In a revealing episode of Lead By Example with GS Warriors General Manager Bob Myers, rap wunderkind and b-ball enthusiast J. Cole told Myers he believed he had a real shot at the NBA, but a cigarette habit at the tender age of 6 made that dream in particular a little harder to reach.
Cole, a Fayetteville, NC native, revealed that by six years old, he had already developed an unhealthy habit; smoking cigarettes. “At 6 years old, I was smoking cigarettes regularly around the neighborhood,” says Cole. “I was always hanging around the older kids in the neighborhood that [my older brother, Zach] was hanging around and they were smoking. And I was young and fearless and trying to be cool.”
Kelis reflected on the death of her husband, Mike Mora, one year after the fact in a post on Instagram, earlier this week. In a series of videos included in the upload, Kelis discussed how her wellness journey has changed since his passing. Mora died of stomach cancer in March 2022. The two had been married since 2014.
“It’s been exactly a year… that’s crazy to me,” Kelis wrote in the caption of the post. “I’m a very private person generally, especially when there is family involved. But there is no denying the impact and evolution my husband’s passing has had on my life.”
Kelis Performing In Australia
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – FEBRUARY 12: Kelis performs on stage during the Good Vibrations music festival at Centennial Park on February 12, 2011 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Brendon Thorne/Getty Images)
She continued: “I get asked all the time how I started this journey. It’s a much longer conversation but in short what we were dealing with here pushed me so deep into understanding our bodies and how our minds and emotions are so interlocked you can not treat one without the other. Our thoughts and intentions are as powerful and key as our skin health and fitness. I want to live well and this is me sharing what I know to be true.”
As for the video, Kelis explains that she started on her wellness and farming journey when she was pregnant years ago. “I just wanted to eat well,” she said of her motivations. “When I got pregnant that’s when I really started to care and think about it.” She then discussed the importance of good nutrition. “I moved to the farm and we wanted to separate ourselves from all the silly things that had us stressed out and worried and angst and all these things that didn’t really matter,” she said. “So when you think about wellness and we think about health, it really is something that you can take control of with a little bit of thought. Just think a little bit more about it and always support your local farmers. Support your Black farmers. Why? Because we care.” Check out Kelis’ recent post below.
Young M.A. has been noticeably out of the spotlight in recent times. The rapper released her last project, Off The Yak in 2021 with only a few offerings throughout the past year. Songs like “Tip The Surgeon” and “Aye Day Pay Day” made waves. Still, she hasn’t necessarily been in the limelight throughout this time. Needless to say, fans have missed her presence in hip-hop heavily as they hoped she would make a grand return sometime in the near future. Still, she hasn’t provided much of an update on new music recently.
Earlier this week, a video of Young M.A. in a barber chair surfaced on Instagram but the response largely consisted of concern for her well-being. The blowback landed on her barber, who her fans felt set her up to be ridiculed online. “Y’all got so much to say as if I’m trying to embarrass my dawg,” the barber wrote. “She reposted my video if she didn’t want me to record she would have told me… What y’all need to do is just send your prayers for her and that’s that. She didn’t have a haircut in a month and she wanted me to bring her haircut back to life which I did!!!!!”
Young M.A. Confirms Illness
AUSTIN, TX – MARCH 16: Young M.A attends the FADER FORT presented by Converse during SXSW on March 16, 2016 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Roger Kisby/Getty Images)
M.A. later showed her support for her barber in the midst of backlash from Internet trolls. “We blessed don’t let that get to u blooda,” she said. “And I told you it was like 4 month.” However, it turns out that the concerns that fans had for her were rooted in real health conditions. M.A. spoke to TMZ where she explained that she was recently hospitalized for several conditions, though she received the right treatment.
“As many of my supporters know I’ve been dealing with various personal health issues the last few years. I recently was hospitalized and was successfully treated for several conditions. I’m doing better now, will take some time but I’m on the road to recovery and look forward to the future!!!” She said. “Rest assured I’m in good spirits and everything will be explained in the MUSIC … plus a documentary. Love y’all MAB! Don’t worry I’m good!” We’re looking forward to hearing what she has up her sleeve next.
Al Harrington, a former NBA player, is making a homecoming moment by bringing his Viola brands to his home state of New Jersey.
