The Lovely Yara Shahidi for Essence Magazine April Issue!
Yara Shahidi graces the cover of Essence‘s April 2018 issue, out now.
Here’s what the 18-year-old Grown-ish star had to say…
On social media sensitivity: “Quite honestly, I’m the kind of person to get my feelings hurt over something somebody said on Twitter. There are those moments when I can go through 10 million amazing comments that are super supportive, and one person may say something and I’ll stew over it. That’s something that I’ve actively had to work on.”
On fame: “I’ve always struggled with Hollywood feeling trivial. Red carpets aren’t worth it. As fun as it is to get dressed up, it is surreal to be sitting at the Teen Choice Awards while [something like] Charlottesville is happening.”
On being a socially active teenager who still wants to have fun: “I feel comfortable putting my political stances out there without feeling as though I am filling some sort of quota…I don’t have a wokeness quota for the day.”
For more from Yara, head to Essence.com.
#RHoA: What’s The Shade between Kenya Moore And ShereĆ© Whitfield Over Marc Daly?
Kenya Moore’s husband Marc Daly finally made his debut on the “Real Housewives of Atlanta” on Sunday night. However, some people didn’t seem impressed with his highly anticipated appearance.
Cast member ShereĆ© Whitfield made a few comments that didn’t sit well with the former Miss USA, and following the episode, the two Bravo stars appear to be in a Twitter feud over it.
In Season 10, episode 17, Kenya hosted a PSA event about domestic violence. Although she initially told her cast members her husband would be a no-show at the event, he surprised his wife by appearing.
When Marc met ShereƩ, the reality star commented on his nose ring by saying she was interested in getting one. However, in her confessional, ShereƩ made a shady comment explaining it has been years since she has seen a man with a nose ring.
Although Kenya didn’t directly respond to diss, after the episode, she retweeted a fan who called out ShereĆ©, who is dating Tyrone Gilliams. The former Penn State basketball player is serving time in federal prison.
“A woman dating a man in prison really shouldn’t make down low jokes,” the fan wrote.
On Monday, ShereĆ© seemingly responded to the comment. “Everybody seems to b so bothered by me and Tyrone...being married to a man living another life is not a relationship either!! #sweeparoundyourowndoorsteps #yourhouseaintclean,” ShereĆ© tweeted.
The star’s “RHOA” bestie Kim Zolciak, later supported the star’s defensive message. “Can I get an Amen!!” she replied to the post.
ShereƩ went on to reveal she will no longer let people get away with talking negatively about her.
“I’m so over ppl thinking they can play dirty and talk reckless and b immune....well, ur NOT! I’ve allowed many things to b said and tweeted over the years w/o a response but lately....#Igottime,” she added.
This season, ShereƩ has been sharing the details about her romance with Gilliams, who was reportedly imprisoned for a blue collar crime.
The relationship has received mixed reactions from several of her “RHOA” cast members but this time around, it doesn’t seem like she will let them get away with criticizing her decisions.
“Real Housewives of Atlanta” Season 10 airs Sundays at 8 p.m. EDT on Bravo.
#EMPIRE: Will Lucious' Kidnapping Change His Relationship with Cookie?
Empire returns from hiatus with Wednesday's midseason premiere, which finds Lucious (Terrence Howard) kidnapped and chained in a remote cabin by Claudia (Demi Moore) who is desperate to reclaim the Lyon family patriarch as her "Dwight." The episode, which feels like a cross between the Kathy Bates classic Misery and the Samuel L. Jackson indie flick Black Snake Moan, won't be like any other Empire episode you've seen before.
"It almost doesn't even stand like an Empire episode," Jussie Smollett told TV Guide. "It's almost like a standalone episode and then somehow we get back into Empire in the episode after."
With Lucious in trouble, it's up to Cookie (Taraji P. Henson) to come to his rescue, even if that means taking down an unhinged nurse wielding an axe. But if there is one thing we've learned about the spitfire CEO thus far, is that it's going to take more than a chunk of wood and steel to stop her from saving her man.
"It's really exciting to watch because it's a classic story of a princess in a tower that needs to be saved by her prince on a white horse. What makes it so exciting is that this time, the princess is Lucious Lyon and the prince on the white horse is Cookie. It's very empowering," added Smollett.
