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Toxic fandom attached to major movies is an unfortunate reality, and a recent interview by actor John Boyega highlights its effects. Boyega spoke about his experience being part of the Star Wars franchise during an interview for the Apple TV+ documentary, Number One on The Call Sheet: Black Leading Men in Hollywood, pointing out the racism he experienced while filming the sequel trilogy.
“Lemme tell ya, ‘Star Wars’ always had the vibe of being in the most whitest, elite space. It’s a franchise that’s so white that a Black person existing in [it] was something,” Boyega says in the documentary. “You can always tell it’s something when some ‘Star Wars’ fans try to say, ‘Well, we had Lando Calrissian and had Samuel L. Jackson!’ It’s like telling me how many cookie chips are in the cookie dough. It’s like, they just scattered that in there, bro!”
The 33-year-old was cast as Finn, a stormtrooper with the First Order who defects to join the resistance in Star Wars: The Force Awakens in 2015. His initial appearance in the first trailer for the film sparked an immediate hostile backlash which included racial animosity. He’d reprise the role in The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker. “They’re okay with us playing the best friend, but once we touch their heroes, once we lead, once we trailblaze, it’s like, ‘Oh my God, it’s just a bit too much! They’re pandering,’” he continued, acknowledging that being cast as Finn was a “fundamental moment” for his career at that time.
Boyega has been outspoken about his turbulent experience while filming the Star Wars movie before, notably in a GQ interview in 2020. But in an interview with The Hollywood Report two years later, he opened up about his “very transparent conversation” with a Disney executive. They gave me a chance also to explain what my experience was like. I’d hope that me being so open with my career, at this stage, would help the next man, the guy that wants to be the assistant DOP, the guy that wants to be a producer. I hope that the conversation is not such a taboo or elephant in the room now, because someone just came and said it,” he said.
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Kid Capri is coming for his coin. He says he was never compensated when his voice was sampled for the Martin show.
As spotted on HipHopDX, the legendary DJ paid a visit to the Bag Fuel podcast. While he discussed a variety of topics regarding his storied career, it was his reveal regarding the iconic comedy series that soon went viral. The introduction to the Martin show features his voice screaming “MARTIN LAWRENCE” throughout. He explained how he was never asked about it before it went to production nor was he ever paid for the usage. “They took my voice from Def Comedy Jam, sampled it, put it on the Martin show,” he said. “Never got no permission from me, never asked for my rights, nothing. This show been on eight different networks for 30 years. Now, if it was a money thing for me, I woulda been like, ‘Yo where’s my bread?’ I ain’t never did that.”
Originally premiering in 1992, the television sitcom would go on to run for five seasons. It also produced some of the most beloved characters in comedic history including Bruh-Man, Hustle Man, Sheneneh, Dragonfly Jones and Jerome. In 1996, Tisha Campbell (Gina) left the show citing that Martin Lawrence sexually harassed and threatened her. She returned to the show but requested that she film her scenes without Martin Lawrence being on set. The two have since reconciled.
You can see Kid Capri discuss the sample clearance issue below.
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Could it really be happening? A new generation may soon be back in class at Hillman College.
In a rare move reported by Deadline, streaming giant Netflix has ordered a pilot of a sequel to the classic television show to be filmed this spring.
As reported last year, the sequel will center on the life of Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison) and Whitley’s (Jasmine Guy) daughter’s time at a fictional HBCU–however, Deadline has not confirmed that the show will return to Hillman. The pilot is reportedly being headed up by writer Felicia Pride.
Pride, who has worked on Bel-Air and Grey’s Anatomy, will join fellow executive producers Debbie Allen, Mandy Summers, Tom Werner, Gina Prince-Bythewood and Reggie Bythewood. The iconic series helped launch the careers of Hardison and Guy as well as fellow cast members Dawnn Lewis, Darryl M. Bell, Sinbad, Charnele Brown, and Cree Summer.
Also, the author of The Message: 100 Life Lessons from Hip-Hop’s Greatest Songs, Pride’s production company Honey Chile Entertainment is executive producing and writing the Lifetime original movie Black Magick and developing the series Livelihood, based on her spec, for Netflix, and Seven Days in June for Amazon.
