SO WHAT HAPPENED?

Photo: Essence.com Essence has announced its 2026 Essence Festival of Culture will return to New Orleans from July 3, 2026 through July 5, 2026 at the Caesars Superdome. In celebration of Women’s History Month, the company also revealed the festival’s first wave of performers.  R&B artist Brandy and Monica, who recently went on their The Boy Is Mine Tour last fall are set to perform. Patti LaBelle, R&B singer Kehlani and rappers Cardi B and Latto were also announced as perfo

A$AP Rocky and Rihanna at the Cannes Film Festival in 2025. Photo: Ernesto Ruscio / Getty Images file Police have identified the woman who is accused of shooting at Rihanna's House. Officials say the billionaire multi-hyphenate star was at home with her kids and partner A$AP Rocky at the time of the shooting. A spokesperson for the Los Angeles Police Department told The Hollywood Reporter that 35-year-old Ivanna Lisette Ortiz was booked for attempted murder. Her bail has bee

Queen Latifah (left), Taraji P. Henson (right) (Photo: Violeta Sofia/Courtesy/-- Deadline.com ) Lifetime Network recently revealed that they inked deals for new projects with Queen Latifah and Taraji P. Henson. Queen Latifah will executive produce three new Lifetime original movies through her production company, Flavor Unit Entertainment, alongside her longtime producing partner Shakim Compere, according to  Variety . Henson will executive produce two original films throug

WEST HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 31: Singer Ray J (R) and his mother Sonja Bates-Norwood attend WE tv’s premiere of “Kendra On Top” and “Driven To Love” at Estrella Sunset on March 31, 2016 in West Hollywood, California. (Photo by Jonathan Leibson/Getty Images for WE tv) Ray J's mom, Sonja Norwood stepped up in the social media streets to address rumors about her son's health. Recently, Ray J revealed that a doctor told him, he only has months to live and his heart is in ba

Photo: Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images The Florida Senate has passed a bill to help high school athletes. Recently the Teddy Bridgewater ACT also known as  CS/CS/SB 178   was passed for K-12 grade head coaches to use $15,000 in personal funds per year to support student-athlete welfare. The bill was passed by a 38-0 vote. And it requires, "the Florida High School Athletic Association to adopt bylaws authorizing a head coach to support the welfare of a student by using personal fu

Photo: TIME Magazine 2026 Teyana Taylor has been on fire recently as the musician/actor has been making heat in the industry. Now, the artist can add another achievement to her belt, as TIME Magazine named her as one of TIME’s Women of the Year . Taylor, who recognizes herself as a creative revealed that people in the industry told her to focus on one thing at a time, but she refused to pick a lane. According to Taylor, she predicted her future. “I love when it’s hard—that me

Courtesy of Warner Bros. Netflix is rebooting another classic with their latest creation of Scooby Doo . The media company is creating a live action version of the series that already has many installments in its saga. The show was picked up for 8 episodes in March 2025. The official log-line for the show describes it as a modern reimagining of the popular cartoon show. "A modern reimagining of the iconic mystery-solving group of teens and their very special dog. During their

Photo: Marsha Ambrosius's Threads account A neo-soul duo has announced they are getting back together on tour. Floetry consisting of Marsha Ambrosius and Natalie Stewart announced the “Say Yes” tour , along with soul artists Raheem DeVaughn and Teedra Moses. The tour will be their first national tour together in 10 years, and is being produced by the  Black Promoters Collective (BPC) . The 16-city trek kicks off April 9 in Newark, New Jersey and wraps May 17 in Oakland, Calif

"Uncle Luke" Luther Campbell photographed in 2015. Photo: Stian Roenning Rapper turned activist Uncle Luke is putting in his bid for Congress. The rapper whose real name is Luther Campbell is setting out to become the next state congressman for the 20th District. Campbell is no stranger to politics, as the rapper ran for Miami-Dade Mayor in 2011 . He was 1 out 11 in the race for mayor, and he came out in 4th place. "After decades of fighting for my community—from the courtr

The judges and host of the new Star Search reboot. Chrissy Teigen, left, Jelly Roll, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Anthony Anderson. Photo: Netflix The iconic TV show Star Search has returned with a bang, and the season finale ended with magic. After being off air for over two decades, Netflix revised the talent show in 2026 with Anthony Anderson as the host. The reboot features judges Jelly Roll, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Chrissy Teigen who focus on interactive, and real-time

