culture

If Kelly Rowland can come around to the idea that she shines more (not less) because of her proximity to Beyoncé, there’s hope for the rest of us, Ann Friedman writes at New York magazine in a piece explaining “shine theory.” Kelly Rowland has done okay for herself since her days with Destiny’s Child. More…

In London, protests have erupted following the fatal stabbing of British soldier Lee Rigby on a busy street last month, writes Reuters. The suspects, who remain in police custody, claimed to have killed Rigby in retaliation for the suffering of Islamic people internationally. Their actions ignited a political firestorm, which has spilled into the city…

On Friday, fiction author William Demby passed away in his Sag Habor, N.Y., home, reports the New York Times. He was 90. Demby lived in Italy for quite some time, where he penned novels like Beetlecreek (1950) and The Catacombs (1965). He also wrote Love Story Black (1978) and King Comus, which has yet to…

“I can’t stop the rumors from starting, and I can’t really change people’s minds who believe them,” Beyoncé wrote on her Tumblr page recently, according to the Daily News, in reaction to the latest rumors that she is pregnant. The star gave birth to her first child, daughter Blue Ivy, in 2012. “All I can…

(The Root) — Hot 97 Summer Jam XX should be one for the books. On June 2, New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium will host music fans and industry virtuosos ready to celebrate the show’s 20th birthday as if it were their own. With a stellar lineup — Kendrick Lamar, Chris Brown, Miguel, A$AP Rocky, 2 Chainz…

Writing at Ebony, Michael Arceneaux says the Republican is “a black face spouting the kind of nonsense you’d expect to hear at a gathering of White nationalists.” Are we going to have to wait for every one of the bullheaded bigoted white conservatives strangling the Republican Party into submission to drop dead before we get…

Colorlines‘ Brentin Mock says a Justice Department agreement will decrease excessive suspensions and expulsions of mostly young black students for trivial infractions like wearing the wrong colored socks. The sealing of the school-to-prison pipeline in Meridian, Miss. has officially started after a U.S. District Court judge approved what the Department of Justice is calling “a…

Ka’Nard Allen will get to spend his 11th birthday living in the lap of luxury after being injured by gunfire at a Mother’s Day parade in New Orleans, according to Reuters.  After hearing that Ka’Nard wanted to spend his birthday swimming in a hotel pool, Tod Chambers, general manager of the French Quarter’s historic Roosevelt New…

Did you ever have to wear a school uniform? The ill-constructed polo shirts, the extremely hot khaki pants … and who could forget the clunky shoes that seemed to make your feet weigh a ton? While this description might seem like a nightmare to some, to Minneapolis-based youth hip-hop groups Y.N. Rich Kids and the…

Remember Miguel’s onstage acrobatics gone wrong? At the Billboard Music Awards on May 20, the R&B singer jumped over the audience during his performance, accidentally kicking Khyati Shah in the head and throwing her onto the stage floor behind her. Though she and the singer seemed to be friendly and on good terms after the…