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Source: https://www.eurweb.com/2018/08/ariana-grande-mistaken-for-a-taco-bell-item-at-aretha-franklins-funeral/

*Aretha Franklin’s family tapped Ariana Grande at the last minute to join the esteemed group of artists who performed at the Queen of Soul’s homegoing Friday morning.

Grande took the stage at the Greater Grace Temple in Detroit in a black dress so short it sparked conversation across social media.

“#ArianaGrande don’t know the below the knee rule for the pulpit in the black church. Somebody hand her a lap hanky and a choir robe. Bless her heart,” tweeted Tenisha Taylor Bell.

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Grande’s ex-boyfriend Big Sean was among those attending the funeral, and the rapper gave her a standing ovation, HuffPost reported. 

Following her performance, Bishop Charles Ellis III, who was presiding over the service, brought the singer over to the podium for some remarks.

Watch below:

“I’ve got to apologize because I have to brush up,” Ellis said at the podium, while Grande laughed. “My 28-year-old daughter told me, ‘You are old at 60.’”

“When I saw Ariana Grande on the program, I thought that was a new something at Taco Bell,” he added. “Girl, lemme give you all your respect.”

Social media, of course, reacted to the dig…

Grande met Franklin earlier on in her career, as she recalled on “The Tonight Show.”

“I met her a few times. We sang at the White House and she was so sweet and she was so cute,” she told host Jimmy Fallon at the time. “I was like, ‘How are you a real person?’ It’s an honor to have met her and we’re gonna celebrate her.”

Source: https://www.eurweb.com/2018/08/tyga-takes-credit-for-success-of-kylie-jenners-make-up-line/

*Tyga was a guest on Nicki Minaj’s Queen Radio yesterday and made headlines for claiming that he had “a lot to do” with the success of his ex-girlfriend Kylie Jenner.

The “Keeping Up with the Kardashians,” who now calls Travis Scott her baby daddy, was the youngest person to make Forbes’ annual list of America’s Richest Self-Made Women earlier this year after her make-up line, Kylie Cosmetics, was revealed to be worth nearly $800 million.

Tyga insists that he had something to do with her amassing that fortune. He claims his three-year relationship with the star between 2014 and 2017 helped put her on the map.

“She always had a platform and she was always destined to be what she was going to be regardless, but, when I stepped in, there was a lot of codes being taught,” the 28-year-old explained on Minaj’s Apple Music Beats 1 show Queen Radio on Thursday. “It was like, ‘you could do this, you should start this, you should start doing your hair like this’.”

The “Taste” rapper went on to insist that he played an influential role in the creation of the make-up mogul’s signature Lip Kits and helped Kylie pick shades and names in the production process.

“I had a lot to do with all that, which I don’t need credit for,” he shared. “I don’t need to go online and tell people I did this and I’m the one helping her coming up with these colors and names on her lip line. It was a lot of stuff.”

During the chat, Tyga, who is now rumored to be back with Playboy model Carla Howe, also addressed the breakdown of his relationship with Kylie and denied rumors that he has beef with Travis.

“I’m not a bitter person… if we break up, we break up. We had a good time and kept moving, and we went our separate ways and we’re both doing good,” he smiled. “(Me and Travis) ain’t got no beef. It’s his time right now. You gotta let it ride. I ain’t got no beef with him.”

Asking if he missed Kylie, he replied: “Nah, I’m good. I’m good, love. Enjoy.”

Source: https://www.eurweb.com/2018/09/the-pulse-of-entertainment-tv-one-airs-dinner-for-two-sam-ruckers-sax-sing-on-redemption/

*On Sunday September 2, 2018 TV One premieres an original movie “Dinner for Two” starring and executive produced by Grammy nominated Tristan Wilds (Red Tails) and Chaley Rose (“Nashville”) at 7 p.m. ET with encore to air at 10 p.m. The film is written and directed by Orlando Bishop and follows Chris (Wilds) as he deals with a break-up from someone he believes is his soul mate Angela (Rose).

