Drake‘s new hairdo has sparked a ton of jokes from his celebrity friends.
On Thursday, the rapper debuted his new look — a slicked back fro/mullet — on Instagram and asked his followers to “give this guy a name.” He was then met with a few amusing responses from friends and peers who took the opportunity to poke fun at him.
“RAZOR AUBREY RAMONE aka SCOTT HALL,” Quavo wrote in the comments. The Game suggested “Lionel Hella Richie,” and UGK‘s Bun B told Drake to call his new look “Slick Willie Brown.”
“Church Preach Tabernacle” — suggested by Snoop Dogg‘s son Cordell Broadus — and Popcaan‘s “Big pimpin me killy” were among the other funny names listed as a response to Drake’s new ‘do.
Drizzy’s new hairstyle arrives months after he made headlines for braiding his hair. He previously rocked what was then his signature fade.
It seems hard to believe, but Mickey Guyton’s baby boy, Grayson, isn’t such a baby anymore. The singer’s son, who was born in February 2021, is officially starting to form words.
“Oh my God, y’all, he’s talking!” Mickey gushed to ET Online on the red carpet of the ACM Honors awards show in Nashville on Wednesday.
“He’s saying words. He can say ‘octopus’ — or, he said ‘ocpus.’ And ‘dinosaur.’ It’s just crazy!” she continues, going on to say that little Grayson is also starting to understand what his mom does for a living.
“He really loves to see me [and hear me]. He’s at the point where he can, like, recall songs, so he knows it’s his mama,” Mickey details.
Grayson will get plenty of chances to see and hear his mom perform new music in the months ahead. She’s planning to put three new songs out this year, starting with “Somethin’ Bout You,” which is out Friday.
Lil Wayne‘s Lil Weezyana Fest has been postponed days before it was set to take place. The event, originally scheduled for this weekend, has been pushed back to the fall.
In a post announcing the news, Wayne chalked the delay up to “unforeseen circumstances.” He then issued an apology to those who’d already purchased tickets to the show.
“It is with my sincerest apologies that I must announce…due to unforeseen circumstances, Lil Weezyana Fest will be postponed until Oct 29,” he wrote on Instagram. “To my fans, you know I always want to deliver the best show possible and we hope this has not inconvenienced you in anyway.”
Weezyana Festival, Wayne’s annual event in his hometown of New Orleans, will feature performances from Moneybagg Yo, Coi Leray, Babyface Ray and Rob4, as well as some “unsurprised guests.” Tickets for the original sold-out show will be honored.
Hyro the Hero has premiered a new song called “Who’s That Playing on the Radio?” featuring Mötley Crüe guitarist Mick Mars and Asking Alexandria vocalist Danny Worsnop.
The track was recorded for the upcoming thriller film The Retaliators.
In a statement, Hyro calls “Who’s That Playing on the Radio?” a “perfect example of when worlds collide.”
“Not only do you hear the epic vocals of Danny Worsnop of Asking Alexandria, but you also get the legendary guitar skills of Mick Mars of Mötley Crüe,” he says. “It’s the perfect mix to bring about my description of two opposing sides ready to go to war and creating noise among the masses.”
You can listen to “Who’s That Playing on the Radio?” now via digital outlets and watch its accompanying video streaming now on YouTube.
The Retaliators will hit theaters on September 14. Its soundtrack — which includes the Retaliators theme “21 Bullets” featuring Mötley Crüe, Asking Alexandria, Ice Nine Kills and From Ashes to New, as well as contributions from Papa Roach, Five Finger Death Punch and The Hu — drops September 16.
In a recent Variety feature, actress-turned-director Olivia Wilde expounded on how she got Harry Styles the lead role in her new movie Don’t Worry Darling: She had to fire Shia LaBeouf.
Wilde explained that while she was an “admirer” of the embattled actor’s work, “His process was not conducive to the ethos that I demand in my productions.”
She commented, “He has a process that, in some ways, seems to require a combative energy … I believe that creating a safe, trusting environment is the best way to get people to do their best work.”
Further, she said she felt the need to “protect” her cast from the actor.
