#MAGFAB: Halle Bailey for Variety - The Young Hollywood Issue 2022
Growing up, Halle Bailey was obsessed with “The Little Mermaid,” wearing out her family’s VHS tape watching and rewatching the 1989 Disney animated hit and pretending to be Ariel every time she went swimming. “Her sense of longing, her searching for herself, was something that I could resonate with,” Bailey says. “She knew where she wanted to go, and she wasn’t going to let anybody stop her.”
Bailey can relate. Now, it will fall on her 22-year-old shoulders to bring Ariel’s quest for true love and independence to life on-screen for a new generation of movie fans. Four years ago, Bailey, best known as one-half of the Grammy-nominated duo Chloe x Halle, landed the title role in the live-action remake of the classic film — which has wrapped shooting and will open in theaters in May 2023.
Before Bailey’s casting, only one other Black actor had been crowned a Disney princess (Anika Noni Rose as the voice of Tiana in “The Princess and the Frog”), so she understands the barrier-breaking importance of donning Ariel’s fins. “I want the little girl in me and the little girls just like me who are watching to know that they’re special, and that they should be a princess in every single way,” Bailey says. “There’s no reason that they shouldn’t be. That reassurance was something that I needed.”
Halle Bailey Power of Young Hollywood Variety Cover
Most fans were thrilled at the news that Bailey would play Ariel, but the trolls were just as vocal, decrying the prospect of a Black mermaid princess with the hashtag #NotMyAriel. The criticism stung. Chloe Bailey, the actor’s sister, says their tight-knit family banded together against the backlash. “It’s important,” Chloe says, “to have a strong support system around you. It’s hard to carry the weight of the world on your own.”
Bailey also got important perspective from her grandparents, who shared memories of the racism and discrimination that they had endured in their lifetimes. “It was an inspiring and beautiful thing to hear their words of encouragement, telling me, ‘You don’t understand what this is doing for us, for our community, for all the little Black and brown girls who are going to see themselves in you,’” Bailey recalls.
And she started to think about how her younger self would have been inspired if the cartoon version of Ariel had been a person of color. “What that would have done for me, how that would have changed my confidence, my belief in myself, everything,” Bailey says. “Things that seem so small to everyone else, it’s so big to us.”
Several COVID delays later, “The Little Mermaid” is finally slated to open in theaters next summer. The premiere will mark a critical pivot in Bailey’s career as she makes the leap from music to movie stardom, especially with an appearance in the film version of the Broadway musical “The Color Purple” hot on its heels. Together, the projects seem designed to transition Bailey into one of the more promising young actors of her generation.
Bailey has been in the public eye for more than a decade, after the world discovered her and her older sister’s covers of popular songs, which they began posting on YouTube when they were teenagers. After their take on Beyoncé’s “Pretty Hurts” went viral, the superstar took the girls under her wing, signing them to a deal under her Parkwood Entertainment label.
Halle Bailey Power of Young Hollywood Variety
But even teen idols grow up. The past few years have seen the Bailey sisters — who are two years apart, despite playing twins for four seasons on Freeform’s “Grown-ish” — carefully detangling their personas and forging independent artistic careers. And as Bailey carves her own path in the entertainment industry, the traits that she admired in Ariel, such as the character’s tenacious pursuit of her dreams, could prove invaluable.
“I find myself learning things from these characters and trying to adopt them and keep them with me as I go about my life,” Bailey says. “It’s like the universe is trying to give these themes to me, like ‘Here, do it! We’re putting it in through the characters.’”
Filming “The Little Mermaid” was a metamorphic experience for Bailey, who was 18 when she auditioned and 21 when she finished production. “When I moved away to London I learned so much about myself,” she says. The U.K. and Italy-based shoot was the longest she had ever been away from her family in Los Angeles, and the shoot was emotionally and physically demanding. “It was kind of a shock because I had never done anything like that before.”
Director Rob Marshall, who made “Chicago,” says she was a natural onscreen. “Halle had this incredible facility to be able to dig deep, find the truth of Ariel’s passion and her heart,” he recalls. “It was like watching a great film actor being born.”
Marshall first spotted Bailey on the 2019 Grammy telecast as Chloe x Halle performed “Where Is the Love?” He was enraptured by her crystalline singing voice but didn’t know if she could act. So he asked Bailey to audition for “The Little Mermaid” by singing Ariel’s signature anthem “Part of Your World.”
“When she finished, I was in tears because she’s so soulful,” Marshall remembers. “You could tell right away that she was able to harness Ariel’s passion, her fire, her soul, her joy and her heart.”
The first time Bailey really saw herself as Ariel was during her screen test, when costume designer Colleen Atwood came to her home. “Have you ever seen that Hilary Duff movie where she has a twin and she’s thrown into a room to put on all these clothes?” Bailey asks, giggling as she compares the fitting to a scene in “The Lizzie McGuire Movie” where Duff cycles through outfits in an avant-garde fashion show. “I felt like that.”
Bailey is hesitant to discuss the details of the design, and hardly anyone outside the production has seen her in full regalia. But her sister admits that she cried after seeing Bailey transformed for the first time. Marshall spilled a bit more about the character’s coif, which incorporates Bailey’s trademark locs with some looser tresses. “She looks stunning in red hair; not everybody does,” he teases.
Halle Bailey Power of Young Hollywood Variety
After landing the role, Bailey sharpened her skills with acting lessons, but therapy has been the most helpful tool. “If you have a really big emotional scene where you’re crying, you have to pull that from someplace,” she explains.
In real life, Bailey is prone to letting the tears flow. “If I’m feeling overwhelmed, or when I get my angriest, my reaction is I just cry,” she shares. “I can try to be so tough, and so strong, and then it just comes out.”
To help herself get in the right emotional headspace on camera, Bailey borrowed from her memories. To build Ariel’s relationship with her father, King Triton (played by Javier Bardem), Bailey channeled her relationship with her own father. “I would always talk about [how] my dad is like a mirror of King Triton; he’s always been so overprotective of my sister and I,” she says. “That’s one of the things that we love about him — the way he loves. When I had scenes with Javier, I just pulled from my experience with my own father: how deep that love is, and how strong and protective they get.”
The role was physically challenging too: Bailey worked on wires and other technical apparatuses so she could turn, spin and fly, mimicking Ariel’s mermaid movements. Plus, her singing chops inspired Marshall and songwriters Alan Menken and Lin-Manuel Miranda to add new numbers for Ariel. Bailey’s most spine-tingling performance came during her wrenching rendition of an old standard. The excitement Marshall felt during her audition returned when she delivered the reprise of “Part of Your World,” in a scene made memorable in the animated film when a wave crashes up behind the mermaid, framing her with ocean spray.
