Current Events
Page: 32
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Tom Williams / Getty
A Republican congressman from New York was confronted with pictures of him wearing blackface as part of a Michael Jackson costume.
On Thursday (Oct. 3), Republican Congressman Mike Lawler found himself caught up in controversy when pictures of him in blackface for a Halloween portrayal of Michael Jackson were published. The publication of the photos by the New York Times, taken in October 2006, show Lawler at a gathering at Manhattan College striking a pose similar to a signature pose of Jackson’s, and another of him wearing a red jacket and black t-shirt with his face noticeably darkened. According to a former classmate who remained anonymous, Lawler used bronzer, which he borrowed from a female classmate.
In a statement, the representative for New York’s 17th district including the Hudson Valley said that his costume was “truly the sincerest form of flattery, a genuine homage to my musical hero since I was a little kid trying to moonwalk through my mom’s kitchen.” Lawler has been an avowed fan of the late superstar, with Jackson biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli having arranged for him to attend Jackson’s criminal trial in 2005 for the alleged molestation of a 13-year-old boy. Taraborrelli would later detail how Lawler was so upset “that he couldn’t help but mutter something derogatory under his breath.” He would then be kicked out of the courtroom.
Lawler appeared on CNN later in the evening on The Source with Kaitlan Collins. “I certainly understand why people would be upset or offended by it, and for that, I’m sorry,” he said, before remarking that he felt his photos weren’t what could be “construed as blackface.” “I think there is a stark difference between dressing up for Halloween and paying homage to somebody you like and respect, versus dressing up in blackface to demean and dehumanize Black people. That’s obviously not what I was doing there,” Lawler said. Collins would then go into the “ugly history” of the practice, noting that Lawler’s suburban district is home to 59,000 Black residents.
The controversy arises as Lawler is up for reelection against former congressman Mondaire Jones. Lawler has shifted to a more moderate position in recent months, being vague about his full support of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. Jones, who is Black, has hammered him on that support in his campaign. The district is one observers are watching closely as a possible flip back to Democratic control in November.
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Jean Catuffe / Getty / Elon Musk
Elon Musk might want to learn to shut his mouth when discussing particular subjects.
Spotted on Page Six per The Daily Mail’s reporting, Phony Stark, aka Elon Musk, reportedly used to brag about his friendship with Sean Diddy Combs, according to a new book.
These developments come after the Tesla chief asked who knew about the disgraced music mogul allegedly sexually abusing a 9-year-old after more allegations arrived.
“I don’t know if you know this, but Puff is an investor in Twitter,” Musk proudly boasted to current Revolt CEO Detavio Samuels, reporters Ryan Mac and Kate Conger write in their new book, “Character Limit: How Elon Musk Destroyed Twitter.” The Daily Mail reports.
“You know, he’s a good friend of mine. We text a lot,” he allegedly added.
The New York Post’s gossip section also points out photographic evidence of Musk and Diddy attending a Dave Chappelle Netflix Is A Joke comedy special in 2022.
In a repost of a Daily Mail headline reporting, “Diddy accused of abusing nine-year-old d boy and spiking drinks with horse tranquilizer with shocking claims,” Musk wrote in the caption, “How many people in music & entertainment knew about this?”
Who Else Knew?
Since Diddy’s downfall, many people wondered if any of the mogul’s famous friends knew about his shenanigans. Many of those same celebrities have quickly disassociated themselves from The Diddler after people found all the photos featuring the Bad Boy general and his celeb friends.
Then, of course, you got people like Jaguar Wright out here on a mission to link JAY-Z to Diddy’s alleged crimes.
Again, Musk needs to ensure he has all his ducks in a row before he gets on the “crazy if true” train since he’s allegedly boasting about being homies with Diddy.
Just saying.
HipHopWired Featured Video
CLOSE
Source: The County of Dallas / Mr. Prada
Mr. Prada, a TikTok star famous for posts on the social media platform who once dropped a post practicing for his mugshot, is now behind bars after being arrested for second-degree murder.
