Mary J. Blige Been Ready to Portray Nina Simone in Biopic
Mary J. Blige is sitting at the ready.
During an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul discussed her longing to portray the legendary singer-songwriter Nina Simone in a biopic.
The conversation sparked after the New York native was asked if there was someone she’d like to play on the big screen.
“I always wanted to play Nina Simone,” Blige told the audience.
“I want to learn how to play the piano,” she continued. “I love her songs. They are very dark and moody and I can always find a place for that. So yeah, I definitely want to play her.”
Blige was set to play the role years ago after she revealed in a 2009 interview that she was working with William Morris Endeavor (WME) and film writer and producer Cynthia Mort to move forward on a biopic titled, The Nina Simone Story. The “Family Affair” singer addressed the project again in 2010, explaining that she was preparing for the role. After multiple obstacles delayed the project, it wasn’t until 2016 that a film following the story of the late jazz musician premiered, titled Nina and starring Zoe Saldana.
The Grammy-winning performer took time to salute the 50th anniversary of hip-Hop, sharing her appreciation for the genre.
“I think it’s been amazing because hip-hop has given our culture a voice,” Blige said. “It’s given everybody a voice and a place to speak their truth to. From JAY-Z to Nas to Biggie, they’re all speaking their truth through music, from Rakim to KRS-One.”
“Everybody is speaking what they’ve lived and what they’ve done through their music and it’s given them some sort of therapy, and that’s what hip-hop has done and I hope it continues to do that and I hope it stays around for a long time because the new generations are doing the exact same thing.”
Financial Dominatrix Built A Business Demanding Money From Predominantly White Submissives
Meet Mistress Marley, the Brooklyn-based dominatrix reshaping the industry and making bank by demanding money from mostly white submissive men.
Marley considers herself a “financial dominatrix,” one who can receive money from willful men without any sex or nudity being involved, BK Magreported. She went viral when she introduced herself at North Carolina Central University’s homecoming in 2019.
Marley stole the show when she showed up with an older white male on a leash at her alma mater.
“A lot of people were doubling back,” she recalled. “My best friends were loving it. They were taking pictures and stuff.”
“But the funny thing is, the video that went viral, I didn’t even know it was being taken of me until I logged onto Twitter and saw it the next day.”
After videos of her made rounds on Twitter, Marley responded to some critics and clarified her submissive’s role.
“That’s not my sugar daddy, it’s my sub lol he pays for me to control him,” she explained in one tweet.
The tweet summed up how Marley makes a living. She can demand submissive men, or “subs” as she calls them, to give her money to control them. For the leash session at her HBCU alma mater, Marley made $800 to walk the man on a leash for two hours!
Anyone who knows the first thing about dominatrix culture knows that it consists primarily of people who enjoy being told what to do or being controlled. With it being a new age where social media and apps rule the world, Marley can get willful men to send her money with little to no contact.
Marley’s subs get turned on by sending her the money she demands. And yes, most of her clients are white men.
She’s made bank walking men on leashes in public, letting them kiss her feet, or walking them to an ATM to demand cash in person.
“So, it’s pretty much a form of humiliation where you have these submissive people, whether they’re men or women — more so men — that just want to give their money away, and they get off by doing that,” she explained.
“It’s my job to take that money from them.”
Marley can make $400 an hour letting men rub her feet, $800 an hour spanking her submissives, or $500 an hour watching a man dress up like a woman and verbally berating him. Her business has gotten so lucrative that Marley now co-owns her a dungeon in East New York, Brooklyn.
Marley enjoys the power she feels being in control of her submissives.
“I enjoy being in control and I love the feeling of the pampering,” she said.
“Even when I do physical in-person sessions, just the feeling of walking into the dungeon because I also co-own a dungeon in Brooklyn.”
“Just walking in a room and just seeing them cower under me or be on their knees or just want to just do anything they can for me in that moment, it’s powerful and it’s a great feeling,” she added.
UFC Puts The Smackdown On WWE and Acquires The Company At A $9.3 Billion Valuation
World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) has a new owner.
Forbesreported Endeavor Group Holdings Inc., the group that runs Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), acquired the organization at a valuation of $9.3 billion. This is a huge collaboration of two of the biggest names in sports entertainment. Combined, the company is valued at $21.4 billion.
Endeavor will take a 51% controlling interest in the new company. Existing WWE shareholders will hold a 49% stake.
According to NPR, the controversial executive chairman of WWE, Vince McMahon, will continue to serve in the same role at the new company. Dana White will continue as president of UFC, and Nick Khan will become president at WWE.
