Source: Courtney Hale / Getty Nigel Shelby , a Black Alabama teen, tragically took his own life after being teased and bullied in school for being gay. In a loving show of support, Dwyane Wade, Gabrielle Union , and other celebrities rallied around Shelby’s mother and donated funds to provide a proper memorial service. TMZ reports : Sources tell TMZ … the actress and NBA star are part of a group of celebs — which also includes Ludacris and Janelle Monae — donating money to help cover Nigel Shelby’s funeral. Nigel is the 15-year-old who took his own life nearly 2 weeks ago. We’re told the effort was spearheaded by Pinky Cole — owner of the popular ATL restaurant Slutty Vegan — and “Master of None” star Lena Waithe, who enlisted their famous friends to help out. Nigel’s mother, Camika, had said Nigel suffered from depression and struggled with his identity. Our sources wouldn’t say how much money was raised, but we know it was enough to cover the expense of Nigel’s tombstone, funeral service … and a separate amount to support Camika. Our hearts go out to Ms. Camika in this trying time. May Nigel rest powerfully in peace. — Photo: Getty
Source: Foot Locker / Champion Esports has come a long way since its inception becoming wildly popular among the masses. Tapping into that energy, Foot Locker Inc. announced today (May 1) its new product collaboration with Champion Athleticwear that will bring gear associated with five top Esports teams into its retail chains. The announced collection will comprise of jerseys, sweatshirts, and t-shirts reflect each team’s dynamic DNA and heritage. The apparel launches officially on May 2 in the Foot Locker family of brands which include Champ Sports , Eastbay, and Footaction in select stores but already saw a limited release of jerseys on NTWRK yesterday (Apr.30). View this post on Instagram Get fitted like a pro @champion esports jerseys drop May 2nd in stores + online! Swipe @opticgaming @renegades @spacestationgaming @dignitas @clgaming A post shared by Champs Sports (@champssports) on Apr 30, 2019 at 5:31am PDT The five Esports teams whose jerseys, sweatshirts and t-shirts fans and gamers can look forward to rocking include: OpTic Gaming Founded in 2006, the Texas-based organization competes worldwide for some of the most recognizable titles in esports, including Call of Duty , Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS: GO), Gears of War and League of Legends . Outside of competitive rosters, OpTic is known as a cultural leader in gaming and esports amplified by its extensive roster of streamers and personalities. Counter Logic Gaming Los Angeles-based Counter Logic Gaming (CLG) is a top tier North American esports organization that competes in a range of games including League of Legends , Fortnite , CS: GO and Smash . CLG strives to uplift its community through championship wins, unforgettable fan experiences and pushing the boundaries of esports entertainment. Dignitas Founded in 2003, Dignitas is one of the esports industry’s heritage professional teams and is home to one of the top all-female CS: GO and Rocket League teams in the world. Owned by Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, whose portfolio includes multiple professional sports teams, Dignitas has produced over 34 World Champions and over 500 tournament wins. Spacestation Gaming Spacestation Gaming was founded in 2017 by Shaun McBride (Shonduras) around the idea of building a community. Spacestation has found success by creating unique content with an emphasis on supporting its teams and fan base. The organization currently has competitive teams in 10 games including Rocket League , Rainbow 6 , Smite , PUBG , and Paladins . Renegades Renegades is a global esports franchise featuring professional athletes and teams in the world’s most competitive titles. Founded by professional basketball player, Jonas Jerebko, the Renegades’ recent breakout performances in CS: GO and Fortnite launched the franchise into becoming one of the most prominent and internationally recognized brands in the world. Following the collections May 2 launch, fans looking to score any of the pieces can do so at an exclusive in-store tournament being held at Champs Sports flagship Times Square NYC location May 18. Not only will fans be able to purchase the apparel they will also be able to play against their favorite professional gamers from each team. If you can’t be able to make it to the event physically, it will be live streamed on Twitch. — Photo: Foot Locker / Champion
Wiz Khalifa ’s been on his grizzly ever since dropping his latest project Fly Times, Vol. 1: The Good Fly Young this past 4/20 weekend and today continues to pump out visuals in support of his joint. This time around Steel City’s favorite MC dropped a new video for the Trippie Redd and Preme featured “Alright” in which the three men turn up at the beach, a house and in the middle of the woods. They obviously bring the party with them wherever they go. Elsewhere the Bawse Rick Ross joins Yemi Alade for her up-tempo visual to “Oh My Gosh.” For Ross’s sake don’t let PETA see this video. Check out the rest of today’s drops including work from Lil Durk featuring Teyana Taylor, Baka Not Nice featuring Giggs, and more. WIZ KHALIFA FT. TRIPPIE REDD & PREME – “ALRIGHT” YEMI ALADE & RICK ROSS – “OH MY GOSH” LIL DURK FT. TEYANA TAYLOR – “HOME BODY REMIX” BAKA NOT NICE FT. GIGGS – “MY TOWN” J.I.D. – “151 RUM” NINO FRANCIS – “VIBES” MAHALIA – “GRATEFUL” LEVEN KALI – “MAD AT U”