Customers can shop Viola, the premier premium Black-owned cannabis brand with a purpose founded by New Jersey native Al Harrington, starting on Friday, March 24, at RISE Paterson (196 3rd Ave #3c). Starting on Saturday, March 25, Viola’s premium flower will also be offered at RISE Bloomfield (26-48 Bloomfield Ave), with an exciting launch event that includes a visit from Harrington and friends.
After growing up in Orange, New Jersey, Harrington spent 16 seasons in the NBA with clubs, including the New York Knicks, Denver Nuggets, and Indiana Pacers. Inspired by his grandmother of the same name, who battled diabetes and glaucoma but found comfort in cannabis medicines, Harrington developed Viola after retiring. The brand’s main goal is to improve the representation of communities of color in the cannabis market through educating, empowering, and lifting them up.
The Green Thumb Industries subsidiary RISE Dispensary is pleased to add Viola’s expertly grown indoor and outdoor flower to its very varied inventory. 1/8oz of mixed bud in several strains will be available at both sites, including Chauffeur and Strawberry Jamz for Good Times, G31 for kickin’ back, and Grapes and Cream for Lights out.
Khloé Kardashian had a rough divorce with Lamar Odom. They met in 2009 and got married a month later. Things started to look rocky in 2013 when Odom’s cocaine addiction was taking over their relationship. Kardashian even filed for divorce from him. She paused the divorce in 2015 to take care of him after he had an almost lethal overdose of the drug. They finished the divorce procedure in 2016. Romantically, she appears to be in a much better place now.
Kardashian revealed in an interview with InStyle that she decided to focus on losing weight instead of worrying about her life. She started exercising during the divorce. She admits that at first, she was obsessed with her weight. However, she eventually realized that they were just numbers and that she would be mentally healthier if she stopped focusing on them. The reason why she got into exercising is that she admits she is a bit of a control freak. In the gym, you know how much you put in and how much you get out of the exercise. The more that you get in, the more that you get out of it.
Khloé Kardashian’s Tips & Equipment
Khloe Kardashian attends 2022 CFDA Fashion Awards on November 7, 2022 at Cipriani South Street in New York City. (Photo by Sean Zanni/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)
Kardashian also gave some tips for starting out. She reveals that the beginning is the hardest step. She recommends only doing small goals at first to let the body build up muscle. Unrealistic goals just discouraged her from even starting. She also recommends listening to your body. Know when you are actually tired and when you are just making excuses. She also talked about how she pushes herself to do her exercises even if she is having a bad day. Afterward, she always feels better. However, if she decides to skip the exercise that day, she only feels worse about it later.
Khloé Kardashian’s exercise of choice is the rowing machine. She rows with her mother and her sister, Kim. The two of them are actually very competitive on it. They use Hydrow, which is a rowing machine with a tablet screen and has videos with instructors out in the water. However, the Hydrow is quite expensive and has a subscription cost on top of the initial cost to buy the machine.
Wyclef Jean has checked himself into a hospital for an undisclosed reason. Without providing any further details, the iconic Haitian rapper admitted on Instagram that he wasn’t taking great care of himself, but says that he’ll be back soon.
“Sometimes we forget that our body is our temple,” Wyclef wrote over a video that shows him being rolled around in a wheelchair. “Be back soon.” Fans of the rapper expressed their support for him in the comments section of his post. “You got this!! I pray healing on you,” one user wrote. Another fan added: “You got this!! Praying for a speedy recovery.”
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JULY 01: (L-R): Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean perform during the 2022 Essence Festival of Culture at the Louisiana Superdome on July 01, 2022, in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Erika Goldring/Getty Images)
The unfortunate news comes just weeks after Wyclef partnered with Apex Motors to produce the Attucks Apex AP0. He said that the luxury electric vehicle will hit the market in 2024. “As the Son of immigrants my parents always told me to dream big !!!!” he wrote on Instagram while announcing the project. “So I combined my two passions and experiences with cars and music and created my dream vision! I’m launching my electric supercar tomorrow at @ameliaconcoursofficial with @apexmotors.global @attucksfuture @supercarrooms stay tuned for the US debut of Attucks Apex AP0 See you at Amelia Island!”
