Diana Ross for Ebony Magazine Spring 2019 She is the SUPREME ICON
Diana Ross, legendary Motown lead singer-turned-superstar, conquered the ’60s music charts and later the silver screen with her amazing voice, acting talent, beauty and style. As she celebrates her longevity in entertainment and 75th birthday, the phenomenal Ms. Ross reflects on fame, family and finding true self-fulfillment.
Get more of this interview over at Ebony Magazine HERE!
#RHOA: A Cast Shakeup: Cynthia Bailey’s is OUT???? And they don’t wan’t Kenya Moore back EVER?
The peaches are falling in Atlanta! As season 11 of The Real Housewives of Atlanta winds down according to RadarOnline.com they’ve learned future of the women on the show, including the status of NeNe Leakes and Cynthia Bailey The new enemies, who went head to head on the reunion show that aired on April 7 found NeNe and Cynthia at war with each other, and the of Cynthia is now up to the Bravo execs. “NeNe is coming back,” the show insider dished to Radar. “She’s had a rough season, but she is the one that Bravo wants.”
NeNe’s husband Gregg Leakes cancer battle took a toll on the couple, and she was fighting with everyone on the show, but her contract for the next season is confirmed. “Unless NeNe decides on her own not to do the show, they will have her back and give her a raise,” the source snitched.
NeNe was making $2.75 million for RHOA season 11. But Cynthia’s future on the show is less certain.
“Execs are still considering firing Cynthia and bringing Marlo [Hampton] on full time,” the insider spilled to Radar about the possibility of her losing her peach. Tanya Sam is a potential full-time replacement for Cynthia.
“She could get married and have a baby,and they would like that,” the source said about Tanya’s potential storyline. Marlo is a favorite of the network “She stirs the pot,” the source told Radar. “She’s fun, and makes for great TV.”
One woman who is not coming back is ousted cast member Kenya Moore “The executives hate Kenya still, and they know that she was trying to capitalize on her free appearance for publicity when she showed up at Cynthia’s party,” the source revealed.
“Kenya is definitely never, ever, ever coming back.” WOW! Well RHOA fans how do you feel about this???
#Empire: Mario Talks Losing Mom to Addiction, Filming Empire Amid the Jussie Smollett Debacle
R&B singer Mario is opening up about his personal life like never before.
His new single, Care For You, pulls back the curtain on his real-life heartbreak—and showcases his standout vocal talent has longtime fans excited his return to music.
“The song is really about a man realizing that it’s okay to feel, it’s okay to be vulnerable,” Mario, 32, says. “I think a lot of time in our lives, especially men who have gone through things and who have built this warrior shield around their heart, don’t want to admit when they feel something or don’t want to admit when they love someone. That’s where I wrote it from.”
It’s the second single from his fifth studio album, Dancing Shadows, and it’s a far cry from his well-known past hits like “Let Me Love You” and “How Do I Breathe.” The song’s music video takes fans on a journey of Mario’s life, starting with childhood and moving through his teenage years. In the first 30 seconds, the video confronts drug addiction, a national epidemic that Mario relates to on a personal level.
His mother, Shawntia Hardaway, died in 2017 after a long battle with heroin addiction. Their tumultuous relationship was documented on MTV’s I Won’t Love You to Death: The Story of Mario and His Mom. Now, two years after her death, Mario is reflecting on the painful loss, speaking up about how addiction affected his life and offering advice to the hundreds of thousands of people struggling.
“Addiction doesn’t just affect the user, it affects the family,” he says. “In some cases, you also feel like you’re addicted because you’re so close to it. You’re so immersed into the hope of them healing and choosing a brighter path.”
The R&B singer also got to test out his acting chops on the small screen this year with a guest-star spot on Fox’s hit musical drama Empire. Mario played Devon, an up-and-coming R&B singer, in the show’s fifth season.
The singer found himself filming Empire when one of the show’s stars, Jussie Smollett, was arrested after police alleged he plotted a hate crime against himself (charges have since been dropped). But despite the chaotic time, Mario says the ordeal did not significantly impact his work on set. Though Empire creator Lee Daniels said the cast “experienced pain and anger” in the midst of the situation, Mario found the environment to be nothing but professional.
“In terms of the actual rise and fall of the energy, it’s always shifting all the time,” says Mario, who had no scenes with Smollett. “So, I didn’t really feel a huge energy shift there. Everything was pretty normal … I think people were really trying to focus on the art [when] I was there. That’s what I was trying to focus on the whole time.”
Fox is still weighing in about Empire for a sixth season. In the meantime, you can catch Mario on the Millennium Tour with the hit early-2000s boy band B2K, made up of Lil’ Fizz, J-Boog, Raz-B and Omarion.
