Big Brother Africa 2013 Search begins Jan. 8

Pay-per-view cable television provider MNet has said the search for housemates for the 2013 edition of the Big Brother Africa reality television show, begins on January 8.

“The demand from audiences for Big Brother Africa continues undimmed. In some ways it really is astonishing to see the enthusiasm for this particular series, but in other ways it is to be expected,” M-Net Africa Managing Director says.

“Viewers want to see unscripted television, as it happens, with normal people that they can relate to dealing with completely familiar emotional concepts – happiness, frustration, success, failure, hope, anxiety, friendship, opportunity and of course, love.

“Big Brother continues to be a ratings sensation from Australia to India, and in Africa, for exactly this reason. And the format’s flexibility is a producers’ dream because you can do something different every time!” he adds.

“We are delighted with the new concept that has been developed for the upcoming show,” says Endemol MD Sivan Pillay.

“Every year as soon as we know that we are going ahead with a new season, we head into a creative brainstorming session and every year, ideas just go racing around the room.

Dates and venues are yet to be announced.

It’s not my fault that my body is pornographic - Lydia Forson

Actress Lydia Forson has opened up on just how she feels about her plump and beautiful body.

“It’s not my fault that my body is pornographic,” she told Fashion 101 host Sandra Ankobiah.

Forson’s rather sexy and well-toned plum body seems to have stirred up a lot of debate over the past few years, with some appreciating her all-figured-out and nicely-shaped contours.

The award-winning actress however said discovering who she was, really helped in appreciating her natural and God-given looks, caring less about what others taught about her.

“For years I did not think I was so beautiful,” she says. “For years I went through a lot trying to be what others wanted me to be.”

Talking more on her sense of fashion, Lydia, who usually comes under criticism from sections of the public for revealing just too much of her cleavage at times said: “I don’t like to show them, they are there…”

“Comfort is key. I don’t really follow trends. What works for one person doesn’t work for another.

“If you are confident in what you are wearing, the rest of the world would always think otherwise... I love to be comfortable and just to be me. I always want a touch of edginess in everything I do”.

Forson jokingly added that she “wouldn't mind a spread” in the world-famous Playboy magazine, insisting that “I feel we should celebrate who we are”.

2012 Ghana Movie Award List Of Winners

The 3rd edition of the Ghana Movie Awards took place at the Accra International conference Centre on Christmas Day. ‘Single and Married’ which was produced by actress Yvonne Nelson was the biggest winner, grabbing the nod for Best Film, Best Cinematography, Best Director among others. 

Here are the winners from the night:

Best Actress in a lead role (English) – Nadia Buari

Best Actor in a Lead role (English) – Van Vicker

Best Actress in a supporting role (English) – Anita Erskine

Best actor in a supporting role (English) – Rahim Banda

Best actress in a lead role (Local Language): Nana Ama McBrown

Best actress in a supporting role (Local language): Emelia Brobbey

Best actor in a lead role (Local Language): Akwasi Boadi a.k.a Akrobeto

Best actor in a supporting role (Local Language): Kojo Nkansah a.k.a DJ Lil wayne

Best Actor in a TV series – Funny Face who won, who annexed the

Best Actress in a TV series – Efia Schwarzeneggar

Best TV series – Bongo Bar

Best Cinematography – Kwame Awuah, Single and Married

Best Director – Pascal Amanfo, Single and Maried

Best Picture – Single and Maried

Best Music Score was won by Azonto Ghost by Bisa

Original Screenplay – In the Cupboard

Best Visual Effect -B14

Costume and Wardrobe – Monica Agboli & Nicolas Nsiah, Ghana Police

Best Editing – Enoch Opoku, Grooms Bride,

Best Art Direction – DJ Varga, Rain

Best Actor in an African Collaboration- Alex Usifo , Off The Hook

Best Actress In An African Collaboration – Patience Ozorkor , Untamed

Channel O’s DJ Black releases season two of Cypher

Ghana’s DJ Black, the resident DJ on Channel O’s daily Bassment program, last week launched and released season two of the DJ Black Cypher 2 in Accra.