For his part, Shia showed Variety texts and emails reportedly sent before and after the recasting was done, and a message to her after Wilde’s feature piece broke.
“You and I both know the reasons for my exit. I quit your film because your actors and I couldn’t find time to rehearse,” the actor reportedly said.
In the email, LaBeouf alluded to his troubled past, battles with alcohol and accusations he was abusive to recording artist FKA Twigs while they were dating.
“I write to you now with 627 days of sobriety and a moral compass that never existed before my great humbling …,” he told Wilde.
“I reached out to you a few months ago to make amends; & I still pray one day, you can…forgive me for the failed collaboration we shared.”
That said, LaBeouf insisted to the director, “Firing me never took place, Olivia. And while I fully understand the attractiveness of pushing that story because of the current social landscape, the social currency that brings. It is not the truth…”
Drowning Pool has debuted a new song called “Choke,” which will appear on the band’s upcoming album, Strike a Nerve.
The track, which is available now via digital outlets, follows the previously released single “Mind Right.”
“Musically, we really wanted to push ourselves to extremes on this album and venture outside our musical comfort zone with some of the songwriting and playing — like you hear on ‘Mind Right,'” says guitarist CJ Pierce. “But ‘Choke’ is a perfect mix of the more traditional Drowning Pool style and the foundation we laid on the Sinner record, and the ever-evolving band that we have become with [vocalist] Jasen Moreno.”
Strike a Nerve will be released September 30. It’s the follow-up to 2016’s Hellelujah.
LCD Soundsystem is contributing a new song to the upcoming film White Noise, Variety reports.
The track, which is titled “New Body Rhumba,” is set to premiere later this year and marks the first fresh, original material from James Murphy and company to follow their 2017 reunion album, American Dream.
White Noise, which is based on the Don DeLillo novel of the same name, is set to screen at the 2022 Venice and New York film festivals, and will stream on Netflix. The movie is directed by Noah Baumbach and stars Adam Driver, Greta Gerwig and Don Cheadle.
By the way, this isn’t the first time White Noise has intersected with the alternative rock world. Events in the book’s plot inspired The Airborne Toxic Event‘s band name.
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden’s plans to cancel student loans will particularly impact Black Americans, who carry much of the burden of student loan debt.
“The burden is especially heavy on Black and Hispanic borrowers, who on average have less family wealth to pay for it,” Biden said in a tweet. “And the pandemic only made things worse.”
For those making under $125,000 a year, $10,000 in loans will be erased. For borrowers who received federal Pell grants, which is aid given to undergraduate students who display “exceptional financial need,” up to $20,000 in loans could be canceled.
Nearly 45% of borrowers, or 20 million people, will have their debt fully canceled, according to the White House.
For the remaining 55%, a new plan will offer more relaxed terms for loan repayment. This means cutting the amount that borrowers have to pay each month in half, from 10% to 5% of discretionary income, and covering borrower’s unpaid monthly interest, among other efforts.
“I just can’t underscore what a huge deal this is in millions of borrowers’ lives,” said Kyra Taylor, an attorney at the National Consumer Law Center.
Impact on people of color
Several racial advocacy groups have cheered Biden’s decision as a “step in the right direction.”
“Approximately one in four Black Americans have negative net worth — meaning their total debt exceeds their total assets,” said the civil rights group National Action Network in a statement. “The administration expects the first $10,000 of debt relief will move over half a million Black Americans from a negative to a positive net worth.”
More Black students take out loans than white students: 71% compared to 56%, according to the research organization Education Data Initiative.
Black college graduates owe $25,000 more in student debt on average than white graduates, the Department of Education found. And four years after graduation, 48% of Black students owe an average of 12.5% more than they borrowed, according to the Education Data Initiative.
Black students make up 72% of Pell grant recipients, according to the DOE.
A typical Black borrower will see his or her loan balance cut nearly in half and more than one in four Black borrowers will have their balance forgiven, according to the White House.
Black women, in particular, carry a disproportionate burden of student debt. They hold nearly two-thirds of the nearly $2 trillion outstanding student debt in the U.S., according to data from the Census Bureau.
