Jay Z
Gossip

When Jay-Z speaks, people listen. That's the kind of respect this artist and producer has earned.

That's why his critique of the recently-remade version of "We Are the World" is receiving so much attention, as the rapper told MTV News over the weekend:

"I know everybody is gonna take this wrong: 'We Are the World,' I love it, and I understand the point and think it's great. But I think 'We Are the World' is like [Michael Jackson's] 'Thriller' to me. I don't ever wanna see it touched."

The man makes a good point. No offense to Miley Cyrus or Justin Bieber (okay, some offense to the former), but the iconic single loses a lot of luster when such young musicians are taking the place of Jackson, Bob Dylan and other luminaries.

"I'm a fan of music. I know the plight and everything that's going on in Haiti. I applaud the efforts," Jay-Z added. "But... some things are just untouchable... I think it's time for us to make a new [song]."

Do you agree with Jay-Z? Listen to the remake NOW and then vote below: What do you think of it?

Having dominated headlines last week with her two-part Good Morning America and 20-20 interview detailing Chris Brown's brutal assault on her in detail and for the first time in her own words, Rihanna is ready to get back to the music.

To that end, she made a surprise cameo Sunday night at her mentor Jay-Z's concert at UCLA. We believe this is her first live performance since the Chris Brown assault, and while it's only one song, it doesn't look like she missed a beat.

Check out her performance with Jay-Z of "Run This Town" below ...

For more Rihanna live, follow the jump for a look at her performance of a new song, "Hard," at the very same venue. Not sure how we feel about this one ...

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On the list of intelligent feuds one can start, dissing Jay-Z doesn't strike us as one you'd see ranked very high. But that's not about to stop Beanie Sigel.

The rapper dissed Jay-Z in his new “Average Cat” song, according to the Wall Street Journal, debuting the track today on New York’s Hot 97 radio station.

Referencing Jay-Z's real name Shawn Carter, Sigel's lyrics state, “The rapper Shawn called the police on me 'cause I was front row at the Blue Print 3.”

Afterwards, Beanie Sigel did not deny his intent, but qualified it by saying that he isn't encouraging an ongoing feud with Jay-Z or anything like that.

Here's Beanie Sigel supposed diss of Jay-Z ...

Of the lyrics, he said, “This ain’t a green light for everybody to start making 'diss Jay-Z' records. This is just me taking my brother out for five minutes.”

Their feud is reported to have originated from their Roc-A-Fella business dealings, and Jay-Z's allegedly adequate marketing of Sigel’s album in 2007.

Interestingly, his visit to Hot 97 occurred just hours after Jay-Z performed “Empire State Of Mind” at Yankee Stadium for Game 2 of the World Series.

The only person yet to weigh in on Kanye West's Taylor Swift ambush at the MTV VMAs has finally said his piece, thanks to a BBC Radio 1 DJ who got ahold of him.

"It's an awards show," Jay-Z said, dismissing the controversy surrounding his collaborator and good friend Kanye. "He's just a super passionate person."

That's a nice way of saying "jackass."

Jay-Z, the husband of Beyonce, who Kanye was giving props to during his rant on stage, did acknowledge that, "Of course it was rude, it was her moment."

But, "that's the way he felt. It was rude, but the way they're treating him… He's on the cover of every paper. He didn't kill anybody. No one got harmed."

No. No one got harmed. Including Kanye himself. If he can blindside a cute, very talented 19-year-old, why can't the rest of the world take him to task?

Jay-Z has Kanye West's back ... to a point.

Jay-Z, who was at the center of some party-crashing drama of his own (thank you Lil Mama) continued to walk the line when defending his friend, saying:

"It just wasn't appropriate. It wasn't fair to Taylor at all."

But qualifying that with, "at the end of the day, we're gonna celebrate him for his passion more than vilify him. As he matures, he has to balance that."

Still, Jay-Z said he doesn't back West's promise to take a break: "I don't think he should lay low. I think he should move on and have a brilliant career."

Whose side are you on?

The post-VMA apology tour continues, headlined by Kanye West (who even the U.S. President thinks is a jackass) and featuring Lil Mama on the undercard.

Lil Mama, whoever that is, issued a statement to explain why she ran on stage during Jay-Z and Alicia Keys’ performance to close out Sunday night's show.

“I did not mean any disrespect towards Jay-Z or Alicia Keys,” the rapper and judge on America’s Best Dance Crew says. “I admire them and look up to them as role models. ‘Empire State of Mind’ just had my emotions running high."

"In that moment I came up on stage to celebrate two icons singing about NY.”

AMERICA'S BEST STAGE-CRASHER: Lil Mama was just giving props, yo!

So in conclusion, Lil Mama ran on stage for two reasons:

1. “Empire State of Mind” is a cool song (no argument here).
2. It made her want to give props to her two favorite stars.