As for music from Wyclef, he reunited with Jin back in January to record an updated version of their 2003 single, “Learn Chinese.” “20 years later, the big bro and musical genius @wyclefjean still got me out here making sure the world learns Chinese,” Jin wrote on Instagram at the time. “This little jam session is proof that some of the most magical moments are unrehearsed and can be only captured once!” Wyclef also joined Lil Wayne in the studio to work on Tha Carter 6 back in September 2022. Wayne announced the first single from the project, last month. The two previously collaborated alongside Akon and Shakira on the 2007 hit “Sweetest Girl (Dollar Bill).”
Westcoast veteran DJ Quik recently revealed that he almost fought with hip-hop legend Tupac over a misunderstanding. “Outside the studio, he was a jokester – bagging on ns — joking, fun — we toured a little bit. He got in my ass one time too — we were about to get into a fight because he thought I was stealing his stage show — like when he would rap and jump up on the speakers. I had to tell him ‘bro I got that off of Bobby Brown my n — off of the ‘My Prerogative’ shit.”
The DJ then shared the way they resolved the conflict. “Come here, Quik. Let me holler at you — How am I stealing the show — this n**** hot; he ready to fight. So, instead of us fighting, we went into the weight room and just started lifting weights and shit. You know what I’m saying? Just go in there like ‘knock it out, dog.’”
Quik said “‘Ay, you know ni*as up here playin’ that new Tupac sht y’all in there workin’ on?’ He’s like, ‘What!?’ What!?. So I get a call, ‘Hey man, come up to the office.’ I already know with them Death Row meetings, when they call you randomly at 4:20 to fight traffic and get up here, ‘Aw, this finna’ be some bullsh*t.’”
The west coast producer then talked about getting into a life-threatening altercation after he asked the security guard who received the aforementioned CD from him. “So I fight the dude, and he dropped his Hennessy, and I think he was more mad that he dropped his Hennessy than me actually swinging on him or whatever. So he told his homeboy, ‘Man, blast this mothaf*cka!’ My man just pulled out a Tec and cocked it. I just [stopped and became] cold over this dumb-ass Tupac tape. So my man didn’t shoot me. My security got the gun from him and was like, ‘Y’all just go ahead up.”
Latavia “Tay”McGee, a mother of six, traveled with three other U.S.citizens to Matamoros for a tummy tuck procedure and was kidnapped after an attack by multiple gunmen. On Tuesday, Mexican and U.S. officials said two of the four U.S. citizens were found dead and two are alive.
Mexico’s security secretary identified the surviving Americans as Latavia “Tay” McGee and Eric James Williams. The other two Americans were identified as Zindell Brown and Shaeed Woodard.
Barbara Burgess, 54, confirmed to ABC15 News that her daughter spoke to her from a Brownsville, Texas hospital.
“She’s alive. I talked to her. I talked to her. The nurse at the hospital called and let me talk to her,” said Burgess.
“She was crying. I asked her how she was doing. She doing okay. She was crying because her brother got killed and she watched him die. She watched two of them die. They died in front of her.”
McGee and Eric James Williams survived their 4-day ordeal after they were kidnapped at gunpoint by cartel members in Matamoros, Mexico on March 3.
They were rescued from a stash house around 7:30 a.m. on Tuesday. McGee, 33, was unharmed, but Williams was shot in the left leg.
McGee’s cousin Shaeed Woodard, 33, and Zindell Brown, 28, were found dead in a field nearby. Burgess thanked the public for their prayers and support.
“I appreciated their prayers. I thank them for praying because that’s what I had needed. Prayer, it will change things. It works out. And prayer, you believe in it and it’ll work. It did it for me. Because I was praying for my daughter. And I know she was coming home. I knew it. I didn’t know when and what time. But, I knew she was coming.”
The shootouts in Matamoros were allegedly so bad that the U.S. Consulate issued an alert about the danger Friday.
The two surviving Americans Eric James Williams and Latavia Tay McGee involved in a deadly kidnapping in Matamoros have been transported to a Brownsville hospital for treatment, authorities say.https://t.co/lcHvObS9Jcpic.twitter.com/pI0VDJSQOF