“[Halle] sings that moment up an octave from the original,” Marshall says. “It’s the most chilling, and the most thrilling, film moment because it crystallizes not just her incredible vocal ability but the emotional passion she has in singing it.”
After wrapping “The Little Mermaid,” Bailey decamped for dry land and the Georgia set of Blitz Bazawule’s “The Color Purple.” The musical drama is an adaptation of Alice Walker’s 1982 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel (later made into a 1985 Steven Spielberg movie starring Whoopi Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey), which tells the coming-of-age story of a young Black woman named Celie and her struggles with an abusive father and husband. Bailey plays Celie’s beloved sister, Nettie, a role she immediately connected with.
“We’re both the younger sister, we’re both the headstrong one and we speak up, and we’re very, very protective of our older sister,” Bailey says. “It was so cool to play this character where she had all of these pieces of me, but I think she’s a bit more sure of herself.”
For much of the film, the sisters remain emotionally tethered but physically apart, something that was easy for Bailey to key into, thanks to her experience being away from Chloe while filming “The Little Mermaid.” “She couldn’t visit me; everything was on lockdown, and it was that agony, that pain of being pulled away from something that’s like your arm, so I was pulling from that,” she says.
Bailey wrapped her portion of the production in late June; her final shot came at the end of a rain-soaked, late-night shoot. As Bazawule called “Cut!” and the crew applauded, producer Winfrey appeared and gave Bailey a floral tribute. “It was an emotional scene, so completing it was like, ‘Wow, I did it!’ And out of nowhere, she came at me with flowers, and I was just like, ‘Oh, my gosh. It’s Oprah,’” Bailey says, recounting the “pinch me” moment, which she shared with glee on social media.
Winfrey was at a similar inflection point in her career when she made her feature film debut in Spielberg’s version; at the time, she was a promising television host but had yet to achieve pop culture hegemony. “I just am so honored to be a part of this family that she has made,” Bailey says of being professionally linked to Winfrey. “You think of all the possibilities of what you could do after this, where and how far you would like to go.”
Now that both “The Little Mermaid” and “The Color Purple” are in postproduction, Bailey has come to appreciate the differences between the rapid pace of the music industry and the glacial process of moviemaking.
“My mindset is to work, work, work, so that I can see the payoff and move towards my goals. That’s what I’m used to,” Bailey says. “In the movie industry, I’m working 16 hours a day filming — I’ll be in the water busting my ass, crying, screaming, emotionally going to places I’ve never gone, and everybody there on set can congratulate you and say, ‘Yeah, you killed it today, kid,’ — but then you have all this time to wait.”
In the case of “The Little Mermaid,” it’s been so long since the shoot ended that she feels like “I’ve lived a whole other life since.”
“I’m grateful for it because it makes me slow down and cherish the moment that I’m living in now,” she says. “I was talking to my sister about it the other day, because I’m like, ‘I’ve been working so hard. I just want people to see it already, to see what I’ve been putting all my effort into.’” Chloe’s reassurance: “It’s all going to pay off.”
To keep busy in the meantime, Bailey has eased back into a routine of yoga, running, singing lessons, recording-studio sessions and one-on-one time with her cat, Poseidon. She also launched a YouTube channel, carving out her individual identity on the very platform where she and her sister were first discovered.
Music remains her passion. And just because she and Chloe are focused on doing their own thing doesn’t mean they have gone solo. Bailey confirms that the two will reunite on a follow-up to their Grammy-nominated albums “The Kids Are Alright” and “Ungodly Hour.”
“My sister is my backbone,” Bailey says. “She’s my best friend. She’s my everything. When I write with her, it’s different than when I’m just alone. When we sing together, I feel differently than when I’m just singing by myself.”
#RHOA: NeNe Leakes appears to drag Andy Cohen amid claim she was blacklisted
She wants to Leake some recordings and bring Andy Cohen down.
In a series of scathing messages posted to Twitter on Wednesday, NeNe Leakes seemingly accused the “Watch What Happens Live” host of abusing her and “stopping” her from working.
“I am happy I was able to help all the other black women get job opportunities that are working for them,” the former “Real Housewives of Atlanta” star, 54, wrote in a tweet that appeared to be aimed at Cohen.
“He stopped me from working because I was a threat to his career! Yet he was able to abuse me for years.”
Leakes added, “I want to release these voice recordings so bad” without revealing any further details or insight.
Leakes seemingly confirmed her tweet was directed at Cohen, also 54, when she re-posted a tweet that mentioned the Bravo boss by name.
“Andy used you until he wanted to kick you to the curb and then slander you so you couldn’t obtain any further work. It’s so disappointing and it is definitely different than how he treats other housewives he disagrees with or has parted ways with,” a fan argued.
Leakes re-tweeted the message, adding, “They stop every job opportunity that comes my way.”
Then, when a netizen told Leakes to stop going after Cohen – arguing that no other “Housewife” has an issue with him – Leakes retweeted a fan who pointed out that “Real Housewives of Potomac” star Monique Samuels has also complained about Cohen.
“She was on Potomac, so it’s NOT just Nene. A lot of these woman are afraid of what he could do to their careers that’s why they are being SILENT!!! I am proud of @NeNeLeakes for taking a stand in saying enough is ENOUGH!!!” the tweet, which was re-shared by Leakes, stated.
Additionally, Leakes’ Twitter bio now reads: “BLACKLISTED FOR TELLING THE TRUTH & NOT WANTING TO BE ABUSED ANYMORE! RECEIPTSSS.”
Leakes has been vocal about Cohen’s alleged problematic behavior and even sued him and Bravo for discrimination back in April.
“NBC, Bravo and True foster a corporate and workplace culture in which racially-insensitive and inappropriate behavior is tolerated — if not, encouraged,” court documents stated, claiming that Leakes’ co-star Kim Zolciak-Biermann was allegedly racist towards her and even used the N-word.
Leakes went on to claim that she realized she was “blacklisted” when she “suddenly” found herself “not working” after years of being “sought after.”
Page Six reported in June that Leakes is allegedly in talks with Cohen and Bravo to settle the lawsuit outside of court.
Last month, she also took to social media to call out the “abusers” who wanted power amid her battle with Bravo.
Leakes stepped away from “RHOA” in June 2015 ahead of the franchise’s eighth season. At the time, Cohen tweeted that Leakes is a “Real Housewife forever” and is always welcome back.
She then returned for Seasons 10 through 12 before calling it quits for good.
Cohen’s rep did not immediately respond to Page Six’s request for comment.
#MusicNews: Ari Lennox Says The Wait For Her New Album Is Over
Ari Lennox says her new album is finally ready to drop. The R&B singer took to socials on Wednesday (August 10) to announce that her new single, her first since 2021’s “Pressure,” would drop on Friday (August 12) and would be titled “HOODIE.” The new single announcement was followed up with a tweet from Lennox that confirmed this new single would begin the roll-out of her long-awaited sophomore effort.
