‘Power’ star Omari Hardwick talks football, 50 Cent and finding his path with Rolling Out Magazine
One wouldn’t necessarily expect a highly-touted high school athlete to aspire to become a poet; and one likely wouldn’t expect an established poet to pursue a career in acting; but Omari Hardwick has spent the majority of his life defying expectations. The Atlanta-born actor heads an acclaimed cast of talented actors on “Power,” the new crime drama series from Starz. He’s appeared in films such as Spike Lee’s Miracle at St. Anna and on series such as “Being Mary Jane,” but playing the conflicted James “Ghost” St. Patrick presented an interesting opportunity for Hardwick.
“This man has an organization that he created a very long time ago that centers on drug distribution around the greater parts of New York City — [he’s a] ‘pharmaceutical sales reps of illegal narcotics,’ ” Hardwick explains with a grin. “He distributes to the highest clientele in New York City, but he started out with the humble beginnings of Southside Jamaica, Queens.”
Ghost’s struggle to rise above the trappings of organized crime serves as the crux of the character’s moral conflict; and Hardwick was convinced to take the role after a lengthy conversation with the show’s creator, Courtney Kemp Agboh.
“I didn’t necessarily need work — in terms of a ‘desperate’ actor needing work,” he says. “I wanted it to be work that made sense to me and my career. But Courtney Kemp Agboh said her mantra was ‘OK, God.’ And she said she lived by this mantra for years that aided her in accepting what her call was. She would say ‘OK, God.’ ”
Agboh’s mantra resonated with Hardwick, and he was inspired to accept the role. Shortly thereafter, he got a phone call from another major figure involved with “Power”; executive producer 50 Cent.
“I was buying clothes or something for my daughter and we were having a conversation about him. And in the midst of having that conversation, the phone rang and it was a 917 number,” recalls Hardwick. “And I assumed it was production or whatever because I was the only one cast at that point. It happened to be him. And I was probably talking about him five seconds before that. He said, ‘I feel like you don’t know why I wanted you to do it and before we develop a relationship, I think you need to know — man-to-man, from my mouth — the reason why I chose you.’ We conversed for almost two hours.
“To this day, the conversations that we have are always about the same amount of time. They’re never 10 minutes or every single day, but when we get on the phone, it usually extends to the better part of three hours. It’s amazing. Courtney Kemp Agboh had been asked by him to create [this show]. When I put it all together, it made sense that he asked her to do it. It’s been amazing to watch and learn from him. Maybe he can say he’s learned from me, too. I’m humbled if he can say that.”
Rihanna is BIG TROUBLE for tweeting '#FreePalestine' and immediately DELETES it!
A source told TMZ that Rihanna clicked a link in an article that posted the tweet. She then deleted it after hearing from her fans, the source said. She then followed it with another tweet calling for peace.
Rihanna tweeted — then deleted — a message with the hashtag #FreePalastine on Tuesday.
First, Rihanna showed her support for Germany's soccer team. Then she tweeted her support for Palestine amid the country’s conflict with Israel.
"#FreePalestine," the singer posted Tuesday before almost immediately deleting the tweet.
Unlike a soccer match, the international conflict taking place between Israelis and Palestinians is costing innocent people their lives.
Although RiRi tried to backpedal on her international political view by deleting the post, it was retweeted nearly 70,000 times before she took it down, according to the Twitter analytics site Favstar.
@rihanna via Twitter
Rihanna tweeted '#FreePalestine' on July 15, then deleted the tweet.
Let's pray for peace and a swift end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict! Is there any hope?.... pic.twitter.com/jHD56KXkcu
— Rihanna (@rihanna) July 15, 2014
A source close to the sexy songstress told TMZ that Rihanna had clicked a link in an article and the politically charged tweet posted.
“She deleted it because it was never meant to be tweeted,” the source said.
“She didn't even realize it was a tweet until she started hearing from her fans,” the source added.
Rihanna followed up with a message calling for peace.
“Let’s pray for peace and a swift end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict! Is there any hope?” she wrote.
The Celebs all come out to Attend The 2014 Television Critics Association Summer Press Tour
The 2014 Television Critics Association Summer Press Tour was held in Beverly Hills and “Celebrity Apprentice” contestant/actress Vivica A. Fox (who turns 50 at the end of the month) was front and center on the red carpet for NBCUniversal's 2014 Summer Television Critics Association Tour at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. Aunt Viv looked cute and casual in her shimmery black and navy one-piece.
“Say Yes” singer Michelle Williams was colorful on the red carpet in a multicolored blazer and jeans, paired with some summery sandals.
