Hip Hop lost a great DJ over two decades ago, but in celebration of JMJ’s life today, his legacy will forever live on
On this date in 1965 in Brooklyn, New York, Jason Mizell, who later became Jam Master Jay, was born.
Jay was the DJ for the legendary Kings from Hollis, Queens, Run-D.M.C. His musical career took him all over the world and even expanded his talents into Hip Hop filmographies, such as Krush Groove and Tougher Than Leather. JMJ is also responsible for breaking several artists from his Jam Master Jay Records imprint, including Onyx, Chuck D of Public Enemy, and 50 Cent.
On October 30, 2002, Jay was tragically shot and killed by an unknown assailant in a Jamaica, Queens recording studio. To this day, no one has been charged with his murder.
The Source Magazine would like to send a super born day salute to this icon of our culture. He may be physically gone, but his legacy will never be forgotten!
The “Kings From Queens” dropped their sophomore LP 38 years ago today.
On this date in 1985, Joseph Simmons, Daryl McDaniels, and Jason Mizell successfully avoided the sophomore jinx some three decades ago when they released the follow-up to their self-titled debut album with King Of Rock.
Produced by Run’s brother Def Jam founder Russell Simmons, this album was the project that catapulted the crew from rappers to internationally recognized recording artists. King Of Rock is historic in the sense that it was the first Hip Hop album to go platinum and ended up going double platinum. Singles like “King Of Rock” and “Rock It Like This” appeared in the cult classic flick Krush Groove, which is based on the rise of Run-D.M.C., Def Jam Records, co-starring Jay, Darryl, and Joe. Those two tracks and the comical “You Talk Too Much” all reached the Top 20 R&B charts.
Salute to Run, D.M.C., the Mizell family, the Simmons family, Rick Rubin, Larry Smith (RIP), and everyone at Def Jam and Profile who made this album happen!
During a recent episode of We Can Do Hard Things podcast, actress Tracee Ellis Ross opened up about being 50, single, and going through perimenopause.
While reflecting on experiencing perimenopause, Ross shared,
“I have, for my entire life, been tethered to a very routine cycle. And I’m very connected to my body, so I would know I’m ovulating. I would have all the feelings of knowing that and all of that is out the window. And I turn 50. And here I am in this open space now, sort of allowing the bubbling up of whatever might be here.”
Perimenopause means “around menopause” and refers to the time when body makes the natural transition to menopause, marking the end of the reproductive years. Perimenopause is also called the menopausal transition. It often begins between the ages of 45 and 55.
The Black-ish star read an excerpt from her journal in which she questioned what it means to be fertile and to come to the end of her reproductive years.
“I can feel my body’s ability to make a child draining out of me. Sometimes I find it hilarious, as if there is a fire sale going on in my uterus, and someone’s in there screaming, ‘All things must go.’ As my body becomes a foreign place to me that doesn’t really feel safe or like home…I don’t know how to manage or control or fight the external binary narrative of the patriarchy that has hunted me and haunted me most of my adult life.”
“Is it my fertility that is leaving me? Is it my womanhood? Or is it really neither? But I have to fight to hold my truth, because I have been programmed so successfully by the water we all swim in, by the water we all are served. And I feel fertile with creativity, full of power, more and more a woman than I’ve ever been. And yet that power that I was told I must use was not used.”
“I say this to people all the time, I’m a wonderful mother. And I’m very mothering. And it’s been hard for me to claim that.”
She later expressed how she feels grateful that she is now able to look at being childless ‘with curiosity instead of heartbreak.’ She explains,“The heartbreak does come up, and I get to hold that gently and lovingly and then say, remind myself, ‘I woke up every morning of my life and I’ve tried to do my best, so I must be where I’m supposed to be.”
“I’ve been single for a very long time. I have had many wonderful ins and outs of things, but no one stuck to the pan. As a result, I get to curate my family, my chosen family around me. And I don’t think I realized the gift of that until I’ve started to get older.”