“My album is done!” Lennox wrote. “Are you guys ready??”
The announcement comes after Lennox parted with her management company in March, a month after she expressed frustration with her Dreamville and Interscope label situation.
“Ari Lennox and her management team Black Wax amicably decided to part ways,” Lennox’s team said in a statement. “Lennox first signed with the company in 2012. She still considers them family and is beyond thankful for the business ventures and memories. She’s currently working on her sophomore album and is excited for the future endeavors that are in store for her.”
Lennox’s frustrations with Dreamville peaked after she sat down for an uncomfortable interview with Podcast and Chill, where the interviewer MacG asked if someone was sexually satisfying the singer.
“I want to be dropped from the labels. I’m done and tired,” she wrote before replying to a fan, “Shut up! The interview was the icing on the cake. I want to be free.”
She continued, “And I’m never doing another interview again. I been on this sober high for weeks. Genuine gratefulness and happiness. But then… men. Every time… never fails.”
She also announced in a since-deleted tweet that she was done with social media.
“sm is a traumatizing unhealthy place,” she wrote. “You are only accepted here if your perfect and seemingly happy at all times. When every single life knows that’s not realistic. People cry, people complain, people are mad in real life. I just never cared to be a fake ass bitch.”
The last time fans got a full-length project from Ari Lennox was her 2019 debut Shea Butter Baby, which made numerous “Best Of” lists at the end of the year, and snagged Lennox a nomination for Outstanding Female Artist of the Year at the NAACP Image Awards.
#HipHopNews: Angela Yee Announces 'The Breakfast Club Is Over,' Launching New Show
Angela Yee is leaving “The Breakfast Club.” On Tuesday, the media personality announced her departure from the popular radio show she has hosted with Charlamagne Tha God and DJ Envy since 2010.
“The breakfast club as you know it is officially over,” Yee tweeted.
While on air with her “Breakfast Club” co-hosts on Wednesday, she revealed that she is moving on to launch her own nationally-syndicated radio show, “Way Up With Angela Yee.”
“This is really exciting,” she told Charlamagne and Envy. “This is something that I’ve been waiting to do for years now, since way before the pandemic. I had actually sat down with our big boss Thea [Mitchem], and I was telling her, like, ‘Look, I really wanna have my own show.’ You know, I have my podcast, ‘Lip Service,’ and I was thinking I would be able to get something like a weekend situation and one day ease into having my own show again.”
“I am going to be leaving ‘The Breakfast Club,'” she added.
Charlamagne and DJ Envy will stay on and the show will continue as a “different iteration.”
“Way Up with Angela Yee” will launch in the fall and air across more than 30 iHeartMedia stations, including New York’s Power 105.1. The daily show will focus on “hot and timely topics in which she’s garnered trust over her decades on air — from relationships to Hip-Hop and R&B, headline news topics, and overall culture, both in and out of the music industry.”
Yee, who will also continue to host her “Lip Service” podcast, thanked listeners for their support over the past 12 years.
“This is just a tremendous opportunity. I feel extremely grateful,” she said. “As far as having a nationally-syndicated show and somebody in my position–a woman, a Black woman up here–it’s a rarity and it’s a great opportunity and it’s not something that I take lightly, so I’m really excited.”
She received well wishes from her co-hosts. “I’m really happy for Angela Yee and I am extremely happy for the culture of radio,” said Charlamagne.
Yee will remain with “The Breakfast Club” until her new show launches in the fall.
Sesame Place Announces Diversity Initiatives After Accusations Of Racial Bias & Being Hit W/ A $25 Million Lawsuit
Sesame Place has announced new measures to expand its diversity, equality and inclusion efforts following a class action lawsuit alleging racial bias.
Sesame Place claims that by the end of September, all employees will undergo training and education programs led by national experts. Reportedly, the programs are designed to address bias, promote inclusion, prevent discrimination and ensure guests and employees feel welcome. In a statement released Tuesday (Aug. 9), Sesame Place said:
“Initiatives include a comprehensive racial equity assessment, the development and implementation of an anti-bias training and education program, and enhancements to ensure a best-in-class diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) program. The racial equity assessment will include a review of policies, processes, and practices that impact guests, employees, suppliers and the community to identify opportunities for improvement.”
They claim the training will become a regular part of workforce development and will extend to all new employees.We have already begun engaging with employees, guests, civil rights groups as well as community leaders, and instituted some interim measures at the park while the review proceeds. The actions we are taking will help us deliver on our promise to provide an equitable and inclusive experience for all our guests every day.”
They added,
“We are committed to making sure our guests feel welcome, included and enriched by their visits to our park.”
As you may recall, In July, a now-viral clip was shared online of a black family seemingly being discriminated against while visiting Sesame Place in Philadelphia. In the video, it seemingly looks like the Sesame Place character Rosita purposely ignores two young black girls but instead interacts with the white participants.
Initially following the public outrage surrounding the incident, Sesame Place seemingly tried to deny claims of racism within the park. However, as more videos came out from black families with similar stories, the theme park issued another statement promising to train their staff better.
However, it appears the apology came a little too late. On July 27, the Burns family– a different family than the one seen in the viral video–filed a $25 million class action lawsuit against Sesame Place for the discrimination they allegedly experienced while visiting the park. According to the suit, the Maryland family is claiming that during their own trip to the infamous theme park on June 18, 5-year-old Kennedi Burns, who is black, was purposely ignored by four Sesame Place characters. The suit adds that the characters had no issue interacting with white families/children.
Wendy Williams ‘is STILL forbidden from accessing her $20M fortune’ amid legal war and can’t pay her own staffers
WENDY Williams is still forbidden from accessing her estimated $20million fortune amid her legal war with her bank and can't pay her own staffers.
Several sources have exclusively revealed to The U.S. Sun that Wendy's Wells Fargo bank accounts have remained frozen since January, despite an expectation that the funds would be released last month.
The 58-year-old former host's accounts went under the control of a financial guardian after her bank alleged that she was the victim of exploitation, dementia, or undue influence in explosive court filings.
The ex TV star, who was expected to regain access to her accounts in July still does not have access to them or her American Express card, which also seems to have been tied up in the proceedings.
As one source explained to The U.S. Sun: "Her team has not been paid since these accounts were shut. Her manager is relatively new, but there are people who have been working for her this entire time and they haven't seen a dime since the accounts were closed either."
"People have been floating their services to Wendy for months on end now," the insider added.
A second source said that Wendy is being given a regular allowance through the financial guardian who is overseeing her accounts, but that it's not a substantial amount of money.