The cast of America's Next Top Model cycle four. Photograph: Hyungwon Ryoo/CBS Broadcasting Inc. The internet is talking after Netflix released reviews of the upcoming documentary that explores the problems of a past show. Supermodel Tyra Banks shook up the TV and model world in 2003 when the show America’s Next Top Model premiered. The new  Netflix documentary   “Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model” showcases the behind the scenes commotion, and the complicated l

A$AP Rocky at the 2025 CFDA Fashion Awards held at The American Museum of Natural History on November 03, 2025 in New York, New York. Photo: John Nacion A$AP Rocky  is heading back to class but this time he was the teacher instead of the student. On an episode of Celebrity Substitute, the rapper played teacher for a day teaching Harlem students about music and life lessons. The rapper who recently released his fourth studio album titled Don’t be Dumb , visited Harlem’s PS 125

Couple really got married during Bad Bunny's 2026 Super Bowl performance. Photo Credit : Neilson Barnard/Getty; Kevin Mazur/Getty One couple had a night to remember at this year’s Super Bowl. Not only was the night fueled with a game between the Patriots vs. Seahawks, and a performance highlighting hispanic culture but it was also a night of matrimonial love for one couple. The couple featured in Bad Bunny's Super Bowl LX halftime performance were legally married during the s

Druski's Coulda Been Love season 2 (Photo: Youtube) Druski continues to keep the comedy coming with a new season of Coulda Been Love . The comedian dropped a trailer for season two of the love show that was packed with laugher and fights. Throughout the trailer celebrity guests could be seen including Yung Miami and Sexyy Red. Popular streamer Kai Cenat can be heard on the trailer talking to Druski about the women in the house. The second season of Coulda Been Love shows that

Floyd Mayweather Jr. has filed a $340 million lawsuit against Showtime Sports and former Showtime Sports president Stephen Espinoza. (Photo: Ethan Miller via Getty Images) Boxer Floyd Mayweather is suing Showtime with claims that he is owed money he earned but has never seen. Despite the boxer being on the Forbes list as the highest-paid athlete from 2012 to 2014, Floyd says he has not seen a lot of that money. The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday and obtained by ESPN, seeks to "rec

Photo: WireImage Nicki Minaj has been in the headlines lately, but it’s not for her music. This time the artist has made news for clapping back at others after Sunday night's Grammy Awards. Minaj went to social media to respond to the Grammy’s 2026 host Trevor Noah, who made jokes about the musician and her connection to President Trump. She clapped back at not only Noah but also Chrissy Teigen and Lizzo. “As they do their ritual tonight, God almighty will reveal himself to

Photo by Raymond Hall/GC Images The talk show world has been shaken up after major announcements this week. One of the major announcements came hours after Kelly Clarkson announced the end of her talk show. It was announced that Sherri Shepherd ’s show ‘Sherri’ was canceled after four seasons. Sherri who previously co-hosted ‘The View’ from 2007 to 2014, began hosting her own show in 2022. Her show began after Wendy Williams’ exit from daytime TV, as a way to succeed the prev

Mýa visits the SiriusXM Studios in July 2019 in New York City. (Photo Credit: Noam Galai/Getty) Mýa dropped some news for the new year that her fans will love. The singer announced the release of a new single happening this month. The Grammy-winning artist announced her upcoming single “ASAP” which is set to drop on January 30. Even though she last released a full project in 2018, the singer never stopped dropping singles. In 2025 she released “Face to Face” and “Give It To

Master P performs with The Soul Rebels during 2025 NOLA Funk Fest at Spanish Plaza on October 18, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo: Erika Goldring) Master P  has teamed up with nonprofit Make Good Nola to turn wheelchairs for kids into something a little more fun. The mogul shared a video on his Instagram of him and his team helping design and deliver custom wheelchairs for kids with disabilities. Make Good Nola also made a post on social media acknowledging the entrepr

Photo: Jay Biggerstaff / NWSL / Getty Images file Soccer star Trinty Rodman is kicking off her new year with a deal that helped her make history. After five years playing soccer for the Washington Spirit, the 23-year-old has signed a contract with the team for another three years. The deal is more than $2 million annually,  according to The Athletic . Signing the deal makes her the highest paid woman in the sport. “I think I've always had a vision and an idea of what I wanted