Michelle posed it up alongside “Preachers of L.A.” star Deitrick Haddon. The twosome will appear in a new reality show coming to OXYGEN titled, “Fix My Choir”.
The show will follow the duo as they surprise a community, gospel or school choir each week to help them find perfect harmony within their group. Michelle and Deitrick will help each group tackle the issues most choirs endure including leadership, inter-personal conflicts, artistic direction and presentation.
“Preachers of L.A.” stars Bishop Clarence McClendon and Bishop Noel Jones were all smiles on the carpet.
Shonda Rhimes’ “How To Get Away With Murder” is coming to ABC this fall, starring actress Viola Davis. The Oscar-nominated actress took the stage to speak at the show’s panel during the Disney/ABC Television Group portion of the event.
Love her.
ABC series creator Shonda Rhimes was also on the panel with Viola. Speaking of Shonda, the official date of the brand new season of "Scandal" was revealed today. Kerry Washington took to her Twitter account and tweeted, "Get ready to put your white hats back on! #Scandal returns on Thursday, September 25 at 9|8c! #TGIT " Can't wait!
On another stage, actress Tichina Arnold spoke at the "Survivors Remorse" panel during the STARZ portion of the TCA tour.
Joining her in the discussion were executive producers Mike O'Malley, Maverick Carter, Tom Werner, actors Jessie T. Usher, RonReaco Lee, Teyonah Parris and Erica Ash.
Michelle also took the stage to speak during the “Fix My Choir” panel during the OXYGEN portion of the tour.
Fab times!
Brooks Wheelan Tweets: I Got Fired from SNL!
He spent the last season getting his feet wet in the waters of “Saturday Night Live,” and sadly Brooks Wheelan won’t be back for a second round.
The 27-year-old actor/comedian took to his Twitter account on Monday (July 14) to announce he’d been axed from the cast, though he seemed to be in good spirits.
Wheelan tweeted, "Had a blast and loved every second of it. I'm totally honored to be able to make this next joke... FIRED FROM NEW YORK IT'S SATURDAY NIGHT!"
And thankfully Brooks is already getting support from big name friends like Judd Apatow- "@brookswheelan you will have the Robert Downey Jr. post SNL career! (minus the painful drug addiction). Rock on friend!"
In response, Wheelan joked that he’ll "formally submit myself for the Ironman reboot in 2021 and the Chaplin reboot in 2032."
Beyonce Poses In Prints In New Instagram Pics
Between her “On the Run” tour performances with her hubby Jay Z, Beyoncé took to Instagram to share pics from an impromptu shoot. She looked gorge while striking a pose in a number of different outfits, including a Demestiks New York by Reuben Reuel romper (above), and african print shirt and Ramonde pencil skirt (directly below) also by the designer.
HBO will be airing a concert special featuring footage from the Sept. 12 and 13 dates of the “OTR” tour. The concerts will be held at Stade de France in Paris.
During some downtime, Bey snapped a photo of Blue enjoying a bounce on a trampoline, and in another they’re getting ready to jump into a swimming pool.
And of course, Knowles made sure to avoid showing her girl’s face, opting for only “from the back” angles.
Lauren London Confirms Her Relationship With Nipsey Hussel
Back in February we told you about these two possibly dating, they’ve been spotted together all over L.A., going on tour with him and being mentioned in one of his songs. Lauren finally confirmed her relationship with rapper Nipsey Hussle by posting him as her MCM. Seeing as this is the first relationship she’s publicly claimed, remember she was with Trey on and off for like 4 years and never even hinted towards a thing.
Meanwhile, he made ”Fumble” for her and talking about how she was one of the only 2 women he’s ever loved.
I guess you know it’s real when you confirm it on Social Media… There are rumors of her being possibly pregnant… So, we will see!
Pics from Patti Labelle’s 70th Birthday Bash
Patti LaBelle celebrated her 70th birthday Monday night among close friends and family at Cara Mia restaurant in New Jersey. Whoopi Goldberg and fashion icon André Leon Talley were among some of the celebrities in attendance for the bash. Ms. LaBelle’s actual birthday was May 24th, but due to a rigorous rehearsal schedule for her performance in Broadway’s After Midnight, she opted to postpone her party. The celebration was late but nonetheless epic.
Nice and Happy Belated Birthday Icon Diva!
Drake Announces Fourth Album “Views From The 6″
Drake, will be dropping his fourth album and he even has a title already ” View From The 6″…. Can we flashback to Jennifer Lopez “On the 6″ with that title?