McMahon said he’s excited about the opportunity for growth. Some of the new focuses of the business will be to maximize the value of combined media rights, enhance sponsorship, develop new content, and more. “Together, we will be a $21+ billion live sports and entertainment powerhouse with a collective fanbase of more than a billion people and an exciting growth opportunity,” the 77-year-old said in a statement.
This shouldn’t be a challenging task for the organization as they already have heavy-hitter talents like Bobby Lashley, Naomi, and The New Day, under its belt. While the deal looks solid from the outside looking in, some analysts are giving it a side eye as the terms look misleading. One analyst, Vasily Karasyov, claims the acquisition is not a “‘sale’ exactly” since WWE shareholders are not being bought out. Others pointed out that the nameless joint company will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker TKO, paying homage to the abbreviation for a technical knockout.
Rumors of the sale started in January when McMahon returned to the company after leaving last summer after several sexual misconduct allegations were made against him. Other companies that were in the running to secure the deal were Disney, Fox, Comcast, Amazon, and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund; however, McMahon said Endeavor came out on top.
“It makes all the sense in the world for all these synergies that we have to extract all of the value that we can out of the marketplace.”
Cardi B, Offset, and Children to Appear in ‘Baby Shark’s Big Movie!’
It looks like a family trip is being taken to the water.
According to Variety, Cardi B, her husband, Offset, and their two children, Kulture and Wave, will make it a family affair when they join the cast of the upcoming animated Nickelodeon feature film Baby Shark’s Big Movie!
The family of four will be featured characters in the movie based on a Nickelodeon preschool series, Baby Shark’s Big Show! The animated show started in 2021 on Nickelodeon-branded channels and platforms. The series is now in its second season.
Cardi B will portray Sharki B, while Offset lends his voice as Offshark, Kulture will be heard as Kulture Sharki, and Wave will be Wavey Shark.
The show started on YouTube in November 2015 as Pinkfong Baby Shark. The series became the world’s first video to hit 10 billion views. The show also spawned the #BabySharkChallenge, which helped generate over 1 million cover videos worldwide.
Baby Shark’s Big Show! is co-produced by Nickelodeon Animation and Seoul, Korea-based The Pinkfong Co. and directed by Alan Foreman. It follows Baby Shark and his family as they move to Chomp City, the big city of sharks.
The film’s synopsis shows Baby Shark being forced to leave behind the world he loves after his family moves to the big city. He has to adapt to a life without his best friend, William. Baby Shark has to face an evil pop starfish named Stariana, who intends to steal his gift of song to dominate all of the underwater music. So Baby Shark must break her spell to restore harmony to the seas.
The movie is slated to be released later this year exclusively on Paramount+ in the United States and then on Paramount+ internationally wherever the service is available.
We are sure that this movie featuring the family of Cardi B and Offset will gain a better response than the recent backlash they received from their McDonald’s collaboration.
Giannis Antetokounmpo Once Opened Several Bank Accounts Because Of FDIC’s $250.000 Limit
According to Business Insider, Giannis Antetokounmpo opened several bank accounts to protect his money because Silicon Valley Bank, which Antetokounmpo once used, had a $250,000 cap on customers’ money. With this, the NBA All-Star opened six bank accounts.
“I had no money growing up, so I asked them, ‘Is my money safe?’” Antetokounmpo said to Bloomberg, cited by Business Insider.
Marcy Lasry, co-owner of the Milwaukee Bucks, told Bloomberg that she told Antetokounmpo the dangers of his actions.
“I’m like, ‘Giannis, you can’t be having accounts at 50 different banks,” Lasry said to Bloomberg, according to Business Insider. “Let me tell you something, if JPMorgan goes under, your little dinky banks are going to go under too. Let me explain what you should buy, you should buy U.S. Treasuries, you should buy this…’”
Business Insider also reported that Antetokounmpo’s worry about his money being safe was probably rooted in his childhood. He was raised in Greece during a debt crisis, and many citizens feared that their money would be lost or commandeered.
“There are way smarter ways to do it, keep your money safe,” Antetokounmpo said to Bloomberg, cited by Business Insider.
Business Insider also reported that in 2022 the Bucks superstar earned an estimated $81 million outside of basketball. The report adds that Forbesranked Antetokounmpo the 10th highest-paid athlete in the world.
Earlier this year, Antetokounmpo and his brothers became minority owners of Major League Soccer’s Nashville SC.
