How can anyone forget the charming, charismatic, talented…and yes, super-cute, contestant, Anoop Desai from Season 8 of American Idol?

I will bluntly say that he was my favorite contestant on the show. Not because he was of South Asian origin, but because he had the passion for music. You could see it on his eyes and hear it in his voice when he stood on that stage.

It was the loss of his close friend, Eve Carson, which pushed him to audition for Idol. On March 5^th, 2009, during the broadcast of the Wild Card round, Desai gave a shout out to his alma mater and mentioned Eve, as it was the first anniversary of her death.

Because of Anoop, Idol has their first-time ever, Top 13 contestants. From there he went onto being in the Top 6, singing his way into the hearts of millions across the nation, and countless fans across the world.

Desai was accepted at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. During his senior year of high school, he auditioned for and was accepted into the UNC Clef Hangers, the male a’capella group, which was founded in 1977. During his junior year at UNC he was the group’s Music Director and the group’s President during his senior year. Today he is the President Emeritus of the Clef Hangers.

It goes without a doubt to say that singing is in Anoop’s blood. This year I had the pleasure of being introduced to Anoop through a family friend and it was awesome. I picked up the phone and he was like, “Hey, this is Anoop!” Never had I met someone so humble, down-to-Earth, and sweet! With some time in between promoting his debut album, All Is Fair, I had the chance to…

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Former Governor Jim Hunt and 2009 American Idol finalist Anoop Desai have came together to record a video message asking legislators to “Hold the Line” on investments in young children. The video is part of the  Hold the Line for NC Children Virtual Advocacy Day on May 18 organized by Smart Start. The video can be viewed at www.youtube.com/ncsmartstart.

Smart Start is calling on North Carolinians to take to their Twitter accounts, Facebook pages, and blogs, and post messages asking legislators to Hold the Line and continue to invest in programs for young children. The message supports what 800 parents, business leaders, elected officials, health care providers, early childhood professionals and others from across the state had to say when they came together this year to speak to the importance of investing in our youngest citizens. All agreed that ensuring access to high quality early childhood care and education programs needed to be a top priority for the state. Other nonprofits that serve children and families are joining in as well, including Prevent Child Abuse NC and Action for Children.

Check out their message to everyone below! Please support the cause!

The first time I was introduced to Harvin Sethi, I couldn’t stop laughing. I knew that he would go places. Unimaginable places.

But I never thought that he’d leave us so soon.  The death of Harvin came  as a shock to us all. When I first heard, from a mutual friend, I just started at my phone, not knowing what to do.

Just a few months ago, I was talking to him over GChat, finding out what new projects he was going to be working on.

Saying that he was talented would do injustice to the gift that God gave him. He was always positive. Always smiling. And more than that, always making those around him smile.

Harvin and I worked together on many projects. The closest project we did together, Bravura Artist’s first mixtape release, Forces of Nature. Together him and fellow-comedian, Rasika Mathur, literally killed the mixtape with their skits, comedy, and of course, we can’t forget Harvin’s amazing parody of Sexy Back, called, Poke You Back.

Little can be said to express how the South Asian community is affected with his loss. Our condolences are with his family and he will forever be remembered in our hearts. He was one of us, a passionate soul in the entertainment industry. He lived his life to make those around him smile and we know that now he’s smiling down upon us.

Sonu Kakkar is a voice behind many hit songs. She started singing at the age of 4 & ½ and since then, music has become her drive, passion, determination & career. From working with acclaimed producers such as AR Rahman to an independent album in the works, she is a multi-talented woman! I recently had the chance to sit down with Sonu and talk about music, movies and much more!

Sonu, I’d like to say it’s a pleasure to sit down & chat with you. I read that you started singing at the age of five; tell us a little bit about how you got involved in singing.
It’s my pleasure dear :-)  Well I started singing at the age of 4 & ½; I used to sing Mata’s Bhajans in bhajan sandhyas. Music has been something I can’t live without and since childhood I had a dream to become a playback singer.

It was after you moved to Delhi that Bollywood music director Sandeep Chowta saw your singing talented in a contest and the final result was the hit track Babuji Zara Dheere Chalo. Tell us about your experience recording your song and how you felt when it became so popular!
Well it was an amazing experience recording a song for Mr. Sandeep Chowta whom I’ll be thankful forever, and that too for a film it was like a dream come true for me because it was my dream to become a playback singer. I was on cloud nine when I was recording Babuji and can’t tell u how happy I was when it became so popular. It feels really great to see people dancing to my song all over the world.

Since then you’ve become a regular playback singer in Bollywood, with such songs as “Bareilly Ke…

Serese is a combination of three personalities – Mandee, Anita & Anu, attitudes and vocal styles. They are three fiercely independent young women who together, form the femme fatale group Serese. The talented trio was discovered by Entertainment Executive Richard Pascoe from RP Management and they have been busy making a name for themselves ever since.

Last year alone, Serese were awarded with an Asian Music Award nomination and they stole the show with their opening performance at the 2009 MTV Music Awards in Asia.

With their recent success, the girls are back with their latest track Feelin’ Myself, where they are truly “…in the zone.” The song is going to be a summer smash and DJs at the clubs will be making the girls dance all night long with this track.

I got an E-mail from Mandee this morning and she wrote, “I know it’s been a long time since we’ve been in touch hope all is well with you. The album is almost done and we are looking to release by the end of this year!”

In regards to the album Mandee said, “I’m so happy with it and can’t wait to come over to your side and let everyone get a look into the world of SERESE! It’s about time rite…”

And yes, she’s right! It’s about time that the world heard from SERESE! In the meantime check out some old favorites from the girls! We’ll be sure to let you know when the new track is out so you can take a listen!

The British cutie aka Jay Sean, has been traveling quite a bit lately! He recently did a new photo shoot with his amazing photographers [Anoop & Naroop], followed by a recent also paid a trip down South with his buddy Sean Paul!

The due were spotted in Australia where they had an amazing show, alongside the beautiful Eve! And of course, his team was there to get the entire thing on video!

Jay Sean has been making a lot of headlines since the release of his US album through Cash Money Records. All the TV shows want him to come and perform and every time I turn on the radio, I always hear Down or Do You Remember. And for those who love to follow the singing sensation on Twitter, his latest update was “RT feels good. Now get out of my VIP lounge lol @djbikramkeith Ahh back on the tour bus with @jaysean and @NidPoppa..home sweet home” — my guesses are he’s either headed to Miami, London or New York City!

Well Jay, wherever home is to you, hope you stay there for some time, relax, and just chill! You’ve been working hard and deserve it!!

In the meantime, here’s a a pretty cool video of Jay Sean, Eve and some other familiar faces that you’ll enjoy!