12-year-old gospel singer Keedron Bryant, who appeared on NBC’s “Little Big Shots,” is singing what’s in his heart after the death of George Floyd.
Exclusive TMZ.com
The family of George Floyd is outraged and crestfallen over what they believe is the same old story — cops kill a black man, authorities drag their feet and everything gets swept under the rug.
Ben Crump, the attorney who represents the family, tells TMZ they all were optimistic federal and state prosecutors would announce the filing of criminal charges against the 4 officers, but after 2 hours of waiting, authorities announced absolutely nothing.
Fox 9 KMSP
Crump speaks for lots of people who were incredulous when authorities at the news conference said they needed eyewitnesses and other videos. Crump asks the obvious — what new videos do they need? They see the cop slowly torture and kill George Floyd, who was in cuffs, on the ground and not resisting … as his fellow officers did absolutely nothing.
The family is not condoning the violence that erupted in Minneapolis, but Crump says they’re not condemning the protesters either, and he made a point of telling us the mother of Eric Garner called the family and said she wished protesters would have been more disruptive in her son’s case, because maybe then she would have gotten a measure of justice she was seeking.
We stannnn Natasha Rothwell who plays the funny friend on “Insecure” where she pops up to crack jokes, care for BFF Tiffany’s newborn baby and bless everyone with her great friend energy on the increasingly Issa & Molly-focused series.
Whyyy there’s not a smidge more of her, we don’t know, but her scene-stealing shenanigans continue to fuel weekly post-episode pleas for more screen time from fans of the hit show that’s determined to make us HATE Molly instead of delving more into Kelli’s intriguing backstory/love life/character arc after 4 whole seasons.
Hit the flip for MORE hilarious tweets/memes that got us through the week.
‘Chromatica,’ Lady Gaga’s sixth studio album, will drop Friday. A third single from the album, ‘Sour Candy,’ was released Thursday.
Source: Steve Granitz/Earl Gibson III / Getty
There’s a new #VERZUZ battle on the way that’s sending sanctified Twitter into a tizzy. Gospel artists Fred Hammond and Kirk Franklin are preparing to go toe to toe for Swizz Beatz and Timbaland’s IG battle series. The gospel giants will face off Sunday, May 31 at 5 p.m. EST after inspiring words from Bishop T.D. Jakes. This marks the first time #VERZUZ has had gospel competitors.
“Timb & I had to call a few of our friends!!” wrote Swizz Beatz in the IG announcement. “Join Kirk Franklin, Fred Hammond and Bishop TD Jakes for this Sunday’s special edition of VERZUZ – THE HEALING 🙏🏽 Everyone needs a hug 🙏🏽 @kirkfranklin @bishopjakes @realfredh song by @keedronbryant @timbaland this one will be special 🙏🏽 Live on @verzuztv this Sunday 5pm est…
Kirk’s catalog includes “Revolution”, “Silver and Gold” and of course “Stomp.” As for Fred Hammond, who’s a Grammy winner, his hits include“No Weapon,” “You Are The Living Word,” “Jesus Be A Fence Around Me” and “We’re Blessed.”
The announcement also comes after Swizz emphasized that #VERZUZ competitors are REQUIRED to use the sound equipment they send them—you hear that Jagged Edge?
“Roland [Corporation] actually created a special system that they made for Verzuz for IG,” said Swizzy to REVOLT. “And it works. Like you look at Ludacris’ sound, it works. You can tell who’s using the setup and who’s not using the setup. It’s only a couple plugs that’s gon’ change ya life. 112 was using it. I don’t think Jagged Edge was using it.”
Will YOU be watching Kirk VS. Fred Hammond?
Source: VICTOR DE SCHWANBERG/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Getty
Last night there was a social uprising in Minneapolis, Minnesota in the name of unarmed murdered Black man George Floyd at the hands of the police.
One of the sites where the uprising took place was a Target store that reportedly would not sell milk to protesters who had been tear-gassed. During the fracas, a faux cop, knife-wielding, and “wheelchair-bound” white woman in the vein of George Zimmerman decided that she would try to stop people from relieving the store of its inventory. That was a mistake.
The video of the incident has gone viral as hell and shows the Karen (someone in the video calls her “Jennifer” but we refuse to acknowledge that) wheeling her chair in front of a door and attempts to stab a Black woman from leaving after letting a white woman who was stealing walk right past her. Initially, the video was colored as an “attack” against an elderly handicapped woman, but facts > f**ks#!t.
Almost instantly, the phrases “she got a knife”, “she can walk”, and “she’s 30” all began trending HIGH on Twitter.
After it was all said and done, the Karen ran down the predictable script.
We’re pretty sure that the reason that white people’s food is so bland is that it’s seasoned with victimhood. Low in calories AND flavor.
Oh also, this b!t¢# can walk.
