1.
Channing Tatum
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Channing Matthew Tatum is an American actor, dancer, and former stripper. Tatum made his debut in the drama film Coach Carter. His breakthrough role was in the 2006 dance film Step Up and he is known for his portrayal of the character Duke in the 2009 action film G. I. Joe, The Rise of Cobra and its 2013 sequel G. I, Joe films received negative reviews from critics, they were commercially successful, grossing more than $300 million at the box office. Tatum is also known for his role in Magic Mike. He appeared in films as Dear John and The Vow and his other films include Shes the Man, The Dilemma, White House Down, the drama Foxcatcher, The Hateful Eight and Hail, Caesar. Tatum was born in Cullman, Alabama, the son of Kay, a worker, and Glenn Tatum. He has a sister named Paige and he is mostly of English ancestry. His family moved to the Pascagoula, Mississippi area when he was six and he grew up in the bayous near the Mississippi River, where he lived in a rural setting. Tatum has discussed having dealt with attention deficit disorder and dyslexia while growing up, athletic while growing up, he played football, soccer, track, baseball, and performing martial arts, he has said that girls were always biggest distraction in school. As a child, he practiced wuzuquan kung fu, Tatum spent most of his teenage years in the Tampa area, and initially attended Gaither High School. He later attended Glenville State College in Glenville, West Virginia on a football scholarship and he returned home and started working odd jobs. US Weekly reported that around this time Tatum left his job as a roofer and began working as a stripper at a local nightclub, in 2010, he told an Australian newspaper that he wanted to make a movie about his experiences as a stripper. That idea led to the movie Magic Mike, Tatum moved to Miami, where he was discovered by a model talent scout. In 2000, Tatum was first cast as a dancer in Ricky Martins She Bangs music video, after an audition in Orlando, Florida and his experience in the fashion industry began as a model working for noted clients such as Armani and Abercrombie & Fitch. He soon moved into television commercials, landing spots for Mountain Dew. He subsequently signed with Page 305, an agency in Miami. He was cast by Al David for Vogue magazine and soon appeared in campaigns for Abercrombie & Fitch, Nautica, Dolce & Gabbana, American Eagle Outfitters
2.
DVD
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DVD is a digital optical disc storage format invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. The medium can store any kind of data and is widely used for software. DVDs offer higher capacity than compact discs while having the same dimensions. Pre-recorded DVDs are mass-produced using molding machines that physically stamp data onto the DVD, such discs are a form of DVD-ROM because data can only be read and not written or erased. Blank recordable DVD discs can be recorded using a DVD recorder. Rewritable DVDs can be recorded and erased many times, DVDs containing other types of information may be referred to as DVD data discs. The OED also states that in 1995, The companies said the name of the format will simply be DVD. Toshiba had been using the name ‘digital video disk’, but that was switched to ‘digital versatile disk’ after computer companies complained that it left out their applications, Digital versatile disc is the explanation provided in a DVD Forum Primer from 2000 and in the DVD Forums mission statement. There were several formats developed for recording video on optical discs before the DVD, Optical recording technology was invented by David Paul Gregg and James Russell in 1958 and first patented in 1961. A consumer optical disc data format known as LaserDisc was developed in the United States and it used much larger discs than the later formats. CD Video used analog video encoding on optical discs matching the established standard 120 mm size of audio CDs, Video CD became one of the first formats for distributing digitally encoded films in this format, in 1993. In the same year, two new optical disc formats were being developed. By the time of the launches for both formats in January 1995, the MMCD nomenclature had been dropped, and Philips and Sony were referring to their format as Digital Video Disc. Representatives from the SD camp asked IBM for advice on the system to use for their disc. Alan E. Bell, a researcher from IBMs Almaden Research Center, got that request and this group was referred to as the Technical Working Group, or TWG. On August 14,1995, an ad hoc group formed from five computer companies issued a release stating that they would only accept a single format. The TWG voted to both formats unless the two camps agreed on a single, converged standard. They recruited Lou Gerstner, president of IBM, to pressure the executives of the warring factions, as a result, the DVD specification provided a storage capacity of 4.7 GB for a single-layered, single-sided disc and 8.5 GB for a dual-layered, single-sided disc
3.