"She gets money through the financial guardian, but it's not like the level of money Wendy Williams would need to get by in New York City. Her manager is footing the bill for a lot of her personal upkeep right now," the insider said.
A third source said that the manager, Will Selby, has been trying to figure out how to help her regain access to the accounts.
"Will has been trying to prove that the people who were previously involved in Wendy's finances are no longer a part of her team.
"He is hoping that by being able to show that Wendy has severed ties with certain people, that she has a chance to regain access to her money at some point."
It's unclear exactly what transpired that the star did not end up getting her money as was expected last month, since all of the filings in the case have been under seal after the case moved to guardianship court, however, there are questions around if her recent behavior has potentially impacted the case.
In a disturbing video that The U.S. Sun exclusively obtained earlier this week, Wendy touched on her financial woes, telling a photographer outside her New York City apartment: "My American Express is broken so I've got to take care of that."
A confused Wendy then added as was about to enter a waiting car, "Where am I flying? This is not where I'm flying," before deciding to not get in the car and return to her apartment's lobby instead.
Wendy's manager confirmed to The U.S. Sun that he is trying to help Wendy navigate the freeze on the accounts added: "Whatever was supposed to happen in July with the accounts being unfrozen, didn't happen."
A representative for Wells Fargo responded to The U.S. Sun's request for comment and said "Thanks for reaching out. We have nothing to add."
Mom, children allegedly staying with Ezra Miller are missing: According to police
A young mother and her three children who were allegedly living with Ezra Miller at the actor’s Vermont farm are reportedly missing.
Vermont State Police are looking for the 25-year-old woman and her kids — aged 5, 4 and 1 — believing that the “Flash” star may be concealing their whereabouts, Rolling Stone reported Wednesday.
According to court documents obtained by the publication, VSP officers say they attempted at least twice over the weekend to serve the mom an emergency care order requested by the State Attorney’s office, which demanded the youngsters’ removal from both the property and her care.
But Miller allegedly told cops the family hadn’t lived there in months, which the State Attorney’s office said seemed like an attempt to “evade service” of the order.
Rolling Stone reports that it was during one of authorities’ visits to the 96-acre Stamford estate to locate the family that Miller was charged with felony burglary for allegedly breaking into a house and stealing several bottles of alcohol back in May.
A local source told the magazine that several officers were at the “Perks of Being a Wallflower” star’s home Tuesday night for nearly an hour, though the reason was not made clear. When contacted by Rolling Stone, a VSP spokesperson referred the outlet to the Vermont Department for Children and Families, who declined to comment due to confidentiality concerns.
The outlet also notes that the mother was posting daily on social media from the property until mid-July when her account went dark and appeared to be deleted.
Reps for Miller did not immediately respond to Page Six’s request for comment.
The order was reportedly drafted for fear of the children’s safety, as Miller’s property is allegedly littered with firearms, ammunition and marijuana.
Multiple sources with knowledge of the situation, including the kids’ father, made the accusations to Rolling Stone in an exposé published in June.
Two of the sources alleged that there were unattended guns strewn around the “Fantastic Beasts” star’s home, with video footage appearing to show weapons propped up next to stuffed animals.
One source added that the 1-year-old once allegedly picked up a loose bullet and put it in her mouth.
Additionally, both sources alleged that there is frequent and heavy marijuana use in front of the children.
According to Rolling Stone, the woman moved herself and her kids into Miller’s home in mid-April after having met in Hawaii the month prior.
She insisted to the publication in June that Miller provided “a safe environment for [her] three very young children.”
Having a “bad feeling in [his] stomach,” the dad contacted DCF services and local police in mid-May to conduct wellness checks on his kids.
A social worker allegedly visited Miller’s farm on May 16 and informed the father that his children “looked good” but felt they had “more work to do,” according to text messages reviewed by Rolling Stone.
This is the latest in a string of legal issues for the actor, who was arrested twice in Hawaii earlier this year — once for disorderly conduct, to which they pleaded no contest, and another time for allegedly throwing a chair at a woman. Miller — who goes by they/them pronouns — has also been accused of “grooming” a teenager and had a restraining order taken out against them by a woman and her 12-year-old child.
Euphoria ’s Angus Cloud Recalls Breaking His Skull After Getting "Trapped" in Construction Pit
Angus Cloud is living proof that scary things can happen on Friday the 13th.
The Euphoria star shared that the scar on his head is very much real and it came from a serious accident back in 2013, when Angus fell into a construction pit while walking in the dark.
"I broke my skull on Friday the 13th," he shared in an Aug. 10 interview with Variety. "I woke up 12 hours later at the bottom. I was trapped."
The 24-year-old said that he suffered a broken skull, internal bleeding and broken fingers from the fall. And after coming to the conclusion that "they wasn't gonna find me down there," Angus entered "survival mode" and decided to save himself.
"I eventually climbed out after—I don't know how long," he recalled. "It was hella hard to climb out, because my skull was broken, but my skin wasn't, so all the bleeding was internal, pressing up against my brain."
Once he made it out, Angus took a bus to his mom's house. After making his way home and not being able to finish a sentence in front of his mother, Angus pitched that he was gonna go to bed. Thankfully, his mom stopped him.
"I would have died," he noted. "She gave me some water, and I started throwing up hella mouthfuls of crimson red blood."
As for the scar's story, the mark came as a result of the life-saving operation Angus received at the hospital. "They cut my head open," he shared. "They put some screws and a plate over where I broke my skull and—s--t, sealed me back up, and that was that."
Reflecting on the experience, Angus said that while "the brain is so fragile," he is "so blessed to just have minor brain damage."
Busta Rhymes will be honored with an Icon Award at 2022 BMI R&B/Hip-Hop Awards
On Sept. 7, the 2022 R&B/Hip-Hop Awards will be held at LIV Nightclub in Miami, FL. That evening, BMI will officially honor Busta Rhymes with the BMI Icon Award for his iconic contributions to the entertainment industry across his long career. The private event will be hosted by BMI President & CEO Mike O’Neill and BMI Vice President, Creative (Atlanta) Catherine Brewton.
Previous recipients of the prestegious Icon Award include Janet Jackson, Patti LaBelle, Nile Rodgers, Cash Money, Snoop Dogg, George Clinton, The Jacksons, and many others.
“As one of the pioneers of hip-hop, we are excited to honor Busta Rhymes as a BMI Icon,” said Brewton. “Through his award-winning solo work, countless collaborations, and acting, Busta is a true innovator in every sense of the word and has made a dynamic impact on legions of fans and music creators worldwide. His quick wit and intricate rapping style have made him legendary, inspiring many young performers to follow in his footsteps.”