The storyline, which Orlando said was taken from a personal experience of love lost, finds Chris using alcohol to diminish the pain of his lost. Fate however would give him a chance at one last dinner for two with her to only discover why he loved her in the first place.

“I lost my mom in March and wanted to get that feeling into a film,” Orlando said about the film that took 12 years to make.

“Dinner for Two” may have taken 12 years to make but it took only 12 days to shoot.

When I asked Wild and Rose what they would do if they where in the same situation as Chris and Angela Wild said, “The biggest thing…to allow yourself to grieve…get your feelings out…the good moments and bad moments they are lessons. Take a step back and see how I got to this place…be more reflective.”

Wise words for a man who has successful conquered the music industry as well as the acting arena. Tristan, in the music industry, is known as Mack Wilds. As a singer he garnered a Grammy nomination for the album “New York: A Love Story”. He recently signed with Roc Nation so expect big things from him musically. He debuted as an actor in a Spike Lee film project, “Miracle Boys”, followed by guest appearances on “Cold Case” and “Law & Order”. In a recurring role in HBO’s “The Wire” Tristan found the recognition he needed that led to a starring role beside Queen Latifah, Alicia Keys and Sakota Fanning in The Secret Life of Bees in 2007. He returned to television after that before obtaining a starring role in the George Lucas film Red Tails about the Tuskegee Airmen, a group of African-American US Army Air Force pilots that also starred Cuba Gooding, Jr. and Terence Howard.

Chaley said she would go crazy if she lost a soul mate, “I think I would drink away my sorrow. Let myself cry…write it in my journal.”

Rose is known for her role in the ABC drama “Nashville.” She is also a singer. Her music can be found on the soundtracks of “The Music of Nashville: Seasons 2, 3 and 4” and “Christmas with Nashville.” Chaley also had a role in the CBS series “Code Black.”

The TV One original movie “Dinner for Two” airs Sunday September 2^nd at 7 p.m. ET and is a complicated love story about love and sacrifice. www.TVOne.tv/show/dinner-for-two

Saxophonist Sam Rucker makes his sax sing on his third solo album “Redemption” (Favor Productions). His outstanding skills have allowed him to work with Peter White, Norman Connor and Phil Perry. He has opened up for Will Downing, Norman Brown, Eric Benet, Ben Tankard and Candi Staton to name a few.

For this album the Virginia native wanted to give the message of “true love.”

“It’s about the courses of my life,” Rucker said about the “Redemption” album. “Been lots of downs and I felt like I reached a low point…This album is about redemption…feels like my life did a come back. It’s so good you could not have planned it yourself. Sit back and let Him (God) work.”

The album offers 11 selections with Lucy Kilpatrick on piano; Carlton Savage, John Calisto and Justin Taylor on guitar; Donnell Smith on bass; Steven Kroon on percussions; JP Lilliston on drums, and vocals by Wanda Jay, Sheila Madanat, Joselyn Best and Regina Blackwell. The first single, “True Love,” was released July 16, 2018.

“My life turned around so much I knew this album was going to musically move people,” he said. “I want my music to be encouraging and make you feel good. The message…keep the faith…feel good in the Spirit.”

For me it was inspiring and uplifting. My favorite songs on the “Redemption” album include #2 “Down on the Inside” because Rucker’s sax playing is sweet and combines well with the vocals of Wanda Jay and Sheila Madanat – with the piano playing of Lucy the cherry on the cake; #3 “True Love” because Sam is playing that sax in a sassy way that matches the vocals of Joselyn Best and because guitarist John Calisto brings a Latin flavor to it to top it all off; #4 “Overcome” because it personifies what Smooth Jazz is, and #8 “Follow Me” because Sam Rucker is perfection on the sax and I love the support of Kilpatrick on the piano. www.SamRucker.com

