Chicago is on fire and ready to celebrate NBA All Star 2020 despite the sub-zero temperatures that are on the way. Grammy Award-Winning Artist Chance the Rapper shares that this years All Star is special because of Kobe Bryant. Check out the video.
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Jussie Smollett has been indicted by a special prosecutor. Fox 32 reported that Chicago special prosecutor Dan Webb has issued this indictment. Smollett is expected in court on February 24, 2020.
All of this stems from the 2019 hate crime that happened in Chicago. The hate crime turned out as a hoax and seemed to be orchestrated by Smollett.
When news of the fake hate crime hit the web Smollett received support from all of his Hollywood friends most notably his former co-stars from Empire Taraji P Henson and Terrance Howard. The internet stood behind the actor.
Once the story started to unravel Smollett’s support waned. .
Smolett was indicted on February 20, 2019 for disorderly conduct and filing a fraudulent police report. The indictment pointed to Smollett paying two Nigerian men to participate in his alleged staged attack.
Those charges were dropped in March of 2019 in exchange for community service and a 10k fine. Smollett doubled down after the charges were dropped. He never once denied that the attack happned.
States Attorney Kim Foxx and former superintendent of The Chicago police were at odds because of this case. Johnson said Smollett and his attorneys “chose to hide behind secrecy and broker a deal to circumvent the judicial system.”
Former Mayor of Chicago Rahm Emanuel was also angry about the initial outcome in a press conference in 2019 he share his thoughts “This is, without a doubt, a whitewash of justice and sends a clear message that if you’re in a position of influence and power, you’ll get treated one way, other people will be treated another way. There is no accountability.” said Emanuel
Smollett has since gone into obscurity since the initial incident. There were rumors of him joining the final season of Empire but that did not happen. Details are still surfacing in this new indictment.
So what do you think? Will Jussie serve time? Share in the comments.
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Dwayne Wade was on Ellen recently discussing the moment his son Zion made it clear that he was ready to love his truth.
Wayne recalls Zion coming home from school. Once Zaya our 12 year-old came home, first Zion, I don’t know if everyone knows (she) was originally named Zion born as a boy came home and said “Hey I want to to talk to you guys. I think going forward I’m ready to live my truth and I want to be referenced as she and her. I would love for you guys to call me Zaya.” Internally now it’s our job to go out and get information.”said Wayne
Wayne and his wife Gabrielle Union are extremely supportive of their daughter.
How would you feel if your child shared something like this with you? Please share in the comments below.
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Chas of Rebel Wyld gave an extremely powerful and moving performance of “One Eleven” and “Two Can Win” at Charlie Coffeen Presents Dilla Donuts Orchestra With Special Guests.
Check out the performance above.
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Camille Cosby has delivered a clear an succinct message to Gayle King and others who seem to have taken up the mantle against Black men. Camille took to instagram to provide a message in defense of Kobe Bryant’s family and the image of Black men.
All of this is a result of the interview Gayle King did with Lisa Leslie. King brought up Kobe Bryant’s 2003 sexual assault case and Kobes legacy. This happened right after discussing Kobe’s daughter Gianna playing in the WNBA. Many have taken exception to Kings line of questioning and have not hesitated to let her know.
Snoop Dog took to his instagram to share his displeasure “Gayle King, outta pocket for that s–, Way outta pocket. What do you gain from that? I swear to God we the worst. We the f— worst. We expect more from you Gayle. Don’t you hang out with Oprah? Why ya’ll attacking us? We your people. You didn’t come after f—- Harvey Weinstien asking them dum a– questions. I get sick a ya’ll. I wanna call you one. Is it ok if I call her one?”