According to Rap-Up
Drake was set to confirm the album title Tuesday morning (July 15) as part of an exhaustive roster of upcoming projects. The first arrives tomorrow (July 16), when the 27-year-old rapper hosts The ESPYs on ESPN. Then his record label OVO Sound, distributed by Warner Bros., will release its first two projects – Majid Jordan’s EP “Place Like This” and PARTYNEXTDOOR’s second full-length release, “PARTYNEXTDOOR TWO” on July 29. PARTYNEXTDOOR premiered a new song with Drake, “Recognize,” earlier this week as one of two songs available on the album’s pre-order.
Stevie J Post Picture of Benzino’s Boo Althea Giving Fellatio
Stevie J and Benzino are once again beefing and this time it’s over Althea… Stevie took it upon himself to post a picture of Althea giving fellatio to Benzino, but my question is, how did Stevie J get his hands on this and why did he post it ? This is clearly for people to tune in to the reunion show…… For FYI, when Stevie J first posted the picture she asked Stevie why he would post a picture of her giving him head? Stevie told her that wasn’t him in the pic and that’s when she said it was benzino. My thing is…how do u not know who you’re giving head to?
Before the picture leaked Benzino went in on Stevie J:
I still can’t get over the name “Althea”. Her name sounds like a town in Texas.
Althea, Texas…..JUST DAMN MESSY!
Rick Ross SPEAKS On Meek Mill & Wale’s Public Fall Out
MMG honcho Rick Ross is addressing the public feud between his two artists Meek Mill and Wale, while
There’s tension brewing inside the MMG camp after Meek Mill called Wale out on Twitter for not supporting his upcoming album, Dreams Worth More Than Money (dropping Sept. 9th).
Now the MMG captain Rick Ross is addressing the drama in his camp for the first time. During an interview with Bullett Media at one of his Wing Stop restaurants in Brooklyn, Rozay revealed he hopped on the phone with both of them right after shots were fired.
Here are the highlights:
On the way here, something was going on with Meek Mill and Wale. As the owner of the label, how do you handle when there’s conflict between two of your guys?
It’s a misunderstanding. As soon as the tweets went out, I spoke to both of them on the phone. Those two guys, they’re brothers. At the end of the day, they’re brothers and it’s time to turn up right now. It’s time for all of us to turn up and stay turned up, you know what I mean? But it’s all love between those two and everybody knows that.
The fact you got on the phone though shows how much you care.
Of course! That’s why you seen whatever was said, the little brotherly jabs and then that was it. That’s all you’re going to see. They’re two real dudes, two successful dudes, and we all came from the same place. When I first brought them on the team, we all drove to our first video set together. It was just us three, and I felt we all was at the bottom at the time. You know, Wale was in his new situation, Meek in his first situation, and me in my very first situation being a CEO, being a bawse with my own label deal. So we all was on the same flow, and once we mention that, it’s all good.
It’s just a testament to how you handle beef, because you’re pretty laid back about conflict, and when it’s done it’s done.
Of course! That’s how it’s supposed be, because we’re not here for that. What we’re here for is this, the culture! Fashion, the clothing, sneakers, sending that message – that’s what it’s about. You know certain things will occur; that’s just the nature of the game. There’s going to be dust kicked up at every arena, and you should all expect that. But at the same time, we’re focused on what we came for.
That's right Ross...keep these young brothers in line.
Katt Williams accused of assault with a deadly weapon
Katt Williams allegedly tries to run down fan
Comedian Katt Williams is under investigation following a run in with a Los Angeles fan. According to TMZ, Glen Jackson claims that Williams and his bodyguard attempted to run him over with his Rolls Royce after he tried to take a photo of him.
On Tuesday, Williams was cruising by LAX when Jackson allegedly pulled alongside the funnyman in hopes of snapping an image of him with his cellphone. The action alone, reportedly triggered an adverse reaction from Williams, who according to Jackson tried to snatch his phone and proceeded to pepper spray him, causing him to stumble out of his vehicle.
Once on the ground, Williams and his body guard returned to their vehicle, where they quickly sped past Jackson, smacking into his leg and dousing him a second time with pepper spray, before fleeing the scene.
Due to the nature of the crime, Inglewood police are investigating a possible assault with a deadly weapon.
Williams’ alleged confrontation with Jackson is the fourth violent incident in which he’s been involved within the past two weeks. Should authorities find sufficient evidence against Williams, he could be facing some very heavy charges.
AND FINALLY FROM “THE CRAZY PEOPLE SHOPPING AT WALMART” FILES
‘$5 Mustache Rides’
Who’s in the mood to make some fur babies?
HAVE A GREAT DAY ALL!!!
EFREM
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