Month: July 2022

As a member of one of the most celebrated girl groups in music history, LeToya Luckett earned massive success. During her tenure with Destiny’s Child, the singer attained four No. 1 hits and toured the globe, but after requesting outside management beyond Beyoncé’s father Mathew Knowles, she was booted from the group in 2000. Over the years, Luckett has shared details about her post-Destiny’s Child journey, including once being homeless while she was looking for work as an actress.

Now that she has all of that behind her and has developed a bustling entertainment career, she’s taking things back to her hometown of Houston for her YouTube series, Leave it to LeToya. In the video, Luckett visited St. James Elementary school and mentioned that it was there that she met Beyoncé when they were just kids.

Luckett said that she had been at that school since she was three years old, and when it was the first day of a new semester, Bey’s introduction to the school, “she just so happened to be sitting in my assigned seat.”

“I pointed that out to the teacher and [I said,] ‘She seems to be misplaced, she’s in my seat.’ And the teacher, Ms. Western, told me to go find me a seat, and that, you know, I was late, so, I missed my spot.” Luckett added that she used the opportunity to meet the new student after class. “Over time became very familiar with each other. She saw I had a love for singing, and she was doing Star Search, big things. I was in a group with my cousins at the time. So, we were both kinda doing our thing.”

It was Beyoncé’s suggestion that Luckett audition for her father days after meeting him. She joined Girls Tyme, which changed its name to Something Fresh once Luckett became a member. Of course, that name would end up in the graveyard as well, and the group was soon famously known as Destiny’s Child.

Check out LeToya Luckett reminiscing where it all started below. 

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More information about the shooting involving JayDaYoungan has been shared amid ongoing rumors about the rapper’s condition. We previously reported on JayDaYoungan being shot in his hometown of Bogalusa, Lousiana, and now TMZ has returned with more about the incident. According to the outlet, Jay was outside of his home when he was shot just before 6:00 p.m. Police reportedly told the outlet that a “victim had been transported to a local hospital by someone at the scene,” while another “critically wounded” person was “treated by paramedics” before being sent to hospital, as well.

It was speculated that the second victim was the rapper’s father, but that has yet to be confirmed. JayDaYoungan reportedly underwent surgery and suffered severe blood loss, and it is sadly widely reported that he has since passed away. He was 24.

TMZ also shared a video showing the outside of Jay’s home where the shooting occurred, and according to the outlet and the Bogalusa Police Department, there was another incident that caught the attention of the authorities. Another nearby shooting resulted in a vehicle being hit by a bullet, and investigators reportedly believe that the events are connected. Thankfully, no one was injured in that second shooting.

We send our sincerest condolences to JayDaYoungan’s loved ones during this difficult time.

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Hailed as one of the greatest drummers in Hip Hop, Questlove’s impact is unmatched. He’s not only a part of one of the most respected Hip Hop groups—The Roots—but he continues to shine on late-night television as well as behind turn tables. His DJ skills are nothing to sneeze at as he’s often requested to work private parties for his celebrity friends which include the likes of Barack and Michelle Obama. 

The former president is quite familiar with what’s trending on the charts and he recently shared his annual playlist. Apparently, said Questlove, the Obamas had a shindig recently where he acted as DJ, but it didn’t go according to plan.

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“I’m sorry…he hates when I tell this story,” he told Distractify, referencing Obama. “One of the worst DJ gigs of my life was DJing Obama’s last week at the White House,” Questlove explains. “It turned out to be a lesson that I didn’t know I needed to learn. I say it’s the worst DJ gig of my life and he [Barack] says, ‘That’s nonsense. We had the time for our lives.’ But what I wanted to do didn’t happen.” 

Questlove also spoke about his relationship with DJing, as it gives him a connection to the people listening to the music he’s playing while also creating distance and solitude.

“DJing is a social shield,” he added. “Maybe it allows me to have the loudest voice in the room. It allows me to be present in the room and allows no personal interaction, so even as I speak I’m trying to analyze like, why is it that my presence is required.”

Check out a clip from 2018 of Questlove speaking about how DJing for Obama almost caused him to quit altogether.

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With his Las Vegas residency taking over Sin City and a new album on the horizon, fans have been wanting to hear more from Usher. He’s fresh off of his “Good Love” feature on the City Girl’s latest buzzing single and there have been continued requests for him to appear on Verzuz. The public can’t seem to pinpoint a perfect opponent for the music icon, but we all hope to one day see Usher relive his greatest moments with a global audience.

Meanwhile, the singer recently caught up with Vulture to speak about the evolution of his career, most notably paying attention to his favorite and most unforgettable moments.

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“I arrived different. The same way Aaliyah arrived different and Brandy arrived different. I wasn’t intended to make music that was just for kids,” Usher said of his launch in the industry as a child star. “The culture, how we were moving and living, was different. Now, I can’t necessarily say those songs were as successful as my future records, but I think Puffy was toying with something that was creating a new frontier. [‘Til] the day I die, he’ll always be my brother, and we will always be close. “

“He brought in all of the guys: Al B. Sure!, Kenny Greene from Intro, Kyle West, Faith Evans. Puffy pulled all of the strings. I had Jodeci singing background vocals. It felt good to be welcomed by the guys who were running hip-hop and R&B. But that wasn’t traditionally how you launched an R&B artist. Puff was trying to break the mold. All the people I work with are trying to do something that hasn’t been done before.

He also shed light on what it was like being able to hang out and spend time with the world’s biggest Rap stars decades ago.

“I’m looking at a different world than kids who were coming up in R&B from my era. When Puffy did my first album, it was the creation of Bad Boy. I’m around Craig Mack, I’m around Biggie, I’m at Howard Homecoming with f*cking Tupac and all that,” Usher recalled. “Tupac was fighting to get into this venue. This is back when things were all good. There wasn’t no [East-West] sh*t. None of that.”

“We had a great time at Howard Homecoming. I saw Redman. I remember Ice Cube coming to Howard and showing the Afro for the first time. I remember Biggie freestyling at Kenny Burns and Puff’s parties. It was a different time, a different era, a different energy, a different frontier for R&B. The day that I decide to write a book and tell my story and show the world what I’ve been through and things I’ve seen, you’re going to be blown away.”

We look forward to reading it. Check out more from Usher below.

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