Bidii ya LINsanity yagonga mwamba kwa NJ Nets
HII NI BLOGU YA JAMII INAYOLENGA KATIKA KUONYESHA MATUKIO MBALI MBALI KATIKA PICHA NA VIELELEZO VYAKE VYA MAISHA YA KILA SIKU YA BINADAMU, IWE NI MIMI, WEWE, SISI, YULE AU WAO, HALI MRADI TUU TUENDELEE KUELIMISHANA NA KUPEANA HABARI SAHIHI ILI TUENDELEZE JAMII YETU.
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Kijana wa kabila la Kizigua akichekelea na mkewe wakati timu yake The New Jersey Net walipowaadhibu watani wao wa ngambo ya mto The New York Knicks jana jioni.
Hapa mke wa kijana wa Kizigua akiteta jambo na mke wa Camelo Anthony wa Knicks dada Lala V. pengine akimwuuliza "dada vipi kabinti mbona hukuja nako?"
Monday, February 20, 2012
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Monday, February 13, 2012
Zambia hold nerve to beat Ivory Coast, take title
Zambia conjured up a shock when they toppled star-studded Ivory Coast 8-7 in a penalty shoot-out to claim their first ever Africa Cup of Nations title on Sunday.
With the sides goalless after extra time Zambia's Stoppila Sunzu converted the magic spot kick after Arsenal striker Gervinho missed for the Elephants.
The result meant misery for hot favourites Ivory Coast, who failed to claim the title despite not conceding a goal throughout the entire competition until Sunday's shootout.
It also revived unhappy memories for Didier Drogba, who missed a penalty in the second half of normal time, and company of their 2006 penalty shoot out final defeat to Egypt in Cairo.
Zambia, motivated by the memory of the 1993 national team wiped out in a plane crash off the Libreville coast, went into the 2012 climax as outsiders.
But they covered themselves with glory, hassling and harrowing their way to the penalty lottery, and then holding their nerve to prevail in the dramatic, barely watchable denouement.
Zambia coach Herve Renard commented: "This represents something enormous, something which appeared unrealisable before the competition began.
"I know we're not the best but we have a strength and force that animated our team."Ivory Coast coach Francois Zahoui said: "We didn't expect such challenging a final.
"This is a big disappointment for us. We didn't have much luck, we missed the penalty in normal time, then perhaps lost a bit of confidence.
"We go back to Abidjan with not too much shame. I think we've played a good game. I congratulate Zambia."
Zahoui fielded the same side that saw off Mali 1-0 in the semi-final.
Renard recalled striker Emmanuel Mayuka, after his starring role in getting the decisive goal in the 1-0 last four defeat over Ghana.
He joined captain Christopher Katongo in spearheading the Chipolopolo's (Copper Bullets) attack.
A minute of silence was observed before kick-off in memory of the 74 people killed in the Port Said stadium slaughter in Egypt.The game was only seconds old when Zambia almost took a shock lead, with keeper Boubacar Barry doing well to save Nathan Sinkala's close range shot off Katongo's quick pass from a Rainford Kalaba corner.
Renard was forced into an unscripted change when defender Joseph Musonda limped off in tears on 11 minutes - Nyambe Mulenga took his place.
A shaky start by Ivory Coast gave Zambia hope of an upset and Kalaba's 30m freekick wasn't far away after taking a deflection off Cheik Tiote's leg.The Elephants put together their best passage of play approaching the half hour mark, a neat Drogba backheel setting up Yaya Toure only for the Manchester City midfielder's angled shot to go wide of the far post.
A hugely promising first half from Zambia had the Elephants' defence, marshalled by Kolo Toure, under more pressure than they would have wanted, with Katongo leading from the front.
Zahoui, ressembling a New York cop with black trenchcoat and baseball cap, walked into the dressing rooms at half-time with a face like thunder.
The second half began with a deathly hush descending on the stadium - the final in desperate need of the kiss of life in the guise of a goal.
And on 72 minutes one should have come after Ivory Coast were awarded a penalty when Issac Chansa and Mulenga barged into Gervinho.
Drogba stepped up but his woeful attempt went soaring into the night sky, even though he appeared to divert blame to the pitch, glaring at the spot.This was his second miss from the spot after he had a penalty saved in the quarter-final win over Equatorial Guinea.
In the 95th minute, substitute Felix Katongo crossed from the right for his brother Christopher with only Barry's toe diverting the goalbound ball off the near post.
There was electric tension once the penalty shoot out got underway, with Kolo Toure missing the Ivorians seventh spot kick, but Zambia's Kalaba also missing his to leave the sides still inseparable.