Terryon Thomas, also known as Mr. Prada, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder of a therapist after his body was found along a stretch of a Louisiana highway over the weekend.
Authorities in Dallas County, Texas, detained the social media star on Monday, a booking sheet revealed.
Per Page Six, the 20-year-old was originally arrested for “damage to property, resisting an officer, and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle” before he was charged with obstruction and murder in the second degree.
He is currently being held without bond.
The car involved in the arrest belonged to William Nicholas Abraham, a Baton Rouge, Louisiana.-based therapist whose body was found wrapped in a tarp alongside a Louisiana highway on Sunday.
According to the coroner’s office via the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office in Hammond, Louisiana, Abraham, 69, died of blunt-force trauma. His death was immediately ruled a homicide.
Tangipahoa Parish authorities shared surveillance camera screenshots of a person they claimed was the last person seen driving Abraham’s vehicle in Baton Rouge.
The person driving the vehicle sped away from authorities during a traffic stop and fled on foot after crashing the vehicle.
Abraham Was Accused of Touching an 11-year-old Boy
Abraham also had his run-in with the law after he was arrested in 2015 after being accused of inappropriately touching an 11-year-old boy during a therapy session.
He was never charged, and Tangipahoa Sheriff Gerald Sticker said he is aware of Abraham’s previous arrest, but the focus remains on figuring out where he was killed.
Of course, users on X, formerly Twitter, put on their detective hats and are trying to connect the dots between Abraham’s previous arrest and his murder.
Without any shred of proof, one post on X read, “Hearing that Mr Prada allegedly was SA’d by his therapist,told police and they did nothing and now he’s facing charges for kllllng the therapist is insane. People need to believe victims so they don’t turn into suspects. That boy been crying for help for months.”
That post has over 99 thousand likes.
You can see more reactions in the gallery below.
2. And. Here. We. Go.
4. Good question
6. Because the lies spread faster than the truth
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Shareif Ziyadat / Getty / Diddy
One of Diddy’s accusers is going to need some new legal representation.
Spotted on TMZ, former boom boom flick star Adria English, who accused Diddy of sex trafficking her for one of his legendary white parties, is down an attorney.
According to documents obtained by the celebrity gossip site, Ariel Mitchell-Kidd, English’s attorney, wants off the case because she says her client is making it difficult for her to do her job.
Per TMZ:
Mitchell-Kidd also says there’s been a breakdown in the attorney-client relationship. She claims there are irreconcilable differences between them, and says Adria’s “tone and lack of respect and [her] continued behavior and self-destructive activities” have made it impossible for Mitchell-Kidd to continue representing her.
TMZ initially broke the story of English filing her lawsuit against the disgraced mogul in July, accusing him of sex trafficking and sexual assault.
A week after filing the suit, Mitchell-Kidd joined TMZ Live, revealing an indictment was coming with the Feds arresting Diddy in September, throwing him behind bars where he is currently awaiting trial after he was denied bail twice.
Diddy Is Using This Moment To Make His Case
A spokesperson for the rapper did reach out to TMZ to comment on the recent developments:
“Less than three months after filing her lawsuit against Sean Combs, Adria English has been dropped by both of her attorneys after making completely fabricated statements. In papers filed with the court today, her former attorneys cited Ms. English’s ‘questionable antics’ and ‘undermining behavior.’ As we’ve said from the start, anyone can file a lawsuit without proof — and this case is a clear example of that. English escalated things by filing false police reports and making baseless claims, using high-profile events as a backdrop to harm innocent people. No matter how many lawsuits are filed, it won’t change the fact that Mr. Combs has never sexually assaulted or sex trafficked anyone.”
Even though Mitchell-Kidd is done With English, she said she is leaving early enough that her former client still has enough time to hire a new lawyer, so The Diddler is not out of hot water yet.
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Aaron J. Thornton / Getty
Unfortunately, the rumors regarding Rich Homie Quan’s passing are true. Medical examiners have ruled he died from an accidental overdose.
