Snoop Dogg Says Jay-Z Threatened to Sever NFL Partnership Over Alleged Restrictions for Super Bowl Halftime Performance
Several weeks after the Super Bowl crowned the NFL’s champions; it seems as if no one is talking about the actual game or even the teams that participated. With all the hoopla surrounding this year’s halftime performance, it is still on people’s minds, specifically Death Row Records owner Snoop Dogg.
In a recent interview with Tidal’s Elliot Wilson, The Doggfatherrevealed that Roc Nation owner and successful hip-hop entrepreneur Jay-Z was ready to end his business relationship with the NFL if they objected to certain aspects of the Super Bowl LVI halftime performance that featured Snoop, Dr. Dre, Anderson.Paak, Mary J. Blige, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, and 50 Cent.
Rumors came out that the NFL didn’t want Snoop’s gang affiliation to be acknowledged during his performance (He typically “crip-walks” during his shows). The league didn’t want Dr. Dre saying one of his lines from his hit song, Still Dre Day (Lyrics coincidentally written by Jay-Z for the super-producer) when he said, “Still not loving police.” Executives were allegedly against white rapper Eminem kneeling at the end of his performance as an ode to former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
In deep admiration for his East Coast rapping friend, Snoop tells Wilson how appreciative he was for Jay-Z going to bat for the performers, threatening to quit if they weren’t able to perform in the manner they wanted to.
Snoop goes into the moment he saw Jay-Z after the halftime performance.
“We hug each other tight. It was as if we won a championship. Like, you know when you’re genuinely happy for each other? People don’t understand; me and him are the ones. He’s the one on the East. I’m the one from the West. We love each other. Like, not secretly, like publicly, we love each other. It is what it is, so it’s like for him to go to bat for us and tell the NFL, ‘F**k that. They perform or I quit,’ that was the most gangster sh*t out of everything. Then with attire and kneeling and all this … you can’t wear your gangbang sh*t? JAY-Z hit me like, “Wear what the f**k you want to wear. Peace to the Gods.”
Black TV Personality Makes History, Acquires 100% of the Rights to His Local TV Show
Aaron Jordan, Jr., the host of a local TV program called Cafe Conversations with Mr. Know Your Worth, didn’t always own the rights to his show but has now successfully acquired 100% ownership.
Known for its interviews with prolific people with powerful stories of triumph, the show currently broadcasts on Christian Television Network (CTN-WHTN) in Middle Tennessee (the Greater Nashville area and other surrounding counties), and also some parts of Kentucky.
The acquisition, which provides Jordan with all the catalogs and copyrights of the show, is expected to create an avenue for him to develop more shows, concepts, and hosting opportunities.
“My team and I are looking to explore more acquisition and licensing opportunities,” Jordan says.
“I understand the demand for content, and we have a total of 20 shows currently in the catalog that have aired on a regional network for proof of concept. Also, this can lead to other avenues in the TV entertainment space (i.e. another TV show concept, hosting, etc).”
Jordan says that this landmark achievement is a result of long-term efforts right from the inception of the idea of the concept for a TV show, and further attributed his success to a replay of an old interview by Tyler Perry, which motivated him after seeing it.
“This achievement has been in the works since the inception of the idea of the concept for a TV show,” he says.
“When my brand started to venture into television, my first goal was to get acquired by a network for licensing of my content, but it wasn’t until I saw a replay of an old interview by Tyler Perry stressing the fact of the importance of having ownership of our content and brand that I began to think and ask myself: ‘Do I really own my content fully to create leverage?’”
Jordan will leverage this acquisition in achieving his career objectives of not just impacting the lives of many young people positively, empowering men and women on understanding the power they possess in their relationships and enriching them to overcome brokenness, but also impacting the future generations.
“This was a very pivotal milestone achieved. The reason being is because of the leverage that it creates long-term from a generational perspective. The decisions and sacrifices made over time create opportunities in the future for my daughter and future children. So this milestone means so much more to me than the present,” he says.
Aaron Jordan Jr. is a Nashville media personality, author, and relationship coach who was named “Making Headline News Man of The Year” for 2020 and 2021.
DMX’s Fiancée: ‘I Haven’t Moved On’ Since Rapper’s Death
The shocking heart attack and then the death of hip-hop artist and actor DMX last April affected not only the hip-hop world and Hollywood but had a profound effect on the rapper’s fiancee.
