Month: July 2021

Hours after the NCAA ruled in favor of student-athletes receiving money on “likeness,” Hercy Miller, Master P’s son, is already taking advantage. TMZ caught up with Hercy and his father in Beverly Hills yesterday, and asked them about their new 2 million dollar deal.

“It was a 2 million dollar deal. It’s incredible. This is gonna change the way college athletes want to stay in school,” Master P says. “I’m proud of my son going to a HBCU. This is like playing in the pros now,” he added.

Hercy then spoke to the camera, and confirmed he signed with an American technology company. “I signed a deal with an American technology company. Like my dad said, it’s a blessing,” the incoming Tennessee State frosh said. Later adding, “I learned from my dad, I’m gonna start off by giving back to the community and everyone around me. I have a camp July 21,” Hercy says before saying he will also cop himself a new car with the money.

The deal had been in the making for a while now, first reporting a few months back that Master P had everything lined up but was just waiting for the NCAA rules to change and alas here we are. Congrats to Hercy!

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Swimming caps designed for natural black hair created by a black-owned brand will not be allowed at the Olympics TMZ reports.

The hats, made by the company Soul Cap, have been rejected by the International Swimming Federation (Fina) for use during the olympics, citing: “the athletes competing at the International events never used, neither require to use caps of such size and configuration,” adding the caps deviate from “the nature form of the head.”

Soul Cap, created in 2017, is a company that designs swimming caps specifically for natural hair in order for athletes to compete easily without struggling with cap size or the threat of damaging their hair. Following the decision to not be allowed at the olympics, Soul Cap released a statement explaining their disappointment and what it means for inclusivity within the sport.

“We hoped to further our work for diversity in swimming by having our swim caps certified for competition, so swimmers at any level don’t have to choose between the sport they love and their hair.”

Olympic swimmer Simone Manuel already called out what she says is racism in the sport. Last year she said, “I think that my journey in the sport of swimming as a Black woman has been one with many trials and tribulations,” adding, “It’s very obvious that it’s rooted in the thinking that Black people can’t swim, shouldn’t swim or can’t be successful in the sport of swimming,” she continued. “I’ve gotten responses like that. I’ve gotten laughed at when I’ve told people I swim…Swimming is what I love to do, and I’m not going to let someone stand in my way.”

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As more content rolls in following the reveal of the 2021 XXL Freshman cover, Hip-Hop fans are getting more opportunities to see the skills that each of the newly crowned freshmen possesses. 

Of all of the rising artists who graced the cover — Coi Leray, Lakeyah, Rubi Rose, DDG, Iann Dior, Blxst, and Toosii, among others – only 42 Dugg, Flo Milli, and Morray had released their XXL Freshman freestyles so far, but now, one of the fan-favorite artists from this year’s class has finally dropped theirs: Pooh Shiesty.

Although the video is roughly one minute and 15 seconds long, Pooh Shiesty’s freestyle is short, sweet, and to the point. He opens his verse by rapping, “Bout eighty thousand in these thousand-dollar jeans so I’ma sag/In the event a n*gga play, I’ma make him throw in his flag.” Just like the opening lines, Pooh’s verse is hard from start to finish, despite it being so incredibly brief. 

From his Southern accent to his street-minded lyrics, Pooh Shiesty’s XXL Freshman Freestyle feels like an essential verse from the 1017 artist, and he closes off his freestyle with an exclamation point, rapping, “I’m at the top and I can’t fall ’cause I know they wanna see that/Blrrrd, blrrrd.”

Watch Pooh Shiesty’s XXL Freshman Freestyle below and let us know who you think has the best freestyle so far.

The hate is real out West. According to a new report from California’s Attorney General, hate crimes in California have increased by over 30% in 2020, mainly fueled by a big jump in crimes targeting Black people following the racial tensions of the past year and death of George Floyd.

Black people only account for 6.5% of California’s population of an estimated 40 million people, but yet represent 30% of all hate crimes. “What we see from these reports is what we have seen and felt all year — we are in the midst of a racial justice reckoning in this country. It’s multi-faceted, and it cannot be solved overnight.” Attorney General Rob Bonta said.

California saw some of the largest protests following the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer. And it also saw a surge in attacks on people of Asian descent following the emergence of the coronavirus in China. “For too many, 2020 wasn’t just about a deadly virus, it was about an epidemic of hate as well,” Bonta said while speaking in Oakland’s Chinatown..

“There was a surge in anti-Asian violence correlated with the words of leaders who sought to divide us when we were at our most vulnerable,” Bonta, a Democrat, said in an apparent reference to former President Donald Trump.

California’s Governor, Gavin Newsom, said he is seeking $300 million to address hate crimes, with one-third going to support victims and the remainder for community-based responses. We’ll see if he comes through though.

[Via]