As spotted on TMZ the autopsy report findings on the late great rapper have been made public. According to the Fulton County Medical Examiner the man born Dequantes Devontay Lamar met his demise because of mix of hard drugs. Found in his system were fentanyl, alprazolam (also known as Xanax), codeine, promethazine and THC. Additionally, the report stated that there were no visible signs of trauma on his body prompting the death to be ruled as an accidental overdose.
On Thursday, September 5 his brother found Rich Homie Quan sleeping on the floor of his kitchen. His sibling found it “unusual” that the “Walk Thru” MC would fall asleep with food in his mouth. Later on that day his presumed girlfriend called police stating his body was cold and unresponsive. He was then taken to Atlanta Hospital where he was ruled dead. He was 34 years old.
His family exclusively shared a tribute to People Magazine about him a couple of days after his passing. “Known to the world as Rich Homie Quan, Dequantes Devontay Lamar was a proud native of the great city of Atlanta, Georgia and represented for the A as he and his music traveled across this globe,” the statement read. “Quan’s legacy will forever be cemented as a soundtrack to our lives. And for this, we are grateful.”
You can view the video to his posthumous track “Song Cry” below.
HipHopWired Featured Video
CLOSE
Source: Alex Kent / Getty / Eric Adams
They say birds of a feather flock together. Mayor Mixxy, aka Eric Adams, needs all the allies he can get as the walls continue to close in on him, so it shouldn’t be shocking that he is now accepting support from Donald Trump.
Spotted on Raw Story, the embattled indicted Mayor, Eric Adams, welcomed the support from the disgraced orange menace, Donald Trump, after becoming the first NYC Mayor to be indicted while in office for allegedly taking bribes from foreign governments.
Speaking out of the side of his racist mouth, Trump, for whatever reason, blamed Adams’ charges on his critical comments Mayor Mixxy said about undocumented immigrants coming to the city.
“We have people that use the Justice Department and the FBI at levels that have never been seen before,” Trump said last week. “I wish him luck.”
On Tuesday, October 1, reporters asked Adams if he had embraced Trump’s support.
“Listen, I welcome support from every American, no matter where they are and who they are,” Adams told reporters. “I welcome support from every American, those who know me and know how I am, and those who are just reading up on this.”
“So, every American in this great country, I welcome support from.”
Critics Are Calling Eric Adams’ Rhetoric Very Trump-Like
It’s no surprise that Adams is being dragged for appreciating the support for the twice-impeached former president, with many pointing out how Trumpish he sounded.
“Several of Adams’ fellow Democrats compared the mayor’s rhetoric to that of former President Donald Trump, a Republican who was also indicted — and ultimately convicted — in New York,” Gothamist writer Brigid Bergin said.
Bergin continued, “Several of Adams’ fellow Democrats compared the mayor’s rhetoric to that of former President Donald Trump, a Republican who was also indicted — and ultimately convicted — in New York.”
Welp.
The news isn’t getting any better for Adams. Federal prosecutors are considering bringing more charges against the defiant NYC Mayor.
You can see more reactions to Eric Adams’ downfall, which is currently in progress.
1. Hate to see it
3. Howling
9.
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: United States Attorney’s Office / DOJ
A few years ago, four men were brutally butchered to death in a park in Long Island, New York. Now, a female participant in the murder has been sentenced to five decades in prison for her role in the grisly killings.
The New York Post is reporting that MS-13 member Leniz “Diablita” Escobar has just been slapped with a 50-year prison stint for luring the unsuspecting men to the park where other MS-13 members waited to murder the men for disrespecting their gang in April of 2017. U.S. Judge Joseph Bianco said that Escobar aka “Diablita” (Little Devil) “enthusiastically” set the men up to be murdered by her cohorts after they posted social media content mocking the hand signs that MS-13 uses to represent their gang.
Only 17 years old at the time of the murders, the now 24-year-old Escobar expresses regret for her actions as she faces a lengthy prison sentence for the four deaths she helped spur on.