About half of Latino borrowers will have their entire federal loan debt forgiven thanks to the $10,000 loan cancellation plan, according to higher education research and advocacy group Excelencia in Education.
“Because of racial disparities in intergenerational wealth, Black and Latino students aren’t just more likely to need to borrow student loans to go and get an education, but we also know that predatory for-profit colleges that cost more to attend also target Black and Latino populations around the country, which results in many Black and brown borrowers having larger balances,” Taylor of National Consumer Law Center said.
Advocates say there’s more to do
Following the announcement, some criticized the Biden administration for not doing enough to tackle racial inequities and college affordability, which will continue to impact students and borrowers.
Several critics pointed to the persisting racial wealth gap as a reason to further improve student cancellation for students of color most burdened by economic inequality. In 2019, the Brookings Institute found that the median white household held $188,200 in wealth, which was 7.8 times that of the typical Black household.
The National Action Network has called on Congress to “provide relief by passing legislation to further build upon the president’s actions.”
“The $125,000 income cap will leave a large amount of the population behind, especially in an era of high inflation,” said NAN. “A Black doctor or attorney who earns above the cap could very well have six-figure student debt. Low levels of cancellation might leave already distressed Black borrowers struggling with repayment.”
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) also spoke out in favor of a larger relief plan.
“President Biden’s cancelation of some student debt for certain Americans is a step in the right direction but wholly insufficient to make a serious dent in the student debt crisis and growing racial wealth gap,” said CAIR Director of Government Affairs Department Robert S. McCaw in a statement.
He continued, “We call on President Biden to use his executive authority to cancel at least $50,000 in student debt for all borrowers and create interest free federal student loans that will help millions of Americans trapped in compounding interest-based debt that in many cases has become impossible to pay back.”
(WASHINGTON) — Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on Friday will host a fundraiser with Senate candidates in key battleground states a week after appearing to criticize the “quality” — of some GOP Senate candidates.
Herschel Walker, running for Senate in Georgia, Dr. Mehmet Oz, a Senate candidate in Pennsylvania, and Rep. Ted Budd, running for Senate in North Carolina, will attend McConnell’s event in Louisville, Kentucky, a source familiar with the planned event confirmed to ABC News.
The same source said the event had been organized in June.
Last week, McConnell seemed to suggest that the quality of some GOP candidates could make it more difficult for the party to retake the Senate.
“I think there’s probably a greater likelihood the House flips than the Senate,” McConnell said at a Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce luncheon in Florence, Kentucky, last week. “Candidate quality has a lot to do with the outcome.”
The comments fueled more criticism from former President Donald Trump, who once again voiced his disapproval of McConnell, going as far as calling for his removal as the Senate Republican leader.
“Mitch McConnell is not an Opposition Leader, he is a pawn for the Democrats to get whatever they want. He is afraid of them, and will not do what has to be done. A new Republican Leader in the Senate should be picked immediately!” Trump said in a statement Wednesday.
Trump and McConnell have at times been at odds during the midterm election season as Trump continued to assert his powers over the Republican party, endorsing candidates up and down the ballot.
While McConnell and Trump aligned on Senate candidates in Georgia and Nevada, the two are in a standoff in Alaska’s Senate race.
McConnell’s super PAC has backed Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Arkansas — who voted to convict Trump during his second impeachment trial — in her reelection bid against Trump-endorsed candidate Kelly Tshibaka. Tshibka has publicly said she would not support McConnell as GOP leader. The two candidates have both advanced to the general election.
After a primary season in which McConnell tried to stay relevantly neutral, he is doubling down on his efforts of ensuring Republicans take back control of Congress.
The Senate Leadership Fund, a super PAC linked to McConnell, announced it is reserving $34.1 million in Pennsylvania, $37 million in Georgia, and $27.6 million in North Carolina to support the Republican nominees.
“The stakes in this election could not be higher. It is imperative that Republicans regain control of the Senate and serve as a firewall against President Biden’s disastrous policies. I am determined to do everything I can to ensure our candidates have the resources they need to win this November,” said McConnell.