#NewMusic from Tamika Scott from Xscape ‘Tonite’
Tamika Scott (of Xscape) is stepping out on her own. On her lax new single “Tonite,” the R&B veteran uses Nas’ “One Mic (Remix)” instrumental and apes Phil Collins’ “In the Air Tonight” melody to sing about treating herself to an evening out with her girlfriends.
LISTEN HERE
“Tonite” is the first offering from Scott’s upcoming summer EP, The Movie. The project will be worked as her first solo release and her first musical endeavor since the legendary R&B group Xscape updated their stage name to Xscap3 last year.
#HipHopNews: Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” Lands At No. 1 On Billboard Hot 100
Just about two weeks removed from being taken off Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart, Lil Nas X finds a new home atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
On Monday (April 8), Billboard reported that "Old Town Road" has landed at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. According to the publication, Lil Nas X is the first artist since Cardi B ("Bodak Yellow," 2017) to land a No. 1 on the chart with their first song to enter the list.
Noted for its juxtaposition of trap topics and country imagery, Lil Nas X's breakout single is one that has had people reflecting on the underexplored rap sub-genre of country trap. While he's obviously become a central figure in the whole thing, he credits Young Thug as being the sound's primary pioneer.
“I believe whenever you’re trying something new, it’s always going to get some kind of bad reception,” Lil Nas X said in a Time interview while explaining why he thought "Old Town Road" was removed from Billboard's country chart. "For example, when rap started, or when rock and roll began. But with country trap, I in no way want to take credit for that. I believe Young Thug would be one of the biggest pioneers in that.” Word. Take a moment to salute Lil Nas X. And listen to the remix HERE.
Dwyane Wade & Gabrielle Union Support 11-Year-Old Son Zion at Miami Pride
The family attended the pride celebration and openly supported the adolescent..
NBA star Dwyane Wade missed attending the Miami Beach Gay Pride celebration with his family on Sunday. Despite being in Toronto for a game, he sent lots of love to his son Zion Wade, 11, for expressing himself during the festivities.
Zion attended the parade with his stepmother, Gabrielle Union, and his older brother, Zaire Wade. Although absent, the doting father shared pictures of his wife and children on Instagram.
“We support each other with Pride!” Dwyane wrote over a picture of Union and Zion, who held a rainbow flag fan and had a LGBTQ ribbon attached to his tank top.
The 11-year-old appeared in a photo with a group, which the three-time NBA champion captioned, “Zion had his on cheering section today. Wish i was there to see you smile kid!”
Zaire also shared an image with his younger brother from the celebration. He echoed the same supporting sentiment as his father, writing, “Love you bro, no matter what. Gotcha back, kid. Support gang!”
The Wade family has never shared Zion’s official coming out story with the public. In March, however, Dwyane received criticism when the young boy walked the runway during his A Night on the Runwade event.
Despite the negative comments, the family has continued to be vocal in supporting Zion. Several prominent members of the LGBTQ community applauded the family for being accepting.
“This just makes me so happy,” one user tweeted alongside photos from the parade. “Seeing Dwayne Wade embrace his son no matter who is, is what LGBTQ youth deserve!”
Lori Loughlin now indicted on money laundering charge in college admissions cheating case
Actress Lori Loughlin and her husband Mossimo Giannulli, along with 14 other parents, were indicted by a federal grand jury in Boston with money laundering, as part of the nationwide college admissions cheating case.
Loughlin and Giannulli, who were arrested last month on a criminal complaint, are charged with conspiring with William “Rick” Singer, 58, of Newport Beach, Calif., and others, to bribe SAT and ACT exam administrators to allow a test taker to secretly take college entrance exams in place of students, or to correct the students’ answers after they had taken the exam, and with bribing university athletic coaches and administrators to facilitate the admission of students to elite universities as purported athletic recruits.
The second superseding indictment also charges the two with conspiring to launder the bribes and other payments in furtherance of the fraud by funneling them through Singer’s purported charity and his for-profit corporation, as well as by transferring money into the United States, from outside the United States, for the purpose of promoting the fraud scheme.
The total charges against the two are one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and honest services mail and wire fraud, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
According to the charging documents, Loughlin and Giannulli “agreed to pay bribes totaling $500,000 in exchange for having their two daughters designated as recruits to the USC crew team — despite the fact that they did not participate in crew — thereby facilitating their admission to USC.”
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#BROADWAYNEWS: A Play Inspired by The works and Life of Maya Angelou Is Headed to Broadway!
A play inspired by the life and writings of Maya Angelou is headed to Broadway, Deadline reports.
A one-woman stage play, Phenomenal Woman: An Evening With Maya Angelou has the support of her son, Guy Johnson, and is being developed and produced by David Michael Rich and J. Todd Harris.
