Breonna Taylor THE GREAT FIRE for Vanity Fair Magazine!
In a series of interviews, the author spoke to Tamika Palmer to paint a picture of a full, loving life taken too soon.
Shortly after midnight March 13, strangers shot and killed Breonna Taylor in her own home. The strangers claimed to be investigating a drug case. The strangers found no drugs in Breonna Taylor’s home. The strangers left their incident report almost totally blank.
Tamika Palmer is Breonna Taylor’s mother. What follows is her attempt to illuminate the life that was taken. To grapple with the nature of strangers. To fill in the blanks.
Kenny calls me in the middle of the night. He says, Somebody kicked in the door and shot Breonna. I am dead asleep. I don’t know what he’s talking about. I jump up. I get ready, and I rush over to her house. When I get there, the street’s just flooded with police—it’s a million of them. And there’s an officer at the end of the road, and I tell her who I am and that I need to get through there because something had happened to my daughter. She tells me I need to go to the hospital because there was two ambulances that came through, and the first took the officer and the second took whoever else was hurt. Of course I go down to the hospital, and I tell them why I am there. The lady looks up Breonna and doesn’t see her and says, Well, I don’t think she’s here yet. I wait for about almost two hours. The lady says, Well, ma’am, we don’t have any recollection of this person being on the way.
So I go back to the apartment. And I am able to get through the street a little more. And when I get up to the apartment, it’s still taped off and roped up around. So I tell the officer there that I need to get in the apartment, that something is going on with my daughter. He tells me to hang tight. He tells me hang tight, he’ll get a detective over there to talk to me. It takes a little while for him to come. He introduces himself. I don’t remember what his name actually is, but he kind of just goes on to ask me if I knew anybody who would want to hurt Breonna, or Kenny, or if I thought they were involved in anything. And I go, Absolutely not. Both of them got jobs. They go to work. They hang out with each other. That’s about it. I ask where Kenny is, and the detective tells me, Hold on. I’ll be back.
But it’s about another hour or so before he comes back. He asks me if Breonna and Kenny had been having any problems or anything. I say, Absolutely not. Kenny would never do anything to Breonna. And then I say, Where’s Kenny. I need to talk to Kenny. He says, Well, Kenny’s at one of our offices. He’s trying to help us piece together what happened here tonight. We are out there for a number of hours afterward. It’s kind of chilly. I leave. I get coffee and come back. I’m still standing out there waiting. It’s about 11 in the morning when the officer comes over and says that they are about done and they are wrapping up, and we will be able to get in there once they are finished. I say, Where’s Breonna, why won’t anybody say where Breonna is? He says, Well, ma’am, she’s still in the apartment. And I know what that means.
Get more of this story at Vanity Fair Magazine!
#RHOA: NeNe Leakes Continue Tweeting Amid Contract Negotiations!
NeNe Leakes continued her cryptic tweeting spree Friday amid “Real Housewives of Atlanta” contract negotiations.
“You can have it all. Just give me my name (Tina Turner),” she tweeted winking at Turner’s divorce from Ike, where she asked to keep her stage name. Leakes started the mysterious tweets last month as reports surfaced of fresh and younger faces joining the cast.
On Friday, she tweeted about protecting others as she’s left high and dry, but did not name past or present castmates.
“I hav [sic] protected every1 [sic] for years and covered up things I shouldn’t have! I took the beating so others didn’t have too [sic] and no one has protected me or stood up for me. Y’all have gone silent and turned the other cheek. You are NOT exempted from getting this same treatment 1 day,” she said.
She is reportedly on the chopping block or on the verge of having a reduced role.
An insider, who admitted to being puzzled by Leakes’ tweets, said “[her role] is all still very much in the air.”
Reps for Bravo and Leakes did not comment.
#MusicNews: Beyonce Drops 'Brown Skin Girl' Music Video!
