During her tour of Israel, Jewish-American singer Barbra Streisand addressed ultra-Orthodox Jews that actively target and separate women from men. While receiving an honorary doctorate at the Hebrew University, she addressed recent incidents when ultra-Orthodox men forced women to sit in the back of any bus that passed through their neighborhood and prevent women praying at the Western Wall in Jerusalem from wearing prayer shawls and carrying Torah scrolls:

“It’s distressing to read about women in Israel being forced to sit in the back of the bus or when we hear about `Women of the Wall’ having metal chairs thrown at them when they attempt to peacefully and legally pray.”

CBS reports that in the Orthodox Jewish faith, only men are allowed to carry scrolls and wear prayer shawls, but that is slowly changing in some areas.

Check out her full comments below:

In the latest issue of Self Magazine, singer Ke$ha graces the cover. In this issue, Ke$ha gives readers a new side of her personal style. She explains the recent style changes she’s undergone in comparison to other looks shes rocked. The one thing Ke$ha does admit to is loving her newly toned legs. As you can see on the cover, the star jumps in the air while showing off  her toned lower body.

Kesha tells Self the reason behind her confident attitude towards her body. Fans will almost never spot the singer wearing pants. she explains that she may not have the perfect body but all that matters is “to celebrate what you’ve got.”

Remember her from ‘90s sitcom Sister, Sister? Well, Jackee Harry is back and will join the cast of the upcoming series Girl Meets World! She will join the original Topanga, Danielle Fishel and the original Cory, Ben Savage, and newcomers Rowan Blanchard, Sabrina Carpenter and Teo Halm.

 Wale hosted an exclusive album listening party for his highly anticipated album “The Gifted.” D.M.V Tastemakers and Industry insiders were invited to Heist DC (formely Fly Lounge) to hear the album and the event was hosted by Jay Claxton (WERQ) and Flexxa (DTLR Radio). We did not hear the entire album but what we did hear was amazing. I spoke briefly with DJ Heat of WPGC about how proud I am of Wale. He is coming full circle and I have throughly enjoyed watching his music evolution. “The Gifted” is in stores  June 25th.

R&B singer Chris Brown released the video for his latest single “Don’t Think They Know,” featuring Aaliyah. Holographic images of the late singer dancing as well as her unreleased vocals are featured in the video directed by Brown.

John Legend just dropped his newest single “Made to Love,” from his upcoming album, Love In the Future. Legend talked about what to expect in his upcoming album with Billboard:

“Over the years, I’ve been in a comfort zone with Kanye [West] and Dave [Tozer], and we’ve had great collaborations. But this album also offers some fresh collaborations. And together that typifies the sound of this album. ‘Love in the Future’ has the feel of my first two albums but takes that sound forward.”

Before J. Cole‘s album Born Sinner hit the stands, the rapper did a “mini tour” in certain cities during which the shows’ cost was just $1! It was also first come first serve, so the lines for these shows started at least 7 hours before the concert began. J.Cole fans showed their love and dedication for the artist, by waiting for hours in the heat and the rain.  The long wait, rain, and heat were all worth it because J. Cole did not disappoint!

Why would J.Cole charge a dollar for his concert? Because anybody willing to wait in the hot sun for 6+ hours has to be a true fan; A fan that would know ALL of J. Cole’s songs. The atmosphere was filled with nothing but love for Cole.

During the concert the 28-year-old performed “Crooked Smile” from his newest album Born Sinner. He ended the night with his hit song “Power Trip.” The concert was definitely worth the wait!

Check out the Exclusive Erica Vain Photos  and Video Clip Below!

This week #EricaVainWeekly makes the shift to #EricaVainMagazine with the Music Matters Issue. Highlighting Kelly Rowland, Kanye West, J.Cole, Mac Miller and more! Stay Tuned for next weeks issue as we go crazy for BET. Be sure to tweet me your thoughts and they may end up in a future issue of the magazine. Now I am going to hand the mic over to our Managing Editor, Tyfani McDowell and let her discuss why Music Matters. (Keep reading to view the entire magazine)

Music is the one integral element of the world that crosses barriers that were once thought to never bend, much less break. Music is a form of expression that, in some moments, requires no words to inspire, heal, and excite. MUSIC… is THE universal language that speaks to our minds and bodies and connects each individual life, note by note.

For all you die-hard Wale fans, you are now able to listen to his new album, The Gifted, a week early. You can listen to the album in its entirety exclusively on iTunes for free.  While everyone is talking about Kanye West and J.Cole, Wale is trying remain a topic of conversation. Check out the album’s tracklist after the jump.

From her television appearances, to her music, Ariana has done it all. Grande has made audiences laugh in Nickelodeon’s Victorious, and continues to entertain us with her brand new sitcom Sam & Cat. Due to her new found fame, singer/actress Ariana Grande is another celeb victimized by rumors and accusations spread by the media.

When fans began to notice a dramatic weight difference from Ariana’s days in Victorious to her present TV appearances, rumors spread like wild fire on whether Grande was suffering from an eating disorder.

On her Tumblr, Grande denied these accusations. To clear the air, Grande wrote a proper explanation to why her appearance has changed over the years. Grande states: “The reason why I lost as much weight as I did is because I use to live on junk food.” Ariana explains that she drastically changed the way she ate and took to exercising as a proper method to maintain good health. Grande’s final words were, “I’m eating as much as I was before just the content has changed.”