The launch event, titled The Cypher Party, was also to celebrate a successful season one of DJ Black’s Cypher 1.

The event was attended by several rappers that featured on the season one Cypher which included Ghana’s Channel O’s VJ, J-Town, E.L and C-Real.

The event included the screening of selected highlights from the first seasons Cypher.

Season two Cypher will start showing on Viasat 1 in January 2013. Highlights of season one Cypher are available atwww.youtube.com/toontoom and the full episodes selling at www.itunes.com. You can also sign up to DJ Blacks podcast at http://djblack.podomatic.com.

Channel O’s Bassment has introduced a brand new DJ technology known as “visual mixing” where a DJ mixes music videos back to back and mixed into each other non-stop.

The bassment features the top DJs across the continent playing only the freshest hits. Other resident-deejays on Bassment are DJ Aludah (Uganda), Neptune (Nigeria), Caise (Nigeria), Creme De La Crème (Kenya), Joe (Kenya), Mister Deejay (Uganda) and Xclusive (Nigeria).

Catch DJ Black and other star DJs on Channel O’s Bassment (DStv Channel 320) everyday at 14:00 CAT and repeated at 21:00 CAT and 23:00 CAT.x

Iyanya, Ice Prince, Obrafour, Efya, Keche, EL Others To Perform At "Rapperholic" Concert

Bismark Entertainment hinted fans of Sarkodie that their star was working on flying some international artistes to grace the stage at the up coming second edition of the "Rapperholic" concert. 

Bismark Entertainment can confidently confirm now that all is set for two Nigerian stars; Rapper Ice Prince and sensational Nigerian act, Iyanya of "Kukere" fame has been added to the line-up of Ghanaian artistes to perform on stage come Christmas Day December 25 at inside The Dome at the Accra International Conference Center. 

The confirmed Ghanaian acts include Obrafour, Efya, Keche, Sherifa Gunu, Kwaw Kesse, EL among others. 

According to the organizers, this will be the biggest event to be held this Christmas season.The Rapperholic concert will also see the launch of the third studio album of Sarkodie, the main headline act for the concert.

Last year’s successful maiden edition, put Sarkodie on a whole new pedestal, as he was able to get thousands of his fans to come out on Christmas day, packing the venue to the brim. Rapperholic is powered by Duncwills Entertainment and Events Factory GH.

Arnold Schwarzenegger: What I've learned

The power of influence is one of the most unique powers that you can have. It's not the power of controlling people. It's developing a certain skill of communicating what you want to accomplish so that people will follow you.

Be a public servant. Not a party servant.

I didn't get it at first. I'll be back. What the f--- is I'll? I will be back sounded much stronger in my mind. So I argued with Jim Cameron. And he said, "Look, Arnold, I don't tell you how to act. Please don't tell me how to write." After I saw it in the movie, I was so thankful to Cameron. That was a good lesson to learn. If someone is a good writer, stick to the script.

I would always write down my New Year's resolutions and mark them off the way I mark off sets and reps.

On New Year's Eve, you can just blabber out: I want to lose twenty pounds and I'm gonna read more. But what does that mean? There's too many variables there. If you're really serious about it, then write down when you're gonna lose the twenty pounds by. Is it March 1? Is it June 1? Make a commitment.

The day is twenty-four hours. I sleep six hours. That leaves eighteen hours to do something.

My father was a country police officer. All he knew was discipline, performance, and work — not wasting your time. He came from an era where everything was scarce, so everything had to be useful. That's why he was so against bodybuilding. He saw it as narcissistic. His belief was that you build your muscles by chopping wood or shoveling coal, doing something with your body that benefits someone else. But it was from him that I got my work ethic.

In the early days of immigration, they just shortened the foreign name. They did whatever they wanted with it. But in Hollywood, there was something else: It had to sound cool. You know, John Wayne. That sounded American, powerful. Charles Bronson. Those are great names. But Arnold Schwarzen...ag...ager? Ager? Acner? What is this? No one could pronounce it. So early on, they tried to convince me to turn it into Arnold Strong. But eventually the idea became: If someone has a difficult time remembering your name, they will also have a difficult time forgetting it.