According to Deadline, casting is now underway for Deborah Wayne, Dwayne and Whitley’s daughter, and several other cast members ages 18-20. Shooting is expected to take place in June in Atlanta.
A Different World ran for six seasons from 1987 to 1993. The “Will They or Won’t They” plot line between Dwayne and Whiltey became a focal point in the latter years of the series.
Social media users seem enthusiastic about the possibility of the upcoming sequel. One post on X (formerly Twitter) is gaining traction as a fan posts her dream cast.
One blog poster known simply as “Jas” shared that the sequel could provide a much needed counterbalance to the current political landscape, writing on Medium, “In a country that continues to repress Black media, eliminate DEI initiatives, ban books that inform us about Black history, and deny us a seat at the table, we need a show like this to give us a warm and cozy safe space more than ever.”
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Saturday Night Live has left some folks scratching their heads and it wasn’t due to a skit. Keenan Thompson also feels Morgan Wallen’s exit was abrupt.
In an exclusive interview with Entertainment Weekly, Keenan Thompson was asked about the country singer’s recent appearance on the sketch comedy show. As the episode was wrapping up with the cast and crew saying goodbye from the main stage, Morgan Wallen only said goodbye to host Mikey Madison. He then walked off the stage and proceeded to leave for his flight. Later on that evening, Wallen shared a message on his Instagram Story that read, “Get me to God’s country.”
At first, Thompson thought the musician just needed to relieve himself. “You see somebody before you get a chance to say hi or say good job or anything like that, they just dipping,” he recalls. “I thought maybe he had to go to the potty or something,” he said. “We’re so used to everybody just turning around and high-fiving us, everybody’s saying, ‘Good job, good job, good job.’ So when there’s a departure from that, it’s like, hmm, I wonder what that’s about?”
This is not the first time the cast has been left hanging during the closing of the show. The Fat Albert star went on to point that Prince once did the same thing when he was the show’s musical guest. “Prince did the same thing,” he explained. “I’m not saying Morgan Wallen is Prince, but we weren’t surprised because Prince was notoriously kind of standoffish. It’s just how he was. So we just thought like, ‘Okay, now he’s gone back into fantasyland.’” Nevertheless Thompson felt Wallen’s exit was peculiar. “But Saturday I guess it was just different because it just felt so abrupt.”
While Morgan Wallen has yet to clarify why he left without saying goodbye, many are speculating that the “Last Night” performer did that on purpose because either the series or New York City is a bit too “woke” for his liking. In the past, Wallen has made some questionable comments that were widely considered MAGA friendly. Back in 2021, a video of him surfaced online using a racial slur; he later formally apologized during an interview with Billboard. You can see him walking off from Saturday Night Live below.
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On Monday evening (March 31), New Jersey Senator Cory Booker took the podium on the Senate floor to begin a marathon speech decrying the “grave and urgent” threat to American democracy within the policies of President Donald Trump and his administration. Booker, a Democrat, vowed to speak “for as long as I am physically able.” Booker made sure to be direct with his opening remarks. “In just 71 days, the president has inflicted harm after harm on Americans’ safety, financial stability, the foundations of our democracy, and any sense of common decency,” Booker began. “These are not normal times in our nation. And they should not be treated as such in the United States Senate.”
“I’ve been hearing from people all over my state and indeed all over the nation calling upon folks in Congress to do more, to do things that recognize the urgency, the crisis of the moment,” Booker stated in a video posted to his social media accounts before he took the podium. “And so we all have a responsibility, I believe, to do something different, to cause — as [late Rep.] John Lewis said — ‘good trouble,’ and that includes me.”
Booker’s speech isn’t a filibuster in a technical sense, as his aim isn’t to block a specific bill, which is where a filibuster would normally be used. But as long as Booker is standing and recognized, he can speak as long as he can stand and do so. The speech would halt all official business if it lasted past noon. The record for the longest filibuster is held by the late South Carolina Senator Strom Thurmond, who stood and spoke for a little over 24 hours to oppose the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957. It would ultimately pass and be signed into law by President Dwight Eisenhower.