While you're in for one of the show's wildest plots to date, Smollett said that fans will also be pleased with how things turn out. "I think the audience will be really satisfied as far as we see a light at the end of the tunnel there. We see where Cookie and Lucious are going," he teased.
Hold onto your seatbelts, it looks like this kidnapping will be a game-changer for the power couple.
See how it all goes down when Empire returns Wednesday, March 28 at 8/7c on Fox.
#MUSICNEWS: Chris Brown is headed on the road ‘The Heartbreak On A Full Moon Tour’
R&B Phenom Chris Brown is heading out on the road for a new tour. It’s led ‘The Heartbreak On A Full Moon Tour’ starring Black, HER and Rich The Kid.Chris is very excited about this tour and hoping his fan base will show up in massive numbers to attend!
Dates are below.
June 19 - Auburn, Washington
June 21 - Concord, California
June 24 - Pheonix, Arizona
June 28 - Woodlands, Texas
June 29 - Austin, Texas
July 1 - Dallas, Texas
July 3 - Atlanta, Georgia
July 5 - West Palm Beach, Florida
July 6 - Tampa, Florida
July 7 - Birmingham, Alabama
July 9 - Charlotte, North Carolina
July 10 - Raleigh, North Carolina
July 12 - Bristow, Virginia
July 13 - Virginia Beach, Virginia
July 15 - Newark, New Jersey
July 16 - Brooklyn, New York
July 18 - Camden, New Jersey
July 19 - Mansfield, Massachusetts
July 21 - Hartford, Connecticut
July 22 - Burgettstown, Pennsylvania
July 24 - Cincinnati, Ohio
July 25 - Clarkston, Michigan
July 27 - Noblesville, Indiana
July 28 - Tinley Park, Illinois
July 29 - Maryland Heights, Missouri
August 1 - Albuquerque, New Mexico
August 3 - Chula Vista, California
August 4 - Las Vegas, Nevada
Get tickets at livenation.com
#HIPHOPNEWS: Cardi B Announces Debut Album ‘Invasion Of Privacy’
Cardi B has announced the title and revealed the cover art for her highly-anticipated debut album, Invasion of Privacy.
The Bronx rapper took to social media to unveil the vibrant artwork, which finds her rocking a short and wavy yellow wig, white cat-eye sunglasses, and a black-and-white outfit while licking her teeth. She appears to be under surveillance as a recording icon appears in the upper left-hand corner.
Invasion of Privacy has already spawned two hits, including the chart-topping smash “Bodak Yellow (Money Moves)” and gold-certified single “Bartier Cardi.”
Cardi is rumored to be pregnant, but that won’t stop her from working. She is scheduled to perform on “SNL” the day after her album release on April 7 and make her Coachella debut later in the month. She will also support Bruno Mars on his “24K Magic World Tour” in September.
Prince Had an ‘Exceedingly High’ Level of Fentanyl in His Body When He Died
A few days ago it was reported, A prosecutor in Minnesota says he’s reviewing law enforcement reports about Prince’s death and will make a decision on possible charges “in the near future.”
Well it is now said that Prince had a high level of fentanyl in his body when he died at the age of 57 in April 2016, according to a previously confidential toxicology report obtained by the Associated Press on Monday, March 26.
A confidential toxicology report obtained by the AP provides some insight into just how much fentanyl was in his system. Experts who are not connected to the Prince investigation said the numbers leave no doubt that fentanyl killed him.
“The amount in his blood is exceedingly high, even for somebody who is a chronic pain patient on fentanyl patches,” said Dr. Lewis Nelson, chairman of emergency medicine at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. He called the fentanyl concentrations “a pretty clear smoking gun.”
The report says the concentration of fentanyl in Prince’s blood was 67.8 micrograms per liter. The report explains that fatalities have been documented in people with blood levels ranging from three to 58 micrograms per liter.
The report also says the level of fentanyl in Prince’s liver was 450 micrograms per kilogram, and notes that liver concentrations greater than 69 micrograms per kilogram “seem to represent overdose or fatal toxicity cases.”
There was also what experts called a potentially lethal amount of fentanyl in Prince’s stomach. Dr. Charles McKay, president of the American College of Medical Toxicology, said generally speaking, the findings suggest Prince took the drug orally, while fentanyl in the blood and liver suggest it had some time to circulate before he died.
