What do you do when you want to create without being told what and when to create? If you’re Janet— Ms. Jackson if You’re Nasty—you create your own record label. Jackson is readying the release of her untitled album under her new record label, Rhythm Nation. Rhythm Nation will “offer a home to both new…

Hollywood is running out of ideas again, so why not remake something that was once a hit? And that’s exactly what Disney is planning to do with Sister Act. The original Sister Act, released in 1992, starred Whoopi Goldberg and was one of Disney’s most successful movies of that decade, earning more than $200 million…

From television visionary to book author, is there anything Shonda Rhimes can’t do? Simon & Schuster announced Tuesday that Rhimes will publish her first book in November. In Year of Yes, Rhimes will write about how she took on the challenge of saying yes, for one year, to unexpected invitations. “Saying yes for an entire year…

Tom Hanks has been called “the nicest guy in the world” for most of his acting career, but his son, aspiring rapper Chet Haze (real name Chester Hanks), is aiming for another title. Which is probably more along the lines of “f—kboy of the year.” Haze, who couldn’t rap himself out of a paper bag,…

After starring as Martin Luther King Jr. in Ava DuVernay’s critically acclaimed movie Selma, David Oyelowo revealed in a recent interview that another big-name director is trying to get him to reprise his role as the civil rights leader. In an interview with Esquire, Oyelowo stated that Steven Spielberg has asked him to portray King…

When he’s not singing or producing music, Akon is busy providing sustainable living options to people in African countries. The Senegalese-American singer’s initiative, appropriately called Akon Lighting Africa, aims to supply electricity to 600 million people in Africa who lack it with the launch of the Solar Academy. Located in Bamako, Mali, the Solar Academy…

When you’ve spent four years in high school, there’s nothing like going out with a bang during graduation. And that’s what the seniors at Hawaii’s Kahuku High and Intermediate School did during their graduation ceremony. The Class of 2015 sang and performed dance routines to “Uptown Funk” by Mark Ronson (featuring Bruno Mars) and the…

The image below shows how many people have been spending their Wednesday nights since the season finale of Empire: Going through withdrawal. But don’t fret, Empire fans. The Fox drama returns Wednesday, Sept. 23, and will include 18 episodes. Taraji P. Henson and the Empire writers tweeted the good news today: https://twitter.com/TherealTaraji/status/604312411114373120https://twitter.com/EmpireWriters/status/604341547639812096 And now we…

NBC is doing things a little bit differently as it casts the role of Dorothy for The Wiz Live! When the network announced the live show, many people had their own ideas as to who should capture the coveted role. In a poll done by The Root, 740 people cast their votes, and the results…

Tidal seems to have 99 problems, and Beyoncé and ownership are one and two. There are those who want to see the music-streaming service fail, and then there are those who praise the ground Jay Z walks on, as well as those who really don’t care either way. But most importantly, there are those who want…