Eminem, the Second Best Selling Male Artist of All Time in the US

Eminem has become the second best selling male artist of all time in the USA, with his sales now at 44.9 million. He knocked off country singer George Strait, and is now only behind Garth Brooks.

I don't really like Eminem's stuff much myself. But I do have friends that love his stuff. And I can see how it appeals - unlike much of the music out there nowadays, Eminem deals with real issues, issues with deep meaning, issues that people can connect with. It's not just entertainment.

There are also plenty of other artists out there who do this today, actually. Sadly, the media promotion machine hasn't been kind enough to most of them. As a result, many people haven't heard of them.

Maybe it will just be a long road ahead for artists who focus on meaningful work rather than commercial appeal. Maybe one day they will sell a lot too.


Download the full song here.

Ellen Page says "Being gay isn’t a belief"

Ellen Page's very public coming out last month provoked lots of responses. Most of it was supportive, but some of it was not.

Recently, she decided to reply to a pastor who was not supportive. "Being gay isn’t a belief," she tweeted.

I think she put it very well here. I actually can't believe that in this day and age there are still people who believe being gay can be a choice. It's a ridiculous idea, like thinking the Earth is flat. Whilst we need to be respectful of different opinions and ideologies, I don't think we need to entertain seriously the idea that the Earth is flat, when there is plenty enough evidence that this isn't the case, right?

However, I do have to say that I don't agree with the other part of the tweet, where she said "I don’t want arms of Heavenly Father around me.A girls arms? Yes." I think that was quite impolite of her. Whatever one's religious beliefs, one must be able to show they respect others' religious beliefs too.

By the way, if you still aren't angry about people thinking gay is a choice, you need to see this:

"Divergent" and "Hunger Games" Pro-Capitalist and Anti-Collectivism?

An article appeared recently on Salon criticising the popular movie series The Hunger Games, as well as the new movie Divergent. It basically said that both movies glorify individualism and personal liberty, and therefore are panegyrics to capitalism.

I really don't agree there. There's more to individualism and personal liberty than capitalism. One can even be a libertarian socialist, right? Our generation remains divided on the left-right economic spectrum. But one thing almost all of us can agree is that the government has no business in regulating the behaviour of individuals where it doesn't hurt others. That's why no matter where we come from, the majority of us support things like legal euthanasia, decriminalising marijuana, and the freedom to marry for everyone (I personally go further to support marriage privatization). I personally am on the traditionalist side of my generation, and yet I proudly support all the above.

The basic lesson: our generation likes the idea of individualism. Socialist and capitalist alike, we support freedom. The glorification of individualism and personal liberty is not necessarily tied to consumerism for us, and does not exist only in capitalist circles. It's not 1974 anymore.

By the way, both stories are beautiful stories, aren't they?


Download the full song here.

Lady Gaga's Financial Difficulties During 'Monster's Ball'

Lady Gaga's Monster's Ball surely was the talk of the town back in 2009. But one thing we did not know until very recently is that she spent all her money making the show, landing herself in financial difficulty.

"I had $3 million dollars in the bank to my name and I threw it all in to make my stage. So I was bankrupt during the show," she recently said.

The music business has become a very costly business indeed nowadays. Most people do not have $3 million to spend in the first place - no wonder they can't do concerts like Gaga.

Brad Pitt on the Privileges of Being a Father

Brad Pitt has opened up to the media about one of the greatest things about being a parent.

"It's fun watching our kids getting older and learning more. That's one of the great privileges of being a father - you get to teach them things.

"All you have to do is just give them a little inspiration and encouragement and the next thing you know, they're reading everything they can about a subject. Then they try and show you how much they've learnt. It really is so beautiful," he said.

We agree wholeheartedly!

Justin Bieber Calls Selena Gomez a Princess, TaraElla Says Anyone can be a Princess if they want to

Justin Bieber has called Selena Gomez the "most elegant princess in the world" on instagram, it has been reported. Of course, this led to speculation about a possible reunion for the former couple. At this stage, it seems that speculation is all there is, however.

I think that everyone, young and old, can make their lives better and make the world a better place too if they subscribe to the princess spirit. "The princess spirit never grew old for me. It never will either," is my favourite quote.

Here's some other recent noteworthy celebrity news items:
* Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher are now engaged, in case you don't know it yet.
* Taylor Swift has gotten a Restraining Order against a man. The man had claimed he was married to Taylor previously, it was reported.
* Jewel recently opened up about her previous battles with severe anxiety, saying writing songs helped her overcome those problems. Maybe all us anxious people out there should try songwriting too.