Let me show you how far we've come with our fitness crusade: When I came to the United States in the sixties, no one ever thought that one day every hotel would have a gymnasium. Back then, people thought if you did weights you would get muscle-bound and die of a heart attack or become gay or an idiot. People thought weights would always be in dungeons. Now they're in hospitals. Now even golfers use weights.

When you get older, sex may change a bit. When you're sixty-five, it's not exactly the same as when you were twenty-five. But that doesn't mean it's over. It's never over.

It was one of my early goals to be a millionaire. In the beginning, I wanted to have a gold Rolex, a Rolls-Royce, a cheetah — just stupid things that you think of when you're a kid. Then time goes by. The Rolls-Royce thing went out the window, because when you get to the level where you can afford one, all of a sudden you say, "It's a little bit over the top." A cheetah? I think in California they got rid of the law that says you can have wild animals. Having a cheetah is a stupid idea.

In Europe, everyone is in your way. The government is in your way. The law is in your way. I mean, when my friend and I wanted to go start a bricklaying business here, we went down to city hall and got a business license. No one asked: What kind of school did you go to to learn bricklaying? Do you have any certificates that show you graduated from your trade school? Here, it's go out and make it. Just make sure you pay your taxes.

I always tell my accountant, If you're in doubt about taxes, pay more. No Cayman Island offshore investments. No gimmicks. I love paying my taxes!

Saving money on tips is nonsense. Give 20 or 25 percent. Wise investments are where the action is.

I remember when I went into politics, the legislature wanted to create a blueberry commission. Who's gonna say no to a blueberry commission? Well, I said no. I thought they should fix the budget before they do the f------ blueberry commission.

Politicians admire the military people who go to Iraq and risk their lives. Well, how about having just 10 percent of that courage?

We must teach the future leaders that political courage is not political suicide.

Peace would solve a lot of problems.

Becca Speaks @ Last

After a great performance of the first edition of Becca's Girl Talk concert last year, Becca and her team are primed for the second edition, come 21st Dec, 2012 at the National Theatre.

Call her the resilient soul and you will not be far from right. Last year when Becca announced of staging her own musical concert to be attended only by females, many were those who expressed dubiety with their reason being that, females are their own enemies and thus will not patronize the show.

However, the recently awarded best female music video winner for this year's MTN 4syte Music Video, Becca, pulled a big surprise at skeptics as she flooded the auditorium with many female fans.

Though this year has not been somehow favorable to Becca due to scandals that slapped her from her own ménage, she and her EKB Records team, ably founded by one of the most respected female character developers in Ghana, Kiki Banson, are set to wow audience with the second edition of Becca's Girl Talk. It will be a night of quality music from her, other international musicians and our own celebrated Ghanaian female musicians.

From a close source to Becca's camp, the hook of the show is how she intends to use the show to officially clear the wind on her alleged marriage and its surrounding furore. Fans and the general public have been calling on her to say something.

Come 21st Dec, 2012, all females should show their presence at the National theatre for what Becca has to say concerning her saga, after all; it's Becca's Girl Talk.

Again, all male fans are urged not to attend the show because, it's Becca's Girl Talk! All males should fill the purse of their female lovers with humongous amounts to be spent because; it's Becca's Girl Talk! Lastly, all males should drive their female lovers to the auditorium; wait for only God knows when she will release them because, it's Becca's Girl talk!

With Becca's Girl Talk, she decides when to release her female fans after talking. Becca's Girl Talk is themed; 'Men, dare not!' Not even Kiki Banson will have the privilege to watch his 'OWN' Becca perform on that day; but for Becca's father………...it's a journey of discoveries. Just be there.

The concert is anticipated to eke out large crowd from female Becca fans from USA, UK, Italy, Canada, and France come 21st Dec, 2012 at the National theatre.