At this point let him Rest in Peace!
Linda Brown, Who Was At Center Of Brown v. Board Of Education, Dies at 76!
(NPR) Linda Brown, who as a schoolgirl was at the center of the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case that rejected racial segregation in American schools, died in Topeka, Kan., Sunday afternoon. She was 76.
Her sister, Cheryl Brown Henderson, confirmed the death to The Topeka Capital-Journal.
The 1954 U.S. Supreme Court case, Brown v. Board of Education, involved several families, all trying to dismantle decades of federal education laws that condoned segregated schools for black and white students. But it began with Brown's father Oliver, who tried to enroll her at the Sumner School, an all-white elementary school in Topeka just a few blocks from the Browns' home.
The school board prohibited the child from enrolling and Brown, an assistant pastor at St. John African Methodist Episcopal Church, was angry that his daughter had to be shuttled miles away to go to school. He partnered with the NAACP and a dozen other plaintiffs to file a lawsuit against the Topeka Board of Education.
By 1952 the U.S. Supreme Court had on its docket similar cases from Delaware, the District of Columbia, South Carolina, and Virginia. They all challenged the constitutionality of racial segregation in public schools.
Two years later the court unanimously ruled to strike down the doctrine of "separate but equal." The justices agreed that it denied 14th Amendment guarantees of equal protection under the law.
"I just couldn't understand," Brown told NPR 19 years after the milestone decision.
"We lived in a mixed neighborhood but when school time came I would have to take the school bus and go clear across town and the white children I played with would go to this other school," she said.
"My parents tried to explain this to me but I was too young at that time to understand."
In the same interview, Brown's mother, Leola Brown, said she and her husband tried their best to help their daughter understand why she wasn't allowed in the school. She broke it down in simple terms: "It was because her face was black. ... and she just couldn't go to school with the white races at that time."
She said, "Her daddy told her he was going to try his best to do something about it and see that that was done away."
Recalling the day her father first walked her by the hand to Sumner School, Brown said,"I remember him talking to the principal and I remember our brisk walk back home and how I could just feel the tension within him."
When they got home, she said, her parents discussed what had gone on "and I knew that there was something terribly wrong about this," Brown said.
By the time the Supreme Court handed down its decision Brown was in junior high school and it was her mother who gave her the good news. "She was very happy," her mother said.
Brown never got the chance to attend Sumner. The family had moved out of the neighborhood during the lengthy case. But her mother said her younger daughters attended integrated schools, and one of them went on to become a teacher within the Topeka school district.
Even after the Supreme Court decision segregation in public schools continued for years. When finally nine black students enrolled at an all-white high school in Little Rock, Ark., in 1957, they had to be escorted onto the campus by federal guards.
The Topeka Capital-Journals reported:
"In 1979, Linda Brown, now with her own children in Topeka schools, became a plaintiff in a resurrected version of Brown, which still had the same title. Topeka Capital-Journal archives indicate the plaintiffs sued the school district for not following through with desegregation.
"Federal Judge Richard Rogers sided with the school district in a 1987 decision, but an appeals court reversed his ruling in 1989 and the Supreme Court chose not to review that decision. Rogers then approved a desegregation plan for Topeka Unified School District 501 in 1993."
Kansas Gov. Jeff Colyer noted Brown's passing in a tweet Monday. "Linda Brown's life reminds us that sometimes the most unlikely people can have an incredible impact and that by serving our community we can truly change the world."
Sherrilyn Ifill, president of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, in a statement remarked, "Linda Brown is one of that special band of heroic young people who, along with her family, courageously fought to end the ultimate symbol of white supremacy – racial segregation in public schools. She stands as an example of how ordinary schoolchildren took center stage in transforming this country."
Eventually Brown became an educational consultant and public speaker.
When asked about her role in the historic case she told NPR it was her father who deserved the credit but added, "I am very proud that this happened to me and my family and I think it has helped minorities everywhere."
As a mother of two children who had attended racially diverse schools, she said, "By them going to an integrated school, they are advancing much more rapidly than I was at the age that they are now. ... And I think that children are relating to one another much better these days because of integration."
Thank You and Rest in Peace!