Lil Mama may want to consider that "celebrating icons" by randomly popping up next to them in the middle of a live television performance is what most law enforcement officials consider stalking and can result in a restraining order.

Leave it to Lil Mama, whoever that is, to try to close out the already-strange 2009 MTV Video Music Awards with one of the oddest moments of the night.

While it wasn't as ridiculous or rude as Kanye West's meltdown and hijacking of Taylor Swift's speech, the spectacle of Lil Mama climbing on stage for no reason during Jay-Z and Alicia Keys' VMA performance last night was still hilariously weird.

For nearly five minutes, Jay-Z and Alicia Keys were performing “Empire State of Mind,” a number that was to close the always-memorable MTV award show.

But then there was Lil Mama, appearing out of nowhere, standing awkwardly beside Jay and Alicia in a B-girl stance, whatever that is, as the song ended:

What the hell was Lil Mama doing on stage with Jay-Z?

In short, it was a puzzling and random conclusion to the evening.

A representative for Jay-Z, quoted by Entertainment Weekly this morning, says she has “No clue how it happened.” That makes about 10 million of us.

Viewers and celebrities alike had a field day with it. Fabolous even Twittered "lil mama is JayZ’s hypeman, she jus got there late!" That one's pretty good.

It's actually not as remarkable as it sounds, especially following Kanye's drunken antics, but watching Jay-Z’s understated, yet perplexed-seeming body language when he sees her unannounced appearance is still worth watching.

Follow the jump for a video of Lil Mama crashing Jay-Z's performance ...

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Beyonce and Jay-Z, seemingly one of the most normal couples in Hollywood, took a rather normal vacation over the holidays.

The singer and the rapper touched down in the Caribbean, where they hung out on a boat, went jet skiing and likely had lots of hot sex.

Here's a photo of Beyonce doing one of those things...

Beyonce rode the waves prior to riding Jay-Z. [Photo Credit: Splash News]

Check out more shots of Beyonce and Jay-Z on vacation below. Click on each thumbnail for an enlarged version...

This shouldn't come as a shock to any celebrity gossip followers - as rumors have swirled for days - but a source told People Magazine that Beyonce and Jay Z got married last night.

"It happened earlier this evening. Jay wanted it to be a really private affair â€" close friends and family," the friend said.

The ceremony was followed by a party at the rapper's Tribeca apartment that. In attendance were Beyoncé's mother Tina Knowles, her father/manager Mathew, her sister Solange, her Destiny's Child pals Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams, and the couple's friend Gwyneth Paltrow.

Will Beyonce take her new husband's last name? Will she now be known as Beyonce Z?

It's a hard knock life for the folks who work at the new New York hotspot operated by Jay-Z, if a new lawsuit is to be believed.

According to papers obtained by TMZ, Celeste Williams, a former "server" at the swank 40/40 Club, accuses the music mogul and the company that owns the joint, Twenty Ones, Inc., of not paying enough.

She says they didn't even pay her minimum wage, which means she's raking in less coin than Kevin Federline at whatever gas station he works at now.

Williams also alleges that the club held back tips from servers and that she got stiffed for overtime she worked.

What's more, Williams' lawyers say in the complaint that there are "more than 100" other 40/40 employees who will join the lawsuit.

At least Jay-Z can take comfort in fellow rappers Snoop Dogg, Eve, Busta Rhymes and Akon, all of whom are involved in their own legal imbroglio.

40/40 rep Ron Berkowitz says that the named plaintiff - Williams - worked for the club for a grand total of four days, and that the club isn't aware of any other of the "more than 100" workers who may have joined the suit.

This place should be featured on Hell's Kitchen.

When we spoke to him, Berkowitz said the club hadn't been served with papers, but insisted that all employees keep 100 percent of their tips, and that any allegation of wait staff being unpaid is false.

Williams is seeking unspecified damages. On the other hand, Jay-Z dates Beyonce, so how can you stay mad at the guy.

As Beyonce denies any feud with Jennifer Hudson, she does so without a wedding ring on her finger. But for how much longer will that be the case?

While the Dreamgirls star and Jay-Z were supposedly getting married at a luxury Caribbean resort last weekend, the singer/actress says that was never the case.

But it may be soon.

"You can't rush a man into anything - whether it's a relationship, marriage or having children," Beyonce said. "When he's ready, he'll let you know."

This relationship isn't the only one not walking down the aisle at the moment. In a new celebrity trend, other couples such as Jenny McCarthy and Jim Carrey have announced how UNmarried they are, as well.

Knowles isn't wigging out just yet, but she's also not shy about admitting what she does want at some point.

"My parents have been married for 27 years, and they're still in love. That's a great example for me. I know it's possible," she said to Parade magazine.

She also told the publication how "you know someone loves you by the way he treats you and respects you. You know it by how you both feel when you're together."

We bet Rachel McAdams would say the same thing about Ryan Gosling.