Blu-ray
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Blu-ray or Blu-ray Disc is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was designed to supersede the DVD format, in that it is capable of storing high-definition, the plastic disc is 120 mm in diameter and 1.2 mm thick, the same size as DVDs and CDs. Conventional Blu-ray Disc discs contain 25 GB per layer, with dual layer discs being the standard for feature-length video discs. Triple-layer discs and quadruple layers are available for BD-XL re-writer drives, the name Blu-ray refers to the blue laser used to read the disc, which allows information to be stored at a greater density than is possible with the longer-wavelength red laser used for DVDs. The main application of Blu-ray is as a medium for video material such as films and physical distribution of video games for the PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4. Besides the hardware specifications, Blu-ray is associated with a set of multimedia formats, high-definition video may be stored on Blu-ray discs with up to 2160p resolution, at up to 60 frames per second. DVD discs had been limited to a resolution of 480p or 576p. The BD format was developed by the Blu-ray Disc Association, a group representing makers of consumer electronics, computer hardware, Sony unveiled the first Blu-ray disc prototypes in October 2000, and the first prototype player was released in April 2003 in Japan. Afterwards, it continued to be developed until its release in June 2006. During the high definition disc format war, Blu-ray Disc competed with the HD DVD format. Toshiba, the company that supported HD DVD, conceded in February 2008. According to Media Research, high-definition software sales in the US were slower in the first two years than DVD software sales, Blu-ray faces competition from video on demand and the continued sale of DVDs. As of January 2016, 44% of U. S. broadband households had a Blu-ray player, the information density of the DVD format was limited by the wavelength of the laser diodes used. Following protracted development, blue laser diodes operating at 405 nanometers became available on a production basis, Sony started two projects in collaboration with Philips applying the new diodes, UDO, and DVR Blue, a format of rewritable discs that would eventually become Blu-ray Disc. The core technologies of the formats are similar, the first DVR Blue prototypes were unveiled at the CEATEC exhibition in October 2000 by Sony. A trademark for the Blue Disc logo was filed February 9,2001, on February 19,2002, the project was officially announced as Blu-ray Disc, and Blu-ray Disc Founders was founded by the nine initial members. The first consumer device arrived in stores on April 10,2003, the Sony BDZ-S77, but there was no standard for prerecorded video, and no movies were released for this player. On October 4,2004, the name Blu-ray Disc Founders was officially changed to the Blu-ray Disc Association, the Blu-ray Disc physical specifications were completed in 2004
4.
Jabbawockeez
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The Jabbawockeez is a hip-hop dance crew best known for being the winners of the first season of Americas Best Dance Crew. They were initially formed by members Kevin KB Brewer, Phil Swagger Boy Tayag, by 2004, their members included Ben B-Tek Chung, Chris Cristyle Gatdula, Rynan Kid Rainen Paguio, and Jeff Phi Nguyen. Tony Transformer Tran joined the crew in 2013, the Jabbawockeez do not have a group leader, choreography for their performances, as well as music and design choices, is made as a collective unit. Phil Swagger Boy Tayag, Kevin KB Brewer, Joe Punkee Larot began performing as a trio called Three Muskee in Sacramento, California while wearing white masks, the mask and glove motif was adopted as a tribute to the 1970s San Francisco strutting crew Medea Sirkas. Gary Gee One Kendall and Randy DJ Wish One Bernal were both members of the MindTricks dance crew who were active in the San Francisco Bay Area, both the MindTricks dance crew and the Three Muskee were friends and associates with each other. Tayag, Brewer, and Larot all later moved to the San Diego area, established in 2003 in San Diego, California, Jabbawockeez is the brainchild of the Three Musky who wanted to showcase freestyle dance. The name Jabbawockeez, coined by Joe Larot, was inspired by the monster from the Lewis Carroll nonsense poem Jabberwocky. The white masks and gloves from Phil, Kevin, and Joes performances as Three Musky were adopted as the signature of the group. In San Diego, through Garys connections, the Jabbawockeez added b-boys Rynan Kid Rainen Paguio, the original seven member iteration of the Jabbawockeez began performing as a group in 2004. This lineup consisted of Gary, Randy, Phil, Kevin, Joe, Rynan, Jabbawockeez rounded out their numbers with additional members, bringing their total to eleven. Phoenix native Jeff Phi Nguyen had met Rynan Paguio at various Los Angeles area auditions and performances, the Jabbawockeez also brought Kaba Modern alumnus Ben B-Tek Chung and b-boys Eddie Eddiestyles Gutierrez and Saso Saso Fresh Jimenez into the fold. In 2007, the JabbaWockeeZ appeared on the season of Americas Got Talent. Performing with nine members, the group was eliminated in the Las Vegas callbacks episode, in 2008, they auditioned and were accepted onto the first season of Americas Best Dance Crew. The Jabbawockeez auditioned as a contingent for the first season of Americas Best Dance Crew. The group chose Ben Chung to replace Joe on the show and left Garys spot vacant and they eventually went on to become the winners of the show. The win earned the crew $100,000 and they also made a cameo appearance in Step Up 2 The Streets, launched their own clothing line, and toured with New Kids on the Block, and Jesse McCartney. Along with the ABDC season two winner, Super Cr3w, Jabbawockeez were the act for the Battle of the VMAs ABDC special. The group also made an appearance on Cycle 13 of Americas Next Top Model during the episode Dance With Me to help the contestants learn how to convey emotions with their bodies and they also starred in Shake It Up, a Disney Channel Comedy Show
5.