Booker has read speeches by the late Senator John McCain and Rep. John Lewis, and also employed a strategy of taking questions from Democratic colleagues in the Senate, which gives him a respite from talking at length. These included questions and speeches from Chris Murphy of Connecticut, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, Sen. Andy Kim of New Jersey, Sen. Peter Welch of Vermont, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock, Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Sen. Chris Coons of New Hampshire. Check out the speech above.
— Photo: Getty
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We are sad to report that ATL rapper Young Scooter reportedly died today (Mar. 28) as he celebrated his 39th birthday.
WSB-TV reports that Atlanta PD responded to the shooting near the intersection of Luckie Street NW and Mills Street NW, blocks away from State Farm Arena, where the NCAA College Basketball tournament is taking place.
The shooting occurred around 6:45 pm. Scooter was rushed to the hospital, where police confirmed that he died from his injuries.
Fellow ATL rappers Playboi Carti and Ralo paid tribute to Scooter on social media.
Raised in Atlanta’s Kirkwood neighborhood, Scooter (real name Kenneth Bailey) was among the first artists to sign with Future’s Freebandz imprint in 2012. One year later, he jointly signed with Waka Flocka Flame’s Brick Squad Monopoly.
He first gained notable recognition with his Street Lottery mixtape (2012), led by the single “Colombia.” The track became a regional hit, with rappers Rick Ross, Birdman, and Gucci Mane hopping on the remix.
Scooter would later earn his first entry on the Billboard Hot 100 with his guest feature on Future and Juice Wrld’s “Jet Lag.” The track peaked at #72 and was certified Gold by the RIAA.
Scooter would go on to release 20 mixtapes within the course of his career, making a lasting impact on Atlanta’s Hip-Hop scene. His contributions to the game will never be forgotten.
This is a developing story.
Check Out Our Throwback Interview With Young Scooter From 2013
REPORT: Young Scooter Shot & Killed In Downtown Atlanta
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GloRilla & Friends, Offset, Bossman Dlow and More Announced as First Wave of Birthday Bash ATL Artists
[Atlanta, GA–March 28, 2025] Atlanta’s premier Hip Hop station, HOT107.9, announced the first wave of artists for the most highly anticipated music event of the summer, Birthday Bash ATL2025, June 21st at State Farm Arena.
Grammy-nominated musician and award-winning hip-hop artist GloRilla will headline Birthday Bash ATL 2025. GloRilla has been savoring the success of her summer takeover, considering her three hit songs – “TGIF,” “Yeah Glo!” and “Wanna Be” (featuring Megan Thee Stallion). Each song spent time on the Top-40 of the Billboard Hot 100. At one point, all three songs charted simultaneously in the Top 40, resulting in GloRilla becoming the first female hip-hop artist to achieve the feat in 2024.
Earlier this year, she released her latest mixtape, “Ehhthang Ehhthang”, which generated over 550 million streams in the U.S. to date. “Yeah Glo!” subsequently evolved into a massive hit, emerging as the longest-charting Billboard Hot 100 hit of Glorilla’s career and serving as her third career No. 1 on Billboard’s Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart, after “F.N.F.” and “Tomorrow 2.”
Birthday Bash ATL 2025 also welcomes Offset, Bossman Dlow, Kash Doll, Real Boston Richie, Big Boogie and AMG Twinz to the preeminent concert of the summer. As anticipation grows, additional Birthday Bash ATL artists will be announced in the coming weeks.
Birthday Bash ATL 2025 tickets are on sale now at www.Ticketmaster.com. For up-to-date information, visit www.BirthdayBashATL.com or www.HotSpotATL.com. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram @Hot1079ATL, and of course, listen to WHTA HOT 107.9-FM.
Birthday Bash ATL 2025 EVENT DETAILS:
Saturday, June 21, 2025 at State Farm Arena
Gates Open: 6:00pm – Showtime: 7:00pm – 11:00pm
ABOUT URBAN ONE, INC.
