Author: Melodi Blackmon, DI

Grammy-award winning actor and dancehall artist Louie Rankin has died. What We Know: On Monday, September 30, Rankin died in a car crash. The day before, Rankin had posted on his Instagram that he was in Toronto, Canada, filming a new movie. https://www.instagram.com/p/B3AeNGclXRn/ Rankins’ executive assistant/girlfriend, Jewlz Sykes, confirmed his death after posting a slideshow of them together with their children. https://www.instagram.com/p/B3DqRh6F_R_/ Rankin is most famously known for his role as “Ox” in the 1998 film, Belly, with co-stars/rappers Nas and DMX. He also played Teddy Bruckshut in the 2002 film, Shottas. After filming Belly, Rankin and Nas remained friends…

Real Housewives of Atlanta reality star Eva Marcille has welcomed her third child. What We Know: On Friday, September 27, the season three winner of America’s Next Top Model gave birth to her third child, Maverick. This is her second child with husband and attorney, Michael Sterling. Earlier this year in May, Marcille confirmed with Us that she was expecting and was due in the fall. A month later, she confessed to Extra that she and hubby Michael were expecting a baby boy. “I haven’t told anyone,” she expressed. Marcille’s first child, four-year-old Marley is fathered by ex-boyfriend and R&B…

New plans in Egypt have been found to hurt President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. What We Know: On Friday, September 27, thousands of Egyptian citizens came together and protested President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s new five-year rule. According to Egypt’s parliament, the country ruled that el-Sisi’s new term would be extended from four years to six, making him eligible to run for President again in 2024. The protestors gathered in many cities throughout Egypt, including the capital, Cairo. Egyptian police officials were able to end many of the protests before they got out of hand, due to some of them being a…

Rapper Kanye West announces that he will no longer make rap or secular music and will continue to focus on the gospel genre only. What We Know: This past weekend, Kanye West was due to drop his ninth album, Jesus Is King. After being pushed back for a year now, it is still unclear when the highly anticipated album will drop. The album was due to drop throughout the Friday, September 27th-Sunday, September 29th weekend, which was indicated by beauty mogul and West’s wife, Kim Kardashian on her social media. Although it hasn’t been released yet, West held three exclusive…

Legendary comedian Bill Cosby has been hit with a $2.75 million bill in legal fees. What We Know: Cosby, 82, was found guilty in 2018 of drugging and molesting a woman in 2004. He was sentenced to three to ten years. As his first year in prison comes to a close, Cosby began to challenge a California arbitration award. CBS News reports that the award was almost $7 million compared to the $9 million bill from his first sexual assault trial in 2017. A judge agreed with Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, a Los Angeles firm, on Friday to reject…

Atlanta rapper Young Dro will serve time for throwing banana pudding at his girlfriend. What We Know: WSB-TV news reported that last week D’Juan Hart a.k.a Young Dro pled guilty to one count of battery and family violence. He was sentenced to a year in jail but, since he’s served twenty days already, he has been sentenced to seventy days. He will also receive credit for the days he has already served. The “Shoulder Lean” rapper got into an argument with his girlfriend in July over money. When the altercation began to escalate the two began throwing food at each…

On Sunday, “Pose” star Billy Porter won an Emmy for Best Actor. What We Know: Porter, 50 plays Pray Tell, the ballroom announcer on the FX hit series, “Pose.” Porter made this win one for the books, considering he is the first openly black gay man to win this award, as well as, being nominated. “I’m so overjoyed to have lived long enough to see this day,” Porter exclaimed, during his acceptance speech at the 71st Emmy’s show. He received a standing ovation while thanking the other nominees: Jason Bateman, Sterling K. Brown, Kit Harington, Bob Odendirk and Milo Ventimiglia.…

Famous Olympic sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos will be inducted into the Olympic Hall of Fame. What We Know: Tommie Smith (75) and John Carlos (74) were sprinters in the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games. The two received their medals and held gloved fists into the air, while the “Star-Spangled Banner” was playing. Since then, the two men have not only become a significant part of Black history but, they were also shunned from the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC). The league has been trying for years to get the two athletes back in. The duo will…

Grammy award-winning singer/actress Mariah Carey has premiered the theme song for new ABC series, ‘Mixed-ish’. What We Know: On Tuesday, Carey premiered the new theme song for ABC’s ‘Grown-ish’ spinoff, ‘Mixed-ish’. The song is entitled “In the Mix”. The song was first heard at the “Embrace Your Ish” event at Goya Studios in Los Angeles, California. The event also featured installments dedicated to each show in the series. Guests wore flower crowns to take portrait pictures in the “mixed-ish” part, while other partygoers got a chance to step into Dre’s shoe closet for the “black-ish” segment. Lastly, in the “grown-ish”…

Barron Hilton, chairman of the Hilton hotel chain and founder of the AFL passed away on Thursday, September 19 at the age of 91. What We Know: Barron Hilton was born in Dallas, Texas in 1927 and served as a photographer in the Navy. He had a love for aviation ever since a little boy and by the time he was seventeen, he was a trained flyer. Hilton was an entrepreneur for twenty years and even founded the American Football League, which is now the NFL American Football Conference in which he was also a founding owner of the now…