Flo Rida
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Tramar Lacel Dillard, known professionally as Flo Rida, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter from Carol City, Florida. His 2008 breakout single Low was number one for 10 weeks in the United States, Flo Ridas debut studio album, 2008s Mail on Sunday, reached number four in the US. The album was succeeded by R. O. O. T. S and his subsequent albums, 2010s Only One Flo and 2012s Wild Ones, also charted on the US Billboard 200 chart. Flo Rida has sold over 80 million digital downloads, making him one of the music artists. His catalog includes the international singles Right Round, Club Cant Handle Me, Good Feeling, Wild Ones, Whistle, I Cry, G. D. F. R. and My House. Flo Rida was born as Tramar Lacel Dillard in Carol City, Florida and his parents raised him and his seven sisters together, some of whom sang in a local gospel group. His brother-in-law was a man for local rap group 2 Live Crew. The GroundHoggz had been a group, with members who lived in the same apartment complex as Flo Rida. They started recording at underground studios in Carver Ranches, the GroundHoggz, in this four-man incarnation, remained together for eight years. Flo Ridas work with 2 Live Crew member Fresh Kid Ice, attracted the attention of DeVante Swing, however, he was rejected by several of the major labels, so he sought many other jobs outside of music. After graduating from school in 1998, he studied international business management at the University of Nevada. He returned to Florida to continue pursuing his career after receiving a phone call from a representative of the independent label Poe Boy Entertainment. Flo Rida signed with Hot Boyz, in 2000 and with Poe Boy, in 2004 and began affiliating himself for Cash Money with other Southern hip hop artists, such as Rick Ross, Trina, T-Pain, and Trick Daddy. A promotional single entitled Birthday, featuring Rick Ross, was his first significant release. He made his debut guest appearance with the song Bitch Im From Dade County on DJ Khaleds album We the Best, which also features Trick Daddy, Trina, Rick Ross, Brisco, C-Ride, Flo Ridas debut album, Mail on Sunday, was released in March 2008. The first single was Low, featuring T-Pain, which was included in the soundtrack to the movie Step Up 2. Low reached No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, Elevator, featuring Timbaland, In the Ayer featuring will. i. am, and Roll featuring Sean Kingston followed, and both charted on the Hot 100 and other charts. In addition to T-Pain, there were featured guests throughout Mail on Sunday
6.
T-Pain
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Faheem Rashad Najm, better known by his stage name T-Pain, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer from Tallahassee, Florida. His debut album, Rappa Ternt Sanga, was released in 2005, in 2007, T-Pain released his second album Epiphany, which reached number one on the US Billboard 200 chart. His third album, Thr33 Ringz, was released in 2008, T-Pain has also released a string of hit singles, including Im Sprung, Im n Luv, Buy U a Drank, Bartender, Cant Believe It,5 OClock and more. T-Pain has earned two Grammy Awards, alongside artists Kanye West and Jamie Foxx respectively, T-Pain is the founder of the record label imprint Nappy Boy Entertainment, established in 2005. Najm was born and raised in Tallahassee, Florida and his stage name is short for Tallahassee Pain, and was chosen because of the hardships he experienced while living there. Najm was brought up in a Muslim household, but he has expressed his lack of interest in the concept of religion, at age ten, Najm turned his bedroom into a music studio, using a keyboard, a beat machine and a four-track recorder. T-Pain joined the rap group Nappy Headz in 2004 and later recorded Im Fucked Up, recording artist Akon heard the song and immediately signed T-Pain to Konvict Muzik, his label. After being discovered, T-Pain began singing instead of rapping, T-Pain subsequently recorded and released his debut album, Rappa Ternt Sanga, on December 6,2005. The album reached number thirty-three on the Billboard 200, and has since been certified Gold by the RIAA, for reaching sales of 500,000 units. The album was preceded by the single, Im Sprung. The second single, Im N Luv, featuring Mike Jones, was released in December 2005 and reached five on the Hot 100. The third and final single from the album, Studio Luv, was released in October 2006, in mid-2006, T-Pain began work on his second album, now with the Zomba Label Group as well as Konvict Muzik and Jive Records. The album, titled Epiphany, was released on June 5,2007, the album sold 171,000 records in its first week, reaching number one on the Billboard 200. The record has since sold 819,000 records in the United States, the album was preceded by the lead single Buy U a Drank featuring Yung Joc in February 2007. The single reached number one on both the Hot 100 and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, becoming his first single to top charts. The albums second single, Bartender, featuring Akon was released in June 2007 and reached five on the Hot 100. The third and final single from the album, Church, was released in October 2007, while promoting his second album, T-Pain made guest appearances on multiple songs by other artists. T-Pain was featured on Im a Flirt by R. Kelly with T. I
7.