SYNDICATED COLUMN: Eunice Moseley, has an estimated weekly readership of over ¼ million with The Pulse of Entertainment. She is also a Public Relations Strategist and Business Management Consultant at Freelance Associates, and is Promotions Director (at-large) for The Baltimore Times. www.ThePulseofEntertainment.com. ;EVENT:  19^th annual “Uplifting Minds II” Free Entertainment Conference Sat October 20^th 1 – 4pm at the Celebrity Centre in Hollywood) with EURweb.com publisher Lee Bailey, talk show host Melody Trice, television executive Tiaunte Kelly and singer Emmanuel Withers. Offering Entertainment Business panel and a talent showcase and competition (vocal, songwriting, dance and acting) with over $15,000 valued in prizes.  www.UpliftingMinds2.com.

Source: https://www.eurweb.com/2018/09/weekend-watch-little-stranger-has-intrigue-and-a-twist/

*“The Little Stranger” has intrigue and a twist, but is it a ghost story or astral figments of the imagination? “The Little Stranger” is the story of Dr. Faraday (Domhnall Gleeson), a country doctor. During the long hot summer of 1948, he is called to attend a patient (Liv Hill) at Hundreds Hall, where his mother once worked as a maid.

The Hall has been home to the Ayres family for more than two centuries. But it is now in decline and its inhabitants—mother, son, and daughter—are haunted by something more ominous than a dying way of life. Once there, Faraday becomes entwined in the family’s fabric of intrigue.

Unsettling happenings occurring in the house brought about the patient’s feigned illness. The war veteran brother always smelled smoke and the Hall’s matriarch believes her long deceased daughter makes appearances at the Hall. Dr. Faraday told them all that they are slaves to their imagination. But what about the annoying young guest mauled at a dinner party? Was it the friendly house pet that was unfortunately put down for the attack or an evil supernatural entity?

The gothic tale moves slowly to effectively drag audiences in as they hang onto each frightening frame. The twisted ending, however, is a sorrowful let down to the extremely heightened moments leading to its climax. Either this is lazy writing or a loss of concrete ideas.

Directed by Lenny Abrahamson, “The Little Stranger” also stars Ruth Wilson, Will Poulter,  and Charlotte  Rampling, with an appearance by Christian Wolf-La’Moy as  the Vicar.

Facebook.com/TheFilmStripTM       Twitter: @thefilmstrip   Instagram.com/thefilmstriptm

Source: https://www.eurweb.com/2018/09/gladys-knight-clarifies-she-doesnt-have-cancer-aretha-franklin-had/

*It was incorrectly reported by several media outlets that Gladys Knight has the same kind of cancer that Aretha Franklin succumbed to, pancreatic cancer. However, the singer’s spokesperson set the record straight with a statement to the Detroit Free Press.

“She’s healthy. Someone must have misinterpreted,” said Javier Delgado, a publicist with JDS PR, which represents the onetime Motown star.

The issue regarding Knight’s health started trending online after the 74-year-old singer spoke to reporters about Franklin before entering Detroit’s Greater Grace Temple for Friday’s funeral.

Knight talked about the last time she had spoken to her “sister” Franklin while staying at the same hotel:

“So we got to talking and everything, and at that time we shared the fact that we had the same disease,” said Knight. She did not elaborate and that’s what started the speculation. This is another instance that shows how words matter.

RELATED: ARETHA FRANKLIN’S HOME GOING SERVICES ON EURWEB – WATCH AGAIN NOW

Later, Knight’s publicist, Jay Schwartz, put out a statement from Knight explaining the earlier comment.

“I’d like to clarify that Aretha and I discussed both of us having cancer, mine was stage 1 breast cancer and hers was pancreatic. Due to early detection, I am cancer free and grateful for that. It is unfortunate that on a day we should be celebrating Aretha’s life and massive contribution to our world, a reporter who did not relay accurate information has missed the message. I send my love to the entire Franklin family and my gratitude to them for sharing such an extraordinary person with us.”