The New York Post reports:
“All I can do is hurt,” she said tearfully. “Every breath reminds me that they are not here and their families are in pain. If I could trade places with them and take away that pain, I would.”
Escobar was only 17 when she convinced other members of the MS-13 gang to kill Miguel Lopez, 20, Justin Llivicura, 16, and Jefferson Villalobos and Jose Tigre, both 18, by showing them social media pictures of the victims supposedly mocking the group with gang signs.
She felt “personally offended” that one of the victims had worn items typically associated with the gang even though he was not a member,” Assistant US Attorney Megan Farrell said.
She then lured the young men to the park under the pretense of smoking marijuana with them, according to Farrell.
After her fellow gang members hacked the men to death with machetes (MS-13’s preferred weapon of choice), Escobar not only bragged about her role in the murderous plot but even told them to rid themselves of the evidence and do what they could to evade authorities. It gets worse.
During the trial two years ago, one witness testified that Escobar smiled while the victims were killed and even licked their blood off her lips when it got on her shirt.
“She was one of the most culpable people,” Farrell said Tuesday. “Without her, these murders would not have occurred.”
Though relatives of the victims felt she deserved the death penalty, prosecutors argued for a 65-year sentence before the judge settled on a 50-year bid.
Interestingly enough, Escobar has used her time in prison to better herself as she’s not only earned her high school degree but also leads a Bible study group behind bars. Bible Study with la “Diablita.” Go figure.
Don’t be surprised if Donald Trump references this particular case going forward on the campaign trail as the man revels in hate, division and fear mongering. Just sayin’.
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Johnny Louis / Getty
For decades, Wendy Williams has been suggesting that Diddy had become Hip-Hop’s version of Caligula, allegedly. Without being able to provide any proof of her knowledge, people wrote it off as just another rumor about one of the most hated on artists in the music industry.
Now that authorities have taken Diddy into custody and his dirty laundry is being aired for all to see, Wendy Williams is chiming in on the shocking revelations. In an exclusive interview with Daily Mail UK, Williams says everyone is giving her the proper just due for calling out Diddy for his alleged behind-the-scenes behavior. Speaking to the publication from across the pond, Williams reiterated what people have been telling her since news broke about Diddy’s many crimes against humanity.
Per Daily Mail UK:
‘What is really weird is that I have been told by so many people “Wendy you called it,”‘ she told DailyMail.com exclusively. ‘Including some people from my family who have said the same.’
The popular TV host, who said she was ‘doing good’ in the wake of her aphasia diagnosis and health concerns, said she was horrified at the video of Combs abusing his then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura in a hotel lobby.
‘You know how I feel about that? It is about time,’ she said. ‘To see this video on TV of [Cassie] getting pummeled … it was just horrific.
‘But now you have to think, how many more times? How many people? How many more women? It’s just so horrible.’
We’re low-key surprised that it took this long for someone to reach out to Wendy Williams to get her reaction to the news as she’s been alluding to this kind of stuff for as long as we can remember.
After being hit with sex trafficking, racketeering and a slew of other charges, Diddy pleaded not guilty but was denied a $50 million bail bond as the court probably feels the billionaire might make a run for it and hop on the first flight out the country.
Interestingly enough, Diddy’s lawyer suggested that the Bad Boy Records founder can’t wait to take the stand in his defense, which spurred many social media users to suggest that Diddy is ready to take down an entire cabal of rich and famous sex offenders a la Nino Brown in New Jack City.
What do y’all think will come of Diddy’s trial when it’s all said and done? Let us know in the comments section below.
HipHopWired Featured Video
CLOSE
Source: Christopher Polk / Getty / Sean “Diddy” Combs
The hits keep coming for The Diddler, aka Sean “Diddy” Combs, and we are not talking about records.
Spotted on Variety, the disgraced music mogul now has 120 additional lawsuits to worry about that will be filed in New York, Los Angeles, and Miami in the “coming weeks.”
