Beyoncé Addresses ‘Formation’ Video Backlash, Says Her Message Is Not Anti-Police!
In addition to her new activewear brand for women, Ivy Park, perfectionism, and power – Beyoncé addresses backlash she received after releasing her new song/video -“Formation” – in her interview with ELLE.
Following its release, some called for a boycott of the singer, saying the video’s message is anti-police. In setting the record straight, Bey explained:
I mean, I’m an artist and I think the most powerful art is usually misunderstood. But anyone who perceives my message as anti-police is completely mistaken. I have so much admiration and respect for officers and the families of officers who sacrifice themselves to keep us safe. But let’s be clear: I am against police brutality and injustice. Those are two separate things.
If celebrating my roots and culture during Black History Month made anyone uncomfortable, those feelings were there long before a video and long before me. I’m proud of what we created and I’m proud to be part of a conversation that is pushing things forward in a positive way.
She adds that she is exhausted by labels, and doesn’t want calling herself a feminist to make it feel as though it’s her one priority, over racism, sexism or anything else.
“If you believe in equal rights, the same way society allows a man to express his darkness, to express his pain, to express his sexuality, to express his opinion—I feel that women have the same rights,” she says.
Beyoncé hopes that her work will encourage others do the right thing. “I hope I can create art that helps people heal,” she explains. “Art that makes people feel proud of their struggle. Everyone experiences pain, but sometimes you need to be uncomfortable to transform.”
#RHOA: Kenya Moore Continues To Fuel Pregnancy Rumors – “Practices” With Baby Stroller!
After fueling pregnancy rumors for months – many (including myself) thought she would wait for the RHOA reunion to reveal she was expecting; however in true Kenya form, nothing is straight forward!
When asked about it by Andy, Kenya stated that she couldn’t say. As she didn’t deny it, many took this as a “yes” but thought that she didn’t want to confirm until she was ‘x’ months along.
While I do understand that and realize that many women want to wait until after a certain time before announcing it, it seems like Kenya is just using this time to milk press for all it’s worth (as opposed to waiting until she is in the “safe zone”.)
Case in point? Kenya has used Instagram to say her “pants no longer fit” and more recently to take her dogs on a walk in stroller for “practice”.
If you ask me, whether Kenya is pregnant or not she is loving the extra spotlight she is getting for all of this!
Kenya posted the following photo to her Instagram saying:
“Practicing with #kingandtwirl with the baby stroller today”
In the photo, Kenya is also wearing a loose fit poncho so we can’t tell for sure if she has a baby bump. At this point she needs to either confirm or deny as she’s not politely asking people for privacy but instead is begging for speculation!
What are your thoughts on Kenya’s post? Do you think she’s pregnant? If so, do you think she should just announce it already?
#EMPIRE NEWS: 'Empire' Season 2 News, Spoilers: 'Expect Weddings And Funerals,' EP Says!
After Lucious (Terrence Howard) lost control of Empire to Camilla (Naomi Campbell) and Mimi (Marisa Tomei) and Hakeem (Bryshere Y. Grey), the new CEO, betrayed his father, things on the Fox musical drama "Empire" are almost at a boiling point.
"Empire" executive producer Ilene Chaiken recently spoke to Deadline about the recently debuted back half of season 2 and suggested that events on the show will only get more explosive from here on out.
In the interview, Chaiken explained why the back half of the second season will have fewer celebrity appearances than the first season and hinted at what's ahead for Camilla and Lucious.
"What I can say is that the first two episodes launch us into Season 2B and then it takes off like a demon," the "Empire" boss said.
Chaiken also spoke about the reason season 2B will have fewer guest stars than the show has ever had. According to the "Empire" show-runner, the show will focus on telling stories about the Lyon family and, as such, celebrity guest appearances will have to be "in the context of and in service of" the Lyons' stories.
As for what's in store for Camilla, who everyone but Hakeem seems to want to get rid of, Chaiken said, "Let's just say Camilla's story will be resolved in the way that the Lyon family resolves those kinds of situations."
Chaiken also hinted at a major storyline for the Lyon family patriarch, saying that "Empire" viewers will learn more about Lucious and what made him the man he is today.
"The past comes home to roost in a lot of different ways," she teased. "You can expect weddings and funerals."
