Author: JD
Mercedes-Benz Unveils Self-Driving F 015 “Luxury in Motion” Concept
The car will provide a hands free first-class driving experience to its passengers and is likely to claim the spot as the “most coveted item of the 21st century” according to Dr. Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars. Included in the vehicle are four rotating seats, a range of screens installed throughout which will enable passengers to interact with controls and entertainment, and a pair LED fields located in the head and tail lights which change color based on the car’s driving mode: white for manual, blue for autonomous. While the notion of an age where your car drives itself may seem lightyears away – and frightening at that – the car’s release date is estimated to be as soon as 2030.
FKA twigs Topless for ‘V’ Magazine Spring 2015 Cover
FKA twigs has decided to appear topless on one of four covers of the latest issue of V magazine. The Spring 2015 issue explores “The New Sound of Soul” Photographed by Inez & Vinoodh, who recently shot Kanye West and his daughter North for his latest single “Only One,” the photographer duo captured FKA twigs posing topless wearing just nude underwear and silver tribal jewelry. The Spring 2015 issue also includes covers featuring Sam Smith, Tinashe and Jessie Ware.
Philly Rapper Beanie Sigel Out of Hospital
About one month after being shot outside the South Jersey home where he was being electronically monitored, rapper Beanie Sigel left the hospital. Sigel, whose real name is Dwight Grant, was released, and returned home, sometime over the weekend, said Pleasantville Police. Beanie Sigel Alive, Death Rumors a Hoax: Police The 40-year-old State Property rapper was hospitalized in critical condition after being shot in the stomach on the morning of Dec. 5 in Pleasantville, Atlantic County, New Jersey. Police didn’t reveal how far along Sigel is in his recovery. Authorities still have not named suspects in Sigel’s shooting, only a couple of persons of interest including Sigel’s own sister-in-law. Police said it didn’t appear that Sigel was the intended target of the shooting. Rapper Beanie Sigel Shot at Jersey Shore Sigel was released from federal prison in August after serving a two-year sentence for tax evasion, spent time in a Philadelphia halfway house and was serving out his probation on electronic monitoring in the Atlantic County community when he was shot.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“You can become an even more excellent person by constantly setting higher and higher standards for yourself and then by doing everything possible to live up to those standards.” -Brian Tracy
Akon Teases New Five-Part Album ‘Stadium’
DAMN!!THATS ALOTTA MUSIC Seven years after he released his last album, Akon is making up for lost time: he’s set to debut a five-part concept album, Stadium, this year. As the Grammy-nominated singer/rapper/producer tweeted on New Year’s Day, his new effort will span five albums, each rooted in a different musical genre. His website is currently streaming one single from each disc: the rave-ready “Better” (featuring Niko the Kid) from Stadium: Euro; the sympathetic ballad “To Each His Own” from Stadium: Pop; the hip-hop-inflected “Whole Lot” from Stadium: Urban; the dubby love ode “Just a Man” (featuring Stephen Marley) from Stadium: Island; and the heavily percussive “Feeling a Nikka” (featuring D’Banje) from Stadium: World. Akon Talks Controversial Dance on ‘Behind the Music’ Akon has not announced an exact arrival date for the record, his fourth studio album and the first since Freedom (released in 2008). On his Instagram, the Senegalese-American star also hinted at an album video, to be posted soon. Despite the hiatus from his solo work, he had an active year of cameos in 2014, appearing on tracks by Jeezy, Chris Brown and Wizkid. Sample Akon’s ambitious new project over at his website.
XS Nightclub Unveils Sweeping $10 Million Dollar Production Upgrade
Here’s the complete lineup of upgrades: A pyrotechnic system that shoots fire above the roof of the pool deck. A larger DJ booth surrounded by 14,000 LED lights. The stage’s new overhead structure features movable LED video screens that not only rise up and down, but also rotate in all directions. A double kabuki drop in front of the DJ booth featuring projection-mapped video content that will allow for a dramatic intro for headlining DJs. Massive LED node details that cover the entirety of the club (including over the pool) and which pulsate and change in coordinated color patterns in time with the music. An extension of technology and lighting into the outdoor pool area, including screens on the outside of the club. Lasers and LED marquee-style string lights float from the palm trees to the bar soffit and around each cabana creating a unique pixel mapped detail over the pool. Four full-color crowd scanning lasers and fixtures, including Chauvet Nexus AW 7×7 LED panels, Clay Paky A.Leda B-Eye K10, Elation Platinum SBX Pro spot/beam and Martin RUSH MH-5 Profile. A one-of-a-kind video screen design over the DJ booth, incorporating a three-dimensional cubic layout. The video in this structure has been mapped pixel-perfect, enabling custom effects that are made specifically for the DJ booth. “Our vision was to go into this new era of EDM and have the best visuals,” says Jesse Waits, managing partner of XS and Tryst Nightclubs. “We made it so you can change the elements for each DJ, customize sets for each DJ and make atmosphere and mood changes.” http://youtu.be/KukeUd-iFV4 The upgrades were constructed over a four-month period, during which the club built the new features without disrupting the venue’s normal operating schedule. Waits said Insomniac’s Pasquale Rotella had recommended SJ Lighting for the job. “We knew we had to do it,” says Waits. “A little bit of it was pressure from the DJs. When you travel around the world and go to the likes of Ushuaia and Pacha in Ibiza, they have different technologies that we don’t have.” Acknowledging that XS originally made its name on its scenic setting and atmosphere, Waits said the club had waited to see the setups of nightclub newcomers like Hakkasan and Drai’s before making its move. “We wanted to be strategic, because we didn’t want to be the same as everyone else,” said Waits. “It’s such a competitive market that it’s required now to have that kind of technology.”