Akon
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Aliaume Damala Badara Akon Thiam, better known as Akon, is a Senegalese-American singer, rapper, songwriter, businessman, record producer and actor. He rose to prominence in 2004 following the release of Locked Up and he has since founded two successful record labels, Konvict Muzik and Kon Live Distribution. He is the first solo artist to hold both the one and two spots simultaneously on the Billboard Hot 100 charts twice. Akon has had four songs certified as 3× platinum, three songs certified as 2× platinum, more than ten songs certified as 1× platinum and more than ten songs certified as gold in digital sales, Akon has sung songs in other languages including Tamil, Hindi, and Spanish. He was listed by the Guinness Book of World Records as the #1 selling artist for master ringtones in the world, Akon often provides vocals as a featured artist and is currently credited with over 300 guest appearances and more than 35 Billboard Hot 100 songs. He has worked with performers such as Michael Jackson, Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Whitney Houston, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. He has had five Grammy Awards nominations and has produced songs for such as Lady Gaga, Colby ODonis, Kardinal Offishall, Leona Lewis. Forbes ranked Akon 80th in Forbes Celebrity 100 in 2010 and 5th in 40 Most Powerful Celebrities in Africa list, Billboard ranked Akon No.6 on the list of Top Digital Songs Artists of the decade. Akon was born in St. Louis, Missouri, and spent much of his childhood in the West African country Senegal, the child of a dancer mother and a percussionist father, Mor Thiam, Akon learned to play five instruments, including drums, guitar and djembe. At age 7, he moved with his family to Union City, New Jersey, growing up in New Jersey, Akon had difficulties getting along with other children. When he and his brother reached high school, his parents left them on their own in Jersey City and moved the rest of the family to Atlanta. In regards to his date, Akon is very protective of it. However, legal documents released by The Smoking Gun list his date of birth as April 16,1973, Akons alleged three years in jail saw him begin to recognize his music abilities and develop an appreciation for his musical background. The songs Akon recorded with Stephens were brought to the attention of Universals imprint SRC Records, in an interview with HitQuarters SRC A&R Jerome Foster said, What caught my attention right away was Lonely, and I said, this kid is official – this is a huge record. Foster and SRC CEO Steve Rifkind immediately boarded a plane to Atlanta to meet the young artist. Akon knew of Fosters work as producer Knobody and so there was a mutual respect for one another, Akon increased his exposure further by collaborating with overseas artists, including New Zealands rapper Savage and hip-hop producer P-Money, performing choruses as a featured vocalist. Akons solo debut album, Trouble was released on June 29,2004 and it spawned the singles Locked Up and Lonely, Belly Dancer, Pot Of Gold, and Ghetto. Locked Up reached 8th position in the U. S. Ghetto became a radio hit when it was remixed by DJ Green Lantern to include verses from rappers 2Pac and The Notorious B. I. G
8.
