She dropped the single “12 Problems” on Sept. 17, a haunting requiem that flips her Roc Nation boss Jay-Z’s “99 Problems” and rewinds through the history of violence against Black artists and activists. But in the official music video, which she’s debuting on Billboard below, something joyful greets viewers and peeks behind her. A young Black ballerina prances in front of “Don’t Let Go,” a vertical shot of two hands grasping each other like their lives depend on it, to the delicate tune of Ambré and Buddy’s “Revolution.” The photographer, Yvette Glasco from Atlanta, is one of six emerging artists selected in Sprite’s “Create Your Future” campaign, which gives their artwork capturing why they believe voting is important a major platform. Rapsody as well as 2 Chainz and Yara Shahidi are...
Source: WENN/Avalon / WENN The teenager who captured the murder of George Floyd at the hands of police and started a worldwide movement is being honored with a medal of courage from a prestigious nonprofit. On Tuesday (Oct 27) PEN America announced they were honoring 17-year-old Darnella Frazier with the 2020 PEN/Beneson Award. “With nothing more than a cell phone and sheer guts, Darnella changed the course of history in this country, sparking a bold movement demanding an end to systemic anti-Black racism and violence at the hands of police,” PEN America CEO Suzanne Nossel said in a statement. “With remarkable steadiness, Darnella carried out the expressive act of bearing witness, and allowing hundreds of millions around the world to see what she saw.” On May 25, Frazier recorded Minneapol...
Source: Peacock / Getty Comedian Amber Ruffin had some choice words for rappers coming out in support of current sitting President, Donald Trump. On Monday’s (Oct. 26) episode of Late Night With Seth Meyers, AmberRuffin laid out on the table exactly what most African Americans in support of change were thinking. During the three and a half minute skit, you see Ruffin attempting to refrain from commenting on the subject of Ice Cube working with Trump, as host Seth Meyers discussed the headlines from the previous week stating that both 50 Cent and Ice Cube were either in support of Trump or working with him, stating that her comments would “go off the rails,” before diving in and allowing her stance to be made clear. As previously reported, Ice Cube has fallen somewhat out of favor with many...
Lil Wayne is the latest rapper to come out in support of Donald Trump. In a tweet posted on Thursday evening, Wayne revealed that he recently met with Trump and was won over by his commitment to the “Platinum Plan” for Black America, as well as his past actions achieving criminal justice reform. “Just had a great meeting with @realdonaldtrump @potus besides what he’s done so far with criminal reform, the platinum plan is going to give the community real ownership,” Wayne wrote. “He listened to what we had to say today and assured he will and can get it done. 🤙🏾” According to Bloomberg, the Trump Administration’s “Platinum Plan” commits to unlocking $500 billion in access to capital to Black communities in addition to creating three million new jobs. It also c...
In what would have been the biggest scandal in almost any other presidency, Trump administration officials attempted to hijack $250 million allocated for a coronavirus awareness campaign, with the hope of using taxpayer money to instead boost Donald Trump’s re-election chances. Now, leaked documents have revealed the administration’s notes on potential celebrity endorsements, including a concern that Billie Eilish is “destroying our country and everything we care about.” The story began when the Department of Health and Human Services sent out a “performance work statement” to several communication firms regarding a $250 million contract. An exposé in Politico raised concerns about the partisan intentions behind the advertisements, especially as HHS is supposed to remain independent. This ...
More than 14 million Americans have voted so far, and with less than three weeks left until the Nov. 3 election, this year’s tallies are on track to be historic, with some states already posting 10-40 percent of the total votes counted in 2016 through a combination of absentee and in-person early voting. And, well, stars, they’re just like millions of other patriotic Americans who trust the nation’s election system: They’re getting out early too. “Just finished filling out my ballot!” Selena Gomez wrote on Instagram Thursday (Oct. 22). In a slideshow of pics, she shows off her “I VOTED” sticker. Mandy Moore cast her ballot, but made it fashionable, posting a short video in which she busted out her black leather Stuart Weitzman 5050 ...
Overall, 12 percent of voters reported that an entertainer or athlete influenced their thinking regarding the election. Influence is higher among Black voters (28 percent), Hispanic/Latino voters (20 percent), LGBTQ (17 percent), Gen Z and Millennials (both 17 percent). Down the party line, Democratic voters are more likely to be influenced by athletes or entertainers than Republican voters at 17 percent to 9 percent. Among all voters, 36 percent said that James has done the most to raise awareness and motivate people regarding voting. Taylor Swift came in second with 13 percent, Johnson at 9 percent and Winfrey with six percent. Tying with five percent were Cardi B, Beyoncé and Colin Kaepernick. James (22 percent), Swift (18 percent), Beyoncé and Cardi B (8 percent) all swayed Gen Z voter...
Source: Bernard Smalls / @PhotosByBeanz Looks like Ice Cube’s claims of the Biden campaign telling him to chill out was not the case at all. Ice Cube has been catching serious heat since he confirmed that the Trump campaign reached out to him, and he did indeed politick with them and helped them craft their “platinum plan” geared towards Black Americans. Ice Cube was immediately praised by the right for his willingness to work with Trump but was dragged up and down on social media before clarifying that he does not endorse the super-spreader in chief. One of Cube’s arguments as to why he entertained Team Trump was because the Biden campaign told him to wait till after the election, and that didn’t sit well with him. Facts: I put out the CWBA. Both parties contacted me. Dems said we’ll addr...