Is it necessary for a woman to feel obligated to have a child and be married?
Last year, it was revealed that former talk show host Wendy Williams’ ex husband Kevin Hunter was on the verge of losing everything because of a clause in his divorce agreement. The agreement allowed Wendy to stop paying alimony if she were no longer working on the Wendy Williams Show. According to the court documents, Kevin depended on the court-ordered spousal payments from Wendy for homeowner association payments, car insurance, and to pay off his outstanding credit card bills. He released a statement about his financial stress.
“I have fallen behind on most of my bills, I currently live in a community that requires payments to the homeowner association and I’m behind on that bill.”
“If the homeowners association fees are not paid foreclosure will soon follow,” he continued. “My car insurance hasn’t been paid as a result of not receiving monthly severance payments. I’m behind on credit card payments because I have no money since the severance payments were suspended.”
“My life has been greatly affected since the plaintiff stopped making payments under our settlement agreement.”
“The fact that I am unable to sustain my life and pay my bills in order is extremely emergent to me,” Kevin said. “I cannot pay my bills and sustain my day-to-day living.”
Now Kevin has hired a new legal team to go after the money he feels he deserves.
Kev shared the news in a post on Instagram stories.
In a bizarre ending to a sad story, still no justice served. Second Lt. Caron Nazario, a Black and Latino Army officer, was awarded a $3,600 in a lawsuit that he had filed against two police officers who pepper-sprayed him during a traffic stop in December 2020. Nazario had been seeking $1 million in compensatory damages.
The incident occurred in Windsor, Virginia, when Nazario was pulled over by Officers Joe Gutierrez and Daniel Crocker for not having a rear license plate on his brand new SUV. Nazario, who was in uniform at the time, explained to the officers that he had just purchased the vehicle and had not yet received the plate. Despite his explanation, the officers ordered him to exit the vehicle, and when he hesitated, they pepper-sprayed him and forced him to the ground.
Nazario filed the lawsuit against the officers and the town of Windsor, alleging that they had violated his constitutional rights by using excessive force and falsely arresting him. The officers, who have since resigned, had claimed that Nazario was resisting arrest and that they were in fear for their safety. However, footage from Nazario’s body camera, which he had been wearing as part of his military training, contradicted their claims.
The footage, which was released to the public, showed Nazario keeping his hands visible and asking the officers why he was being pulled over. He also asked the officers if they were aware that he was a soldier and that he was afraid to get out of the car. Despite his compliance, the officers pepper-sprayed him and pulled him out of the car, resulting in him being injured.
Nazario’s attorney, Jonathan Arthur, said in a statement that the jury’s award was “disappointing” and that the case “should have never gone to trial,” adding that the officers should have been held accountable for their actions. He also said that the award does not reflect the injuries Nazario suffered, the trauma he experienced, and the violation of his constitutional rights.
The case has brought even more attention to the issue of police misconduct and the use of excessive force against people of color, especially within the Black and Latino communities. The incident has also led to calls for police reform and accountability, with many calling for better training and oversight of police officers.
The case of Second Lt. Caron Nazario highlights the need for accountability and reform within law enforcement agencies. The use of excessive force and false arrest against individuals, particularly those of color, should be deemed unacceptable and undermines the trust between communities and law enforcement. It is important for law enforcement agencies to review their policies and training programs, in order to ensure that officers are held accountable for their actions and that the rights of all individuals are protected. Watch the video below.
Two weeks ago high profile MAGA supporter Diamond from the political duo Diamond and Silk died after an undisclosed illness. Lynette ‘Diamond’ Hardaway was 51 years old and one half of the pro-MAGA duo Diamond and Silk— known for her candid and ferocious support for ex-president Donald Trump. Now the controversial president invited his supporters to celebrate Diamond at her memorial service in North Carolina.
Calling her death “really bad news for Republicans,” former President Donald Trump said on his Truth Social platform, “Our beautiful Diamond of Diamond and Silk has just passed away at her home in the state she loved so much, North Carolina.”
