T-Pain Held A Livestream Town Hall With Mark Zuckerberg To Talk About Improving Instagram’s DMs

After T-Pain found out that he missed out on dozens of conversations with fellow celebrities due to his unawareness of Instagram’s requested DMs folder, he decided to hold a town hall on Instagram Live, inviting Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to discuss ways to improve the app’s DM feature (Facebook is the parent company of Instagram). T-Pain also brought on many of those whose DMs he missed, finally responding to them on such topics as the various collaborations they’ve worked on and Usher’s upcoming Vegas residency, which had its own viral moment recently.

Explaining why Instagram instituted the request folder, Zuckerberg told T-Pain, “The reason we have the ‘request feature’ is to prevent bullying or spam and other unwanted interactions — to be able to filter that out. Ideally, we should be able to figure out who the other people who might be sending you messages are who should get into that. The feature isn’t quite as advanced today as hopefully, it [will be] in the future.” Pain agreed that it’s a good idea for a multitude of reasons but pointed out how his recent trouble highlighted how sorting out potential spam also caused him to miss messages from famous friends, fans, collaborators, and potential business partners like Diplo, Fergie, Viola Davis, and ESPN.

Over the course of the town hall, T-Pain also teased collaborations with Rich The Kid and Kehlani, playing the latter in entirety and announcing its release this Friday.

You can watch the full livestream via the embedded Instagram post above.

Teen Charged In UberEats Carjacking Pleads Guilty To Murder

Earlier this year, the world was devastated by the footage of a failed carjacking that left one man dead. The two teenage girls allegedly responsible for the death of the UberEats driver have been arrested and charged with one of the girls entering a plea deal with the prosecutor.


Andrew Harnik-Pool/Getty Images

According to WUSA9, the 15-year-old girl involved in the case has pleaded guilty to felony murder as part of her deal with prosecutors. Her name hasn’t been revealed due to her age but a rep for C.C. juvenile court confirmed the update in the case. Her guilty plea for the felony murder charge has resulted in other counts, including armed carjacking, being dropped. Her sentencing is scheduled for June 5th. The 13-year-old girl that was also charged in the case has a hearing scheduled for May 19th.

Both teenage girls are accused of trying to rob 66-year-old UberEats driver Mohammed Anwar of his vehicle. Video of the incident emerged online revealing the man trying to fight off the two girls with one of the suspects allegedly using a taser on Anwar. The vehicle begins plowing forward with Anwar grabbing a hold of the side until the devastating crash. Anwar was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.

We’ll keep you posted on anymore updates regarding this case. Check out WUSA9’s tweet below. 

Terry Crews Admits Porn Addiction Nearly Ruined His Marriage

While the industry of adult films continues to thrive, Terry Crews has opened up about the dark reality he faced while struggling with his addiction to porn. The actor has been on a mission to “defund PornHub” and other adult entertainment platforms over the past few months which haven’t necessarily been met with warm reception. In fact, his call to boycott the legendary Magic City in Atlanta led to further backlash from the hip-hop community.


Michael Buckner/Getty Images

Crews and his wife Rebecca King-Crews discussed Terry’s struggles with porn addiction and the effect it had on their family. Crews explained to PEOPLE how his own addiction — which is discussed in-depth in Terry and Rebecca’s new book Stronger Together — nearly tore their family apart. 

“We discovered there was a whole industry around this problem because porn has become the new drug,” said Rebecca. “It’s become the new addiction.”

As for Terry, he explained that his stature as a famous person ultimately turned the situation worse and enabled his addiction even further. “Success is the warmest place to hide,” he explained of how his status prevented him from seeking help. “Fame made it worse! Hollywood didn’t care. It still doesn’t care if you lose your family. It happens every day.”

Check out the full conversation with Terry Crews and Rebecca King-Crews on PEOPLE Every Day podcast below. 

Nicki Minaj Hypes Up Upcoming Release With Rare Pink Richard Mille

Nicki Minaj has taken a rightful break from the rap game. There have been new developments in her life that arguably needed more attention than her already established music career. Creating a family which included her marriage to Kenneth Petty and the birth of their son. Nick’s been surprisingly low-key but she’s clearly getting ready to pop out this week after announcing that she has something special releasing on Friday.


Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images

She previewed a few bars from the upcoming release yesterday in an Instagram post, writing, “Btchs act like they want action, heard they want action, btch we aint duckin no action. I’m bout to giv’em dat traction, send a distraction— then ima line’em like FRACTIONS,” she wrote, hinting that the entire verse will be unveiled this Friday.