Meanwhile, actor/performer Bryshere Y. Grey, who plays the youngest and most fame-obsessed Lyon son in "Empire," recently spoke to PEOPLE about the advice his idol, "Suicide Squad" actor Will Smith, has given him.
"[He tells me] to stay strong, keep the realness, stay truthful to your character, stay truthful to yourself, and keep your family around you," Grey said. "Keep God first."
"Empire" airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET on Fox.
DECISION 2016: Cruz, Sanders emerge victorious in Wisconsin primaries!
Trump’s defeat capped one of the worst periods of his campaign, a brutal stretch that highlighted his weaknesses with women and raised questions about his policy depth. While the billionaire businessman still leads the Republican field, Cruz and an array of anti-Trump forces hope Wisconsin signals the start of his decline.
“Tonight is a turning point,” Cruz told cheering supporters at a victory rally. “It is a call from the hardworking people of Wisconsin to America. We have a choice. A real choice.”
For Sanders, Wisconsin was the latest in a string of victories that have given him an incentive to keep competing against Clinton. But he still trails her in the pledged delegate count and has so far been unable to persuade superdelegates— the party officials who can back any candidate — to drop their allegiance to the former secretary of state and back his campaign.
The results in Wisconsin make it likely both parties’ primaries will continue deep into the spring, draping front-runners Trump and Clinton in uncertainty and preventing both from fully setting their sights on the general election.
For Sanders, Wisconsin was favorable territory, with an overwhelming white electorate and liberal pockets of voters, and the Vermont senator’s victory gives him a fresh burst of momentum.
Because Democrats award delegates proportionally, Sanders and Clinton will both emerge from Tuesday’s contest with more delegates.
Heading into Wisconsin, Clinton had 1,243 to Sanders’ 980 based on primaries and caucuses. When including superdelegates, the party officials who can back any candidate, Clinton holds a much wider lead — 1,712 to Sanders’ 1,011. It takes 2,383 delegates to win the Democratic nomination.
Clinton’s campaign has cast her lead as nearly insurmountable. Yet Sanders’ continued presence in the race has become an irritant for the former secretary of state, keeping her from turning her attention to the general election.
According to exit polls, Sanders has excited voters in Wisconsin, with more than half of Democratic primary-goers saying the senator inspires them more about the future of the country. But three-quarters of Democratic voters say Clinton has realistic policies.
The exit polls were conducted by Edison Research for The Associated Press and television networks.
Trump has battled a series of campaign controversies in the lead-up to Wisconsin, including his campaign manager’s legal problems following an altercation with a female reporter and his own awkward stumbles in clarifying his views on abortion. Wisconsin’s Republican establishment, including Gov. Scott Walker, has also campaigned aggressively against the businessman.
Exit polls in the state underscored the concerns about Trump that are surging through some corners of the Republican Party. Nearly 4 in 10 GOP voters in Wisconsin said they were scared about what Trump would do as president.
Complicating the primary landscape for both Cruz and Trump is the continuing candidacy of John Kasich. The Ohio governor’s only victory has come in his home state, but he’s still picking up delegates that would otherwise help Trump inch closer to the nomination or help Cruz catch up.
If Cruz wins all of Wisconsin’s 42 delegates, Trump would need to win 57 percent of those remaining to clinch the GOP nomination before the July convention. So far, Trump has won 48 percent of the delegates awarded.
To win a prolonged convention fight, a candidate would need support from the individuals selected as delegates. The process of selecting those delegates is tedious, and will test the mettle of Trump’s slim campaign operation.
Cruz prevailed in an early organizational test in North Dakota, scooping up endorsements from delegates who were selected at the party’s state convention over the weekend. While all 28 of the state’s delegates go to the national convention as free agents, 10 said in interviews that they were committed to Cruz. None has so far endorsed Trump.
Despite the concern among some Wisconsin Republicans about Trump becoming president, nearly 6 in 10 GOP voters there said the party should nominate the candidate with the most support in the primaries, which so far would be Trump. Even among voters who favored Cruz, 4 in 10 said the candidate with the most support going into the convention should be the party’s nominee
#NEWMUSIC: Ruben Studdard – Can’t Nobody Love You
Love some soulful horns, and Ruben Studdard brings it heavy with his brand new single “Can’t Nobody Love You,” the first release off his forthcoming album, When Love Calls Me, due out this fall.