Source: Brian Ach / Getty Sza was shopping at a Sephora in Calabasas when an associate she labeled “Sephora Sally” reportedly called security on her because she thought she was stealing. “Lmao Sandy Sephora location 614 Calabasas called security to make sure I wasn’t stealing,” SZA tweeted. “We had a long talk. U have a blessed day Sandy.” Lmao Sandy Sephora location 614 Calabasas called security to make sure I wasn’t stealing . We had a long talk. U have a blessed day Sandy — SZA (@sza) May 1, 2019 Can a bitch cop her fenty in peace er whut — SZA (@sza) May 1, 2019 We’re not surprised at Sza’s story, if you’ve ever Sephora shopped while Black, you can feel the eyes following you around the store. Since Sza was shopping for Fenty Beauty, we wonder if Rihanna will have anything to say about this… Someone owes Sza an apology and given the history of other prejudice White people like BBQ Becky and Pool Patty, she better get one fast before Internet sleuths track down whoever called security on the Grammy nominated artist and put her information on blast. RELATED STORIES: Kendrick Lamar & Sza Takes Us To Infinity And Beyond With Stunning ‘All The Stars’ Video All The Reasons We’re Out Of Ctrl Over Sza [ione_media_gallery src=”https://hellobeautiful.com” id=”2967118″ overlay=”true”]
Source: FOX / Getty It’s the second to last episode of Empire Season 5 and tonight’s episode definitely did a good job of dragging out the, “Is Andre Seriously Going to Die?” saga. It looks like he is but again, you really never know on this show. Anyway, the episode starts with Lucious not wanting to accept that Andre is dying (he’s still the only one who knows out of the family). But Andre has accepted his fate and wants to die on his own terms. Lucious tells him not to do a dang thing until he talks to him first then he storms out. We see Dre carefully placing cards that he wrote out to all of his loved ones. Meanwhile, Cookie wants Teri to tell Andre she’s pregnant to give him something to fight for. Teri says she won’t say anything because she’s surprised that she’s even pregnant until she gets word from the doctor that everything is okay. Lucious gets into a minor car accident. It’s minor in the sense that he swerves off the road and hits a rail and keeps his life. He does get knocked out, though, and starts having dreams where he’s conversing with dead people from his past. Cookie’s cousin that he killed manages to tell him he ain’t ish, later on, he sees Shyne, and he even sees his dead father. The latter gives him the strength he needs to let go of Andre. Now we’re at a meeting at Empire with Becky, Giselle, and Patel. Jamal was supposed to be there but he’s on his honeymoon in Seychelles. Patel wants to know what’s up with the money and how is the tour doing. Then Thirsty interrupts with an Empire artist saying their checks didn’t clear. In fact, Empire checks are bouncing all over the place. It’s the feds again. They froze Empire’s assets. As a matter of fact, Megan, the leader of the pack, interrogates Cookie without a lawyer. Cookie demands a lawyer and Megan pokes at her about freezing Empire’s assets. Then she brings up Panama. She shows Cookies photos from her trip to Panama with Damon Cross and asks what happened between them. If Cookie snitches on Damon then Megan will unfreeze all of Empire’s assets. Cookie ain’t no snitch, and she ain’t no fool. Just the fact that Cookie is there without a lawyer is grounds enough to get her out of there. Cookie tells her straight where to go, too, before sashaying away. In the meantime, Becky, Giselle, and Andre, who isn’t even supposed to be working but everyone needs him, are trying to figure out what to do. Becky suggests throwing a new special concert, that is distinctly separate from the tour, where Empire artists are paired with non-Empire artists. There’s a venue that owes her a favor so maybe this could work. Now we’re the part of the episode where Lucious finally wakes up from his blackout to Thirsty calling and telling him he needs to get back to reality quick. Then we see a flashback of Cookie meeting up with Damon. He’s trying to get her to leave Lucious again. Cookie says she wants her hubby and her boys and the life they built, but she does tip him off about the feds since she’s feeling generous. Andre asks Kingsley if he can help whim reach Eddie Patel, who is literally at some billionaire boys club convention Silicon Valley. They have a quick exchange, and Kingsley says he won’t be able to get in because the billionaires don’t think too highly of him. He’s also skeptical of Andre asking for help. Andre says he forgives him and that he’s his big brother and that he needs him. That’s enough tenderness for Kingsley to wire him a crap ton of money, adding that it’s not half of what he owes empire, but it’s a start (later on we find out that Kingsley also gave him some leads on potential