It seems that before she unloads new music for the fans, she’ll be blessing the Barbz with a rare IG Live. She did not indicate what she might be possibly addressing but chances it seems likely that she’ll be previewing the song before its actual release. However, the announcement arrived with a bit of a flex including a Rolls Royce truck that she was cruising in and a rare pink Richard Mille — one of eight in the world.

Are you excited about the return of Nicki Minaj? Sound off in the comments below. 

Colin Kaepernick To Edit & Publish Book Focused On Abolishing Police

Colin Kaepernick may not currently have a job as a professional football player, but the former San Francisco 49er and record-holding quarterback has not stopped working since being blackballed by the NFL for protesting police brutality. In just the past few months, Kaepernick has aired a docuseries on Snapchat and been getting ready for the forthcoming release of the Netflix limited series Colin in Black & White.

Now, the NFL star-turned-activist has announced that he has another major project in the pipeline: a book. Titled Abolition for the People: The Movement For a Future Without Policing & Prisons, Kaepernick’s upcoming book will feature a collection of essays that explore the controversial topic of abolishing the police, and he will serve as the book’s editor and publisher, via his company Kaepernick Publishing.

Colin Kaepernick looks on during the Colin Kaepernick NFL workout held at Charles R. Drew High School on November 16, 2019 in Riverdale, Georgia.
Carmen Mandato/Getty Images

Taking to his social media accounts to announce the book, Colin Kaepernick says, “Today, I’m excited to share that we at @KaepernickPublishing will be releasing our first title, ABOLITION FOR THE PEOPLE: THE MOVEMENT FOR A FUTURE WITHOUT POLICING & PRISONS, on 10/12/21. 

“This anthology builds on decades of organizing and writing against policing & prisons & features the work of over 30 contributors plus a reader’s guide, infographics, & cover art by Emory Douglas,” he continues. “I’m proud to have edited this collection & hope it adds to the chorus of voices calling for a world without & beyond policing & prisons. #AbolitionForThePeople.”

Abolition for the People: The Movement for a Future without Policing & Prisons is set to release on October 10, 2021, and those interested can stay updated with details regarding its release by following Colin Kaepernick’s social media. 

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Ben Crump Reacts To Derek Chauvin Possibly Getting Longer Sentence

Derek Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter. The verdict was read on April 20th by Judge Peter Cahill in a Hennepin County court following the deliberation of the 12-member jury. Afterward, many in the hip-hop community and beyond rejoiced, expressing optimism that perhaps a change was on the horizon. 

With the sentencing date weeks away, CNN has reported that Judge Cahill has ruled that there were four aggravating factors in the killing of George Floyd and as such, a longer sentence can be given. This decision arrives after Prosecutors sought a stricter sentence for each of Chauvin’s charges, with Minnesota sentencing guidelines generally recommending twelve years for the murder charges and four years for the manslaughter. 

After Prosecutors named five aggravating factors that justified a stricter sentence, Judge Cahill agreed that Chauvin “abused a position of trust and authority,” “treated Floyd with particular cruelty,” committed the offense in the presence of children, and committed the crime as a group. It should be noted that Cahill rejected the fifth factor, which suggested that “Floyd was particularly vulnerable.”

 Minnesota Department of Corrections via Getty Images

These four factors have opened the door for the Judge to issue a harsher sentence, with a potential 40 years for the second-degree murder charge, 25 years for the third-degree murder charge, and up to 10 for manslaughter. Following the update, Floyd family attorney Ben Crump issued a statement in response. 

“We applaud Judge Cahill for ruling that four of five aggravating factors were proven beyond a shadow of a doubt, which could significantly and appropriately lengthen his sentence,” says Crump. “Clearly, Chauvin abused a position of trust, treated George Floyd with particular cruelty, and committed the crime in the presence of children and with the active participation of at least three other people — the other officers still to be tried. The application of justice in this case offers hope that we will see real change in the relationship between police and people of color by holding officers properly accountable for egregious behavior and for failing to honor the sanctity of all lives.”

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Chrissy Teigen Apologizes For Courtney Stodden Attacks: “Im Ashamed & Embarrassed”

Chrissy Teigen was in the news for all the wrong reasons this week after news came out that years ago she used to DM then 16-year old Courtney Stodden unimaginable things like telling Courtney to “kill herself” and that she “hates her.” Those are just a couple of the many abusive tweets and DM’s that Chrissy sent to Courtney back in the day, but she’s trying to own up for her mistakes now.