Brewton also added, “We’re also thrilled to be back in person in Miami, celebrating our top music creators behind some of today’s most-performed songs. We’re looking forward to a fantastic night of great music.”
Busta Rhymes’ last project was released in 2021 with The Coming (25th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition). In 2020, he shared Extinction Level Event 2: The Wrath of God and its deluxe edition. That project saw 30 total tracks and included features from Chris Rock, Rakim, Pete Rock, Rick Ross, Anderson .Paak, Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, and more. Outside of his own releases, he can be heard as a feature on recent collaborations like “Harder” with Lion Babe and “Right 2 Left” by Diplo.
"Insecure" actress Denise Dowse in coma battling "a virulent form of meningitis"
Veteran actress Denise Dowse is currently in a coma while battling a severe form of meningitis. The 64-year-old’s sister Tracey shared the sad news via social media on Aug. 7.
In posts to both Denise’s Facebook and Instagram pages, Tracey Dowse said, “I am requesting support and prayers be offered [to] me and my sister, and my only immediate family Denise Dowse.” She continued, “She is currently in the hospital in a coma brought on by a virulent form of meningitis. Her doctors do not know when she will come out of the coma as it was not medically induced.” Tracey added, “She is a vibrant actor and director that should have many years ahead of her. Thoughts, prayers and support are greatly appreciated.”
Denise was born in Honolulu, Hawaii and has had a successful career spanning decades. The actress rose to fame as Mrs. Yvonne Teasley in the popular 1990s teen drama series “Beverly Hills, 90210.” She has also starred as Judge Rebecca Damsen in the CBS drama show “The Guardian.” Most recently, Denise took on the role of Dr. Rhonda Pine on HBO’s hit series “Insecure.” She also had roles in movies like Dr. Doolittle 2 and Ray. In addition to her many credits as an actress, the Hawaii native added director to her resume.
Earlier this year, Denise directed Remember Me: The Mahalia Jackson Story. The film featured Grammy award-winning singer Ledisi as Jackson. Other prominent actors that appeared in the biopic were Janet Hubert (“The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”), Wendy Raquel Robinson (“The Game”), Keith David (“Greenleaf”) and Corbin Bleu (High School Musical). The movie chronicled the life of the famed gospel singer and activist, along with her integral role in the civil rights movement.
We will continue to hope for the best for Denise and her loved ones during this difficult time.
Olivia Newton-John's Husband John Easterling Pens Heartfelt Tribute After Her Passing
John Easterling is paying tribute to wife Olivia Newton-John after her death.
Several days after the Grease star lost her battle with breast cancer at the age of 73, John, 70, took to social to pen a heartfelt message to Olivia, calling her “the most courageous woman I’ve ever known.”
“Olivia, Our love for each other transcends our understanding,” John wrote on Olivia‘s Instagram. “Every day we expressed our gratitude for this love that could be so deep, so real, so natural. We never had to ‘work’ on it. We were in awe of this great mystery and accepted the experience of our love as past, present and forever.”
John continued, “At Olivia’s deepest essence she was a healer using her mediums of song, of words, of touch. She was the most courageous woman I’ve ever known. Her bandwidth for genuinely caring for people, for nature and all creatures almost eclipses what is humanely possible. It is only the grace of God that has allowed me to share the depth and passion of her being for so long. In her most difficult times she always had the spirit, the humor, and the will power to move things into the light.”
Olivia and John married in 2008.
“Even now as her soul soars, the pain and holes in my heart are healed with the joy of her love and the light that shines forward,” John concluded. “Our family deeply appreciates the vast ocean of love and support that has come our way. Onward Ho, John Easterling”
Jamie Foxx & Snoop Dogg Hang Out at World Premiere of 'Day Shift'
Jamie Foxx and Snoop Dogg hit the red carpet for the premiere of their new film, Day Shift, at Regal LA Live on Wednesday night (August 10) in Los Angeles.
The two actors were joined by many of their co-stars including Karla Souza, Meagan Good, Natasha Liu Bordizzo, Oliver Masucci, Massi Furlan, Steve Howey, and Zion Broadnax.
Massi even showed up to the premiere in vampire fangs and contacts!
Jurnee Smollett was also spotted at the premiere to support the cast, and director J.J. Perry.
Here’s a summary of the movie: A hard-working, blue-collar dad who just wants to provide a good life for his quick-witted 8-year-old daughter. His mundane San Fernando Valley pool cleaning job is a front for his real source of income: hunting and killing vampires.
Day Shift debuts on Friday, August 12 on Netflix.
A$AP Relli Comes Forward As The Victim In Alleged A$AP Rocky Shooting, Claims The Incident Was Captured On Surveillance Cameras
Former Mob member A$ap Relli is suing A$ap Rocky, claiming that he was the victim in the alleged shooting back in November, according to Rolling Stone. As fans will recall, Rocky was arrested at LAX airport for assault with a deadly weapon in April over the incident, with law enforcement officers later acquiring a search warrant at his Los Angeles home in an attempt to locate the weapon used during the alleged shooting.
While cops withheld from revealing the victim’s name, A$ap Relli, whose real name is Terell Ephron, has now come forward as he plans to file a lawsuit against his former best friend who will head to court about the case on August 17. Jamal Tooson and Brian Hurwitz, who are Ephron’s attorneys, gave a statement to Rolling Stone, claiming their client had been lured to a secret location in Hollywood because Rocky allegedly wanted to settle a dispute he had with Relli.
“Unbeknownst to Mr. Ephron, A$AP Rocky was not just planning for a conversation and came armed with a semi-automatic handgun,” they told the news publication. “After arriving at the location, a conversation ensued whereby without provocation, warning, or any justification, A$AP Rocky produced the handgun and intentionally fired multiple shots at Mr. Ephron.”
Ephron is believed to have suffered minor injuries, according to the statement, which further reveals that everything was captured on surveillance cameras, which his lawyers are alluding to having access to.
Fans were stunned when Rocky was detained at LAX airport in April following a vacation out to Barbados with Rihanna, who was heavily pregnant at the time. The New Yorker was released a few hours later on a $550,000 bail, with a detective later being seen leaving his LA house with a cardboard box filled with supposed evidence in connection to an alleged shooting.
It was later revealed that police had already been investigating the rapper, but the LAPD decided to keep this private in fear that Rocky would have enough time to hide what they would consider potential evidence in the case they’ve been building against him.
In a statement from the LAPD, they said, “The victim sustained a minor injury from the incident and later sought his medical treatment. Following the shooting, the suspect and two additional males fled the area on foot. Detectives worked diligently to investigate and corroborate the reporting information which helped identify the suspect(s) involved. The suspect has been identified as 33-year-old Rakim Mayers, a Los Angeles resident, also known as music artist A$AP Rocky.”
