Month: April 2022

It was back in November 1991 when the sports world was rocked by the news that Magic Johnson had been diagnosed with HIV. During that time, there wasn’t much known about the virus, but many who learned that they were positive were often met with fear. As the years have moved forward, more technology, advancements in medicine, and information has been made available, and Johnson has been able to overcome for decades with the help of a strong medical team that included, at one point, Dr. Fauci.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Fauci’s name hasn’t left headlines as he has acted as the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the Chief Medical Advisor to the President. While speaking with The View, Johnson revealed that Fauci was instrumental in teaching him how to maintain a healthy lifestyle following his HIV diagnosis.

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“First of all, let me thank Dr. Fauci, Dr. Ho, they both really helped me to be here,” he said. “They helped me understand that I had to take my meds, I had to be comfortable with my new status, make sure I kept a positive attitude, and keep working out, and so I’ve been doing that. Here I am 30 years later.”

Johnson also spoke about coming forward to help others, as well as praising his wife, Cookie Johnson, for not leaving him during the scandal. 

“That was everything, for me to heal, also for me to help people, especially in the Black and brown community, because it was running rapidly through our community at that time. We brought the numbers down,” Johnson said. “I became the face, and I am happy about that.” Watch below.

The loss of Kobe Bryant is still felt far and wide, especially by those who knew the sports icon personally. The world suffered a devastating loss when Kobe and his teenage daughter Gianna Bryant were killed in a tragic helicopter accident, and since that time, there have been tributes erected across the globe. From murals to events to tributes to tattoos, Kobe and Gianna Bryant’s legacies have been carried on.

Lamar Odom knew Kobe intimately as they were Los Angeles Lakers teammates for a time and Odom hasn’t ceased in sharing memories of their friendship. In a new interview with Page Six, Odom revealed that he got himself a Kobe tattoo on his neck and explained the inspiration behind his new ink.

Kevork Djansezian / Staff / Getty Images

Odom said that during his recent stint on Celebrity Big Brother, he repeatedly had dreams of spending time with Bryant. He claimed that in at least one, they were shooting three-pointers while talking about what occurs in the afterlife.

“It’s just his face. It’s on my neck. When I was in the CBB house I dreamed [of] him four or five times,” said Odom. “They were really vivid and easy to remember because he was talking to me in the dreams.” He added, “He just looked back to me and said, ‘LO, the afterlife ain’t what people make it up to be,’ and I just kinda woke up.”

“I’m stunned and shocked, but it could mean a lot of things. It could’ve meant that he misses his people, misses his daughters. Could’ve meant maybe his job wasn’t finished yet. I woke up really emotional after that.”

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If there is one thing Nick Cannon is known for, it’s a pregnancy photoshoot that takes over social media. The media mogul is readying the arrival of his eighth child, his first with model Bre Tiesi, and the pair have been flaunting their adoration and excitement for months. Cannon has welcomed several children in recent years making Tiesi the fifth mother of Cannon’s kids.

Not long ago, Cannon and Tiesi surfaced with their first set of maternity photos and it looks as if they weren’t finished attempting to break the internet with a sexy pregnancy photoshoot.

Once again, Tiesi stripped down and posed lovingly with Cannon. The pair have reportedly known each other for some time and dated one and off for years before announcing their new addition. 

“My Twin [fire emoji],” she wrote about Cannon in the caption to her pictures. “Thankful for you everyday. Can’t believe after all these years we are finally here. I hope my son is everything like his father. We Love you [red heart emoji].”

When speaking about her decision to move forward with Cannon, Tiesi previously said, “I just respect and love who he is so much as a person, that when I thought about, ‘Do I want my son to be this person? Look at your characteristics, look at your personality, look at how you treat people.’ That’s what is so much more important to me than anything, and he treats me amazing, so that’s all I look at.”

Check out the couple’s new set of photos below.

He has already gone on record to say that both Will Smith and Chris Rock have been his longtime friends, but Marlon Wayans was once again asked about his thoughts on the recent Academy Awards controversy. Smith is reportedly somewhere overseas taking some time away from the hustle and bustle of the industry while Rock has been on his comedy tour. Wayans has reportedly spoken to both men and shared a bit of what he told them.

“If somebody’s walking up on my stage, I know that you ain’t coming up to give me five,” Wayans told Big Boy’s Neighborhood. “Like, at a point, you gotta go, ‘Oh yeah he’s trying to come harm me.’… You gotta protect yourself. If it that was me, I got an elbow for you. It’s a fight, you come on my stage we fighting.”

Kevork Djansezian / Stringer / Getty Images

“We do jokes, that’s what we do. You don’t go to a comedy show and be mad when they tell you jokes, that’s what you there for. I think people in they right mind know better, I don’t think people gonna go, ‘I’m gonna get up and slap you,'” he added about comedians being afraid of their audiences from this point forward.

Initially, Wayans couldn’t believe that the slap actually occurred. 

“I thought someone put something in my weed,” he said. “I think the pressure of 30 years of being excellent, that’s hard to do. That man just snapped. You gotta check on your strong friends. … Something was wrong for him to snap, and forget about what he’s been working towards for 30 years.” 

He said he checked in on Rock to make sure the comedian was doing well and also spoke with Smith. “I was like, ‘Hey brother you may want to go get you about three hours of therapy,’” Wayans joked. “Fifteen hours this week, you need to sit down with a therapist and have a long talk. Something is going on with you.’ And that wasn’t him. See, I don’t have that kind of pressure. He’s been Black excellence for 30 years, I’ve been Black alrightness, ain’t too much pressure… People expect me to do dumb stuff, but him? Nah, not Will.”

Check out Marlon Wayans’s interview below.