Although it’s been 11 months, Desiree Lindstrom recently shared that she hasn’t “moved on” since he died.
According to People, Lindstrom, the mother of DMX’s 5-year-old son Exodus, is still struggling with the grief of losing him almost a year after he died. She recently appeared on a podcast, “It’s Tricky with Raquel Harper,” to talk about how her life has been the past 11 months without her fiancee. She goes into detail with the host about the battle for DMX’s estate and how her son is coping with his father’s death.
She tells Harper, “I haven’t moved on. It’s hard, you know? It’s really hard. I just take it minute by minute. Some people say you could take it day by day, but it’s second by second. My life changed so fast [in] the blink of an eye.”
She also mentions that Exodus is fighting stage-three kidney disease, and his condition is currently stable.
“Sometimes it’s hard, just looking at him. He has so many different qualities of his father,” she stated. “So when I do shed a tear, he’ll be like, ‘Mommy, are you OK? And I’ll say, ‘You just did something that was like your father.’ And he’s like, ‘Mommy. It’s OK. Daddy’s with God. He’s watching over us. He’s our angel.’ I just thank God that he gave me a son that is like that. He’s just like his dad.”
DMX was hospitalized on April 2, 2021, following a reported heart attack and died less than a week later. Since being admitted to the hospital, the rapper was reportedly on life support in a “vegetative state.” As confirmed by his family, the rapper, who was 50, died at White Plains Hospital in New York.
DMX had an extensive battle with drug addiction, and the Yonkers emcee was open about his struggles. His drug use began at 14 when a supposed mentor introduced a young Simmons to crack cocaine.
NCAA Athlete Deja Kelly Inks New Equity NIL Deal with Plant-Based Barcode
NCAA powerhouse athlete Deja Kelly adds investor and brand ambassador of the premium hydration company BARCODE to her growing portfolio.
Established by NBA coach and professional trainer Mubarak Malik (Bar), BARCODE is a plant-based beverage company and a brand that strives to provide everyday wellness.
According to a press release, in this newly signed partnership, Kelly, a University of North Carolina sophomore and women’s basketball team point guard, becomes BARCODE’s first-ever female name, image and likeness (NIL) shareholder. This accomplishment also marks her first long-term equity deal for the star hooper.
“Our partnership with Deja Kelly is a no-brainer,” says Malik (Bar). “Her athletic excellence and unwavering commitment to healthy living align perfectly with our missions and value at BARCODE. We’re proud to have Deja join our team and help more consumers unlock their greatest potential through nutrition and lifestyle.”
Kelly is well-known as the leading scorer of the Tar Heels, having garnered several accolades during her freshman year. Recently named ACC Player of the Week, she is working to help her team win their first ACC Championship since 2008.
“Being a college athlete and aspiring businesswoman, generational wealth and wellness are both incredibly important to me,” Kelly said in a statement to Boardroom. “Having equity in a fast-growing startup that also offers the community a healthy alternative is a dream partnership for me. I could not be more excited to join Barcode in its mission to promote healthy hydration while also learning the fundamentals on how to grow and scale a company.”
The San Antonio, Texas, native was brought on board to help promote brand awareness and encourage the brand’s mission of living a healthier lifestyle for young athletes and women. In doing so, she is also set to be the official hydration partner of Deja Kelly’s Women’s Empowerment and Basketball Camps launching in San Antonio and Dallas in Summer 2022. According to the press release, the camps “are designed for young women in middle and high school to learn the fundamentals of basketball training, leadership, and essential life skills.”
“Innovation and empowerment are core to who I am as a woman and an athlete,” says Deja. “It’s incredible to be an ambassador to a company that shares those values and to own a piece of such a rapidly growing business.”
In addition, Kelly has signed deals with Postmates, Outback Steakhouse, and Dunkin’.
As BLACK ENTERPRISE previously reported, the Dunkin’ partnership will include elevating the “coffee and doughnut brand on social channels and have their own co-branded meals in their college towns,” according to Dunkin’.
Data Shows HBCUs Duped By Billions Over The Last Three Decades
Over the last three decades, recent statistics show that several HBCUs have been underfunded by at least $12.8 billion.
According to Forbes, 18 public “land-grant” HBCUs founded in the 19th century by state legislatures in the South have been cheated out of billions between 1987 and 2020 compared to their predominantly white counterparts.