Missy Elliott Set To Be Honored With Street Named After Her In Virginia
Congratulations to Missy Elliott, who has been announced to receive her very own street named after her in her hometown of Portsmouth, Virginia.
According to reports, the Portsmouth City Council unanimously approved the name change from McLean Street to Missy Elliott Boulevard, honoring and recognizing the “Lose Control” rapper in their entertainment district, which also serves the Tidewater Community College, Victory Crossing Shopping Center, and Portsmouth Rivers Casino.
“I am forever GRATEFUL [prayer emoji] P-TOWN [raised hands emoji] VA #757 LOVE,” Elliott tweeted on Wednesday following the announcement. Back in November, the 51-year-old received her long-overdue star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles, with the likes of Ciara, Lizzo, and Mona Scott-Young showing up to pay tribute to one of the most influential women in Hip-Hop.
Elsewhere, it was just in May when the “Work It” star received some endearing words from fellow rapper Lil Wayne, who called her his number one best rapper during an appearance on the What’s Wright? With Nicki Wright podcast.
“For me, it’s always going to be first, Missy Elliott,” Weezy expressed. She’s a huge influence on everything I’ve ever done.” And, of course, Elliott was going to share a few words in response to hearing the endearing things Wayne had said about her.
“Whenever @LilTunechi says my name in his interviews, twitter don’t have enough space for me to say my GRATEFULNESS because he is a LEGEND himself who birthed many emcees after him & as a man to acknowledge me as a big influence 4 him I send you love WAYNE,” she wrote.
At her Walk of Fame ceremony last year, the event’s producer Ana Martinez described Elliott as one of the first women to steer her way through a male-driven industry and inspired the world with her creativity both as a singer-songwriter and producer herself.
“Missy Elliott has broken through the barriers of the male-dominated Hip Hop world, and music industry as a whole, as she has led the way for many women who have followed in her footsteps,” she said.
“She continues to break barriers year after year and we’re thrilled to be able to honour her on the Walk of Fame.”
Beyoncé sent Madonna flowers for their 'Break My Soul' remix: 'You have opened so many doors'
Beyoncé's Renaissance era is all about queens honoring queens. "Thank you, queen," Beyoncé wrote in an emotional note to Madonna after the pair released their surprise "Queens Remix" of her latest single, "Break My Soul," on Friday. "I'm so grateful for you. You have opened so many doors for so many women. You are a masterpiece genius. Thank you for allowing me to sing in your song and thank you for naming the remix."
Madonna shared the message on Instagram alongside a photo of a bouquet of flowers Beyoncé sent her: "Thank you!! From one [queen] to another. I love the re-mix!" Madonna captioned the post.
The "Queens Remix" of "Break My Soul" samples Madonna's iconic 1990 hit "Vogue" but with an updated twist for Beyoncé's Renaissance phase: The superstar reads the names of Black female artists in the spoken-word style Madonna first used to name-drop other celebrities on the original song.
In that section of the song, Beyoncé calls out her Destiny's Child bandmate Michelle Williams, Chloë x Halle, Alicia Keys, Whitney Houston, Rihanna, Nicki Minaj, Aaliyah, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Santigold, Bessie Smith, Nina Simone, Betty Davis (the Nasty Gal funk artist), Lauryn Hill, Roberta Flack, Renaissance featured artist Grace Jones, Aretha Franklin, and her sister, Solange Knowles.
The original cut of "Break My Soul" reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 this week, marking Beyoncé's first solo chart-topping hit in the United States since 2008's "Single Ladies."
Renaissance — which features contributions from Grace Jones, Pharrell Williams, and Big Freedia, and an epic Donna Summer sample as a tribute to Black artists and the genres they founded in clubs around the world — debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, making Beyoncé one of only a select few artists who've occupied the No. 1 slots on the Billboard albums and singles rankings in the same week.
Jordan Peele’s ‘Nope’ Hits $100 Million at Domestic Box Office
Jordan Peele’s latest nightmare, “Nope,” has crossed $100 million at the domestic box office, marking the director’s third feature film (out of three) to achieve that benchmark.
After three weeks on the big screen, the film’s North American tally stands at $100.32 million.
“Nope” — starring Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer as siblings who discover something spooky hovering around their family’s ranch — is one of the few original movies to cross the $100 million mark in pandemic times. When it comes to movies that aren’t based on existing brands or franchises, only director Baz Luhrmann’s musical biopic “Elvis” ($137 million) and the Sandra Bullock-led romantic comedy “The Lost City” ($105 million) have surpassed the coveted threshold in 2022. And just one other original movie — 2021’s “Free Guy” with Ryan Reynolds ($121 million) — has hit $100 million since the pandemic.
Universal Pictures shelled out $68 million to produce “Nope,” which is significantly more than the studio spent on “Get Out” (with its especially slender $4.5 million budget) and “Us” (with its tight $20 million budget). That means Peele’s third feature is not quite profitable yet and will require a little more coinage than his past films to get out of the red.
Though “Nope” cemented an important box office milestone, it still has ways to go to match Peele’s zeitgeist-tapping debut, “Get Out,” ($176.1 million) and his sophomore effort, “Us,” ($175 million) in North American ticket sales. “Nope” has yet to open at the international box office, where “Get Out” and “Us” each collected about $80 million for a $255 million worldwide tally.
Critics have praised “Nope,” which holds an 82% on Rotten Tomatoes, while audiences gave the film a so-so “B” CinemaScore — the same grade as “Us.” Peele tends to leave audiences feeling unsettled, which may explain the passable exit polls. By comparison, the Oscar-winning “Get Out” landed an “A-” score.
The R-rated “Nope” debuted in July to the tune of $41 million, securing the biggest opening weekend tally for an original film in the pandemic era. Those ticket sales failed to match “Us,” which kicked off with a stellar $71 million in 2019. However, the impressive start for “Nope” indicates the filmmaker’s popularity at the movies, as well as his ability to deliver on scares that carry a deeper meaning. Seriously, will Peele ever make a movie that doesn’t inspire a thousand think pieces?
Travis Scott Tops BTS’ Merch Sales Record With $1 Million Haul in London
Travis Scott has allegedly bested a BTS merch sales record with his recent shows at London’s O2 venue.
Per a report citing “sources close to Travis,” TMZ claimed on Wednesday that La Flame pulled in more than $1 million in merch sales at the London shows. This figure, the report further claims, marks the setting of a new record for the region and bests the haul amassed by previous record-holders BTS.
Prices for the pieces were listed at the usual rates (i.e. hoodies in the $100 range, etc.), with Wednesday’s report further claiming that Travis Scott is now the “only” performer to have sold “at least $1 million” worth of merch in the U.K. BTS, meanwhile, is reported to have pulled in a little less than that amount with their 2018/2019 Love Yourself World Tour shows in the area.
