Strategic communications expert Malikat Rufai stopped by to discuss Rihanna’s pregnancy, Nick Cannon’s baby on the way, the tragic passing of Cheslie Kryst, and so much more.
(Note: This episode was recorded on February 3, 2022.)
Just four days after making her first statement since taking a hiatus, there are reports that Wendy Williams will be losing her talk show. According to Love B. Scott, the producers of The Wendy Williams Show told the crew this week that the show is being canceled and will broadcast its last episode this June.
The disclosure about the show’s fate is said to have been followed by job offers for a new show — The Sherri Shepherd Show. For about two weeks now, there have been rumors circulating about the former ‘View’ co-host being in talks to host her own show in the time slot that once belonged to Wendy Williams.
According to B. Scott, the deal has been finalized and Sherri Shepherd’s new show will launch this fall.
A defamation lawsuit filed against Mariah Carey by her brother, Morgan Carey, is being allowed to proceed by a New York judge. The lawsuit was filed in March 2021, just months after the release of the singer’s memoir, The Meaning of Mariah Carey.
The suit originally named the memoir’s publishers as defendants, but the judge has let them off the hook. The judge also dismissed many of passages that had been labeled defamatory, including one where Mariah claimed police had to be called when Morgan and her father got into it.
The judge is allowing the suit to proceed particularly over passages in the book that suggest Morgan sold cocaine and may have been in prison.
Oh Lord, have mercy.
In March of ’95, Jamaican singer Diana King gave us one of the greatest songs ever. Co-written by Andy Marvel, Kingsley Gardner and the singer herself, “Shy Guy” will remind you of a time when it was completely normal — and expected, even — for people to BLOW on a banger. With its blend of dancehall and R&B, Diana goes from Patra on the verses to Whitney on the refrain, and the result is perfection.
“Shy Guy” was the lead single from Diana’s debut album, Tougher Than Love, and the Bad Boys soundtrack. Much to my surprise, the song peaked at No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 — it was No. 1 in my household for months.
There were two music videos shot for “Shy Guy.” One with no reference to Bad Boys, and another made for the soundtrack, featuring the movie’s stars, Will Smith and Martin Lawrence, and directed by the movie’s director, Michael Bay (who happens to turn 57 years old today). Check out the latter version below.
Saweetie and H.E.R. are the finest co-pilots you’ve ever seen in the “Closer” video, which is every bit as fun as the accompanying track. The two fly the Icy Airlines jet from city to city, eventually landing in the Philippines, which is a nod to both artists’ heritage.
Of course, Saweetie’s roster is scattered across the globe, so there was someone to hold her closer on each stop. Check the video out below.
According to TMZ, an unnamed woman is accusing Trey Songz of rape and is now suing him for $20 million. The woman reportedly had a consensual relationship with the singer before the incident, which took place on March 24, 2016. The two were at a house party when in LA when he invited her upstairs to have sex.
On the way upstairs, Trey Songz is said to have asked her repeatedly to allow him to penetrate her anally, to which she declined every time. According to court documents, when they finally got upstairs, Trey Songz threw her to the ground, ripped her pants off, pinned her down face-first, and forced his penis into her anus without her consent.
The woman says she escaped when he finally stopped and called an Uber. The Uber driver is said to have taken her to the hospital after noticing she was in distress. At the hospital, sexual assault exam was conducted and it was found that she had anal tears so severe that she would need surgery. The police was called.
The woman says she reported the incident to the police, but never named her attacker because she was in shock and fearing for her life.
This new allegation comes just weeks after singer and basketball player Dylan Gonzalez accused Trey Songz of rape. Through his attorney, the singer has denied this latest allegation.
We’re still in winter, but Saweetie (with an assist from H.E.R.) just gave us something for the summertime and I, for one, couldn’t be happier.
“Closer” is a fun, sexy track with prominent disco influences that make you wanna move. Sonically and thematically, it is quite similar to Doja Cat’s “Kiss Me More” (featuring SZA), but I’m not mad at it because I’ll take a good melody wherever I can get one during these dark times.
Click play and enjoy.
Tomorrow marks 10 years since Whitney Houston’s passing, so in honor of her life and career, let’s take a look back at her crowning achievement.
Back in ’92, Whitney starred in The Bodyguard opposite Kevin Costner. In addition to acting duties, Whitney was responsible for six of the 13 tracks on the movie’s soundtrack, including a cover of Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You,” which was the lead single from the project. While a cover was always part of the plan, it wasn’t always going to be “I Will Always Love You” — Whitney was supposed to cover Jimmy Ruffin’s “What Becomes of the Brokenhearted” until her co-star suggested the Dolly Parton classic. As the story is told, he played the Linda Ronstadt’s version of the song.
Whitney Houston’s take on “I Will Always Love You” is basically a soul-infused refinement of the Ronstadt version. Produced by David Foster, it had the ’90s big ballad sound Whitney was known for, and with her vocals, the song was taken to places every other version prior and afterwards has failed to reach. Oddly enough, Whitney’s label pushed back at the idea of starting a song with an acapella vocal, but after both the singer and Kevin Costner pushed back, they let it rock. Today, that almost-scrapped intro is often cited as one of the most remarkable parts of the song.
Because Whitney was basically covering a cover, she almost didn’t include the bridge on “I Will Always Love You,” which is excluded on the Ronstadt. As legend has it, Dolly Parton somehow found out that Whitney basing her cover on the Ronstadt version, so she called David Foster to make sure it was included because she thought it was important to the song. And thank goodness she did.
Nearly 30 years after its release, “I Will Always Love You” remains popular and is widely seen as the gold standard for vocal performance. It is Whitney Houston’s biggest hit by far and one of the biggest hits the industry has ever seen, ruling the Billboard Hot 100 for a then-unprecedented 14 weeks and reaching No. 1 in just about every country that tracked music airplay and sales. Also, it won every single award it was nominated for, including Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and Record of the Year at the 36th Grammy Awards.
We didn’t get to have Whitney for long enough, but in her time on earth, she left an indelible mark, and for that, I will always love her.
In an Instagram post made a couple of hours ago, Kanye West says he will not perform at Coachella unless Billie Eilish apologizes to Travis Scott for her apparent diss a few days ago.
In case you missed it, a fan needed an inhaler mid-concert at a Billie Eilish show earlier this week in Atlanta. Once the fan was taken care of, without naming names, she said, “I wait for people to be okay before I keep going.” Understandably, this was assumed to be a dig at Travis Scott, who kept performing as people died at Astroworld Festival a few months ago — he later claimed to have no idea that a stampede was taking place.
Kanye West, Billie Eilish and Harry Styles are all scheduled to headline Coachella this year.
According to multiple reports, Sherri Shepherd is in talks to replace Wendy Williams permanently as the talk show host continues to deal with health matters.
The former co-host of The View has been a fan favorite among stand-ins and has delivered the best ratings of the season. Reports say that she is close to finalizing a deal which would see the The Wendy Williams Show renamed for Sherri Shepherd as early as September.