its core. He has generated a diverse fan base and he manages to reach them not only sonic, wise, but culturally and visually too. He manages to hold this combination together by his own special and highly appealing brand of consciousness. He insists he will follow this path and will not modify his style to fit the mould of pre-existing genres. Kubolor hopes to inspire others to create a personal evolutionary path for positive change.

He might be succeeding already because Green Card, was nominated at the 2008 Ghana Music Awards for Discovery Of The Year, Record Of The Year, Video Of The Year, and Hiphop Song Of The Year.

Even though the Ghanian music industry is developed, Kubolor admits that the Nigerian music industry is far ahead. One, Nigerian musicians are better patronised by their local audience and two, they use their indigenous languages and are still accepted. Most Ghanian musicians, he says, still think they need to sound American or Jamaican to be accepted.

He strongly believes that pidgin music is more original and should be explored. As much as he loves music, he says he wants to explore visual art as well.

“I got into art at one point. I did several drawings of body parts of women on the wall in my room. By the time I returned from Texas, my mother had painted over the wall.”

That set his art career back, though he believes one day he will pick up visual art once more.

“That will be in two years time, when I am 30.”