Rick Ross is breaking his silence after several of his Wingstop locations were fined for labor law violations.
As reported by XXL, employees at five Wingstop restaurants in Mississippi were illegally forced to foot the bill for background checks, safety training and uniforms, dropping their hourly rates below the $7.25 federal minimum wage. A 15-year-old employee was also revealed to have worked past 10 p.m. on multiple occasions — despite a law that specifically prohibits those under 16 from working after 7 p.m.
The violations subsequently resulted in a fine; Ross’ Boss Wings Enterprises LLC was forced to pay roughly $114,000 “in back wages, liquidated damages and civil penalties” to the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. The rapper has since taken accountability for the missteps.
“When you’re running a business, there will be mistakes,” Ross said in clips shared on his Instagram Stories. “But as the biggest boss, you never make the same mistake twice. You see, accountability. Taking accountability is big when you the biggest. And remember this, most successful people don’t take stumbling as a set back, but actually a stepping stone to greater things you heard me? Let’s be great. A toast to the hustlers.”
Inquiring Migos fans have been wanting to know why Takeoff was the only member without a verse on their hit “Bad & Boujee.” Nearly six years after the song’s release, there is finally an explanation.
In a teaser for the return of Elliott Wilson and Brian “B. Dot” Miller‘s Rap Radar podcast, Quavo chalked Takeoff’s exclusion up to lack of time, as the group was eager to release a new record.
“I just think it was just timing,” he said. “We was just tryna get something out. We was actually pissed off because we ain’t have no music out a couple months before that little wave.”
The group, Huncho added, eventually decided to leak the song on SoundCloud, as they were embroiled in a lawsuit with their former label, 300 Entertainment.
“Bad & Boujee” was released in 2016 and featured a guest verse from Lil Uzi Vert. The song, Quavo revealed, was supposed to be a collaboration solely between Offset and Lil Uzi, but he managed to squeeze in a verse at the last minute.
“I wasn’t even finna be on it. It was gonna be Set and Uzi,” Huncho explained. “I had to do my verse on some quick, fast, rush shit. It was just everybody running to the song and trying to get it done.”
Fortunately, the single performed well, earning Migos a #1 hit, a Grammy nomination and a four-times Platinum certification.
The Rap Radar interview featuring Quavo and Takeoff — also known as Unc & Phew — premieres Thursday. As for Offset, he’s preparing for the release of his new single, “54321,” due out on Friday.
(NEW YORK) — A Florida appeals court ruled on Monday that a 16-year-old girl was not “mature enough” to decide to terminate her pregnancy.
The decision comes after a circuit judge in northwest Florida ruled that the teen could not get an abortion without notification and consent of a parent or guardian, despite the fact the teen has been found to be “parentless.”
The teen was requesting to bypass the Florida law that requires all individuals in the state under the age of 18 to receive parental consent before obtaining an abortion. At the time of the original hearing, the teen was 10 weeks pregnant, although it is unclear how far along she was at the time of Monday’s decision.
According to the ruling, the teen, unnamed and referred to as Jane Doe 22-B, lives with a relative and has an appointed guardian.
In her initial court filing, the teen said her guardian was “fine” with her pursuing an abortion.
However, Escambia County Circuit Judge Jessica Frydrychowicz denied the bypass request, and a three-judge panel of the 1st District Court of Appeal upheld the decision.
Judges Harvey Jay and Rachel Nordby concurred with the entire decision, holding that the case did not need to be returned to the circuit judge. Judge Scott Makar stood by the decision to block the bypass, but dissented against closing the case, instead asserting that the teen’s request should be returned to the circuit judge for further consideration.
According to Makar’s dissent, the teen is pursuing a GED with “involvement in a program designed to assist young women who have experienced trauma in their lives by providing educational support and counseling.”
The ruling said the teen had endured “renewed trauma” as her friend died shortly before she sought to obtain an abortion.
Makar continued to write that the teen said in a court petition that she was “sufficiently mature” to make a decision about an abortion and was not ready to have a baby, as she did not have a job and the father was unable to assist her.
According to the ruling, the teen came to her circuit hearing with a case worker and a guardian ad-litem child advocate manager. Makar said she had “inexplicably” chosen not to ask for representation by an attorney, which would have been free.
