Wizkid and American Rap Star, Wale Hit The Studio

Wizkid is busy working on his
sophomore album and recently hit
the UK to record new materials.
We are told that he was joined by
American rap star, Wale in the
studio. Wale announced he was on his way to the studio to join Wiz.

Boat operator charged in Hudson River crash; engaged couple on board

Authorities in Piermont, New York,
believe that they have recovered the
body of Mark Lennon, the second
victim of a boating accident involving a
wedding party on the Hudson River,
Sheriff Louis Falco told reporters
Sunday. Lennon was the best man in
the group.
The path that led Lindsey Stewart and
Brian Bond to decide to join their lives
together was as measured and
deliberate as its end was abrupt.
The two had been friends since they
were children living in the suburbs
north of New York City. They went to
the same church. More than three
years ago, the relationship turned
romantic.
Next month, the 30-year-old human
resources manager at an insurance
company in Nyack, and her 36-year-
old beau were to marry at Good
Shepherd Church in Pearl River.
The reception was to be at Torne
Valley Winery in Hillburn.
"She did all the plans herself," her
stepfather, Walter Kosik, told CNN.
"She had everything under control."
On Friday night, Stewart and Bond
and four of their friends dined at a
restaurant, then boarded a 21-foot
Stingray power boat on the Hudson
River for what was to have been a
short ride from the village of Piermont
in Rockland County to Tarrytown.
It was a clear, balmy
night.
The short ride and the couple's long-term plans collided fatally when the boat struck the side of one of three barges that were lashed together at a construction site near the Tappan Zee Bridge, 25 miles north of Manhattan.
The barges, which were being used by a contractor who is building a new bridge, had been anchored in the river since around April, said Robert
Van Cura, undersheriff of the
Rockland County Sheriff's Office.
Stewart was thrown from the boat, as
was Mark Lennon, who was to have
served as the couple's best man.
Despite suffering serious head
injuries, Bond, Stewart's fiance, called
911 from the boat at 10:41 p.m.,
reporting that it had struck an object
south of the bridge.
Rescuers poured in from around the
area, but to no avail.
At 2:30 a.m. Saturday, the police
showed up at the house belonging to
Stewart's mother and stepfather.
"That's something -- a nightmare -- I
don't wish on any parent, to get that
police coming over your house waking
you out of your sleep to tell you that
an accident has occurred," Kosik said.
A few hours later, a body believed to
be that of Stewart's was discovered
about an eighth of a mile off the
riverbank. The search for Lennon,
which proved fruitless Saturday, was
to resume Sunday morning, but
officials held out little hope he would
be found alive.
"We're always hopeful, but obviously,
at this hour, it's less and less likely that
this would be a rescue as opposed to
a recovery," Van Cura told reporters.
The four who were not thrown from
the boat suffered head injuries and
were taken to area hospitals.
One of them, boat operator Jojo K.
John, 35, was arrested.
"We have probable cause to believe
that he operated the boat while
intoxicated," Van Cura said.
John was arraigned at an area
hospital on one count of first-degree
vehicular manslaughter and three
counts of second-degree vehicular
assault, Van Cura said.
More charges are possible, he said.
Van Cura said the operator was not
the registered owner of the boat,
which may have more than one
owner.
Bond was hospitalized at Westchester
Medical Center, said Kosik, who visited
him Saturday. "He was in no condition
to talk."
A spokesman for the medical center
said Bond was in fair condition.
"She's supposed to be married two
weeks from today," said Carol Stewart
about her daughter. "It just can't end
like this."
An investigation has begun. "The
barge had some lights on it; whether
or not it was properly lighted is part of
the investigation," Van Cura said.
"On a clear, moonlit night, with the
bridge lights on, you can see pretty
well," said Tom Sobolik in a telephone
interview from aboard his sailboat
near the accident site.
The moon was last full on Monday.
But Craig and Celeste Kmiecik said
they were boating in the area on
Friday night and that it appeared dark.
"There was a moon last night, but you
really can't see anything," said Craig
Kmiecik.
"The barge was not lit up," said
Celeste Kmiecik. "We saw that last
night coming back to the marina."