Baltimore
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Baltimore is the largest city in the U. S. state of Maryland, and the 29th-most populous city in the country. It was established by the Constitution of Maryland and is not part of any county, thus, it is the largest independent city in the United States, with a population of 621,849 as of 2015. As of 2010, the population of the Baltimore Metropolitan Area was 2.7 million, founded in 1729, Baltimore is the second largest seaport in the Mid-Atlantic. Baltimores Inner Harbor was once the leading port of entry for immigrants to the United States. With hundreds of identified districts, Baltimore has been dubbed a city of neighborhoods, in the War of 1812, Francis Scott Key wrote The Star-Spangled Banner, later the American national anthem, in Baltimore. More than 65,000 properties, or roughly one in three buildings in the city, are listed on the National Register, more than any city in the nation. The city has 289 properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the historical records of the government of Baltimore are located at the Baltimore City Archives. The city is named after Cecil Calvert, second Lord Baltimore, of the Irish House of Lords, Baltimore Manor was the name of the estate in County Longford on which the Calvert family lived in Ireland. Baltimore is an anglicization of the Irish name Baile an Tí Mhóir, in 1608, Captain John Smith traveled 210 miles from Jamestown to the uppermost Chesapeake Bay, leading the first European expedition to the Patapsco River. The name Patapsco is derived from pota-psk-ut, which translates to backwater or tide covered with froth in Algonquian dialect, a quarter century after John Smiths voyage, English colonists began to settle in Maryland. The area constituting the modern City of Baltimore and its area was first settled by David Jones in 1661. He claimed the area today as Harbor East on the east bank of the Jones Falls stream. In the early 1600s, the immediate Baltimore vicinity was populated, if at all. The Baltimore area had been inhabited by Native Americans since at least the 10th millennium BC, one Paleo-Indian site and several Archaic period and Woodland period archaeological sites have been identified in Baltimore, including four from the Late Woodland period. During the Late Woodland period, the culture that is called the Potomac Creek complex resided in the area from Baltimore to the Rappahannock River in Virginia. It was located on the Bush River on land that in 1773 became part of Harford County, in 1674, the General Assembly passed An Act for erecting a Court-house and Prison in each County within this Province. The site of the house and jail for Baltimore County was evidently Old Baltimore near the Bush River. In 1683, the General Assembly passed An Act for Advancement of Trade to establish towns, ports, one of the towns established by the act in Baltimore County was on Bush River, on Town Land, near the Court-House
9.
Briana Evigan
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Briana Barbara-Jane Evigan is an American actress and dancer. She is best known for her roles as Andie West in the Step Up series and she started dancing at the age of 9 and is still dancing as part of her career today. Evigan has been noted as a Scream Queen for starring in horror and thriller films, such as Sorority Row, Burning Bright, Mothers Day, The Devils Carnival, its sequel. Stash House, Mine Games, and the season of From Dusk Till Dawn. Evigan was born in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of Pamela C, serpe, a dancer, model, and actress, and actor Greg Evigan. She has Polish and Italian heritage and she is the youngest of three siblings, with brother Jason and sister Vanessa Lee. She has studied dance since she was nine and she is one of the singers and plays keyboards in the group Moorish Idol. She also undertook a speech and communication degree at Los Angeles Valley College and she currently lives in Los Angeles, California, where she usually has Fanchats with fans through UStream, and has her own YouTube channel, in which she posts Work out videos. A professional dancer, Evigan has appeared in videos for Linkin Park, Flo Rida, T-Pain. She has also had roles in television series and films such as Bottoms Up, Something Sweet. In 2008, she won the role of Andie West in the sequel to the 2006 dance drama Step Up, Step Up 2. Filming took place in late 2007 in Baltimore and was released February 14,2008, the film, which met with negative reviews with Rotten Tomatoes, achieved box office success earning a worldwide gross of $148,424,320. Both Evigan and co-star Robert Hoffman earned the Best Kiss Award at the 2008 MTV Movie Awards, in 2009, S. Darko, a sequel to the 2001 cult-hit horror Donnie Darko, was released. Evigan played Samantha Darkos best friend, Corey, the film stars James Lafferty and Ed Westwick. A theatrical release was scrapped and was released Straight-to-DVD on May 12,2009, unlike Donnie Darko, the film received negative reviews. In August 2008, Summit Entertainment announced Evigan has signed on to portray the central character Cassidy Tappan in the remake of the horror film Sorority Row. The screenplay was written by Good Luck Chuck writer Josh Stolberg, the film was budgeted at $12,500,000. Evigan stars alongside Audrina Patridge, Rumer Willis and Jamie Chung, Sorority Row was released on September 11,2009 and debuted at No.6 at the box office and earned worldwide $26,735,797
10.