Makar said the trial was conducted admirably, as the trial judge “displayed concern for the minor’s predicament throughout the hearing [and] asked difficult questions of the minor on sensitive personal matters in a compassionate manner.”
However, Makar wrote that the case was a “close call” and that the teen “showed, at times, that she is stable and mature enough to make this decision.”
Makar said in the ruling that the teen had looked into abortion and had gained an understanding of her medical options and their consequences.
The ruling said the court had found that the teen “acknowledges she is not ready for the emotional, physical, or financial responsibility of raising a child” and “has valid concerns about her ability to raise a child.”
Makar, in his dissent, said he believes the trial court wanted to give the teen additional time to deal with her friend’s death before deciding to obtain an abortion, and should be able to return to court to further petition her case.
Florida law bans abortions after 15 weeks, significantly sooner than the 24-week cut off that existed in the state’s laws prior to the overturning of Roe v. Wade in June. The 15-week ban is currently being challenged in state courts.
In the state’s “Parental Notice of and Consent for Abortion Act,” physicians must get written consent from a parent or legal guardian before performing an abortion on a minor. Exceptions are made in medical emergencies or with a waiver from the parents or guardian.
(NEW YORK) — A child in Oregon has tested positive for monkeypox, state health officials announced Wednesday, marking the ninth reported pediatric case in the U.S.
“We have a known connection to a previously diagnosed case,” Dr. Dean Sidelinger, health officer and state epidemiologist at the Oregon Health Authority, said in a press release. “This child did not get the virus at school, child care or another community setting.”
The case has been linked to an adult monkeypox infection that was confirmed last month, officials said, adding that public health authorities received the positive test result on Aug. 15.
Health officials have initiated a case investigation and are conducting contact tracing to determine potential exposures. No additional information on the case will be disclosed at this time, due to patient privacy.
A total of 116 presumptive and confirmed cases of monkeypox have been reported in Oregon, including 112 men and four women.
In total, at least 7 U.S. states and jurisdictions have reported pediatric monkeypox cases.
Earlier this week, health officials in Harris County, Texas, confirmed to ABC News that a presumptive case had been identified in a child under the age of 2.
Officials reported the child has been completely asymptomatic, according to the child’s parents, with no other symptoms other than a residual rash. The child is expected to make a full recovery, and is doing “very, very well,” Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said during a press conference on Tuesday.
“I understand that it’s a very scary thing, and parents have concerns, and what we need to make sure is to be vigilant and understand the risks, not assume the worst. But this reminds us that this is very real,” Hidalgo said.
The family has also been fully cooperative, and is assisting with contact tracing, though the child has not been in any day care or school settings. Thus far, no one else in the child’s circle has been identified as positive for monkeypox, according to officials.
How this child contracted monkeypox is still unknown, Hidalgo said.
“I understand this is a very, very worrisome for parents, especially as school is starting back up knowing that a child in our community has now contracted or as a presumptive positive for the monkey pox virus. It opens up a lot of questions about how this is spread. It makes people very worried. It makes things very tangible,” Hidalgo added.
Although this is indeed a “rare” case, Hidalgo noted that “we always knew that any person in this community can contract monkeypox. We knew that it was possible for a child to be exposed. Anyone can get this virus, so this isn’t entirely unexpected.”
The news of the positive pediatric case in Texas comes after a child in Martin County, Florida, tested positive for monkeypox, according to state health data. The child in Florida is between the ages of 0 and 4 years old, according to the state health data.
Officials in Maine also announced Friday that they, too, had confirmed a positive monkeypox case in a child. No further information about the case has been released due to concerns over patient privacy, officials said.
“Maine CDC [Center for Disease Control and Prevention] is working to identify any others who may have been exposed and make vaccination available to close contacts,” officials wrote in a press release.
In addition to the cases in children reported in Maine and Florida, two cases have been confirmed in California, as well another two in Indiana, and a case in a non-U.S. resident reported in Washington, D.C.
The majority of cases in the current monkeypox outbreak have been detected in gay, bisexual or other men who have sex with men. However, health officials have repeatedly stressed that anyone can contract the virus.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has previously warned that there has been some preliminary evidence to suggest that children younger than 8 years old are at risk of developing more severe illness if infected, alongside pregnant people and those who are immunocompromised.