Snoop calls King out of her name saying she needs to back off “before we come get you”. Bill Cosby tweeted from inside of his jail cell in order to thank Snoop for exposing King and “an agenda of successful Black Women being used to tarnish the image and legacy of successful Black men even in death.” tweeted Bill Cosby
Mrs. Cosby echoed her husbands statement in a instagram post “The relentless, stereotypical portrayals of people of color… and I will specify African American men for the purpose of this statement…and the ever-present, unproven accusations of Black men as sexually deviant, brutal black bucks, are repetitive obsessions in most general media.” she posted
King has since delivered what can be interpreted as an apology for how her line of questioning was viewed out of context.
Read Camille Cosby’s full text below.
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It’s Dilla month. We celebrate the life of one of the best producers we have ever been blessed to hear. Dilla was an extremely prolific producer. Much of his greatest work is with his group Slum Village, A Tribe Called Quest, The Pharcyde, Common and of course on his own project “Welcome to Detroit.
Dilla had beat tapes circulate the world once people discovered his genius. As a result, a lot of his work may be uncredited or has traveled under the radar and out of the scope of the mainstream. One thing for sure is you can’t mistake that J Dilla bump. It’s a groove. It’s a vibe.
Lets take a moment and listen to 5 songs Dilla produced that you may not have been aware of.
When I first heard this song I’m not sure I was fully aware who Dilla was yet. But according to stories I have heard about this production Q Tip who was working with Dilla and basically presented him to all of his friends shared this track with Janet Jackson and she was instantly hooked. Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis took credit for this production, but the word got out as to who did the work. This may be one of the first introductions of Dilla’s prowess to the mainstream culture.
2. The Brand New Heavies “Sometimes (Ummah Remix)
The Brand New Heavies were a force to be reckoned with during the Neo-Soul movement. They were driven by live instrumentation and an R&B vibe. This specific song mentions that this song was remixed by The Ummah. The Ummah was a production collective that consisted of Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Raphael Sasdiq, Q Tip and J Dilla. By this point the cat was out of the bag and Dilla was known more in the industry. So even though this is an Ummah remix you can still hear Dilla’s bump all over this.
3. Black Star “Little Brother”
As an avid fan of the legendary rap group Black Star I thought I knew a lot about them. Yasiin Bey aka Mos Def and Talib Kweli are two of my favorite emcees. I had a pretty good idea of the production they used. Imagine my surprise when I found out that “Little Brother” a single used for “The Hurricane” soundtrack featuring Denzel Washington was produced by Dilla. Whats even more amazing is to hear the way this song was produced. It is awe inspiring and speaks directly to Dilla’s genius. Google “Questlove on J Dilla’s sampling techniques ” to hear that story.
4. D’Angelo “Feel Like Makin’ Love
“Voodo” by D’Angelo is arguably his greatest work. The recording of that album took place at the legendary Electric Lady Studio’s where legendary projects by Common, Erykah Badu and The Roots were recorded. This song was recorded because Lauryn “Miss Hill” Hill missed a session. Dilla is ALL over this one.
5. A Tribe Called Quest “Find My Way”
This song comes from a Tribe album that wasn’t well received initially but has since grown to be a classic. The Love Movement had a different sound. It was jazzy but still hip-hop. Its had class and bottom. All of these a Dilla traits. The Ummah is credited for production on this but as always Dilla’s influence is evident and seeps into your soul.
6.Tupac “Do For Love” . BONUS!!!
I know I said 5 but this one had to mentioned because it features two of Hip-Hop’s greatest. This is one I just realized thanks to a post by Andrew Barber on twitter. Tupac and Dilla on a track together is truly heaven!
For context on this Tupac joint.
I’m sure I missed a few. What are some of your favorite Dilla productions. Share in the comments.
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Salute to Lisa Leslie.
The past 2 days have been a whirlwind when it comes to the living. The fact is Kobe, Gianna and seven other individuals are no longer with us. Their families are left to morn their loss alone once the cameras go off. Can any of you even imagine what these families are going through? What could it possibly be like to be Vanessa Bryant who lost her husband and her daughter? How do the families of John Altobelli, Kerri Altobelli, Alyssa Altobelli, Sarah Chester, Payton Chester, Ara Zobyan and Christina Mauser feel about their family members being lumped in as the “seven other victims”?