USA Today notes that Knight was an unannounced addition to the funeral proceedings, and performed two songs near the end of the services: “You’ll Never Walk Alone” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water.”

*A mystery has surrounded the tragic case of Emmett Till for more than six decades and it centers on a photo of his white classmates, particularly a white girl, who Till joked was his “girlfriend” when he visited Mississippi back in 1955.

Till, 14, was abducted Aug. 28, 1955, and murdered after supposedly whistling at a white woman, Carolyn Bryant, in a grocery store in Money, Mississippi.

J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant were acquitted in his murder but later confessed in a 1956 Look magazine story by journalist William Bradford Huie, USA Today noted.

OTHER NEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED: Delta Sigma Theta Members Mourn Soror Aretha Franklin in ‘Omega Omega Service’ (Watch)

Yearbook photo of Joan Brody when she was 16. (Photo: Special to Clarion-Ledger)

In the doc, Till’s cousin Curtis Jones mentioned that Till had a “picture of some white kids that he had graduated from elementary school with … female and male.”

The girl in the photo has long been an enigma… but now, 63 years later, she has been identified as Joan Brody, who gave her first interview to the Clarion-Ledger about her relationship with Till.

The documentary’s producer, Henry Hampton, told NPR that Till showed this school photo to his folks in Mississippi, pointing to a white girl and saying she was “his girlfriend. In fact, it was his classmate.”

She was the only white girl in Till’s class.

“He had beautiful eyes,” she recalled while confirming that the two had quite the friendly relationship. It was at their graduation where the photo was apparently taken, but Brody said, “I had no interest in it.”

“He wasn’t a smart-alecky kid,” she said. “He wasn’t a person to smart off to a white woman or any woman.”

Joan Brody poses for a photo outside of her Chicago-area suburban home Aug. 19, 2018. (Photo: John Gress for USA TODAY)

The Look magazine article noted claims that Till said he’d had sex with white women. But his mother, Mamie Till, called it the report preposterous, saying her son would “never brag about the women he had. How could he? He was only 14.”

Brody agreed, saying “he was a gentleman” and calling the men that killed him “worse than animals.”

She also wonders what might have been if Till had lived.

“He had his whole life ahead of him – to be gone just like that,” she said. “And for what reason? He could have been president,” she said. “He was just a nice kid with a nice smile.”

*Steve Harvey is sporting a new style these days… as he has done away with his iconic mustache in favor of a full salt-and-pepper beard, ET online reports.

The media mogul explained to ET’s Kevin Frazier why he switched up his signature look, admitting: “Well this year you know we launched a new season so every now and then I reinvent myself,” the 61-year-old host and comedian explained.

Harvey also noted that his thick, black ‘stache was only prominent because he’s bald.

“When I was 49, about to turn 50, I went bald,” he recalled. “I always had a mustache, you just didn’t know I had one ’cause I had hair too.”

Harvey tried rocking a full beard last year but he “wasn’t confident” enough to pull it off in public.

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“Last year was the first time I had a summer off, so I didn’t shave. I grew a beard out,” he shared. “But last year there wasn’t enough grey in the mustache yet. It looked like I had stuff in it. So I had to wait another year.”

He continued: “This year, when I didn’t color it, it was a lot more grey so I’m flipping the script. I’m gonna see how the beard game go… I’m gonna just do something different. I’m gonna stay fly till I die.”

On whether or not he continues to sport the beard… 

And right now, he’s staying busy by hosting “Celebrity Family Feud” and serving as host and producer on “Little Big Shots.”

He added: “If you take every minute of the day and monitor every single minute of the day, you’d be stunned at what you can accomplish. But you gotta cut the BS out of your life. You can’t be at the club every time it open, you can’t make all the happy hours.”

The new season of “Steve” premieres Sept. 4 on NBC.

*Lauryn Hill keeps a relatively low profile and rarely does interviews and the only time she makes headlines these days is when she’s several hours late for a live show.