Trump offered his thoughts about Diamond’s unexpectant death. “Probably her big and precious heart just plain gave out,” the former president wrote on his platform.
Check out one of Diamond and Silk’s most memorable moment.
Several reports have confirmed that Pop icon Madonna is being accused of human trafficking and sexually exploiting children by a charity organization called the Ethiopian World Federation. As stated on the company website, the EWF is “a civic service organization that pushes policies and advocates to change the laws that harm Black People.”
Madonna adopted four small children from Malawi, a country located in southeast Africa. In 2006, the “material Girl” founded a charity called Raising Malawi, a not-for-profit organization that seeks to support orphans and at-risk children through health and education programs.
The group alleges that Madonna used her Malawian adopted son, David Banda, “for sexual exploitation and social experiments.” The petition cites the photos of David wearing women’s clothes, makeup and jewelry. The EWF also claims that Madonna made false statements that David’s dad was absent when she applied for his adoption.
Madonna’s camp has yet to comment on these allegations.
Andre Rison recently revealed in an interview that rapper Tupac Shakur picked up his ex-fiance Left Eye the same night she burned down his house in Atlanta in 1994.
The Ex-NFL star said Tupac pulled up in a limousine and picked up Left Eye the night before she set his mansion on fire on June 9, 1994.
Andre claims that after they left, they “doubled back” to the house and she went inside and saw a platoon of women.
Andre, 55, said Left Eye was upset when she arrived home to see the house full of women. He said the women were with his boys, not him.
“We didn’t sweat nothing. We don’t sweat stuff where I’m from,” he said.
He said his homies had already alerted him that she was seeing Tupac on the low. “But it’s all good though. We weren’t sweating. We just turnt up.” Watch the video below
Happy Born day to Ahmir Khalib Thompson better known as ?uestlove a.k.a Questlove! Born in 1971, he turns a half-century today. The OG is originally known as the drummer for the legendary Hip Hop band The Roots, but he has many roles.
On February 17, 2014, he became a part of the in-house band for The Tonight Show, and with The Roots, he’s played the same role during the 969-episodes of Late Night With Jimmy Fallon.
Let’s not forget about the many artists he has produced such as Jay Z, Common, D’Angelo, Erykah Badu, the late Amy Winehouse, John Legend, and old school R&B legend Al Green. The list goes on with all the production teams he has been a part of, including Hip Hop pioneers like The Soulsonics and The Grand Wizards.
The influence of this multi-faceted musician has reached far beyond most in his life thus far, and he’s nearly only halfway thru. Happy Birthday Questlove and many more to come!
Last month, Love & Hip Hop Hollywood star Ray J and Princess Love announced they were finally done after four years of marriage and two children together. They also claimed that their on-again off-again divorce was finally headed to trial. Now Ray is hinting that there may be some reconciliation. The one wish singer posted on Instagram proclaiming his love for his family stating he had to get his wife back.
THANKS FOR THE BDAY LOVE! – IM TAKING IT EASY TODAY! – FAMILY AND A FEW FRIENDS GONNA PULL UP! – I BEEN AT THIS HOTEL FOR 2 MONTHS IN LAS VEGAS ON SUPER GRIND MODE!! NEW NETWORK DEAL #DOSH – NEW MUSIC PROJECTS ON THE WAY! – HAD TO GET MY WIFE BACK AND START FRESH. I LOVE MY FAMILY!! Ill FIGHT OVER AND OVER FOR LIFE FOR MY FAMILY AND KIDS!! – Ill PUT IT ALL ON THE LINE FOR MY CHILDREN TO BE HAPPY AND SAFE AND CLOSE TO ME 24/7!!! GOD IS ALWAYS WORKING!! – STAY TUNED!! THIS NEW WAVE IM ON IS LIT IN ALL THE RIGHT WAYS!! – #HAPPYBDAYRAYj – NEW START – NEW GOALS!! – NEW YEAR