Cassie Ventura
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Casandra Elizabeth Ventura, known mononymously as Cassie, is an American recording artist, dancer, actress and model. Born in New London, Connecticut, she began her career as a result of meeting record producer Ryan Leslie in late 2002, who later signed her to NextSelection Lifestyle Group. During this time, Diddy heard Me & U in a club, on April 11,2013 Cassie released her debut mixtape RockaByeBaby, which was promoted with the release of Numb featuring Rick Ross and Paradise featuring Wiz Khalifa. Apart from music, Cassie is signed to modeling agency Wilhelmina Models, Cassie is known for being a style icon due to her edgy style and feminine and sophisticated fashion. Cassie is also known for setting the trend among women of shaving their hair, Cassie cites Kate Moss as her style influence. Cassie has also ventured into acting, she made her debut in Step Up 2. Cassie Ventura was born in 1986 in New London, Connecticut, the daughter of a Filipino father and she attended the Williams School, a preparatory school, located on the Connecticut College campus. At age 14 Cassie began modeling, and when she was sixteen, she was modeling for department stores, Delias fashion catalog. Cassie also briefly appeared in R&B singer Marios Just a Friend 2002 music video, encouraged by producer Rockwilder, Cassie took vocal lessons as well as using her schools performing arts program, taking modern ballet. Cassie finished high school in 2004, instead of going to college like her peers she moved to New York City, whilst Cassie was in New York, she began booking print and commercial modeling gigs and being represented by Wilhelmina Models. Ryan Leslie spotted Cassie at clubs and parties in late 2002 frequently, the two wrote a duet called Kiss Me, and after recording the track, Leslie played the song for music executive Tommy Mottola. Mottola offered Cassie a management deal, and Leslie signed her to NextSelection Lifestyle Group, Leslie wrote and produced Cassies first single, Me & U, in 2005. The song became a hit in Germany. During this time, Diddy heard Me & U in a club, Ryan Leslie produced most of the album, which is a mix of R&B/hip hop/pop. She paid tribute to her Filipino culture by incorporating OPM sounds into some of the ballads, the album, Cassie, was released on August 8,2006 and sold 321,000 copies in the United States. The albums lead single Me & U peaked at three on the Billboard Hot 100, selling more than 1 million digital downloads. To promote her album, Cassie performed on Total Request Live and 106 & Park and her performances were described as rocky and less-than-stellar, but Diddy said that it was due to her inexperience. He said that he would be with her through her development, Cassie addressed the events on her MySpace page, saying that she is aware that her performances were pretty bad, and that she was still getting over stage fright
11.
Sonja Sohn
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Sonja Sohn is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Detective Kima Greggs on the HBO drama The Wire and she is also known for having starred in the independent film Slam, which she co-wrote. Her role on The Wire led to her current work as the leader of a Baltimore community initiative called ReWired for Change, Sohn was born Sonja Williams in Fort Benning GA. Her father, is African-American and her mother was Korean and her parents met when her father was stationed in South Korea after the Korean War. She attended and graduated from Warwick High School in Newport News, before she was an actress, Sohn was a slam poet. While performing her work on stage, she was spotted by Marc Levin who offered her a role in his film Slam and she also wrote lyrics and co-wrote the script for the film. It went on to win the Grand Jury Prize for Dramatic Film at the Sundance Film Festival, after debuting in Slam, Sohn appeared in minor roles in films such as Shaft and Bringing Out the Dead. She also starred in independent films Perfume, G and The Killing Zone, through the five seasons of the HBO series The Wire, she held a starring role as Detective Kima Greggs. She struggled during the first season of The Wire and considered quitting as she had trouble recalling her lines and she has also guest starred on many episodes of Cold Case as Toni Halstead. She won the television actress award at the 2008 Asian Excellence Awards for her character on The Wire. She had a role in the Hollywood film Step Up 2. In 2008-09, she was a guest star in the ABC series Brothers & Sisters, in 2011, she was a guest star on the show Bar Karma. She played Detective Samantha Baker in the drama television series Body of Proof with Dana Delany and Jeri Ryan. On May 30,2014, it was announced that Sohn would be joining season 2 of The Originals, previously involved in political activism, Sohn took a break from acting in 2009 to concentrate on social issues. She is the founder and CEO of the Baltimore-based reWIRED for Change, other actors and writers involved with The Wire serve as board members. In 2011, she was presented with the Woman of the Year award from the Harvard Black Mens Forum, Sonja Sohn at the Internet Movie Database reWIRED for Change homepage, rewiredforchange. org, accessed December 8,2014. ReWired and Reading Liverpool Philharmonic, liverpoolphil. com, accessed December 8,2014, ReWired and Reading The Reader Organisation, thereaderonline. co. uk, accessed December 8,2014. Appearances on C-SPAN C-SPAN Q&A interview with Sohn, c-span. org, accessed December 8,2014