investors). Now it’s time for the special concert. Hakeem performs with Ty Dolla $ign. Tiana performs with Sevyn Streeter. And it’s a good night. Teri finds Cookie backstage and tells her that she got the test results back. She and Andre are expecting a healthy baby boy. Cookie asks when she’s going to tell Andre and Teri puts it off until tomorrow, obviously not knowing she may not have that long. Finally, the episode winds down with Lucious and Andre eating Andre’s favorite meal at a hotel, just before Andre plans to end his life. Cookie walks into her house and comes across the note he wrote her telling her about his heart condition and why he didn’t want her to know. She remembered where he said he was staying and rushes over there. She makes it in time just before Andre is preparing to take some pills, as Lucious watches tearfully, and busts everything up. She starts spazzing out on Lucious for letting their son kill himself so they have a moment where they argue. Then Cookie Dre that Teri is pregnant and that this is worth fighting for but the shock of Cookie already affected him negatively and he starts to have a heart attack and we end with them calling 911. Yup, they’re still dragging this out. Meanwhile, we just want to see if there’s a plot twist where Andre lives, or nah. The season finally ends next week. RELATED POSTS ‘Empire’ Recap: It’s Looking Like Andre Is Really Going To Die ‘Empire’ Recap: Lucious Tries To Make Things Right With Kingsley
Source: Scott Dudelson / Getty Prayers up. Geto Boys rapper Bushwick Bill recently revealed that he is battling stage 4 pancreatic cancer. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Bushwick Bill (@therealbushwickbill) on Apr 30, 2019 at 4:09pm PDT The 52-year-old rapper told TMZ he was diagnosed in February. The cancer is advanced so he is fighting it with intensive chemotherapy. According to Bill, he had a mass on his pancreas for months that doctors initially thought was benign, so the cancer diagnosis was a shoc. He also said that while he plans to keep fighting, he is also not afraid to die. Interestingly, he has yet to tell fellow Geto Boys members Scarface and Willie D about his condition. We wish Bushwick Bill the best and hopefully a recovery. Also, f*ck cancer. — Photo: Getty
Source: Splash / Splash News The Tekashi 6ix9nine saga continues to play out like an extended Law & Order story arc. In the latest episode, the Brooklyn rapper may take the stand against the alleged Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods caught up in federal racketeering charges. It’s already come to light that the “Gummo” rapper has been singing , hoping to get a potential 47-year sentence reduced to as little as possible. Although a number of the men charged have already taken plea deals, there are a few who may go to trial. If they do, Tekashi could potentially take the stand against them. Reports Page Six : While several Nine Trey members have already pleaded guilty to charges that include gun and narcotics charges, there are five others who may go to trial. A federal prosecutor told a judge at a hearing on Tuesday that the government is still working on plea negotiations with defendants and that the cases of “less than three” of the defendants may go to trial in September. The willingness of the tatted-up tattletale — whose real name is Daniel Hernandez and who originally hails from Bushwick, Brooklyn — to work with prosecutors has apparently already gotten him into trouble with former accomplices. According to court papers, the feds picked up a conversation between Jamel “Mel Murda” Jones, who pleaded guilty on April 4 to a narcotics distribution charge, and an unidentified man on a wiretap in which Jones could be heard saying that Tekashi would get “super violated.” As usual, real-life criminals, allegedly, refused to take heed to HBO’s ‘The Wire.’ As for Tekashi, the troll rapper was never about that street life. So anyone genuinely surprised that he’s acting like a civilian (read: if you see a crime, say something), wasn’t paying very much attention. — Photo: Splash
Source: Walt Disney Studios / Walt Disney Studios When you think back to the first Toy Story , you may remember Bo Peep, the sheep herder in a pretty pink dress and three conjoined sheep at her feet. Or, maybe it’s a little foggy since she was absent from Toy Story 3 , but Woody’s boo thang is back in the fourth installment of the Disney and Pixar franchise and she’s stronger than ever before. Without giving too much away, audiences will swiftly learn that Bo Peep becomes a lost toy (which is the ultimate toy nightmare). She’s basically discarded, but after years apart, Woody and Bo are reunited. He sees her porcelain exterior is a little chipped, but her spirit and charm are more than intact as she is surviving and thriving the unknown all on he own. She’s strong, daring, and bold, though it’s important to note she has always been, she’s just stepping into it in her own right. So much so, she’s wearing her skirt as a cape and using her herding staff as a weapon. The girl is resourceful! Source: Walt Disney Studios / Walt Disney Studios Before Bo becomes solo, she is an integral part of an