UrbanOne, Inc. [NASDAQ: UONE and UONEK, www.urban1.com], together with its subsidiaries, is the largest diversified media company that primarily targets African-American and urban consumers in the United States. Urban One is the parent company of Radio One, Reach Media, Inc. (blackamericaweb.com), TVOne (tvone.tv), CLEOTV (mycleo.tv), iOneDigital (ionedigital.com) and OneSolution. Formerly known as Radio One, Inc., the company was founded in 1980 with a single radio station and now owns and/or operates 60 broadcast stations (including HD and low-power television stations) in 14 urban markets in the United States, making it one of the nation’s largest radio broadcasting companies. The Company’s growth led to diversification into syndicated radio programming, cable television and online digital media. As a result, in 2017, Radio One, Inc. was renamed Urban One, Inc. to better reflect the Company’s multi-media operations. While the Company was renamed Urban One, Radio One remains the brand of the radio division and all of its radio assets. Through Reach Media, Inc., the Company operates nationally syndicated radio programming, including the Rickey Smiley Morning Show, the Russ Parr Morning Show, and the DL Hughley Show.TV One is a national cable television network serving more than 59 million households, offering a broad range of original programming, classic series, and movies designed to entertain, inform, and inspire a diverse audience of adult Black viewers. Launched in January 2019, CLEO TV, is a lifestyle and entertainment cable television network targeting Millennial and Gen X women of color. iOne Digital is a collection of digital platforms providing the African American community with social, news and entertainment content across numerous branded websites, including Cassius, Bossip, HipHopWired, and MadameNoire branded websites. One Solution provides award-winning, fully integrated advertising solutions across the entire Urban One multi-media platform. Through its national, multi-media operations, the Company and One Solution provides advertisers with a unique and powerful delivery mechanism to African American and urban audiences. Finally, Urban One owns a minority interest in MGM National Harbor, a gaming resort located in Prince George’s County, Maryland.
ABOUT STATE FARM ARENA
Home to the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks, the award-winning State Farm Arena is a next-generation sports and live entertainment venue focused on experience, sustainability, and service. Inspired by the city, State Farm Arena showcases the core values of the organization: inclusiveness, authenticity, and innovation. From the first ever in-arena barbershop with the Killer Mike SWAG Shop to the Hawk Bar on the court behind the basket to the concourse to the Topgolf Swing Suites, State Farm Arena is True to Atlanta. Community and sustainability are at the core as the arena hosts the largest annual food distribution event with the Million Meal Pack and the arena was also the first venue in the world to earn TRUE (Total Resource Use and Efficiency) Platinum certification for zero waste. State Farm Arena was recently named Best Venue by Front Office Sports, a leading multi-platform media and news organization, and consistently ranks among the top 10 concert and event venues in the world from industry-leading publications Pollstar and Billboard. Accessible to every fan with a MARTA station adjacent, the downtown Atlanta arena hosts approximately 175 events and close to 2 million guests annually and stakes its claim as the city’s best sports and live entertainment venue. For more information on State Farm Arena, visit StateFarmArena.com or follow on X @StateFarmArena and Instagram @StateFarmArena.
State Farm Arena
State Farm Arena PR | StateFarm.ArenaPR@hawks.com Max Strauss | max.strauss@hawks.com
Anthony White | Anthony.White@hawks.com
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GloRilla & Friends Lead 1st Wave Of Birthday Bash 2025 Performers
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For a hot minute back in the early 2000’s, Akon was one of the hottest artists on the streets providing some stellar street cuts and memorable hooks and though he’s gone on to bigger and better things, the artist in him still has that itch to create music in 2025 and we’re not mad at him one bit.
Dropping off some new visuals to the Simien assisted “Never Really Mattered,” Akon gets in his loverboy feelings and pours his heart out of his diamond encrusted grill while the seductive singers of Simien sing the hook and lowkey steal some shine from his iced out teeth.
Speaking of early 2000’s music stars, dancehall legend Sean Paul keeps churning out new work and in his latest clip to “Summa Hot,” the Jamaican artist hits the ocean in a private boat with some stunners of his own and get thing poppin’ out at sea as the man knows how to keep the party going.