“My father was a professional soccer player, and it was the first sport I fell in love with in Greece,” Giannis said to ESPN. “I’ve always had the dream of owning a soccer team. When my brothers and I explored Nashville SC, we knew it was a team and a city that we wanted to get involved with. I couldn’t be more excited to join the Boys in Gold, and can’t wait to come to a match at GEODIS Park soon!”
Divine Nine Strong! Montell Jordan and K. Michelle Celebrate Their Sons Joining Black Fraternities
Singers Montell Jordan and K. Michelle are happy parents after their sons followed in their footsteps to join a historically Black Greek-lettered organization within the Divine Nine.
Jordan took to Instagram on Friday to repost a video showing his son’s probate into the Gammi Pi chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi at Alcorn State University. The “This Is How We Do It” singer gladly welcomed his son into the organization he had joined decades before.
“Yo Nupe!!👌🏾👌🏾👌🏾 Grateful for the brothers who are part of your journey @skyler_jordan,” Jordan captioned his post.
Many applauded Skyler’s induction into the Divine Nine, including many Kappas who left comments telling the neo-Nupe “welKome to the Bond.”
On Saturday, North Caroline Central University in Durham shared photos showing singer K. Michelle posing alongside her son Chase Bowman after he crossed into the Gamma Beta Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc.
Michelle, a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. who pledged at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, held up the Delta hand sign while her son held up his Alpha gesture.
“Recording artist/reality tv star K. Michelle is one proud mother this morning after seeing her son Chase Bowman (seen to her right) cross Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. last night during the NPHC/Divine Nine New Member Presentation,” the school shared in its Instagram post.
One fan explained the significance of K. Michelle’s son becoming an Alpha at a historically Black college (HBCU) like his mother and other family members.
“K. Michelle is a FAMU Delta and her parents, his father, and sister are also HBCU alums,” they wrote in the comments section. “This legacy not celebrity. 🙌🏾”
‘Shrek’ Fans: The Fifth Installment Of ‘Shrek’ Is In Motion
This should make fans of the Shrek franchise happy. Varietysat down with Chris Meledandri, who announced the fifth installment of Shrek.
“It’s not that dissimilar to the process that we went through with ‘Mario,’ where you look at what the core elements are that audiences have loved, and you do your very best to honor those core elements,” Meledandri said to Variety. “And then you’re hard at work to build story elements and new characters that take you to brand new places. The original cast is a huge part of that.”
Variety reported that no one had signed any paperwork for Shrek 5, but negotiations are underway.
“We anticipate the cast coming back. Talks are starting now, and every indication that we’ve gotten is there’s tremendous enthusiasm on behalf of the actors to return,” Meledandri said to Variety.
The outlet reported that after the success of Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, Eddie Murphy said: “If [DreamWorks] ever came with another ‘Shrek,’ I’d do it in two seconds. I love Donkey. They did ‘Puss in Boots’ movies. I was like, ‘They should have done a Donkey movie.’ Donkey is funnier than Puss in Boots. I mean, I love Puss in Boots, but he ain’t funny as the Donkey.”
Meledandri told Varietythat he was ecstatic after reading Murphy’s comments.
“It’s evidence of his strong enthusiasm for a role that he so brilliantly inhabited and really created alongside the artists at DreamWorks. I found that comment to be very exciting,” Meledandri said to Variety.
Shrek was created by William Steig and initially voiced by the late-comedian Chris Farley. After Farley’s untimely death, fellow comedian Mike Myers took over vocal duties for Shrek.
Shrek first appeared in theaters back in 2001. Sherk 2, Shrek the Third, and Puss In Boots were released in 2004, 2007, and 2011, respectively.
Beyoncé and Jay-Z Celebrate 15 Years! Inside the Ultimate Power Couple’s Billion-Dollar Empire
Every man needs a good woman in his life. “That’s a good look.”
Beyoncé and Jay-Z Carter celebrate 15 years of love and matrimony, showing the world what the ultimate power couple looks like. Individually, both artists bring in a nice bag, but together, the Carters are headed beyond their billion-dollar empire as they grow stronger in the years to come.
By now, the world is familiar with Queen Bey’s “Upgrade U” lyrics, but the Carters weren’t just talking that talk. From Beyoncé’s most recent historic win at the Grammy’s to Jay-Z’s big money investments, the queen and king of the Carter empire are at the head of “them big meetings for the mills.”
Music singles, albums, and tours
Bey and Jay “be’s the block.” Both business moguls have made more than a pretty penny from their ventures in the music industry. According to Top Tallies reported by RIAA, Beyoncé has racked up over $114 million in digital singles, leading in profits gained by her husband, who has earned a little over $18 million. Although single sales show a huge gap in earnings for the couple, they stride neck-and-neck in their album earnings, which reflect $27.5 million for Jay-Z and $30.5 million for Beyoncé.