But Ms. Hill had time on Monday to set the record straight about recent claims made against her by a former member of her band, Robert Glasper.

Glasper dished about the drama during an interview on The Madd Hatta Morning Show on 97.9 in Houston on Aug. 13, claiming Hill “stole music” for her acclaimed album “The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill” and that she mistreated her band and can’t even tune a guitar.

Peep the full interview below, he speaks about Hill around the 27-minute mark.

As noted by Hip Hollywood, Hill was not having it though and penned an essay adressing his shady comments.

“I chose to wait until after the anniversary to post this,” she said in a message on Twitter. “Thank you everyone for the Love! I’d like to clear a few things up. -MLH”

*Evelyn Lozada filmed a two-part apology to her “Basketball Wives” costar CeCe Rodriguez after making a racist reference to her on this week’s episode.

Taking to her Instagram page on Tuesday afternoon, Lozada addressed the incident, which took place during an argument at dinner while the ladies were in Amsterdam.

After CeCe called Evelyn “EVIL-lyn”, Lozada responded with “I have a problem with you. I have a problem with you, Lee-Lee.”

CeCe was confused by the term, until cast member Malaysia Pargo explained that it was a reference to a nail shop technician, which CeCe immediately labeled as racist.

Many viewers also took offense to Evelyn’s comment and a petition has since been crafted pushing for Evelyn’s removal from the show.

Evelyn took to her Instagram on Tuesday, two days after the episode aired, to issue her apology in a 2-part video, as well as a pre-written statement.

“In the heat of a verbal battle, things are sometimes said that are hurtful, untrue and totally out of character. It’s not cool- but regrettably it happens,” she wrote. “I understand why many are upset by derogatory, stereotypical reference of another woman of color-and for that I’m so sorry. To intentionally add to a pot of racial divisiveness is not reflective of my heart. I extended a heartfelt apology to my castmate CeCe Gutierrez a few weeks ago back in which she graciously accepted. Moving forward… I have to do better!”

Source: https://www.eurweb.com/2018/08/i-have-to-do-better-evelyn-lozada-apologizes-to-basketball-wives-cast-member-for-racist-comment-watch/

*Charlamagne Tha God’s upcoming book has yet to be released but it’s already topping Amazon’s “New Releases” list in the category of “Rap & Hip-Hop Musician Biographies” Hot New Hip Hop reports.

The hardcover version of “Shook One: Anxiety Playing Tricks On Me” is available for pre-order. The official release date is October 23.

The radio personality shared this news with his fans on Instagram, along with the caption: “I have anxiety about releasing a book about anxiety but it’s a Number one new release and doesn’t drop until 10-23. Thank You. Thank You. Thank You!!!! #ShookOne “Anxiety Playing Tricks On Me” Pre Order Link In My Bio!!!!”

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The book’s title is a shoutout to the Mobb Deep song “Shook Ones.”
“That song is about not being soft or shook. But I am a shook one. … A lot of things I thought I did was fearless, but I realized a lot of things that I did, I did because I was scared,” said Charlamagne.

The rest of the title, Anxiety Playing Tricks on Me, is a nod to the Geto Boys’ track “Mind Playing Tricks on Me.” Charlamagne said the lyrics are all about anxiety, reports The Undefeated.

Last month, Charlamange sparked furor and debate across social media after sexual assault allegations against him were publicized. A petition was even launched to get him fired from co-hosting “The Breakfast Club.” But during his interview with the HBCU 468 podcast, he noted that he is trying to grow from his past mistakes.

“It’s difficult when you are thinking a different way and people are using things from five years ago, six years ago, seven years ago, eight years ago and trying to paint a narrative of you now. If you want to judge for me old things, I’m fine with that. My narrative has completely changed. But you can’t compare 20-year-old Charlamagne, 30-year-old Charlamange to 40-year-old Charlamagne, who’s a father and husband.”