Johnson confirmed the play in a statement obtained by Deadline. “My mother lived an extraordinary life. She brought a sense of passion to living and invested herself wholly in it. What she wanted most was justice for human beings, and the freedom to experience joy and laughter,” he said.
“We hope to capture her joie de vivre [joy of living]. We’re going to include some private anecdotes that will be a revelation to audiences. I’m pleased to be working with this team in bringing her story to life and can’t wait for the public to experience it.”
Producers of the project have secured “exclusive theatrical rights for key works from Angelou’s estate and have signed Johnson to help develop the project.” If all goes according to plan, Phenomenal Woman: An Evening With Maya Angelou will make its Broadway debut in 2021.
The renowned author and poet passed away in 2014 at the age of 86. Fans and supporters of Angelou celebrated what would have been her 91st birthday with touching tributes last week.
OOOPS! HBO has silently Pulled the Plug on Leaving Neverland!
Last month Michael Jackson accuser James Safechuck was caught in a huge lie in the Leaving Neverland documentary on HBO after claiming he was abused by Jackson daily inside the train station at Neverland Ranch despite the station not being built at the time he claims he was abused [refresher for you HERE].
Well HBO quietly cuts short Leaving Neverland's run...Leaving Neverland was supposed to air on HBO until September but now the doc is ending this week.
The Estate of Michael Jackson is currently suing HBO and Michael's nephews are raising money to film a counter documentary.
Fun Fact: Oprah Winfrey also distanced herself from the documentary deleting interviews with Wade Robeson and James Safechuck from her Youtube channel. Obviously they all realized they’ve been duped!
Oscar-Winning Costume Designer Ruth E. Carter Begins Fittings For ‘Coming To America 2’
Coming To America 2 is starting production…Oscar-winning costume designer Ruth E. Carter excitedly announced she has begun preliminary costume fittings with Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall…under the watchful eye of “Oscar.”
Ruth wrote:
Based on her magical work with Black Panther – I know Ruth E. Carter is about to show out for Coming To America 2.
Donald Glover and Rihanna's 'Guava Island' Will Debut at Coachella
Their whirlwind adventure in Cuba will also premiere on the festival's YouTube livestream.
Donald Glover is poised to have a big moment during Coachella this year. The multitalented performer will premiere his mysterious new film Guava Island, co-starring Rihanna, on Coachella's livestream. Who needs to go to Palm Springs when you can just fire up your laptop?
Directed by Hiro Murai, who Glover has previously collaborated with on Atlanta and the "This Is America" video, Guava Island also features Letitia Wright of Black Panther fame. Last November, attendees of New Zealand's Pharos Festival got a sneak peek of the movie's trailer, in which Rihanna appeared to play Glover's love interest. The movie was shot in Cuba, and the short clip, captured by a stealthy festivalgoer on their phone, is just about all we've heard about the project until now.
This year Coachella's livestream will cover both weekends (April 12-14 and April 19-21) for the first time. The schedule includes sets from Gambino, Ariana Grande, Tame Impala, Kacey Musgraves, and Little Simz.
Sara Gilbert Announces She Is Leaving ‘The Talk’ At Season’s End
CBS’ The Talk creator/EP Sara Gilbert announced at the top of Tuesday’s broadcast that she is leaving the daily show at the end of the season.
“This is something I have been struggling with for a while, and going back and forth, but I’ve decided it’s time for me to leave the show,” Gilbert began.
News comes little more than two weeks after ABC announced it has ordered a second season of Roseanne spinoff The Conners, after series’ producer Werner Entertainment secured new deals with the core cast of Roseanne veterans, including Gilbert. ABC did not reveal number of episodes ordered, but it’s expected to be 13-episode-ish.
“I obviously love it here, and this was extremely difficult,” Gilbert continued emotionally on Tuesday’s The Talk.
“Last season I did The Conners and, as you know, also producing… and I loved it and felt totally empowered. But my life was slightly out of balance, and I was not spending as much time with my three kids as I would like.”
As she develops more programs to produce and opportunities to act, she said, she realized she could not “do it all” and decided to give up this gig on the CBS daytime talker that’s now nine years old.
It’s The Talk’s second major recent panel change.
In January, CBS made it official that Carrie Ann Inaba was replacing Julie Chen, wife of ousted CBS CEO Les Moonves’ on the daily talk show, Inaba joined Gilbert, Eve, Sharon Osbourne and Sheryl Underwood. Throughout the past two seasons, Inaba had appeared as a recurring guest co-host.
Inaba, maybe best known serving as a judge on ABC’s Dancing with the Stars for all 27 seasons, had been Chen’s choice to replace her on the CBS talker, as she made very clear in her taped video announcing her exit, which the show aired in early September to no one’s surprise, shortly after her husband got expelled from CBS Corp.
After paying tribute to each of her on-air colleagues, Chen told that day’s guest host Inaba “In my opinion you look awfully good sitting there, my Asian sister. I’m just saying!”