A few weeks ago, Beyoncé dropped her musical film/visual album Black Is King via Disney+, but if you haven't watched the film yet, you can now see the video for "Brown Skin Girl" even if you don't subscribe to the streaming service.
Fans can watch "Brown Skin Girl" via YouTube, and it is full of cameos, including Queen Bey's daughter Blue Ivy, her Destiny's Child bandmate and close friend Kelly Rowland, Naomi Campbell, and Lupita Nyong'o. Lupita, Naomi and Kelly also appear in the song's lyrics: "Pose like a trophy when they Naomi walking/ She need a Oscar for that pretty dark skin/ Pretty like Lupita when the cameras close in/ Drip broke the levy when my Kelly's Rowland."
WATCH HERE
Aside from all of the celebrity appearances, the "Brown Skin Girl" visual showcases Black debutants and a debutant ball.
In a special statement to Good Morning America, Beyoncé explained that it was vital to represent "all different shades of brown" and explained that the Black debutant idea came from the mind of director Jenn Nkiru. She said, "It was so important to me in 'Brown Skin Girl' that we represented all different shades of brown, and wanted every character to be shot in a regal light. Jenn Nkiru came up with the Black debutants." Bey added, "It was important that we're all in this together and we all are celebrating each other."
When Black Is King was first released at the end of July, Beyoncé appeared on Good Morning America to explain what the year-in-the-making project meant to her. She said:
"I worked with a diverse group of very gifted directors and actors and creatives from all over the world to re-imagine the story of The Lion King. The narrative unfolds through music videos, fashion, dance, beautiful natural settings and raw new talent. But, it all started in my backyard. So, from my house, to Johannesburg, to Ghana, to London, to Belgium, to the Grand Canyon, it was truly a journey to bring this film to life."
The star added, "My hope for this film is that it shifts the global perception of the word 'Black,' which has always meant inspiration and love and strength and beauty to it. But, 'Black Is King' means Black is regal, and rich, and history, and purpose, and in lineage."
#HipHopNews: Big Sean Reveals ‘Detroit 2’ Album Release Date, Cover Art!
Big Sean has announced a release date and revealed the cover for his long-awaited fifth album Detroit 2. The project is set to arrive Friday, Sept. 4. The artwork was photographed by Mike Carson last summer in Sean’s hometown of Detroit and features street performers hovering above Sean while playing drums on buckets of roses.
On Sunday, Sean Don revealed that the album was done and in the mixing phase. “I feel nothing but happy! Finally done recording #D2,” he said. “Time for mixing.”
Detroit 2 marks the follow-up to Sean’s 2012 mixtape Detroit, which featured Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, and French Montana, and his first solo album since 2017’s chart-topping I Decided.
May. “My thing is, I want people to feel the vibration of it and rise to their success though, more so than anything… The most satisfying thing is to see the people who you helped along the way change the world with you.”
Sean has yet to reveal the tracklist, but in March, he dropped a trailer featuring appearances from Young Thug, Ty Dolla $ign, Post Malone, Jhené Aiko, and A$AP Rocky.
The Real: Garcelle Beauvais to Join as Co-Host After Tamera Mowry Exit!
The Real is wasting no time in replacing Tamera Mowry: The syndicated daytime talker has added Garcelle Beauvais to the hosting panel, TVLine has confirmed.
“I am thrilled to be joining the dynamic, bold and diverse women on the award-winning talk show The Real,” Beauvais said in a statement. “My love for pop culture and news, blended with my natural gift of gab, has always made me gravitate towards a talk show environment.” (Our sister site Variety first reported the news.)
The Real returns for Season 7 on Monday, Sept. 21, with Beauvais joining co-hosts Loni Love, Jeannie Mai and Adrienne Houghton (neé Bailon) in a virtual format filmed remotely due to the global coronavirus pandemic. Original co-host Tamera Mowry left the series last month after a seven-year run, and comedian Amanda Seales also exited after less than a year, saying that “the people at the top are not respecting the necessity for Black voices at the top.”