However, last week, in an effort to protect the youngest Americans, the Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization that allows health care for children under 18 who are at high risk of monkeypox to be vaccinated.
Across the globe, nearly 32,000 cases of monkeypox have now been reported, including nearly 12,000 cases in the U.S. — the most of any country, according to the CDC. All but one U.S. state — Wyoming — have now confirmed at least one positive monkeypox case.
Monkeypox primarily spreads through prolonged skin-to-skin contact with infected people’s lesions or bodily fluids, according to the CDC. In addition to lesions, which can appear like pimples or blisters, the most common symptoms associated with monkeypox are swollen lymph nodes, fever, headache, fatigue and muscle aches.
(WASHINGTON) — Former Vice President Mike Pence on Wednesday castigated Republicans who are attacking the FBI after the agency searched Donald Trump’s residence in Florida.
The Aug. 8 search at Mar-a-Lago, which sources told ABC News is tied to the former president’s alleged mishandling of classified documents and other White House records, has Republicans railing against the federal law enforcement agency as well as the Department of Justice.
Rep. Elise Stefanik, the number 3 House Republican, said the search was “a complete abuse and overreach of its authority.” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., is calling to defund the FBI. Trump himself has consistently assailed the FBI and Department of Justice, calling the raid “an assault on a political opponent at a level never seen before in our Country. Third World!”
The FBI has warned about rising threats against law enforcement since the search. A joint intelligence bulletin obtained by ABC News said there has been an “increase in threats and acts of violence” against law enforcement and government personnel in response to what occurred at Mar-a-Lago.
Last week, a man armed with AR-15 style rifle allegedly tried to break into an FBI field office in Cincinnati and later was shot dead by police. Law enforcement officials said they were investigating the suspect’s social media posts, which included calls for violence in the days after the raid.
Speaking at a political event in Manchester, New Hampshire on Wednesday, Pence said the criticisms coming from members of his own party have to end.
“The Republican Party is the party of law and order,” Pence said. “And these attacks on the FBI must stop; calls to defund the FBI are just as wrong as calls to defund the police.”
Pence said he was “deeply troubled” to learn that a search warrant was executed at Trump’s estate but said the party can still hold Attorney General Merrick Garland accountable “without attacking the rank-and-file law enforcement personnel at the FBI.”
“The truth of the matter is, we need to get to the bottom of what happened,” Pence continued. “We need to let the facts play out, but more than anything else, the American people need to be reassured in the integrity of our justice system and the very appearance of a recurrence of politics playing a role in decisions that the Justice Department demands transparency as never before.”
The vice president said he will continue to urge Attorney General Merrick Garland to make such information available to the public.
Trump and his allies want the search warrant affidavit to be released but the Department of Justice said doing so would jeopardize the integrity of the ongoing investigation.
A hearing is scheduled for Thursday on the request from multiple media outlets, ABC News included, to unseal the affidavit.
Pence also commented on the work of the Jan. 6 committee at the “Politics & Eggs” breakfast at St. Anselm College. The former vice president stating he would consider testifying if asked. Sources have told ABC News that committee investigators have been privately engaging with Pence’s lawyer about securing his potential testimony for months.
“Any formal invitation rendered to us, we’d give it due consideration. But my first obligation is to continue to uphold my oath, continue to uphold this framework of government enshrined in the Constitution, this created the greatest nation in the history of the world,” he said.
Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness has premiered a new single called “Stars.”
“The song is really about how loving someone can be both beautiful and painful,” McMahon explains. “How the hardships and joy visited upon the person you love become your own. When you really love someone, you love them baggage and all.”
You can listen to “Stars” now via digital outlets and watch its accompanying cosmic video streaming now on YouTube.
The most recent Wilderness album is 2018’s Upside DownFlowers. Since then, McMahon has released the one-off singles “Get on My Wave” and “New Year Song.”
McMahon is currently on a U.S. tour with Dashboard Confessional. The joint outing continues Wednesday in Baltimore.
Cole Swindelladded three more dates to his Back Down to the Bar tour this week. In October, he’ll make two extra stops in Georgia, and he also just added a show in Charlotte, North Carolina. For a full list of Back Down to the Bar tour dates, visit his website.
