Though he did not graduate from high school himself, Shawn Carter, more popularly known as Jay-Z, still places great value on the importance of education. In 2003, he established the Shawn Carter Scholarship Foundation as a way to send students from economically challenged backgrounds to college. Now, Jay-Z will perform two nights at New York’s famed Carnegie Hall venue to raise money for the foundation.

The shows will take place on February 6 and 7 next year, and tickets will range from $500 to $2,500. Proceeds also will benefit United Way of New York. At a press conference announcing the shows, Jay-Z said, “Education is super important. I don’t have a high school diploma or a college diploma… I had to have some form of schooling to articulate my thoughts.”

The event is also notable because it will be the first time a solo hip-hop act has performed at Carnegie Hall.

The website for the Shawn Carter Scholarship Foundation notes that the organization has given awards totaling over $1.1 million to more than 750 students since its inception, and not only for tuition. The website notes, “Oftentimes students’ educational progress is derailed by financial burdens unrelated to tuition. That is why Shawn Carter Scholarships can be used to defray the costs of books and lab fees, food, travel and other self-care expenses.

Jay-Z currently is on tour with Kanye West, supporting Watch the Throne, the collaborative record the two hip-hop superstars released earlier this year. The last shows for the tour will be held December 17 and 18 at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia. Watch the Throne was released on August 8 and debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 albums chart. The record has since gone on to sell over one million copies in the United States.

Since first announcing a tour to support their album Watch the Throne back in July, Kanye West and Jay-Z seem to have continually been modifying the itinerary. It would make sense, considering the tour consists of not one but two of top names in hip hop (or any genre, for that matter). Yesterday, the two rappers were at it again, adding more shows to the already extensive tour.

Two shows at Madison Square Garden were announced, which will take place November 7 and 8. A new Chicago concert will be held at the United Center on November 30, and a second show was announced at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on December 13. The tour kicks off on October 29 at the Philips Arena in Atlanta and runs through a Vancouver date on December 18.

In additional Kanye and Jay-Z news, today it was announced that the pair is being sued for a sample they used on Watch the Throne. Syl Johnson, a successful soul and blues musician in the 1960s and 70s, claims the song “The Joy” on Throne illegally samples his song “Different Strokes.” “The Joy” also features (and credits) R&B and soul legend Curtis Mayfield. “Different Strokes” was one of Johnson’s first and most enduring hits, released in 1967 on Chicago’s Twinight Records.

Johnson claims the sample was a knowing and willful misappropriation because West contacted him about using the sample for his solo album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, but he never received clearances. A veteran of copyright infringement cases, Johnson has brought court cases against musicians such as Michael Jackson, Jefferson Airplane and Cypress Hill. He’s successfully forced payments for samples from both Wu-Tang Clan and Kid Rock. In addition to the two performers, the lawsuit also names their record labels, Universal Music Group and Def Jam Records.

The MTV Video Music Awards every year are noted for having outrageous moments.

The show in Los Angeles this year is making headlines as usual thanks to Beyonce making a major announcement.

Ben Tracy, a national correspondent for CBS News, reported there was no host for the show. However, a guy character that was vaguely familiar opened the show, then throughout the night kept returning.

The guy was actually Lady Gaga, who was there with a cigarette that was ever-present and slicked back hair.

Among the other performances that were attention getting were those from Chris Brown, taking his dance moves up into new heights, and Adele, the British singer.

However, the show was stolen by Beyonce, with her news that her and Jay-Z, her husband, are expecting the couple’s first child.

Britney Spears, the pop star mom, accepted two awards. However, she turned the chance down for a kiss with GaGa, similar to the infamous one her and Madonna had. Britney said, I’ve already done that.

Nicki Minaj appeared as if she had raided the closet of Lady Gaga’s. Although she won two awards, Katy Perry was most noticed, perhaps, for her yellow cube hat. Her two awards included video of the year, the biggest award of the night.

The show turned serious when a poignant tribute was offered by Tony Bennett for Amy Winehouse.

Bennett remarked, Amy was truly a jazz artist, just like Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald. She truly did have the gift.

Bennett offered a moving video that was a duet of him and Winehouse recorded only weeks before she died.