operation to save a fellow toy from becoming lost. Story artist Carrie Hobson explained the significance of the opening scene. “We wanted to show that Bo was an equal leader to Woody — really stress this,” Hobson said. “Once Molly had her own bedroom, Woody is in Andy’s room. Bo is in Molly’s room. They are both leaders. We show this simply through her leading the operation to save the toy outside.” Bo is not only inspiring, but quite liberating to watch as she marvels on screen without feeling like a caricature of what a strong female lead might look like under a male guise. And that’s because an entire team of women were behind the mastery that is Toy Story 4 Bo Peep. From her porcelain texture, to her new ensemble, and even facial expressions – the Bo team was on it. Drawing from the likes of Meryl (yes, Streep) and other boss babes, Hobson said the key was making sure she was just like all of us. “We looked to the important women in our lives and considered how all of us would react in certain situations. When she reunites with Woody, would there be awkwardness, would she want to catch-up, where would they start?” “We had a constant dialogue about her and how she would be represented,” added directing animator Becki Tower. Fans can rest assured that Bo sounds just the same, as Annie Potts returned to voice the iconic character. “Annie not only brings emotion to Bo, she completely fleshes out that character,” said director Josh Cooley. “She’s heartwarming and funny, and Annie has a natural sarcasm that’s just perfect.” When it comes down to it, Bo Peep may have been absent for 20 years, but her bold and relatable personality makes it feel she never left. Maybe it’s because it feels as if there is a little Bo Peep in all of us. “It was important that women and girls see that she can be strong, independent, and flawed,” added Hobson. Source: Walt Disney Studios / Walt Disney Studios Bo Peep is joined by a slew of new characters including the first female villain Gabby Gabby, the Polly Pocket-like Giggles McDimples, Benson the ventriloquist dummy, Duke Caboom action figure voiced by Keanu Reeves, Forky the craft project, and plush toys Ducky and Bunny voiced by Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele, respectively. Toy Story 4 opens in theaters everywhere June 21.
Source: Arturo Holmes / @ArtuGraphiq Well, it could be a wrap for Remy Ma. Join Our Text Club To Get The Latest Music, Entertainment, Contests And Breaking News On Your Phone. Text BALTIMORE to 24042 to join! The rapper, who is not only a new mother, but is currently on probation, turned herself into New York City police Wednesday. This comes after reports surfaced that she punched Brittney Taylor at a concert last month. The pair previously appeared together on the New York version of Love & Hip-Hop. Taylor, who no longer appears on the show, claimed Remy punched her in her right eye while backstage at the Pretty Lou Benefit Concert at Irving Plaza back on April 16th. Taylor said the argument had something to do with a member of Remy’s family. See Also: Remy Ma Accused of Punching Former Love & Hip-Hop Co-Star Remy wasn’t alone when she surrendered to cops. Her lawyer was with her. Taylor is also planning to file a civil lawsuit against Remy, requesting cops preserve all evidence of the alleged assault, including surveillance footage. If you’re unfamiliar with Remy’s rap sheet, she previously served six years in jail for shooting a friend in 2007 in a dispute over cash. Her probation was scheduled to end in August. [ione_media_gallery src=”https://92q.com” id=”4001888″ overlay=”true”]
Source: LIONEL BONAVENTURE / Getty When it comes to paid subscribers, Spotify is now the king. The Swedish music streaming platform announced during a 2019 1Q financial performance review that it now has 100 million premium subscriptions surpassing Apples 50 million. Just earlier this month it was reported Apple held the title . Spotify also reported a year-on-year increase of 32 percent alongside the impressive feat. The company also managed to pull in an additional two million users pushing its active monthly users to 217 million despite its launch in India hitting a roadblock in the form of being slapped by with a copyright lawsuit by Warner Music. Spotify is expecting by the end of 2019 2Q to see its active monthly users worldwide increase to between 222 to 228 million, and its paid subscribers hit 107 to 110 million. The company also announced it’s looking to expand its and significantly upgrade recently acquired Grimlet Media, Anchor, and Parcast podcast lineup as well as its free ad-supported music streaming service. Despite all the good news the company boasted about, Spotify still suffered a USD 159 million loss during the first quarter. Also while leading globally, Spotify is taking an L in the US market with 26 million paid subscribers compared to Apple’s 28 million paid subscribers. Just more news to keep the music streaming wars interesting, this news comes on the heels of Amazon making a push for Spotify’s spot with the recent quiet release of its own ad-supported free music service to Alexa-enabled smart speaker owners. — Photo: LIONEL BONAVENTURE / Getty