Tennessee State University, for example, is one of those 18 schools that reportedly received $1.9 billion less than it would have if it were funded at the same amount per student as the University of Tennessee (UT), the outlet reports.
For years there has been a lack of funding,” says Glenda Glover, president of TSU, adding that two school buildings need substantial repair. “There has been neglect.”
At the top of the list, North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University (NC A&T) in Greensboro has been experiencing underfunding struggles since 1987. Forbes marks the school as the most underfunded HBCU by a total of $2.8 billion.
Source: Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (Forbes)
Data shows that Florida A&M University, Southern University in Louisiana, and Prairie View A&M University in Texas are the top five most underfunded institutions. However, schools in two states—Delaware and Ohio—were not underfunded at all.
The magazine highlights that “the greater state funding of the predominantly white land-grant schools can be explained by those institutions’ strength as research universities.”
In 2020, the North Carolina legislature granted NC State, with only 7% of its 32,000 students being Black, $79 million extra for research. These figures amount to 15% of its total state funding, less than 5% of its $1.6 billion operating budget. NC A&T—the nation’s largest HBCU, with 11,700 students—wasn’t as fortunate, receiving just $9.5 million for research, amounting to 10% of its state funding.
N. Joyce Payne, the founder of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, describes the lack of funding as the “highest level of sanctioned discrimination.”
“The inequities are embedded and sanctioned by state governments, the federal government, and by private industry. They say to the white schools, you can drive a Bentley, but the Black schools are told they can’t get a car at all.”
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot Sued for Defamation Over Reportedly Making Obscene Remarks
The mayor of Chicago is embroiled in a lawsuit that accuses her of making obscene remarks to attorneys.
According to WGN9, a lawsuit was filed last Tuesday against Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfootfor defamation. A former attorney for the City of Chicago claims that she allegedly berated a group of attorneys making lewd statements including, “I have the biggest d**k in Chicago,” during a heated discussion over the removal of the Christopher Columbus statue.
The statue was removed in July 2020 after protests over police killing victim George Floyd. City crews used a large crane to remove the statue in Grant Park under the direct order of Lightfoot a week after protesters trying to knock down the monument clashed with police officers.
The papers were filed by former Chicago Park District Deputy General Counsel George Smyrniotis.
In October, the attorney claims he worked with lawyers for the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans to negotiate the group’s desire to display the statue in its annual Columbus Day parade. Lightfoot had ordered the statue to be temporarily removed. The group intended to put the statue at the end of the lineup, leave it covered until the end, and then have it uncovered for 20 minutes.
The lawsuit alleges that Lightfoot used obscene language as she berated the attorneys.
“You make some kind of secret agreement with Italians, what you are doing, you are out there measuring your d— with the Italians seeing whose got the biggest d—, you are out there stroking your d—- over the Columbus statue, I am trying to keep Chicago Police officers from being shot and you are trying to get them shot. My d— is bigger than yours and the Italians, I have the biggest d— in Chicago.”
Fox 32 reports that Lightfoot released a statement earlier today regarding the lawsuit.
“I am aware of the lawsuit that has been filed by a former Chicago Park District employee. While I will continue my practice of not commenting on the specific claims alleged in pending litigation, I feel compelled to state that the deeply offensive and ridiculous claims are wholly lacking in merit, and I welcome the opportunity to prove that fact in court. Furthermore, to be clear, I never have and never will harbor any animus toward Italians or Italian Americans.”
‘College Hill’ Will Return With NeNe Leakes, Lamar Odom, Ray J, Dream Doll and Big Freedia
The first Black reality TV series, College Hill is making a return to the airwaves.
The twist this time is that, instead of covering unknown college students attending HBCUs, this reboot will star former and current reality TV participants.
The Jasmine Brand has reported that there is a College Hill reimagining that has already started filming and it will star celebrities that are well known in the reality TV space. Instead of airing on BET, the show will be able to be viewed on BET+, the paid streaming service for Black Entertainment Television.
The show will feature familiar faces in Real Housewives of Atlanta cast member,NeNe Leakes, former Los Angeles Lakers basketball player and Keeping Up With the Kardashians’Lamar Odom, For the Love of Ray J‘s Ray J,Bad Girls Club cast member Dream Doll, and Big Freedia: Queen of Bounce main star, Big Freedia. There will be other celebrities included in the series.