Kanye West and Jay-Z, after altering their tour so that they could add more cities onto the itinerary of their outing “Watch The Throne” have announced these new dates. Now their trek of North America will kick off in Atlanta on October 29. New shows that were just added include visits to New Orleans, Kansas City, Pittsburgh and Fort Lauderdale. Fans purchasing tickets for the tour online will be receiving the album “Watch The Throne” in digital format. It will be available starting August 8 exclusively on iTunes. On August 12 it will become available at additional digital and physical retailers.

Jay-Z, in the meantime, has been squelching rumors that West and he have disagreed over the amount of money that should be spent on the stage production. Earlier this week there was a report in The New York Post that the two rappers were hardly speaking with one another due to the dispute. Reportedly West was pushing to have a next-level production and flashy concert, while Jay-Z’s focus was more on keeping their costs low so they could pay the long-term advance back to Live Nation, the tour promoter. On Monday Jay-Z made an appearance on Hot 97 in New York to squelch the rumors.

Jay-Z told host Angie Martinez on Hot 97, I kind of would like spending a gazillion dollars. The story is backwards. However, it’s all good. Right now we are doing something I know. When I saw all of that I thought, right now we must be very hot.

Just when you thought the hype over “Watch the Throne,” the joint LP from Jay-Z and Kanye West couldn’t get more over blown, now we are learning that the pair have established a group with plans to support their joint release with a huge tour of North America. They will perform under the name “The Throne.” These two world-renowned emcees will be launching their one month outing on September 22 in Detroit and will be visiting cities across Canada and the U.S. through early November.

Starting Thursday July 28, pre-sale tickets will be going on sale through Live Nation. On August 8, the public on-sale will follow. There are a total of 24 confirmed dates.

Jay-Z and Kanye, in addition to announcing the tour, have confirmed as well that on August 8 “Watch the Throne” is being exclusively released through iTunes. On August 12, the set will become available via additional digital and physical retailers.

The release date for the collaborative LP from Jay-Z and Kanye West “Watch the Throne” will be reportedly be three days from now.

Earlier this month, thesource.com, a hip hop news site, reported the highly anticipated album would be released on July 4.

It is more than one month later from the date first tweeted on January 23 by Kanye West. However, the initial digital release may be imminent. CyHi The Prynce, a G.O.O.D. Music client of West’s and rapper said on Rap Fix Live, the MTV program, that the album was ready to go.

All the music right now is done. But you know this guy. We’re here with Kanye. He will add a last little minute pizazz. It will ready soon for you guys.

He could put the album out tomorrow if that’s what he wanted to do. That is what you want him to do.

Jay-Z and West have worked together in the past on singles. However, “Watch The Throne” represents the first full-length set that the two have worked on together. The project was planned originally as an EP. In 2010, Jay-Z and West recorded five tracks in New York and France. However, the material that was left over sparked an announcement from West last October on MTV where he stated their effort was going to be released in full-length format.

Rihanna switches management gears just in time for the unveiling of her fifth LP “Loud”. She told The Associated Press today that she is now formally under Jay-Z’s wings when she signed under the rapper’s management firm Roc Nation.

The 22-year old Barbados native tells AP that she is “excited” about the move especially now that she is also planning to consolidate all her future business endeavors such as film, music, fashion and beauty and even book deals into one firm which will be named as Rihanna Entertainment.

Music biz insiders agree that the move to work hand in hand with Jay-Z as she tries to expand her reach in the industry is definitely a smart move. Jay-Z, whose name is practically a business empire, was on the cover of last month’s issue of Forbes magazine and for good reason. The man is not only a top selling rapper but an entertainment mogul as well who dabbled into music producing, talent scouting and management to name a few. And who better to guide Rihanna in her future business dealings than the man who discovered her, signed her shortly after auditioning and took her under his wings and helped her become a chart topper just like him.

Rihanna will now join the likes of rapper Wale, DJ Mark Ronson and singer Melanie Fiona in her new home in Roc Nation.

“Loud”, from which Riri’s new single “Only Girl in the World” is taken, is due in stores next month.

Late this summer, Jay-Z and Eminem will be teaming up for two co-headlining concerts in major league baseball parks: Comerica Park in Detroit and Yankee Stadium in New York City.

The first show will be in Detroit, Eminem’s hometown, on September 2. On September 13 the pair will be in Jay-Z’s New York City. In the past, the two have performed together frequently. However it hasn’t been on the same scale. The shows were announced live from Fox Sports Detroit at a doubleheader at Comerica Park in the second game between the New York Yankees and Detroit Tigers.