Then after Gervinho failed in his attempt it was left to Sunzu, the defender who plays his club football in the Democratic Republic of Congo, to give Zambia a historic first title, and consign Ivory Coast to another wretched defeat.
GRAMMY WINNER!
Singer Adele holds her six Grammy Awards at the 54th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, California February 12, 2012. Soul singer Adele triumphed in her return to music's stage on Sunday, scooping up six Grammys and winning every category in which she was nominated including album of the year for "21" and best record with "Rolling In the Deep."
Saturday, February 11, 2012
WHITNEY HOUSTON DIED AT 48
1963 -2012
Whitney Houston, who ruled as pop music's queen until her majestic voice and regal image were ravaged by drug use, erratic behavior and a tumultuous marriage to singer Bobby Brown, died Saturday. She was 48.
Beverly Hills police Lt. Mark Rosen told reporters outside the Beverly Hilton that Houston was pronounced dead at 3:55 p.m. in her room on the fourth floor of the hotel. Her body remained there and Beverly Hills detectives were investigating.
"There were no obvious signs of any criminal intent," Rosen said.
Houston's publicist, Kristen Foster, said the cause of death was unknown.
Rosen said police received a 911 call from hotel security about Houston at 3:43 p.m. Saturday. Paramedics who were already at the hotel because of a Grammy party unsuccessfully tried to resuscitate the singer, he said.
Houston's end came on the eve of music's biggest night — the Grammy Awards. It's a showcase where she once reigned, and her death was sure to cast a heavy pall on Sunday's ceremony.
Her longtime mentor Clive Davis was to hold his annual concert and dinner Saturday, and a representative of the show said it would proceed.
Producer Jimmy Jam, who had worked with Houston, said he anticipated the evening would become a tribute to her, and he expected there to be one at the Grammys as well.
Houston was supposed to appear at the gala, and Davis had told The Associated Press that she would perhaps perform: "It's her favorite night of the year ... (so) who knows by the end of the evening," he said.
Houston had been at rehearsals for the show Thursday, coaching singers Brandy and Monica, according to a person who was at the event but was not authorized to speak publicly about it. The person said Houston looked disheveled, was sweating profusely and liquor and cigarettes could be smelled on her breath.
Two days ago, she performed at a pre-Grammy party with singer Kelly Price.
The Rev. Al Sharpton said he would call for a national prayer Sunday morning during a service at Second Baptist Church in Los Angeles.
"The morning of the Grammys, the world should pause and pray for the memory of a gifted songbird," Sharpton said in a written statement.
In a statement, Recording Academy President and CEO Neil Portnow said Houston "was one of the world's greatest pop singers of all time who leaves behind a robust musical soundtrack spanning the past three decades."
"Her powerful voice graced many memorable and award-winning songs," Portnow said. "A light has been dimmed in our music community today, and we extend our deepest condolences to her family, friends, fans and all who have been touched by her beautiful voice."
At her peak, Houston was the golden girl of the music industry. From the middle 1980s to the late 1990s, she was one of the world's best-selling artists. She wowed audiences with effortless, powerful, and peerless vocals that were rooted in the black church but made palatable to the masses with a pop sheen.
Her success carried her beyond music to movies, where she starred in hits like "The Bodyguard" and "Waiting to Exhale."
She had the perfect voice and the perfect image: a gorgeous singer who had sex appeal but was never overtly sexual, who maintained perfect poise.
She influenced a generation of younger singers, from Christina Aguilera to Mariah Carey, who when she first came out sounded so much like Houston that many thought it was Houston.
But by the end of her career, Houston became a stunning cautionary tale of the toll of drug use. Her album sales plummeted and the hits stopped coming; her once serene image was shattered by a wild demeanor and bizarre public appearances. She confessed to abusing cocaine, marijuana and pills, and her once pristine voice became raspy and hoarse, unable to hit the high notes as she had during her prime.
"The biggest devil is me. I'm either my best friend or my worst enemy," Houston told ABC's Diane Sawyer in an infamous 2002 interview with then-husband Brown by her side.
It was a tragic fall for a superstar who was one of the top-selling artists in pop music history, with more than 55 million records sold in the United States alone.
She seemed to be born into greatness. She was the daughter of gospel singer Cissy Houston, the cousin of 1960s pop diva Dionne Warwick and the goddaughter of Aretha Franklin.
Houston first started singing in the church as a child. In her teens, she sang backup for Chaka Khan, Jermaine Jackson and others, in addition to modeling. It was around that time when music mogul Clive Davis first heard Houston perform.