The plot for the upcoming season is that none of the celebrities on the show attended college or did not complete their collegiate studies before embarking upon their successful careers in reality TV.
“We’re told that filming is currently underway and the non-scripted show will follow celebrities that didn’t attend or finish college. Sources tell us that the following celebs have allegedly been cast: former NBA star Lamar Odom, reality star #NeneLeakes, reality star #RayJ, bounce music artist #BigFreddia, rapper #DreamDoll and more. Insiders tell us that the show is being filmed at Texas Southern University. Full story on #theJasmineBRAND.com”
According to the College Hill Series Instagram page, the show is “America’s 1st ever African-American reality series” as it premiered in 2004 on BET. The premise of the show was cameras following black college students as they attended HBCUs. The show was on air until 2009 with one spin-off, Interns.
This group is rumored to be filming a new ‘College Hill’ (Nene Leakes, Lamar Odom, Dream Doll, Slim Thug, Big Freedia, Ray J, and India Love) pic.twitter.com/s82ImmpBxL
Get A Sam’s Club Membership At A Discount, Plus Perks
Sam’s Club has been a game-changer in the food-shopping space. It’s been revolutionary in how people today groceries, household products, and just about anything else needed to complete those pesky store runs.
Long gone are the days of trudging to your local supermarket every few days to buy groceries that quickly disappear, depending on the size of your family. Sam’s Club cavernous stores are not only filled with popular items you can buy in bulk – and eliminate those pesky store trips – but Sam’s Club has found ways to keep its prices affordable for most.
The only catch is you have to be a member to take advantage of all Sam’s Club offers.
For a limited time, not only can you purchase a Sam’s Club membership at a heavily discounted price, but you’ll even be rewarded with two gifts. For just $19.99 you can purchase a Sam’s Club membership along with a free rotisserie chicken and cupcakes. Also included is a $10 Sam’s Club E-Gift card. That’s a savings of 70% from its MSRP ($67).
Food and household products are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Sam’s Club. Being a member also entitles you to discounts on hotels, rental cars, live events, attractions, and much more. Members are also offered access to Sam’s Club’s gas stations.
“Great club with very good deals especially for GAS – well worth the money and price from this site. A must HAVE! I give this all 5 stars,” writes verified 5-star purchaser Edward M.
All that’s needed to redeem this offer is an internet connection, where you’ll head to Sam Club’s website and enter the required information. From there, you’ll take the presented information to a physical location.
Sam’s Club members have long raved about the deals and savings they’ve enjoyed from their membership. Join them by purchasing this deal-packed offer today and enjoy the large number of benefits that accompany your membership.
ESPN Entertainment Reporter Kelley L. Carter Sells Her First Program To Showtime
Senior Entertainment reporter for ESPN’s The Undefeated, now renamed Andscape, Kelley L. Carter served as the moderator for several panels at the Disney Dreamer Academy.
Carter had the pleasure to speak to Scripps National Spelling Bee Champion Zaila Avant-garde, serial entrepreneurs and brothers Branden and Bryce Thompson, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Vice President and Chief Curator Nwaka Olusa, Creative Strategy, A&R at The Walt Disney Company Jathan Wilson, and Essence CEO Caroline Wanga.
Carter engaged the dreamers while speaking to the renowned speakers, inquiring how they navigated their journey to find success in their respective careers.
She worked alongside Candi Carter, veteran television producer for The Tamron Hall Show, The View, and The Oprah Winfrey Show to create opening numbers at the educational event. Candi even convinced Kelley to drop hip hop bars as she commenced another learning segment for the dreamers.
Joining along with the 100 students invited to Disney to learn how to harness the power of their dreams, Kelley told Black Enterprise that she also has dreams and goals that she is also working on for this year. Carter started a production company, Lodge Freeway Media, with fellow journalist and best friend, Jemele Hill. The intrepid duo just sold their first program to Showtime.
“We are doing it in collaboration with Gabrielle Union. We are really excited about that, and that is a long-held secret dream that I’ve had to produce content for television and film outside of what I do as a narrative journalist narrative storyteller. I’m really excited to kind of meld those two worlds together, I think, and see what that looks like, and even though I’m a little shy to talk about it, it is something that I learned that once I put it out there, people really embraced it…I’m hoping we get a chance to close a couple of more deals in 2022 and see our first show start to come for fruition,” explained the Emmy-winning journalist.