Source : https://www.eurweb.com/2018/08/pre-orders-for-charlamagne-tha-gods-shook-one-top-amazons-new-releases/

Once upon a time, ESPN made history with Jemele Hill and Michael Smith as the first all-Black anchor team on “SportsCenter” in February 2017. However, after Hill called out Donald Trump as a white supremacist, ESPN has not been supporting the anchor. Her hosting duties at “SportsCenter” (Smith left in March) ended and she was writing for ESPN’s Undefeated website. Now, her time at ESPN is reportedly over.

According to SportingNews.com, “The former ‘SportsCenter’ anchor will accept a buyout of the remainder of her contract with the network, said sources. Hill’s deal with ESPN still has at least two years to run and she stands to walk away with millions of dollars from ESPN parent Disney while she pursues other career opportunities, sources said.”

Yep, millions of dollars, and she deserves every penny.

This is no shock considering Jimmy Pitaro, the new president of ESPN, said he didn’t want any of the commentators to have political opinions, implying he will be kowtowing to whatever the NFL wants. Pitaro told The Washington Post on August 17, “I’ve spent a lot of time with league executives. The relationship is incredibly important to us. That programming cuts across everything we’re doing on the studio side, on the original content side. And we’ve made that very clear to the NFL.”

He also said, “If you ask me is there a false narrative out there, I will tell you ESPN being a political organization is false. I will tell you I have been very, very clear with employees here that it is not our jobs to cover politics, purely.”

Either way, Jemele Hill is going to be great. We are sure she has big things in the future.

Source: https://newsone.com

Yesterday, the French Tennis Federation president, Bernard Giudicelli, went viral after banning Serena Williams‘ catsuit from the French Open. Everyone has been blasting the 60-year-old and now Nike has responded.

Nike responded on Twitter with a photo of Serena with text that read, “You can take the superhero out of her costume, but you can never take away her superpowers. #justdoit” See below:

Giudicelli said in an interview with Tennis Magazine’s 500th edition, “I believe we have sometimes gone too far. Serena’s outfit this year, for example, would no longer be accepted. You have to respect the game and the place.”

Twitter is obviously outraged by the decision, which is clearly racism and sexism. Click here for the reactions.

Considering the serious backlash, it would be no surprise if the French Open decides to “reverse” their ban. Saying Williams doesn’t have respect for the game is asinine and insulting. Serena Williams is the winner of 23 Major singles titles at the French Open. The reason why the French Open sells tickets is partly because of Serena’s presence. No one has more respect for the game than Serena.

Put some respect on her name, Mr. Giudicelli.

Source: https://newsone.com

AHoward University student and two of her siblings are taking their talents to the 2020 Olympics. Senior Latroya Pina and her sister and brother Jayla and Troy have been selected to be on the Cape Verde National Swim Team during the Summer Olympics which is slated to take place in Tokyo, Japan, the Sun Chronicle reported.

Pina has been racking up several accolades at Howard for her swimming skills, the news outlet writes. She came out victorious in the women’s 100 breaststroke and 200 individual medley against Marymount during the 2017-2018 season. The honors went beyond the swimming pool for Pina. She made the 2018 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Commissioner’s All-Academic Team and the 2018 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Spring President’s Honor Roll List. Although having the opportunity to compete in the Olympic Games is a huge honor for Pina and her siblings, she says their accomplishment isn’t “far-fetched.” “We’re not just swimming for our colleges or schools, but for a nation so we want to do our best,” she told the Sun Chronicle. Pina also added that she’s proud to be representing Cape Verde. “Cape Verde is trying to make swimming a big sport now, so it’s our responsibility to represent our country. People in Cape Verde and all the Cape Verdeans in the U.S. will be looking up to us.”

Howard’s Swimming & Diving Head Coach Nicholas Askew is excited for Pina and her siblings. “To represent your country at the Olympic level is every swimmer’s dream,” he said in a statement, according to HU Bison. “We are excited for Latroya and have no doubt, she will make Howard University and Cape Verde very proud.”