"The time that I first saw her singing in her mother's act in a club ... it was such a stunning impact," Davis told "Good Morning America."
"To hear this young girl breathe such fire into this song. I mean, it really sent the proverbial tingles up my spine," he added.
Before long, the rest of the country would feel it, too. Houston made her album debut in 1985 with "Whitney Houston," which sold millions and spawned hit after hit. "Saving All My Love for You" brought her her first Grammy, for best female pop vocal. "How Will I Know," ''You Give Good Love" and "The Greatest Love of All" also became hit singles.
Another multiplatinum album, "Whitney," came out in 1987 and included hits like "Where Do Broken Hearts Go" and "I Wanna Dance With Somebody."
The New York Times wrote that Houston "possesses one of her generation's most powerful gospel-trained voices, but she eschews many of the churchier mannerisms of her forerunners. She uses ornamental gospel phrasing only sparingly, and instead of projecting an earthy, tearful vulnerability, communicates cool self-assurance and strength, building pop ballads to majestic, sustained peaks of intensity."
Her decision not to follow the more soulful inflections of singers like Franklin drew criticism by some who saw her as playing down her black roots to go pop and reach white audiences. The criticism would become a constant refrain through much of her career. She was even booed during the "Soul Train Awards" in 1989.
"Sometimes it gets down to that, you know?" she told Katie Couric in 1996. "You're not black enough for them. I don't know. You're not R&B enough. You're very pop. The white audience has taken you away from them."
Some saw her 1992 marriage to former New Edition member and soul crooner Bobby Brown as an attempt to refute those critics. It seemed to be an odd union; she was seen as pop's pure princess while he had a bad-boy image, and already had children of his own. (The couple had a daughter, Bobbi Kristina, in 1993.) Over the years, he would be arrested several times, on charges ranging from DUI to failure to pay child support.
But Houston said their true personalities were not as far apart as people may have believed.
"When you love, you love. I mean, do you stop loving somebody because you have different images? You know, Bobby and I basically come from the same place," she told Rolling Stone in 1993. "You see somebody, and you deal with their image, that's their image. It's part of them, it's not the whole picture. I am not always in a sequined gown. I am nobody's angel. I can get down and dirty. I can get raunchy."
It would take several years, however, for the public to see that side of Houston. Her moving 1991 rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner" at the Super Bowl, amid the first Gulf War, set a new standard and once again reaffirmed her as America's sweetheart.
In 1992, she became a star in the acting world with "The Bodyguard." Despite mixed reviews, the story of a singer (Houston) guarded by a former Secret Service agent (Kevin Costner) was an international success.
It also gave her perhaps her most memorable hit: a searing, stunning rendition of Dolly Parton's "I Will Always Love You," which sat atop the charts for weeks. It was Grammy's record of the year and best female pop vocal, and the "Bodyguard" soundtrack was named album of the year.
She returned to the big screen in 1995-96 with "Waiting to Exhale" and "The Preacher's Wife." Both spawned soundtrack albums, and another hit studio album, "My Love Is Your Love," in 1998, brought her a Grammy for best female R&B vocal for the cut "It's Not Right But It's Okay."
But during these career and personal highs, Houston was using drugs. In an interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2010, she said by the time "The Preacher's Wife" was released, "(doing drugs) was an everyday thing. ... I would do my work, but after I did my work, for a whole year or two, it was every day. ... I wasn't happy by that point in time. I was losing myself."
In the interview, Houston blamed her rocky marriage to Brown, which included a charge of domestic abuse against Brown in 1993. They divorced in 2007.
Houston would go to rehab twice before she would declare herself drug-free to Winfrey in 2010. But in the interim, there were missed concert dates, a stop at an airport due to drugs, and public meltdowns.
She was so startlingly thin during a 2001 Michael Jackson tribute concert that rumors spread she had died the next day. Her crude behavior and jittery appearance on Brown's reality show, "Being Bobby Brown," was an example of her sad decline. Her Sawyer interview, where she declared "crack is whack," was often parodied. She dropped out of the spotlight for a few years.
Houston staged what seemed to be a successful comeback with the 2009 album "I Look To You." The album debuted on the top of the charts, and would eventually go platinum.
Things soon fell apart. A concert to promote the album on "Good Morning America" went awry as Houston's voice sounded ragged and off-key. She blamed an interview with Winfrey for straining her voice.