On Tuesday, October 1, a press conference was held in Houston, at which a group of lawyers led by Tony Buzbee revealed the substantial number of lawsuits that are still pending.
“The biggest secret in the entertainment industry, that really wasn’t a secret at all, has finally been revealed to the world,” Buzbee said, per the Washington Post. “The wall of silence has now been broken.”
Indeed, it has.
The alleged victims of Diddy are both male and female, with ages ranging from nine to 38 at the time of the alleged incidents. According to CNN, twenty-five victims were minors, with some of them having already spoken with the FBI.
The new claims line up with the previous allegations of drug use and seeking medical attention following the alleged “freak offs.”
Per Variety:
The assaults span 30 years dating back to the early 1990s and up until this year, with half of the victims filing police reports or seeking medical attention at the time of alleged assault. The majority of the victims state that they were drugged, and that horse tranquilizer was found in several drug tests. Attorneys claim that they received more than 3,000 responses after issuing a call to victims to come forward, which they vetted and whittled down to 120 credible cases.
The lawsuits will name numerous co-defendants, including associates, family members, record labels and event venues. The victims claim that they were all threatened to stay silent, much like many of the accusers who filed lawsuits against Combs over the past year.
Diddy Says He Can’t Respond To Every “Meritless” Allegation
In a statement through his attorney, Erica Wolff, sent to Variety, Diddy, who is still locked up, called the new allegations “meritless.”
“As Mr. Combs’ legal team has emphasized, he cannot address every meritless allegation in what has become a reckless media circus,” Wolff said. “That said, Mr. Combs emphatically and categorically denies as false and defamatory any claim that he sexually abused anyone, including minors. He looks forward to proving his innocence and vindicating himself in court, where the truth will be established based on evidence, not speculation.”
Users on X, formerly Twitter, are sounding off about the latest developments in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ downfall.
You can see those reactions in the gallery below.
4. It’s only gonna get crazier
6. Possibly
HipHopWired Featured Video
Van Jones had more than a few words of criticism for Sen. JD Vance in the wake of his vice presidential debate with Gov. Tim Walz. During a CNN breakdown of the debate, Van Jones aimed for JD Vance’s performance in the debate and noted that the Ohio senator took several liberties in his answers.
The CBS News debate between. Sen. JD Vance and Gov. Tim Walz on Tuesday (October 1) was a highly anticipated event although most analysts couldn’t agree if this would be a pivotal needle-moving moment for either campaign.
Van Jones opened up his analysis of Vance’s performance by noting that they both attended the same law school and how that training may have served Vance onstage versus Walz’s style of speech.
“I think what you saw tonight was the kitchen table versus the Ivy League,” Jones began in his comments. “I went to the same law school as JD Vance [Yale Law School] and that’s how they teach us to do it. The problem is, JD Vance changes personalities like some people change suits and his job tonight was to try and “sane- wash” the crazy.”
Jones was referring to the measured tone and approach Vance took in comparison to the reported ramblings and off-script speeches of Vance’s running mate, GOP presidential hopeful Donald Trump.
On X, Jones clarified his position further.
From X:
JD Vance used every trick we learned at Yale Law School — trying to sane-wash Donald Trump (and memory hole all the bigoted, nutty stuff Vance himself has been saying).
Do not fall for it.
Vance lied about everything, all night long: he said he never supported a national abortion ban (he did), that American energy production is down (it’s up), and that we had a peaceful transfer of power in 2020 (as if January 6 never happened).
A man who will lie on national television this brazenly about facts that anyone can find with a simple google search — should never be anywhere close to the Oval Office.
Some observers believe that while Vance’s answers were delivered with polish, mild fact-checking would uncover holes in some of his policy positions. In contrast, it has been stated that Walz didn’t appear as confident in the moment as he has been on the campaign trail but the debate was gentlemanly as it possibly could be given the distance on politics between the rivals.
At minute 31:00 of the video below, you can view Van Jones’ commentary on the debate.
—
Photo: Getty