The Grammy-nominated, American Idol winner teams up with Earnest Echols on the ’70s soul inspired love song. Declaring his unbeatable loving abilities, Studdard sings: “You can look high and low, but they can’t love you girl / No, they can’t love you like I do.”
Ruben has a busy TV schedule this week, including a performance on the finale of American Idol on Thursday.
Take a listen to his soulful new single HERE
The Velvet Teddy Bear is back!
#HIPHOPNEWS: HOT 97 Summer Jam Festival Stage Performers Announced
Hot 97 just announced the line up for their 2016 Summer Jam Festival Stage. Chance the Rapper, Torey Lanez, Curren$y and Desiigner were among the names revealed.
Post Malone, Dave East, Justine Skyy, Dougie F and Rotimi round out the line up that was revealed this morning on the Ebro in the Morning show.
In a press released on Hot 97’s website, Ebro states:
Last year’s show was so hot, it sold-out the morning of! So it left a few people unable to get tickets out in the parking lot. We want to make sure everyone gets to party with us this year, so get your tickets early and plan to get to MetLife for the Festival Stage, kicking off at 3 p.m.!
Presale tickets are on sale now. Performers on the Stadium Stage will be announced on Friday, April 8. General admission tickets will go on sale on Saturday, April 9.
#DISGUSTING! Mississippi Governor Signs 'Religious Freedom' Bill Into Law
Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant has signed a controversial "religious freedom" bill into law.
The legislation, HB 1523, promises that the state government will not punish people who refuse to provide services to people because of a religious opposition to same-sex marriage, extramarital sex or transgender people.
Supporters say it protects the rights of people who are opposed to homosexuality but who now live in a country where same-sex marriage is a legal right.
Opponents say the law amounts to a state sanction for open discrimination.
The Rev. Chris Donald, a Methodist chaplain at Millsaps College, joins other human rights advocates Wednesday at the state Capitol's rotunda, calling for the Mississippi Senate to defeat what they believe is a discriminatory anti-LGBT bill. The Senate passed the bill, which is now on the governor's desk.
In a statement on Twitter, Bryant said he signed the bill into law "to protect sincerely held religious beliefs and moral convictions ... from discriminatory action by state government."
He said the new law "merely reinforces" existing religious freedom rights, "does not limit any constitutionally protected rights or actions" and does not challenge federal law.
"The legislation is designed in the most targeted manner possible to prevent government interference in the lives of the people from which all power to the state is derived," Bryant said.
The law is not a broad religious-protections law, such as many recent controversial state laws. As we reported last week, the Mississippi legislation protects only three beliefs or convictions: that marriage is between a man and a woman, that sex is "properly reserved to such a marriage," and that words like "male" and "female" are "objectively determined by anatomy and genetics at birth."
The law protects, among other things, state employees who refuse to license marriages, religious organizations who fire or discipline employees and individuals who decline to provide counseling or some medical services based on those oppositions.
Did You Know It's Legal In Most States To Discriminate Against LGBT People?
Even without such a law, it is already legal in Mississippi — as in most states in the country — to discriminate against LGBT people in providing employment, housing and public accommodation.
The law's language also suggests protections for those who deny services based on an opposition to premarital sex; but similarly, it was already legal in Mississippi to deny an unmarried couple housing because of a moral objection.
Paul Boger of Mississippi Public Broadcasting reports that Republican state Rep. Andy Gipson of Braxton, who introduced the measure, says it has been misrepresented.
"It specifically says that is a case where a person has a religious conviction, they can decline, but they must provide somebody in their office to provide that service," Gipson says. That requirement covers state employees declining to license or perform a marriage.
LGBT advocates in Mississippi had been calling for Bryant, a Republican, to veto the legislation, as had members of the business community such as the Mississippi Manufacturers Association, Nissan North American and Tyson Foods.
The Family Research Council described business opposition to the measure as "economic blackmail" and celebrated Bryant's signature. "No person should be punished by the government with crippling fines, or face disqualification for simply believing what President Obama believed just a few years ago, that marriage is the union of a man and a woman," FRC President Tony Perkins said in a statement.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Mississippi's executive director, Jennifer Riley-Collins, said in a statement, "This is a sad day for the state of Mississippi and for the thousands of Mississippians who can now be turned away from businesses, refused marriage licenses, or denied housing, essential services and needed care based on who they are. This bill flies in the face of the basic American principles of fairness, justice and equality and will not protect anyone's religious liberty."