Check out the rest of today’s drops including work from J.I. featuring Roy Woods, Jacquees, and more.
AKON FT. SIMIEN – “NEVER REALLY MATTERED”
SEAN PAUL – “SUMMA HOT”
J.I. FT. ROY WOODS – “LOVE ME LOVE ME NOT”
JACQUEES – “WHEN I’M AROUND HER”
GYPTIAN – “SLOW WALK”
LEOSTAYTRILL – “YA GET DAT”
SEAN PAUL & SQUASH – “LIFE WE LIVING”
MUNGA HONORABLE – “AVOID PEOPLE”
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Months after joining Donald Trump at one of his rallies in the Bronx (we just thought we’d point that out), rapper Sheff G has pleaded guilty to attempted murder and conspiracy and will be held accountable for his actions (unlike Donald Trump).
According to the New York Daily News, the “No Remorse” rapper is set to serve five years in prison after pleading guilty to taking part in a shooting that left rival gang member Theodore “Sniper” Senior dead and five others injured in 2020. Sheff G was one of the 32 alleged members of the 8 Trey Crips and 9 Ways gangs that was named in a 140-count indictment that was handed down in 2023, which in turn probably led to him supporting Donald Trump as the Orange Overlord is known to pardon rappers for political gain. Unfortunately, for Sheff G, Trump isn’t running for reelection, so chances of him handing out pardons to gain favorability from the Hip-Hop community is slim to none as he couldn’t care less about what the Black and Brown community thinks about him these autocratic days.
The New York Daily News reports:
“Notoriety could not shield this defendant from justice. He used his fame to fund and direct violence, terrorizing our streets, and though we sought a much longer sentence, he will now be held to account,” Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said Wednesday.
Sheff G pleaded guilty to the top counts in his indictment, and prosecutors asked for 20 years. But Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Danny Chun offered him five years in prison and five years supervised release over objections from the DA’s office.
They wound up in investigators’ crosshairs after the Oct. 21, 2020, drive-by shooting at Hawthorne St. and Nostrand Ave. in Prospect Lefferts Gardens that killed Senior, an alleged Folk Nation gang member, and wounded five others.
The shooting was sparked by a social media beef between Sheff G and a Folk Nation-affiliated rapper, Gonzalez said in 2023.
After the gunfire Sheff G texted one of the gunmen to ask if the shooting was “successful.” Two days after the drive-by Sheff G and his team celebrated with a fancy steak dinner where he presented the gunman with a custom gold chain with a “sniper’s crosshairs with two X marks over it to signify Senior was killed.”
At least Sheff G spoils his shooters? Just sayin’.
Now that Sheff G has pleaded guilty to the charges, he’ll be doing five years in prison and be back out on the streets before 2030. Not a bad deal given the circumstances.
What do y’all think about Sheff G’s sentence? Let us know in the comments section below.
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Celebrity kids also do the darndest things. Cardi B’s daughter Kulture ruined her $60K Hermès Purse by drawing on it.
As per The Grio, Cardi B has just taken a hit to her infamous accessory collection. This week she took to her Instagram Story to express her shock and awe upon finding out that Kulture drew a heart symbol in black in on her rare mustard yellow Hermés Kelly crocodile embossed bag. “Look what my daughter did to my purse. Look what my daughter did to my purse,” she said in disbelief. “Look what my daughter did to my f***king purse. Look,” as she zoomed on the whimsical doodle. While Hermés does offer repair services, for a fee, of course, a similar purse is currently up for sale on the resale site 1stDibs in case Cardi B wants to secure a replacement.
Since making it big, Cardi B has not been shy about how she spoils herself. For years she has worked on advancing her purse collection and has added several grails from the Hermès Birkin line including the 30cm Himalaya and Faubourg Birkin bag.
Back in October, she gave her fans a look inside her massive closet that could be compared to a luxury boutique. Her preference for exotic skins was made obvious with several pieces featuring crocodile and reptile embossing. During the time of the reveal, fashion experts estimated the value of her purse collection at around two million dollars.
You can see Kulture’s art on Cardi B’s Birkin bag below.