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A lot of celebrities chose to party the night away in celebration of 2008 but Madonna chose to celebrate it differently. The singer has been enjoying a low-key holiday since she and her family arrived in India from the Maldives on a chartered jet on December 31.

On Thursday, Madonna and family went on a two-hour horse ride in the Rajasthani desert. “Madonna spent New Year’s Eve with her family at a wilderness camp in the desert,” said Siddarth Singh, whose family owns the nearby Rohetgarh Fort and helped organized the entertainment which included traditional Rajasthani dance, folk music and even a dancing horse show.

Kanye West makes his first public statement since the unfortunate passing of his mother. He recently posted a new blog on his official website. It was about his way of coping, I guess: Connect Four.

“When I was in Europe I would play this game for hours and hours… it helped me zone out. Everybody would get involved,” he says. He talked about how a lot of people on tour beat this guy or that. But when asked who the champion is, people would say that it was Beyonce. So even at Jay-Z’s Las Vegas club 40/40 with all the Black Jack tables and slot machines, he and Beyonce played Connect Four where he got beaten 9 times in a row.

Disney’s newest singing sensations comprised of 20-year old Kevin, 18-year old Joe and 15-year old Nick, collectively known as the Jonas Brothers, know no rest. After rocking in the New Year on Dick Clark’s Rockin’ New Year’s Eve Party the night prior, they get mobbed by dozens of fans on Tuesday as they make their way to their limo outside New York City’s Trump Hotel at Columbus Circle. What a way to spend New Year’s Day.

The trio of brotherly singers actually left New York to catch a flight to California as they are going to be in Sacramento for a Verizon in-store signing and performance at the Verizon Store.

Mindy McCready is going to start her new year on the right foot because she is a free woman. She definitely has a lot to be grateful for after the beleaguered country singer was sentenced to a year in jail for violating her probation. She’s been arrested about as many times as Foxy Brown!

Upon her release, the singer said she was looking forward to going home to see her son. She also said something about getting back to making music. She should do a duet with Kellie Pickler. That would be something to write about.

Happy New Year Mindy. I hope you make some positive changes in you life.

When in Rome, do as the Romans do. And that’s what singer Shakira and her long-time boyfriend Antonio dela Rua did when they chose to spend a romantic holiday on Saturday in Rome. The lovely couple hired a guide to show them around the city. They saw Popolo Square, Campidoglio, the Forum ruins, the Pantheon, Hadrian’s Village and the Capitolini and Barberini Museums.

Shakira is a UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund) Goodwill Ambassador and visited Bangladesh recently and met with women and children whose lives have been affected by Cyclone Sidr. She deserves the romantic vacation that she’s on.

Rap mogul Diddy’s twins D’Lila Star Combs and Jessie James Combs turned 1 year old last week. Their dad recently told Us Weekly about his and ex Kim Porter’s twins saying “They’re trying to stand up and discover everything. All it takes is one look from them and my heart melts.” Looking at those faces right now, whose heart wouldn’t melt? They are just so adorable!

The 38-year old hip hop mogul has two other children, a 13-year old son named Justin with ex-girlfriend, hip hop fashion stylist Misa Hylton-Brim and a 10-year old son named Christian with Kim Porter.

Madonna is set to make her official debut as a director soon. It has just been announced that the Queen of Pop’s film ‘Filth & Wisdom’ is going to make its world premiere this February at the Berlin Film Festival.The movie is “Described as a comedy/drama/musical/romance, the story features a Russian immigrant, ballet school, lap dancing, cultural revolution, poetry, night club, punk rock band, book writer, dominatrix and gypsy. The Gypsy punk band that appears in the film is portrayed by real-life Gypsy punk band, Gogol Bordello, who also contributed three songs to the film’s soundtrack. The band’s lead singer, Eugene Hütz, portrays the main character — a character with a philosophical attitude towards life. Madonna allowed additional dialogue written by Eugene himself to be included in the film. Additionally, Gogol Bordello performed ‘La Isla Bonita’ with Madonna at the 2007 Live Earth benefit concert in London, United Kingdom.”