Wendy Williams defends Her 4am shopping trip in Upstate NY to WalMart: ‘Walmart is the social place’
TV host Wendy Williams is defending a viral photo of herself at a 24-hour Walmart in Upstate New York
E! News reports Williams, 54, returned to her daytime talk show, “The Wendy Williams Show,” on Monday to update fans on her health after a week off. She’s been living in a sober house, struggling with addiction amid rumors of marital troubles.
During her hiatus, she was photographed riding an electric shopping cart at a Walmart around 4 a.m. in Napanoch, N.Y., just outside of Ellenville -- approximately 35 miles west of Poughkeepsie in the Hudson Valley region. Williams explained that she went on a camping trip with friends also struggling with substance abuse, comparing it to her past experiences as a Girl Scout at Sleepaway Camp.
“I want to shout-out to my friends at the Walmart in a little-known place called Elin, New York,” Williams said Monday, referring to Ellenville. “A town of only maybe 300 people. It’s very, very small in Upstate New York. It’s very, very peaceful. The people are lovely. The biggest thing going is the Walmart. It’s (open) 24-hours.”
The audience laughed. “There were lions, tigers and bears. There was no running water in this hood trap that we slept in," she continued.
“We went up there and the Walmart is the social place. When I’m away from the show, sometimes I do take selfies, sometimes. At four o’clock in the morning, I’m sitting in this scooter … taking pictures with people. And I said, ‘Take a picture, and I’m going to act like I’m shopping.’"
Gasps and more laughs followed when the former radio host pulled up a less-than-flattering photo that circulated on blogs and social media.
“One of the best things about being truthful to yourself and truthful to you and having your own show is I can come on and dispel my own rumors,” Williams said. “The headline was, ‘Poor, lonely Wendy needs a hug'..."
“You know I have the Graves’ disease, where I have pressure behind my eyes. Sometimes my eyes go like this," she added, widening her eyes." Right? They caught me with an eye pop, also. She was wearing a robe. Yep, a Wendy Show robe. It was four in the morning in [Ellenville]. What do you want me to wear? A ball gown?”
Williams shared more photos of herself on the trip, riding an ATV and then holding a .22 shotgun. She also highlighted denim shorts she was wearing that she bought from the retail giant.
“The thing I love about Walmart is that a big girl like me can still wear a size 4 and feel good about herself," Williams said. "Thank you, [Ellenville]. Thank you, blogs. Do I look frail to you? I was just a little disgusted.”
“The Wendy Williams Show” airs weekdays at 10 a.m. on CBS/WTVH in the Syracuse area.
An California Uber Driver Arrested After He Returns To Burglarize Passengers’ Home After Their Airport Drop-Off
An Uber driver has been arrested after officials say he tried to burglarize his passengers’ home after dropping them off at the airport.
According to CBS17, police say Jackie Wilson completed a trip from an Airbnb rental in San Mateo to the San Francisco International Airport. After the ride, Wilson reportedly returned to the pickup location and tried to break in.
Fortunately, the home was equipped with a ring doorbell and security alarm, which, in turn, scared Wilson off. However, police say he still managed to burglarize a different home in the area, which was also equipped with a Ring security system. “[He] tore apart the whole house, tossed everything. All the drawers were open, and every piece of furniture moved. He opened my safe,” the victim, Scott said.
After the incident, the victims published the security footage from their Ring doorbell to the Ring community, which helped identify the suspect. According to the publication, the owner of the Airbnb contacted the victims and identified the intruder as the Uber Driver. ”He immediately contacted his tenants, who had just left within the hour and said, ‘Do you know this guy?’’ They said, ‘Yeah, that’s our Uber driver,” Scott said.
Although Wilson was identified, tracked down and arrested using the Uber App, the victims were horrified after learning the suspect had a criminal past, as they called for the company to screen their drivers. “I’m definitely thinking twice about taking ride shares after this. I’m thinking everybody should. I mean, this is a big deal. He used this to facilitate committing a crime,” Scott said.
Wilson was arrested and charged for burglary and attempted burglary, but police are still investigating the incidents to discover any other burglaries in the area. In the meantime, Uber is cooperating with officials.
AND FINALLY FROM “THE CRAZY PEOPLE SHOPPING AT WALMART” FILES
‘THE BEST…AROUND!’
If I was going to describe to a sketch artist what I think the World’s Best Farter looks like, I think you would have nailed it to perfection.
#EGGPLANT NATION Meet Tony The Tiger!
Meet Tony! Well to see more you can GO HERE TO SEE THE PICS! And remember they’re NSWF!
DISCLAIMER: WE DO NOT OWN any images posted on this blog. All images are found online or submitted.
ENJOY!
HAVE A GREAT DAY ALL!
EFREM
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