In a statement, Eminem said, this set of shows is a once in a lifetime experience. We will both be really bringing it for our home town fans. They will love it and so will I. It will be historic.

Jay-Z added, the shows are a dream coming true. I have always dreamed of hip-hop being able to play in stadium just like other kinds of music. It’s perfect for me and Eminem to be able to play in our hometowns so we can show them just how far live rap experiences has made it. Historic and fun. The combination is going to be a great one across the board.

Jay-Z earlier this year wrapped up a tour to support “The Blueprint 3, his last chart topping set. It is his 11th studio set and final “Blueprint” trilogy installment, which started with “The Blueprint” in 2001 and continued with “Blueprint 2: The Gift & The Curse” in 2002.

Jay-Z’s last album debuted in the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s 22 chart. During the first week of its release the set sold almost 500,000 copies. The rapper has now had 11 top-selling albums and is now had the most No. 1 sets by a solo artist on the top chart of Billboard. Jay-Z previously shared that record with Elvis Presley.

The latest set from Eminem, “Recovery,” is due to be released to stores on June 22. “Not Afraid,” the album’s first single, debuted in the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. He became just the 16th artist ever in the history of the chart to have his song in the No. 1 spot during its debut week. The last song with a No. 1 debut was “3” by Britney Spears in October 2009.

2010 Jay-Z & Eminem Concert Tour
September 2010
2 – Detroit, MI – Comerica Park
13 – New York, NY – Yankee Stadium

On Tuesday, the musical “Fela!,” produced by Alicia Keys, Jay-Z, Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, received 11 Tony Awards nominations. “La Cage aux Folles” also received 11 nominations to tie with “Fela!” for the most nominations this year.

“Fela!,” in addition to its Best Musical nomination, also received Best Book of Musical nomination for Bill T. Jones and Jim Lewis. Sahr Ngaujah received a Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical nomination.

“Fela!” is the life story of Fela Kuti, Nigerian musician. On June 8 the original recording from the Broadway cast will be made available by Knitting Factory Records.

The musical based on an album from Green Day, “American Idiot,” also received a Best Musical nomination, as well as “Million Dollar Quartet” and “Memphis.” Best Original Score nominees are Andrew Lippa (“The Addams Family”), Lucy Prebble and Adam Cork (“Enron), Branford Marsalis (“Fences”) and Joe Di Petro and David Bryan (“Memphis”).

Best Revival of a Musical nominees are “Ragtime,” “A Little Night Music,” “La Cage aux Folles,” and “Finian’s Rainbow.”

On Tuesday morning, Lea Michele of Glee and Jeff Daniels announced the nominations. The Tony Awards show will air on June 13 on CBS from New York City’s Radio City Music Hall.

R&B singer Trey Songz has experienced a meteoric rise in the last three months sharing the stage with Jay-Z, having his name on the Grammy nomination list, laying down notes with Stevie Wonder and even doing the Obama fist bump at the White House. In recent interviews, Songz has described his brush with fame surreal and doesn’t feel out of place opening for Jay-Z between two rappers – Young Jeezy and the Hova.

Trey Songz, who was born Tremaine Aldon Neverson, is touring in support of his most recent release gold-certified “Ready.” The album was nominated at the Grammy’s for Best Contemporary R&B Album. Singles drawn from the album including “Say Aah” and “Neighbors Know My Name” have seen success on the airwaves and have continued to introduce Songz to new listeners.

Trey Songz participated in the remake of “We Are the World” with the likes of heavyweights like Harry Connick Jr, Natalie Cole and Snoop Dogg, and he participated in the BET Honors 2010 that shone the spotlight on Stevie Wonder.

2010 Trey Songz Concert Tour
March 2010
11 – Boston, MA – TD Garden
12 – Uniondale, NY – Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
13 – Atlantic City, NJ – Borgata Hotel, Casino and Spa Event Center
14 – Auburn Hills, MI – The Palace of Auburn Hills
16 – Pittsburgh, PA – Mellon Arena
18 – Chicago, IL – United Center
19 – St. Louis, MO – Scottrade Center
20 – Indianapolis, IN – Conseco Fieldhouse
22 – Denver, CO – Pepsi Center
24 – San Jose, CA – HP Pavilion at San Jose
26 – Los Angeles, CA – Staples Center
27 – Las Vegas, NV – Pearl Concert Theater
30 – New York City, NY – Roseland Ballroom