The first O2 date, notably, marked Scott’s first major solo concert since the fatal 2021 Astroworld crowd-crush incident. Among the songs given stage time was the tentatively titled “God’s Country,” the title of which previously surfaced as an expected Ye track from the Donda era.
On Tuesday, Scott hit Instagram to let fans know he would now be working “to finish” what’s expected to be Utopia, his long-teased new album and the follow-up to his massively successful Astroworld. As announced last week, Scott will soon be launching his Road to Utopia experience in Las Vegas. Per a press release shared at the time, the nightclub residency is set to begin at Resorts World Las Vegas’ Zouk Nightclub on Sept. 17.
Nicki Minaj Appears to Have Suggested Drake Is a Billionaire
Nicki Minaj appears to have revealed that her friend and collaborator Drake is a billionaire.
In footage shared widely on social media in recent days, Nicki is heard narrating the visuals of a surely expensive tarmac scene, complete with advice to those listening to give a nearby pilot a wave. From there, Nicki—who was recently in the Toronto area for Drake’s Young Money reunion show, also featuring Lil Wayne—is heard shouting out an unnamed “Canadian friend” who’s not necessarily keen on announcing their billionaire status.
“Look, this is what happens you’ve got a rich—I’m sorry—a very rich, a very rich, rich, rich, rich Canadian friend who is the only billionaire that I know that don’t want people to know that he a billionaire,” Nicki said, as seen in the video below, which was originally shared to her IG Stories. “I love this plane.”
Adding to the increasingly shared assumption that this “Canadian friend” is indeed Drake is the fact that Nicki later hit like on the following tweet:
Friday, Nicki is set to unleash her new single “Super Freaky Girl.” The track will arrive mere days after it was announced that Nicki would (quite deservedly) be honored at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards with the Video Vanguard award, previously recipients of which have included Ye and Missy Elliott.
Mary J. Blige to Star in Netflix’s ‘Lost Ollie’
The official trailer for Netflix’s Lost Ollie, an upcoming four-part limited series, has emerged. Mary J. Blige voices Rosy, a fearless, hand-me-down teddy bear, in a live-action adaptation inspired by Ollie’s Odyssey, a book written and illustrated by William Joyce.
Directed by Oscar winner Peter Ramsey, Lost Ollie follows a brave patchwork rabbit (voiced by Jonathan Groff) on an epic quest to reunite with his best friend, Billy (played by Kesler Talbot), a young boy whom he loves deeply. Rosy (voiced by Blige) and Zozo (voiced by Tim Blake Nelson), a wise clown doll, tag along for the great adventure.
Gina Rodriguez and Jake Johnson also co-star as Billy’s parents in Lost Ollie. Netflix will release Lost Ollie on Aug. 24 having secured a pair of historic 2018 Oscar nominations for her role in Mudbound. A year later, she returned to the subscription streaming platform to star as a time-traveling assassin in season one of Umbrella Academy.
Since then, Blige has remained in the spotlight, recently singing an hour set for Apple Music Live to celebrate the 30th anniversary of What’s the 411? The concert was made into a live album exclusive to the music service. It features timeless songs and new music from her storied career, including material from her 2022 album Good Morning Gorgeous.
Her new album was released on Feb. 11 via her imprint Mary Jane Productions Inc./300 Entertainment. Good Morning Gorgeous features the chart-topping title track and its most recent top ten single, “Here With Me,” featuring Anderson .Paak.
In September, Blige will embark on her headlining Good Morning Gorgeous Tour to support both the standard and deluxe versions of the album. Ella Mai and Queen Naija also are set to perform on select dates. Tickets are available.
Additionally, Blige sat down with friend and radio personality Angie Martinez to talk about a number of topics, including therapy, death and new music.
$1.5M settlement reached in case against jail that only allowed white officers around Derek Chauvin
On Tuesday (Aug. 9), eight minority corrections officers were awarded nearly $1.5 million in a racial discrimination lawsuit. The officers filed the complaint after a superintendent working at the Ramsey County Jail banned officers of color from working on the floor where Derek Chauvin was being held. The county is also required to apologize in a written statement and acknowledge their discriminatory acts, per the settlement.
The eight guards – who identify as African American, Hispanic, Pacific Islander American and multiracial – argue that they were prohibited from doing their job because of the color of their skin. Superintendent Steve Lydon didn’t believe they could be trusted to professionally complete their duties around Chauvin, the officer who killed George Floyd. One of the plaintiffs routinely booked and supervised the transportation of high-risk or high-profile inmates. When Chauvin arrived, the guard, a Black man, began the booking process, which included patting down Chauvin. Lydon was supervising the process and replaced the plaintiff with two white guards. Shortly after, another defendant said they were being reassigned from the fifth floor, where Chauvin was being housed.
Another accuser who was watching the cameras in the jail noticed the guards who were minorities were all cluttered on the third floor instead of being dispersed throughout the building as usual. The white and Black lighter-skinned guards were not reassigned. There was an instance where there was a call for help with an uncooperative inmate on Chauvin’s floor, and the minority guards who responded were turned away. Another time, a white lieutenant was granted special access to Chauvin’s cell in May and comforted him with a pat on the back. The lawsuit alleges the lieutenant even allowed Chauvin to use a phone.
An attorney for the guards, Lucas Kaster said, “Segregation has no place in society or the workplace and on May 29, 2020, eight Ramsey County correctional officers experienced blatant discrimination based on their race and skin color. Ramsey County’s segregation order caused immediate and lasting harm to the correctional officers and the jail environment.”
Kaster explained the emotional distress the guards endured after being reassigned because of their skin color. He said, “The impact on our clients has been immense. They’re deeply humiliated and distressed and the bonds necessary within the high stress and high pressure environment of the (jail) have been broken.”
Vanessa Bryant sobs during first day of trial over Kobe crash photos
Vanessa Bryant sobbed in a Los Angeles court Wednesday as her attorney described how sheriff’s deputies and firefighters shared photos of her late husband Kobe Bryant and daughter Gianna’s mangled remains after they were killed in a helicopter crash in 2020.
The 40-year-old widow, who wore a fitted black suit and still had a band on her left ring finger, cried into a tissue as the court heard that one deputy even referred to her loved ones as “piles of meat” in a deposition.
“Jan 26, 2020 will always be the worst day of Vanessa Bryant’s life,” Bryant’s attorney, Luis Li, said to the jury during opening statements. “County employees explored and took pictures as souvenirs. They poured salt into an unbearable wound.”
Bryant’s federal invasion-of-privacy-suit trial launched Wednesday in federal court more than two years after the NBA Hall of Famer was killed along with the couple’s 13-year-old daughter and seven others in a January 2020 helicopter crash in Calabasas.