The siblings are slated to compete in the Confederation Africaine de Natation Championship Meet in Algeria next month

A venture capitalist firm is aiming to level the playing field for Black women when it comes to securing funding for their business ventures. Backstage Capital recently announced that it will invest $36 million in the entrepreneurial endeavors of African American women, Business Insider reported.

The firm unveiled the plan for the fund at the United State of Women 2018 Summit in Los Angeles, the news outlet writes. Through the initiative, Backstage Capital plans to invest in nearly 20 companies over the next three years. Arlan Hamilton, the founder and managing partner of the firm, says that the statistics surrounding Black women securing venture capital are alarming and it needs to be changed. “I think the figures speak for themselves: less than .2% of all early-stage venture funding goes to Black women, while we make up approximately 8% of the U.S. population and are one of the fastest growing entrepreneur segments in the country,” she told Tech Crunch. She also believes that its unfair Black women have had to “accept scraps” when trying to get financial backing for their business endeavors.

According to Business Insider, the first group of entrepreneurs will be awarded this year.

Many Black entrepreneurs are launching initiatives to help their fellow Black business owners thrive. Marceau Michel—creator of Black Founders Matter—is aiming to raise $10 million for visionaries of color in the tech industry. “By raising awareness, using our supporters as walking billboards and reaching our community, I believe we can raise more than enough funds to shake up venture funding as it pertains to people of color and make them pay attention to our resourcefulness and resilience,” said Marceau.

Source: https://newsone.com

Even in supposed defeat, LaVar Ball is winning.

The face of the world’s newest professional basketball league has been raked across the coals for what critics have described as sparse attendance at the games that feature lower tier talent in the Junior Basketball Association’s (JBA) inaugural season. But after just about three weeks’ worth of games, online metrics show that there was a much higher interest in the JBA than critics care to admit, no matter who was running the league.

With all of its games streamed on Facebook, the JBA has averaged “between 100,000 and 200,000 views” for each contest, according to a report published in the Undefeated on Friday. When Ball’s son and star player, LaMelo, plays, his “games have closer to 800,000.”

Source: Alius Koroliovas / Getty

Those enviable analytics could end up helping to disprove the naysayers who have gleefully predicted the demise of the JBA – and LaVar Ball – since the day it was announced. Those statistics could also pave the way for “views of more than a million per game” and “potential Fortune 500 advertisers,” Ball’s JBA co-founder Alan Foster said. If that were to become a reality, the longevity and overall sustainability of the league would be all but solidified.

While it’s tough to accurately translate those views into immediate dollars, Facebook’s continued relationship with Ball – don’t forget he has a successful reality show in its third season streamed and documenting his family life – shows LaVar’s brand has an audience the social network trusts to reliably bring in a dedicated viewership, something that is far from a guarantee in digital media.

And before you go dismissing shows on Facebook as inconsequential, the uber-successful, all-world soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo was reportedly negotiating a deal for his own reality show to stream on the social site. If it goes through, he could make an eye-popping $10 billion for just 13 episodes, according to CNBC.

Now, of course that doesn’t mean LaVar will ever see that kind of money from Facebook (or does it?). But given that payday for Ronaldo, it’s pretty safe to assume Ball’s compensation from Facebook alone will reach, if not break, the seven-figure mark.

That’s not including revenue from his Big Baller Brand sports apparel company and other professional ventures and business dealings that the public may not know about. (Never mind the fact that Ball has created a viable alternative to college basketball – which has repeatedly been likened to slave labor – that actually pays its players on their quest to ultimately compete in the NBA or other professional leagues around the world.)

Not bad for a guy who’s been branded by critics as a loudmouth helicopter dad who jeopardized the basketball careers and overall livelihood of his children while trading barbs with the president, who supposedly negotiated the jail release of son LiAngelo for trying to steal a Louis Vuitton belt.