The spat between McConnell and the former president have left vulnerable candidates stuck between seeking help from McConnell and his Super PAC as they are being outraised by their Democratic opponents while also maintaining their close ties to Trump, who has endorsed all three candidates attending the fundraiser.
Oz, who is holding a rally with Trump next weekend in Pennsylvania, tried to distance himself from McConnell’s remarks, saying they weren’t about him.
In a Fox Business interview, Oz said McConnell has “expressed himself quite clearly with his pocketbook” and claimed the senator has donated tens of millions of dollars to the ex-television host’s campaign.
“He was highlighting that the quality of candidates does matter a lot in statewide races. It always matters,” Oz said.
In Georgia, Walker downplayed McConnell’s remarks to ABC News Tuesday.
“I got in this race to win it. I never got in it to follow Washington around. I said I’m here for the people,” Walker said.
Budd did not respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
Political experts said McConnell’s comments are emblematic of a growing sentiment among a subset of Republicans who are now grappling with a lack of experienced candidates embattled with scandals in a contentious general election cycle.
“I think McConnell is, you know, just upset that, you know, that Trump pushed all these inexperienced and fringe candidates for Senate nominations and I think he was absolutely truthful on saying that this is could very cost Republicans control of the Senate,” Alan Abramowitz, Professor emeritus of political science at Emory University said.
Georgia’s GOP Lt. Gov Duncan told ABC News that name recognition can only take candidates so far.
“I mean, the whole gravitational pull towards, you know, finding some sort of, you know, star or celebrity status, individual to run seems to be the perfect recipe to win a primary, but it’s proving to make it more difficult to win a general,” Duncan said.
“Republicans failed to recruit or nominate their strongest candidates in a number of these Senate races and ended up with candidates who I think are struggling as a result,” Abramowitz added.
McConnell’s comments not only highlight the tense battle for regaining a GOP majority but also puts the political future of former President Donald Trump on the ballot in November should his backed Senate candidates not win in the general election.
All three Republican candidates are lagging behind their Democratic opponents, according to FiveThirtyEight’s recent polling average.
Georgia’s Democratic Sen. Warnock leads Walker 46.2% to 44.4%. Dr. Oz lags behind opponent John Fetterman by nine points. In a tighter race, North Carolina’s Cheri Beasley leads Budd by 0.1%.
Now, Republicans are pushing for a more unified message among party leaders and hope candidates start focusing on drilling down delivering a strong conservative policy message.
“Our problems continue to get worse and worse and heavier and heavier and heavier. And to me, that’s forcing Americans back to saying, okay, timeout, I’m gonna have to spend more than 10 seconds watching a commercial before I make my decision or Hey, I’m not gonna just vote for the person that’s the snarkiest on Twitter anymore. I’ve got to go figure out what this person believes on inflation, national security, immigration, all the big issues that are now affecting kitchen tables and boardrooms and everything in between,” Duncan said.
(LA JOYA, Texas) — A 5-year-old boy died after he was found in a hot car outside a South Texas elementary school, officials said.
A 911 call came in at 4:04 p.m. Thursday reporting that an unresponsive boy was found inside a car parked at Dr. Americo Paredes Elementary, La Joya Independent School District Police Chief Raul Gonzalez said at a news conference Friday.
The temperature climbed to 101 degrees in Hidalgo County on Thursday, with a heat index — what temperature it feels like with humidity — of 105 degrees.
The little boy was a relative of a campus staff member, Gonzalez said. The boy, whose name was not released, was also a student in the district, according to La Joya Independent School District Superintendent Dr. Gisela Saenz.
“I want to assure parents and our community that our schools are safe. This was an isolated incident,” Saenz said at the news conference. “We’re providing support to our students and staff with additional counseling services.”
His death came on the elementary school’s ninth day of the new year.
This marks the 19th child to die from a hot car in the U.S. so far this year, according to national nonprofit KidsAndCars.org.
More than 1,000 kids have died in hot cars since 1990, the organization said.
Click here for tips to keep your kids safe in hot cars.