Kim Kardashian Denies Photoshop Fail: It Wasn’t Me, It Was a Fan!
Kim Kardashian claims she is innocent of the crime of Photoshopping in the first degree.
Kim K took heat over the weekend when she posted a photo of herself that had clearly been altered. Commenters noticed and quickly took her to task and she eventually disabled comments on the post.
But Kim says she didn’t alter the photo; she was merely reposting a fan’s pic.
She gave the explanation on her app (after teasing in on her Instagram story) writing, “I’m seeing online and on news media outlets that I suffered a ‘Photoshop fail.’ So ridiculous!”
KKW continued, “I reposted a picture on Instagram that a fan had already posted — I only added a filter to it. It looks like the fan mirrored the photo, which is the reason the car looks like that. So, this is actually really funny to me! Who would even Photoshop a car to look like?! LOL.”
Also worth noting, Kim’s app is subscription-based, so by teasing fans to check out her response to the Photoshop debacle, she actually made money. Kim wins.
Sanaa Lathan Wants You To Know She Did NOT Bite BeyoncĆ©’s Face
Tiffany Haddish opened a brand new can of worms when she revealed an actress high on drugs bit BeyoncĆ©‘s face at an afterparty.
The BeyHive launched a full cyber investigation that prompted #WhoBitBeyonce to trend on Twitter as social media sleuths were hot on the case to find the culprit.
Someone’s bad intel led the hive to Sanaa Lathan and the swoop down was relentless.
The swoop down was so bad that it prompted her to speak out to let folks know she is NOT the perp!
Taraji P. Henson has also been eliminated from the list of suspects. Media Takeout is saying it was Taraji.
The fact that folks would think or believe Sanaa and Taraji were high enough to bite Bey is crazy!
If only Tiffany had kept this tea to herself….
Whoopi Goldberg Joins Cast Of Tyler Perry Drama ‘The List’
Whoopi Goldberg has joined the cast of Tyler Perry‘s forthcoming drama, The List, alongside Tiffany Haddish, Tika Sumpter, and Omari Hardwick.
According to Deadline, the film follows a woman (Haddish) who gets released from prison and reunited with her sister, who is forced to accept that she might be getting “catfished” by an online boyfriend.
The scoop on Whoopi’s role is still under wraps. The List is written, produced and directed by Tyler Perry and is slated to hit theaters on November 2.
No State Charges Filed In Alton Sterling Shooting Death
Louisiana's attorney general is not pressing criminal charges against two Baton Rouge police officers in the shooting death of Alton Sterling.
Sterling was shot and killed by police outside a convenience store in 2016. Officers reportedly got a call saying a person matching Sterling's description threatened someone with a gun. Police pinned Sterling to the ground, then shot him multiple times. They reported that Sterling had a gun in his pocket.
State investigators looked into the case after the U.S. Justice Department announced last year there wasn't enough evidence to warrant civil rights charges against the two officers.
Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry said the state based its decision off both the local and federal investigations.
Sterling's children filed a wrongful death lawsuit in 2017, alleging the shooting violated their father's civil rights and that it fits a pattern of racism and excessive force within the Baton Rouge Police Department.
Aaron Carter Says His Bisexuality Comments Were 'Misconstrued'
Aaron Carter is opening up about the comments he made last year about his sexuality.
On social media, the 30-year-old entertainer said he has had relationships with both women and men.
Now, he’s clarifying the remarks. “It was more so just a story that happened when I was, like, 17 with somebody,” Aaron said on a recent podcast with Hollywood Life. “I can find men and women attractive, but when it comes down to it, I think it was a little misconstrued. I see myself being with a woman and having kids.”
“I want to have a family,” he continued. “I keep telling people that. I don’t want it to be misconstrued too much.”
Aaron also told the public that he believed his ex Madison Parker broke up with him after he told his ex about his being bisexual.
AND FINALLY FROM THE CRAZY PEOPLE SHOPPING AT WALMART FILES
‘MOP TOP'
George Clinton’s sister looking fresh today. Keep being funky girl.
EGGPLANT NATION: Meet HunniBear!
Meet HunniBear! You can see more when CLICK HERE TO SEE THE PICS! And remember they’re NSFW!
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Enjoy!
HAVE A GREAT DAY EVERYBODY!!!
EFREM