Those questions are why what Gayle King did was so unsettling and irresponsible. She tried to pass the buck off to “someone” at CBS uploading that snippet after the interview already aired. She mentioned the video was out of context. King provided a number of reasons. She even mentioned how she would feel if she saw the video the way the public did. “I know that if I had seen the video that you saw, I’d be extremely angry with me too” said King. That is the most telling part of this. If that line of questioning is moved to any other part of that interview it’s going to come off the same way. It’s going to feel abrupt, accusatory and like gotcha journalism.
Lisa Leslie handled her questions masterfully. She kept her composure even after she was blindsided. Leslie spoke facts, protected her friend and delivered a clear message. This three time WNBA MVP rose to the occasion with class and grace.
Here are five reasons why she remains the MVP.
It takes a real friend to fend off an attack against you and your family in that manner. We should all be so lucky to have one friend like that.
Who is your MVP? How did Lisa do? Share in the comments.
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On Thursday, Feb. 6, 2020, LSB Media presented Conversations with Chrisette Michele. The Grammy-winning singer, who is in the middle of a national speaking tour, visited Theatre 47 in the south suburban village of Park Forest, Illinois, as part of a national speaking tour to share a few thoughts and answer some questions.
The show was hosted by A.C. Green and featured several amazing performers, including Keya Tramell, Makeda Grier and Pia Renee, who filled the room with their spirited vocals.
The moderator for the evening was Cherish Brown, and she dove right into the questions for Michele, first asking how she feels about being single again.
“Great,” Michele replied. “When you break away from something that doesn’t serve you, then it’s a wonderful thing. The marriage was the hard part. Getting out was easy.”
When asked why she performed at President Donald Trump’s inaugural ball, her explanation was a bit more layered.
“When you get a No. 1 on the entire Billboard charts, you think, man, if I say something, somebody might hear me. That becomes an idea for reality. And it became an idea for reality when I felt the country was hurting.”
Her explanation shed some light on her decision. Given that she was one of the early victims of cancel culture, it was inspiring to see her bounce back even more empowered.
Michele noted that she embarked on the speaking tour after her mother suggested that she get out and touch the public and share her experiences. As a result, she has been touring schools across the United States.
After the question-and-answer exchange, Michele took to the stage to perform a few stripped-down songs. Her voice remains pristine and powerful. She mentioned she would be back in Chicago for a show at the City Winery.
Take a look at a few pictures in the gallery below.
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Happy birthday to James “J Dilla” Yancy. Today the announcement of Jay Electronica finally releasing his album in 40 days feels like a present from the legendary producer. Dilla would have been 46 years-old today. He left an indelible mark on the world with his style of production. The soul of his creations permeates the mind and allows the listener to travel with him on a journey.
A few years ago while listening to Snap Judgement on NPR I came across this amazing story. It speaks to how Dilla has managed to continue to touch lives and keep his legacy alive through his music. Imagine coming across a J Dilla beat tape out of the blue. Check out the story below.
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Oprah Winfrey and Gayle King are not about that social media life. Oprah visited Hoda and Jenna on “Today” and spoke about her best friends condition after the response she has received following her interview with Lisa Leslie.
King pressed Lisa Leslie about Kobe’s legacy and how his sexual assault case would tarnish it. The internet went ballistic. Snoop cursed her out and got a tweet from Bill Cosby who is in prison thanking him for it.
King has since apologized but it has essentially fallen on deaf ears. When asked how her best friend was doing Oprah said “She is not doing well, because she has death threats and has to travel with security and she’s feeling very much attacked. “ Oprah continued “Bill Cosby is tweeting from jail. She feels like she was put in a really terrible position because that interview had already ran.”
Take a look at the video below.
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