Source: Rodin Eckenroth / Getty
Wanda Sykes finally decided to give Scott Baio the time of day a week after the actor tried to bait her for her continued support of Joe Biden.
Last week, Biden caught a ton of heat for his controversial remarks on the Breakfast Club, where he said the now infamous quote: “If you have a problem figuring out whether you’re for me or Trump, then you ain’t black.”
Following his interview with Charlamagne and all the commotion it caused, Scott Baio decided to head to twitter and randomly call out Wanda Sykes, writing, “Hey @iamwandasykes why is it okay for @JoeBiden to say something clearly racist but @therealroseanne gets kicked off of her own show that YOU are a writer on, for making a mistake? Is it because you’re a full of s**t, hack liberal?”
Almost a full week later, Sykes came through to concisely put Scott Baio—who’s known for his role as Chachi Arcola on Happy Days—in his place. Her reason for supporting Biden, and not Roseanne Barr, is really quite simple.
“Oh! Hey Chachi. Apologies, I didn’t see you. I’ll keep it short. Joe Biden didn’t say, ‘Then you ain’t an ape,’” Sykes tweeted, slicing through Baio’s Roseanne Barr analogy. “Well, let me get back to work…I hope you enjoy whatever it is that you do.”
What Baio is referencing here is an incident from 2018, when Sykes resigned from her position as a head writer for ABC’s reboot of Roseanne after Barr tweeted racist insults about Barack Obama’s former adviser, Valerie Jarrett. The show’s former star called Jarrett a product of the Muslim Brotherhood and Planet of the Apes, tweeting, “muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby=vj.”
Before responding to Baio, after seeing Biden’s Breakfast Club comments, Wanda Sykes tweeted that the presidential hopeful’s comments should be treated as a joke.
Source: Al Bello / Getty
Colin Kaepernick has given his life to the fight against police brutality in America, so it’s no surprise that he’s speaking up against the tragic murder of George Floyd.
Floyd was killed after Minneapolis police were called to the scene of a suspected “forgery in progress.” At the time of his arrest, a police officer used his knee to pin Floyd’s neck to the ground for seven minutes while three other officers watched and assisted in restraining him. Floyd pleaded for his life, telling the officers he was in pain and couldn’t breathe while gasping for air. Video footage of the incident has the nation in an uproar, sparking protests and more.
From LeBron James to Ice Cube, Black celebrities have been vocal about their disdain for what happened — and it’s only right that Colin Kaepernick continue to add his own thoughts to the sea of messages out there. Kaep hit Instagram with a new message for his followers:
“When civility leads to death, revolting is the only logical reaction. The cries for peace will rain down, and when they do, they will land on deaf ears because your violence has brought this resistance. We have the right to fight back! Rest in power George Floyd.”
As always Kaep is inspiring hearts around the world. “You’re an inspiration,” one fan commented. “I used to think that when you were kneeling that it was disrespect and stupid but now after watching these things happen over the past few weeks my perspective has totally changed,” another admitted.
May George Floyd rest in power. We are praying for the justice the Black community deserves.
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‘Homecoming,’ ‘The Grateful Dead Movie’ and ‘Stop Making Sense’ help bring the live music experience home
Dolly Parton is offering hope yet again during the coronavirus pandemic — this time, with a brand-new song.
Camila Cabello is getting candid about her struggles with mental health, writing about her obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms and anxiety in WSJ.
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Some of the people protesting George Floyd‘s killing are resorting to looting … as the tensions between citizens and cops in Minneapolis continue to escalate.
As the second day of demonstrations continued Wednesday — hundreds came face-to-face with officers armed with riot gear — some groups of protesters started looting a Target store.
As you can see in the video, folks are piling tons of goods into carts and baskets. The looters are running off with TVs, groceries and clothes.
Facebook/ Darnella Frazier
The Target store is near the intersection where Floyd was killed after a now-fired cop killed him during an arrest for an alleged forgery.
As we reported … footage of the incident shows an officer pressing his knee down on George’s neck for several minutes, ignoring Floyd’s pleas that he could not breathe, all while witnesses recorded video and shouted at officers that George was slowly dying.
AP
The protests began in earnest Tuesday night in Minneapolis, with demonstrators clashing with cops who fired tear gas canisters and pepper spray into the crowd.
Protest in Downtown by Black Lives Matter @BLMLA in support of #GeorgeFloyd has Alameda CLOSED between the 101 and Temple @FondoKNXTraffic @KNX1070 #KNXTraffic #LATraffic pic.twitter.com/t8KiaDPQF5
— scott burt (@scottburtknx) May 28, 2020 @scottburtknx
Less violent protests have sprung up across the country too … including one very large one moving through Los Angeles.
Demonstrators from Black Lives Matter are protesting Floyd’s death, and the protest has engulfed an overpass near the 101 Freeway.