Las Vegas Weekly

July 6, 2009 · 1:56 PM

Photo Gallery: Jay-Z, LeBron, Jamie Foxx, Rihanna and Holly Madison

By Robin Leach

LeBron James at Tao Beach.

Photo: Al Powers

It was the star-studded holiday weekend that just couldn’t be beaten anywhere in the world. This wasn’t just the A-List of showbiz kings and queens, it was the AAA platinum directory! Vegas DeLuxe had it covered from start to finish thanks to our spywitnesses and the photographers who kept all the action in focus!

Click HERE for our coverage of the Jay-Z and Ciara concerts at the Palms, and click HERE for our coverage of the Jamie Foxx shows at The Rogue Joint in the Hard Rock Hotel.

The three days of nonstop fun began when Jamie Foxx hosted his Sirius Radio program Foxxhole at Carey Hart’s Wasted Space in the Hard Rock Hotel and paid tribute to Michael Jackson with the King of Pop’s music, plus even some dance moves for the crowd. Later at Wasted Space, adult film star Nikki Benz had all the eyes a-popping when she partied with friends. After his second consecutive show at The Rogue Joint, Jamie hung out with MC Hammer and Too Short, who had joined him onstage during the show. Later at Body English, MC took Mistah Fab to join the party, where they ran into boxing champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. Nearby at Rare 120, actor Ian Ziering enjoyed dinner before watching Jamie’s show.

Photo: Hard Rock Hotel

Mistah Fab and MC Hammer.

The daytime hours at the Palms Pool & Bungalows began with DJ AM as he played for the packed party people, including Lance Briggs of the Chicago Bears, Ray Maualuga of the Cincinnati Bengals and Kaluka Maiava of the Cleveland Browns, who were spotted hanging out with friends drinking beer and tequila throughout the afternoon and chatting with fans. Early evening, singer Rihanna hosted dinner in Nove Italiano inside the Palms for 12 guests in the private dining room. Guests enjoyed pizza, calamari, Crudo and prawn cocktails, while for her main course, Rihanna ordered the signature spaghetti Bolognese and a special calamari dish created by executive chef Geno Bernardo before they headed off to watch Jay-Z and Ciara in concert at The Pearl. Palms owner George Maloof’s brother Gavin stopped by their table to welcome them. Downstairs in N9NE Steakhouse, Floyd hosted 10 guests for dinner in the main dining room, and in training now for his fight against Manuel Marquez, he stuck solely to Fiji water and lemonade. Dressed casually in gym attire, he enjoyed the chicken Caesar salad followed by Maine lobster tails and surf crab legs. At a nearby table, Amare Stoudemire, wearing his Phoenix Suns cap, and seven guests dined on rock shrimp followed by rib eye with creamed corn. Next door in Rain, DJ AM continued the holiday weekend with a sold-out crowd including Jason Terry of the Dallas Mavericks and Javon Walker of the Oakland Raiders.

Photo: Joe Fury/N9NE Group

Javon Walker and friends at Rain in the Palms.

Photo: Al Powers

LeBron James at Lavo.

Basketball royal LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers made a grand entrance to start his daytime hosting duties at Tao Beach in long shorts, a black T-shirt and dark sunglasses, but he quickly shed the shirt, displaying his superstar tattoo-covered physique. He alternated water, Moet Rose champagne and frozen lemonade with fresh blackberries. He continued his July 4th festivities at Lavo in the adjoining Palazzo after watching Jay-Z’s concert at the Palms. But it was as if he brought the concert stars with him, as Jay-Z arrived with an entourage of 30, including his protege Rihanna in a black pencil skirt and white tank top. The entire group took over two tables and even danced in the dining room when the DJ played Michael Jackson tracks. Jay-Z handled the toasts with Patron and a cake to celebrate his manager John Meneilly’s birthday. That triggered LeBron into ordering two magnums of Moet Rose and inviting everybody up to Lavo nightclub. The now 50-strong group led by Jay-Z and Rihanna took over the entire VIP area in front of DJ Reach’s booth. Rihanna danced with Jay-Z and LeBron before calling it a night, when Fabolous and Melody Thornton of the Pussycat Dolls joined the party.

Photo: Al Powers

Pussycat Dolls' Melody Thornton at Lavo.

Photo: Al Powers

Fabolous at Lavo.

Jay-Z and Rihanna also showed up with LeBron the next day when MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice performed at Wet Republic in MGM.

Photo: Scott Harrison/Retna/www.harrisonphotos.com

Vanilla Ice at Wet Republic.

Photo: Scott Harrison/Retna/www.harrisonphotos.com

Vanilla Ice at Wet Republic.

For the second consecutive night, Rihanna attended Jay-Z’s Palms performance, and then their 30-strong entourage took off for Tao in The Venetian. This time, Rihanna wore silver sequined pants and a black blazer with only silver sequin pasties underneath! The group dined under the giant Buddha feasting on Jay Z’s request for his favorite sea bass and chicken fried rice. LeBron and Fabulous took the table right next to them and simply told the gorgeous waitress, “We’ll have what they’re having!” Upstairs in Tao nightclub, they had the dance floor tables just in time for the arrival of Jamie Foxx. Clubgoers were in awe as Chinese dragon dancers and girls in bathtubs set the stage for the delivery of 20 bottles of Ace of Spades champagne as a gift to the stars from another nearby guest. Jamie jumped on the mic for a mini-show, including his hit “Alcohol,” plus a Michael Jackson tribute. He even introduced his mom to the crowd before calling it a night at 4 a.m. Also enjoying all the revelry was Ryan Starr.

Photo: Denise Truscello/WireImage

Holly Madison at Tao Beach.

Photo: Denise Truscello/WireImage

Holly Madison at Tao Beach.

The starry weekend wasn’t over after the fireworks as far as Tao was concerned because Peepshow star Holly Madison hosted her all-day beach party there yesterday, and the bikini-clad blonde beauty wowed fans. She posed for photos and signed autographs before relaxing in a private VIP cabana. Said Jason Strauss, Tao managing partner: “You couldn’t have asked for a better and bigger celebrity turnout for the incredible holiday weekend.”

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

Follow Robin Leach on Twitter HERE.

Follow Vegas DeLuxe on Twitter HERE.

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