While juggling her company, Kelley hosted ESPN’s UnDefeated, a platform that covered the intersection of sports, culture, and race. Now the program is being re-imagined and re-branded as Andscape, And– for the infinite ways to define Blackness, Scape-for inclusive, eclectic, and deeply dimensional view of the world, as reported by Good Morning America. Kelley will host Another Act show that will still highlight sports, culture, and entertainment news.
“It’s going to be a one-stop place of content creation. It’s also going to be a space where you get really great, rich, layered content about Blackness,” Kelley explained to GMA correspondent Kenneth Moton.
We want to make sure we are talking about Black creators and Black culture, Black existence twelve months a year, 365 days of the year, all days of the week,” said Kelley of the program that intends to explore universal truths and human evolution.
Disney Dreamer Kayla Michele’s PeduL Helps Companies Hire Diverse Talent
Kayla Michele, a Disney Dreamer of the 2013 class, is the Co-Founder and COO of PeduL, a diversity recruiting marketplace that enables employers to source and attract a curated pipeline of competitive, diverse candidates whose skills match job requisitions.
The meaning behind the business name admirably incorporates the organization’s mission; at the center of their work is education, which Michele and her team believe is the bridge between ‘P’ – purpose and ‘L’ – life. PeduL wants to close the gap to access to education and create the link to career opportunities for all job seekers.
The idea for PeduL developed from a conversation that Michele had with a college friend Chisa Egbelu while they were students at Rutgers University. They witnessed their friends struggle to land gainful employment at notable organizations like Google and NBC Universal. At the same time, those companies found it challenging to recruit diverse talent.
Kayla Michele, Co-founder of PeduL speakers to dreamers in the Entrepreneurship Deep Dive. Photo: Yolanda Baruch
Michele is cognizant that employment compliance laws prohibit companies from posting a job listing requesting only specific individuals from a minority group apply for that particular position.
She and her business partner developed a “diversity hack” solution and created scholarships for a particular candidate profile. Once the candidate accepts the scholarship, they receive an internship or full-time job at the company that offered the scholarship.
Since 2020, PeduL has helped over 20,000 underrepresented minority students from colleges and universities across the country pursue meaningful careers at companies like Audible, ViacomCBS, Capital One Bank, and Synchrony Financial.
Michele led a section of the Disney Dreamers Entrepreneurial Deep Dive and told the students how DDA changed her mindset in how she perceived herself.
“I decided to start this stupid phone case company which taught me so much about failure. If nothing else, it taught me that ‘failing to act because of failure is guaranteeing the failure being feared.’ [The phone case company] taught me every lesson that I needed to learn about being an entrepreneur, from marketing to sales, operations, project management, inventory. Then I realized consumer product goods is not what’s meant for me; I don’t want to deal with inventory,” Michele told the dreamers.
She further explained that she had to discover her passions for her next business venture. She realized that what energizes her the most is speaking to young people and college students of color and serving as a catalyst to help them tap into their potential, which led her to establish PeduL.
Michele said that PeduL first started as a crowd-funding platform when she was a junior in college. Still, she spoke to different students and engaged in the customer development process, “I realized I was too obsessed with the solution and not obsessed enough about the customer or the problem that I was solving,” she imparted.
“I realized after a year and half of doing interviews that I was catering to a specific audience which happened to be a middle-class, Caucasian audience that happened to have a network with money. So they had the uncle or the aunt that they could tap into for that $500 or $1000 donation towards their campaign; it was awesome because they were able to raise 7 million dollars for the first eight months, which was great, but I started this for my friends who represented me. I was like, why are all the Black and Hispanic kids not getting the same value that everybody else is on the platform,” she added.
She returned to the drawing board and reassessed the audience that she wanted to help. She asked herself what her mission was, the problem her audience was facing, and how can she create a solution that served them? Once armed with this newfound awareness, her company could bring in one million dollars in 2021 by working with various companies.
She conveyed a few takeaway points to the dreamers based on her entrepreneurial experience, her time spent at Disney Dreamers, and other speakers’ expertise.
“The idea of the law of now is gathering a bunch of data that is available to you, making a decision, and then taking immediate action on the decision before your brain has time to disrupt you and tell you why you can’t do it.”