Cosmopolitan reported Queen Bey earned $256 million from her 2016 Formation World Tour. 2017 brought in $48.7 million from Jay’s 4:44 Tour. In 2018, she reportedly accumulated over $3 million for her Coachella appearance, a 105-minute performance that gave fans all the HBCU vibes. Exclusive guests recently saw Bey following a five-year break when she performed at the grand opening for the Atlantis The Royal Grand reveal weekend in Dubai, a gig that reportedly brought in $24 million.
Aside from their solo music ventures, Bey and Jay always have the crowd going wild when they touch the stage together. The Carter’s first On the Run Tour grossed $95 million, and when the couple took the tour for a second spin with On The Run II, they grossed over $200 million.
Let’s not forget, Queen Bey has fans in a current frenzy surrounding her upcoming Renaissance World Tour, which is set to kick off in May, beginning in Stockholm, Sweden, and running dates throughout Europe and North America.
The “Upgrade U” rapper told the world before that he “be’s the d-boy, who infiltrated all the corporate dudes.” Jay-Z has taken his career far beyond the music industry and into the big business world, running multiple companies all while working beside his wife.
In 2008, Jay-Z founded the entertainment company Roc Nation, an agency working with a diverse pool of recording artists, producers, songwriters, and more. His passion for sports led to Roc Nation Sports, a sub-division of Roc Nation, launched in spring of 2013.
Jay-Z extended his entrepreneurship to the alcoholic beverage market in 2014 when he purchased the remaining stake of Armand de Brignac. The purchase named him the first rapper to outright own a champagne label. Four years later, the rapper closed a $56 million deal when he purchased Tidal, a streaming service that Beyoncé also has part ownership in. Reportedly, the two businesses contributed toward a 40% boost in the rapper’s net worth.
Currently, Roc Nation holds a long-term partnership with the National Football League as the league’s official Live Music Entertainment Strategist, a partnership Jay-Z announced in 2019.
The rapper also owns a chain of sports bars and lounges called the 40/40 Club.
Bey brings in her own bag
Jay-Z told B to talk her -ish and that, she is. Beyoncé is hard at work from sun up to sun down, stacking her own coins. At 41, the multifaceted artist has already boasted a long list of credentials as a singer, songwriter, dancer, record producer, business owner, and fashion and cultural icon. In 2010, Beyoncé founded Parkwood Entertainment, a management, production, an entertainment company, and record label responsible for producing The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour in 2013-2014 and the On The Run Tour. Through the company, originally known in 2008 as Parkwood Pictures, the films Cadillac Records and Obsessed were released with Queen Bey as a star and producer.
While running her record label, celebrities and influencers may have been graced with a gift from Bey’s Ivy Park streetwear brand she launched in 2016 with Top Shop owner Sir Phillip Green. Following a split in the partnership, Parkwood Entertainment acquired full ownership of the brand. The brand collaborated with Adidas in 2018 for the relaunch of Ivy Park, but due to creative differences, Bey has recently parted ways with the sportswear giant.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Beyoncé is excited “to reclaim her brand, chart her own path and maintain creative freedom.”
The Carters leaving a legacy
Since Jay-Z and Beyoncé have mastered the idea of “taking care of home and still fly,” their children will most likely follow in their footsteps. The couple shares three children their eldest daughter Blue Ivy, and twins Rumi and Sir. Blue Ivy became one of the wealthiest kids in the United States in 2021 when she boasted a net worth of $500 million.
Landing business deals like the long-standing partnership between Roc Nation and the NFL, the couple’s 2021 partnership as brand ambassadors for Tiffany & Co., which Blue Ivy also took part in, and Bey’s upcoming tour, the Carter’s offspring are sure to be set.
Grow-NY Rolls Out Latest Competition With $1 Million Prize Black Founders Can Seek To Win
Black founders of agricultural technology startups worldwide are among those encouraged to chase up to $1 million in funding to help take their businesses to a higher level.
The cash is part of the Grow-NY Food and Agriculture Business Competition, an initiative that links investors in the food, beverage, and agriculture sectors locally and globally. It has spurred economic growth and entrepreneurship in upstate New York. The Grow-NY region where entrepreneurs will serve includes a 22-county area covering Central New York, the Finger Lakes, and the Southern Tier.
Organizers report that over 200 new jobs have been created, and millions of dollars have been invested in the competition since it started four years ago. Grow-NY aims to attract high-growth food and agriculture startups to compete for $3 million in total prize money annually. It supports 20 finalists through a business development effort that connects them with the region’s resources.