Beauvais is best known as a TV actress, with long stints on The Jamie Foxx Show and NYPD Blue. Recently, she had recurring roles on Freeform’s Siren and CBS All Access/The CW’s Tell Me a Story, and also joined the cast of Bravo’s The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills for the current Season 10.
Gabrielle Union Calls ‘America’s Got Talent’ Drama ‘Heartbreaking’!
Gabrielle Union says her exit from “America’s Got Talent” was one of the hardest things she’s dealt with in Hollywood.
Union, 47, recalled her experience at the “Minding Her Business” panel discussion at the virtual American Black Film Festival as “so surprising and so heartbreaking and so frustrating and so unnecessary,” per USA Today.
The actress continued, explaining that the situation, in which she was ousted from the NBC show, “[felt] like such a public flogging” and led to her “standing in my truth and standing on the side of employee rights and knowing there’s a better way of doing business.”
She added, “But that whole process was really brutal and knowing that I brought my team into that, it just sucked.”
Union and fellow judge Julianne Hough were both cut from the show in November 2019. NBC launched an investigation into the show after Union claimed there was racism behind the scenes, but found no wrongdoing by May 2020.
In June 2020, the actress filed a harassment complaint against NBC, claiming NBC’s entertainment chief Paul Telegdy — who is currently under investigation by the network — tried to silence her reports of racism. She called NBC “a snake pit of racial offenses.” She later alleged that NBC threatened her agent.
Kevin Hart tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this year!
Kevin Hart said in a stand-up set over the weekend that he tested positive for COVID-19 early in the pandemic.
Performing at the latest iteration of Dave Chappelle’s An Intimate Socially Distanced Affair show in Yellow Springs, Ohio, Hart said of his diagnosis, “The problem is that I had it around the same time as Tom Hanks, and I couldn’t say anything because he’s more famous than I am.”
Chappelle has spent $100,000 on coronavirus rapid testing for attendees of the outdoor shows he’s held this summer, with other performers including Donnell Rawlings, Bill Burr, Michelle Wolf, Questlove and Tobe Nwigwe.
Scott Peterson's Death Penalty Sentence Overturned 18 Years After Laci Peterson's Murder!
The California Supreme Court has addressed Scott Peterson's future behind bars.
On Monday, Aug. 24, the courts rejected his claim that he received an unfair trial. As a result, they affirmed his convictions for the murder of his wife Laci Peterson and their unborn son, Conner.
However, E! News can confirm that the courts ordered Scott's death sentence to be removed.
"Before the trial began, the trial court made a series of clear and significant errors in jury selection that, under long-standing United States Supreme Court precedent, undermined Peterson's right to an impartial jury at the penalty phase," Justice Leondra Kruger wrote in her decision. "While a court may dismiss a prospective juror as unqualified to sit on a capital case if the juror's views on capital punishment would substantially impair his or her ability to follow the law, a juror may not be dismissed merely because he or she has expressed opposition to the death penalty as a general matter."
Scott is currently serving his sentence at San Quentin State Prison in California.
Laci's disappearance on Christmas Eve 2002 quickly captivated the nation partly because she was eight months pregnant when she vanished.
Originally, Scott said he had gone fishing the day of her disappearance in the San Francisco Bay. Nearly four months later, the remains of Laci and Conner were found less than two miles from where Scott claimed he was fishing.
A San Mateo County juror later convicted Scott in November 2014 of one count of first-degree murder for killing his wife and one count of second-degree murder for killing their unborn son.
Scott has argued that his trial was flawed for multiple reasons including the amount of pre-trial publicity that surrounded the case. According to Justice Kruger's latest statement, "We reject Peterson's claim that he received an unfair trial as to guilt and thus affirm his convictions of murder."
In 2005, Laci's mom Sharon Rocha released her book For Laci: A Mother's Story of Love, Loss and Justice that details her daughter's life.