The death of 18-year-old Nia Wilson, who was fatally stabbed in the neck in Oakland last month, could have been stopped, lawyers for the slain teen’s family said Friday (Aug. 17).

Wilson’s death at a BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) station on July 22 has sparked outcry, and John Lee Cowell was charged with the murder. The killing happened just days after two other female passengers faced a similar threat from Cowell, attorneys said in a claim filed against BART last week, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. One of the women was physically touched by Cowell, who slid his hand across her neck to suggest he would slice her throat open, at the Civic Center BART Station in San Francisco. Another woman saw the man reveal a knife on a train in a separate incident, lawyers said.

The women weren’t able to get help from BART workers during the incidents — events that may not have been followed by Wilson’s death if transit agency personnel had heeded warnings, attorneys said.

“Nia’s death is not some horrific anomaly that occurred in two seconds that nobody could do anything about,” said Robert Arns, a lawyer for Wilson’s family. “There’s a serious and endemic public safety problem on BART, and just about everybody who rides BART knows that.”

Wilson’s killing was a “simple case of cause and effect,” attorneys also said. If Cowell was taken into police custody and BART personnel did more to protect riders, Wilson may have never been harmed, they added.

Grief-stricken family members represented by the attorneys were teary-eyed on Friday. Wilson’s sisters, Letifah and Tashiya Wilson, both saw their sister take her last breath on the BART station platform that day. Letifah Wilson was also stabbed in the neck but survived.

The family should get “just” compensation, with a dollar amount that would likely be decided on by a jury, according to the suit. Attorneys, on behalf of the family, also want “transparency when it comes to criminal activity on BART property” and “a new system to prevent fare evaders.”

BART tried to defend themselves against the family’s and attorney’s statements, saying that “safety” was a “top priority.” The agency is investigating the threats outlined in the claim, Anna Duckworth, an agency spokeswoman, said.

Source: https://newsone.com

More African-American celebrities have raised their voices in support of women. Stephen Curry, Ava DuVernay and Sterling K. Brown are among the list of famous folks who made public demands for an end to the gender pay gap coinciding with Women’s Equality Day on Sunday (Aug. 26).

Curry, who has been on a winning streak with the Golden State Warriors, penned a powerful essay arguing for equal salaries in The Players’ Tribune. The NBA star was inspired by his chef and author wife Ayesha Curry and two daughters, Ryan, 3, and Riley, 6.

“I want our girls to grow up knowing that there are no boundaries that can be placed on their futures, period,” Curry said. “I want them to grow up in a world where their gender does not feel like a rulebook for what they should think, or be, or do. And I want them to grow up believing that they can dream big, and strive for careers where they’ll be treated fairly.”

Curry continued, “And of course: paid equally. And I think it’s important that we all come together to figure out how we can make that possible, as soon as possible. Not just as “fathers of daughters,” or for those sorts of reasons. And not just on Women’s Equality Day. Every day — that’s when we need to be working to close the pay gap in this country. Because every day is when the pay gap is affecting women. And every day is when the pay gap is sending the wrong message to women about who they are, and how they’re valued, and what they can or cannot become.”

DuVernay and Brown joined thousands who signed a letter to call for equality in pay. Wanda Sykes, Don Cheadle and Aisha Tyler also co-signed the letter, The Wrap reported.

“It’s time for the Entertainment Industry to take a hard look at its pay and compensation practices above and below the line to make sure all productions meet the legal — and moral — requirement to pay fairly without discrimination,” the letter, which will be delivered to the heads of major studios, networks and production companies, said.

The entertainment industry has long been plagued by a wage bias: gender segregation and stereotyping have contributed to a salary disparity for women of “hundreds or even thousands of dollars per week less than [their] counterparts in comparable male-dominated crafts,” said a January study released by Working IDEAL, a workplace consultant company specializing in pay equity and diversity assessments.

Shonda Rhimes, who has lent her voice to the Times’ Up movement against sexual harassment, also stood up for women’s equality.