Funding program provider, the Empire State Development (ESD), announced applications are now open for round five of the competition through June 15. One finalist will get a top $1 million prize; two others will receive $500,000; and four others will be awarded $250,000.
Organizers are pushing hard for Black, indigenous, and other people of color (BIPOC) who run food and beverage businesses and those in farming, food manufacturing, and related industries to apply. The program is centered on luring more diverse leaders to the region by reaching entrepreneurs that have historically been left out of the innovation economy. See details to apply and on eligibility here.
Last year, it was disclosed 75% of the 385 applicants included a founder from an underrepresented minority group, and 38% had a female founder. Winners must commit to operating in at least one of the 22 Grow-NY counties for at least a year and agree to a “pay-it-forward” provision in the form of and comply with an equity agreement.
Some winners and finalists that were Black-owned included Edenesque in 2022 as well as WeRadiate and Neupeak in 2021. The competition has generated applications from over a thousand businesses in 41 states and 46 countries outside the U.S. All told, 79 startups have been finalists, with 28 winners sharing $12 million in startup funding and gaining mentorship and networking benefits.
Grow-NY program director Jenn Smith stated, “After four rounds of competition, the Grow-NY effect has resulted in the addition of hundreds of new jobs, the revitalization of commercial space, the development of
agrifood infrastructure, and the follow-on of over $82 million in new investor activity lifting the critical ag sector throughout the region. It goes beyond the startups in our portfolio, and beyond even the food and farming communities, to lift businesses small and large throughout the region.”
St. Louis Teen Claims Firefighter Stole Cash and Gift Cards From Him After Being Involved in a Car Accident That Killed 4 People
A teenager in St. Louis who was involved in a car accident claims that as he lay injured and other people were dying around him, he was robbed by a firefighter at the scene.
According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Seven Robinson-Laney was a victim on the morning of Feb. 26 when a hit-and-run driver struck him. Four of his friends were killed in the crash. But, to add insult to injury, Robinson-Laney says that a St. Louis firefighter may have taken his wallet, credit cards, and several hundred dollars in cash, along with two gift cards he received for his 18th birthday.
Although there is a video of the firefighter placing the victim’s wallet inside his coat, there have been no arrests since the crash occurred over a month ago.
“And he fits the description of what I gave them,” Robinson-Laney said.
The fatal car accident occurred at about 1:30 a.m. on a Sunday at South Grand Boulevard and Forest Park Avenue. Thirty-four-year-old Cedric Dixon allegedly ran a red light and struck the SUV Robinson-Laney was a passenger in. On the morning of Feb. 26, four of the eight people riding in the Chevy Tahoe died.
The people killed in the crash were Anthony Robinson, 19; Richard Boyd, 19; Bryanna Dentman-Johnson, 18; and Corntrail McKinley, 20. Four others, including Robinson-Laney, sustained injuries but survived the crash.
Several days after the accident, on March 3, Dixon turned himself in to the police. He has been charged with 17 felonies and is being held without bond.
Robinson-Laney recalled getting himself out of the SUV and on the street on Forest Park Avenue. He remembered several people coming to help him. A man he thought was a police officer asked if he had any identification on him. After Robinson-Laney took out his wallet — a Christmas gift from his grandmother with his initials, “SMRL,” on it — and handed it to the man. He says the man took out the ID, checked it, and handed it back to him, but without the wallet.
“I’d lost a lot of blood and my vision was blurred, and I said, ‘Man, I don’t even know your name,’” Robinson-Laney said. “And he just told me not to worry, saying, ‘You’re good, you’re good.’”
But he wasn’t.
He had over $600 in cash and two $50 gift cards he received as birthday gifts.
After leaving the hospital two days later, he checked his bank records online and saw some questionable charges on his debit card in West St. Louis County. He ended up contesting three of those charges, for about $120, at two locations in Chesterfield and one in Ellisville.
After Robinson-Laney and his mother went to the police station to view video footage, they saw the man going through his wallet and handing him his ID. Cops told him that he was a firefighter. Police officers interviewed the man and said he claimed that he had accidentally used the card, mistaking it for his own because he also had one issued by the same credit union.
Although they’ve talked to the firefighter, he still hasn’t been arrested or charged.
His mother, Kyona Robinson, said she is upset that someone took advantage of her son while others died at the scene.
“I can’t believe someone would use this as an opportunity to steal. That’s just horrible,” she said. “I just want justice for my son.”