German Erik Zabel admits to doping

Former German sprinter Erik Zabel
admitted to having used doping
products including EPO from 1996 to
2004, in an interview published on
German newspaper Sueddeutsche
Zeitung's website on Sunday.
He also admitted to blood doping and
using cortisone.
Zabel's admission comes a few days
after he was named in a French
government report that identified
cyclists who had tested positive for
EPO during the 1998 Tour de France.
"EPO, cortisone and then even blood
doping. It's really a lot," said Zabel, a
six-time winner of the Tour de
France's green jersey competition for
best sprinter.
The 43-year-old, who retired in 2008,
had previously admitted in 2007 to
having taken EPO in 1996, although
he said he had stopped using it after
one week.
However, now he has finally come
fully clean, explaining how he
graduated from EPO to blood doping
as detection methods improved.
"In 2003, I had a transfusion of my
own blood," he added before
explaining why he had previously lied
about his doping past.
"First and foremost I wanted to
preserve my life, the dream life of a
professional cyclist.
"I loved it so much, the discipline, the
travel. Basically, my selfishness was
the strongest (thing)."
The inquiry by the French government
commission into the effectiveness of
the fight against doping decided to
publish on Wednesday the results of
samples from the 1998 and 1999
Tours that were retroactively tested
for EPO in 2004.
In 1998 there wasn't an effective test
for EPO so the drug went undetected.
Zabel, fellow sprinter Mario Cipollini
as well as known dopers and former
Tour winners Marco Pantini and Jan
Ullrich were amongst the cyclists
revealed to have used EPO in 1998.
Disgraced former seven-time Tour
winner Lance Armstrong's samples
from the 1999 Tour, the first one he
won before later being stripped of all
his titles, also tested positive for EPO.
Zabel actually tested positive for a
banned anabolic steroid in 1994, right
at the start of his career, but got away
with a fine of 3,000 Swiss francs and
no suspension.
In 2007 in the wake of admissions
from former teammates and team
officials from his former squad
Telekom that doping was systematic
in the German outfit, Zabel had said
he tried EPO for just one week in the
lead up to the 1996 Tour before
stopping due to side effects.
However, his new admission shows
that he in fact continued using doping
products throughout the majority of
his career, and principally the most
successful period when he won six
successive green jerseys from 1996 to
2001.

Pope Francis wraps up Brazil trip with Mass for 3 million

An estimated 3 million people poured onto Rio's Copacabana beach on Sunday for the final Mass of Pope Francis' historic trip to his home continent, cheering the first Latin American pope in one of the biggest turnouts for a papal Mass in recent history.
Speaking from a white stage and
looking out over the enormous
crowd, Francis urged young
Catholics to go out and spread
their faith "to the fringes of society, even to those who seem farthest away, most indifferent."
"The church needs you, your
enthusiasm, your creativity and the joy that is so characteristic of you!" he said to applause in his final homily of World Youth Day.
Nearly the entire 4 kilometer (2.5
mile) crescent of Copacabana's
broad beach overflowed with flag-
waving faithful, some of them
taking an early morning dip in the
Atlantic and others tossing t-shirts,
flags and soccer jerseys into the
pontiff's open-sided car as he
drove by. Francis worked the
crowd, kissing babies, taking a sip
of mate tea handed up to him and
catching gifts on the fly. Hundreds of thousands of people crowd Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro on July 28, 2013.

DMX Passes Out In Cop Car During DUI Bust

DMX was either wasted, exhausted, or
both following his DUI arrest Friday
morning ... because he passed the
hell out once he got inside the squad
car -- and TMZ has obtained dash
cam footage of the entire bust.TMZ
broke the story ... the rapper was
popped in South Carolina around
3AM Friday after police determined he
had been driving under the
influence.It wasn't immediately clear
whether X was busted for alcohol or
some other substance -- but based
on the dash cam footage, it appears
to have been for alcohol ... and not
just because X was a little sleepy.In
the footage, the cop asks X if he's
been boozing, and X says he had one
drink -- but later it sounds like he
admits to drinking "4 or 5" (the audio
is pretty bad). Despite the drinks, X
insists he's not too drunk to drive.
The cop doesn't buy it.X was booked
for DUI and hauled to a nearby
station. He was released from custody
roughly an hour later. Bonus: you
have to see how X handles his itchy
nose with his hands cuffed behind his
back. Classic.

Toni Braxton I Lost My Songs By Going Belly Up

Toni Braxton may still have a song in
her heart after filing for bankruptcy,
but she just lost more than 2 dozen
tunes that made her famous --
because some dude bought them
right out from under her ... TMZ has
learned.TMZ broke the story ...
Braxton struck a deal in her
bankruptcy case, in which she settled
with her various debtors.  Part of the
deal -- Toni could buy back 27 songs
from her music catalog for $20K --
with one BIG string attached ... she
could be outbid.Enter a guy named
Ross M. Klein, who doubled Toni's
price and nabbed the tunes.Among
the 27 are a few hits, including
"You're Making Me High," "How Many
Ways," and "Always.""Un-Break My
Heart" is not among the 27, and we
don't know its fate ... although it looks
like it's still hers.Sometimes, it's hard
to carry a tune in bankruptcy.