"I've never been able to fully understand why Laci's disappearance and murder captivated so many people, but I had my own theory," Sharon previously told ABC News. "I believe that Laci wasn't going to allow Scott to get away with murder, so she kept the spotlight shining down on him until he was convicted."
Jeffree Star CLAPS BACK at Claims He’s Paying New Boyfriend To Date Him!
Jeffree Star fired back Monday over allegations he is paying his new boyfriend to date him, two days after sharing a cozy photo with a mystery man.
“I know it’s devastating news for some people, but I don’t give money to anyone I’m dating or anyone who is f–king me. Work on your own insecurities sis, I’m not the problem, the 34-year-old makeup guru tweeted.
“Worry about how to pay your own bills, not who’s in my mouth 💯 Thank you, God bless – Upper management,” Star also wrote.
Star, who split from boyfriend Nathan Schwandt earlier this year, threw social media into a tizzy on Monday, when fans played internet detectives to determine the identity of his new beau.
In a photo posted to Instagram, Star is seen straddling the unnamed suitor, whose face is not visible, but muscular, tattooed arms are.
“Thankful for all the blessings God has brought into my life this year,” Star captioned Saturday’s post.
Later in the day Monday, Star shared photos and videos of himself spending time with his new squeeze. Star did not name or tag the bachelor in question in his posts.
On Tuesday, Star told his 14.7 million Instagram followers that he is “hanging out with someone amazing.”
Christina Aguilera Explains Why the 20th Anniversary Edition of Her Debut Album Was Never Released!
Christina Aguilera is celebrating the 21st anniversary of her debut album and fans want to know what happened to the 20th anniversary edition that was supposed to be released
The 39-year-old singer wrote on Twitter, "Happy 21st anniversary to my debut, self titled album! So crazy -- 21 years ago, I scored Reflection and my record deal in the same week. Fast forward to today, the 21st anniversary is falling on the same week my new rendition of Reflection is dropping. The stars are aligning."
A fan replied, "What about the special digital edition for the 20th anniversary tho Mss Queen?"
Christina responded, "Haha 100% fair point! I never forgot about it & was disappointed that it never came to fruition. Originally I wanted reimagined new material to coincide with the digital release. But due to timing with touring & Vegas, it wasn’t able to be done to my standard of quality."
She continued, "So I decided to postpone to when the time felt right.
Anything worth doing is worth doing right...so I will definitely readdress this in the future. Thanks for bringing to my attention. I never want to 'settle' in giving you my best always."
Later this week, Christina will be releasing her new version of "Reflection."
Dwayne Johnson Expects Justin Bieber & Hailey Baldwin To Have A Baby Soon!
Justin Bieber and Hailey Baldwin might be having baby fever after the pair met their new niece over the weekend.
"Aunties girl," the super-model captioned on Instagram Story on Sunday (August 23) of her newborn niece, the first child from Alaia Baldwin, 27, and her husband Andrew Aronow. Bieber, on the other hand, went all out with his post, sharing a number of photos of Iris Elle. "My baby niece iris .. scroll through and whiteness the most squishy cute gumdrop ever!! Love you @alaiabaldwin and @andrewaronow! She’s so precious!” Like all of their fans, Dwayne Johnson saw their excitement over the infant, replying, "This image pretty much seals the deal. Fully expect you and H to have a baby in 2021."
Earlier this year, Bieber spoke about the possibility of becoming a father. "I want to start my own family in due time," the star said in a February interview. "I want to enjoy being married for a little bit, go on tour, be married, enjoy traveling with just us, build more of our relationship. I think that it’s definitely the next step, for sure."
On the music front, it’s rumored that Bieber has teamed up with Miley Cyrus for a new collaboration as the two were seemingly spotted in the same neon-lit recording studio earlier this month.
Fastest Man Alive Usain Bolt Tests Positive For Coronavirus!
World-record sprinter and eight-time Olympic gold medalist Usain Bolt has tested positive for the coronavirus and is self-isolating at his home in Jamaica after last week celebrating his 34th birthday with a big bash mask-free.