She is seeking an unspecified millions in damages in her suit against Los Angeles County over graphic snapshots of the wreck that were allegedly passed around by first responders.
The photos were shared on “at least 28 [Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies] devices and by at least a dozen firefighters,” some of whom touted the photos like trophies “in a bar while pantomiming dismemberment and showing off the photos over cocktails at an awards gala,” Bryant’s lawsuit alleges.
Li said that one of the deputies who responded to the crash site walked around the wreckage and snapped close-up photos of the NBA legend’s dismembered body parts.
One deputy took a firefighter up and down the crash site where he identified possible body parts and the firefighter took pictures, Li said.
In one deposition heard in court, Det. Scott Miller said the pictures were sent to him and he asked his wife if she wanted to see the gruesome pictures, but she said no.
“I told her there were piles of meat,” Miller said in an interview and then laughed loudly in the recording.
Vanessa Bryant broke down after hearing the crass comment.
Miller continued to say that Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva and others in his department were confronted about deputies sharing the pictures at a bar and with family, but Villanueva denied knowledge of a complaint lodged to his department.
Li said a man who was at a bar in Norco, Calif when he happened to see Deputy Joey Cruz shared the pictures on his iPhone with a bartender. Li played a video of the encounter, which showed the bartender wince and step back in shock when he looked at the phone screen.
Moments later, Cruz was seen laughing at the bar. The man who witnessed Cruz sharing the photo reported it to the sheriff’s office, he said.
Around the same time, Li said, a county firefighter’s wife also reported to fire officials that several first responders were sharing and discussing the graphic crash photos at an awards show.
Capt. Matthew Vander Horch emailed his superiors about the complaint and said he would look into an investigation, Li said. However, the Sheriff’s Department intervened and stopped the investigation, Vander Horch said in a deposition.
The sheriff’s deputies were told to erase everything in their phones and buy new ones, the attorney claimed.
Villanueva was questioned a month after the crash over reports that his deputies were sharing photos. The sheriff said it was not uncommon that deputies would take pictures of the dead bodies at incidents and collect them as keepsakes in “death books.”
In a separate video, Villanueva clarified that only coroners and National Transit Safety Board officials should be permitted to take photos of these types of incidents for investigation purposes only, and that no one else is allowed to.
“When this type of behavior is tolerated, it creates a culture of callousness,” Li told the jurors, who were selected on Wednesday.
Attorneys representing Los Angeles County wrote in a trial brief that there is no evidence that the images were shared publicly.
US District Judge John Walter John Walter consolidated Bryant’s lawsuit with a similar claim filed by Orange County financial adviser Chris Chester, who lost his wife Sarah and their 13-year-old daughter, Payton, in the accident.
Chester also struggled to keep his composure as his attorney, Jerry Jackson, described the horrific way his wife was found by first responders.
Jackson said Sarah and Peyton’s bodies were found 100 feet away from the main impact site in a ravine. Sarah’s torso was sliced open at the waist and her organs, her private parts, colon, fallopian tubes and intestines were strewn all over the bushes in the ravine and the surrounding areas.
The violent scene was among the photos shared by several sheriffs and fire personnel, Jackson said.
“On Mr. Chester’s darkest said he thought someday, somewhere, somehow, those responsible … will face justice,” Jackson said. “Today is that day.”
Jackson said the devastated father has had a hard time dealing with his wife and daughters deaths and had turned to drinking at one low point.
Judge Walter indicated that the trial would take about a week and would be broken up into two phases, according to City News Service.
The first phase of the trial would address Bryant’s federal claims that the taking and dissemination of photos by county personnel violated their constitutional rights. The state law claims would be argued during the second phase.
Sonic Re-Releases Pickle Juice Slush for a Limited Times
For all my pickle lovers, Sonic is bringing back the Pickle Juice Slush for a limited time.
From now through August 28, Sonic locations will once again offer the drink, which is half price if ordered through their app.
According to a press release, the Pickle Juice Slush is a unique mashup of Sonic’s traditional sweet slush with a salty brine that “tastes just like you’re sipping out of the pickle jar.”
“It’s surprisingly delicious (and makes a good accompaniment to burgers and/or tots and/or corn dogs).” Food & Wine reported. “Sweet and tangy, the bright brine compensates for the over-savoriness you might have been worried about.”
The re-release comes after the company received overwhelming requests on social media from customers and fans.
“SONIC fans demanded more pickles, and America’s Favorite Drive-In is giving them what they want,” read a statement from Sonic’s website.
In addition to the slushie, Sonic will also bring back their Big Dill Cheeseburger and pickle fries.
“Our pickle-forward menu innovations have become some of our most popular, so much so that they’ve often sold out quicker than we anticipated,” said Mackenzie Gibson, Sonic’s Vice President of Culinary & Menu Innovation. “Our pickle-obsessed guests have been patiently waiting for their return, and we’re very excited to offer them once again for a limited time.”
Judge Mathis Advises Ashanti to Get a Cease-and-Desist Letter or Gag Order After Irv Gotti Spills Details About Their Past Sexual Relationship
Judge Mathis thinks Ashanti should take legal action against Irv Gotti for spilling details about their past sexual relationship.
During last week’s episode of “Drink Champs,” Irv revealed personal information regarding his previous relationship with Ashanti. During the interview, he made several allegations, one of which was that Ashanti’s song “Happy” was written after they had sex.
On Monday, Judge Mathis advised Ashanti to issue Irv a cease-and-desist letter or gag order. He claims he’s unsure of the validity of Irv’s statements but says Ashanti should take legal action if she feels she is the victim of defamation.
Since the Drink Champs interview aired, Ashanti hasn’t spoken out publicly about her relationship with Irv, but it’s obvious where the Judge stands.
WhatsApp Updates Platform With Feature That Allows Users To Control Who Sees Them Online
The popular messaging application WhatsApp is going to give its users the ability to change who can see their online status.
Don’t you just want to be able to get on an app, subtly check your messages and not have to worry about someone trying to start up a conversation? Well, WhatsApp just announced it will be doing just that.
On Tuesday, WhatsApp announced a slew of new privacy updates, some of which included giving users the ability to control who sees them online, a screenshot blocking feature and an update that allows a person to leave groups without the groups’ members knowing.
Owned by Facebook’s parent company, Meta, WhatsApp serves two billion users around the world, CNN Business reports. As the company continues to find helpful ways for users to maintain their privacy, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the platform would “keep building new ways to protect your messages and keep them as private and secure as face-to-face conversations.”
AND FINALLY FROM “THE CRAZY PEOPLE SHOPPING AT WALMART” FILES
‘CUTE BUTTERFLY’
Just got out of the cocoon.
HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND ALL!!!
EFREM
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