A world tour launched overseas, however, only confirmed suspicions that Houston had lost her treasured gift, as she failed to hit notes and left many fans unimpressed; some walked out. Canceled concert dates raised speculation that she may have been abusing drugs, but she denied those claims and said she was in great shape, blaming illness for cancellations.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Remembering Bob Marley
Happy birthday to Bob Marley. The iconic singer and activist was born on February 6, 1945, and would have turned 67 today. As is always the case on the anniversary of the late musician's birth, fans took to Search and Twitter to show their respect.
"Happy Birthday Bob Marley" was one of the top Twitter trends. Fans tweeted everything from their favorite quotes to some lighthearted jokes. One user tweeted, "We named our office printer Bob Marley because its forever 'Jammin' - Happy Birthday Bob Marley."
Yahoo! searches on "bob marley" and "bob marley lyrics" posted big spikes. Some of Marley's most popular quotes include "Free yourself of mental slavery," "love the life you live, live the life you love," and "One good thing about music: when it hits you, you feel no pain."
Marley died in 1981 at the age of 36. There has long been a rumor that Marley's decline in health begin with a lesion on his foot that he suffered during a soccer match. Not true. However, Marley's fatal skin cancer did begin on his toe. He was diagnosed with malignant melanoma and was advised to amputate the toe to prevent the cancer from spreading. Citing religious beliefs, Marley refused.
Later, he did allow a surgeon to perform a skin graft on his toe. Initially, the procedure was deemed a success. However, a short time later, doctors found the cancer had spread to his brain, lung, and stomach. Marley died soon afterward, leaving his fans a tremendous legacy, as well as the bitter understanding that their hero left far too soon.
Monday, February 6, 2012
AFRICAN CUP OF NATIONS
Mali beat Gabon 5-4 on penalties here Sunday after this finely balanced Africa Cup of Nations quarter-final ended 1-1 following extra time.
Barcelona star Seydou Keita converted the decisive spot kick after the co-hosts' top striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang watched in disbelief as Mali keeper Soumaila Diakite dived left to save his effort.
The Eagles' reward is a semi-final date with Ivory Coast back at Libreville's L'Amitie stadium on Wednesday.
For Gabon, who were unbeaten in the first round, this was a cruel end to their campaign, reviving as it did memories of their defeat on penalties to Tunisia in their only other quarter-final appearance in 1996.
At the post-match press conference Keita made an emotional plea for peace in his country following the killing by the Malian army of some 20 Tuareg rebels in the northern city of Timbuktu.
"We should be happy tonight but we are sad and we urge the (Mali) president to do his maximum to stop the fighting."
"Yes we won but I'm afraid about what's happening back home. It's not normal, it's not normal that Malians are killing themselves."
Turning to his penalty heroics the veteran said: "It was like a dream when I scored the winning penalty. I'm so proud to wear this shirt. I've won a lot with Barcelona but this is like winning the Cup."
Gabon coach Gernot Rohr said: "It's always difficult when you're pulled back level in the closing minutes. We lacked a little physical freshness, my players gave a lot in the first round. They can leave this competition with their heads held high."
Mali welcomed back midfielder Samba Diakite from suspension, with Garre Dembele dropping to the bench, and keeper Diakite coming on for Oumar Sissoko.
Among the crowd were the Gabon president and his First Lady sporting as usual the Panthers' yellow shirt.
The Panthers, displaying their customary zest and endeavour, were showing good early pace down the wings, especially Eric Mouloungui on the right, with the ever dangerous presence of Daniel Cousin waiting to pounce in the Mali box.
Aubameyang had the first gilt-edged chance appproaching the half hour, beating the offside trap to flick the ball past Soumaila Diakite only to see his effort hit the far post.
Gabon got the goal they deserved in the 55th minute when Aubameyang raced onto a high ball from the left, his back pass across the box falling to Mouloungui to slam past Diakite.
As the game exploded Cousin almost bagged Gabon's second on 58 minutes, the unmarked former Hull City forward's shot skimming past Diakite to hit the far post.
Mali coach Alain Giresse tried to shake things up after the hour, introducing striker Mustapha Yatabare for Abdou Traore.
Mali were fighting for their Nations Cup existence and with six minutes left in regulation time Diabate levelled not long after entering the fray in place of Samba Sow, the Bordeaux striker turning to shrug off his markers in the box and leaving Ovono with little chance.
Rohr knows Diabete only too well, having signed him during his days as coach of Ajaccio.
The two sides were still deadlocked after extra time - Keita shot high in the last seconds - and Algerian referee Haimoudi Djameil pointed to the spot for the nerve jingling climax.
After Diakite had saved Aubameyang's kick it was left to Keita to step up and coolly slot home Mali's fifth to send the Eagles' spirits soaring while the Gabon team rushed to console a tearful Aubameyang.
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