However, A nonprofit humanitarian group has the perfect response to the new Mississippi law that legalizes discrimination against the LGBT community.
The organization Planting Peace, which earned viral fame after purchasing a house adjacent to the Westboro Baptist Church and painting it with rainbow colors, may have outdone themselves entirely with a new billboard in Jackson, Mississippi. The billboard shows Jesus face-palming, along with the text, “Guys, I said I hate figs and to love thy neighbor,” making reference to a less well-known section of the Bible in which Jesus curses a fig tree, making it barren.
The billboard is located on High Street in downtown Jackson, just blocks away from the Mississippi State Capitol.
The law goes into effect July 1….SHAMEFUL!
Karrine Steffans Granted Temporary Restraining Order Against Columbus Short
Karrine Steffans has received a temporary restraining order against her husband, Columbus Short. According to multiple reports, the former Scandal actor has been instructed to move out of her home. We’re told that Karrine takes issue with Columbus’ erratic behavior, especially when he drinks and becomes physically violent. Reportedly, Columbus threatened Karrine’s 18-year-old son. Karrine has remained mum on social media. Last week, shortly after their split, she tweeted the following:
And on Monday, Columbus tweeted:
Columbus nor Karrine have yet to comment on the restraining order
LA Lakers Deactivate Nick Young
LA Lakers head coach deactivates Nick Young amid cheating scandal...
Last week LA Lakers D'Angelo Russell apologized for posting video online of teammate Nick Young admitting that he cheats on his fiancé, Australian rapper Iggy Azalea.
This week Lakers head coach Bryon Scott confirms Nick has been deactivated because he head isn't in the game.
Coach Scott tells the media,
“It has nothing to do with chemistry and everything to do with just basketball. Right now, I know what he’s going through, and I know it’s hard on him. But he’s not here with us, mentally, and there’s no need for me to put him out there on the floor.”
DAMN HOMIE!
#WINNING? NeNe Leakes Adds a Second Show in Charlotte
Last month NeNe Leakes announced a one-off one woman stage show in Charlotte,
NeNe adds a second performance after the first show sells out...
Strange that she’s such a friend of the Gays that she would still go perform after that hate bill has been signed into law!
Adele Overcomes Sound Issues And Emerges Victorious In Birmingham UK
Ever since the microphone fell on her piano during the Grammy Awards earlier this year, Adele has consistently proven she’s a consummate professional performer regardless of her context.
Case in point- a few nights ago, the “Hello” songstress was giving a concert in Birmingham, England when the house PA system suddenly cut out.
Rather than freaking out, Adele kept singing “All I Ask” through to the end, and as it turns out her in-ear monitors had been working just fine. She asked the crowd, “The sound went off? The PA f*cking cut off? So you guys had a private concert down in the front? Every f*cking show I sing live.” Check the video HERE!
YESSSS!
The Celebs come out to Celebrate "Jungle Book" Premiere
Lupita Nyong'o arrived at The Jungle Book premiere at Hollywood's El Capitan Theatre in this fabulous gold skirt and simple tee as she promoted her upcoming animated film.
She brought her brother Peter along for her big night, and posed it up with co-star (who is the only human in the movie) Neel Sethi:
'Pita added a denim jacket and posed it up with her upcoming Queen of Katwe co-star David Oyelowo.
Lupita's pulling double duty as she's currently starring on Broadway in Eclipsed. So she hopped a cross-country flight to link up with her co-stars to promote their big movie.
Fab designer Rachel Roy brought her gorgeous daughters Ava and Tallulah Dash to see the epic film.
The gorgeous Garcelle Beauvais, new host of "Hollywood Live," brought her adorably dressed twins Jax and Jaid.
"Grey's Anatomy" and "Mistresses" star Jason George brought his wife and kids out for some fun.
Faizon Love was there and grabbed a pic with his longtime friend Kym Whitley.
The Jungle Book hits theaters April 15th.
#EGGPLANT NATION!!! Meet That Butter Pecan Man!
AND FINALLY FROM “THE CRAZY PEOPLE SHOPPING AT WALMART” FILES?
‘BACK IN BLACK’
Bro, WTF? If you’re going to wear leggings like that, fine. Go for it. But with sandals? C’mon dude, you’re better than that.
HAVE A GREAT DAY ALL!!!
EFREM
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