Following this week’s public backlash after Courtney opened up about the abuse, Chrissy took to Twitter this afternoon and expressed how “mortified” she is for what she used to do. Chrissy says she is “ashamed and completely embarrassed” at her behavior, but that that’s nothing to how she made Courtney felt. Chrissy tweeted:

“Not a lot of people are lucky enough to be held accountable for all their past bullshit in front of the entire world,” Teigen tweeted. “I’m mortified and sad at who I used to be. I was an insecure, attention seeking troll. I am ashamed and completely embarrassed at my behavior but that is nothing compared to how I made Courtney feel. I have worked so hard to give you guys joy and be beloved and the feeling of letting you down is nearly unbearable, truly. These were not my only mistakes and surely won’t be my last as hard as I try but god I will try!! I have tried to connect with Courtney privately but since I publicly fueled all this, I want to also publicly apologize. I’m so sorry, Courtney. I hope you can heal now knowing how deeply sorry I am.”

 

Courtney has since responded to Chrissy’s apology, and she looks to be all for accepting the apology but she doesn’t know how genuine and sincere it is. “I accept her apology and forgive her. But, the truth remains the same, I have never heard from her or her camp in private. In fact, she blocked me on Twitter,” Courtney tells TMZ. “All of me wants to believe this is a sincere apology, but it feels like a public attempt to save her partnerships with Target and other brands who are realizing her ‘wokeness’ is a broken record.”

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J. Cole’s LA Leakers Freestyle Bill Cosby Line Elicits Polarized Reactions From Fans

When J. Cole popped up on the LA Leakers radio show to promote his new album The Off-Season with a fiery freestyle, fans were mostly impressed by his polished flow and clever punchlines. However, one line, in particular, seems to have captured much of the attention, eliciting a wide range of reactions.

After switching the beat from Souls Of Mischief’s mid-’90s standard “93 Til Infinity” to Mike Jones’s 2005 game-changer “Still Tippin,” Cole adopts a breathless, machine-gun cadence and after picking up some steam, barks this line: “No Bill Cosby sh*t, if they’re sleeping then f*ck em.” The double entendre sent fans swarming to Twitter to post their impressions and while some were impressed, others thought the bar was in poor taste. “Bill Cosby” entered Twitter’s top ten trending topics within an hour of the freestyle dropping as fans debated whether the line was an example of dazzling wordplay or deplorable rape culture (or perhaps a little of both).

https://twitter.com/MaskedGorilla/status/1392551947593420800

If nothing else, the freestyle certainly did its job: Generating buzz for Cole’s upcoming album. The rollout for The Off-Season, which is due this Friday, May 14, has included a Slam cover, a documentary, and even the announcement that the North Carolina rapper was set to play pro basketball in Africa. However the album is received by fans, its release week will be one of hip-hop’s most memorable for long, long time.

Watch J. Cole’s LA Leakers freestyle above.

Machine Gun Kelly Explains How Bernie Sanders Once Helped Him Score Points With Megan Fox

Machine Gun Kelly and Megan Fox’s relationship recently made headlines when the musician revealed he walks around sporting a necklace filled with Fox’s blood. Fox had previously categorized the “intensity” of their relationship as “like being in love with a tsunami or a forest fire,” which apparently means it’s going well. Recently, Kelly credited the success of his relationship to an unlikely source — Bernie Sanders.

Kelly sat down for a conversation on The Ellen DeGeneres Show this week where he talked about his romance with Fox. He described how Fox jetted off to Bulgaria at the onset of their relationship (hence leaving him with the blood necklace) and the musician desperately wanted to visit her. The problem was that he didn’t have a passport. However, Sanders’ team reportedly came to the rescue, securing Kelly’s passport and ultimately helping the two carry on with their “powerful” romance:

“She was actually going out of town to film a movie, this was really early in our relationship. I didn’t have a passport either, so she was going out to Bulgaria. I was kind of freaking out like, ‘Oh, you’re going to leave and I can’t even come see you.’ Some people give a handkerchief to their partner — she gave me her DNA. […] You know who helped me get a passport? Bernie Sanders. I haven’t even talked to him since this happened. Thank you to the Bernie Sanders team for that. I made it to Bulgaria and the relationship is going strong, so thank you so much.”

Watch Kelly’s conversation on Ellen above.