Jamaica’s health ministry confirmed late on Monday that Bolt, who holds world records in the 100m and 200m distance, had tested positive after he posted a video on social media around midday saying he was waiting to hear back on his results.
“Just to be safe I quarantined myself and just taking it easy,” Bolt said in the message that he appeared to have taped himself while lying in bed. It was posted with the caption “Stay safe my ppl”.
The only sprinter to win the 100m and 200m golds at three consecutive Olympics (2008, 2012 and 2016) said he did not have any symptoms of COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the novel coronavirus.
Bolt said he took the test on Saturday, the day after he celebrated his birthday at a bash where partygoers danced to the hit “Lockdown” by Jamaican reggae singer Koffee.
“Bet birthday ever,” Bolt, who retired from athletics in 2017, wrote on Instagram, posting a photo of himself holding his daughter, Olympia, who was born in May.
Fans wished Bolt a speedy recovery on social media - “drink up your ginger tea,” one wrote - although some accused him of carelessness.
Daily confirmed cases in Jamaica have surged to more than 60 per day over the past four days from less than 10 just a few weeks ago. Jamaica now has 1,612 confirmed cases, with 622 active cases and 16 deaths from coronavirus.
Officials put the uptick in cases down to the reopening of international borders as well as celebrations over a long weekend in August marking Independence Day and Emancipation Day.
They also put the blame at the feet of people who refuse to wear masks and practice social distancing.
The pickup has raised concerns over national elections that Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness called for in September, six months ahead of schedule.
Holness on Sunday suspended all his campaigning activities, including motorcades, home visits and rallies, and asked other parties to do the same.
Authorities have also delayed the reopening of schools for one month and citizens are under a national curfew from 7 p.m. to 5 a.m.
Lamar Odom and Sabrina Parr Set a Wedding Date!
Last year retired NBA player Lamar Odom proposed to his girlfriend Sabrina Parr just a few months after hooking up
Lamar and Sabrina have set their wedding date...
Over the weekend Sabrina and Lamar shared a 'Save the Date' post on Instagram announcing they were planning to marry next year on 11-11-21 in Miami.
KFC Removes ‘Finger-Lickin’ Good’ Slogan Amid Coronavirus Pandemic!
Thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, Kentucky Fried Chicken is scrapping its “finger-lickin’ good slogan— at least for the time being.
TMZ reports that the chain announced on Monday that it suspended the use of the slogan after 64-years, saying it “doesn’t feel quite right” given the current climate.
Interestingly enough, KFC blurred the slogan on its buckets of chicken in the UK and Ireland, instead of completely removing it.
The slogan will be back when the timing is right, according to the company.
TikTok Sues The Trump Administration For Trying To Ban The App!
TikTok is officially suing the Trump Administration for trying to ban the app in the U.S.
The video platform, owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, filed a lawsuit Monday against the U.S. government.
The app argues that it isn’t a national security threat and says that they have been denied due process due to Trump’s executive order.
“We do not take suing the government lightly; however, we feel we have no choice but to take action to protect our rights and the rights of our community and employees,” TikTok said in a statement. “With the Executive Order threatening to bring a ban on our U.S. operations — eliminating the creation of 10,000 American jobs and irreparably harming the millions of Americans who turn to this app for entertainment, connection and legitimate livelihoods that are vital especially during the pandemic — we simply have no choice.”
Earlier this month, Donald Trump filed the executive order banning TikTok by September 15, citing the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
Trump claimed the Chinese-based app was a threat to national security and could steal American users’ data.
TikTok is currently in talks to sell its American, Canadian, Australian, and New Zealand operations to American companies Microsoft and Oracle in order to save it from being banned in the U.S.
“The executive order seeks to ban TikTok purportedly because of the speculative possibility that the application could be manipulated by the Chinese government,” TikTok wrote in the lawsuit.