Ashland Craft, Chapel Hart and Brittney Spencer are all on the bill for CMT’s upcoming “Next Women of Country” showcase, set to take place September 28 at City Winery in Nashville.
The Cadillac Three are beefing up their U.S. Hillbilly Hypnotized Tour with several new dates. Check their website to see the full calendar.
Just like they’ve done with Harry Styles, Zayn Malik and Liam Payne, The X Factor UK has released Louis Tomlinson‘s complete first audition. Surprisingly, the majority of the video is comprised of unseen footage.
The then-18-year-old singer is a bundle of nerves as he tries to impress judges Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh and Nicole Scherzinger. Despite his nervousness, the judges keep giving Louis a chance to prove himself — by letting him sing multiple songs.
He starts off by singing Scouting For Girls‘ “Elvis Ain’t Dead,” but Cowell cuts off the music after a few seconds and asks, “What other songs [can you sing]?”
Louis offers to sing Plain White T’s‘ “Hey There Delilah,” and the judges pick up on the fact that he is trying to hold himself together.
“Louis, calm down. It’s a much better song,” Simon instructs, then offers even better advice when the singer admits he’s “so nervous.”
“Look, you know what,” the mega producer says, “You’re actually doing well, which is why we asked you to do a second song. Right? So this is a better song for you.”
Louis manages to stumble through the song, but the judges detect that he just needs to come out of his shell to show them what he’s truly capable of.
“You look a little defeated,” Scherzinger notes, adding he sings so much better when he isn’t pacing the stage. She nods sympathetically as Louis explains he can “do so much better.” But it’s his, “Please, give me a chance,” that really gets the audience on his side.
We all know what happens next — he’s put through to the next round and becomes a member of One Direction, and the rest is history.
The Showtime series has cast Obi-Wan Kenobi actress Simone Kessell in the role of a grown-up version of Lottie Matthews, played as a teen by Courtney Eaton. Eaton has also been upped to series regular on the show.
Last week, the show cast another pivotal role, tapping Six Feet Under actress Lauren Ambrose as the adult version of Liv Hewson’s Van.
The series centers on a high school soccer team forced to survive on their own in the wilderness after a plane crash. It also catches up with the survivors 25 years later.
The first season of Yellowjackets earned seven Emmy nominations, including Outstanding Drama Series, and also respective Outstanding Lead Actress and Outstanding Supporting Actress noms for Melanie Lynskey and Christina Ricci.
(MISSOURI CITY, Texas) — A Texas middle school student had quite the start to her first day of school after she opened her front door to see an alligator.
Running back into the house, her father didn’t believe her until he saw the gator, Mike Trinh wrote in a Facebook post.
Luckily, the Missouri City local said his years of watching the “Crocodile Hunter,” the late Steve Irwin, on TV prepared him to take on the gator.
Trinh, the owner of nearby restaurant Mike’s Seafood, told ABC News on Wednesday that he had to get his kids to school, so he threw a towel over the gator to subdue it and walk past to his car. However, when he returned from his drop-off duties, Trinh said the gator was still on his front porch.
“I’ve never had to deal with a gator like this,” he said. “You see them in the water, but never crawling through the subdivision and up to the front door.”
Trinh said he called Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office who then directed him to the Missouri City Police Department, who Trinh said then directed him to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, which hadn’t yet opened for the day.
After waiting for about an hour, Trinh told ABC News, he decided to address the gator himself.
“I pinned his mouth closed with a sledgehammer and got onto his back,” Trinh said. “I asked my daughter to get duct tape and she started taping his mouth shut. I finished taping up his mouth and then taped his legs together.”
Trinh told ABC News Houston station KTRK that he is a former mixed martial arts fighter, which helped guide him in pinning down the animal.
Eventually, Trinh decided to call a local game warden since he hadn’t heard back from other officials. However, Trinh said the fee would have been $300 to have someone come take the gator, a price he wasn’t willing to pay.
Instead, Trinh and a friend loaded the gator into the back of the truck and drove to a nearby lake. After untaping the gator, Trinh said the animal slid off the back of the truck and into the water.
Experts say that it’s unusual for an alligator to approach humans, as they usually will stay within the water.
However, if you do find yourself squaring off with a gator, experts offer several tips on how to fight back and get away.
