RAY J: Mouth of the South

By Karu F. Daniels, AOL Black Voices

Who could imagine that the little boy who used to sing melodic pop ditties with his superstar pop singer sister would grow up to be entrenched in such salacious scandal?

I'm not one to pass judgment but it has always been proven that when child stars are held to such high standards, all hell will surely break loose when they become adults.

Think Michael Jackson.

In Ray J's case, little brother of former pop superstar Brandy; youngest child of refuted stage momager Sonja Norwood; and namesake of sanctified gospel musician Willie Norwood, Sr., he's definitely morphed into the tabloid notable no one could've imagined.

And he's not showing any signs of slowing down.

Just in case you've been under a rock for the past year or so, the hip-hop soul crooner directed and starred in a headline-grabbing XXX-rated video, starring his girlfriend (at the time) Kim Kardashian.

The BV Newswire has tracked the story of 'Kim Kardashian Superstar,' starring the alleged Hollywood socialite, ever since adult entertainment giant Vivid announced plans to release it. Litigation, a hefty financial settlement and the subsequent ceasing of sale followed the DVD release.

Yet, Ray J, who has developed the reputation of a stud (thanks to romantic links with formerly imprisoned hip-hop sexpot Lil' Kim, best-selling video vixen turned authoress Karrine Steffans, and former chart-topping diva Whitney Houston), continues to keep tongues wagging.

The McComb, Mississippi native recently opened up to 'Sister 2 Sister' magazine about a host of subjects ranging from his girlfriends to plans to win an Oscar; from reconnecting with Steffans on a red carpet to the drama that has ensued from the sex video. He even revealed his plans to run for mayor, and talked up family ties.

The 12-page Q&A, alone, is worth the price of subscription for the Maryland-based publication with the tagline 'Giving it to ya straight, no chaser.'

"A lot of the times when I have sex, and after I'm done, you know, I think to myself, man, I hope my performance was something that she'll always remember," he told the magazine's founder, publisher and editor Jamie Foster Brown. "That's every time because that's important to me."

"My day is, like, messed up if I don't perform right."

Ray J's link to the porn business have cost him professionally. He, reportedly, recently lost out on an acting gig in the forthcoming Codeblack Entertainment movie, 'A Good Man is Hard to Find,' which stars Golden Brooks, Hill Harper and Darrin Dewitt Henson. Of that, he commented, 'It was a low budget film...[After three auditions] it was like I've got the part .... Then they called me and asked me [about the tape] ... Then they called me back and said 'Well Yolanda Adams is in the movie and this is gospel and we just can't do it."

Some of his holier than thou family are freaking out as well.

"I'm not going to even lie," he exclaimed. "Everybody's upset. They're not happy. They're not proud. Brandy's not proud. Nobody's feeling good about it."

Ray J concurred that the sex tape scandal may have softened the media's glare on his sister's manslaughter controversy. (The former 'Moesha' star is responsible for the California freeway accident that killed a woman late last year.) "... that did get the heat off of Brandy though, luckily."

Regarding his affair with Houston (they have been spotted making the scene since she announced her separation from Bobby Brown), he dodged Foster Brown's direct questions with answers such as "I love older women," and "Love Whitney, love."

He referred to the 'I Will Always Love You' singer as "family" and said "Mom loves it. She loves Whitney in the family."

Lil' Kim (legally known as Kimberly Denise Jones) and he made the scene when they were label-mates on Atlantic Records in the early part of the century. Her collaboration on his radio friendly single 'Wait A Minute' -- and appearance in the music video -- fueled buzz that Ray J was no longer a little boy but quite the man -- Kim's man.

"I love all Kims. I've had a lot of Kims," he laughed, then continued, "that's my girl. I love her."

On Kardashian, he talked of planning "to reach out to her more and more because I do want to continue to be friends with her and she's always been a positive influence in my life."

Recently, Ray J said he bumped into Steffans on the red carpet of a Hollywood party sponsored by 'Black Enterprise' magazine -- of all places!!! "So I walked down the red carpet and they're snapping, and guess who's standing by me? Superhead. (laughs) Trying to get closer and closer. I'm like, wait a minute. This ain't no good look... I just ran off the red carpet and said 'Security, I cannot walk with her next to me.' So they made her get off until I finished and then she continued. But she was trying to put it on blast and I would have a lot of people upset with me."

Whoa.

Sidenote: BV's very own gossip guru Jawn Murray got up, close and personal with Ray J just last week about his startling allegations made towards Steffans, who has cleaned up her act since being a self-described "coked-up ho." Read story here.

In all fairness to Steffans -- who blew the bedsheets off of the hip-hop industry with her 2005 'New York Times' best-seller 'Confessions of a Video Vixen,' detailing sexual escapades with rappers such as Diddy, Jay-Z and Ja Rule -- she legitimized the rumored legend of Ray J's sexual athleticism.

As did the porn video.

And there may be more where that comes from. While he did state that he was angry that the tape was released, he clarified that he was not pursuing litigation against Vivid Entertainment. "Everybody makes tapes," he said, while admitting that he has recorded others.

Ray J went off the cuff on a few other interesting subjects. Here's a little breakdown:

On politics: I'm going to keep going. I'm going for President of the United States of America... I think Hillary (Clinton) might have a better shot [than Barack Obama].

On Don Imus: "I think Don Imus was being a man instead of being a professional disc jockey or radio host or analyst or whatever you call it. He wasn't being professional. He was thinking from just having fun, from just saying something, and he needed to reap the benefits from that."

On Money: "Just because I've got money , just because I eat steak and, you know, eat chicken breast that cost $30, and I eat McDonald's too, but you know, the thing about it is I don't care. I know we're going to have to hit the chitlin circuit again. You feel me?"

On Prescription Marijuana: "I'm always up working and thinking about the next step and the next move, so I have insomnia. I don't sleep so they prescribe marijuana for me so I can relax at night and just be cool ... I've been a patient for two, three years now that they've made it legal. Snoop's a patient ... Slim Thug's a patient."

On his future plans in the porn industry: "I got offered a couple of million to be the narrator and just guide people through. The stars that I'm going to choose are going to be really nice, really classy and I'm going to build up to the sex. ...I'm going to have them shooting it themselves. I'm going to give them the opportunity to give me their own angles. That's kind of like my style."

This is just the tip of the iceberg to this very revealing article. The June edition of 'Sister 2 Sister' -- with Ray-J on the cover -- is on newsstands now.