“But, as the U.S. government is well aware, Plaintiffs have taken extraordinary measures to protect the privacy and security of TikTok’s U.S. user data, including by having TikTok store such data outside of China (in the United States and Singapore) and by erecting software barriers that help ensure that TikTok stores its U.S. user data separately from the user data of other ByteDance products.”
The Trump Administration has yet to comment on the lawsuit.
KUWTK: Kim Kardashian Has Reportedly Decided To Never Publicly Talk About Her Marriage With Kanye West Again After Addressing His Rants!
Kim Kardashian previously addressed her husband, Kanye West’s social media rants about their marriage and his supposed plans for divorce but it turns out that might have been the last time! Apparently, the Keeping Up with the Kardashians star’s decided to keep everything relating to her marriage as private as possible from now on.
In other words, no longer will she address anything that has to do with the rapper and their relationship publicly and here’s why!
Kim Kardashian has always been on her husband’s side through thick and thin but when he had a bipolar episode earlier this summer and went on several rants about their marriage and more, even Kim realized she had to address the situation publicly.
But that iss not to say that you should expect her to do it again!
One insider tells HollywoodLife that ‘Kim is not discussing what’s going on with Kanye with her friends. [They] are too scared to ask and feel if she wants to talk about it, she will. She doesn’t bring him up and is keeping what’s happening with him very, very private. She’s in her normal, good mood, and you wouldn’t know if something was going on with her or her marriage.’
And that’s not all! The source assured everyone that she will not be opening up about that drama on Keeping up with the Kardashians’ next season either!
‘It sounds like if we do see Kanye on Keeping Up next season, it’ll be extremely minimal. Nobody has heard of him filming anything for next season yet. Kim is back in LA for filming and work meetings, and nobody is even sure if Kanye is here. She’s just really focused on her law studies and kids right now. The other free time she has is really spent working on her brand.’
Springfield Police Are Looking For Suspect Who Gave Out “COVID Hugs” At Walmart!
An unidentified man is being sought after by Springfield police after he reportedly gave unsolicited “COVID hugs” to customers at a local Walmart, Masslive says.
The suspected, pictured on surveillance cameras with short dark hair, wearing a black T-shirt with the word Aero printed on the front and camouflage shorts, embraced several strangers before telling them that they were just infected with the coronavirus, according to the Springfield Police Department.
For one person, in particular, the unidentified man walked up to another man in the Boston Road store, took an item from the man’s hands, and then hugged him.
“He told the victim, ‘Just giving you a COVID hug. You now have COVID,’ the department said.
This encounter was reported to have taken place on Aug. 15, around 7 p.m.
The victim, a cancer survivor, was not entertained by the man’s actions and reported it to the police. He stated that he had never seen the man before.
The man reportedly repeated this activity with other customers in the store, according to police.
The unidentified man is now being sought after by police in Massachusetts for assault and battery and making terroristic threats. The charge of assault and battery combines threatening behavior with physical contact, reports say.
According to the city’s law, a person who communicates a threat either directly or indirectly, orally, in writing “or by other means” can be charged with making terroristic threats.
Whether or not the suspect has the coronavirus or not, stating that he does could be considered a threat. Police spokesman Ryan Walsh says that the unidentified man telling customers that he gave them COVID-19 is just as bad as making a false bomb threat when there is no bomb.
Anyone with information on the unidentified man is asked to call the Detective Bureau at 413-787-6355, leave a private message on the department’s Facebook page, or send an anonymous Text-A-Tip to CRIMES (2-7-4-6-3-7), beginning the message with the world SOLVE.
AND FINALLY FROM “THE CRAZY PEOPLE SHOPPING AT WALMART” FILES
‘SPACED OUT’
I think you guys might actually be safer back out in space right now.
EGGPLANT NATION: Meet Mr. Derek
Meet Derek! You can see more when GO HERE TO SEE THE PICS! And remember they’re NSFW!
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HAVE A GREAT DAY ALL!!!
EFREM
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