Month: June 2021

Global superstar The Weeknd continued to spread awareness Wednesday about a crisis in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, where his cultural roots reside. The Toronto singer has not been afraid to throw his wealth at important humanitarian efforts, announcing in April that he donated $1 million to the United Nations World Food Programme to provide meals for displaced Ethiopians while encouraging his followers to do the same.

Abel met on Wednesday with members of USAID, the United States Agency for International Development, who are leading an emergency response to address the crisis in Tigray, Ethiopia, in which 90% of its population are in need of humanitarian assistance. In the post’s caption, he encouraged his followers to spread awareness and donate through the Center for International Disaster Information, which hosts a list of reputable organizations involved in the emergency response.

In the second slide of Abel’s Instagram post, he outlined some pertinent information about the ongoing crisis in Tigray. 5,200,000 million of the region’s population is in need of assistance as at least 2 million people were displaced. There has been a high risk of famine, or the extremely low supply and scarcity of food, in the region without the required humanitarian assistance, which is why Abel repeatedly emphasized the importance of donating.

This is not the first time The Weeknd has shown his philanthropic side, providing assistance through financial means of donations. At the height of last summer’s racial justice protests, he donated an estimated $500,000 to different social justice organizations. In August, he donated $300,000 to the Global Aid for Lebanon campaign for an issue that hit close to home for his XO co-founder and CEO Wassim “Sal” Slaiby.

Check out the post below and read up on the crisis in Tigray.

In 2019, Halle Bailey announced that her Disney dreams came true, after being chosen to portray the first Black Ariel. One half of the sister duo Chloe x Halle was showered with high praise from Donald Glover and Tina Knowles for landing the role.

Social media wasn’t as friendly to the Grown-ish star, who dealt with vicious haters and racist backlash — some even creating the “#notmyariel” hashtag in response to her announcement. 

Halle handled the hate with elegance, telling Vanity Fair, “I’m just grateful and I don’t pay attention to the negativity. I just feel like this role is something bigger than me and greater and it’s gonna be beautiful. I’m just so excited to be apart of it.”

Talk of the movie disappeared when the start of production was delayed by COVID-19. Almost two years after her initial July 2019 announcement, photographers have been able to capture a glimpse of what’s happening on set. 

On the beaches of Italy, Halle and her costar Jonah Hauer-King were seen laying out, recreating iconic beach scenes from Ariel. Halle was not wearing the typical shell-bra costume, but instead a blue bodysuit and black exaggerated tail. Instead of the cartoon Ariel’s bright red hair, Halle wore a natural-looking copper-toned wig.

The actress and actor appear to have great chemistry, smiling and embracing between scenes while chatting with the film crew. The Little Mermaid Live! still has not been given an official release date but is expected sometime next year.

Stay tuned for more updates.

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Opinions regarding who deserves the “Greatest Emcee of All Time” title are plentiful, and Styles P is dropping off his thoughts. There are a handful of rappers who are continuously included in those “Top 10” lists that name of “Best Rappers,” and during his appearance on the Bigface Gary Show, Styles shared that there is only one person who is truly deserving of that top title.

“Biggie is the greatest emcee that has ever existed,” said Styles. The host contested that the rapper only formed that conclusion because Biggie passed away. Styles P rejected that take while the host said he loves Biggie. “No you don’t,” said Styles. “You don’t love him enough to understand.”

Gary also brought up everyone’s love for Jay-Z and other notable rappers. “I’mma give you why,” explained Styles. “The evolution from each of those three’s first album to the second album, big wins on the evolution tip. I didn’t say either one of them albums got better, ’cause each one of those emcees I respected their second album as much as the first, which make me fall in love with them as a fan, as an emcee to go, solid, they did it again. I know it’s real. I know what’s going on.”

“But Big’s second album was global. Do you understand what I’m sayin’?” asked the rapper. “Global. That was a different—he hit a different chamber and level to even have the audacity to say my second one is gonna be my second and third one.” Styles P is, of course, referring to Life After Death, the double-disc record that was released a little over two weeks after Biggie was murdered in 1997.

The album hosted several of our favorite Hip Hop classics including “Mo Money Mo Problems,” “Going Back to Cali,” “Notorious Thugs,” “Hypnotize,” “Sky’s the Limit,” and “Ten Crack Commandments.” Features included Mase, 112, Faith Evans, Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, The LOX, Jay-Z, Lil Kim, and many more. Check out Styles P’s clip below and let us know if you agree that Biggie is the greatest emcee of all time.

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Millions of fans around the world wish for the day when they can meet their favorite artists, and Blueface made one kid’s dream come true. The California rapper isn’t a stranger to spending time with those that help his music climb the charts, especially young people who are dedicated supporters. Recently, Blueface shared a video of a FaceTime encounter with a young fan who couldn’t help but sob uncontrollably at the sight of his favorite rapper.

In the clip, Blueface tells the boy not to cry. “Make sure you stay in school, listen to your mom, man,” said the rapper. “Don’t be in the streets.”

Maury Phillips / Stringer / Getty Images

“Damn, he really crying,” Blueface added. The mom is heard off-camera saying, “I told you, he really loves you.” Blueface then asked the kid if he wanted to take a screenshot and after wiping away his tears, the boy recited some of his favorite Blueface bars. “Aye, my dog. That’s love, man. I appreciate y’all,” said Blueface.

It was certainly a moment that the boy will watch repeatedly and remember forever. Not all rappers would have stopped for that moment and Blueface is being commended for taking the time out of his schedule. Check it out below.